Caroline Apovian, MD, a leading obesity medicine specialist specializing in medical treatments for obesity and monitoring type 2 diabetes, can provide insight into recent research suggesting that weight loss surgery may reverse type 2 diabetes.
Weight loss and increased physical fitness nearly halved the decline in mobility in overweight or obese adults with type 2 diabetes, according to four-year results of the Look AHEAD (Action for Health in Diabetes) trial funded by the National Institutes of Health. The research could lead to lower health care costs for people with type 2 diabetes.
In the first published study of its kind, researchers from the Catholic University/Policlinico Gemelli in Rome, Italy, and NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center found that bariatric surgery dramatically outperforms standard medical treatment of severe type 2 diabetes.
Intervention by peer mentors has a statistically significant effect on improving glucose control in African American veterans with diabetes, according to a study by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the Philadelphia VA Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion (CHERP). Full results of the study were published in the March 20th issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
A University of Virginia-developed artificial pancreas that could potentially automate care for millions of Type 1 diabetes patients has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for a key testing phase. The FDA recently approved the first U.S. outpatient clinical trials for the device, created by a UVA School of Medicine research team led by Patrick Keith-Hynes, PhD, and Boris Kovatchev, PhD.
A new study by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center reveals that the presence of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) bacteria is associated with elevated levels of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), an important biomarker for blood glucose levels and diabetes. The association was even stronger in obese individuals with a higher Body Mass Index (BMI). The results, which suggest the bacteria may play a role in the development of diabetes in adults, are available online in The Journal of Infectious Diseases.
A new research survey conducted by the Center for the Study of Asian American Health at NYU Langone Medical Center shows the Bangladeshi community in New York City experiences numerous barriers to diabetes care because of limited English proficiency and lack of diabetes awareness.
A study by Columbia researchers suggests that cells in the patient’s intestine could be coaxed into making insulin, circumventing the need for a stem cell transplant. Until now, stem cell transplants have been seen by many researchers as the ideal way to replace cells lost in type I diabetes and to free patients from insulin injections. The research—conducted in mice—was published 11 March 2012 in the journal Nature Genetics.
A small clinical trial led by researchers at UC San Diego School of Medicine and VA San Diego Healthcare System (VASDHS) found that patients with advanced heart failure and type 2 diabetes showed improved mitochondrial structure after three months of treatment with epicatechin-enriched cocoa. Epicatechin is a flavonoid found in dark chocolate.
UT Southwestern Medical Center cardiologists have uncovered how a specific protein’s previously unsuspected role contributes to the deterioration of heart muscle in patients with diabetes. Investigators in the mouse study also have found a way to reverse the damage caused by this protein.
Too high? Too low? Only about half of those with type 2 diabetes have their blood sugar levels on target, but a new drug, studied by the University of Michigan shows promise in managing glucose levels. TAK-875 works by boosting the release of insulin from pancreatic B cells, but only when diabetics need it most – such as when glucose and fatty acids rise in the blood after a meal.
Researchers have combined bioactive peptides to stimulate wound healing. The peptides act by stimulating the growth of new blood vessels and promoting re-growth of tissue. Further development of these peptides could lead to a treatment for chronic and acute wounds. The study was published in PLoS ONE.
In a reversal of two decades of medical reports, a Mayo Clinic study finds the frequency of nerve damage called diabetic polyneuropathy is similar in prediabetic patients and healthy people. Physicians should seek explanations other than prediabetes for patients who have painful small fiber polyneuropathy, the researchers say. The study was published in the February issue of Diabetes Care.
Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have made a surprising discovery about the origin of diabetes. Their research suggests that problems controlling blood sugar — the hallmark of diabetes — may begin in the intestines. The new study, in mice, may upend long-held theories about the causes of the disease.
The largest genetics study to date of type 2 diabetes (T2D) has identified new gene variants associated with risk for the common metabolic disease. The variants are common to multiple ethnic populations.
A specific goal to eat a set number of daily servings of low-glycemic-index foods can improve dietary habits of people with Type 2 diabetes, according to new research.
A new study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health suggests that hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) injures the heart, even in patients without a history of heart disease or diabetes. The high-sensitivity test they used detected levels of cTnT tenfold lower than those found in patients diagnosed with a heart attack.
Intermittent exercise with and without low oxygen concentrations (or hypoxia) can improve insulin sensitivity in type 2 diabetics, however exercise while under hypoxic conditions provides greater improvements in glycemic control than intermittent exercise alone, according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).
Rates of diabetes vary widely across developing countries worldwide, according to a new analysis led by Dr. Longjian Liu of Drexel University’s School of Public Health.
Worldwide, four in five people with diabetes now live in developing countries. Liu’s study found that access to healthcare support for diabetes varied widely in developing countries, and that one in 10 diagnosed cases remain untreated.
Sugar should be controlled like alcohol and tobacco to protect public health, according to a team of UCSF researchers, who maintain in a new report that sugar is fueling a global obesity pandemic, contributing to 35 million deaths annually worldwide from non-communicable diseases like diabetes, heart disease and cancer.
In an animal study, Mount Sinai researchers found that decaffeinated coffee may improve glucose utilization in the brain, reducing the risk for Type 2 diabetes and the brain dysfunction associated with some neurological disorders.
Use of electronic health records shows promise for improving care and outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes, but still has considerable room for improvement, according to a new study in the journal Health Services Research.
For type 2 diabetics who are not on insulin, monitoring their blood sugar does little to control blood sugar levels over time and may not be worth the effort or expense, according to a new evidence review in The Cochrane Library.
Having diabetes may cause women to experience a greater degree of hearing loss as they age, especially if the metabolic disorder is not well controlled with medication, according to a new study from Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit.
La Jolla Institute scientist Matthias von Herrath, M.D., a world leader in basic research on type 1 diabetes, has long dreamed of seeing his discoveries translated into new therapies to better treat this serious and chronic disorder. Dr. von Herrath may soon get his chance as head of a new translational type 1 diabetes center to be opened in Seattle in 2012 by Novo Nordisk, a global healthcare company specializing in diabetes care. Dr. von Herrath will continue to lead his vibrant and renowned research program at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology on a part-time basis.
Scientists at Joslin Diabetes Center have identified two novel markers that, when elevated in the blood stream, can predict accurately the risk of renal (kidney) failure in patients with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. The findings have immediate diagnostic implications and can be used for the development of new therapies to prevent or postpone the progression of renal disease in diabetes.
Experts at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Diabetes Center are available to discuss the impact of diet on diabetes following the announcement that Southern chef Paula Deen has type 2 diabetes.
Why do heavy coffee drinkers have a lower risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, a disease on the increase around the world that can lead to serious health problems? Scientists are offering a new solution to that long-standing mystery in a report in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural & Food Chemistry.
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists have isolated a natural hormone that triggers some of the key health benefits of exercise. Irisin, which switches on genes that convert white fat into "good" brown fat, may hold promise as a treatment for diabetes, obesity and perhaps other disorders, including cancer.
To address the prospects for personalized medicine in diabetes, investigators from Albert Einstein College of Medicine have surveyed the field for existing research and published their findings in the January issue of Health Affairs. The authors are Allen M. Spiegel, M.D., the Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz Dean and former director of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases at the NIH, and Meredith Hawkins, M.D., director of Einstein’s Global Diabetes Initiative.
Hyperglycemia, or having high glucose levels in the blood, is a common, serious and costly health care problem in hospitalized patients. Today, The Endocrine Society released a clinical practice guideline (CPG) providing recommendations for practical and safe glycemic targets and describing protocols and system improvements required to achieve glycemic goals for hospitalized patients in a non-critical care setting.
Researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center’s Institute for Regenerative Medicine and colleagues have discovered a new protein that may play a critical role in how the human body regulates blood sugar levels. Reporting in the current issue of Pancreas, the research team says the protein may represent a new target for treating type 1 diabetes.
People with diabetes may one day have a less expensive resource for monitoring their blood glucose levels, if research by a group of Missouri University of Science and Technology students becomes reality.
Community food banks may soon be able to improve how the estimated millions of people living with Type 2 diabetes and food insecurity manage their disease. Researchers and community groups have come together to develop a model that ensures food banks can contribute to successful, long-term diabetes management.
If the festive season tempts your tastebuds to overindulge, learn to prevent holiday weight gain with these 10 tips from the team of medical experts at Greenwich Hospital’s Weight Loss & Diabetes Center
Researchers at McMaster University have found that brief high intensity workouts, as little as six sessions over two weeks, rapidly lower blood sugar levels in type 2 diabetics, offering a potential fix for patients who struggle to meet exercise guidelines.
• Diabetes and obesity after age 60 are independent risk factors for breast cancer.
• Abnormally low blood lipids were found to increase breast cancer risk.
• Use of a specific diabetes drug is indicated in raising cancer risk.
Study suggests that exercise and one of the most commonly prescribed drugs for diabetes, metformin, each improves insulin resistance when used alone, but together, metformin blunted the full effect of a 12-week exercise program in pre-diabetic men and women.
A recent study of obese and non-obese children found that low vitamin D levels are significantly more prevalent in obese children and are associated with risk factors for type 2 diabetes. This study was accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).
A war is being waged in the pancreases of millions of people throughout the world. The siege leads to the development of type 1 diabetes and has been a battlefield largely hidden from view-- until now. Researchers at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology have created the first cellular movies showing the destruction underlying type 1 diabetes in real-time in mouse models. This detailed, dynamic view will provide the worldwide scientific community insights into this disease process as never before possible and may profoundly affect future directions in type 1 diabetes research.
In 2009, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) recommended that Hemoglobin A1c be exclusively used for the diagnosis of diabetes in children. The simple test measures longer-term blood sugar levels -- without requiring patients to fast overnight. However, a new U-M study has shown that these tests are not very accurate in children.
Jay A. Perman, MD, President of the University of Maryland, and Joshua M. Sharfstein, MD, Secretary of the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH), announced today the creation of the Institute for a Healthiest Maryland, a collaboration of support systems that will guide efforts to combat chronic diseases across Maryland.
Infertility is common among obese women, but the reasons remain poorly understood and few treatments exist. Now a team of Johns Hopkins Children's Center scientists, conducting experiments in mice, has uncovered what they consider surprising evidence that insulin resistance, long considered a prime suspect, has little to do with infertility in women with type-2 diabetes, polycystic ovary syndrome
(PCOS) and metabolic syndrome, all obesity-related conditions in which the body becomes desensitized to insulin and loses the ability to regulate blood sugar.
Highlights: 1) People with type 1 diabetes are at high risk of developing kidney disease. 2) Intensive diabetes therapy can preserve kidney function in patients with type 1 diabetes. 3) Between one million and three million Americans may have type 1 diabetes. Each year, more than 15,000 children and 15,000 adults - approximately 80 people per day - are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in the United States.