There’s new hope for those prone to diabetes, but it involves getting off the couch, getting exercise and breathing better.
A Colorado State University researcher has found that it’s not just congenital bad genes that dictate whether someone will get Type II diabetes but the way genes change through a lifetime of use and misuse.
Regular moderate exercise can help restore the aerobic-anaerobic balance in muscles and, therefore, in the genes that carry the codes for those muscles, according to preliminary research by Andre Ptitsyn, researcher in CSU’s veterinary and biological sciences centers.
If follow-up studies confirm the essential role of aerobic balance in diabetes, it will mean that weight control alone won’t be enough to lower the risk of Type II diabetes.
But it also will mean that almost anyone can greatly lower the risk of Type II diabetes with proper exercise.
Ptitsyn was at a diabetes conference in Keystone in 2003 when he heard two speakers talk about a fascinating study.
By the next lunch break, he was downloading their data, finding an area the other two scientists hadn’t been focusing on when they studied the differences in makeup in older men who did and didn’t have diabetes.
“It looks like the major driving force is somewhat linked with the lack of oxygen, or hypoxia,” Ptitsyn said.
In fact, the same genes that differ wildly in people prone or not prone to altitude sickness show fluctuation in those with or without diabetes.
When he charted the 43 men in their 60s, based on their oxygen levels, the result was “a comet’s tail,” with several very healthy people forming the comet’s core, and several others trailing to form the tail. Those with increasingly worse oxygen capacity were farthest down the road toward contracting full-fledged diabetes.
“What we see gives us hope that we can capture the stage of progression” from a blip at the metabolic level to full-scale diabetes, he said.
If so, each person can be monitored for the rate of progression from ideal health, letting each know “how fast you are traveling down the road,” he said.
Of course, the hope is that earlier warning signals will get people to modify their lifestyles.
There is also the chance that medicine can be designed to target the unique genes of the individual person, something that is just a dream now.
“Physical e?ercise is the natural way through the loophole, by keeping the energy balance between aerobic and anaerobic metabolism,” Ptitsyn said.
Sprinters can run the 100-yard dash barely taking a breath, so the main muscle work is anaerobic, creating energy from blood sugar alone.
Marathoners or people who take nice long hikes rely on aerobic energy. For that, oxygen, breathed into the lungs and sent through the capillaries to the muscles, combines with blood sugar to supply energy.
It takes more effort and it takes a nicely working oxygen-to-blood transfer, but it allows a person to keep going for hours without a shutdown of energy.
If people prone to diabetes can build some of the oxygen efficiency of the marathoner, they might radically lower their risks.
Physical activity is crucial for leading a healthy life. Exercise helps maintain a proper body weight, keep fit and prevent disease.
But what do we do when we are unfortunate enough to be afflicted by disease? Say for instance, diabetes?
Do we give up all hope in physical activity and put our faith solely in the capabilities of medication?
The obvious answer is no. In fact, both the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Council on Exercise recently praised exercise and its benefits in combating and controlling both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
According to ACE, when dealing with type 1 diabetes, physical activity primarily helps?by increasing insulin receptor sensitivity, reducing the risk of coronary artery disease and improving functional capacity.
ACE also states exercise is vital for type 2 diabetics, since it reduces both weight and cholesterol levels and thus the risk for heart disease.
In fact, according to the Center for Disease Control, being physically active can prevent blood-flow problems, which can reduce the resk of heart disease, as well as the risk of nerve damage. These health problems can be prevalent among those who suffer from diabetes.
ACSM also recently concluded that, although physical activity is underused in the treatment of type 2 diabetes, its role in managing the disease is undeniable and should therefore be used in any case where the individual is able to regularly perform moderate levels of physical activity.
However, diabetics should not follow just any exercise plan. As with any at-risk population, it is important to consult a doctor to obtain permission before starting a workout routine.
Certain workout regimens that are suitable for the general population are unsafe for people with diabetes.
ACE also recommends that diabetics use the following guidelines when partaking in physical activity.
“Stop eating carbohydrates! Cure Type 2 diabetes!” That’s the message being spread by a family doctor, stirring up controversy in the medical community. It’s not hope the American Diabetes Association is encouraging. But, minimizing carbohydrates does play a role in lowering the risks of progression of diabetes.
Like the weather, StormTeam Meteorologist John Dissauer’s lifestyle is now constantly changing. “I’ve always been a big carb eater. I love pasta! I love bread! I’ve always been brought up, you eat bread or pasta to fill yourself up,” said Dissauer.
But, that diet full of carbohydrates, brought a diagnosis of diabetes.
Dr. Joe Chehade, a diabetic specialist said, “Carbohydrates is gonna help you to put weight on, and that’s how you’re gonna end up with especially what we call Type 2 diabetes in adults.”
Is a prescription to remove carbs from the diet a cure? Chehade said that’s the wrong message to send patients, “There is no, unfortunately, up to now, I wish, a cure for Type 2 diabetes or Type 1 diabetes. Medication, diet, and lifestyle changes together can delay the progression.”
John is managing his disease by eating smaller portions of carbs, down to 280 grams a day. “I might have 30 carbs for my breakfast, 30 carbs for a snack, 60 to 75 for lunch, 30 for another snack in the afternoon, and then 90 for dinner,” said John.
“You can still be a diabetic on diet only with very good sugar control, but you’re not cured from diabetes,” explained Chehade.
“Insulin may still have to be an option for me because we’re still not sure if I’m Type 2. We’re kind of leaning towards Type 1. As I like to tell my doctor, let’s just call it type 1.2. I don’t want to admit to Type 1 just yet, cause I know what that brings,” said John.
In Type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disorder can lead to a lifetime of daily insulin injections.
If you have diabetes, changing your diet may help treat the disease, according to a new book.
NewsCenter 5’s Heather Unruh reported Thursday that the book “Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes” claims the strict vegan diet may even reverse diabetes.
Diabetes is a disease that affects millions of Americans, but what you eat could help prevent it.
“With this diet, you learn some new way of eating, but you’re never hungry. There’s no limit on calories or carbs or portions,” said Barnard, of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.
Barnard said sticking to a low-fat vegan diet can help you manage, and possibly even reverse, your diabetes. The new book details this latest approach.
“With a vegan diet what we mean is a diet that sets aside the animal products, no meat, no dairy, no eggs, and that gets rid of all the animal fat,” Barnard said.
Yo? can eat vegetables and fruits, grains and legumes.
“We take the fat out of the diet, and the insulin resistance seems to go away,” Barnard said.
New research found people with type 2 diabetes who cut out meat and dairy lowered their blood sugar more and lost more weight than people who followed the traditional diabetes diet. Almost half of vegan dieters were able to stop taking medication altogether.
There’s no cutting carbs or portions. But dietician Karen Chalmers said even though the diet works, the challenge is getting people to follow it.
“Even though people know eating fiber is beneficial or that cutting down on fat is going to be beneficial in the long run, it doesn’t mean they’re going to be able to do it on a day-to-day basis,” Chalmers said.
Even if a vegan doesn’t work for you, Joslin experts said what does work is exercise.
“It does many things. It lowers blood pressure. It lowers stress. Exercise can help you manage your weight. There are so many benefits to exercise,” Joslin Clinic’s Cathy Carver said.