Tackling the Diabetes Puzzle

Diabetes has a substantial impact on every category of human being; and its infiltration into our communities continues at an alarming rate. As diabetes and its precursors sweet talk their way into our lives, scientists and health officials struggle to define all the parameters and find solutions, and people at risk or in early stages of the disease struggle to accept and adapt to the disease and the need for lifestyle and diet changes. As a decently preventable or manageable disease, diabetes seems to respond to dietary intervention, including supplementation, which has been researched for improvements to risk factors and symptoms of diabetes.

The basis of diabetes is the inability to either produce or utilize insulin, a hormone needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy. In healthy individuals, glucose is absorbed in the bloodstream and transported from the pancreas to body cells by insulin. In the cells, glucose is used to produce energy, with any leftover glucose then stored in the liver. In type 1 diabetes—previously known as juvenile diabetes due to its typical child-aged sufferer—the pancreatic cells do not produce insulin to handle the normal glucose load. This accounts for only a small percentage of total diabetes cases, and insulin therapy is the usual treatment. In type 2 diabetes, the predominant form of the disease, the body either doesn’t produce enough insulin or the cells receiving glucose are not able to convert glucose to energy. The build-up of glucose in the system can cause all sorts of complications, including vascular problems, chronic inflammation and nutrient deficiencies.

Diabetes by Numbers

The most recent data (2007) from the American Diabetes Association (ADA) reveals around 25 million Americans suffer from diabetes, with around 6 million of these people yet undiagnosed. It afflicts men about as much as it does women, and it cuts across every age group, with the over-60s having the highest rate (23 percent), followed by the under-60 /over-20s (11 percent) and the under-20s (less than 1 percent). The disease also hits all races, although blacks and Hispanics have relatively high rates of the disease.

Overall, diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, with heart disease factoring in 68 percent of those deaths, and stroke featured in 16 percent. In fact, ADA reports people with diabetes are 2- to 4-times more likely to develop heart disease or stroke. The diabetic devastation starts well before death, with nerve-artery damage in 60 to 70 percent of diabetics and 50 percent of non-traumatic lower limb amputations occurring in diabetes patients. Unfortunately, diabetes is also the leading cause of blindness and kidney failure.

The wake of carnage is not only made of human suffering, but also of financial woe. ADA placed annual direct medical costs at about $116 billion for those diagnosed with diabetes, with indirect costs (disability, work, premature mortality, etc.) at $58 billion per year. Overall, U.S. diabetes costs total $218 billion, factoring in undiagnosed diabetics. Breaking it down to a personal level, the average cost per person with diabetes is about 2.3-times higher than it would be if without diabetes.

Despite the dire numbers, one statistic presents an opportunity to slow the scourge of diabetes: between 57 million and 75 million Americans are thought to have pre-diabetes, depending on whom you ask. ADA defines pre-diabetes as “a condition in which blood glucose levels are higher than normal, but are not high enough for a diagnosis of diabetes.”

http://www.naturalproductsinsider.com/articles/2010/03/solving-the-diabetes-puzzle.aspx

http://www.depsyl.com/

http://back2basicnutrition.com/

http://bionutritionalresearch.olhblogspace.com/