NTUC launches ready-to-eat meals suitable for people with diabetes

There is new innovation for providing food for diabetics and those conscious of their health as NTUC Foodfare has launched a new line of affordable ready-to-eat meals, called Chef's Finest Low-GI, that are suitable for people with diabetes.

The lower-glycaemic index

Can you prevent diabetes with intermittent fasting?

Yes! Intermittent fasting can improve insulin sensitivity, pancreatic response to blood sugars, and even prevent prediabetes from turning into diabetes.

Every person is a unique individual with different metabolism, so there is not just one treatment for type 2 diabetes. Intermittent fasting has been around for a long time and has shown over many studies to have a number of benefits, especially in preventing diabetes.

In the most current study results, which included eight men with prediabetes, it was found that those who followed early time-restricted feeding — where all calories for the day are consumed by mid-afternoon and within eight hours or less — had improvements in insulin sensitivity and pancreatic response to elevated blood glucose, compared with those who ate meals over a 12-hour period, even when eating the same number of calories. The findings also revealed an association between the shorter, earlier eating pattern and a significant reduction in blood pressure, oxidative stress, and evening appetite levels.

For this study at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center, the results showed that eating all of one’s meals by mid-afternoon and fasting the rest of the day improves blood sugar control, blood pressure and oxidative stress, even when people don’t change what they eat.

“This is the first study in humans that shows consuming all of your calories in a six-hour period provides metabolic advantages compared to eating the exact same amount over 12 hours or more, even if you don’t lose weight,” said Dr. Eric Ravussin, associate executive director of Pennington Biomedical, director of the Nutrition Obesity Research Center, and one of the study’s co-authors.

The data also indicate that our feeding regimen has to be synchronized with the body’s circadian rhythm and biological clock.

Dr. Courtney Peterson, an adjunct assistant professor at Pennington Biomedical and an assistant professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, was the primary investigator on the study.

The research is important because it shows for the first time in humans that the benefits of intermittent fasting are not solely due to eating less. Practicing intermittent fasting has intrinsic benefits regardless of what you eat. Also, the study shows that eating early in the day may be a particularly beneficial form of intermittent fasting.

Peterson hopes that the research will also raise awareness of the role of the body’s internal biological clock — called the circadian system — in health.

We know that eating at night is bad for your metabolism. Our bodies are optimized to do certain things at certain times of the day and eating in sync with our circadian rhythms seems to improve our health in multiple ways. For instance, our body’s ability to keep our blood sugar under control is better in the morning than it is in the afternoon and the evening, so it makes sense to eat most of our food in the morning and early afternoon.

Previous studies showed intermittent fasting improves metabolism and health. However, researchers didn’t know whether these effects are simply because people ate less and lost weight.

They decided to conduct the first highly controlled study to determine whether the benefits of intermittent fasting are solely due to eating less. The study was also the first to test a form of intermittent fasting called early time-restricted feeding, or eTRF in humans. Early time-restricted feeding involves combining time-restricted feeding — a type of intermittent fasting where people eat in an 8-hour or shorter period each day — with eating early in the day to be in alignment with the body’s circadian rhythms in metabolism. It is tantamount to eating dinner in the mid-afternoon and then fasting for the rest of the day.

In the study, eight men with prediabetes tried following eTRF and eating at typical American meal times for five weeks each. On the eTRF schedule, the men each started breakfast between 6:30-8:30 am each morning, finished eating six hours later, and then fasted for the rest of the day — about 18 hours. Everyone finished dinner no later than 3 p.m. By contrast, on the typical American schedule, they ate their meals spread across a 12-hour period. The men ate the same foods on each schedule, and the researchers carefully monitored the men to make sure that they ate at the correct times and only ate the food that the researchers gave them.

The researchers found that eTRF improved insulin sensitivity, which reflects how quickly cells can take up blood sugar, and it also improved their pancreases’ ability to respond to rising blood sugar levels. The researchers also found that eTRF dramatically lowered the men’s blood pressure, as well as their oxidative stress levels and their appetite levels in the evening.

These findings could lead to better ways to help prevent type 2 diabetes and hypertension.

- diabetesincontrol.com

Eating calorie-rich foods will help diabetics with healthy weight gain

Eating calorie-rich foods will help with weight gain.

For diabetes patient that is lean to gain a healthy weight he/she should choose nutrient-rich foods instead of sugary and fatty foods to avoid damaging health.

The following are higher-calorie foods that are also rich in nutrients :

• nuts
• seeds
• avocado
• nut butter
• coconut

The above foods hould accompany nutrient-dense carbohydrates such as beans, quinoa brown rice, and granola.

Another type of foods that can help people and diabetics to gain weight are healthful fats which are calorie-rich. These foods can also offer health benefits such as control of blood sugar and cholesterol levels.

Heart-healthy fats include:

• avocado
• seeds (such as pumpkin or flax)
• nuts, spreads, and oils (including olive, canola, sunflower, rapeseed, and peanut)
• fatty fish (such as salmon, mackerel, herring, sardines, and tuna)
• nut butter (for example almond or cashew butter)

Healthy weight and exercise can reduce risk of type 2 diabetes

While obesity and type 2 diabetes are twins, research shows that eating a healthy diet and getting regular exercise can greatly help reduce the risk of gaining weight and even put type 2 diabetes into remission.

According to Professor Schulze: "Our findings highlight the importance of preventing the development of metabolic diseases. They suggest that even individuals in good metabolic health may benefit from early behavioural management to improve their diet and increased physical activity in order to guard against progression to poor metabolic health."

In addition Benedict Jephcote, Editor of Diabetes.co.uk, said: "The take-home message from this study is that those who are at a healthy weight, and metabolically healthy too, are in the best position to avoid heart disease. This can be achieved by eat real, unprocessed foods and prioritising non-starchy vegetables over starchy foods.

"In 2015, we launched our Low Carb Program which helps people to choose a way of eating that can help people achieve better metabolic health. The program has allowed people to achieve great success and many people have found it to be so successful that they no longer need some of their diabetes medication."

Quitting smoking and controlling diabetes may reduce dementia risk

In a Dutch study, smoking and having diabetes are two modifiable risk factors that have been linked with build-up of calcium in the brain.

Hippocampal calcification is a build up of calcium in the hippocampus, an important area of the brain responsible for memory. Previous research suggests that hippocampal calcification may contribute to a greater risk of dementia which causes memory problems, and possible complication of diabetes. 



The lead author of the study, Dr Esther de Brouwer, a geriatrician at the University Medical Center in Utrecht, the Netherlands, said: "We know that calcifications in the hippocampus are common, especially with increasing age. However, we did not know if calcifications in the hippocampus related to cognitive function."

The researchers were able to assess changes in the hippocampus in people who had high blood pressure, diabetes and smoked by using a brain CT scan.

The results of cognitive tests and CT scans of 1,991 people were analysed. The average age of the participants was 78 years. 380 participants, representing 19 per cent of those taking part, showed hippocampal calcification. Three factors older age, diabetes and smoking were associated with an increased risk of hippocampal calcifications on CT scans.

Dr de Brouwer said: "We do think that smoking and diabetes are risk factors. In a recent histopathology study, hippocampal calcifications were found to be a manifestation of vascular disease. It is well known that smoking and diabetes are risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. It is, therefore, likely that smoking and diabetes are risk factors for hippocampal calcifications."

The two risk factors, diabetes and smoking are modifiable. Therefore, quitting smoking, or not smoking at all and gaining good control of diabetes, may each help reduce the risks of memory problems and dementia.

Diabetes Now Affects More Than 23 Million U.S. Adults

The latest tally of Americans adults affected by diabetes finds more than 23 million struggle with the blood sugardisease.

Of those, the vast majority -- 21 million cases -- are caused by type 2 diabetes, which is often linked to overweight or obesity, according to the report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Another 1.3 million cases are attributed to type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disorder where the body fails to produce enough of the blood sugar hormone insulin.

The number of diabetes patients is now "nearly 10 percent of the entire [adult] population," noted Dr. Robert Courgi, a diabetes specialist at Northwell Health's Southside Hospital in Bay Shore, N.Y.

"As expected, the overwhelming majority is type 2 diabetes -- usually caused by obesity and treated with pills," added Courgi, who was not involved with the new report.

On the other hand, "type 1 diabetes results in a destruction of the pancreas, is difficult to diagnose and must be treated with insulin," Courgi said. "Type 1 must be recognized quickly and treated appropriately."

Control diabetes with egg and apple cider vinegar

Every time you eat, your blood sugar levels go up. This is especially true for individuals who have type 2 diabetes or insulin resistance.

Having to learn how to control your blood sugar levels within a healthy range is by no means an easy task. It can take months for a newly diagnosed patient to learn what to eat and what to avoid.

And during this period of time, someone with type 2 diabetes is likely to experience high blood sugar levels, which is detrimental to their overall health.

Too much sugar in the blood for long periods of time can increase your risk of heart disease and stroke, kidney disease, vision problems, and nerve problems. (1)

How To Control Blood Sugar Levels

For the majority of healthy individuals, normal blood sugar levels are as follows: Between 4.0 to 6.0 mmol/L (72 to 108 mg/dL) when fasting. Up to 7.8 mmol/L (140 mg/dL) 2 hours after eating. (2)

For people with insulin resistance, their blood sugar levels remain high long after having finished their meal.

Fortunately, there are many foods you can eat that can help you control blood sugar levels naturally. As you’ll learn eventually, relying on expensive diabetes drugs in the long-run can have negative side effects on your body.

Below is a powerful remedy that combines three simple ingredients to prevent your blood sugar levels from going rampant.

For this recipe all you will need is apple cider vinegar, water, and a boiled egg.

Instructions:

Boil an egg in the afternoon, and peel it. Pierce the egg a 2-3 times using a toothpick. Put the egg in a mason jar and pour just enough vinegar over it so that it is completely covered. Close the jar and let it soak overnight in your refrigerator.

The next morning, drink a glass of warm water and eat your egg.

Repeat this every day, and you will soon notice an improvement in your blood sugar levels.

Why It Works

A few hard-boiled eggs can be a handy high-protein snack or breakfast if you have diabetes. The protein will help keep you full without affecting your blood sugar. Protein not only slows digestion, it also slows glucose absorption, which is very helpful to diabetics. (3)

Apple cider vinegar makes you more sensitive to insulin and reduces blood sugar spikes, particularly after eating starchy food. The findings of one study showed positive results for people with type 2 diabetes when taken before a glucose-heavy meal. (4)

Your health is in your own hands. A hard-boiled egg and apple cider vinegar are relatively cheap to purchase compared to common diabetes drugs. Plus, they’re much better for you in the long run.

Source: dailyhealthpost

sweet drinks raise the risk of developing type 2 diabetes

According to a new study, there is further evidence to the harms of consuming to much sugar sweetened drinks. Using data obtained in the prospective EPIC-Norfolk study, Laura O'Connor and colleagues from Cambridge University show that for each 5% increase of a person’s total energy intake provided by sweet drinks including soft drinks, the risk of developing type 2 diabetes may increase by 18%. Conversely, replacing the daily consumption of one serving of a sugary drink with either water or unsweetened tea or coffee can lower the risk of developing diabetes by between 14% and 25%, so there is hope for those who see the error of their ways.

Link between diabetes and cognitive brain damage

One of the greatest reviews on the connection between blood sugar and brain perform has found that humans with prediabetes and diabetes experience worse long-time period cognitive decline than people with typical blood sugar levels. The results underscore simply how damaging impaired blood sugar is for overall health.



Earlier studies have linked diabetes with reduced brain function, but this is the biggest to seek out an instantaneous relationship between A1c blood phases and threat of long-time period cognitive decline. The A1c scan (referred to as the HbA1c experiment ) reflects natural blood sugar for the previous two to three months. Diabetes is commonly outlined by using an A1c level of 6.5% or above, the similar of 126 mg of blood sugar per deciliter. An effect of between 5.7 and 6.4% is viewed prediabetic, which shows high hazard for establishing diabetes.

The study concerned about 5,000 people in the UK, ordinary age 66, including humans with typical blood sugar phases and people with levels falling in the prediabetic to diabetic variety. Cognitive operate was evaluated on the establishing of the gain knowledge of and reassessed every two years over an eight 12 months span to monitor alterations in memory, govt mind function (corresponding to decision-making speed), and overall cognitive operate.

The outcome showed that those with prediabetes or diabetes had greatly reduced cognitive scores over the study period, including reminiscence and processing speed and all indicators of extra fast cognitive decline. The results held genuine even after accounting for motives like smoking, alcohol consumption, ldl cholesterol levels, depression, excessive blood strain, and demographics like age, intercourse and marital fame.

The researchers found that all the contributors csuse some stage of cognitive decline (usual influence of growing old), however prediabetes and diabetes made the onset of decline come rapid and the consequences steeper than for humans with typical blood sugar.



The fairly chilling part of these outcome is less concerning the effects of diabetes (which can be already well evidenced), and more concerning the results of being even in the vicinity of diabetes.

The findings show a linear correlation between circulating HbA1c levels and cognitive decline, despite diabetic.

The excellent news is that getting ahead of blood sugar irregularities prior could probably slow down the price of cognitive decline.
The findings recommend that interventions that extend diabetes onset, as good as management procedures for blood sugar control, might help alleviate the development of subsequent cognitive decline over the lengthy-time period, said the researchers.

Diabetes drug metformin might curb the development of multidrug resistance in vitro in breast melanoma cells - Research

Research led by the tuition of Saskatchewan in Canada has showed that the diabetes drug metformin might curb the development of multidrug resistance in vitro in breast melanoma cells and may reverse resistance once it has befell.

MDR could be delayed, avoided, or reversed using metformin.
Terra Arnason, Ph.D. an associate professor and clinician scientist in the division and institution of medication and colleagues led the be taught. Their findings had been released within the journal PLOS ONE.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) happens when a couple of cancers develop resistance to chemotherapy medicines. MDR is a giant aspect in the failure of many forms of chemotherapy, and it's typically a terminal event. It influences participants with blood cancers and stable tumors, including those with breast melanoma.

How and why melanoma cells come to be resistant to medications has remained a fundamental query in melanoma research. The answer would furnish capabilities ambitions to avert and reverse resistance to healing.

Persons who increase resistance to one agent frequently advance resistance to many, as a result being often called "a multi- drug resistance."

Antiproliferative effect on melanoma cells

Arnason and group aimed to examine the effect of metformin on MDR when used at the side of the main therapy.

Metformin is a drug used to deal with type 2 diabetes when weight loss program and physical activities  have not helped to manage blood sugar levels. Metformin helps to slash blood sugar by making improvements to the way in which the physique manages insulin.

In prior study, metformin has been shown to have an antiproliferative effect on tumor cells, which means that the drug inhibits the growth and unfold of cancer cells.

Humans with type 2 diabetes and melanoma who take metformin were said to have a 31 percentage reduction in the occurrence of recent cancers. Additionally, metformin has been advised to improve all-rationale survival in these with breast cancer.

The team deliberate to evaluate the mechanisms that facilitate metformin's antiproliferative affect and experiment whether utilising metformin pretreatment might benefit or interfere with MDR cancer.

They used the generally studied MCF7 breast melanoma telephone strains and demonstrated them for resistance to the chemotherapy drug doxorubicin in an effort to examine the antiproliferative outcomes of metformin.

Resistance reversed after metformin use

Arnason and colleagues observed that metformin had an antiproliferative effect on MCF7, including the cells that have been immune to doxorubicin.

The progress of drug resistance was delayed or prevented in cells that have been pretreated with metformin. And, experiments conducted in cells cultures and mouse models of aggressive breast melanoma uncovered that MDR used to be reversed after its onset through metformin use.

Together, the findings reveal the potential for metformin to be utilized as a remedy to hinder or reverse MDR. The authors write:

"now we have demonstrated that metformin monotherapy has an antiproliferative result on a couple of mobilephone strains, including those selected for resistance to doxorubicin, in a dose-stylish manner."

"The effect can also be observed," the study authors conclude, "when metformin is utilized in combo with other anticancer treatments in breast melanoma cells."

"Our findings are regular with the developing literature base demonstrating metformin's potential to reduce the development of tumor cells in vitro."

Future work by the team will involve analyzing cancer cells over many months to become aware of whether the effect of metformin is short- or long-time period.

Can type 2 diabetes turn to type 1 diabetes?

A pervasive myth suggests that humans with type 2 diabetes can develop type 1 diabetes once they take insulin. This isn't actual.
Type1 and type 2 diabetes have many elements in fashioned, including problems managing blood glucose phases. But the two conditions are certain, and one does not turn out to the other over time.

Listed here, are the differences between the 2 types of diabetes and why they do not alternate.

Type1 vs.  type2 diabetes

character with diabetes checking their blood sugar
although people with diabetes all have blood sugar issues,  type1 and a couple of are rather one-of-a-kind disorders.
Despite the fact that they cause similar symptoms, type 1 and type 2 diabetes are distinct problems. Type 1 diabetes, generally known as juvenile diabetes, is almost always identified in childhood or early maturity.

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease, this means that the body attacks its own healthy cells. This method prevents the pancreas from making insulin, the hormone that helps the physique control its blood glucose phases.

Persons with type  1 diabetes have to take synthetic insulin for the rest of their lives. Way of life alterations is not going to reverse juvenile diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes is the most original type of diabetes. Usually identified in adulthood, this form of diabetes interferes with the body's capability to produce and use insulin. Not like juvenile diabetes, tradition causes, similar to inactiveness or weight problems, can expand the probability of setting up type 2 diabetes.

In some circumstances, the symptoms of type 2 diabetes may be managed with way of life changes, together with dropping pounds, eating a healthful weight-reduction plan, and exercising more commonly.

Like different autoimmune issues, researchers don't comprehend what motives type 1 diabetes. Each environmental and genetic causes may have roles. For illustration, a individual with a gene for type 1 diabetes would now not have symptoms unless some thing within the environment prompts that gene.

Once type 1 diabetes develops, the body continues attacking the pancreas unless the entire beta cells are destroyed. These beta cells are most important for producing insulin. It's thus unattainable for folks with type 1 diabetes to make insulin.

Each genetic and environmental explanations additionally play a role in type 2 diabetes. Nevertheless, type 2 diabetes is extra closely related to culture.

Some humans with type 2 diabetes can reduce the severity of symptoms and even do away with them with healthy culture changes, even as others remain insulin resistant even after making alterations.

Insulin is a hormone that allows the body to use glucose from meals. When the body does no longer make enough insulin, or when it can not respond properly to insulin, blood glucose rises. Blood glucose is a measure of how much sugar is in the blood.

Both types of diabetes may also be managed with insulin injections, but form 2 diabetes can also be managed with oral medications and subculture alterations.

Can type 2 diabetes become type 1 diabetes?


It's unimaginable for type 2 diabetes to turn out to be type 1.
It isn't feasible for type 2 diabetes to become type 1 diabetes.

Nonetheless, it's feasible for a individual who's at first identified with type 2 diabetes to be diagnosed with type 1 diabetes later.

Type 2 diabetes is the most common type of diabetes, so a health care professional would initially believe an grownup with diabetes has type 2.

This can be in particular authentic if the person is obese or has different danger motives for diabetes, equivalent to a sedentary way of life.

It is feasible for a person with type 1 diabetes to be misdiagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

Although wonderful, type 1 diabetes can show up in adulthood.

A person identified with type 2 diabetes who later receives a diagnosis of type 1 don't have experienced a transformation in their diabetes however was likely misdiagnosed previous.

To correctly diagnose the type of diabetes a man or woman has, a doctor will participate in a few blood glucose tests.

They may additionally do blood tests to check for antibodies that attack insulin or beta cells in the pancreas. The presence of these antibodies commonly shows whether a man or woman has type 1 diabetes.

Insulin dependency

insulin levels being monitored
it's important for men and women with diabetes to observe their insulin.
Men and women with type 1 diabetes may just must make tradition alterations, such as averting high glucose meals. Lifestyle alterations by self, nevertheless, is not going to reverse or preclude type 1 diabetes. Because of this people with type 1 diabetes are insulin dependent, and the situation is oftentimes known as insulin based diabetes.

Men and women with type 1 diabetes need to intently reveal their blood glucose phases. Even with everyday monitoring and commonplace insulin injections, they are going to boost dangerously high blood glucose. When this happens, they would want extra insulin or emergency hospital treatment.

People with type 1 diabetes have to take insulin for the rest of their lives. Individuals with type 2 diabetes will best need insulin if other therapies fail.

Type 2 diabetes is most often a progressive disease. Insulin can also be used in combination with other medicines to optimize blood sugar manage.

 Type 1 and type 2 diabetes are designated forms that don't alternate into one another . Nevertheless, insulin could also be used to treat both sort. While insulin is the one therapy on hand for type 1 diabetes, it is also utilized in type 2 diabetes if additional evolved levels or if different cures don't work.

The signs of each forms of diabetes is also subtle at first. However, diabetes that is left untreated can cause long-term problems and generally become life-threatening.

The primary signs of diabetes could incorporate accelerated thirst, improved daytime and hour of darkness urination, and unexplained weight loss. Any person with these signs should have their blood sugar demonstrated through a health practitioner. Testing is principally crucial in households with a historical past of diabetes.

5 classes of food for diabetes

1. Starchy foods

You should eat some starchy foods every day, the charity said.

Starchy foods are used to provide cells with energy, while also regulating the digestive system.

“Better options of starchy foods – such as wholegrain bread, wholewheat pasta and basmati, brown or wild rice – contain more fibre, which helps to keep your digestive system working well,” said Diabetes UK.

“They are generally more slowly absorbed (that is, they have a lower glycaemic index), keeping you feeling fuller for longer.”

2. Protein

Protein helps to build and replace muscles, while also protecting the heart.

Diabetes patients should aim to have some protein everyday, with at least one to two portions of oily fish a week.

A small handful of raw nuts and seeds is an ideal snack, while using beans and pulses in a casserole.

3. Dairy

“Milk, cheese and yogurt contain calcium, which is vital for growing children as it keeps their bones and teeth strong,” said Diabetes UK.

“Some dairy foods are high in fat, particularly saturated fat, so choose lower-fat alternatives (check for added sugar, though).”

Aim to have some dairy everyday, but you shouldn’t have too much.

Patients could try drinking milk straight from the glass, or added to porridge.

Cottage cheese scooped on carrot sticks also provides the perfect snack for diabetics.

GETTY Images

Diabetes symptoms: Signs of condition include feeling very thirsty and fatigued

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Diabetes symptoms: Patients should try and eat a rainbow-coloured array of fruit and vegetables

4. Fruit and vegetables

Fruit and vegetables are naturally low in fat, and are rich in vitamins, minerals and fibre.

The perfect array of fresh produce should include a rainbow of colours.

Adding just one extra handful of vegetables to your dinner could help to protect against heart disease, high blood pressure and strokes.

5. Fatty and sugary foods

“You can enjoy food from this group as an occasional treat in a balanced diet, but remember that sugary foods and drinks will add extra calories – and sugary drinks will raise blood glucose – so opt for diet/light or low-calorie alternatives,” said Diabetes UK.

“Fat is high in calories, so try to reduce the amount of oil or butter you use in cooking.

“Remember to use unsaturated oils, such as sunflower, rapeseed or olive oil, as these types are better for your heart.”

Patients should eat as little fatty and sugary foods as possible, the charity said.

Credit:express.co.uk