Blood Sugar News and Research

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Blood sugar concentration, or glucose level, refers to the amount of glucose present in the blood of a human or animal. Normally, in mammals the blood glucose level is maintained at a reference range between about 3.6 and 5.8 mM (mmol/l). It is tightly regulated as a part of metabolic homeostasis.

Hydroxycitric acid delays intestinal glucose absorption - indirect insulin/sugar effect could point to therapeutic effect

In this obesity-obsessed world, the dream ingredient must be something that tastes good enough to be a condiment or flavoring and yet somehow helps us keep our weight down. Consider hydroxycitric acid (HCA), known variously as Brindle berry or Malabar tamarind, which is used in Indian and Thai food as a condiment and flavoring agent.

22 May 2005

Two out of three Americans with type-2 diabetes do not have their disease under control

According to a new survey two out of three Americans with type-2 diabetes do not have their disease under control and are putting themselves at risk of early deaths from stroke, heart attack or kidney failure as well as blindness and limb loss.

18 May 2005

Hydroxycitric acid slows glucose uptake, cuts insulin peaks

18 May 2005

A drug that controls blood pressure and reduces heart risk also appears to protect against diabetes

In new results from the VALUE trial that pitted the drug valsartan against another blood pressure drug, amlodipine, the patients taking valsartan were found to have a 23 percent lower risk of developing diabetes during the four or more years of the study.

18 May 2005

Experts redefine hypertension

Leading US hypertension experts unveiled a new definition of hypertension at the American Society of Hypertension Inc. (ASH) Twentieth Annual Scientific Meeting.

16 May 2005

High nighttime blood pressure linked to increased blood sugar levels

People whose blood pressure doesn't drop significantly overnight tend to have more cardiovascular problems.

15 May 2005

Insulin - possible vaccine against type 1 diabetes

It has taken scientists at the University of Miami's Diabetes Research Institute eight long years of painstaking research, but they believe they have finally pinned down Insulin, the hormone most closely linked to diabetes, to be the cause of the inherited form of the blood sugar disease.

11 May 2005

Healthy dose of fat is needed for a healthy metabolism

Just when we had all been convinced by information from just about every quarter, that fat was the bad guy of the diet kingdom, new research has found that a healthy dose of fat is needed for a healthy metabolism.

11 May 2005

New fat is needed to clear old fat from the system

Where fat comes from determines whether the body can metabolize it effectively. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that the "old" fat stored in the body's peripheral tissues -- that is, around the belly, thighs or bottom -- can't be burned efficiently unless "new" fat is eaten in the diet or made in the liver.

9 May 2005

Metabolic syndrome costing four times that for all other patients

It is well known that hypertension, diabetes, and obesity are each taking a toll on Americans' health, but according to a new analysis, metabolic syndrome, a condition characterized by a combination of these and/or other risk factors, is fast becoming one of the nation's costliest health concerns.

9 May 2005

Glucose byproduct prevents brain damage after diabetic coma

A natural, non-toxic byproduct of glucose may prevent brain cell death and cognitive impairment in diabetics following an episode of severely low blood sugar, according to researchers at the San Francisco VA Medical Center (SFVAMC).

4 May 2005

FDA gives go-ahead for new diabetes treatment

Sufferers from adult-onset diabetes, the most common form of the disease, will soon be able to access a new injectable diabetes treatment which when used with oral drugs, should be more effective in controlling their blood sugar.

1 May 2005

Potential for brain stem cells to be used to cure diabetes

Promising new research by US scientists has shown the potential for brain stem cells to be used to cure diabetes. The work by Stanford University researchers, though not yet ready to be tested on human patients, has shown promising results in animals.

28 Apr 2005

Sleeping too little or too much may increase risk of diabetes

A new report says that people who sleep for less than six hours or for more than nine hours each night may have an increased risk of diabetes and impaired blood sugar (glucose) tolerance.

27 Apr 2005

Risk scores identify young people with hardened arteries

Armed with more knowledge about what cardiovascular disease looks like in people ages 15 to 34, co-authors from the University of Texas Health Science Center, the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research and institutions in Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania and Louisiana will report...

27 Apr 2005

Natural glucose byproduct prevents brain damage and cognitive impairment after diabetic coma

27 Apr 2005

Obesity and insulin resistance fuels cardiovascular risk factors in teens

Obesity and insulin resistance are a menacing tag team that fuels cardiovascular risk factors in teens, according to a study reported in an obesity-themed issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

23 Apr 2005

Japanese researchers reverse diabetes

Japanese researchers have successfully reversed a woman’s diabetes by transplanting insulinmaking cells (islets) from a living donor’s pancreas into her, reporting their results in a research letter published online today by The Lancet. This is the first successful operation of its kind using the islets from a living donor.

19 Apr 2005

Scientists use transcription factors to increase insulin production in diabetic mice

A group of Japanese scientists has used gene therapy to deliver three insulin transcription factors, MafA, PDX-1, and NeuroD, to the livers of diabetic mice. As a result, the mice experienced an increase in insulin gene expression and insulin production, raising the possibility that this could eventually be used to treat diabetes.

13 Apr 2005

Almonds may help combat obesity, heart disease and diabetes

Three studies presented during this week's 2005 Experimental Biology conference add to the growing body of research that eating just a handful of almonds may be a valuable tool to combat some of America's leading health threats, including obesity, heart disease and diabetes.

6 Apr 2005