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.

Loyola to study vitamin D deficiency in people of African descent

Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine researchers have received a five-year, $2.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study vitamin D deficiency in people of African descent.

1 Dec 2011

Elevated blood sugar levels linked with increased risk of colorectal cancer

Elevated blood sugar levels are associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer, according to a study led by researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University.

30 Nov 2011

European Commission approves ONGLYZA as combination therapy with insulin for type 2 diabetes

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and AstraZeneca today announced that the European Commission has approved ONGLYZA (saxagliptin) for use as a combination therapy with insulin (with or without metformin) to improve blood sugar (glycaemic) control in adult patients with type 2 diabetes.

28 Nov 2011

Drugs seniors use most often cause 60K hospitalizations annually

News outlets are reporting on a new study that challenges conventional wisdom about seniors, their medicines and hospitalizations.

28 Nov 2011

Knocking out one copy of IGF1 receptor fails to increase life span of male mice

Scientists studying longevity thought it might be good to lack a copy of a gene, called IGF1 receptor, that is important in insulin signaling. Previous studies showed invertebrates that lacked the copy lived longer, even if their bodies were less responsive to insulin, the hormone that lowers blood sugar.

24 Nov 2011

Decanoic acid can modulate glucose control

A Van Andel Research Institute (VARI) study published recently in the Journal of Biological Chemistry reveals that a natural fatty acid can serve as a regulator of blood sugar levels, which may have important applications in designing better and safer drugs for diabetes treatment.

22 Nov 2011

Hemoglobin A1c fails to identify children with diabetes

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.

21 Nov 2011

EUSA Pharma receives FDA approval for Erwinaze to treat ALL

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Erwinaze to treat patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), who have developed an allergy (hypersensitivity) to E. coli derived asparaginase and pegaspargase chemotherapy drugs used to treat ALL.

18 Nov 2011

Majority of adults in America to become obese by 2020

In 2020, the vast majority of adults in America will be overweight or obese and more than half will suffer from diabetes or pre-diabetic conditions, according to projections presented by Northwestern Medicine researchers at the American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions Wednesday, Nov. 16, in Orlando.

17 Nov 2011

Research into role of insulin in obesity-related cancers

Niyati Parekh, an assistant professor at New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, has received a $720,000 Research Scholar Grant from the American Cancer Society to study the role of insulin in obesity-related cancers.

17 Nov 2011

Teens more likely to die from heart disease at younger age than adults

A new study that takes a complete snapshot of adolescent cardiovascular health in the United States reveals a dismal picture of teens who are likely to die of heart disease at a younger age than adults do today, reports Northwestern Medicine research.

17 Nov 2011

Mediterranean diet can reduce risk of future heart disease

A team of Johns Hopkins researchers has uncovered further evidence of the benefits of a balanced diet that replaces white bread and pasta carbohydrates with unsaturated fat from avocados, olive oil and nuts — foods typical of the so-called "Mediterranean diet."

17 Nov 2011

Insulin sensitivity in the ovaries and the pituitary linked to infertility

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 and metabolic syndrome, all obesity-related conditions.

16 Nov 2011

Molecular level insights into connection between cancer and diabetes

Developing type 2 diabetes is a lengthy process. An early sign that it has begun is high levels of insulin in the blood. As long as the insulin-producing beta cells are able to compensate for the increased demand, for example when the individual is overweight, the blood sugar levels remain normal. It is not until the capacity for insulin secretion falls below the level needed that type 2 diabetes becomes a fact. The latter stage generally goes quickly, as the stressed beta cells work themselves to death.

16 Nov 2011

New clues about connections among fat, inflammation and insulin resistance

In a new study, scientists report that they substantially curbed weight gain, improved metabolism, and improved the efficacy of insulin in mice by engineering them to express a specific human enzyme in their fat tissue. Although the obesity prevention came at the significant cost of widespread inflammation, the research offers new clues about the connections among obesity, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, and inflammation.

14 Nov 2011

Fiber from whole grains reduces risk of bowel cancer: Study

The researchers from Britain and the Netherlands found that the more total dietary fiber and cereal fiber people consumed, the lower their colorectal cancer risk. For example, people who consumed an extra 90 grams of fiber from whole grains a day also had a 20 percent lower risk of colorectal cancer, according to the British Medical Journal review.

14 Nov 2011

Sugary drinks raise risk of heart disease in women: Study

A new study shows that women who take sugared beverages every day may be raising their risk for heart disease, even if their habit is not packing on the pounds. The researchers say the drinks could be anything - sweet tea, soda, or coffee drinks that look like desserts.

14 Nov 2011

Meals to Live launches new Glucose Quick Sticks to treat low blood sugar

Meals to Live, the first and only grocery store line of frozen meals created specifically for people living with diabetes, adds a new product to its line - Glucose Quick Sticks, an easy-to-carry, quick-dissolving flavored powder packet that provides a healthy boost of glucose for those with challenges.

14 Nov 2011

Intensive therapy can preserve kidney function in patients with type 1 diabetes

People with type 1 diabetes are at high risk of developing kidney disease, but no therapies are proven to prevent impaired kidney function in these patients. In the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT), Ian de Boer, MD and his team looked to see if intensive diabetes therapy aimed at reducing blood sugar as close to the normal range as possible might protect type 1 diabetics' kidney function. The study's results were presented during the American Society of Nephrology's Annual Kidney Week.

14 Nov 2011

Maintaining normal blood glucose levels prevents long-term kidney complications

Maintaining good glucose control early in the course of type 1 diabetes could lessen the long-term risk of kidney disease, as measured by a common test of kidney function.

14 Nov 2011