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.

Metformin should be in the first line of defense against type 2 diabetes

A new review of studies confirms that the drug metformin should be in the first line of defense against type 2 diabetes. Using metformin alone can improve control of blood glucose, while also reducing risk factors for heart disease such as excess body weight, cholesterol levels and hypertension, the review found.

20 Jul 2005

Older-style antidepressants, as well as anticonvulsant drugs, can help ease the disabling pain caused by nerve tissue damage

For many years antidepressants, which are believed to work by dampening pain signals, have been the first-line drugs for neuropathic pain. "It is usual to start with an antidepressant like amitriptyline, and if this fails then try an anticonvulsant," says Phil Wiffen, a researcher at Churchill Hospital in Oxford, England. "The results of these meta-analyses suggest this is probably still the best approach to take."

19 Jul 2005

Insulin keeps fat in the liver under control

Insulin, a hormone long recognized as a generator of fat, also keeps fat in the liver under control, according to a new study in the July issue of Cell Metabolism.

19 Jul 2005

Scientists have identified a gene associated with both childhood and adult obesity

According to research published today in Nature Genetics, the team from Imperial College London, Hammersmith Hospital, London, and the CNRS Lille, France, have identified a gene (ENPP1), with strong links to childhood obesity in 3,147 in a sample of 4,886 French Caucasian individuals.

18 Jul 2005

Metabolic syndrome prevented by a fit heart

According to a new study, a person's cardiorespiratory fitness is a strong predictor of their risk of developing metabolic syndrome.

12 Jul 2005

Fat adults more likely to have increased insulin resistance, a risk marker for Type 2 diabetes

Adult lifestyle has more influence on your chances of developing diabetes than childhood experience, according to new research whose findings contradict previously-held beliefs.

6 Jul 2005

Medical experts say that yearly checkup not necessary - doctors and patients disagree

Though you and your doctor might think that yearly checkup is just a routine part of staying healthy, that practice isn't endorsed by a panel of experts.

29 Jun 2005

Experimental drug for diabetes looks promising

Encouraging results in a small study, with a new experimental treatment, promises help for certain diabetics to retain some ability to make their own insulin.

29 Jun 2005

Major study says for diabetics with high blood pressure diuretics are the best option

A major new study has found that for people with type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, cheaper diuretic medications may be the most cost-effective option in reducing hypertension.

29 Jun 2005

Saturated fats combined with genetic trait may make people more susceptible to type 2 diabetes

A University of Alberta team of researchers has discovered an additional 2 million Canadians who have a high fat diet or are overweight may be at increased risk for developing type 2 diabetes if they carry a particular type of common specific genetic trait known as a polymorphism.

29 Jun 2005

Exercise helps find genetic regions linked to prediabetes

People's bodies respond to exercise in different ways, and their genetic makeup is partly responsible.

28 Jun 2005

Diuretics work better than newer and more costly medicines for diabetics with high blood pressure

Diuretics (water pills) work better than newer and more costly medicines in the treatment of high blood pressure and prevention of some forms of heart disease in people with type 2 diabetes, according to results from the Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack Trial (ALLHAT).

28 Jun 2005

Insulin resistance drug with anti-inflammatory effects reduces risk factors

A drug, which reduces insulin resistance and also may have anti-inflammatory and other effects on blood vessels, lowered cardiovascular risk factors in patients with diabetes more than another diabetes medicine, even though both drugs improved blood sugar control equally, according to a new study (PDF) in the June 21, 2005, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

21 Jun 2005

Chromium picolinate significantly reduces weight gain associated with common antidiabetic medication

...according to a study released today. Researchers at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center (PBRC), who conducted the study, also found that chromium significantly improved blood sugar control and insulin sensitivity.

16 Jun 2005

Study reveals benefits of using insulin earlier

Results of an all-Canadian study announced June 13 at an international diabetes congress demonstrate that patients with type 2 diabetes can safely achieve target blood sugar (glycemic) levels faster and more frequently when insulin glargine (a basal, long-acting insulin) is added to therapy, versus using oral agents alone.

14 Jun 2005

Fewer diabetics end up in hospital

According to new research from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Americans with diabetes are less likely than they were a decade ago, to need hospitalization for serious complications such as kidney failure.

14 Jun 2005

New diabetes drug has a double whammy and is a potential blockbuster

There are, according to the latest statistics, more than 18 million Americans with diabetes, and each year over a million new cases are diagnosed.

13 Jun 2005

Tight glucose control lowers CVD by about 50 percent in diabetes

A significantly lower risk of heart disease can now be added to the list of proven long-term benefits of tight glucose control in people with type 1 diabetes.

12 Jun 2005

Rimonabant study shows significant improvements in HbA1c and cardiometabolic risk factors in people with type 2 diabetes

The reported results of a one-year phase III study in 1045 people with type 2 diabetes treated with rimonabant, the first in a new class of therapeutic agents called selective CB1 Blockers, were that rimonabant 20 mg significantly improved HbA1c (a measure of blood sugar control), dyslipidemia (abnormal levels of fat in the blood), and systolic blood pressure with a concomitant substantial reduction in abdominal obesity in people with type 2 diabetes treated with oral anti-diabetic medications and requiring further control.

12 Jun 2005

Researchers describe emerging strategy for prevention, early treatment of Type 2 diabetes

Type 2 diabetes may be significantly delayed or prevented through medication that takes the load off of the body's delicate insulin-producing cells, according to a study released today by researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California.

12 Jun 2005

Blood Sugar News and Research

Further Reading

Metformin should be in the first line of defense against type 2 diabetes

Older-style antidepressants, as well as anticonvulsant drugs, can help ease the disabling pain caused by nerve tissue damage

Insulin keeps fat in the liver under control

Scientists have identified a gene associated with both childhood and adult obesity

Metabolic syndrome prevented by a fit heart

Fat adults more likely to have increased insulin resistance, a risk marker for Type 2 diabetes

Medical experts say that yearly checkup not necessary - doctors and patients disagree

Experimental drug for diabetes looks promising

Major study says for diabetics with high blood pressure diuretics are the best option

Saturated fats combined with genetic trait may make people more susceptible to type 2 diabetes

Exercise helps find genetic regions linked to prediabetes

Diuretics work better than newer and more costly medicines for diabetics with high blood pressure

Insulin resistance drug with anti-inflammatory effects reduces risk factors

Chromium picolinate significantly reduces weight gain associated with common antidiabetic medication

Study reveals benefits of using insulin earlier

Fewer diabetics end up in hospital

New diabetes drug has a double whammy and is a potential blockbuster

Tight glucose control lowers CVD by about 50 percent in diabetes

Rimonabant study shows significant improvements in HbA1c and cardiometabolic risk factors in people with type 2 diabetes

Researchers describe emerging strategy for prevention, early treatment of Type 2 diabetes

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