Thursday

“Diabetes UK recommends that people with diabetes without known cardiovascular disease should discuss their individual risk with their healthcare team," said Libby Dowling, Care Advisor for Diabetes UK.

So this is a change in guidelines, I have been on Aspirin since 2006 and I must admit, I bleed like a stuck pig when ever I cut myself (rarely) or do a prick test (frequently). I thought that was good, when I was first diagnosed I used to have the devils own game squeezing the thick gooey blood out of my finger - completely the opposite now.

From a purely non scientific, not knowing what I am talking about, I prefer blood that flows easily !!

read more here
And in the UK they have stopped our strips for monitoring. Utter Madness. The following came from Diabetes Health.

Never a "Duh!" Moment: Study Confirms That Self-Monitoring Improves Patients' Response to Diabetes

Patrick Totty
Oct 13, 2009

"Self-monitoring blood glucose" (SMBG), a staple in the lives of most people with diabetes who take insulin, involves consistently monitoring and recording blood glucose levels before and after specific activities, such as eating, exercising, sleeping, and taking insulin. By observing the effects of certain foods and activities on their blood glucose levels, patients can learn exactly what works to raise or lower them. Thus, SMBG affords a kind of "fine tuning" approach to diabetes that empowers patients to adjust their medicine, modify their behavior, and manage their disease without always needing expert intervention.

So it's hardly surprising that an international study sponsored by Roche Diagnostics has confirmed that SMBG is a useful tool.

The study, published by SAGE Publications in The Diabetes Educator, looked at the SMBG practice of "paired testing," in which people with diabetes measure their blood glucose levels before and after specific activities to see how modifications in those activities might lead to better BG management. The researchers, located in five far-flung locations-Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore, and Washington, DC-found that SMBG is helpful to patients because it increases their sense of control and provides nuanced information that allows them to finely hone their diabetes management.

The researchers also looked into the possibility that non-insulin-taking type 2s could benefit from SMBG. Because about 40 percent of type 2 patients are treated with oral drugs or through diet, constant self-monitoring of blood glucose has not been thought to be necessary. Even type 2s who take a combination of oral medications and a daily dose of long-acting insulin are not required to take anywhere near the number of self-administered BG tests that SMBG usually calls for. Given the depth of information and sense of control that SMBG affords, however, even type 2s who do not use insulin may soon hear their healthcare professionals recommending SMBG as part of an aggressive approach to managing type 2.

Saturday

The following came from Diabetes Health and makes an interesting read.



Circadian Rhythm and Blood Sugar Control

Russell Phillips, PhD
Oct 15, 2009

The human body is an amazing machine. The biological clock that ticks inside us to keep the machine running efficiently not only prompts us to sleep and eat on regular basis, but also apparently regulates blood sugar.

Dr. Brian Feldman at Stanford University School of Medicine recently published a study suggesting that a class of steroid hormones called glucocorticoids have a direct effect on a number of genes that affect our biological clock, or circadian rhythm. The circadian rhythm, from the Latin words circa (around) and diem (day), is a 24-hour cycle of biochemical, physiological, and behavioral processes. Glucocorticoids are secreted from the adrenal gland, sometimes at high levels and sometimes at very low levels, depending upon the time of day, when we eat, and the types of food we consume. When blood sugar is lowest, glucocorticoid levels are highest, initiating gluconeogenesis to break down fat in the liver and thereby provide additional glucose to the blood.

Glucocorticoids affect the immune system by up-regulating anti-inflammatory proteins and down-regulating pro-inflammatory proteins. In fact, glucocorticoids are marketed as nasal sprays, which alleviate inflamed nasal membranes, and as asthma inhalers, which reduce inflammation in the lungs. Prednisone, for example, is a prescribed corticosteroid (glucocorticoid) for the treatment of severe asthma or severe allergies. Although it is a valuable treatment option for some conditions, people with diabetes should be especially wary of taking such a powerful steroid because of the fact that glucocorticoids also stimulate gluconeogenesis. The consequent increase in available glucose would be a very serious side-effect for someone whose blood sugar levels are not well-controlled.

While it was thought that glucocorticoids triggered or synchronized the up-regulation and down-regulation of some circadian clock-associated genes, the how's and why's had not yet been well described. Therefore, the first phase of Dr. Feldman's study consisted of applying synthetic glucocorticoids to human and mouse stem cells grown in a dish, to see which genes in the stem cells were activated by the glucocorticoids. The researchers found that glucocorticoids directly activated several of the genes that control the circadian clock.

The next step was to look at how the hormone's control of the circadian clock was associated with other biological processes. Using mice that were genetically engineered to be missing a gene involved in circadian rhythm (Per2; one of the activated circadian clock genes), scientists were able to determine that while glucocorticoids had an effect on glucose homeostasis in normal control mice, there was no effect in mice missing the Per2 gene. This finding suggests that glucocorticoid regulation of circadian rhythm (by way of activating the Per2 gene) is directly involved in glucose homeostasis. Mice lacking the biological clock gene Per2 did not respond normally to glucose homeostasis challenges. These genetically engineered mice also had increased leptin levels as compared to controls. Leptin is a hormone that helps regulate energy expenditure and cycles with the circadian rhythm opposite to the cycle seen with glucocorticoids.

In the study discussion, Dr. Feldman noted that glucocorticoids act "as a synchronization signal to coordinate the circadian rhythm with energy balance. Taken together, our results imply that glucocorticoids regulate glucose homeostasis, in part, through direct control of the circadian clock, which in turn modulates leptin levels."

The study was published online October 5, 2009, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Thursday

What is up with my body chemistry?

My Carbs are well within recomended daily allowance, typically less than 300g per day, usually well below 250:















My Sugars are just as great:











in fact all my figures are good:


Cals Fat Cholest Sodium Carbs Sugars Fiber Protein
This week:
Click totals for charts!
9,261 239g 123mg 5,878mg 1,201g 307g 136g 471g
This month: 17,273 509g 596mg 12,933mg 2,112g 540g 238g 859g


so why is my blood sugar rising and why do I feel so crap?



Sunday

I am constantly amazed at the benign uses war and space inventions can be turned to. Here is a way forward for quick diabetes indication courtesy of our friends in NASA. I found this on Diabetes Health.


Spyware That Tests for Diabetes?

Russell Phillips, PhD
Oct 9, 2009

MSGI Security Solutions, which "serves the needs of counter-terrorism, public safety, law enforcement, and commercial security," has moved into a new area: diabetes detection. In fact, it has developed a handheld sensor that detects diabetes by measuring the level of acetone in the breath. The device, which employs carbon-based chemical sensors that detect organic vapors, is based upon nano sensors that NASA originally developed to make scientific measurements during space missions.

How does a sensor that detects acetone serve to diagnose diabetes? Because people with diabetes are resistant to insulin or don't produce it at all, their bodies are unable to move glucose from their bloodstream into their cells for energy. When the starved cells call for more glucose, the liver gets into action, converting fat into glucose in a process called gluconeogenesis ("gluco" = glucose; "neo" = new; and "genesis" = production). Gluconeogenesis produces substances called ketones. Ketones break down into three basic compounds, one of them being acetone, which then ends up in the breath.

According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), about half of the approximately 246 million people in the world who have diabetes don't know that they have the disease. Early detection would mean that early treatment could be made available. And early treatment, as we know, is absolutely necessary to prevent or delay the complications of diabetes. A simple breath test would go a long way toward simplifying early detection.

Please be aware, however, that this product is still in the prototype stage. MSGI has formed a subsidiary, Nanobeak, which is looking to test the handheld sensor and then license it to Big Pharma. It will then be up to Big Pharma to determine how to market the device to us, the consumers, or to our healthcare providers. (By the way, a nanobeak is a near-field optical head with a beaked metallic plate. Now you know.)

Friday

Critical Actions

There was silence in the room. Then the Sheikh simply said one word, “explain.”

Kahn proceeded to do so. After he had outlined the plan the other three sat and thought and then heads began to nod their agreement and approval.

“So we need to remove any thing that we want to keep from Britain,” Jackson commented.

“Of course, but then you should have done that under the original plan anyway.” Kahn retorted.

“Only if it were at flood level.”

“You would have risked the looting and civil unrest? No, I have had no interests in Britain for a long time, my advice to you all is to do the same. I also do not intend to step foot in the place again. I have no need.”

Giannopoulos looked across at Jackson and then back to Kahn. “I agree, it would be foolishness to retain any property in Britain, or indeed British territories. May I suggest a slight amendment to the plan?”

Kahn nodded.

“I suggest” Giannopoulos continued, “that one hour prior to the detonation we generate a run on every British financial institution. That will complete their destruction.”

“No, absolutely not,” Kahn retorted strongly. “That is totally against our interest.”

“Why not?” from the Sheikh.

“Our intention if you recall. We need to ensure that we have no financial interests remaining in British institutions it is true, that goes with out saying. However everyone of our competitors that has interests in London at the moment of destruction will also face financial loss. That can only be to our advantage and improve our position. May I remind you that our aim is to control the wealth of the world and to do so we need to strengthen the US, and destroy London and seriously weaken Europe.”

“What of your colleagues in the Emirates?” Jackson asked the Sheikh.

“They are already bankrupt as you know, desperately trying to create new ways to make themselves important to the world as the oil runs out. Mohammed is trying to build a holiday resort out of his little sheikdom, but has long since run out of cash. Unfinished skyscrapers line every street, empty shops in the malls and his stupid sand islands are sinking back into the sea. When the oil goes, that will be the end, and the end is a lot sooner than they think. The Persians and Iraqis are just waiting for an excuse to annihilate each other. The plan is above reproach. Once London is gone the only real money and power will lie in the States, and therefore in us.”

“What do you want us to do next?”Jackson asked Kahn.

“London and it’s financial markets are about to be destroyed, all of you need to build them up, make London boom, speed up the recovery, the recession is over, for London. Get your contacts to get as much moved out of Paris and Bonn and into London as possible. Go short, but by 4 weeks, that is the timescale.”

“I have a rather nice collection of Ferraris and Lamborghinis, and a couple of Maybachs in a garage in Mayfair. I think that I shall get them quietly crated and moved.”

“Make sure that they are off the carrier and in your private hands within 4 weeks.”

“Of course, much can be lost in the anarchy that will follow, especially in Europe.”

“Indeed. We also need to raise tensions on the Left Bank and Gaza, if we can get Israel and the Palestinians at each other’s throats and stamp out the Lebanese recovery, that can only aid the process.”

“My area of expertise I think,” the Sheikh volunteered.

“Gentlemen, there is much to do, and we have stayed here longer than expected. We should move.” Kahn drew the meeting to a close, the fourth man had said nothing.

Thursday

Another great peace of news for us diabetics. When is a HIP replacement not a HIP replacement ? Read on, this great article came from www.diabeteshealth.com

One thing that really frustrates people with diabetes mellitus is the biopharma industry's focus on treatments rather than cures. A cure is what the diabetes community wants, not another band-aid. So the existence of a biopharma company that calls itself "CureDM" is promising, and its first product, Pancreate, seems to be on its way to fulfilling that promise.
CureDM started with the information that in most cases, the mass of pancreatic islets drops by 80 percent in type 1 patients and 50 percent in type 2 patients. They also knew from recent research that the adult human pancreas contains an abundance of pancreatic progenitor cells. Like stem cells, progenitor cells have the capacity to differentiate. Unlike stem cells, however, they are not able to become any type of cell. Instead, they differentiate only into their "target" cell, in this case, islets.
In adults, however, pancreatic progenitor cells rarely make the change into islets. Under normal conditions, islets differentiate only during fetal development, when the pancreas is first powering up. When islets do form in adults, it is usually in response to pancreatic injury and stress.
Scientists knew this fact way back before insulin was discovered, when surgeons performed partial pancreatectomies on children with diabetes in hopes of triggering islet regeneration. Rather than hacking off pieces of pancreases, however, CureDM turned to the modern study of genes, called genomics, and proteins, called proteomics. Using these approaches, they were able to identify the key that unlocks the pancreatic progenitor cells, causing them to differentiate into islets. That key is Human proIslet Peptide (HIP), christened Pancreate by CureDM.
HIP is a peptide, or small piece of a protein, made of 14 amino acids (the building blocks of proteins). It is a segment of a large protein that is created by a gene called regenerating islet-derived 3 alpha, or the REG3a gene. HIP stimulates the pathways that cause adult pancreatic progenitor cells to differentiate into functioning islets, fully equipped with alpha, beta, gamma, and delta cells. Because of the scarcity of the REG3a protein after fetal development, CureDM believed that a lack of HIP was the critical element preventing new islet formation, or neogenesis, in adults.
CureDM discovered that the sequence of amino acids in HIP is very similar among many species. When they made a three-dimensional model of the human REG3a protein, they found the HIP part is exposed on the outer surface of the protein, not folded deep within it, making it available to bind with the other proteins that go on to stimulate islet differentiation. And CureDM has successfully stabilized HIP to improve its availability in the body. Recent studies indicate that the dose of HIP required to stimulate islet neogenesis may be 100 times lower than the concentration required by naturally produced HIP.
So far, HIP has been producing some hopeful results. In cultures of human pancreatic ductal tissue, treatment with HIP increases insulin secretion four-fold. In diabetic mice, it triples the number of islets, essentially reversing the disease. Diabetes-related biomarkers normalize in as few as 10 weeks, and diabetic animals no longer need extra insulin after only 21 days of treatment.
CureDM is currently completing the toxicological studies required before filing an Investigational New Drug application, or IND, for Pancreate. An IND is a request for permission from the FDA to administer an investigational drug to humans. The company expects to begin clinical trials in both type 1 and type 2 diabetes in early 2010.