Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Treating Depression as a Preventative Measure for Diabetes

Depression and diabetes are two prevalent health issues that often coexist, creating interconnected challenges for individuals. Recent research has discovered a connection between the two conditions, suggesting that treating depression could play a role in preventing diabetes.

Studies have consistently shown a bidirectional relationship between depression and diabetes. Individuals with diabetes are at a higher risk of developing depression, and those with depression have an increased susceptibility to diabetes. This link is not merely coincidental; shared biological mechanisms and lifestyle factors contribute to the intricate association between the two conditions.

Chronic inflammation is a common denominator in both depression and diabetes. Depressive symptoms can trigger inflammatory responses in the body, leading to an imbalance in immune function. This chronic inflammation, in turn, contributes to insulin resistance and impairs the body's ability to regulate blood sugar levels, increasing the risk of diabetes.

Persistent stress is a well-known contributor to both depression and diabetes. The body's response to stress involves the release of cortisol, a hormone that, when elevated for prolonged periods, can lead to insulin resistance. By addressing and treating depression, individuals may effectively manage stress levels, reducing the impact on cortisol secretion and, consequently, mitigating the risk of developing diabetes.

Depression often leads to unhealthy lifestyle choices, such as poor diet, sedentary behavior, and irregular sleep patterns – all of which are risk factors for diabetes. Treating depression involves not only addressing the emotional aspects but also promoting healthier habits. Encouraging individuals to adopt a balanced diet, engage in regular physical activity, and establish a consistent sleep routine can significantly contribute to preventing diabetes.

Mental health treatment, including therapy and medications, can provide individuals with the tools to cope with depression effectively. As the emotional burden lessens, the associated physiological changes, such as reduced inflammation and cortisol levels, may contribute to a decreased risk of developing diabetes.

The link between depression and diabetes emphasizes the need for a holistic approach to healthcare. Treating depression is not only essential for improving mental well-being but may also serve as a preventative measure against the development of diabetes. By addressing the connection between these conditions, healthcare professionals can empower individuals to lead healthier lives.

Monday, January 29, 2024

Adapting the CDC's National Diabetes Prevention Program Services to the Hearing Community

 
The National Diabetes Prevention Program (National DPP), a CDC-led lifestyle modification program that assists participants in losing weight, increasing physical activity, and adopting healthy eating habits, is one of the most successful therapies for preventing or delaying type 2 diabetes. The delivery of the National DPP can take place digitally, in person, or in a hybrid format. And since diabetes has a significant impact on the deaf population, a modified version of the program that focuses on enhancing communication may be beneficial and well-received by the deaf community.

"Deaf individuals who communicate using American Sign Language (ASL) are three times more likely to have diabetes than hearing people," said the American Diabetes Association. Insufficient communication is a large part of the problem.

A German study titled "Primary non-communicable disease prevention and communication barriers of deaf sign language users: a qualitative study" focused on the issue of insufficient communication. One of the study's conclusions is as follows: "In order to develop effective diabetes and non-communicable disease prevention strategies for deaf sign language users, health care professionals need to consider sign language specific communication concepts." The National DPP might be helpful here.

National DPP sessions are available all around the country and have to meet CDC-established requirements for quality. The Diabetes Prevention Recognition Program (DPRP) was created by the CDC to single out institutions that provide the National DPP and meet quality standards. The CDC provides a complete list of the programs approved by the CDC. Using the list, which contains location information, can enable deaf community members to approach National DPP managers to discuss potential partnerships.

The following program may be of interest to those who wish to modify the National DPP to accommodate the needs of the deaf and hard of hearing community. The program is the "Diabetes Prevention Program for Deaf and Hard of Hearing."

The deaf community is in need of type 2 diabetes prevention and delay. The National DPP is a good place to start. 

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Tags: , , , , bariatric medicine, obesity medicine, medical practice start up, bariatric industry analysis, weight loss industry analysis, weight management industry analysis  

Thursday, December 28, 2023

Prediabetes and Dementia

Prediabetes is a condition in which blood glucose levels are elevated but not high enough to be identified as diabetes.   More than 98 million Americans have prediabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), yet the majority are unaware of it.   Prediabetes raises one's chances of acquiring type 2 diabetes, which is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease and stroke.  Furthermore, prediabetes can harm your brain function and raise your chance of dementia.

Dementia is a broad term describing a deterioration in cognitive processes that interferes with daily living, such as remembering, thinking, and reasoning.   The most frequent cause of dementia, accounting for 60% to 80% of cases, is Alzheimer's disease.  Vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, frontotemporal dementia, and mixed dementia are some of the other causes. Dementia affects around 50 million people globally, with that figure estimated to climb to 152 million by 2050.

One study has shown that prediabetes is associated with dementia risk. Researchers indicated that that there was a significant longitudinal association between increased levels of HbA1c "long-term cognitive decline." Another study showed that "Prediabetes can also increase the risk of dementia because it is associated with an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, and other cardiovascular diseases."

The good news is that by making simple lifestyle changes, including losing weight, eating a nutritious diet, exercising frequently, and stopping smoking, prediabetes can be corrected or prevented from advancing to diabetes. These healthy changes may also reduce the risk of dementia. Hence, it is critical to get tested for prediabetes and take action to avoid the negative implications of more harmful conditions such as diabetes and dementia.

Therefore, physicians and other healthcare clinicians should make screening for prediabetes an integral part of periodic patient examinations. Not only will the examinations help prevent or delay type 2 diabetes, but the examinations might lower the risk of dementia.

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Tags: , , , , bariatric medicine, obesity medicine, medical practice start up, bariatric industry analysis, weight loss industry analysis, weight management industry analysis 

Sunday, November 26, 2023

Preventing Type 2 Diabetes Using Continuous Glucose Monitoring and A Smartphone APP

Prediabetes is a condition where blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes. It affects about one in three adults in the US, and increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. However, prediabetes can be reversed or slowed with lifestyle changes, such as eating healthy, exercising, and losing weight, thereby, delaying or preventing type 2 diabetes. And continuous glucose monitoring might prove to be helpful in the prevention of type 2 diabetes for some with prediabetes.

The CDC National Diabetes Prevention Program was established to enable individuals with prediabetes or a high risk of developing type 2 diabetes to prevent or delay the disease. The program uses intensive lifestyle intervention. And continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) might help people maintain their intensive lifestyle.
 
CGM is a system that uses a small sensor inserted under the skin to measure blood sugar levels every few minutes, and sends the data to a receiver or a smartphone app. The app can display the current blood sugar level, as well as the trends, patterns, and alerts. CGM can provide more information and feedback than finger prick testing, and can help people with prediabetes understand how their food, activity, and sleep affect their blood sugar.

A recent study found that CGM can also diagnose prediabetes earlier than a blood sugar test, and might motivate people to make lifestyle changes sooner. Another study showed that using CGM and a mobile app that integrates food logging and physical activity can improve blood sugar regulation in people with prediabetes and type 2 diabetes.

More research is needed to determine if CGM and a smartphone app, for example, can be a useful tool for treating prediabetes, and thus preventing type 2 diabetes, for the long term. And do so cost effectively. However, CGM may have a future in diabetes prevention.

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Tags: , , , , bariatric medicine, obesity medicine, medical practice start up, bariatric industry analysis, weight loss industry analysis, weight management industry analysis  

Monday, October 16, 2023

A Mediterranean Diet Can Improve Health, Including a lowering of the Risk for Diabetes

Some people consider the Mediterranean area to be the cradle of civilization, and here is where the Mediterranean diet is said to have its roots. The foundation of the diet consists of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and legumes. Olive oil is used in place of butter and salt is replaced with herbs and spices. Olive oil is highly valued in the diet. Red meat is consumed only infrequently, while fish and poultry are eaten frequently.  The diet has been proven to be a healthy eating regimen. And past research found that the Mediterranean diet can reduce the risk of diabetes.

Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs when the sugar in the blood is too high. The body makes insulin, and the insulin is used to remove the sugar from the blood and take the sugar to cells, which use the sugar for energy. Diabetes results from a break -down of the insulin-sugar process. People generally have one of three types of diabetes. There is type 1 diabetes, where the body does not make enough insulin. There is type 2 diabetes, where the body makes insulin, but it may not be enough to keep the body healthy. And then there is gestational diabetes.  This type of diabetes occurs during pregnancy. But it usually goes away after the pregnancy.

Type 2 diabetes, the most common kind of diabetes, is usually associated with family history or an unhealthy lifestyle. And an unhealthy lifestyle often includes an unhealthy diet. The Mediterranean diet is one of the most studied diets, and the diet has been found to be beneficial to our mental and physical health. For example, the Mediterranean diet is associated with healthy brain function, and a lowering of the risk of metabolic syndrome.

And a meta-analysis, reported on in 2022, showed that following a Mediterranean diet (MD) can lower the risk of diabetes. In fact, the researchers indicated that "Even modest adherence to the MD was linked to a decreased incidence of type 2 diabetes."

Therefore, the Mediterranean diet has again proven to be an important dietary weapon for maintaining good health.

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Tags: , , , , bariatric medicine, obesity medicine, medical practice start up, bariatric industry analysis, weight loss industry analysis, weight management industry analysis

Thursday, September 28, 2023

Confirmation of the Effectiveness of the Diabetes Prevention Program

The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) conducted a study to determine if weight loss could prevent type 2 diabetes. The study was called the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP). The researchers concluded that a relatively small amount of weight loss resulting from diet, exercise and lifestyle modifications can be more effective in preventing type 2 diabetes for those people with prediabetes than metformin. And a recent study confirms that actions an individual can take that include lifestyle modifications can be more effective in treating prediabetes than metformin.

The Diabetes Prevention Program or DPP trial was initiated in 1996 by the NIDDK to determine if weight loss could be used to prevent type 2 diabetes in persons with prediabetes. The study was a randomized trial consisting of three groups. All three groups contained prediabetic subjects that were overweight but not obese. Results from the trials were reported in 2002.

Subjects in one of the groups received placebo treatment for type 2 diabetes treatment. Subjects in another group were given the diabetes drug metformin. And subjects in the third group were provided intensive lifestyle intervention, with the goal of a 7% weight loss using diet, exercise and lifestyle modification.

The specific goal of the study was to determine if individuals with prediabetes could avoid type 2 diabetes by losing 7% of their weight through diet, exercise, and lifestyle modification. Actually, all three groups lost weight. At one year, the intensive lifestyle group lost 7.1% of their weight, compared to 1.5% for the metformin group and 1% for the placebo group.

Participants spent an average of 2.8 years in the study. And during that time, it was found that the intensive lifestyle subjects experienced a 58% reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes, and the metformin group experienced a 31% reduction compared to the placebo group. And after ten years, the type 2 incidence "was reduced by 34% ... in the lifestyle group and 18% .. in the metformin group compared with placebo."

And researchers from the more recent study mentioned above indicated that "the combination of dietary methods and physical activity in lifestyle modification intervention is more effective in reducing the risk of diabetes..."

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Below is a quillbot version of the above post.

A study was carried out by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) to see if losing weight helped fend off type 2 diabetes. The Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) was the name of the study. The researchers came to the conclusion that for those with prediabetes, weight loss resulting from lifestyle modifications, including diet and exercise, can be more effective than metformin at avoiding type 2 diabetes. And a recent study confirms the idea that lifestyle changes and other preventative measures can be more successful at treating prediabetes than metformin.

The NIDDK started the Diabetes Prevention Program or DPP trial in 1996 to see if people with prediabetes may avoid type 2 diabetes by losing weight. Three groups were included in the investigation, which was a randomized trial.

One of the groups' participants received a placebo as treatment for type 2 diabetes. Another group of participants received the diabetes medication metformin. The third-group's participants received extensive lifestyle interventions with the aim of losing 7% of their body weight using food, exercise, and lifestyle change.

The study's specific objective was to determine if people with prediabetes might avoid developing type 2 diabetes by decreasing 7% of their body weight through diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes. In reality, weight was lost by all three groups. At one year, those who followed an intensive lifestyle dropped 7.1% of their body weight, compared to 1.5% for those who took metformin and 1% for those who received a placebo.

An average of 2.8 years were spent by participants in the study. And it was discovered that over that time, the incidence of type 2 diabetes decreased by 58% in the intensive lifestyle group and by 31% in the metformin group compared to the placebo group. The incidence of type 2 diabetes also "decreased by 34%... in the lifestyle group and 18%.. in the metformin group compared with placebo" after ten years.

Researchers from the more current study, mentioned above, also concluded that "the combination of dietary methods and physical activity in lifestyle modification intervention is more effective in reducing the risk of diabetes..." than metformin or placebo.

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Tags: , , , , bariatric medicine, obesity medicine, medical practice start up, bariatric industry analysis, weight loss industry analysis, weight management industry analysis

Wednesday, August 30, 2023

The Diabetes Prevention Program May be Helpful in Treating Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

An investigation to see if lifestyle modifications may stave off type 2 diabetes was spearheaded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). The Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) was the name of the study. The DPP study enabled participants with prediabetes to reduce their risk of type 2 diabetes by 58% compared to usual care. And the outcomes were achieved with only a little amount of weight reduction, good diet, and regular exercise. The study is viewed as a landmark study because of the outstanding results. And researchers in a recent study employed a modified version of the DPP to treat non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Fat deposits in the liver are a symptom of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). NAFLD includes nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and non-alcoholic fatty liver (NAFL). If a person has NASH, the person also has liver fat and liver damage in addition to inflammation.

The NIDDK initiated the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) study in 1996 to see if weight reduction encouraged by good diet and exercise might be used to prevent type 2 diabetes in people with prediabetes. Three groups were included in the investigation, which was a randomized experiment. One group was treated for prediabetes with diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes; another utilized metformin as the treatment; and a third group received a placebo (representing usual care). 

During the approximately 2.8-year period of the study, it was concluded that the intensive lifestyle group experienced a 58% reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes, and that the metformin group experienced a 31% reduction compared to the placebo group.

Based on positive results from the original DPP study, the CDC created the National Diabetes Prevention Program (National DPP). And a modified version of the National DPP, with some focus on NAFLD, was used in the study to treat the disease.

As a result of the utilization of modified National DPP, patients experienced weight loss, and improvements in liver-related parameters. BMI, hepatic steatosis, and HDL all showed significant improvements from baseline.
 
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