Slashdot Mirror

30.3M Americans have diabetes.
Only 1.25M have Type-1.
source: http://www.diabetes.org/diabet...

While having type 1 diabetes is critical to know for people with the disease, the vast majority of people with diabetes in western countries are type 2.
For T2 people, being on a lower-carb diet really is the cornerstone towards better health. This has been known for 100+ yrs.

Most doctors won't tell their clients strongly enough to change their lifestyle decisions for less carbs and moderate exercise. Reversing illness is NOT what the US health care system is about. They want lifetime drug users to force constant doctor visits and constant medications. How else will 20% of the US economy keep growing?

I don't like whiskey.

Current studies do not show the food you eat to be a contributing factor, although there are some studies showing sugary drinks have an impact even after adjusting for BMI. Even though the American Diabetes Association is clear that increased sugar consumption is in food is not a risk factor for type 2 diabetes, it does single out sugary drinks as a risk factor.

Diabetes Myths

Sugary drinks as a general rule are the worst thing you can put in your body. Not only does a can of cola have more sugar than a bag of skittles, there does appear to be something different about how the body processes nutrients in drinks as opposed to food. Although the research into why hasn't been very conclusive (at least that I can find).

That is interesting, Thank you.

I have to say it annoys me that all the alarmists who used to claim that soda emphatically did cause diabetes are correct. Not because they are correct, but because they used to insist upon it with no actual data to back it up.

See, the American Diabetes Association has it on their page as a myth that Sugar causes Type 2 diabetes, indicating it can lead to obesity which can cause Type 2 diabetes. WebMD has a similar passage.

That article is light on details. Previous research indicated that a high calorie diet has a link to Type 2 diabetes - Nothing specific to sugar.

There may now be research indicating something unique to sugar does in fact have at least a casual link to type 2 diabetes, but it's far from conclusive.

At this point, people insisting sugar causes T2 diabetes are still spreading FUD.

There are numerous reasons to limit sugar intake, and that shouldn't even be high on the list.

This is spoken as someone who for about 12 years chugged down at least a liter of soda a day and lived an otherwise healthy lifestyle. I was always annoyed at people who would insist that I was going to get Diabetes, when there was no evidence of that being likely.

If it turns out there is in fact a link, then that changes things. At the moment though that single press article about a study isn't conclusive, and until the FDA, ADA etc change their stance and the prevailing theory that it is a high caloric intake and weight gain that are linked, I don't see how it is responsible to claim sugar causes T2 diabetes.

Of cause, exercising caution is a whole different thing.

I'm so skeptical I'll even debunk your joke. The mainstream statistic you'll see quoted everywhere is that true celiac disease hits 1 in 133 people. The number of gluten free food shoppers is a multiple of that, because that doesn't count people with milder gluten intolerance; households where everyone eats GF because of one member; and the recent GF fad shoppers. The household ripple alone is so huge, even Betty Crocker runs around selling to this market because they believe "28 percent of consumers seek out gluten-free foods". And all that was going on before GF became mainstream as a dieting fad.

Meanwhile, diabetes hits 8.3% of the population and there isn't nearly as much of a ripple to household members.

Myth: eating too much sugar causes diabetes

Do you guys even bother reading your own links?

Myth: Eating too much sugar causes diabetes.

Fact: The answer is not so simple. Type 1 diabetes is caused by genetics and unknown factors that trigger the onset of the disease [editor: we know this, that isn't what the debate is about]; type 2 diabetes is caused by genetics and lifestyle factors.

Being overweight does increase your risk for developing type 2 diabetes, and a diet high in calories from any source contributes to weight gain. Research has shown that drinking sugary drinks is linked to type 2 diabetes.

The American Diabetes Association recommends that people should limit their intake of sugar-sweetened beverages to help prevent diabetes. Sugar-sweetened beverages include beverages like:

        regular soda
        fruit punch
        fruit drinks
        energy drinks
        sports drinks
        sweet tea
        other sugary drinks.

These will raise blood glucose and can provide several hundred calories in just one serving!

Rubycodez isn't saying a certain amount of sugar directly causes diabetes in all cases. He is saying consuming large amounts of sugar is tied to the onset of diabetes. Which is what the American Diabetes Association also says.

Myth: eating too much sugar causes diabetes

There's pretty much something there to sabotage everyone's digestive system and metabolic balance.

is completely meaningless.

There is a lot of FUD being spread around about various types of food, and a lot of misinformation about nutrition in general. Eating at a fast-food joint every day is probably going to be unhealthy depending on what you order, assuming you have a daily caloric expenditure that is close to the 2,000/d that the government bases its recommendations on. However, it is more important that your diet match your activity level, than that you avoid specific foods or food groups. As an illustrative example, Michael Phelps consumes 12,000 calories/d when training. He is obviously a statistical outlier, but that is partially my point. The maintenance energy requirement for every person is different, and very much dependent upon that persons activity level. Their is nothing inherently bad about any of the ingredients in a triple bacon cheeseburger, nor with the final product. It is when such calorie dense meals are consumed in excess of your calorie expenditure that they start to cause problems.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/09/12/health/main572833.shtml

http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/diabetes-statistics/

Smoking killed 4.83 million people in 2000, And the diabetes rate is rising, so I think that shit food and smoking will take care of all of the stupid and fat for you nicely. With 2.5 million Americans dying from smoking every year, we do not need wars to kill off the people.

http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/diabetes-myths/

Again, if you start to feel funny, you pull over. But that wont stop the cops from beating you, AS I POINTED OUT VIA LINKS I CITED. Your sad retort was meaningless idealism. The real world is not binary, no matter how much you fantasized about being a Transformer when you grew up.

The real world isn't black and white, but I know dichotomy driven jerks like to ignore data, and you like to conclude that you can just magically decide in advance if you are safe to drive, when you can IN FACT not, as this points out.

But hey, let's live in your false world where diabetics magically can predict blood sugar fluctuations, and where they deserve to be treated like drunk drivers. Because everyone hates a complex world. I know how much easier it is for feeble minds like yours to cope when things can conveniently fit into 2 categories.

Sounds to me like if you were in charge of public policy, you would end up discriminating against people over your own inability to have the clarity to view reality in more than binary. Personally, I think you must have 0 experience with diabetics in your family or household, so you are akin to a villager waving a pitchfork around.

It's a myth that eating too much sugar causes diabetes.

http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-myths.jsp

You can read about several diabetes myths from the American Diabetes Association. Notice the third myth is that "Eating too much sugar causes diabetes," which is what I assumed you were referring to. It is a common myth that I have heard several times that deserves to die.

The most recent studies most definitely do show that people who daily have a high intake of sugar through drinks like soda have a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Perhaps you'd care to cite those studies, then?

You might care to pass them on to the American Diabetes Association and Diabetes UK, both of which seem pretty clear that we're talking about a myth here. A quick Google will also turn up several recent research papers that do not show the link you assert.

They are similar in name because of the symptoms, not because of the underlying cause.

Type 1 Diabetes is caused when the immune system attacks the islet cells in the pancreas. The islet cells are what produce insulin and when they shut down from the attack, your blood sugar levels rise. (Slowly at first, but at more islet cells are killed/incapacitated your glucose levels go steadily higher.) This can lead to circulation problems, blindness, and death among other things if not controled by injections of insulin.

In Type 2 Diabetics, insulin is still produced, but the body is resistant to it for some reason. (possibly from a person eating too many carbohydrates over a long period of time or because of genetic reasons.) In a lot of cases this can be treated with a diet low in carbohydrates along with regular exercise. Other drugs may be needed in some cases where diet and exercise are not enough. Some doctors suggest a healthy balance of protein along with any carbs you eat.

Some women can have "Type 3" Diabetes when they are pregnant. I don't have much information on this, but from what I understand it tends to clear up after childbirth in most cases.

A person can also become diabetic from pancreatic cancer. (But in this case the diabetes is pretty much the least of their worries...)

You can learn more about the various types of diabetes at http://www.diabetes.org/

Good, someone else who sees my side of things. As a type 1, this doesn't help me at all. Unfortunately, out of all the diabetics in the world, about 90% are Type 2 (http://www.diabetes.org/about-diabetes.jsp), so that's what people are going to try to develop cures for. That leaves us Type 1's out in the cold, so to speak.

Fortunately I found out about it early and was able to work around it, but I can imagine that thousands of Tour de Cure riders who are emailing their friennds for support are experiencing the frustration of having their correspondence marked as SPAM simply because keywords are setting a red flag (give me money) or the source of the email (diabetes.org) is getting them blocked.

Shameless self promotion and diabetes research fundraising: If you want to sponsor me, an overweight nerd with a sense of humor and a soon-to-be-sore taint, on the Tour de Cure... Visit my Tour de Cure website

...had a physical in a while.

I can attest to this, folks. My experience wasn't with the loss of vision (and it runs in the family, so while it was a surprise to me, it wasn't due to working in front of a computer all the time...) but with only one of the other symptoms. I'd checked into the ER with a blood sugar of 600mg/dl- you run the risk of a coma past 300-400. As the glucose levels dropped, I went suddenly far-sighted. I'm fine now, not needing glasses.

If you show any of the symptoms- and I do mean any of them, you may want to get in for a physical immediately.

do whatever the hell a person would have to do to have too much iron in their blood

You just have to be slightly unlucky. One disease that causes this is called hemochromatosis, which is the most common single gene defect in the West. My dad has it, and it has caused him large number of problems, such as diabetes and cirhosis. It also causes heart problems, arthritis, and a host of other maladies.

Funnily, the treatment is regular bleeding. Unfortunately, it can't really repair the damage that has already been done.

From the American Diabetes association: nearly 9 out of 10 people with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes are overweight. That sounds like it's linked to diet and exercise. How to prevent diabetes? Diet and exersise.

That is indeed a very strong correlation. It either means that obesity (or at least a lifestyle which leads to obesity) causes diabetes (type II anyways) or that diabetes contributes to obesity. Actually I wouldn't doubt that there is a catch 22 type situation where diabetes can contribute to a person growing overweight. The blood sugar spikes and lack of hormonal control would A)encourage overeating by signaling that the body is hungry earlier, and craving sweet foods which cause blood sugar jumps. B)disuade exercise by making it more difficult to exercise due to lack of control of the sugars which fuel muscles. C)insulin physically controls how fat is burnt in the body. Insulin in the blood directs the body to store sugar as fat, lack of insulin allows fat to be burned as energy.

My guess is that it actually ends up being a catch-22 type situation. People who eat sugary foods and don't exercise regularly put themselves at a higher disposition for pre-diabetes (a medically accepted state where one's insulin is not functioning quite right.) and being in pre-diabetes can help lead to physical addictions to sugars and eating.

From the American Diabetes association: nearly 9 out of 10 people with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes are overweight. That sounds like it's linked to diet and exercise. How to prevent diabetes? Diet and exersise.

That is indeed a very strong correlation. It either means that obesity (or at least a lifestyle which leads to obesity) causes diabetes (type II anyways) or that diabetes contributes to obesity. Actually I wouldn't doubt that there is a catch 22 type situation where diabetes can contribute to a person growing overweight. The blood sugar spikes and lack of hormonal control would A)encourage overeating by signaling that the body is hungry earlier, and craving sweet foods which cause blood sugar jumps. B)disuade exercise by making it more difficult to exercise due to lack of control of the sugars which fuel muscles. C)insulin physically controls how fat is burnt in the body. Insulin in the blood directs the body to store sugar as fat, lack of insulin allows fat to be burned as energy.

My guess is that it actually ends up being a catch-22 type situation. People who eat sugary foods and don't exercise regularly put themselves at a higher disposition for pre-diabetes (a medically accepted state where one's insulin is not functioning quite right.) and being in pre-diabetes can help lead to physical addictions to sugars and eating.

I'll have to back you up on this one. My mother is an R.D., L.D. (registered andlicensed dietician, just as doctors have to be registered and licensed in order to practice) with a masters in nutrition. As much as she (and i!) would like for me to lose weight, there's no way she'd allow me on an atkin's diet. What it does is send your body into ketoacidosis. Ketoacidosis is a serious condition that can lead to diabetic coma (passing out for a long time) or even death. Ketocidosis means dangerously high levels of ketones. Ketones are acids that build up in the blood. They appear in the urine when your body doesn't have enough insulin. Ketones can poison the body.

The first symptoms inclue:
Thirst or a very dry mouth.
Frequent urination.
High blood sugar levels.
High levels of ketones in the urine.
Next, other symptoms appear:
Constantly feeling tired.
Dry or flushed skin.
Nausea, vomiting, or abdominal pain (Vomiting can be caused by many illnesses, not just ketoacidosis. If vomiting continues for more than 2 hours, contact your health care provider.)
A hard time breathing (short, deep breaths).
Fruity odor on breath.
A hard time paying attention, or confusion.

Its just as effective as, say, cutting off your head to lose 10 pounds! The best way to lose weight is a healthy, balanced diet and regular exercise. This is why I can't lose weight. I *know* how to eat healthy, know I should exercise, but I can't be arsed. My weight problem isn't just a weight problem, its a willpower problem, and a laziness problem, and because I spend most of my time in front of the computer, its also a lifestyle problem.

My souce (no, i'm not sharing my mom!) is here at www.diabetes.org.

This is true for Type 1 diabetes, which often strikes children (where it's known as "juvenile diabetes") but can affect adults too. People with Type 1 diabetes are dependent on insulin injections or pumps.

Type 2 diabetics (like me) suffer from either "peripheral insulin resistance" (the insulin receptors in cells become harder to activate) or a moderate insulin deficiency. Since the insulin receptors mediate glucose transport into the body's cells, less insulin or faulty receptors mean more glucose stays in the bloodstream. Type 2 diabetes is sometimes, but not always, affected by weight and diet. (My doctor says that if I lost 50 pounds the diabetes would probably go away. She's even suggested weight-loss surgery a few times, but probably as a way of scaring me and emphasizing her point.)

Laura

This is true for Type 1 diabetes, which often strikes children (where it's known as "juvenile diabetes") but can affect adults too. People with Type 1 diabetes are dependent on insulin injections or pumps.

Type 2 diabetics (like me) suffer from either "peripheral insulin resistance" (the insulin receptors in cells become harder to activate) or a moderate insulin deficiency. Since the insulin receptors mediate glucose transport into the body's cells, less insulin or faulty receptors mean more glucose stays in the bloodstream. Type 2 diabetes is sometimes, but not always, affected by weight and diet. (My doctor says that if I lost 50 pounds the diabetes would probably go away. She's even suggested weight-loss surgery a few times, but probably as a way of scaring me and emphasizing her point.)

Laura

Feel free to mod me down for nagging.. BUT, as a formerly obese person I'd like to comment on this. We've got to get a handle on obesity in the US. I haven't witnessed the same obesity in Europe or Asia. One reason, I think, is that they don't have the HUGE fountain drinks with free refills. Also, they generally consume a lot less sugar. (And yes, there are other very good reasons)

Consuming lots of refined sugar is incredibly hard on your body. Some believe it spikes your insulin, then your sugar goes down. This causes you to get hungry and consume more sugar. This leads to insulin resistance, type II diabetes, and obesity. That's one view. Another view is, it's just bad for you because it's empty calories. Others believe refined sugars rob your body of nutrients and suppress your immune system. Regardless of which one you choose to believe - everyone believes that excess sugar intake leads to obesity and type II diabetes, even in young people.

Think about how much sugar you consume in a day from soft drinks. There is 1 teaspoon of sugar in 1 1/2 oz. of soft drink. And how many 32 oz. drinks are you consuming in one day?

Caffeine doesn't appear to be nearly as bad as sugar, but it has its detractors. No doubt someone will disagree with me on this. But I won't badmouth caffeine on /.!

As some posters have suggested, maybe you could switch to tea, or a lower sugar energy drink. (I don't drink them - is there such a thing?)

Type 1 diabetes is almost always caused by an incorrect immune system response. In type 1 diabetes, the immune system typically attacks the Beta cells in your pancreas that create Insulin for you.

Arthritis (more specifically rheumatoid arthritis) is caused by the body's immune system attacking the cartiledge layers in between your joints. Under attack the cartiledge layers become inflamed, causing the characteristic joint swelling and immobility.

Heart Disease is a common term to describe medical conditions that cause damage to the heart. These can be physical conditions (such as obstructions to the blood supply to the heart), viral/bacterial infections, or auto-immune responses.

More information on Diabetes can be found at the American Diabetes Association. Information on Rheumatoid Arthritis can be found at the Arthritis Foundation

--

Did a quick search on google for "aspartame".
From the Multiple Sclerosis Foundation (MSF): this article seems to dispute those claims though.
As does this article from the American Diabetes Association.
Even MIT really has nothing bad to say about it.

I really don't know, but I kinda doubt that all of these scientists are paid off by the artificial sweetener industry. To be convinced that there is a real problem and not some sort of overreaction, I'd need (at least) 2 papers from different scientists that are affiliated with reputable universities.

I'm willing to have my mind changed, though.

Did a quick search on google for "aspartame".
From the Multiple Sclerosis Foundation (MSF): this article seems to dispute those claims though.
As does this article from the American Diabetes Association.
Even MIT really has nothing bad to say about it.

I really don't know, but I kinda doubt that all of these scientists are paid off by the artificial sweetener industry. To be convinced that there is a real problem and not some sort of overreaction, I'd need (at least) 2 papers from different scientists that are affiliated with reputable universities.

I'm willing to have my mind changed, though.