Type 1 Diabetes Vaccine headed For Human Trials

A Vaccine for Type 1 Diabetes – Clinical Trials to begin 2018!

It is estimated that by the year 2050 in the United States alone, more than 5 million people will be living with Type 1 Diabetes. Since this condition is neither curable nor preventable, people who have been diagnosed with the condition must monitor their blood sugar levels constantly and manage them through activity, diet, and insulin injections in order to avoid complications that are usually life-threatening.

Is Preventing Diabetes Actually Possible?

Although preventing or reversing diabetes might sound like a dream, the idea of a diabetes vaccine has been around for decades. However, a truly effective vaccine for Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) has remained out of scientists’ grasp. In order to understand the search for a Type 1 Diabetes vaccine, it’s essential to first understand how Type 1 Diabetes works. T1D was initially known as juvenile diabetes mainly because it usually shows up within the early years of life when the body’s immune system destroys beta cells in pancreatic tissue.

Diabetes Vaccine and Our Immune System

Our immune system is a very essential part especially when it comes to our survival in the biosphere which is filled with dangerous toxins, viruses, and bacteria. When our immune cells detect an invader, they immediately attack and destroy the foreign cells. However, in some cases, specialized immune cells go haywire and mistake beta cells for invaders. This misguided assault is responsible for type 1 diabetes. Over time, the body’s ability to produce insulin is also impaired.

A vaccine that could prevent this autoimmune disease in children has been in the making for decades and is ready to start clinical trials in the year 2018. Although this is not a cure that will eliminate this disease, the vaccine might reduce the number of new diabetes cases.

Researchers at the University of Tampere in Finland have provided evidence linking a virus known as coxsackievirus B1 to the autoimmune reaction that triggers the body’s own immune system to destroy beta cells in pancreatic tissue. Type 1 Diabetes is the decreased ability of the pancreas to produce insulin which helps our cells to absorb sugar out of the blood. This is usually the result of beta cells being destroyed by the immune system early in life.

There are various ways this process can be triggered and one example is infection by enteroviruses which can also cause meningitis, myocarditis, hand, foot, and mouth disease, and polio. In 2014, a team of virologists from the University of Tampere led by Heikki Hyoty conducted a pair of studies on children with T1D to show that coxsackievirus in the B group was associated with Type 1 Diabetes.

Studies have shown that enteroviruses are very common in newborns. On the other hand, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention has established that about 25% of the 444 enterovirus infections in the United States are caused by CVB1 (coxsackievirus B1). For some of these children, it’s the start of an incurable condition.

An estimate from the data shows that less than 5% of the children infected with CVB1 go on to develop T1D (Type 1 Diabetes). Although this does not seem like a lot, it suggests that hundreds of children around the world develop T1D each year.

Additionally, if the other CVB members also contribute to the condition, which they might, this number could be much higher. However, this newly developed diabetes vaccine might put a stop to this.

In fact, Hyoty says that this vaccine has already been proven to be safe and effective on mice. Therefore, the process has taken a huge leap forward because the next stage is simply studying this new vaccine on humans.

Although the pre-clinical trials for Diabetes Type 1 Vaccine are the first step, the next step involves testing the vaccine on healthy humans to help identify any potential complications. This newly developed vaccine might also reduce other dangerous enterovirus infections.

“As a bonus, the vaccine might protect patients from infections and diseases that are caused by enteroviruses including myocarditis, ear infection, meningitis, and the common cold,“ says Hyoty.

However, it could take another 8 years before we know whether the vaccine actually does what it is supposed to do. Meanwhile, groups such as the JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) are funding research into the discovery of better ways to treat and prevent T1D by finding new ways to regenerate cells that produce insulin or by improving modern technology that can mimic the function of the pancreas.

Researchers recently identified immature cells in the human pancreas which can be stimulated to take up the job of beta cells that have been destroyed.

If people are given the vaccine early enough, it might actually prevent them from developing diabetes by teaching the immune system not to kill the beta cells. Researchers have also identified warning signs at the molecular level that can be used to tell when the immune system is getting ready to attack the pancreas even before the symptoms appear. This makes it possible for physicians to screen people who are categorized as high-risk individuals.

It is also possible that a diabetes vaccine could reverse or halt beta cell decline in type 1 diabetes patients in order to reduce their need for insulin injections. Let’s hope there’s some good news on this soon!

Read on to Help your Child with Diabetes, live a normal life!

Top 10 Signs and Symptoms of Hyperglycemia

Hyperglycemia is a condition where a person’s blood sugar level is too high. Although this can happen to anyone, it is of particular concern to diabetes patients. Hyperglycemia is caused by resistance to insulin or loss of insulin producing cells. In most cases, the body is usually unable to produce an adequate amount of insulin to metabolize glucose in the bloodstream. This can happen when people with diabetes eats to much of the wrong food or forget to take their diabetes medication.

Self-monitoring and good management of blood sugar levels is the key to preventing hyperglycemia especially for people who’ve already been diagnosed with diabetes. If you’ve not been diagnosed with diabetes, you should report any symptoms of hyperglycemia to a doctor in order to be tested for diabetes and other conditions that can lead to hyperglycemia. High blood sugar should be controlled in order to prevent chronic hyperglycemia and complications that may be caused by the condition.

The Most Common Signs and Symptoms of Hyperglycemia Include:

Increased Hunger

This condition is also known as polyphagia and it simply means that you’re experiencing increased hunger. Therefore, you may find yourself feeling hungry and wanting to snack shortly after eating even when you had previously managed to easily limit your snacking especially between meals. Polyphagia is caused by the reduced ability of your body to metabolize glucose. Since glucose is a very important nutrient for all cells in our bodies, when they become malnourished, they usually signal the body that they need more food to maintain proper functioning, resulting in feelings of hunger.

Increased thirst

The medical term for this symptom is polydipsia. The kidneys normally absorb sugar in the bloodstream in order to recycle it and make it readily available to supply our blood cells. However, when there’s too much sugar in the blood stream, the kidneys are overworked but they may still be unable to keep up. When the kidneys are unable to absorb glucose, they discard it by simply excreting it in urine. This usually results in increased urination which often causes dehydration and you may end up feeling thirsty.

Increased Urination

This symptoms that is impossible or very difficult to ignore. The medical term for increased urination is polyuria. It simply refers to a noticeable increase in the volume of urine passed, frequency of urination, or both. Hyperglycemia results in excess sugar in the blood stream causing the kidneys to discard it in urine. Therefore, the kidneys must work extra hard and this inevitably results in more urine or frequent urination.

Blurred Vision and Eye Damage

High blood sugar levels cause the lenses in our eyes to swell. On the other hand any change in the size or shape of the lenses causes significant changes in vision which usually result in blurry vision. This problem should be addressed as soon as it arises because it can cause permanent changes in your vision.

Weight Loss

Although weight loss does not sound like a logical outcome especially when you think of excess glucose in the bloodstream, it can actually happen and it makes sense when the process is broken down. Remember, the body is unable to process the glucose in the bloodstream. Therefore, the cells that need nourishment in form of glucose do not get it. The body responds by tapping into the fat reserves stored in different area in order to use it for energy. As these reserves are gradually depleted, weight loss occurs.

Slow Healing Cuts and Wounds

The healing function for people with hyperglycemia can be slowed quite dramatically. Healing can be slower than normal for more than one reason. Blood vessels can become narrowed due to high glucose levels and this can reduce blood flow hence causing slower healing. The negative effect of high glucose on red blood cells can also slow the healing process. This is a very dangerous condition because wounds that take longer to heal are more susceptible to other infections.

Dry Mouth

This condition is also known as xerostomia. Dry mouth can result due to the negative impact of high blood sugar levels on the salivary glands. It can cause significant difficulty with both eating and swallowing. For people who wear dentures, this condition can make it very difficult for them to keep their dentures in place and they are also more likely to develop sores. Moreover, since saliva is very important for the health of gums and teeth, people with dry moth are also more likely to develop other dental problems.

Itchy or dry skin

Dry skin can be caused by the reduction of moisture due to high blood sugar levels. Since nerve damage is also another potential complication of high blood sugar levels, it can also interfere with the body’s ability to perspire and this also dries the skin. It is very important to understand that dry skin is generally more prone to itching and cracking, which increases the risk of injury. The reduced ability of the patient’s body to heal itself can make this a very serious condition because of the high risk of infection.

Irregular Heartbeat

Irregular heartbeat is also known as cardiac arrhythmia. High blood glucose levels can deplete the supply of potassium, which is very important especially when it comes to maintaining a healthy and regular heartbeat. This is the primary reason that higher blood sugar levels can cause cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat).

Seizures

This is a potentially dangerous and frightening symptom. Seizures are triggered by hyperglycemia in some people. Since normal brain function mainly relies on a steady supply of nutrient-rich and oxygen-rich blood, hyperglycemia can interfere with the delivery of oxygen and vital nutrients hence triggering seizures in some individuals. However, it’s essential to understand that the likelihood of seizures varies from person to person.

Your blood sugar level may rise if you forget or skip your oral glucose-lowering medication or insulin, eat too many carbohydrates, are ill, are under stress, have an infection, exercise less or become inactive, or when you engage in strenuous physical activity when your insulin levels are low and blood glucose levels are high. However, you shouldn’t worry about hyperglycemia if you keep your blood glucose levels under control by following your exercise program, meal plan and medicine schedule.

Read here for more on Blood Sugar Levels!

The American Diabetic Diet

More than 1 million Americans are diagnosed with diabetes each year and more than 200,000 deaths are attributed to the disease. If you have been diagnosed with diabetes, or simply want to take better care of how you eat is to your advantage to follow the diet for diabetic Americans, in order to keep the diabetes under control.

Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes must learn to follow a diet plan for diabetics to stay healthy. Following the plan of good eating, such as the American Diabetes Diet, diabetic patients are able to effectively control blood sugar without medication.

The reason for the American diet for diabetics is so highly effective is because it covers all food groups. The American diabetic diet plan recommends foods high in monounsaturated or polyunsaturated fats and low in saturated fat. Most of the calories recommended in the American diet come mainly carbohydrates diabetes, second from fat, and protein.

The American Diabetes diet should be followed every day and made the following recommendations:

5 Servings of fruits and vegetables (spinach, broccoli and carrots
6 Servings whole grains (cereals, bread and pasta)
2 Servings (meat, fish or chicken)
Dairy products (eggs, skim milk, nonfat cheese, yogurt, even ice cream low fat)

Every persons makeup is different, so are their bodily needs. Some of us require the consumption of calories.

American Diabetic Diet Plan for those who need 1200-1600 calories include:

Three servings fruits and vegetables
Two servings of milk, yogurt and meat
Three servings of fatty
Six servings of starches

The American Diabetes diet plan for people who need 1600-2000 calories include:

Three fruit serving
Four servings of vegetables
Two servings of milk, yogurt and meat
Four servings of fatty
Eight servings of starches

The diabetic diet menu for those who need 2000-2400 calories include:

Three servings fruit
Four servings of vegetables
Two servings of milk, yogurt and meat / br> <
Five servings of fatty
Eleven-portions of starches

The popular belief is that people with diabetes should not eat sweets. This is not always so. The American Diabetes diet recommends eating fresh, but in limited quantities. It’s important to eat low-calorie desserts or artificial sweeteners as a sugar substitute.

This particular diet plan is not only useful for people with diabetes, but for everyone. People with diabetes have the same nutritional needs as anyone else. And also the need for regular exercise is the same for people with diabetes as for those without.

The integration of the Diabetes exercise and diet, along with individually prescribed medications are essential to controlling diabetes. Have a well balanced diet and choose the right kind of foods, the diabetic patient can move the glucose to normal levels.

Controlling the blood glucose levels is the main objective of following the diabetic diet for Americans.

Be healthy and live a longer and happier life through the American diabetic diet. Before the commencement of any diet plan, it’s a good idea to consult your health care provider.

Can Moderate Consumption of Alcohol Lower Diabetes Risk?

According to researchers in Denmark, drinking alcohol – three to four days per week, can reduce your risk of developing diabetes. Researchers in Denmark examined alcohol consumption patterns and found that people who drink moderately on three to four days per week are less likely to develop diabetes compared with abstainers. Wine is particularly beneficial because it is rich in compounds that help maintain blood sugar balance. The findings were published in the journal Diabetologia and the study was conducted by researchers from the University of Southern Denmark.

Diabetes arises when the body’s ability to use or make insulin is impaired. If this chronic disease is not controlled, it can result in hyperglycemia and this can cause serious damage to various organs in the body especially the eyes, heart, kidneys, nerves and blood vessels. The proportion of people living with diabetes worldwide has risen from 4.7% in 1980 to .5% in 2014.

In 2015, 1.6 million deaths were directly attributed to diabetes and high blood sugar was responsible for another 2.2 million deaths.

So Can Alcohol Lower Diabetes Risk?

Studies that have explored the relationship between alcohol consumption and the risk of developing diabetes have established that moderate to light consumption is linked to lower risk compared to abstaining. However, most of these studies have only examined the volume of consumption without looking at how the volume of consumption is spread over time.

The Danish researches also noted that although other studies explored drinking patterns such as number of drinking days each week and the effects of various types of alcoholic, their findings were inconclusive. Therefore, they decided to examine the link between alcohol consumption patterns and the risk of developing diabetes in the Danish population. The researchers analyzed responses from a total of 70,551 participants (41,847 women and 28,704 men) without diabetes. All the participants had answered questions about health and lifestyle and provided detailed reports abouts their alcohol drinking habits.

The participants were keenly followed until 2012 (for an average of 4.9 years) during which the researchers found out from the national diabetes register that 87 women and 859 men had developed diabetes.

Yes – The Types of alcoholic Drink Matters!

From the information, the researchers also determined drinking patterns, average weekly intake, consumption of different beverages and binge drinking. The team asked participants about their consumption patterns of specific types of beverages and their frequency of consuming alcohol.

Therefore, the researchers were able to classify participants into categories:

current and lifetime abstainers;
people who drank on 5 to 7 days each week;
on 3 to 4 days per week;
on 1 to 2 days each week;
and on less than 1 day each week.

A standard alcoholic drink in Denmark contains 12 grams of pure alcohol. This is less than the standard drink in the U.S which is 0.6 ounces (14 grams) of ethanol. The team also assessed binge drinking (drinking 5 or more drinks in one session). Binge drinking was classified into 3 categories:

more than one day per week,
less than 1 day per week,
and never.

The team also categorized drinking patterns for 3 types of alcoholic drinks: spirits, beer and wine. These drinks were assessed as: 7 or more drinks per week; between 1 and 6 drinks per week; and less than 1 drink each week. However, for men this category was further divided into: 7 to 13 drinks per week, and 14 or more alcoholic drinks each week.

When analyzing the data to determine the link with diabetes, the team adjusted the information to make allowance for the effect of other aspects that might influence it. Some of these factors include:

sex,
age,
smoking,
education level,
BMI (Body Mass Index),
blood pressure (previous or current),
leisure activities,
family history of diabetes,
and type of diet (such as fiber levels, fish, vegetables and fruit).

The study showed that participants who consumed moderate amounts of alcohol in terms of average consumption per week had the lowest diabetes risk.

Women who drank 9 drinks per week had a 58% lower risk of developing diabetes, and men who consumed an average of 14 alcoholic drinks each week had 43% lower diabetes risk compared with abstainers.

After analyzing drinking patterns, the researchers also found that participants who drank alcohol on three to four days each week had the lowest risk of diabetes. For women, the risk of developing diabetes was 32% lower and for men it was 27% lower compared with participants who only consumed alcohol on less than one day per week.

However, analysis of binge drinking data did not show any clear link to the risk of developing diabetes. The Danish researchers say that this might be due to the low number of participants who actually reported binge drinking. This made it difficult for the team to produce meaningful statistical result.

So – Which Alcoholic Drink is Best for Diabetes?

WINE

When it comes to the type of alcoholic drink, just as previous studies have found out, the team also discovered that high to moderate wine consumption is linked to a significantly lower diabetes risk.

They attributed this to the fact that red wine contains polyphenols, which help control blood sugar.

Compared with consuming less than one each week, drinking at least 7 drinks of wine per week is linked to a 25% to 30% lower risk of diabetes.

BEER

On the other hand, in terms of drinking beer, the study showed that men who drink between 1 and 6 per week had a 21% lower risk of diabetes, compared with men who drink less than one drink per week. However, for women, the study showed no ties to the risk of diabetes.

SPIRITS

In terms of spirit consumption, the team established that there’s no significant tie between the amount of spirits men drank and the risk of developing diabetes. The study also found that women who consume 7 or more drinks of spirits each week had an 83% higher risk of diabetes compared with those who had less than one drink each week.

These finding suggest that the frequency of drinking alcohol is linked with the risk of developing diabetes. Moreover, consuming alcohol over 3 to 4 days is linked with the lowest diabetes risk.

Learn more about Alcohol and Diabetes!

Diabetes Care: Diet And Exercising Habits Are A Must For Diabetics

How Does Exercise Help Type 2 Diabetes?

Exercise is good for us all – especially those with diabetes. With the correct amount of exercise to suit the individual and a sensible diet, there would be many type 2 diabetics out there that could avoid taking medication altogether!

There is no denying the importance of exercise for keeping healthy if you have diabetes. Exercise is vital for both Type 1 and type 2 diabetics helping the body to:

Respond better to insulin and reduce the amount of medication they take.
To keep circulation healthy in their arms and legs
To reduce their risk of depression
To keep their metabolism healthy and their muscles strong- this in turn helps with maintaining a healthy weight. Strong muscles also help to maintain independence with age.

What Exercise is Good for Diabetes?

If you have diabetes and you haven’t exercised for a while, you need to take it slow. OK so you can go out and hire a personal trainer, or even join the local gym but to be honest it’s really not necessary. Don’t over think this – there’s easier and cheaper ways out there that you can get all the exercise you need.

Good old fashioned walking. All you really need is some comfortable clothing and a good pair of walking shoes! And if you are lucky enough to live close by a beach, you don’t even need the shoes!
Always good to take it easy to start – even just 20 or 30 minutes per day – 5 days a week if you can manage it. This is going to help you see improvements in your haemoglobin A1C, your triglycerides and cholesterol. As you gradually build this up to 90 minutes per day, you really start to see the difference that exercise makes to your life. How you feel, how you look and even blood pressure!
Swimming is also another ideal exercise for people with Type 2 diabetes. Some diabetics also experience other conditions, like arthritis which can often make other forms of exercise painful and uncomfortable. Being in the water is less stressful for your body as it doesn’t put pressure on your joints. It’s also much easier on your feet. Swimming is great for weight loss and diabetes is quite often a factor with regards to obesity.

Exercise and Diabetes Prevention – Make Exercise a Habit!

If you have diabetes, you will certainly need to look at how you incorporate exercise into your daily life now. You need to make exercise a habit, that will in time become part of your life. If you find it difficult to get out to a park or beach to go walking, or you’re just not really into going to gyms, then perhaps have a look at all the FREE Apps that are available for your smart phone or Tablet! I love the 7 minute workout apps, and even the gentle stretching sessions that you can actually do just about anywhere! How about getting some diabetic exercise videos – or even getting into some gentle yoga exercise for diabetes.

Getting your daily dose of regular exercise doesn’t have to be expensive or that time consuming – you just have to commit to making it part of your daily life routine!

Ever thought about trying the Atkins diet for Diabetes?

A Vaccine for Type 1 Diabetes – Clinical Trials to begin 2018!

Is Preventing Diabetes Actually Possible?

Diabetes Vaccine and Our Immune System

The Most Common Signs and Symptoms of Hyperglycemia Include:

Increased Hunger

Increased thirst

Increased Urination

Blurred Vision and Eye Damage

Weight Loss

Slow Healing Cuts and Wounds

Dry Mouth

Itchy or dry skin

Irregular Heartbeat

Seizures