The mineral zinc, may protect diabetics (type 2-adult onset), according to a recent study conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan suggests.

According to Ayyalusamy Ramamoorthy, a professor of chemistry and of biophysics,  amylin,  a protein forms dense clumps that shut down insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, and disrupts the body’s ability to control  blood sugar levels. Zinc  may help prevent this disruption that amylin causes.

Healthy people with normal zinc levels, in the pancreas, this protein helps to regulate blood sugar leves.  It’s analog, a chemical compound similar to a nature substance — of amylin called symlin works together with  insulin to manage blood sugar levels in diabetics, Ramamoorthy says.

Amylin is helpful because zinc acts to regulate and modify it’s destruction properties.  However, when type 2 diabetics  are zinc deficient,  But in a zinc-starved cellular environment of a patient with type 2 diabetes, amylin is missing a critical regulator to  rein it in and it is free to clump together with other amylin molecules, and cause damage.

Source: Journal of Molecular Biology.

Read more: http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2011/07/01/Zinc-may-help-with-type-2-diabetes/UPI-15051309573358/print/#ixzz1R3A1lviU

What is Metabolic Syndrome?

Metabolic syndrome is a name for a group of risk factors that occur together and increase the risk for heart disease, type 2 (adult onset) diabetes and stroke.  This condition is also known as Syndrome X and Insulin resistance syndrome.

In the United States, Metabolic syndrome is occurring more and more frequently.  Research studies have not clearly indicated the cause(s).  However, all of its risk factors are related to obesity.

Metabolic syndrome is associated with many conditions and risk factors. The two most important risk factors are:

• Additional weight around the center of the body. The body may be described as “apple-shaped.”
• Insulin resistance, a condition where the body cannot use insulin effectively. Insulin is the critical hormone involved with controlling the body’s sugar level.

Insulin helps facilitate your cells to absorb sugar, in the form of glucose, through the cell membrane.  If you are insulin resistant, your body does not appropriately respond to insulin, and sugar fails to get into your cells. In response to this failure, your body produces more and more insulin. When our blood glucose and insulin levels increase, fat levels (including triglycerides) occurs.

People with metabolic syndrome have an increased long-term risk for developing cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.

Complications:
• Atherosclerosis
• Heart attack (myocardial infarction)
• Diabetes
• Stroke
• Kidney disease
• Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
• Peripheral artery disease

According to the American Heart Association and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, metabolic syndrome is present if you have three or more of the following signs:
• Blood pressure equal to or higher than 130/85 mmHg
• Fasting blood sugar (glucose) equal to or higher than 100 mg/dL
• Large waist circumference (length around the waist):
  o Men – 40 inches or more
  o Women – 35 inches or more
• Low HDL cholesterol:
  o Men – under 40 mg/dL
  o Women – under 50 mg/dL
• Triglycerides equal to or higher than 150 mg/dL

Most important health recommendations are:
• Reduce your weight. The initial goal is to lose between 7 and 10% of your current weight. Get 30 minutes of moderate intensity exercise, such as walking, 5 – 7 days per week.
• Reduce your cholesterol using diet, weight loss, exercise.
• Decrease your blood pressure using weight loss, exercise, and medications, if needed.

Is there a relationship between psychological distress and Metabolic Syndrome?

To examine prospectively the association of psychological distress with the development of the metabolic syndrome and the potential influence of demographic characteristics, health behaviors, and inflammation in this association.

A total of 466  people, 281 women and 185 men between the age of 25 and 56 years, and free of the Metabolic syndrome at the beginning of the study,  from 1997 to 1998 and again from 2004 to 2005. 

The average observation time was almost 6.5 years.  A variety of clinical, biochemical, and behavioral factors were measured at baseline, including assessment of psychological distress using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire. Using the National Cholesterol Education Program  criteria the development of Metabolic Syndrome was measured at follow-up. 

The study found that the participants with high levels of psychological distress at the beginning of the study were more than twice as likely to develop Metabolic Syndrome than those with low psychological distress, even when adjustments were made for  age, gender, and demographic  differences; 2) health behaviors (smoking, alcohol use, and leisure time physical activity); and 3) C-reactive protein in the analysis diminished the odds of developing Metabolic syndrome  in the distressed group however, the association remained statistically significant.

The researchers determined that psychological distress at the beginning of this study significantly increased the risk of developing Metabolic Syndrome during follow-up. This association remained robust after adjusting for age, gender, demographic variables, baseline health behaviors, and C-reactive protein. These prospective findings are evidence of a significant association between psychological distress and the development of Metabolic Syndrome.

Source:
http://www.psychosomaticmedicine.org/cgi/content/abstract/PSY.0b013e3182037315v1

For the first time, Australian scientists have demonstrated that moderate weight loss stops many of the harmful changes that occur in the immune systems of people with obesity, especially those with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

The immune system contains a wide variety of cells that act to protect us from and thwart infections caused by organisms including, bacteria, viruses, and fungi. The immune system’s cells maintain a balance that impacts our health in a positive way.  Numerous lifestyle factors, can impact this delicate balance, such as obesity (too much body fat) and diet, and can alter the balance, causing the increased production of certain immune cells that can harm, rather than help our organs.

Scientists have recognized for many years that extra body fat, abdominal in particular, can cause the creations of immune cells that increase inflammation, an underlying process that contributes to numerous disease processes.  Also, fat tissue activates macrophages,  another inflammatory immune cell.

Australian researchers  at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, evaluated  obese people with Type 2 diabetes or prediabetes (also known as Metabolic syndrome).  The participants were maintained on a restricted diet between 1000 and 1600 calories a day for 6 months.  Gastric banding surgery  was performed 33 months into the study to further decrease food consumption.

Dr Alex Viardot and Associate Professor Katherine Samara, were the lead researchers.  The results found showed an 80% reduction of pro-inflammatory T-helper cells, and smaller levels of other circulating immune cells (T cells, monocytes and neutrophils) and decreased levels of macrophages in fat tissue. Their results were published in the prestigious Journal of Clinical Endocrinology Metabolism.

Dr. Samaras noted, “Excess weight disorders now affect 50% of adult Australians, with obesity being the major cause of Type 2 diabetes and some cancers.

“The situation has reached crisis point, and people must be made aware that excess fat will affect their immune systems and therefore their survival.

“We have found that a modest weight loss of about 6 kg is enough to bring the pro- inflammatory nature of circulating immune cells back to that found in lean people.

“These inflammatory cells are involved in promoting coronary artery disease and other illnesses associated with obesity.

“This is the first time it has been shown that modest weight reduction reverses some of the very adverse inflammatory changes we see in obese people with diabetes.

“We also showed that the activation status of immune cells found in fat predicted how much weight people would lose following a calorie restricted diet and bariatric surgery. Those with more activated immune cells lost less weight.

“It’s the first time this has been described and is important because it helps us understand why some people lose weight more easily than others, and that inflammation is involved in regulating the response to bariatric surgery.”

Source:  Research Australia

A study reported in the Journal of Nutrition indicates that the effects of the metabolic syndrome, a significant risk fact for developing type 2 (adult onset) diabetes, is reduced by adding omega-3 fatty acids to a high complex carbohydrate, low fat diet.  In particular, the supplements improve the blood lipid (fat) levels.

“Fish oil supplements correct many metabolic alterations associated with insulin resistance, including reduced postprandial plasma triglyceride concentration” stated the researchers, led by Jose Lopez-Miranda from the University of Cordoba, Spain.

Metabolic syndrome is a group of risk factors that frequently include high blood pressure, obesity, high levels of blood sugar levels and high fat levels.

It often happens prior to the development of type II diabetes, and is also strongly linked to an increased risk of major health problems such as heart disease and stroke.

Metabolic syndrome’s origins are not known, but they are believed to be linked to genetic and environmental factors – including poor diet.

One way to increase the overall health – and reduce the risks – of people with metabolic syndrome, has been to eat a diet low in saturated fat and high in complex carbohydrates. However, previous research has suggested that this diet does not help to reduce high levels of blood lipids – with some studies observing such a diet could even be raising blood lipid levels.

The new study involved 117 patients with metabolic syndrome.  It examined the effects of four different diet combinations on blood lipid metabolism.

In keeping with previous findings and recommendations, the researchers found that a low-fat, high-complex carbohydrate diet had “several detrimental effects”, including significantly increasing total triglyceride levels, and triglyceride rich lipoprotein cholesterol levels.

Consumption of the same diet supplemented with omega-3 was found to have no effects on blood lipid levels.  The researchers observed that a diet rich in monounsaturated fats, or a low-fat diet rich in complex carbohydrates and omega-3 fatty acids, resulted in lower circulating blood lipid levels than a diet rich in high saturated fats or a diet low in fats and high in complex carbohydrates.

The data from the study indicate there is a  place for higher omega-3 intake in people with metabolic syndrome, and substantiates the credibility of earlier research that suggests monounsaturated fatty acids can have a positive effect on blood lipid levels.

“The long-term effect of the low-fat, high-complex carbohydrate diet, pre vs. post intervention phases, showed several beneficial effects of long chain omega-3 PUFA supplementation,” stated the researchers.

“Our data suggest that long-term intake of an isocaloric, low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet supplemented with long chain omega-3 … have beneficial effects on postprandial lipoprotein response in patients with metabolic syndrome.”

Source:

The Journal of Nutrition
Published online ahead of print, doi:10.3945/jn.109.120816

“A Low-Fat, High-Complex Carbohydrate Diet Supplemented with Long-Chain (n-3) Fatty Acids Alters the Postprandial Lipoprotein Profile in Patients with Metabolic Syndrome”
Authors: Y. Jimenez-Gomez, C. Marin, P. Perez-Martinez, et al

Nutrition researchers from USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) are evaluating the components of cinnamon and other spices to explore their beneficial effects on insulin levels and other functions.

Richard Anderson’s research, conducted at the Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center in Maryland indicates that certain spices may be beneficial to some diabetic patients.

Their study evaluated a water-soluble cinnamon extract, suggested that it could have a positive impact on blood glucose levels and insulin. The USDA’s website in a post explaining the research noted that, “Insulin is a key hormone that ‘opens a door’ within cells and then escorts glucose into those cells, thus providing fuel to them.  Without a sufficient insulin supply, or ability to use available insulin, glucose builds up in the blood instead of going into the cells where it can be metabolized and used for fuel.  Over time, damage occurs to the eyes, kidneys, heart and nerves.”

The study was conducted in Ohio, involved 22 participants with metabolic syndrome, which increase the likelihood of developing diabetes.  Volunteers were randomly assigned to supplement their diets with either the cinnamon extracts or a placebo for 3 months.

The participants that received the extract experienced a significant drop in their blood glucose levels and small increases in lean muscle mass in comparison to the placebo group.  The researchers noted, “Improvement in lean muscle mass is considered a marker of improved body composition. “

The extract group also experienced declines in their blood pressure and body fat.

An earlier study, conducted in 2006, and reported in the European Journal of Clinical Investigation by researchers at Germany’s  University of Hannover found a water-soluble, cinnamon reduced fasting blood sugar levels in patients with type 2 diabetes.  This study was the first of its kind to evaluate the impact  a water-soluble cinnamon extract on sugar (glycemic)  control and the lipid profile of type 2 diabetic patients.  The  results contribute to a growing body of clinical evidence demonstrating supplementation with a water-soluble cinnamon extract may play an important role in managing blood sugar levels and improving insulin function.

Almost 80 people with type 2 diabetes receiving oral medications or  diet therapy were randomly assigned to take either a cinnamon extract or placebo capsule three times daily for four months. The cinnamon capsule contained 112 mg of water-soluble extract, an equivalent of one gram of cinnamon powder. The cinnamon extract group experienced a significant reduction in fasting plasma glucose levels (10.3%) versus the placebo group (3.4%).

In the U.S., Cinnulin PF is the only water-soluble cinnamon extract ingredient standardized for the recognized active component in cinnamon. Despite USDA studies showing the health benefits of cinnamon, it is important to  note that when taken frequently or in high doses, whole cinnamon and fat-soluble extracts can  be toxic. Cinnulin PF retains the active components without the potentially harmful compounds, making it completely safe for everyday use.

Source:

Medical News Today

According to Brown University researchers Dr. John Luo and Lugang Luo,  American ginseng lowers high sugar levels (hyperglycemia) and may have potential in treating diabetes mellitus. It may be a helpful as a supplemental ingredient to diabetes therapy.  Unfortunately, the absence of standardization of ginseng root, has led to inconclusive results in diabetes treatment.  American ginseng root’s actions are not understood. 

Studies have shown that it increases insulin production and reduces death of pancreatic cells.  Additionally, it has demonstrated the ability to lower blood sugar (glucose) levels in people with type 2 adult onset diabetes.  This information suggests that the effects of ginseng in improving high sugar levels may change the cellular function of mitochondria (the organelle responsible for producing energy in the cell),

Additional research is required to identify the component(s) of ginseng that are responsible for the sugar lowering and other beneficial effects observed in animal studies, which may be applicable to humans as well.

Research has also determined that the commonly used spice, Cinnamon is also effective in reducing high sugar levels.

Source:  eCAM 2009 6(4):423-427; doi:10.1093/ecam/nem178