Is the Mediterranean Diet the Best Option for Managing Type 2 Diabetes

by admin | Apr 7, 2021 | Health Awareness, Diabetes

The Mediterranean diet emphasizes nutrient-rich eating from sources such as vegetables, healthy fats, whole grains, fruits, and lean protein. The dietary approach has been praised for its health benefits in recent years, including improved heart health. Now, it’s also been hailed as a beneficial diet for people with type 2 diabetes, thanks to its ability to improve several key biomarkers, such as inflammation, insulin resistance, body mass index (BMI), and HDL cholesterol.

How the Mediterranean Diet Helps with Type 2 Diabetes

The Mediterranean diet is a flavorful eating pattern based on the dietary habits of people in countries near the Mediterranean Sea. It offers filling meal options that prioritize the nutrients bodies need to perform their best, while also limiting additives such as refined carbohydrates, red meat, and added sugars.

According to research published by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, participants of the Mediterranean diet had the best A1C scores, which measure blood sugar over a three-month period. They also lost more weight and had the best cardiovascular health, including improved cholesterol levels, compared to peers who participated in high-protein, high-fiber, vegetarian, vegan, or low-carbohydrate diets.

While this heart-healthy diet can’t reverse diabetes, it can help reduce the risk of complications related to the disease. By reducing cholesterol, it protects the heart, thereby limiting the risk for serious issues such as heart attack and stroke. The diet also has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, which can reduce the risk of cardiovascular events by as much as 30%.

Which Foods Can You Eat on the Mediterranean Diet?

Fortunately, the Mediterranean diet isn’t restrictive and is quite simple. The idea is to incorporate as many fresh fruits and vegetables into your diet as possible and prioritize lean meat or plant-based protein, such as skinless chicken, fish, and legumes. Here are a few examples of which foods are commonly eaten in the diet:

• Whole Grains: Choose whole-grain bread and pasta products, as well as quinoa, brown rice, barley, and farro.
• Nuts, Seeds, & Beans: Heart-healthy nuts like almonds, walnuts, cashews, and pistachios are excellent choices. You can also have sunflower and sesame seeds, beans such as kidney, white, black, and cannellini beans, chickpeas, and lentils.
• Vegetables: Eat a variety of vegetables such as bell peppers, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, leafy greens, broccoli, cabbage, artichokes, carrots, beets, fennel, onions, and zucchinis, among others.
• Fruits: While fruits do naturally contain sugars, they are also nutrient-rich and can be enjoyed in moderation. Consider snacking on melons, figs, dates, grapes, citrus fruits, berries, and apples.
• Healthy Fats: Olive oil is a great source of healthy fats, and can be used for cooking or salads.
• Fresh Fish & Seafood: Salmon, shrimp, halibut, mackerel, herring, trout, and other seafood rich in healthy fats are among the best protein sources.
• Dairy & Poultry: Reduced-fat cheese, low-fat yogurt and milk, eggs, and lean poultry are all welcome choices on the Mediterranean diet.

While switching to an entirely new eating style can be overwhelming, you might consider taking small steps to work towards a full Mediterranean dietary lifestyle. For instance, you might start by reducing or eliminating processed foods, then aim to incorporate vegetables with most of your meals. Making healthy dietary choices can deliver numerous wellness benefits and is a worthwhile endeavor, even if it takes some time to adapt.

For more health awareness blogs, please visit www.stemedix.com/blog

Why Eye & Dental Exams are Critical for Diabetes Patients

by admin | Jun 13, 2018 | Diabetes, Health Awareness

Diabetes patients know that maintaining regular visits with their primary care physician is essential to effectively managing their condition and its symptoms. Yet, it’s also critical to make sure other aspects of their health are well-maintained, too. In order to take an all-encompassing approach to health management, individuals with diabetes should also follow a regular schedule of eye and dental exams as recommended by their optometrist and dental care team. Discover why these two facets of health are so important for diabetes patients in particular here.

Eye Exams for People with Diabetes

If you’ve never had an eyesight issues, you may wonder why your primary doctor would recommend having an eye exam following a diabetes diagnosis. The reason for this is because certain conditions in the eye, including glaucoma and cataracts, are more common in diabetes patients. While they are commonly treatable when caught in their early stages, when left unaddressed, they could lead to vision loss.

Additionally, individuals with diabetes may be at risk of developing a condition called diabetic retinopathy. When too much sugar is found in the blood supply, it can impact the blood flow to the retina. In its earliest stages, symptoms may be undetectable, but over time the condition may cause blurred vision, floaters, difficulty focusing, or other vision changes. Luckily, this and other conditions can be detected in tests performed during diabetic eye exams.

Any time you notice changes in your vision, it’s important to discuss your symptoms with an eye care professional. As with many other health conditions, treatments are often most effective when administered in the earliest phases of eye-related issues. It is advisable for individuals with diabetes to receive eye exams performed by specialists at least once every one to two years, depending on their doctor’s recommendation.

Dental Exams for Diabetes Patients

According to research, there has been a recent decline in dental visits in adult patients with diabetes. This is a problem because dental wellness and diabetes are interdependent on one another: for instance, people with diabetes have higher odds of developing periodontal disease, and periodontal disease can worsen diabetes by impacting blood glucose levels.

As with eye exams, dental checkups are useful for early detection of potentially serious issues. Periodontal disease, also called periodontitis, is an aggressive form of untreated gum disease which causes pockets to form between the teeth and the soft tissue of the mouth. Within these pockets, infections can develop, which may eventually lead to bone loss. Thus, not only can periodontitis worsen diabetes symptoms, but it can eventually lead to widespread health issues.

The good news is that the dental conditions to which diabetes patients are more prone, including all forms of gum disease, are easily detected by dental care professionals. Therefore, while a preventive dental care regimen is important for all individuals, it is especially critical for anyone with diabetes.

Diabetes is a condition with symptoms that are not isolated to one part of the body, so it’s important to take as broad an approach to wellness as possible. By going for regular eye and dental checkups in addition to receiving treatment from your diabetic care team, you can manage your symptoms more proactively and enjoy a better quality of life.

The Power of Camel’s Milk: How it Helps Diabetes & Autoimmune Conditions

by admin | Jun 12, 2018 | Diabetes, Health Awareness

For individuals with chronic conditions such as diabetes and autoimmune disorders, finding effective ways to manage symptoms is critical. While there are many medical treatments available to treat these illnesses, making dietary changes may also yield positive results in some patients. One such dietary change to consider is swapping out regular cow’s milk for camel’s milk.

Camel’s Milk for Diabetes

People with diabetes must be mindful of their dietary choices so as to manage blood sugar levels. While milk is a staple item in many individuals’ diets, it is notoriously high in fat and can cause blood sugar to rise. Camel milk, on the other hand, doesn’t cause a spike in blood sugar, and could in fact help reduce the amount of insulin needed to control diabetes because it is a rich, natural source of the hormone.

According to a recently published study, the milk has been shown to be a suitable hypoglycemic agent in patients with diabetes. Further research shows camel milk is beneficial for people with diabetes, and consuming it resulted in improved blood sugar levels and a 30% reduction in required doses of insulin among the majority of study participants. Here’s another interesting find: areas where camel milk is consumed regularly experience lower rates of diabetes, suggesting that consuming it could even aid in prevention efforts.

Camel’s Milk for Autoimmune Conditions

Individuals with autoimmune conditions, which cause the immune system to attack healthy cells, might also benefit from incorporating the beverage into their diets. Lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and multiple sclerosis are just a few examples of these types of conditions.

Camel’s milk has a high concentration of immunoglobulins, which help to boost the body’s immune system. Though similar to the immunoglobulins in humans, the ones found in the milk are smaller and are therefore absorbed more easily by the body. Since the immune system in individuals with an autoimmune disorder is compromised, consuming these immunoglobulins may aid in alleviating the severity of their conditions. Some researchers even attribute these unique properties to reversing allergies because of their immune-boosting benefits. While the verdict is still out on whether its powers can alleviate allergies for good, at the very least, camel’s milk is a suitable dairy alternative for those who are allergic to cow’s milk.

Where Can You Purchase Camel’s Milk?

If you’re interested in finding out whether camel’s milk could provide health benefits for you or a family member, you unfortunately won’t be able to find it in most grocery stores just yet. While some health food retailers (such as Whole Foods) do carry it, for now, it seems the simplest way to purchase the drink is online, but always be sure to research online retailers before making a purchase.

Tips for Diabetes Prevention

by admin | Jan 3, 2018 | Diabetes, Health Awareness

Changing one’s lifestyle can be a major step towards the prevention of Type 2 Diabetes. If you have a family history of diabetes or are overweight, it is crucially important for you to make it a priority to prevent yourself from the increased risk of the disease.

In fact, diabetes prevention is as easy and simple as just maintaining a healthy diet, losing some weight, or being active physically. Making these changes can help avoid serious complications like kidney, heart and nerve damage.

When it comes to Type 2 Diabetes, great news is that almost 90% cases could be avoided by taking the simple steps given below.

Increase Fiber Intake

Include fiber rich foods in your diet by eating fruits, beans, vegetables and whole grains. This will reduce your blood sugar levels and decrease the risk of diabetes, heart diseases and also promote weight loss as fiber rich foods can make you feel full and eat less.

Get Physically Active

Regular exercise and physical activity will help you lose weight, boost the sensitivity to insulin and lower the blood sugar levels. Research also shows that aerobic exercises can help control diabetes, especially when undertaken regularly to have continued benefits.

Lose Excess Weight

Each and every single pound you shed can lead to an improved health if you have diabetes. A research study proved that participants who lost a great deal of weight by regular exercise reduced the chances of getting diabetes by 44%.

Cut Down Sugary Drinks

Sugary drinks are highly associated with a risk of diabetes because of high glycemic levels. Research also proved that people who consumed more than one sugary beverage daily had 83% higher chance of developing diabetes.

Quit sugary drinks by replacing them with water, tea or coffee. Coffee is also known to help prevent diabetes as well as a cup of tea.

Include Good Fats in your Diet

The type of fat you consume also affects the development of the condition. Polyunsaturated fats, usually found in nuts, vegetable oils and seeds are known to be good fats and are known to ward off the disease. However, eating the same polyunsaturated fats from fish called the omega-3 fats may be very healthy for heart conditions but do not prevent against diabetes.

On the other hand, bad fats namely Trans fats found in margarine, baked and fried foods do the opposite.

Quit Smoking

Many people with Type 2 Diabetes are found to be smokers. It is estimated that almost 50% of smokers are more likely to develop the disease while heavier smokers are even at a higher risk.

Avoid Red or Processed Meat

Avoid processed or red meat and instead, use nuts, poultry, whole grains, or fish. More evidence is showing that the risk of diabetes is increased with the consumption of red meat.

Research has found that consuming red meat may increase the risk of Type 2 Diabetes by 19%.

When to See a Doctor

A glucose screening is usually recommended if you are:

• Older than 45 years of age and overweight
• Younger than 45 but overweight with a risk factor of Type 2 Diabetes