Diabetic Live

Can diabetics eat fast food: Believe it or not the American Diabetes Association (ADA) suggests it is possible to have an occasional meal at a fast food restaurant if you strategize ahead of time and plan your other daily meals to compensate for the outing.

If you take a look at the caloric intake potential in fast food you know that one meal can provide 1,000-3,000 calories in one sitting. This just doesn’t work for the diabetic and their personal health management plan.

Let’s take a look at a few things to avoid when ordering fast food.

• Do not look at double or triple sized sandwiches.
• Resist the call of the fry. Limit your intake of these starchy sticks of tastiness.
• Salad bar extras. Things like bacon bits, excessive dressing and cheeses can negate the benefits you might think you are gaining from salad.
• Resist deep fried foods. Even though trans-fat has been virtually eliminated from most fast food chains the best options are still unbreaded and grilled or broiled foods.
• Resist meat inspired pizzas. The role of pizza can be positive in some cases, but a veggie pizza fills the role much better than meat.
• Sandwich toppings. It is easy to add mayonnaise and special sauces to your sandwich. Avoiding these will be to your benefit.

Now for a few positive choices.

• Go small. Buck the trend and order a single hamburger or a grilled chicken sandwich. Sometimes these items can be found on a value menu.
• Think chicken. In most cases chicken meals (including chicken tacos) can be a very positive choice for the diabetic when choosing fast food.
• Enjoy your time with family and friends. By planning ahead and adjusting your meals surrounding this outing you can take pleasure in your time together and experience less stress by having a plan of action going into the mealtime.

Another tip that can help you enjoy your meal even more is to chew your food slowly. This not only aids in digestion, but also allows you to tastefully enjoy the food you do have to eat.

Eating out for a diabetic can be a difficult undertaking, but it can be done, Diabetics should do everything they can to remain on a normal schedule so their body cycle remains fluent. If you do get off track you may need to adjust element of your managed care including your insulin treatment and subsequent meal and snack considerations.

The Mayo Clinic offers the following suggestions when dining out.

• Consider avoiding “all you can eat” buffets. It can be difficult to resist overeating with that many options. And even a small amount of many different foods can add up to a large amount of calories.
• Make substitutions
• Don’t settle for what comes with your sandwich or meal. For example: Instead of fries, choose a diabetes-friendly side salad or a double order of a vegetable.
• Use fat-free or low-fat salad dressing rather than the regular variety, or try a squeeze of lemon juice or flavored vinegar on your salad.
• Ask for salsa with your burrito instead of shredded cheese and sour cream.
• On a sandwich, trade house dressings or creamy sauces for ketchup, mustard, fat-free mayonnaise or a slice of fresh tomato.

As a treat you can find joy in eating out, but within the framework of your managed care plan. Enjoy responsibly.

The Diabetic And An Exercise Recovery Plan: There may be many things that hinder the role of exercise in the life of the diabetic. For instance there is significant research that indicates depression and diabetes often co-exist – and they don’t make very good companions. What this often means for the diabetic is they have little interest in exercise. They may in fact have little interest in virtually all aspects of life.

This is where a support team of family and friends becomes very important. If you can work to encourage and inspire the diabetic in your life to exercise they may be able to move a few steps away from depression while effectively improving their blood glucose levels.

Exercise is often thought of in extremes. It is either a casual walk in the park or it is a sweat-inducing regimen at the local health club. Neither has to be the exact course of action you take. In both cases careful attention to needed snacks will be important.

Consider the following exercise possibilities.

• Aerobics
• Swimming
• Biking
• Elliptical
• Basketball
• Jogging
• Walking with purpose

Now consider the joy of being able to do these things with a friend or family member.

To be honest, it will often take the intervention of someone else to move a newly diagnosed diabetic into the world of exercise as part of a self-maintenance diabetic program. Family members should understand that this is a point of grief recovery for the diabetic. Life as they had always known it has changed. There is significant loss for that individual. They may, in fact, feel as if they have simply been told they are much closer to death than ever before. This news is radically disconcerting to most.

These individuals may have missed the part where the doctor expressed hope and provided positive ways in which that individual could really live life.

LifeClinic.com suggests the following reasons for diabetics to get active.

• Exercise burns calories, which will help you lose weight or maintain a healthy weight.
• Regular exercise can help your body respond to insulin and is known to be effective in managing blood glucose. Exercise can lower blood glucose and possibly reduce the amount of medication you need to treat diabetes, or even eliminate the need for medication.
• Exercise can improve your circulation, especially in your arms and legs, where people with diabetes can have problems.
• Exercise can help reduce your cholesterol and high blood pressure. High cholesterol and high blood pressure can lead to a heart attack or stroke.
• Exercise helps reduce stress, which can raise your glucose level.
• It can lower your risk for heart disease; reduce your cholesterol levels and your blood pressure.
• In some people, exercise combined with a meal plan, can control Type 2 Diabetes without the need for medications.

Your gentle nudge can help the diabetic in your life move past the inward reflection they have indulged in and onto a future they can share with others.

What a Diabetic Needs To Know About Fat: It has been suggested that simply being overweight is not enough to establish the probability for diabetes. It is possible that individuals who are overweight may never develop diabetes while others who may not seem overly prone to developing the disease actually do contract diabetes.

Many nutritionists point to good fat vs. bad fat when they talk about diabetes management and avoidance. Some might argue that partially hydrogenated oils and trans-fats have a significant bearing on the role of the development of Type 2 diabetes.

There are those that indicate the use of lard would be preferred to shortening, and butter would be better for you than margarine or other butter spreads.

Did you know that trans-fats (the stuff we’ve used for cooking for years) only have the capability of elevating bad cholesterol? They cannot raise good cholesterol.

Let’s take a look at a short list some of the good fats our body can use.

• Fish. The best fish as far as Omega-3 fatty acid is Atlantic salmon. The least effective is lobster.
• Vegetable, nuts and seeds. These are polyunsaturated fats and raise good cholesterol.
• Olive oil. This is a monounsaturated oil and one nutritionist liked it so much they suggested using it for everything from coating toast to using it as a salad dressing base.
• Butter. This may surprise you since too much of it can be problematic, but real butter contains Butyric Acid. This substance is a useful aid in your digestive tract and can produce natural antibiotics.

Now let’s take a look at some of the bad fats our bodies do not need. These are grouped in context of fat types because in most cases these fat types are used in cooking the food we eat.

• Trans-fatty Acids. Some nutritionists have such a hate relationship with trans-fat that they refer to it as poison. It has the potential to damage cells within our bodies and strip essential enzymes rendering them ineffective in aiding in the digestion of our food.
• Hydrogenated oils. Not only do these oils seem to promote allergic reactions to foods within the body they also break down the cells of our body making it easier to contract illnesses. These fats are chemically altered and are extremely bad for individuals who may already be ill.
• Long-chain saturated fats. These are fats that are found in some meat and can raise bad cholesterol without bringing good cholesterol up. However, this is not the case with all meats. As with almost all good things moderation is important.

Many nutritionists believe that you can be overweight and still show no signs of diabetes IF the fats you consume are good fats.

There are two primary problems many nutritionists see in a lack of information among food consumers.

1. For many years virtually all fast food was cooked in trans-fat, which may have some bearing on the rise in cases of diabetes.
2. A low-fat diet may not help consumers avoid diabetes. You just might be a skinny diabetic. The reason is that many low fat options are still made with bad fats. Since our bodies need a certain amount of fat we may be rushing to find low-fat options without looking for good fat options instead.

Fat is one subject diabetics must consider in their use of food. If a diabetic can work to eliminate the bad fat from their diet while taking in good fat for proper health they may see an improvement in their overall health – diabetes included.

Diabetic Food Choices From The Ground Up: Understanding the fundamental changes in diet can be a real motivational tool for the diabetic. It can be difficult making changes especially immediately following a diagnosis. You are still trying to process the change and it may seem especially difficult to manage alterations in the your perception of comfort food.

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) has developed a “Diabetic’s Food Pyramid.” This guideline differs in several ways from the traditional food pyramid offered by the USDA primarily due to the concern over carbohydrate and protein intake among diabetics.

Start At The Bottom
Grains. The ADA recommends the consumption of 6-11 servings of grains and starches. This foundation provides the carbohydrates needed in the diabetic diet. This includes food items such as bread, tortilla, dry or cooked cereal, potatoes, yam, peas, corn, cooked beans, rice or pasta. Serving sizes vary. For instance one slice of bread counts as a serving while only one-forth of a bagel is counted as an acceptable serving.

Vegetables. This potpourri of nature’s harvest builds on the pyramid’s foundation. The ADA describes some of the abundant choices including, “Spinach, chicory, sorrel, Swiss chard, broccoli, cabbage, bok choy, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and kale, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, and lettuce.” The guide suggests 3-5 servings a day. This translates to 1 cup raw or one half cup cooked vegetables per serving.

Fruit. The ADA considers this nearly as important as vegetables and recommends 2-4 servings per day. Like vegetables this food source contains plenty of vitamins and minerals as well as beneficial fiber. Serving sizes range from a half a cup of canned fruit to 1 and a quarter cup of whole strawberries.

Milk. This can be either non-fat or low fat milk or yogurt and can be consumed in 2-3 one-cup servings per day. It provides calcium and protein while keeping an eye on saturated fats.

Meat and a few substitutes. When we talk about substitutes we are inferring acceptable protein replacements. The ADA provides a sample listing, “Beef, chicken, turkey, fish, eggs, tofu, dried beans, cheese, cottage cheese and peanut butter.” Remember the higher we go on the pyramid the less we need the items listed. The ADA recommends 4-6 ounces of this category and suggests the protein be rationed throughout your three daily meals. The ADA also offers the following list of meat substitutes.

Equal to 1 oz of meat:

• ¼ cup cottage cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp peanut butter
• ½ cup tofu

Fats, sweets and oil. This is the top of the pyramid, which means it is the least important element in the diabetic diet. In fact, the ADA does not recommend daily consumption of these products reserving them for special occasion treats.

The ADA indicates, “Potato chips, candy, cookies, cakes, crackers, and fried foods,” do not have essential nutritional value and could pose problems for the successful maintenance of glucose levels.

Of Equal Importance
The ADA recommends working with a registered dietician to create a positive mealtime plan of action. This provides accountability and assurance that the foods you consume are good for you, great tasting and assist you in managing your diabetic goals. You may ask your health care provider for recommendations on a qualified dietician who understands the specific needs of diabetics.

A Diabetic Diet – Healthy For Everyone: Something that concerns many newly diagnosed diabetics is that, in many cases, they will be required to alter their eating habits. They almost always envision the creation of two menus for every meal within the family. One meal would be for the diabetic and another meal created for everyone else.

It is worthwhile to note that a diet that is healthy for a diabetic will also be a diet that is healthy for every member of your family whether they have diabetes or not.

Perhaps it is possible to allow your family to join with you in dietary changes. Family support can allow you to gain confidence in cooking diabetic meals and not feel as if you are somehow deprived of the food the rest of your family is enjoying.

Sure, expect some complaints at first, but your alternations can move to create new family traditions and an improved family diet. Your health goals can extend to other family members.

Consider this.

• Your efforts at managing your disease could result in altering the health future of other members of your family.
• While it may seem restrictive a change in diet can lead to better habits in as little as seventeen days.
• Exploring new seasonings and herbs can allow you to add significant taste to the dishes you prepare.

DiabetesHealth.com suggests a few positive ideas for breakfast that don’t seem especially restrictive.

• Plain yogurt or carbohydrate-controlled flavored yogurt with sliced almonds
• Whole grain toast or waffle with peanut butter
• Cooked eggs with avocado, black bean or salsa
• Cottage cheese and tomatoes or fruit
• Soft tacos made with corn tortillas heated with leftover fish and vegetables
• Turkey and tomato or cheese and avocado wrapped in lettuce or in a sandwich
• Fresh-cooked turkey sausage with sautéed vegetables
• Quesadilla (low-carb tortilla and cheese) with added vegetables
• French toast with ricotta cheese and sugar free syrup

Some lunch items that you can consider include…

• Deli meats and cheeses
• Canned fish such as salmon and tuna packed in water or olive oil
• Cooked rotisserie chicken
• Turkey
• Fresh vegetables such as dark leafy greens, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, cucumbers, celery, asparagus, colorful cabbage and peppers

It should be noted that some sugar can be acceptable in the life of the diabetic, but this should be very rare and fit within your goals for glucose levels. Additionally, using oils that are unsaturated (i.e. olive oil) can be a good way to add extra taste without adding the saturated fats that are not helpful to diabetics.

You can make a variety of taste tempting meals that will satisfy your health goals and may be appealing to the rest of your family. Some may resist the change and you may need to create two separate meals, but you may be surprised to find there are family members who may be willing to support you in your dietary goals.

It may also surprise your family to learn that your new diet is not one that benefits you alone. For instance there are some dietary guidelines that are specific to a condition and should not be considered safe for every family member. A diabetic diet is helpful to everyone in your family. It cuts down on processed food products, it promotes a healthy intake of vegetables and fruit and it manages an appropriate amount of animal protein.

If they try it – they might just like it.

A Prediabetic Diet: Millions of individuals around the globe have been diagnosed with diabetes. It is presumed that there are millions more who are either undiagnosed or suffer from prediabetes.

A prediabetic is an individual who has a blood glucose level that falls outside the normal range, but is not high enough to be classified as diabetes. Roughly half of prediabetics will develop Type II diabetes. This leaves significant hope for those who have received the diagnosis.

The diet for a prediabetic is roughly similar to that of an individual with Type II diabetes. The primary difference is that the prediabetic will follow the dietary guidelines in an effort to avoid development of the disease while a diabetic will use the diet to help manage their diabetes.

Diabetes Australia provides some general guidelines in dealing with prediabetes.

• Reduce total food and beverage intake by eating smaller main meals and reducing or eliminating between meal snacks.
• Choose low fat milk, yogurt, ice cream and custard.
• Choose lean meat and chicken, trim any fat off before cooking.
• Avoid the use of butter, lard, dripping, cream, sour cream, copha, coconut milk, coconut cream and hard cooking margarines.
• Limit the quantity of cheese you eat and try reduced fat and low fat varieties.
• Save pastries, cakes, puddings, chocolate and cream biscuits for special occasions.
• Avoid fatty take away foods such as chips, fried chicken, battered fish, pies, sausage rolls and pastries.
• Choose tomato and soy based sauces rather than creamy sauces, and avoid creamy style soups.
• Eat more vegetables (fresh, canned or frozen) and fruit (fresh, canned or dried).
• Eat more wholegrain breads and cereals – preferably those with a lower glycemic index.
• Limit alcohol intake.

You have to determine if your health is worth fighting for. It is possible to change direction, but you will need to do so utilizing healthy dietary changes coupled with physical exercise. For the prediabetic this is not simply a matter of finding some magic pill that will take care of the issue. This will take work on your part and it will take commitment.

GINews provides a recipe that should work well for prediabetics because it is comprised of ingredients low on the Glycemic Index (GI).

Lemon Spaghetti with Walnuts
(Serves 4)

160 g /5½ oz wholemeal spaghetti
1 bunch (160 g/5½ oz) asparagus, sliced
1 cup frozen peas
3 teaspoons walnut oil
1–2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon chopped dill
½ cup (60 g/2¼ oz) walnut pieces, toasted
1 medium red chili, sliced thinly

• Cook the spaghetti according to the directions on the packet, without adding salt or oil. Drain and set aside.
• Meanwhile, place the bottom ends of the asparagus in a saucepan, cover with water and bring to the boil over a medium heat. Add the asparagus tips and cook, uncovered, until almost tender, about 2–3 minutes. Watch the time as the thickness of asparagus spears varies.
•  Add the peas and cook until they are bright green and cooked – just a few minutes.
• To make the dressing, whisk the oil, lemon juice and garlic in a small bowl.
• Drain the asparagus and peas, return to the saucepan with the spaghetti and add the dressing and dill. Mix together well and serve sprinkled with the walnuts and chili.

We will deal more with the Glycemic Index in another article, but for now we leave you with the most common sense approach for managing prediabetes.

1. Change what you eat
2. Exercise

Those two rules will do more than anything else to increase your chances of reversing the course you may find yourself on at the moment.

An Exercise Support Team For Diabetics: Many diabetics gravitate toward safe alternatives for exercise and fitness. They will often select exercise equipment for their home or visit a fitness center to maintain weight and blood glucose levels. For some individuals this type of physical training isn’t enough.

Would it surprise you to learn that some individuals with diabetes run marathons or play professional football? We can also add baseball, hockey, boxing, wrestling skiing, biking, tennis and golf to the list. Every day men and women who have diabetes are launching into activity that some may feel would place them at risk, yet they are succeeding in their sports.

How do they do it?
Jay Cutler is the quarterback for the Chicago Bears football team. He also lives with Type 1 diabetes. He can survive and thrive on the field because his blood glucose is checked as many as four times during a game to make sure he doing all right. If there are issues, football trainers step in to help Jay get back on track.

Success in athletic endeavors for diabetics all comes back to self-managed care. That care can only improve when the patient knows as much as possible about how to treat their condition. The more they know about diabetes the better the athlete is at performing to the best of their ability.

Is there help for those diabetics who wish to be more active in sports?
What is now known as The Diabetes Exercise and Sports Association (DESA) was founded in 1985 by Paula Harper who was a nurse, but she was also a long distance runner who just happened to have Type 1 diabetes. Medical professionals at the time were telling diabetic patients it was not in their best interest to engage in strenuous physical exertion. Harper had successfully done so, but was having trouble finding good information on the subject of diabetes and exercise. This scenario is why Harper started what is now an international organization.

Harper had a shirt printed that said, “I run on insulin”. This allowed her to connect with other athletes who also had diabetes including some who participated in the grueling Iron Man competition. This was the humble beginning of DESA.

DESA organizational information states, “We are here to support and encourage exercise among all people with diabetes.  We seek members with type 1, type 2 and gestational diabetes and those who offer them medical care and advice.   We use athlete and athletics in the broadest sense and uphold the efforts of “mall walkers” as well as Olympic level athletes.”

There are currently 12 local chapters of DESA in some of America’s largest metropolitan areas. These grassroots affiliates are helping educate diabetic athletes on positive ways to include exercise in their lives.

Yes, there have been many very successful diabetic athletes, but the goal of DESA is simply to encourage all diabetics to remain active. The role of exercise is very important to the long-term managed care and health of the patients who will make it an important part of their lives.

One of the greatest aspects of an organization like DESA is to allow people with diabetes to network with other diabetics. It can provide a framework for support along with motivation to pursue physical exercise even on days when you have absolutely no interest in doing anything physical to improve your health.

The website for DESA is www.diabetes-exercise.org.

Diabetics Can Get Fit During Commercial Breaks: Exercise has always been a concern for diabetics. We have used this space to express bold encouragement for those living with diabetes to engage in meaningful exercise. That’s why we were interested to discover a report in the journal BioMed Central Endocrine Disorders.

This report suggests that it only takes seven minutes of extremely vigorous exercise per week to see enough change in how the body manages blood glucose that diabetes could be avoided or symptoms reduced.

Diabetes itself is often linked to a sedentary lifestyle so these short bursts of sustained energetic exercise can be profoundly beneficial. Many diabetics hear that the exercise recommendations include hours of physical exercise per week and generally give up in despair believing they could never achieve such a lofty goal. The research conducted by the University in Edinburgh seems to indicate even modest spurts of physical activity can have a great affect on blood glucose and by default diabetes.

Six out of every 100 people will die from complications related to diabetes. Worldwide cases are currently at close to one quarter of a billion people. Would the news about a short period of effective exercise mean substantial hope to diabetics? The authors of this research seem to think so.

How they conducted the study.
Sixteen men in their 20s were selected for the study. In each case these men were not conditioned to exercise, but were generally healthy. The test subjects were asked to ride a stationary bike as vigorously as possible for 30 seconds. They were asked to do this four times a day – two days a week.

The men were checked before and after the two-week study and there was a 23% improvement in the way insulin was able to flush glucose from the men’s bodies. Lead author James Timmons indicated that tense muscle contractions in the brief exercise enhanced glucose removal.

What this report is saying.
The intent of this report is to provide hope for those who do not lead an active lifestyle. If short bursts of physical activity can be managed it is entirely possible to assist your body in developing an atmosphere that helps insulin do its job more effectively.

What this report is not saying.
This report is not an encouragement to reduce exercise you may already be doing. This report was conducted to see if short bursts of physical activity would help clear glucose. It does not conclude that regular exercise is no longer important. The reason this is true is that this study did nothing to gauge other benefits of extended exercise such as weight control or hypertension.

This idea is a bold attempt to encourage those living with diabetes or fear they may be headed in that direction to include some meaningful physical exercise even if that time is relatively short.

With the millions of dollars spent annually for the care of diabetes this may be a message whose time has come. For some individuals this may be an effective starting point when it comes to exercise. The effectiveness of this exercise can be enhanced through the use of an accountability partner.

It should be noted that the research also indicates that these short bursts of highly vigorous exercise can have as much benefit for glucose clearing as hours of endurance training.

One might suggest that diabetics include short bursts of physical exertion in their routines for insulin effectiveness while maintaining longer endurance exercises for weight loss and improved blood pressure objectives.

Diabetes And The Exercise Engine: Any exercise program that you may involve yourself in as a diabetic will need your doctor’s blessing. They can tell you if the exercise you are planning will work with your present physical health. They might even subject you to a stress test to find some reasonable limits in your exercise plan.

If you’ve visited with your doctor for any length of time he or she will have likely suggested an exercise program to help with blood glucose control as well as helping to achieve weight reduction goals. It can be easy to agree with the doctor in their office and forget all about it when you see your favorite chair with the remote waiting for you.

What exercise does for the diabetic…

• Improves self-esteem
• Improves mental clarity
• Is an extremely good stress buster
• Improves confidence in your ability to manage your diabetes.

The problem
In diabetics many of the body’s primary functions do not respond well to existing insulin. The way many diabetics work to improve the body’s ability to admit blood glucose into the muscles within the body is to inject more insulin.

Exercise – A natural aid
When you choose to engage in physical activity you not only burn calories, reduce cholesterol and lower your blood pressure, but you also kick your body into gear. In instances where exercise is common the body has a greatly improved chance to flush excess blood glucose from your system while improving the body’s ability to use blood glucose for the benefit of the entire body. Diabetics who engage in regular exercise generally require less medication and often feel much better than those who rely solely on pills and shots.

You need a plan
Not every exercise is a great alternative for every diabetic. If you suffer from conditions such as retinopathy or neuropathy you may find there are some activities that may actually be harmful to your condition. Your doctor may be able to help pinpoint activity that is not only beneficial, but also developed with all medical issues under advisement.

Do you need a heath club membership?
It’s not a bad idea, but the truthful answer is, “No.” You can achieve positive affects that accumulate throughout the day by simply choosing to be active. Walking more, working outside in the garden or taking the dog for a little sensory adventure may work together to bring exercise into your routine that can help in the management of your diabetes.

Know how to regulate
During exercise you need to understand how to raise your blood glucose if you see a sharp drop. This is generally managed through the use of carbs. While in most instances you don’t want too many carbs they may be essential during a workout. You will likely need to test before, during and after exercise to see how your body responds to the activity. This scenario may be more common in those with Type 1 diabetes.

Take it easy, but keep going
You want to be comfortable when you exercise. If you find it difficult to breathe or you have sharp pain you may need to either slow down or stop. No one benefits from over doing it. The result is often a quick abandonment of your objectives, because you remember how hard the exercise was on you. Don’t overdo it, but don’t quit either. Find a friend to work out with you and remember that every physical exertion can accumulate to help manage your diabetes more positively.

What Makes Blueberries so Friendly to Diabetics?: Fruits and vegetables have been the subject of recent scientific studies. As expected they are viewed as strong contributors to the wellness of individuals who have diabetes. The most recent study from the University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center took aim at blueberries.

Researchers at U-M worked with rats that had a strong predisposition to weight gain and diabetes. They fed some rats a high fat diet with blueberry powder while the another set of rats were fed a low fat diet with blueberry powder. They also fed some rats without any blueberries.

ScienceDaily reports that this study provides, “Tantalizing clues to the potential of blueberries in reducing risk factors for cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome. The effect is thought to be due to the high level of phytochemicals – naturally occurring antioxidants – that blueberries contain.”

Realizing the rats may not be especially interested in eating actual blueberries researchers used freeze-dried blueberries that had been crushed into powder. The scientists then used this powder to mix with other food prepared for the rat. The total amount of blueberry mixture was 2% of the total diet.

By affecting the heart and metabolism the blueberries actually seem to be providing better conditions for the prevention or care of diabetes. Metabolic syndrome is a term used to describe a collection of problems including, “Too much fat around the waist, elevated blood pressure, elevated blood sugar, high triglycerides, and together these conditions increase the risk of heart attacks, strokes and diabetes,” according to ScienceDaily.

WebMD indicates, “The results suggest that antioxidant-rich blueberries may change how the body stores and processes glucose or sugar for energy, thereby reducing the risk of both heart disease and diabetes.” ScienceDaily reports that following the 90-day study the rats “Had less abdominal fat, lower triglycerides, lower cholesterol, and improved fasting glucose and insulin sensitivity.”

Some of the additional benefits included a lower overall body weight, fat mass, and reduced liver mass. An enlarged liver is synonymous with obesity and a resistance to the effects of insulin.

Steven Bolling, M.D., a University of Michigan heart surgeon and head of the Cardioprotection Laboratory was quoted as saying, “The benefits of eating fruits and vegetables has been well-researched, but our findings in regard to blueberries shows the naturally occurring chemicals they contain, such as anthocyanins, show promise in mitigating these health conditions.”

E. Mitchell Seymour, M.S. was the lead researcher on this study and provided this insight. “We found by looking at fat muscle tissue, that blueberry intake affected genes related to fat-burning and storage. Looking at muscle tissue, we saw altered genes related to glucose uptake.”

As with most studies of its kind these initial findings will be subject to ongoing scrutiny and will likely result in additional testing for the foreseeable future.

Blueberries have been mentioned as a ‘super fruit’ and contain multiple antioxidants as well as a significant amount of nutrients. In the United States blueberries are in season from May through June with a peak in activity in July.

WebMD reported that, “A related study… showed that men with risk factors for heart disease who drank wild blueberry juice for three weeks seemed to experience slight improvements in glucose and insulin control.” This has prompted an interest in further research related to the antioxidants and other natural properties found in blueberries.”