Sugar Free Candy - Pros and Cons

 If you're wondering whether sugar free candy is an option for you, here are a few points to ponder:

• Sugar free candy will provide fewer carbs and calories than regular candy, although sometimes just slightly fewer. So if you're watching carbs or calories, you still need to be mindful not to overdo it. Read the nutrition label in order to keep track of how many total carbs and calories you take in.

•  Sugar alcohols (like maltitol) are often used in sugar free candy. While sugar alcohols are great for lowering the carbohydrates and calories in a food -- they contain 1-4x less calories than sugar -- they also have some possible negatives. The most common negative side effect is bloating and diarrhea. The American Diabetes Association claims that sugar alcohols are acceptable in a moderate amount, but should not be eaten in excess. So, it really depends on how well you tolerate them as to whether or not you can eat them.

• Sugar free doesn't mean fat free. Sugar free chocolate candies in particular may be high in saturated fat, which is found in cocoa butter. So be especially mindful when eating sugar free chocolates if you have heart disease, are overweight, have diabetes, or have any other reason to be careful about your fat intake. 

Head over to About.com for more pointers on sugar free candy

Wristwatch Glucose Monitors Not Accurate

Devices worn on the arm to continuously monitor blood sugar levels are not very good at detecting low blood glucose, or hypoglycemia, according to a recent study.

Hypoglycemia remains a major obstacle to the successful treatment of type 1 diabetes, especially in children. One of the greatest fears of patients and parents is the possibility of a severe hypoglycemic reaction. Low sugar can lead to disorientation or even loss of consciousness.

The purpose of the study, conducted by members of the Diabetes Research in Children Network (DirecNet) Study Group, was to assess the accuracy of the GlucoWatch G2 Biographer (GW2B) and the continuous glucose monitoring system (CGMS) during hypoglycemia in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes.

Wristwatch glucose monitors not accurate - About Kids Health:

Kids With Diabetes Can Have a Happy Halloween

There's no need to be scared of sugary treats. Children with diabetes can safely enjoy Halloween with these simple tricks.

Halloween is synonymous with costumes, haunted houses, trick-or-treating — and candy. And while no parent wants their kids to overindulge in the sugary stuff, those of children with diabetes, especially kids newly diagnosed, may be especially concerned.

"Last year at Halloween my son was 14 months old and he'd only been diagnosed [with type 1 diabetes] a month. I was terrified of the candy that his three older brothers would bring home from trick or treating," one mother wrote in the online forum Children With Diabetes.

Kids With Diabetes Can Have a Happy Halloween - Diabetes Center - Everyday Health:

New Ways to Beat Diabetes

The latest treatments for fighting the devastating disease
Over the past 30 years the number of Americans diagnosed with diabetes has skyrocketed, from about 6 million in 1980 to almost 19 million today. As this problem spirals out of control, researchers are racing to find new treatments for this devastating disease.

Recently, scientists at Newcastle University in England reported that a 600-calorie-a-day diet appeared to reverse type 2 diabetes in a small group of patients who had diabetes for less than four years.

Seven patients out of 10 were still diabetes-free three months after they stopped the extreme eight-week diet, which consisted of meal-replacement drinks and three daily servings of starchy vegetables.

Finish reading article at AARP

Can You Eat Unlimited Fruit & Veggies & Lose Weight?

While it’s a common belief that eating unlimited amounts of fruits and vegetables can help you lose weight, studies proving this as a fact are limited, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

However, consuming foods that are more nutritious and lower in calories can lead to better health, thereby promoting a healthier weight. Fruits and veggies meet these parameters and more. They are less dense than other foods and tend to make you feel full faster.

Along with daily exercise, maintaining a healthy diet can help you lose weight and keep it off, reducing your risk for health conditions, such as heart disease, stroke and obesity. A healthy diet is made up mostly of fruits and vegetables.

According to the Department of Agriculture's My Plate website, at least half of your plate during meals should be covered by fruits and veggies. Following such guidelines also can help you to cut out trans fat, saturated fat and cholesterol in your diet, which can lead to a healthier weight, suggests MayoClinic.com.

Can You Eat Unlimited Fruit & Veggies & Lose Weight?

Gestational Diabetes In African-American Women Increases Risk Of Type 2 Diabetes

African American women who develop gestational diabetes mellitus during pregnancy face a 52% increased risk of developing diabetes in the future compared to white women who develop GDM during pregnancy, according to a Kaiser Permanente study published online in the journal Diabetologia.

African American women are less likely to develop GDM during pregnancy. But for those who were diagnosed of having GDM, their future overt diabetes risk is the greatest among all race/ethnic groups.

Although Asian/Pacific Islander women are much more likely to develop GDM than African American or non-Hispanic white women, their future diabetes risk after GDM is similar to that for non-Hispanic white women, the study found

Gestational Diabetes In African-American Women Increases Risk Of Type 2 Diabetes

Laila Ali - Join the Fight

Lailia states “I was surprised to learn that my family and I could be at risk for kidney disease. That’s why I’m proud to partner with the American Kidney Fund to launch the Pair Up campaign. Join me to learn more about your risk-- and let's spread the word to protect the ones we love."


Laila Ali Joins the Fight Against Kidney Disease from American Kidney Fund on Vimeo.

CDC Video - A Change for Life

In this video, experts and people with pre-diabetes talk about how type 2 diabetes can be prevented or delayed by making lifestyle changes that include weight loss and more physical activity.

People with prediabetes discuss how group lifestyle change classes helped them learn and keep healthy habits.


     

Take Steps Now to Prevent Diabetes in Your Child

About 17% of children and teens are obese. This has led to a surge in the number of children with type 2 diabetes, the form more commonly found in overweight adults older than age 40.

In response to this alarming statistic, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a stern warning for the nation's parents: One in three American children born in 2000 will develop diabetes if we don't take steps now to address their fatty diets and poor fitness habits.

Find out how to Stop diabetes before it starts

Take steps now to prevent diabetes in your child

New Medication Treats Type 2 Diabetes and Cholesterol in One Package

According to the American Diabetes Association, people with Type 2 diabetes over 40 or those who have heart disease should also take a statin, such as Zocor, in addition to diabetes medication. However, many of those patients do not take a statin as reported by DiabeticLive.com.

Set to be available for sale within weeks, Juvisync is a combination of Januvia, a medication for Type 2 diabetes, and Zocor, which treats high cholesterol.

Juvisync will retail for about the same price as Januvia ($215 a month). Zocor, meanwhile, sells for about $30 a month for generic versions; Juvisync will eliminate the need to take Januvia and Zocor separately and will reduce costs for patients, especially those who are not taking statins.

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India World's Largest Diabetes Capital

It's festival season in India, with the celebrations providing a perfect opportunity for family outings, late-night parties and customary feasting on sweets.

Health experts warn that the festivities, coupled with genetic predisposition and lifestyle changes brought about by the increasing prosperity of the middle class, is contributing to the country being called the world's "diabetes capital," with the highest number of diabetics in any nation.

Festivals in India are synonymous with eating and gifting sweets, and most food and confectionery shops are decked with an assortment of goodies in colorful wrappings meant for traditional presents.

Full article

Dangers of Common Painkillers

Well this is disturbing - Most of us seniors take over the counter pain meds. Just received this e-mail from AARP - Charles

There's mounting evidence that regular use is risky for older people

Most of us don't think twice about taking a nonprescription pain reliever to ease a headache or soreness that might follow a game of tennis, but there is growing evidence that commonly used painkillers such as Advil can trigger heart attacks or strokes in some people.

Two new studies show that ibuprofen, Naproxen and Celebrex raise the risk of dangerous heart fibrillation in older patients.

These nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), a diverse group that also includes Motrin and prescription varieties like Celebrex and Voltaren, have been used for decades.

Read full article at AARP

Reclaiming Our Health: Guide to African-American Wellness

Michele Gourdine, MD, a pediatrician and the CEO of Michelle Gourdine and Associates, was always fascinated as to why African-Americans disproportionately suffered from a range of health issues such as heart disease, diabetes and obesity.

"These statistics really bothered me," Gourdine says. "I was not detached from these statistics either. This is about me, my family, my friends, the people at my church and my community as a whole."

It's that personal connection that inspired Gourdine to write Reclaiming Our Health: A Guide to African-American Wellness (Yale University Press, $19.95).

Reclaiming our Health, an interactive and empowering book, offers up practical advice and invaluable information to jumpstart one's quest for better health.



BET.com sat down with Gourdine to talk about her eye-opening book, why we all need to strengthen our health literacy and why poor health doesn't have to be our destiny.

Continue Reading

Walgreens Diabetes & You Magazine Wins National Health Award

Walgreens Diabetes & You, the free, quarterly diabetes magazine available exclusively at Walgreens pharmacies nationwide, has been awarded the National Health Information Awards' top honor for consumer health information programs and materials.

Walgreens Diabetes & You magazine is the largest diabetes magazine in the United States and features user-friendly, engaging content and expert advice from some of the nation's top diabetes experts and educators.

Two million copies of this free, quarterly publication are distributed through Walgreens more than 8,000 locations, including its nearly 7,800 drugstores, work site health and wellness centers, home care facilities and specialty, institutional and mail-service pharmacies.

In addition, the magazine reaches patients through diabetes educators, doctors' offices and other professional locations nationwide.

To view Walgreens Diabetes & You magazine online visit: http://www.walgreens.com/marketing/library/diabetes/archive.jsp


About the National Health Information Awards

The National Health Information Awards program is coordinated by the Health Information Resource Center(TM) (HIRC), a national clearinghouse for professionals who work in consumer health fields. The program recognizes the nation's best consumer health information programs and materials, including brochures, books and audio/video materials. For more information about the National Health Information Awards program, visit www.healthawards.com

About Walgreens

Walgreens ( www.walgreens.com ) is the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2011 sales of $72 billion.

The company operates 7,779 drugstores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Each day, Walgreens provides nearly 6 million customers the most convenient, multichannel access to consumer goods and services and trusted, cost-effective pharmacy, health and wellness services and advice in communities across America.

Walgreens scope of pharmacy services includes retail, specialty, infusion, medical facility and mail service, along with respiratory services. These services improve health outcomes and lower costs for payers including employers, managed care organizations, health systems, pharmacy benefit managers and the public sector.

Take Care Health Systems is a Walgreens subsidiary that is the largest and most comprehensive manager of worksite health and wellness centers and in-store convenient care clinics, with more than 700 locations throughout the country.

SOURCE: Walgreens

Law & Order Actor Anthony Anderson Raising Diabetes Awareness

Black Americans are twice as likely to get a diabetes diagnosis as whites, and television and film actor Anthony Anderson has joined a new campaign to raise diabetes awareness among African-Americans.

NY1's Health reporter Kafi Drexel filed the following report . . .

TV and film actor Anthony Anderson is best known for his work on "Law & Order" and his supporting roles in comedies, but for a while Type-2 diabetes was slowing down his usually non-stop lifestyle.

"I have this great scale at the house. Step on it barefoot, it tells you everything about yourself, metabolical age, how much physical fat you have one you, organs that have fat that can kill you," says Anderson. "I stood on that one day and at 36 it told me that I had the body of a 50 year old."

Diagnosed with diabetes 10 years ago, Anderson is now also working to raise awareness among black Americans through Eli Lilly's "Fearless African-Americans Connected and Empowered (F.A.C.E.) Diabetes" campaign.

Read more

Diabetes Complications Caused Former Raven’s Death

Orlando Brown  a 9 year NFL veteran - is best remembered from an eye injury he suffered when he was hit in the eye with a penalty flag which caused significant injuries, and led to an injury settlement with the league.

However it was complications from diabetes that killed former 40 year old Raven Orlando Brown - and he probably did not know he had the disease. 

The state medical examiner determined he passed away in his downtown condo from diabetes complications and they found no medical records that show he was ever diagnosed.

Angie Stone Educates Others on Diabetes

Angie Stone – a spokesperson for the Fearless African-Americans Connected and Empowered (F.A.C.E) diabetes initiative sponsored by Eli Lilly and Company – takes her new role seriously.

Stone was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes 10 years ago and has had the challenges that come along with the diagnosis. Those challenges include setbacks and disappointments but she now feels she finally has it under control.

People with Type 2 diabetes are able to produce insulin when they are diagnosed, but the insulin they produce does not help the body’s cells use glucose for energy. According to the American Diabetes Association, Type 2 diabetes accounts for 90 to 95 percent of all diabetes cases in America.

“Through the Eli Lily Company initiative, I have been inspired to manage my diabetes,” Stone said. She has lost weight and works towards keeping the weight off. Stone has gone from a size 22 to a size 14 by changing her eating habits and cooking healthy meals.

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