The results of a new study show that those who consumed more fiber were less likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those who ate less fiber.

The researchers note that consuming fiber may help with the body's ability to handle blood sugar. The pooled results of several studies showed that people who ate the most cereal fiber had a 33% lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes than those who ate the least. A study conducted at Harvard confirmed foods including whole grain breads, high-fiber cereals, yogurt, beans and peanut butter lessened the probability of developing diabetes by 28%.

The miraculous benefits of fiber keeping adding up. Whether your motive is to reduce your risk of diabetes, lower cholesterol, hamper IBS, or suppress your hunger -- there's a reason for each of us to invite a little more fiber into our diet. Snack on your cereals, bake your muffins, or enjoy a fresh cup of blueberries -- fiber is your friend. Friends don't let friends develop diabetes.

Hold on to your seats, folks. This story is pretty controversial but fascinating enough to make an appearance on Prime Time television 2x tonight on the evening news! A treatment involving the annihilation of the immune system, followed by a period of rebuilding the immune system is being tested in Brazil as a cure for type 1 diabetes.

The patients involved were newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, and between the ages of 14 to 31 years old. The 15 diabetics were treated at a bone marrow center at the University of Sao Paulo. Timing is key in this method of therapy because if you wait too long - the window of opportunity where the body's ability to repair itself closes. The procedure involves stimulating the body to produce new stem cells and harvesting them from the patient's blood. Next comes several days of high-dose chemotherapy, which shuts down the patient's immune system. This also stops destruction of the few remaining insulin-producing cells in the body. This requires hospitalization and potent drugs to fend off infection. The harvested stem cells, when injected back into the body, build a new healthier immune system that does not attack the insulin-producing cells. Patients were hospitalized for about three weeks. Many had side effects including nausea, vomiting and hair loss.

For the record (and the Freedom of Information Act) the study was partly funded by the Brazilian Ministry of Health, Genzyme Corp. and a maker of blood sugar monitoring products.

Check out this link to CBS News. It leads to a nice summary of the American Diabetes Association's (ADA) new recommendations for Type 2 diabetes, which have been published in full in the latest issue of Diabetes Care (September 2006).

For those who have not (yet) been diagnosed, the ADA emphasizes awareness of these big diabetes warning signs: unusual hunger and/or thirst, increased urinary output, fatigue, weight loss, blurry vision, and sores that are slow to heal. The ADA also wants to educate the public on one point, in particular: it's never too late for lifestyle changes that could lower your risk for Type 2 - or, if you have been diagnosed, at least minimize your risk for Type 2 health complications. Lose some weight, try to eat low-fat, high-fiber foods, and get some exercise. You know, in a nutshell, that's all there is to it. It's not complicated, and it'll cost you nothing! I guess the problem is, you can recommend 'till you're blue in the face, but you can't force people to change...

CBS News is running a report on new findings published in Diabetes Care (July 2006). The title seems a little silly to me: "Diet May Help Minorities' Diabetes." Well, duh, I thought.

Anyway, the point is that minorities (defined as African Americans, Asians and Hispanics) are more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than are white Americans. The news is that improved eating habits may benefit these minorities in terms of controlling their diabetes than would be the case for whites. Surprised? I am.

Also from the Diabetes Care research is the news that body mass index does not fully explain why minorities suffer from diabetes at a higher rate. In other words, it's not just about weight, folks.

Finally, the researchers also concluded that gaining weight puts Asians at a particularly high risk for diabetes.

Check out the CBS article for a long summary of the research. Of course, Diabetes Care contains the full story.