Gastric bypass surgery was originally devised to cause weight loss in cases of extreme obesity. However, it has recently come to be known as a last resort measure for controlling Type 2 diabetes in obese patients. To read up on this phenomenon, you need look no further than this very site. Here's a previous blog on this topic by yours truly, one that touches on the horrible complications that some have to endure after the surgery. Then here's a more recent one about a Welsh study on the incredible efficacy of the surgery, this time courtesy of Bev.

Now I see a new report circulating in the news. This one focuses on some doctors and their patients who have experienced first-hand how well the gastric bypass can work at making Type 2 diabetes disappear. The piece profiles (among others) truck parts salesman and Type 2 diabetic Adrian Scolari, who weighed 360 pounds and became an insulin-dependent diabetic. Upon having the surgery, says Scolari, his blood sugar levels immediately returned to normal. "I'd have to say it's like a miracle," Scolari exclaims. Bariatric surgeon Nestor De La Cruz Munoz says a gastric bypass can completely rid patients of Type 2 diabetes in a majority of cases. Munoz says, (and Bev talked about this in her blog on this topic too), it appears to be successful because shrinking the stomach's size and rerouting the small intestine affects the production of GLP1 hormone. Result? Instantly normalized blood sugar levels. Obvious next question: can this technique be applied to non-obese patients with Type 2 diabetes? I will look forward to hearing more about this.

Should you want to read more about gastric bypass surgery, WebMD has a good summary of what the procedure involves.

Eureka! I have just stumbled across the best explanation of Type 2 diabetes that I have ever read. The author is fitness enthusiast Mark Sisson and the entire text can be accessed at his website, Mark's Daily Apple. This is where Mark posts his blogs on health and fitness-related topics, and it also links into his online store, which sells nutritional supplements.

Mark does a great job of explaining what he calls the "Completely Unnecessary Disease Epidemic" - how Type 2 diabetes works and why the US Food and Drug Administration could be doing much more to help people avoid or minimize the disease's impact. We are overloading ourselves with carbohydrates and those carbs are poisoning us. Why? Because they are converted into sugars that our bodies just can't handle. In a detailed, yet easy-to-read and light-hearted way, Mark explains exactly how this occurs and his advice is simple: ignore the government's stodgy old food pyramid and cut those carbs. (Yes, I know, they've updated the food pyramid, but not enough to really address the problem, as far as I'm concerned.)

Mark, in fact, personally favors the "Stone Age" diet that did good things in a recent study involving overweight Type 2 diabetics. Click here to read more about that. He has even designed his own "Carb Pyramid," which you can view by clicking here. Mark happily describes his own food routine, and this is where he and I part ways because he says "I'm not really a pasta or pizza guy" and "I'm not much of a snacker." Must be nice...

After you've read his blog, Mark says, "Print this explanation out, stick it on your fridge, email it to your aunt. And put down the pasta." Oh, Mark, now you're just breaking my heart!

Blogs are everywhere these days. Hell, there seem to be about a hundred that run along the right side of this page; with topics ranging from Cinema to Wireless Technology. Oh yeah, and don't forget about us here at the Life Science blogs, covering news and info dealing with cancer, cardiovascular health, and diabetes. But, these are OUR stories. Well, maybe not directly -- but we are the people that are passing along the information here on these blogs. What about YOUR story? Well, now there's a chance for you to talk about your experience with diabetes, and the forum to do so is based off of a very well known and respected diabetes blog called Six Until Me (www.sixuntilme.com).

Separate from the main page blog, the new Your Story page allows readers to email their contributions and have them published on the site, thereby fostering an even greater sense of community and support among readers. And "stories" appears to be a pretty loose term, as it is made clear on the site that you can contribute anything diabetes related that you feel the world would benefit from knowing. Pictures, videos, poems, antecdotes, and of course, actual stories can be emailed to: story@sixuntilme.com

I encourage you to vist Six Until Me and spend some time navagating the site. Unlike much of what I write on TheDiabetesBlog, the content on Six Until Me is less diabetes medical/research-based and more centered on daily living with diabetes. The highs, the lows (both figuratively and literally), the good, the bad, and even the ugly -- it's all covered by the site's author with humor and elequence. Now, with the addition of the Your Story section of Six Until Me, your own stories, musings, rants, and tales of personal triumph can also be told.

Who would've thought that the same company who gave rise to Super Mario Brothers would transform a generation into virtual athletes? And I know what you're thinking - don't even try to turn this video gaming habit into a banner health campaign. Hold the phone, sister. Read on and you'll see what Nintendo has done.

The calorie-carnage begins with a wireless remote -- like a piece of sporting equipment. In fact this wireless piece is your symbolic tennis racket, baseball bat or golf club. Players use the momentum of their body movements to engage a sensor placed on top of the television. The freebie games that come with Nintendo Wii are: tennis, golf, baseball, and even boxing. Of course the games to choose from are as far as the imagination can stretch. You can even pay to download the good old games like Super Mario Brothers and other hits from back in the day. The gaming actively involves movement of the biceps, shoulders, core and even the legs. All of this, of course, happens in the comfort and privacy of home, which means users of any age or skill level can hit the virtual court, diamond or links anytime.

In a study of 25 kids 8 to 12 years old, researcher Lorraine Lanningham-Foster at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, found that kids playing active video games (Sony's EyeToy and Konami's Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix 2) expended roughly double the energy of kids playing sedentary video games.

Wii has attracted a devoted following, including 26-year-old Mickey DeLorenzo, of South Philadelphia. The multimedia developer quickly attained cultural hero status by blogging the results of his 30-minute-a-day Wii exercise regimen. DeLorenzo, who lost 9 pounds between Dec. 3 and Jan. 15 just by playing Wii games.

If you're still curious what the game looks like in action take a moment to watch a crafty commercial Nintendo put together. The theme of the commercial is: Wii would like to play. Enjoy!

A wiki about a controversial prescription drug has been ordered by a US court to remove a link to documents which originated with Eli Lilly, the drug's manufacturer. Eli Lilly has paid nearly $1.7 billions to settle cases over its alleged side effects from its drug Zyprexa, including diabetes.

The wiki about Zyprexa published a link to internal Eli Lilly documents which the New York Times said showed that the company deliberately downplayed the side effects of the drug, which are alleged to include weight gain, high blood sugar levels and diabetes.

The judge in one of the product liability cases ordered the site and a number of named individuals to refrain from distributing the documents. A digital rights group defended the free speech rights of one anonymous poster but the judge would not budge. The electronic gag order will remain in effect until the case is resolved, sometime after January 16th.

This Sunday, September 3, 2006 join the uproarious laughter of Jim Turner (best known for HBO's Arli$$), as he tests your trivia talent while paying tribute to the unspoken heroes of the diabetes community, healthcare professionals and caregivers. He uses his Diabetes Toolbox to facilitate the introductions. From what I've heard, the Diabetes Toolbox alone is worth tuning in!

Jim, a co-host of dLifeTV, was diagnosed as a type I diabetic in high school. He has found that sharing his experiences as a diabetic will help other diabetics understand that they are not alone. The unique gift Jim uses to relay this message is his craft for comedy.

So if you think that you or someone you know is a celebrity trivia genius, tune into dLifeTV (on CNBC) this Sunday, September 3, 2006 at 7:00PM ET/4:00PM PT and rediscover Susan (Heidi Swedberg) , the ill-fated fiancé of Seinfeld's George Costanza; Jeffrey Rosso the high school guidance counselor from Freaks and Geeks; Spin City's Carter Sebastian Heywood and many others who team up to remind you that they exist and deserve their own kind of special recognition -- just like diabetes caregivers!

Think the real world -- New York to California. That is exactly what Gina Capone did to capture the attention of a girl like myself, ransacking search engines for some refreshing diabetic websites. Gina, with her friend Jon, copiloted the launch of DIABETEStalkfest.

Focusing on the forgotten generation, young adults between the ages of 18-35, DIABETEStalkfest is an online community built by people with diabetes for people with diabetes.

Gina, a type 1 diabetic and native New Yorker, and Jon Schlaman, who has a son with type 1 diabetes and lives in California, met on a diabetes message board. Jon and Gina realized there was a shortage of good, fun, diabetes-related sites on the internet. Gina and Jon, formed a lasting friendship and business partnership, communicating only through message boards and IM's.

The inviting thing about DIABETEStalkfest is that you can find real friendships and support. Express yourself at their message board, or connect with other people in their online chat or even catch a live chat with professionals in the field. Join the unscripted fun on DIABETEStalkfest!

Anybody who has been granted the dubious distinction of multiple blood glucose readings a day will appreciate the lively approach my endocrinologist has applied to diabetes management. As his cartoon-depicted alter ego, Dr. Grady brings you straightforward explanations of the medical issues in the form of comic strips. His approach is the CartoonMD®, which is medical information made very, very simple.

A new class of diabetes agents was created and released on the market for patient care called the incretin mimetics. Greek to you, too? Exactly. Here's what I did -- take yourself a minute or two to pay homage to the comedic genius and frustrated artist that I proudly (and often) call doctor. If nothing more, you'll enjoy the momentary reminiscing of Saturday morning cartoons with an intellectual spin.

I encourage everybody to take a look at the educational entertainment from the good doctor, Dr. Grady. It truly is medical information that goes down easy!