We could all benefit from added fiber in our diets. However, it seems the type of fiber consumed is important too. A new study concludes that vegetable fiber is a good defence against type 2 diabetes. The study comes courtesy of researchers at the University of Sydney, Australia, who found that adults eating five grams of vegetable fiber daily were 24 percent less likely than other adults to develop the disease. People over the age of seventy enjoyed a thirty-one percent risk reduction.

The study tracked the eating habits of more than two thousand people over a ten year period. Wow. The researchers also reported that those whose diets contained fiber from mainly cereal or fruit sources did not fare so well - they had a higher risk for type 2 diabetes than those getting lots of fiber from veggie sources. The reason could be that foods high in vegetable fiber produce smaller fluctuations in blood glucose and insulin levels than would cereal or fruits. Lead researcher, Alan Barclay, says legumes are the best fiber source of all.

The results have been published in the latest Diabetes Care.

You've heard about the sports stars and the rock stars who succeed in life despite suffering from diabetes. Now, here's something a little more unusual: a circus acrobat! Dolly Jacobs is Circus Sarasota's "Queen of the Air." She recently gave an interview to the Bradenton Herald about her life in the circus.

Trim and petite like a dancer, Jacobs was diagnosed ten years ago. How did it happen? She had the warning signs most type 1s experience: weight loss and a killer thirst she just could not quench. Her mom already had type 1, so during a routine office visit, Jacobs asked the doc to check her blood sugar too. Whoa. It was 260 - way, way above normal. Jacobs was diagnosed not with type 1, but with a rarer form sometimes dubbed "type 1.5" or Latent Autoimmune Diabetes of the Adult (LADA). LADA is basically the same as type 1 diabetes, but develops later in life.

So how does one deal with diabetes when your job involves flying through the air with the greatest of ease? Low blood sugar is easy, says Jacobs. Correct it with a soda or juice. High blood sugar is tougher. She says she can go as high as 500 or 600 just from adrenaline. So, just like any other athlete, she depends on testing several times daily and she wears an insulin pump - but not when she's performing. Eating healthy - lean meats, fruits and veg - are important too, she says.

Click here to read more. Kudos, by the way, to the journalist who wrote this article, Roberta C. Nelson, for taking time out to identify the different forms of diabetes and to explain the dangers associated with high vs. low blood sugar. Great!

Indignation, frustration. It's all growing stronger amongst diabetics over the fact that most people don't understand this basic fact: type 1 and type 2 diabetes are two very different conditions. When, oh when (or ever?), will we get more appropriate names.

"Type 1" and "type 2" are so meaningless to most non-diabetics and probably to a lot of type 2 diabetics as well. "Juvenile" or "childhood onset" are, these days, likewise, quite meaningless when so many kids are getting T2DM due to atrocious lifestyle/eating habits.

A recent editorial caught my eye. I want to share, because I think it's a good example of how the media helps add to this ignorance when journalists fail to make a distinction between T1 and T2. "In our view: Targeting Diabetes," was published August 16 in The Columbian of Vancouver, WA. "Diabetes is everywhere...Diabetes lasts a lifetime," it reads, "and there is no cure, even though steps involving diet and exercise can lower many risks." Not true! It goes on to say, "With generous gifts and more education, fewer of us will get the disease." Again, not true! You and I know that statement does not apply to T1s. But I'll wager an overwhelming majority of non-diabetic and T2 diabetic readers would not bat an eye at such a comment.

Diabetic and want to help educate people? Long-term, we need new names! Short-term, public education will help. Here's a start: hit the link above to this Columbian editorial and post a comment!

What happens when you do "Supersize Me" in reverse? Why, you get a documentary like "Raw for 30 Days." The film-makers of "Raw" got six type 2 diabetics with less than stellar lifestyle habits and persuaded them to switch out hamburgers and fried chicken for a raw, whole foods diet consisting of all-organic, all-vegan foods. Mmm mmm.

You can't see the movie quite yet. But you can see the preview. Just click on over to the "Raw for 30 Days" website. My source says the preview can also be viewed on YouTube or Google Video. The finished product is now in post-production and should be released in time for Spring 2008 film festivals.

The documentary was directed by Sundance Film Festival-winner Aiyana Elliott, but the concept was created by the executive producer, Mark Perlmutter. The idea is to demonstrate that type 2 diabetes can be reversed "naturally" - that is, without the aid of a battery of prescription drugs. Says Perlmutter, "The release of our nine-minute preview may be the first exposure some have to a greater understanding of controlling, if not conquering the disease."

Okay, so the premise is a little shaky. For one thing: how much can be achieved in only thirty days? For another: it's changing lifestyle habits and maintaining them over time that's key in reversing symptoms of t2 diabetes or pre-diabetes. But why be a party-pooper? After all, raising awareness about diabetes is a good thing. I would definitely like to see this film.

I was intrigued by a recent Swedish study reporting that people on a so-called "Stone Age" diet had more stable blood sugar levels than those on a Mediterranean diet. An intriguing claim, because it's so often said that Mediterranean-style eating is super-healthful. Let's also admit it is a delicious way to eat: yes, pasta and bread is there, but it's balanced out by tons of fresh fruits, vegetables, fish and olive oil. The Stone Age way is a bit more spare: we're talkin' meat, fish, and lots of whole grains, berries and nuts. Nary a sliver of Parmesan in sight.

However, the results of yet another study, this time from Australia, indicates Mediterranean-style eating is a good choice, especially for diabetics. Researchers from the University of Melbourne say Mediterranean-born immigrants in Australia are less likely to die from heart disease than other Australians. The researchers have concluded it's all down to dietary patterns. More than forty thousand people participated in the study over a period of ten years. The numbers revealed those who ate the most Mediterranean-style foods had a thirty percent lower risk of dying from heart disease. For diabetics, the researchers speculate, the benefits could be even higher, reducing the risk of death due to ischemic heart disease.

Results have been published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Visit Reuters for a discussion of the study.

What makes for a long and healthy life? Why, you say, how about a healthy diet and liberal quantities of exercise? True! A healthy lifestyle keeps you in shape and is one factor that promotes longevity. But have you ever wondered exactly how this works on a physiological level? How does the brain understand you skipped the gym all summer and had French fries for lunch yesterday?

The answer, according to the results of a new study published in Science (July 2007), could relate to insulin levels in the brain. Researchers induced lab mice to overeat until they became obese and some exhibited symptoms of diabetes. Yet some of those same mice actually lived eighteen percent longer than their slender mice buddies. The researchers attributed that longevity to a gene that affects insulin. Put simply: the longevity gene (called Irs2) effectively "tricked" the brains of those mice into thinking they were slim and fit, when in fact the opposite was true.

For diabetics, the study raises an additional question: if raising insulin levels decreases the body's sensitivity to it, is it really desirable to treat type 2 diabetics with insulin over the long-term? Lead author of the study, Morris White of Children's Hospital in Boston, says it's highly preferable (when possible) to get type 2 diabetes under control through old-fashioned diet and exercise, rather than through insulin or other meds.

Summer is here (from where I'm sitting -- in 90-plus degree temps -- it's Definitely here!), which means that it's beach season again. And while it's cool to float around the pool in an inner tube, looking like you ate one might not be the look you're going for this year. What's more, it's certainly not a healthy look, for an excess of abdominal fat can greatly raise a person's risk of developing type 2 diabetes. So, if this whole enlarged waist issue happens to be one to which you can relate, I've outlined some easy and healthy ways to help make this summer your healthiest ever.

1 - Cut Back on the Carbs. For people with type 2 diabetes, this is nothing new. The key, as you likely know, is to avoid refined carbs (pasta, white rice, candy, etc.) like the plague, as they will spike your insulin levels, leading to the storage of more fat. Stick to slower-digesting carb sources like vegetables and whole grains.

2 - Reduce Your Caloric Intake. This pretty basic tenet is one that people, for some reason or another, tend to be the worst at adhering to. For best results, try cutting about 20% of your normal caloric intake. This way, you don't run the risk of catabolizing muscle, too, by restricting your diet to too few calories. If you don't know how many calories you're currently consuming, start checking nutritional labels today. Or, you can visit www.fitday.com for a complete listing of how many calories are in some of your favorite foods. Then, once you've established how many calories you're currently eating, take that number and reduce it by 20%.

3 - Trim the Fat. Remember, fat is not always a bad thing. But, it's also important to bear in mind that for each gram of fat you consume, you're taking in 9 calories. So, without going too crazy, you may want to try cutting back your fat consumption by one-third. The best way to do this is to try low-fat versions of foods (providing they haven't upped the carb/sugar content to make up for the flavor void), eat leaner choices of meat and poultry, and skip a yoke now and again with your eggs. Be this all as it may, do not go as far as to neglect your body of the healthy fats found in fish, avocados, nuts, and olive oil.

4 - Go Pro. To make up for the small caloric deficit left by cutting back on fat and carbs, try eating a bit more protein. Because protein is relatively slow-digesting, it requires your body to burn more calories for it to be processed, thereby amping up your metabolic rate. Also, protein helps curb hunger by increasing certain peptide levels, which signal your brain that you are satiated.

5 - Eat More. Seems counterintuitive, doesn't it? The key is to make sure that you are eating small meals throughout the day. Gone are the days when three squares is the norm (that is, unless you're in prison). Most people by now are hip to the concept that eating five to six small meals at regularly scheduled times of the day is the best way to rev up your metabolism and burn more calories. This isn't to say that you have to eat like a bird all day. Breakfast and dinner, in particular, can still be larger in portion size (lunch can be sizeable, as well). But, you don't want to starve yourself in between those meal times. This is where the other small meals come into play. As a result, you won't end up gorging a few Big Macs for dinner because you're level of hunger won't necessitate such indulgence. Instead, you might opt for a small piece of fish or chicken and a side of vegetables.

I'm not a dietitian, nor have I ever played one on TV, so you may want to consult with a professional before making some or all of the above dietary changes. Still, in my personal opinion -- and based on years of experience with health and fitness -- I can say with confidence that these are healthy and effective ways to help deflate that inner tube of yours.

The Diet Channel promotes the headline: eat right, exercise smart, feel great! An authoritative resource for diet and fitness information, The Diet Channel offers several different summaries of the most popular diets, as well as informative articles on nutrition and health.

An article of diabetic interest pertains to those of us who are curious (or downright fixated) on artificial sweeteners. This article warns that it is not always safe to assume that just because a product is made with a sugar substitute, such as Splenda, it is healthier, or lower in calorie content. A thorough list of sweeteners and their key ingredients end the article, along with research findings on the safety of these products.

The Diet Channel offers information on every flavor of diet you can imagine, articles to motivate you to stick with it, and loads of information to keep you coming back. If I didn't know any better - I'd say it looks to be the wikipedia of dieting. And if you've ever found yourself consuming hour after hour digging through wikipedia topics...you'll know exactly what I'm talking about!

Nutraceutical refers to foods claimed to have a medicinal effect on human health. The American Diabetes Association says individuals at risk of developing diabetes can make changes in their diet and increse their level of physical activity to reduce their risk. The following mentions a few foods and supplements that are your friends in the fight against diabetes.

You've probably heard a million times the benefit of soluble fiber. It lends a big helping hand by slowing carbohydrate absorption. Easy sources of soluble fiber include: oat bran, nuts, barley, flax seed, fruits like oranges and apples, and vegetables like carrots. Another nutritional gem is coffee! Well, more specifically chlorogenic acid, the antioxidant found in coffee. It slows the release of glucose into the bloodstream after a meal. Caffeine counteracts this effect, so diabetics are better off drinking decaf. Barley malt has similar blood glucose lowering effects as metformin, without the side effects. Some say barley malt is to beer as grapes are to wine. Barley malt extract (available in powder and liquid forms) is also used medicinally as a bulking agent to promote bowel regularity.

Other honorable mentions include: magnesium, chromium piccolinate, conjugated linoleic acid, bitter melon and our beloved cinnamon. Nutraceuticals would likely have substantial diabetes-preventive efficacy, and presumably could be marketed legally as aids to good glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity.

Psyllium is not exactly a "food" that fills us with joy when we think about it. We usually only think about it when we are constipated. But this soluble fiber has many health benefits: lowering bad cholesterol, aiding in controlling appetite and weight and helping to control diabetes in Type 2 diabetics.

In diabetes it reduces the post meal rise in blood sugar due to decreasing the glycemic response of foods.There have been studies that showed that lipids and glucose values improved with the use of psyllium. It is believed that fiber-depleted foods lead to higher glucose levels and stimulate excessive insulin secretion. Psyllium may act to break this cycle. It is easy to add psyllium to your diet, since it is a concentrated source of soluble fiber. Just 1/3 cup of cereal with psyllium provides 12 grams of fiber (almost half of our daily fiber needs). Be careful when adding fiber to your diet, though - add it slowly and drink plenty of water to prevent discomfort.

Other studies showed great results in a laboratory setting, but when people were monitored in the real world, there was no difference in the blood glucose levels of those who added psyllium to their diet.

I do not think that any food can be a miracle on its own. However, I think that if we add these foods that we know are good for us (and we know fiber is good for us), we can be healthier. Maybe it is as simple as that.

I am on a quest to lose weight and reduce my risk of Type 2 diabetes, which runs in my family. I know what I should be doing - eating right and exercising, and I am trying my best. I have one vice that I have found difficult in getting rid of, though. I drink a lot of juice and chocolate milk and the staff at Starbucks know my name.

I think the reason I do this is because it is easy to pretend that there are no consequences when drinking these beverages. Unfortunately, the drinks I listed above do have calories, and the really bad part is that they are mostly empty calories with loads of sugar.

A venti Starbucks Caramel Frappuccino contains 525 calories, as much as eight ounces of skim milk, half a cup of fruit, two slices of toast and two ounces of meat combined! It is also almost as much calories as a Big Mac at 560 calories. Apple juice can contain as much as 14 tsp of sugar and 1% chocolate milk (200ml) can contain 5 tsp of sugar.

I do not think that it is worth the calories and sugar content to keep drinking these beverages. Water, here I come!

The FDA has approved a new over-the-counter weight loss drug called alli (orlistat) that is designed to absorb 25% of the fat from your meal. However, nutrition and fitness expert Dr. Len Lopez, author of "To Burn or Not to Burn, Fat is the Question" shares his reasons why the new approved weight loss drug may not be beneficial to your health.

New research is showing that medications don't make us healthier. Research is showing that losing weight with medications doesn't decrease the rate of heart attacks, strokes or diabetes. Add that to the fact that your body loses nutrients with these medications and you can easily see how these new weight loss drugs can hamper your health. Dr. Lopez discusses practical steps to losing weight which includes diet and exercise, but also covers how stress and adrenal fatigue can disrupt our hormones, such as cortisol and adrenaline. These hormonal imbalances can throw off our metabolism and take us out of our fat burning mode.

Both of Dr.Lopez's books cover a good deal of information to understand how we can correct our imbalances in piecing together the weight loss puzzle. His knowledge explores the roles of insulin and cortisol in weight gain, cravings, fatigue and more. He also explains how stress can take you out of your fat burning zone and helps you regain your blood sugar balance, as well as implementing the "Five and Two" dieting plan.

Say NO to the weight loss drugs and say YES to the empowering knowledge Dr. Lopez has to share.

Each year the American Diabetic Association sponsors an informational campaign to promote healthy eating by providing practical nutrition guidance that focuses on the importance of developing sound eating and exercise habits. The theme for this year is 100 percent "Fad Free." The campaign features learning how to identify a food fad which is a food or diet fad that claims unreasonable or exaggerated benefits. If a diet or product advertises eating only specific foods, nutrient supplements or combinations of foods that may cure disease or offer quick weight loss, it is a fad. Diet fads come and go.

A balanced diet and physical activity are essential to a healthy lifestyle over the long term of your life. Develop an eating plan for the lifelong health. Choose foods sensibly by looking at the big picture because a single food or meal will not make or break a healthy diet. Find your balance between food and physical activity. Exercise does not have to be strenuous to be beneficial.

Knocking out the gene for a peptide associated with insulin was shown to protect mice against the harmful effects of a high-fat diet. Urocortin 3 plays a role in the increased production of insulin in response to high caloric intake in animals.

Scientists found that by removing the urocortin 3 gene from mice, they did not develop the age-related insulin resistance and high blood sugar observed in the normal control mice. The metabolisms of normal mice were compared to the metabolisms of those without the urocortin 3 gene. When placed on a high caloric diet for three months, the mice without the urocortin 3 gene packed on the same amount of weight but had lower insulin levels. But these mice also had lower blood sugar, improved glucose tolerance curves and they did not develop the fatty livers the control mice experienced.

Scientists hypothesize that by curtailing the abnormally high insulin levels, they were able to manipulate insulin sensitivity and avoid some of the untoward consequences of the high food intake and weight gain. Like many of us diabetics already know too well - while insulin is effective at lowering blood sugar it also promotes fat storage. This is a natural protective response to prepare for times when food may not be available. When insulin is produced at too high a level for too long, the body becomes insulin resistant and blood sugar and certain blood lipids gradually creep up, which can cause progressive damage to multiple organs.

Urocortin 2 and urocortin 3 are part of the system that governs the body's response to insulin. Scientists already know that mice on a high-fat diet do better if either urocortin 2 or urocortin 3 is removed. Now they want to know if the mice will respond even better if both are missing. Such results may instruct us how best to develop therapeutic means to exploit these powerful effects.

Yes, that's what it says: curbing the diabetic epidemic with 6 oat waters. CeaProve® is a new test for the early detection of pre-diabetes or impaired glucose tolerance that may help curb the diabetes epidemic. For those of you who have endured a glucose tolerance test - you'll understand the pivotal importance of this new diagnostic test. Ceapro has developed a test that identifies people at risk of type-2 diabetes as early as 5 to 10 years before the disease is diagnosed.

The simple test involves eating 6 oat-wafers and undergoing a finger prick. The test - when repeated at six month intervals - can also show if lifestyle changes are being effective or if more treatment is needed. Ceapro has tested CeaProve in the workplace of several prominent businesses in Edmonton that are interested in helping their employees monitor and preserve their health. Over 90% of tested volunteers were unaware of their risk for diabetes. Of the population studied, 60% were overweight, 56% were over the age of 40, 44 % had a family history of diabetes and over 57% had more than two risk factors for the disease. Although Ceapro is a Canadian-based company, they expect to have Ceaprove available in commercial quantities within the next 45 days. The product will likely be released through regional health initiatives and may also be available through pharmacies and medical laboratories.

Can such a simple test have such a significant impact on the future of one's health? The results tell people, years ahead of time if they are heading down the path to diabetes. With dietary modifications, regular exercise, and an overall improve in lifestyle - wouldn't it be worth it to you?