Yesterday I posted on the latest indicator that high fructose corn syrup is harmful and maybe even linked to diabetes risk. Naturally, the American Beverage Association vigorously rejects the report.

In the interest of balance, here's the opposing argument courtesy of the ABA's website. "There is absolutely no unique link between soft drinks sweetened with high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and diabetes, in children or adults. In fact, it is a stretch of the imagination to link the laboratory findings of this unpublished in vitro study with the occurrence of diabetes in humans." Ooh, "unpublished." Ouch. Nice veiled barb, there.

The statement goes on in some detail, basically saying if the harmful reactive carbonyls occur naturally in a number of foods, why single out HFCS?

Well, you can't blame them for defending themselves. But I laughed at the following: "Singling out any one food, beverage or ingredient as a unique cause or contributor to diabetes is simply not supported by science." I dunno. A study led by a professor of food science at Rutgers. Sure sounds like science to me...

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!

A lot of people I know avoid foods that list high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) as an ingredient. Apart from the calories they add to foods, there's a growing belief that lab-devised products like HFCS are simply unnatural and may be harmful. Wikipedia has an interesting article on the origins and controversy surrounding HFCS, if you want to learn more.

Not surprisingly, the food industry has always defended HFCS against claims that it is harmful. But here's the latest contradiction of that claim: a recent study found that HFCS is "astonishingly" high in reactive carbonyls, which are thought to contribute to the development of diabetes. The study was led by Dr. Chi-tang Ho, head of Rutgers University's Department of Food Science, and colleagues. They concluded that one can of HFCS-sweetened soda contains five times the reactive carbonyls that are normally found in the blood of a person with diabetes.

A news release by the American Chemical Society, announcing Dr. Ho's findings, notes that previous studies have already linked HFCS to cell and tissue damage. They suggest that HFCS consumption may raise the risk of diabetes, not to mention obesity. Say's Dr. Ho: "People consume too much high-fructose corn syrup in this country. It's in way too many food and drink products and there's growing evidence that it's bad for you."

The Mom of the Year Award will not be going to this lady: according to a report from Fox News, Belinda J. Menier (33) served liquor to her thirteen-year-old daughter and her daughter's diabetic friend. This occurred during a sleepover. Menier, who lives in Corunna, Indiana, was arrested last Monday and charged with felony neglect of a dependent and the misdemeanor charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

So what was on the tasting menu? Amaretto, apparently. According to a police report, Menier mixed the liquor with soda for the girls to taste. According to an AOL report, the diabetic girl told police she had about five drinks while at the house, but said she was fine afterwards. The mom, however, says they only had a taste and that was it. "She admitted pouring them a small taste. That's her only admission," says DeKalb County Sheriff Sergeant Donald Lauer.

Good Lord. Does this really sound like good use of police time and money? Sure, Menier wasn't using her best mommy judgment when she decided to entertain the kids with alcoholic beverages! But does she deserve to be put through hell for her actions? I guess a big factor here is: did she know the daughter's friend was diabetic?

Unless public health takes urgent measures, the Institute of Medicine warned in a report one in five children in the United States will be obese by the year 2010.

In response to this alarming message, Just Different Specialty Tea Company now offers Captain Teao's organic Tea for Kids - a calorie and caffeine free kid-friendly beverage. The tea is a refreshing drink that provides a healthy beverage option in the fight against childhood obesity, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. It is made with organic rooibos and is available in several flavors, such as: Very Vanilla, Orangie Orange, Lip Licking Lemon, Mango Madness and Peachy Keen Peach.

Captain Teao is the first character of his kind. He is a fictional, fun loving superhero who's on a mission to help kids fight the effects of childhood obesity, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. While on his mission Captain Teao invented Tea for Kids as a great tasting, healthy and refreshing alternative to high calorie sodas and fruit juices. Unlike sodas and juices -- Tea for Kids contains no sugar or caffeine and is loaded with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. Cheers to Captain Teao for brewing such a socially responsible message. Here here!

You're probably aware by now that many customer service calls for American companies are being handled by employees in other countries, particularly India. Not surprisingly, a study conducted by the Delhi Research Diabetic Center has found that Indian employees of such call centers are suffering from increasingly poor health. Even at relatively young ages, they are becoming especially prone to diabetes and illness associated with high blood pressure.

The reason? They are adopting the lifestyle habits of their American counterparts: drinking soda, eating a lot of processed foods, and their lifestyles are highly sedentary in nature. Of course, all that time spent at a desk taking phone calls is not exactly a recipe for a fit and healthy body. It's also a pretty stressful job environment, working at a call center, and researchers have pointed to job stress as a contributing factor to be taken into account. People in India are becoming increasingly worried about the country's spiraling diabetes problem: unfortunately, the case of the call center workers is just the tip of the iceberg.

In an August 7 blog, I wrote about the dangers of fruit juice, especially the ongoing popular perception of fruit juice as a "healthy" food product. In a case of great timing, The New York Times published a little piece yesterday about the dangers of sugary drinks in general, but especially the evils of soda. "Americans have sipped and slurped their way to fatness by drinking far more soda and other sugary drinks over the last four decades," states the Times report in which researchers explain why these beverages are a big factor behind rising levels of obesity in the US. Of course, the American Beverage Association refutes the researchers' claims.

This article is definitely worth a look for anyone interested in health news, but particularly for diabetics. Of course, health-conscious diabetics are not guzzling gallons of soda anyway, right? But it's nevertheless helpful for diabetics to be aware that a diabetic-friendly diet is not really a special, medically-limited diet. In fact, it's just a healthful way to eat, period. Think about it: you're an example for others!

Do yourself and your family a favor and limit your fruit juice consumption. Better yet, cut juice - along with soda - from your diet entirely. Although the companies that manufacture fruit juice love to slap labels on their products claiming they are "healthy" and "natural," this just 'ain't true. Fruit juice, even without extra sugar added to pump up the taste, is loaded with sugar and calories. It's bad for the teeth and it's bad for the waistlines of kids and adults alike.

Excess juice consumption - like excess soda consumption - may even contribute to the development of Type 2 diabetes. Dr. Robert H. Lustig, professor of pediatric endocrinology at the University of California at San Francisco and a passionate opponent of juice consumption explains it as follows: The fructose in juice is metabolized into acetyl-Co-A, a compound that is normally processed by the body without harm, but which occurs in such high quantities in people drinking lots of juice and soda that it can damage the body in a variety of ways. One of these ways is the production of a compound toxic to beta cells in the pancreas, which some experts believe triggers the development of Type 2 diabetes.

When it comes down to the facts, juice is not much more than a sugar cocktail of fructose, glucose and sucrose, with none of the beneficial fiber you get from eating fruit. The calories it contains can contribute to weight gain, obviously, but in addition it is not effective at suppressing the appetite, which encourages overeating. The final word goes to Dr. Lustig: "Drinking juice - even if it says '100% natural' - is no better than drinking soda."