It’s Quite true, children born to mothers diagnosed with diabetes during pregnancy have high risks of language delay. Although there are many factors that contribute to poor development of vocabulary and grammar skills, this reason happens to be the most important driving force.

A recent study conducted by a team of experts from Université Laval’s School of Psychology demonstrated that pregnant related diabetes increases the risk about twice.

Researchers compared the vocabulary and grammar skills of 221 children whose mothers were diagnosed with gestational diabetes to those of 2,612 children from a control group. These tests were conducted at different intervals between ages 18 months and 7 years.

Results showed that children born to mothers with gestational diabetes achieve poorer scores on tests of spoken vocabulary and grammar than children of healthy mothers.

However, this trouble is not inevitable. Children born to highly educated mothers are less vulnerable. genes or environment may be responsible for this.

High blood glucose levels cause a condition called diabetes or high blood sugar. Ignoring the condition can seriously affect the functioning of the body. If the glucose level reached alarming levels, they will immediately attack the function and integrity of vital organs such as the eyes, heart, brain kidneys, etc.. On the other hand, very low blood sugar levels can cause hypoglycemia and coma. The risk of death can occur if not treated promptly.

Monitoring of eating habits along with the drug played a important role in the control of diabetes. People with diabetes do not always have to be starved of sugar-rich foods. In fact, some amount of sugar is very important to keep our cells and tissues function.Glucose acts as energy booster and is required for the activity of every cell in the body.

Eating food should be at the right time in a very systematic manner will help in controlling blood sugar levels. irregular eating habits will cause damage to the body’s metabolism.

Consuming fruits and raw vegetables as needed. These foods are rich in fiber, a constituent that helps in slow and controlled release of sugar into the bloodstream. It is advisable to avoid highly refined foods such as white flour, bakery items that are naturally rich in sugar, concentrated sugar fruits like banana, mango, etc..

When illness strikes, even the most diligently managed diabetes can become hard to handle. Add in a hospital stay where the timing and type of care you receive may not be totally up to you – or out of your hands altogether – and you may feel you are at your most vulnerable. Even in the hospital, you can still be the leader of your diabetes care. A little planning can help minimize your risk of various diabetic complications while you are hospitalized and give you the control you need to keep your blood sugar on target.

Losing weight and keeping it off is a matter of cutting back what you eat and increasing your amount of exercise. “The simplest equation in the world, calories in and calories out, determines your weight loss,” says Christine Gerbstadt, MD, RD, of Sarasota, Fla., spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association.

But if that’s all you do, you may find yourself ultimately regaining the weight you worked so hard to lose. The reason: Weight loss is a matter of lifestyle and, if you don’t adopt the healthy habits necessary to sustain your weight loss, you could backslide into overweight and obesity.

Here are some tips aimed at helping you create a healthy lifestyle that will improve your chances for successful weight loss. They might seem like common sense, but many people committed to losing weight neglect these healthy habits and end up struggling to succeed.

1. Watch Your Portions

Portion control is a key challenge to Americans pursuing weight loss. “The best way to control the calories is to go with portion control,” says Dr. Gerbstadt. Piling food onto your plate can make you feel pressured to eat it all. Start with small portions, and go back for (a little) more if you’re still hungry. Keep in mind that your stomach will grumble early on, until it has shrunk to adapt to the smaller meals you’re now eating.

Portion control is doubly important when eating out. “Most people are catching on to the fact that when you eat out at a restaurant, the calories are two to three times what you really need for that meal,” says Gerbstadt. “You might get a salad and an appetizer and call it a meal, rather than get a salad and an entrée.”

2. Eat Slowly

It takes a little while for your body to realize that you’ve eaten and to stop sending signals of hunger. If you slow down and savor your food, you probably will eat less before your body acknowledges that you’re full.

3. Eat Your Vegetables First

Vegetables contain plenty of fiber and bulk but few calories. By eating them first, you might eat less of any fatty or high-calorie items on your plate.

4. Don’t Skip Meals

Skipping meals sounds like a good idea, but it actually undermines your weight-loss plan. Your body thinks it is being starved and starts building body fat in an attempt to store energy away for later. On top of that, you’re likely to be even hungrier for your next meal and eat far more than you would have otherwise. The best course is to eat three small meals, with two or three small snacks in between.

5. Drink Plenty of Water

Water helps you feel full throughout your day, aiding your weight-loss efforts. Water also provides innumerable health benefits to your skin and your digestive and circulatory systems.

6. Switch to Healthy Snacks

Swap out the high-calorie or high-fat snacks in your diet for healthier alternatives. Fruits, low-fat string cheese, peanut butter, and whole-grain crackers are some good options. Create snacks that combine carbohydrates and proteins, like peanut butter on apple slices, as they will make you feel full longer.

7. Exercise as Often as You Can

Burning calories through physical activity is essential to weight loss. If you don’t burn more calories than you eat, you won’t lose weight. “People think they’re too busy to walk 20 minutes a day or do a little weight training or ride a bike, and then they wonder why they can’t lose weight,” Gerbstadt says. “If you try to diet without exercise, it just takes that much more effort.” Any physical activity, even long walks, will help.

8. Keep a Record

Food diaries are a proven aid to people pursing weight loss. Keep track of what you’ve eaten and how many calories the food contained. If you also keep a record of your exercise, you can compare how many calories you’re burning to how many calories you’re consuming.

Healthy and sustainable weight loss does not occur overnight, despite the promises of fad diets. Losing a pound or two a week is normal, and shows that you are adopting weight-loss habits as a part of your lifestyle.

WASHINGTON – A gene that may play a role in the development of type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the body’s insulin-producing cells has been identified by scientists at Stanford University.

Insulin, a hormone produced by cells of the pancreas, helps the body to absorb sugars found in food and to maintain blood sugar at appropriate levels.

The study team, led by C. Garrison Fathman, M.D., examined genes from mice that develop a type 1 diabetes-like disease.

The investigators found that cells in the pancreatic lymph nodes of mice make two forms of the same gene called deformed epidermal autoregulatory factor 1 (Deaf1). One form is full-length and functional and the other is a shorter, nonfunctional variant form. The full-length, functional form of Deaf1 controls the production of molecules needed to eliminate immune cells that can destroy insulin-producing cells.

The presence of the Deaf1 variant was found to prevent the full-length Deaf1 protein from functioning normally.

Further experiments showed that the variant form blocked the genes needed to produce certain molecules involved in immune regulation.

When the researchers measured the levels of these two forms in people with type 1 diabetes and in healthy individuals, levels of the variant form were found to be higher in people with type 1 diabetes compared with those in healthy controls. In addition, the variant form, as in mice, inhibited the full-length form from functioning normally.

The researchers propose that the development of type 1 diabetes may in part be due to increased levels of the Deaf1 variant protein in pancreatic lymph nodes of people with this disease. Increased levels of Deaf1 variant may, in turn, lead to reduced production of molecules that are required to educate the immune system not to attack the body’s own cells, including the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas. (ANI)

It is an alarm for all the diabetics since it has been found that there is a link between diabetes and kidney stones. Lets read through and know about it.

Kidney stone may be a result or a cause for diabetes. Confused? No, but we don’t mean to confuse you. It has been seen that 10 percent of the type 1 diabetic population and 30-40 percent of type 2 population are affected with kidney stones. On the other hand many patients who have undergone shockwave treatment to get their kidney stone removed have been reported to contract diabetes.

Thus there is a link between the two.

In shock wave treatments it has been suggested that it might have lead to damaging effects on the pancreatic tissues, which has resulted in malproduction of insulin. This has been the cause of diabetes.

On the other hand it is seen that in diabetes there is an increased chances of damaging of tissues. This also doesn’t barr the kidney tissues. As a result of which kidney starts to malfunction.

It results in the accumulation of the minerals and salts within the kidney and leads to stone formation.

What is the way out then?

There are mainly two ways of thinking. Firstly get rid of your stone and secondly control your diabetes. As a measure to the first one, there are many therapies available about which you can consult your doctor. To name a few are shock wave lithotripsy, ureteroscopy, percutaneous nephrolithotomy, open surgery etc.

And thereafter in order to stay away from diabetes or control diabetes, maintain a regular lifestyle which includes a regular exercise and a balanced diet.

But the best treatment to prevent kidney stone is to drink water profusely.

What are the signs of kidney stone?

The earliest sign of diabetic kidney disease is an increased excretion of albumin in the urine. This is present long before the usual tests done in your doctor’s office show evidence of kidney disease, so it is important for you to have this test on a yearly basis. Weight gain and ankle swelling may occur. You will use the bathroom more at night. Your blood pressure may get too high. As a person with diabetes, you should have your blood, urine and blood pressure checked at least once a year. This will lead to better control of your disease and early treatment of high blood pressure and kidney disease.

Maintaining control of your diabetes can lower your risk of developing severe kidney disease.

What are the consequences of kidney stone?

As your kidneys fail, your blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels will rise as well as the level of creatinine in your blood. You may also experience nausea, vomiting, a loss of appetite, weakness, increasing fatigue, itching, muscle cramps (especially in your legs) and anemia (a low blood count). You may find you need less insulin. This is because diseased kidneys cause less breakdown of insulin. If you develop any of these signs, call your doctor.

Exercise is important for everyone, but it can be especially important for your health if you have diabetes. People who exercise regularly are better able to control their diabetes, thereby reducing their risk of diabetes complications. But despite these benefits, as few as 39 percent of people with type 2 diabetes get regular physical activity, according to a recent study.

Diabetes and Exercise: Why It’s Important to Stay Fit

If you have diabetes, you have an increased risk of developing certain health conditions, including heart attack, stroke, kidney disease, and nerve problems. By following your doctor’s recommendations for keeping your blood glucose levels under control, you can reduce your risk of developing these complications.

Researchers have found that people who exercise regularly have:

• Lower blood glucose levels
• Lower blood pressure
• Better cholesterol levels
• Improved ability to use insulin
• Decreased risk of stroke
• Decreased risk of heart disease
• Stronger bones
• Less chance of falling
• Easier weight loss
• Less body fat
• More energy
• Reduced stress levels

In addition, if you use insulin to treat your diabetes, exercise can be part of the daily schedule that you and your diabetes health care team develop to control your blood glucose levels.

Diabetes and Exercise: Getting Started

Talk with your diabetes health care team before you begin an exercise program. They can help you design an exercise program that is safe and effective for you. Make sure to ask about any limitations. If you have heart disease, kidney disease, eye problems, or foot problems, there may be some physical activities that you should not do.

To get started with an exercise program:

• Find physical activities you like.Choose activities that you enjoy doing and that are convenient. Try new activities, such as walking, dancing, swimming, or bicycling, until you find one you like.
• Schedule your workouts.Make exercise part of your schedule, just like work and doctor appointments. Aim to work out for at least half an hour on most or all days of the week.
• Slowly increase your time and intensity.Don’t start out doing too much, or you may get burned out. Begin with just a few minutes, and add a little time, distance, or intensity to your workouts each week.
• Find an exercise partner.Ask a friend or neighbor to join you in your exercise plan. For many people, having a person who is counting on you will make you less likely to skip a workout.
• Keep a workout journal.Each time you exercise, write down what you did and what your blood glucose levels were. That way you can keep track of your progress and see how activity affects your diabetes control.

Diabetes and Exercise: A Note about Hypoglycemia

Although exercise is an excellent way to help control your blood glucose levels, it is not without its risks. One of the most serious risks of exercising when you have diabetes is a condition called hypoglycemia.

With hypoglycemia, increased activity causes your blood glucose to fall to dangerously low levels. This can happen while you are exercising or even many hours later. Hypoglycemia can make you feel shaky, weak, and confused. If your blood glucose levels drop low enough, hypoglycemia could cause you to faint or have a seizure.

Talk with your doctor about strategies for preventing hypoglycemia. You may need to have a snack before you exercise or closely monitor your blood glucose levels before, during, and after exercising.