Desert, Eat It for Breakfast, Lose Weight

Behold the power of a doughnut. Or cookie.  Or desert in general.

But first,

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Lever:  103 mg/dl
• Weight:  187 lbs.
• Exercise:  45 very sweaty minutes.  Hot this morning and we had a high of 107 in our little Houston, TX neighborhood.
• Mood:  8.0.  I like the heat. 

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  The usual morning fruit medley, another real, chewy bagel. 
• Lunch:  Last of the North African/Salsa Lentil stuff and grapes. 
• Dinner:  A few tamales, Spanish rice and salad
• Snacks:  A small handful of almonds. 

Desert with Breakfast Beats Craving, Helps Diet.
Eating desert for breakfast while on a diet can help you lose weight and keep it off.  The key is the sweet treat reduces cravings. 

Two groups went on an nearly identical diets.  Both were generally low fat and low carbohydrates. Men were allowed to eat about 1,600 calories a day, the women about 1,400 calories.  The difference was the dessert at breakfast, such as a doughnut or cookie. The participants were non-diabetic I should add. 

After four months of the eight month study, participants of both groups lost about 33 pounds.  However over the rest of the study the participants getting the desert lost another 15 pounds.  The participants in non-desert group  gained about 20 of the 30 pounds they had lost.

The desert people reported feeling less hunger and cravings than people in the other group.  The researchers said the combination of protein and carbohydrates left the desert people feeling fuller and more satiated with what the ate.  It also desert also seemed to trigger a drop in the hunger hormone ghrelin.  That helped them feel at least not hungry.  

So, could an insulin resistant person benefit from eating a desert with breakfast?  Don't know.  Could the sweetness of a piece of fruit work as well?  It has carbohydrates.  A large number of fruits is one of the basics of a the DASH diet.  Seems as if it's basically the same principle. 

Monday Moanin' and Why I Avoid Fast Food Restaurants and Scientific American

If you feel you need a reason to avoid fast food places, here's good reason - they're dangerous.  Another good reason to avoid fast food places, you may be causing global warming.

But first.

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  104 mg/dl
• Weight 187 lbs. 
• Exercise:  45 minute bike ride.
• Mood:  8.0 

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Usual fruit medley and a real, honest to goodness bagel.  Chewy and everything. 
• Lunch:   Leftover lentil and a big, sweet juicy peach
• Dinner:  Salmon nestled atop greens and a baked potato. 
• Snack:  Slice of cheese and a few almonds. 

Dangerous Fast Food Places. 

I don't generally go to fast food restaurants, not that I have anything against them.  You can really do pretty well eating in such places if you have a bit of common sense.  It's just for best for me to avoid any temptations, upsizing the fries, fries in general, double bacon cheese burgers, massively stuffed burritos and deserts that I really like a lot.

No, my general reason for avoiding them is that fast food places are getting dangerous.  This version has the fast food worker attacking the customer, which is a bit of a change.  The customer was complaining about the his order the clerk took exception to the complaint.  Bad day, probably, and this complaint was one shove that pushed the guy over the edge and into jail.

The usual version is the customer causing the problem.  The first on I remember is over some Chicken McNuggets.  Never have understood what people like about them.  Sad when not getting an order of them is considered an emergency. 

Global Warming Caused by Obesity and Why I Avoid Scientific American

Another good reason to avoid fast food restaurants is global warming.  Okay, that eating fast food results in obesity and obesity is contributing to global warming is nonsense, but it's an  idea  this preposterous article in  Scientific American wants it readers to take seriously.

Remember the good old days when people took this magazine seriously?  Not so much anymore.

The article mentions that Asians should be models for diminishing the world's biomass and the fool of an author cites North Korea as an example.  North Korea is famous for it's staving people and starvation is one way to reduce a countries biomass.

As I said, with articles like this, is anyone taking SA seriously anymore?  As for Asia, what about China's grow problem with obesity and diabetes?  It's the downside of getting rich and more than a few North Koren wished it was their problem. 

Sensible Splurge Friday...and the Upside of Being a Type 2 Diabetic, Guys Only.

There is an upside for a a guy with type 2 diabetes.  It's not much, but always look to the sunny side of life, right?  The proposed ban on large, sugary drinks is getting approval from the some in the medical professional, who may also decide to scorn sugary breakfast foods and never mind there is evidence that it may be good for you.  Also, turning stem cells into a functioning liver.  Does this mean  good news for type 1 diabetics? 

Hey, on Splurge Friday, it's all good, which leads to...

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  106 mg/dl.  Sigh.  I remember when I hit this level I was really happy.  Never satisfied.
• Weight:  187lbs.  
• Exercise:  45 minute bike ride.  Man I was flying at the end.  And perspiring.
• Mood: 8.0  Friday.  Tex Mex tonight.  What is not to like? 

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Morning fruit medley.  Three to four serving is the bowl. 
• Lunch:  Last of the leftover BBQ.  I hope the Charming Mrs. SWMBO does not mind and if she does, too late now. 
• Dinner:  Tex Mex.  Grilled fish sounds good right now. Maybe the pachuca gringa (grilled chicken and vegetables; not really Tex Mex, is it?)
• Snacks:  Some almonds and craisins 

The Upside for a Guy Who is a Type 2 Diabetic.

If it's uncontrolled, a guy is less likely to get prostrate cancer and can have lower PSA levels according to a finding presented at the annual meeting of the American Urological Association.  

That's not much, really.  A possible reason is men with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes are often obese and that can lead to lower testosterone levels.  Considering our guy here faces an increased likelihood of heart disease, stroke, dementia, kidney problems, liver problems and neuropathy for starters, better to keep it under control. Add lower testosterone levels and that is no way to go through life. 

PSA is an acronym for prostate specific antigen.  A raised level is an indication to check further for prostate cancer.  It does not mean our guy does have prostate cancer.


For a type 1 diabetic, the news is not so good.  For some reason a guy who is a type one diabetic may be getting an unreliably low PSA reading even if he is in the initial stages of prostate cancer when the reading should be high. The finding did mention [t]his ... could represent a potentially modifiable risk factor that could be addressed. I think that is hopeful. It sounds hopeful.  

A Real Cure for Type 1 Diabetics?

Speaking of hopeful, scientists can now form a functioning liver from stem cells.  The stem cells came from skin cells, so this will make all sides happy.  Can scientists make a functioning pancreas?  I sure hope so.  That would mean a real cure, not just treatment, for type 1 diabetics.

Doctors Think a Ban on Sugar Drinks is Good.

Yes, not drinking large sugary drinks may be good for your health.  I can understand doctors treating diabetes applauding the New Your big soda ban.  I don't like sugar-filled drinks and never order them, large or not.  I choose not to order them. 


I am only going to say remember the success of the war on drugs, how long it has gone on, how much it has costs and how many people have died because of it on both sides.  Sugar and sweet stuff in general are perfectly legal. The government supports growing sugar and sweet stuff.  Trying to regulate it will fail.  It's the stupid way to fix a problem. 

Breakfast is the Most Important Meal of the Day.

A study has indicated that people who regularly eat breakfast are less likely to be obese and diabetic. 
There is no proof that eating breakfast cuts the odds, but people who ate breakfast are more likely to have better eating habits overall.  Also no one type of breakfast stood out the best.


That means Sugar Frosted Flakes is as good as oatmeal.  Will the good doctors with a grudge against sugar someday want to regulate Sugar Frosted Flakes as well as large sodas, regardless of the evidence?  Hey, their great!  Tony says so. 

Before I Forget this Evening...

Another long day, so a short post.  Another worry as  I enter the autumn of my years, beside a shrinking 401k, is a shrinking memory.  Type 2 diabetics who don't manage to control their problem, or those who get it in their declining years, well, decline even faster.


But first, while I remember it,

The Numbers.

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  103 mg/dl.
• Weight:  187 lbs. 
• Exercise:  45 minutes of one very sweaty bike ride.  Houston has had several days of rain and the it was humid as the sun came up this morning. 
• Mood:  7.5. BG was a bit high, but it's Friday Eve.  

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  A apricot kolache, which is like Czech danish, which sounds like the start of a joke, the a morning fruit medley.
• Lunch:  Leftover lentils and salsa stuff.
• Dinner: Thursday night,home pizza night after cutting the grass and generally making the yard look nice for the weekend. One slice only and a salad.  
• Snacks:  A few almonds. 

Diabetes is Linked to Memory Problems in Older Adults. 

Another great incentive for me to control my blood glucose is the keep my brain healthy.  I plan on making it to my 50th wedding anniversary and that would put me 95 years old.  I think I can do it. 

Older diabetics who don't keep the blood glucose levels under control risk high memory loss, attention and other cognitive skills. Diabetes has also been linked to dementia and Alzheimer's.  In other words, we will fail to be one the old people labeled as still sharp as a tack in the nursing home.  I plan on staying sharp as a tack.

Why this happens is not really understood and there is no proven cause and effect yet, but the correlation for this is very strong, according to a study from the University of California, San Fransisco.  The most likely suspect is inflammation and vascular damage caused by high glucose. 

As the rise in diabetes continues, the affects of this on an aging population  and what that is going to cost in human and financial terms is staggering. Scary enough for me to want to get on my bike for another ride today to burn off some more glucose.  I can see why some physicians say the blood glucose levels should be on the lowest possible side of the normal range.

There was also a study published a few months ago that said elderly patients with diabetes were more likely to have shrinking brain.

Diabetes Causes Get Funky and Kids Need More Fiber

Long day today so only a brief post.  I found this well done YouTube video that covers basic risk factors for type 2 diabetes.  It also has some cool music in the background. Another risk factor for type 2 diabetes in adolescents is a low fiber diet. I think it could also affect adults, given the habits we have now.  I lean to a Mediterranean type diet and I get lots of fiber and I will let it go at that.

But first, as always,

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  96 mg/dl
• Weight:  187ish lbs. 
• Exercise:  45 minutes that again would just seemed longer.  Maybe what those Spanish physicists hypothesized is correct, time is slowing down. 
• Mood:  7.0  Good, but just tired all day and it was a long day. 

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Usual morning fruit medley and oatmeal with craisins. 
• Lunch:  Leftover lentils/salsa stuff and a big, fat, juicy peach.
• Dinner:  Leftover BBQ and as much as I love BBQ, it's getting a big old, and a good salad. 
• Snacks:  Some almonds. 

A Review of the Basic Risk Factors for Type Two Diabetes

Complete with funky cool background music. 



Sadly, no fix or cure for aging, which is better, mostly, than the alternative.

Low Fiber Diets a  Risk Factor for Adolescent Diabetes?

Not to mention heart disease.  Adolescents who did not eat enough fiber had bigger bellies and raised levels of inflammatory factors and those are a pair of classic predictors of type 2 diabetes, not to mention heart disease.

The fix of course of simple, eat more fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes.  Exercise wouldn't hurt either.  Two good diets anyone can spend a lifetime on are the DASH diet and the Mediterranean diet.

Good Bugs, Bad Bugs, Waist Size and Dangerous Sausages

The big story in diabetes news may be Microbiota, bacteria to you and me, bugs that can help or hurt glucose sensitivity.  Also big diabetes news is your waist size alone could be a predictor of type 2 diabetes and of particular interest to me, a man attacks a cyclist and laughter ensues. 

But first,

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  104 mg/dl.
• Weight:  187 lbs.
• Exercise:  45 minutes of a ride that would not end.  
• Mood:  7.00. I liked yesterday's reading better.  

The Menu:

• Baked Oatmeal and morning fruit medley
• Lunch:  Leftover whole wheat spaghetti and leftover Cotten BBQ's sausage.  Good stuff.  
• Dinner:  Lentils and Salsa, a new family favorite.  Thanks, Adjoa. 
• Snacks:  A few almonds and a very tasty kolache made by real Catholic Church ladies.

Microbiota Can Affect Glucose Sensitivity

A week or so ago I posted this on companies trying new approaches to treating diabetes.  That article included company called NuMe Health, which was developing a diabetic treatment to increase the beneficial bacteria and decrease the bad ones.  I really sort of blew it off as one of those things that sound good and never work.  That the company was backed by Whole Foods CEO John Mackey should have made me realize the attempt was legitimate, but it's not the first time I have been wrong about something.

What changed my mind was this article about a study involving an oil called sterculic oil, which comes from wild almonds.  The researchers showed, on mice admittedly, that this oil helped reduce three types of bacteria found in the gut, actinobacteria, bacilli and erysipelotrichia, and increased the glucose sensitivity of the mice who were obese and diabetic.

The sterculic oil is not what is important here.  That glucose sensitivity is affected by bacteria is, so NuMe may be on to something.  If they are, this could be a real breakthrough in treating type 2 diabetes - a safe, effective and, as much as I hate to say it because most things labeled as natural are a scam, natural treatment. 

Your Waist Size is Predictor of Type 2 Diabetes

Given the  rise in obesity and the concurrent rise type 2 diabetes, that could be labeled as just stating the obvious.  In the past waist size and body mass index were used.  Curiously, this predictor works better on woman than on men and being obese is not necessarily the cause of large waists.  Some are just big, if not obese.  For woman the too big waists start at 35 inches and in men it's 40 inches. 

Cyclist Attacked by Man Swinging Frozen Sausages

The attacker used links of frozen sausage like a chain and finished the attack with a wrench, which is were the funny part stopped.  The assailant, Michael Baker of Holbrook, MA was arraigned on assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.  The sausages are thought to have been stolen from a nearby food stand at the Brockton Fairgrounds.   The cyclist is apparently doing fine.

On a Monday Moanin': Why You Should Eat Lots of Peaches, Plums and Nectarines.

Inflammation shows up a lot in diabetes news.  Today, sleep apnea in diabetics leads to inflammation leads to nerve damage.  Psoriasis leads to inflammation leads to type two diabetes.  Today there is also a tasty potential fix for it now coming into season, peaches, plums and nectarines.  Sort of.  Well, if nothing else it is a good reason to pig out. 

But first,

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  89mg/dl.  I would pat myself on the back, but I might strain something, so I will just take a bow.  Lowest reading I have had yet.  Finally made it to the 80's.  
• Weight:  189 lbs.  Up two pounds.  Was away for my father-in-law's funeral services and it's amazing what we eat when a way.  
• Exercise:  45 minute bike ride.  Been five days off the bike and towards the end, felt like it.  
• Mood:  9.0.  See fasting blood glucose level.

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Morning fruit medley and baked oatmeal, leftover from last week.  It was a hit with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law. 
• Lunch: Some very spicy tamales.  So much for the diet and the 89 level.
• Dinner:  Fish tacos. 
• Snacks.  A few almonds.

Diabetic Sleep Apnea May Cause Nerve Damage

In my chunkier days, the Charming Mrs. SWMBO often complained of my loud snoring.  I never heard myself, so I didn't really didn't believe it.  After losing weight, I stopped snoring.   I know  this because the Charming Mrs. SWMBO tells me so.  I do know that I sleep better than I did.

I was lucky, because it could have been a lot worse.  Neuropathy, or nerve damage, is a common problem for diabetics who don't or can't control their blood glucose.  Mostly, the problem shows up in the patients extremities, usually the feet, but also in major organs.  It's a painful condition that can't be cured, just controlled at best.

Sleep apnea is associated with inflammation and oxidative stress, condiditions thought to be associated with diabetic peripheral neuropathy.  A sleep apnea study did show "234 adults with type 2 diabetes found that sleep apnea was independently associated with diabetic peripheral neuropathy even after the researchers accounted for a number of other possible factors, including obesity, ethnicity, gender, age at diabetes diagnosis, and the length of time a person had diabetes."  The study did not show a cause  and effect relationship.

That is for another study for another day.  For now, try to fix the sleep apnea through diet and exercise.From personal experience, it does work. 

Psoriasis Is a Trigger for Type 2 Diabetes

A new trigger for skinny diabetes  is psoriasis.  This is from a study from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Both conditions are caused by chronic inflammation and both have a common "pathway"  that can cause insulin resistance.  Psoriasis has also been associated with metabolic syndrome, the unholy group of conditions that can lead to heart disease, stroke and diabetes. 

The treatment is medication, mostly. 

Peaches, Plums and Nectarines to the Rescue

One way to deal with the symptoms of obesity, diabetes and metabolic syndrome in general is to scarf down massive quantities of peaches, plums and nectarines.  These fruits contain bioactive compounds that can have anti-obesity, anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic properties.

How much you would have to consume to have any effect was never mentioned, but who cares?  It's all tasty and since these stone fruits are now coming into season, it's a good reason to indulge.

Note: This was supposed to posted last evening, but Comcast's service crashed last night.  No way am I going to not tell of an 89 mg/dl fasting blood glucose level.

Five New Ways to Treat Diabetes. Making the World Better and a Buck to Boot.

Five new ways to treat diabetes.  Hey, if there is a buck to be made, why not?  Come up with a better idea, solve a problem and make some money doing it, everybody wins.  Me?   I just had to learn to eat less and exercise.  Pretty simple and cheap solution, that.


The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Levels:  100 mg/dl
• Weight: 187 lbs.
• Exercise:  45 minute bike ride.  Super humid this morning.
• Mood:  Father-in-law passed away.  Long, emotional day. 

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Morning Medley of fruit, oatmeal with craisens. 
• Lunch:  Leftover hamburger from the Saturday evening and some grapes.
• Dinner:  Late night, a few slices of fajita with Spanish brown rice and a salad.  Have get things cleaned up for the in-laws coming.
• Snacks:  A few almonds and some craisins. 

Five Innovative Ways to Treat Diabetes.

As the rise in new diabetic cases continues many are calling for new ways to treat the condition.  I say to most of us who have the problem of type 2 diabetes, lose weight and exercise.  That solution covers about 85% of us.  It's simple, safe and effective.

Of the five mentioned in this article, three affect type 1 diabetics, including an artificial pancreas and stem cells.  The smart blood glucose meter could work either way and the gut bacteria approach sounds kind of suspicious to me, as in a future late night infomercial material.  The surgery could work for those who say they never feel full.  That's not me.  I just tend to eat too fast, which is a trigger for type 2 diabetes and there are a lot cheaper ways to deal with that problem. 

Sensible Splurge Friday!

Treating type two diabetes symptoms with vitamins, how to sabotage your exercise goals and poor Don Lapre.

But first, 

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  105 mg/dl.  High all week. 
• Weight:  187 lbs.  Almost 186 1/2 lbs, but honest numbers here.
• Exercise:  45 minute bike ride.  
• Mood.  6.0.  The Charming Mrs. SWMBO's father passed away today.   So long, Frank.  You will be missed.  Fortunately she did talk with him yesterday. 

• Lunch:  Oatmeal with craisins and make with herbal cinnamon/apple tea.
• Lunch:  Leftover chilli and pasta.  Always tastes better as a leftover. 
• Dinner. Grilled chicken and vegetables.  And a margarita.  It's Friday.
• Snacks:  A few almonds and some grapes. 

Can Vitamins Treat Type 2  Diabetes?

I have always been suspicious of vitamins being used to treat medical problems.  To me it always smacks of a late night infomercial touting miraculous results by simply swallowing a pill once day.  The vitamins we need are easy to get in the foods we eat, truth be told.  The company pushing the miraculous results disappears from late night cable TV and is forgotten about except for little article that shows up a few years later announcing some agreement with a governmental agency to pay fine for fraud.  The one I remember most was case involving poor Don Lapre. 

Anyway, an English pharmacist, Sturat Lindsey,  received a diagnosis that his chronic foot pain was neuropathy, nerve damage, caused by undiagnosed type 2 diabetes.  Neuropathy can be treated, but never cured, and is common in patients with uncontrolled t2d.  The usual treatment is to prescribe a type of sedative to lessen the pain.  The idea of spending the rest of his life in a sleepy haze was not appealing, so began to learn and research the cause of his problems. 

He learned that type 2 diabetics often suffer from a severe deficiency in vitamin B1, thiamine.  The neuropathy he had was similar to beriberi, which is caused by a severe deficiency of vitamin B1.  The treatment for beriberi is to take B1 supplements. 

He also read that t2d'ers are also deficient in other B vitamins as well as vitamins C and D.  According to Mr. Lindsey,  "This can cause most of the symptoms of Type 2 diabetes, which include: polyneuropathy, nephropathy (kidney damage), retinopathy (eye damage) and eventually heart failure."

Ah, the joy of type 2 diabetes.

He decided not to take the usual drugs prescribed for his symptoms by his physician and instead went on a regimen of vitamin supplements to replace the deficient vitamins.  While his doctor did not approve of his choice he was interested in the results. 

The vitamin therapy worked.  The vitamins mitigated the pain of his neuropathy.  If he goes off the vitamins, the pain comes back quickly.  I should note his blood glucose levels remain high.  You can read about it here.

Maybe poor Don Lapre was not so far wrong.  Still wrong though.

Don't Sabotage Your Exercise Goals.  

I still like Nike's approach from long ago, just do it. The was Jack LaLanne's advice, too, more or less. If you need some help to get your mind right to exercise, try the tips here.  Then just do it, or at least do something.  It's a plan that works every time for just about everything.

More on How Sometimes Exercise Can be Bad For You

Exercising too much can be bad for your heart.  This is the second time this topic has come up recently.  Is something up?  That's how these things usually start, but before we worry about that...

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  106 mg/dl
• Weight:  187 lbs. 
• Exercise:  45 minute bike ride on the sweaty express. 
• Mood:  8.5.  Hey, it's Friday Eve and pizza night. 

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Oatmeal with craisins, fruit medley.
• Lunch:  Leftover pasta chilli, one the Charming Mrs. SWMBO's family favorites.  It's quick, easy and cheap. 
• Dinner:  Pizza and salad
• Snacks:  grapes. 

 

Too Much Exercise Can be Bad for You.

Happily, I am in no danger of that.  Marathoners, iron man triathletes and cyclists of the Tour De France class all can develop heart problems from the hours of training and competition.  For some, not all, the long workouts can trigger scarring in the heart and abnormalities in the hearts rhythm.  For some, the injury is temporary and heals.  For others, the damage can become permanent.

The article is here.  The other article that exercise in general could be heart unhealthy for some is here and I wrote about it last week.  Interesting if this starts a cautious view of what exercise can do for or to us.

The study cited by the Daily Mail is about intense physical exertion, what most people try to avoid. The New York Times article was more about people harming themselves intending to help themselves by exercising.  The Daily Mail article is not about exercising for health, but the exhilaration of competition.  Humans where probably never meant to pursue these long, intense levels of exertion.  For some the thrill of doing it is like drug high. For some it's the competition that drives them.  God speed to them, I say. 

That reminds me, congratulations to Ryder Hesjedal of the Garmin - Barracuda team for winning the Giro d'Italia.  He is the first Canadian to win a Grand Tour Event.

Next up is the Tour de France July and then comes the Vuelta de Espana in September.  I admit I have Walter Middy moments when I ride.  In my mind I am not riding on a dark street in Houston, TX, but through a charming French village leading in the Tour de France.  Oh, well.

Anyhoo, the experts quoted here recommend an hour of exercise maximum per day. From what I have always read, a half hour a day, five days a week is all that is really needed for good general health.  Walking briskly is fine.  I am sticking with the bike because I love riding, and I get to fantasize about winning the Tour de France, spraying champagne on the stand and kissing pretty French girls. 

Any time spent beyond one hour does the body no good, if not harm.  But if you crave that endorphin buzz or the chance to go the farthest fastest, go for it I say.  Just beware of the risks.

This made me think of an article in Runner's World.  Running is good for treating and preventing type 2 diabetes and the more running (and by extension, aerobic exercise in general) the better.  There was no upside limit according to the research cited in this article.  For your overall health, that may not necessarily true apparently, although this article probably did not have the extreme athlete in mind. 

This also made me think of what can happen to  cyclists who spend a lot of time on the saddle.  For men, that could mean compressed nerves and blood vessels causing erectile dysfunction.  For woman the compression causes a loss of sensitivity. For some, the compression is only temporary.  Sometimes it can be permanent.

One culprit is the traditional design for the bike saddle and there are seats available to remedy this.  The other is aggressive positioning of the handle bars.  That's good for speed and bad for the naughty bits.

How fat blocks glucose absorption and fatty fast good can be good for you.

More after these important messages about me.

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  100 mg/dl
• Weight:  187 lbs.
• Exercise:  45 minute bike ride.  Slow to get going, but I was flying at the end.  And it's hot here in Houston, about 80 at 5 am.  
• Mood.  7.0  Could be better and could be worse.  

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Oatmeal and craisins infused with cinnamon/apple herbal tea and fruit morning medley.
• Lunch:  Red beans and rice, cucumber salad.
• Dinner:  Fish tacos with cole slaw. 
• Snacks"  A half of a bagel (whole wheat) and a few almonds. 

Eating Fatty Foods Blocks Glucose Absorption.

When I first started to fix or cure my diabetes, I read several times that fat somehow interferes with your bodies ability to absorb glucose.  The way to avoid that was to eat a low fat diet.  Of course the problem with a low fat diet is often high in carbohydrates, so you get a lot of sugars which are converted into glucose.  Unless you are also losing weight, welcome to the vicious circle.

The body makes a protein called Bcl10 that inhibits glucose from being absorbed.  Eat a meal with a lot fat in it and this protean inhibits the glucose from being absorbed by cells in the body. Eat several heavy, fatty meals in a row and you could have the symptoms of elevated blood glucose, or type 2 diabetes.  Tests on mice with a Bc110 deficiency did not have elevated blood glucose and this could open a new method of t2d treatment, assuming is works that way for humans, too.

This protein is also known help cells fight infections.  So fat is similar to an infection as far as the body is concerned?  

This reminds me of a study reported a month or so ago about a protein made by fat cells called p75NTR.  This protein also inhibits glucose absorption and tests on mice deficient in p75NTR did not develop elevated blood glucose levels, which could open a new method of t2d treatment, assuming it works that way for humans, too.

Fat it seems is a good thing to avoid.  However there is also this on how fat can help diabetics.

Fatty Fast Food is Good for You

While I am on the subject of fat in food, a comedian and writer Tom Naughton created a documentary film called Fat Head.  For 30 days he put himself on a fat heavy fast food diet and he lost weight.  From the drive thru window he put himself on a low carb, calorie restricted diet.  He lost 12 pounds, his body fat dropped by 3% and his blood work improved.   You can watch the whole movie at Hulu. The flim is worth the click.  It's informative and funny and I can't ask for anything more in a documentary.

Reminds me of the Twinkie Diet. 

Monday Moanin': Salt!

One thing I like about writing this little blog 'o' mine is commenting on how the verities of what is healthful changes.  Take salt, for instance.   

But first:

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  102 mg/dl.  Very late night dinner after spending a long Sunday working around the yard.  We had lots sweet potatoes and a couple of frozen margaritas.  The Charming Mrs. SWMBO and I always say we are going to knock off at a certain time to have dinner at a decent time, but it never seems to work out that way. 
• Weight:  188 lbs. 
• Exercise:  45 minutes on a very sweaty bike ride. Summer is here in Houston and for now it looks as if we are going to have repeat of last summers drought and heat. 
• Mood:  7.5.  Could be better, could be worse. 

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Oatmeal with raisins and infused with herbal cinnamon and apple tea, breakfast morning fruit medley. 
• Lunch:  Late, so a veggie sub at Subway's.  Its sounds healthy and it is filling. 
• Dinner:  Very late night Tex Mex.  By BG is going to be through the roof tomorrow morning.
• Snacks:  Some craisins and almonds.  

Salt was bad for your heart, but now it's not.  Mostly. 

Years ago I tried to cut down on my salt intake.  It lead to hypertension, the medical line was, and that led to heart attacks or strokes.  Okay, fine, no problem, gotta stay healthy and so learn to enjoy the other flavor in foods. That is what I was advised to do in any number of articles I read.

Didn't work. 

I tried to use salt substitutes like Mrs. Dash, rinse canned vegetables because they were cooked with salt and eat less prepared foods in general, which use a lot salt.  Truth be told, I failed at learning to appreciate the other flavors in food.  I found myself reaching for the salt shaker and buying foods I liked that had had a goodly about of salt in them.

Salt makes food taste better.  I like salt.  There, I said it. To me it brightens up the natural other flavors I was supposed to appreciate on their own. Without it food tastes a bit dull.  No, food with out tastes really dull. 

Salt's tale is what I frustrates me about so much of the health wisdom passed down from on high.  It's wrong.  The evidence that salt had any long term deleterious affect on my health was never a proven fact, just extrapolation; if this, then that.  Those who knew the evidence against salt was scanty treated it as fact for release to the general public.  Salt causes hypertension.  It's all part of an excellent Gary Taubes article in the New York Times. 

The major question to me is why?  The evidence that salt was bad was weak and contradictory, so why not be honest and say just as much?  Despite the evidence to the contrary, salt was bad and that was part of the orthodoxy of health. That was a fact, even though it was not a fact.  Anyone pointing this out would be dismissed as a toady to some special high salt interest bent on harming it's own customers.  Don't get out of line.

Again, why?  I think it is no more complicated than we have a few people who don't want others to make up their own minds. They will do it for us. We don't know any better.  We need them to lead us to be better and all we have to do is do what they tell us to do.   We need them to tell us what is best for us. 

One of those thems is the mayor of New York, Nanny Bloomberg.  He restricted the salt restaurants could offer to their own customers in New York city a while back. He banned transfats and wants to ban any sugary drink of more that 16 oz. Why?  He thinks we don't know what is good for us.  He thinks he knows what is best for his charges.  He could even be right.  Is that any of his business?  No, it's not.

There is even a diabetic angle to all of this, one involving type 1 and type 2.  Not quite enough salts can cause heart problems for type 1 and type 2 diabetics.  So, despite evidence, what are we supposed to eat less of?  Salt.

And people wonder why we are so cynical these days about experts.

Sensible Splurge Friday, Surgery, Exercise and Feeling Good

Lose the weight, lose the problem.  For people who have had bariatric surgery and were type 2 diabetics, the weight loss was assumed to be the reason their diabetes was fixed.  That may not be quite be true.  Pudgy but less than very obese patients who have had bariatric surgery also see their diabetes fixed and lose little or no weight loss.  Why is that? 

First though,

The Numbers. 

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  111 mg/dl. What is up with that?
• Weight:  188 lbs. Back down.  2 days to get it, 5 days to lose it. 
• Exercise:  45 minutes.
• Mood:  7.5.  At least Tex-Mex tonight. Sensible Tex-Mex, of course.  

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  The usual fruit medley and a slice of left over pizza from last night. 
• Lunch:  Leftover Pasta Rustica a la Mary & Dave
• Dinner:  Tex-Mex.  Skip the chips.
• Snacks:  None:  This looking for work stuff is a full time job and it happens when the economy is fixing to crash.  Weeeeeeee. 

Curing Diabetes with Surgery. 

This is not a new idea, just an unproven one.  In their literature, bariatric surgeons have claimed in the past that bariatric surgery has cured patients of their diabetes with little or no weight loss.  Endocrinologists don't read bariatric surgeons literature, so this approach never got much attention. 

Talk about you data silos.

That is changing.  While the evidence that this procedure is a legitimate treatment is small, test studies are starting to happen and the results are encouraging.  You can read about it all here.

If this turns out to be a legitimate treatment, this could be a significant approach to controlling a worldwide problem that is getting out of control.  This could be a godsend for the merely pudgy who don't respond to diet and exercise and this treatment could help the "skinny diabetics" who may have a genetic predisposition to becoming diabetic.  Some are hoping this could even cure type 1 diabetics. 

The good part of this is that bariatric surgery is relatively safe.  One big obstacle now is that no one really understands why this good result happens, assuming that it really does happen.  In medicine, doctors seem to make a big deal out of understanding what happens and why it happens.

Who knows, this could be the next lasisk surgery, with bariaric clinics springing everywhere promising the lowest cost diabetes fix in town.  Now that I think of it, that may be happening regardless.  Signs for these places are everywhere around Houston for losing weight.  A diabetes cure will fit right in.

Get Your Exercise Routine Going Again.

If this was the weekend you were going to start exercising and you are already thinking of reason to put it off, get some inspiration here. 

My advice is to take a cue from the old Nike commercials, just do it.  Start this evening, get up Saturday morning and get going, even if you are just going to walk around the block a couple of times.  And if you worry that you don't like to exercise, remember what Jack LaLanne said:  Only a masochist likes to exercise." 

You are developing a habit.  Just give it chance.  Trust me, you are going to feel great.  Eventually.

Have a good weekend everyone.