Have you heard the latest news in diabetes prevention?
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) report that diabetes is on the rise and currently affects nearly 21 million Americans. Women make up more than half of those diagnosed. Diabetes can a take a toll on many different parts of the body and is correlated with higher rates of coronary heart disease, stroke, peripheral neuropathy, and depression.
DREAM evaluated the medications Rosiglitazone (Avandia) and Ramipril (Altace) in over 5000 subjects with IGT (Impaired Glucose Tolerance) or IFG (Impaired Fasting Glucose). Rosiglitazone reduced the development of diabetes by 60%. Rosiglitazone and Ramipril respectively helped 71% and 16% of these people return to having normal glucose levels.
TRIPOD looked at Troglitazone (Rezulin – removed from market due to liver toxicity concerns) in the prevention of diabetes development in Hispanic women with history of gestational diabetes. This group of women has a very high risk of developing Type 2 Diabetes – 70% risk over 5 years. Non-Hispanic women with history of gestational diabetes have approximately 50% chance of developing Type 2 Diabetes within 5 years. Troglitazone was very effective – it cut the risk of developing diabetes by more than half (risk reduced by 56%).
DPP (Diabetes Prevention Program) compared lifestyle changes to Metformin (Glucophage, Fortamet, Glumetza) for preventing progression from IGT to Type 2 Diabetes. While Metformin was more effective in younger and more overweight subjects, lifestyle modification (termed “Therapeutic Lifestyle Change” – TLC) was effective for all age groups and across all weight categories.
STOP-NIDDM was a Canadian and European trial looking at the medication Acarbose (Precose) for diabetes prevention. Not only was Acarbose found to be effective in reducing progression from IGT to diabetes, it was also found to reduce cardiovascular events.The classics were the Da Qing Study done in China and the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study both of which showed diet and exercise to be effective in preventing diabetes (risk reduced by 42% and 58% in each respective study).The bottom line is that we need to be proactive in identifying individuals with increased risk of developing diabetes so that we can implement prevention strategies promptly. Please refer to the article “Insulin Resistance 101” to find out more about how we determine a person’s risk of diabetes and what insulin resistance is. You may also view a slide presentation on diabetes prevention (PDF) . At the Center, we utilize a team approach to evaluate your risk for diabetes and devise a truly individualized, integrative mind-body program for you and provide you with ongoing support. So that together we can help you prevent diabetes and its numerous complications!
