Defeat Diabetes: March 2004 Elerts

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Please visit the Defeat Diabetes Foundation's new Web site at:
http://www.DefeatDiabetes.org

Defeat Diabetes Foundation has always advocated healthy eating and exercise for the diabetic and prediabetic. March is National Nutrition Month^® and is a nutrition education and information campaign sponsored annually by the American Dietetic Association. The campaign is designed to focus attention on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits. We strongly support their efforts.

We're also covering nutritional issues such as Net Carbs, Obesity is quickly catching up to smoking as the No. 1 cause of death in the United States, and how Parents' example is vital in setting good eating habits for children.

I bet you haven't even thought about Passover or Easter yet. Well, get a head start now by checking out these great tasting Holiday-related recipes that are low fat and mostly low carb too. They are from Jyl Steinback, America's Healthiest Mom.

Theresa Garnero has made Diabetes funny (is that possible?) See this month's Islets of Humor to see what I mean.

Are you confused about nutrition advice? Well, join the club. This month in Nutrition News Barbara Quinn, MS, RD, CDE tackles new important nutrition advice for diabetics: Diabetes and the New Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI’s) for Sodium, Potassium, and Water.

We have had a deluge of questions and we thank you, our loyal readers. We cannot answer any individual medical questions - please see your doctor or get a second opinion. But all others, bring 'em on! See this month's Readers' Forum.

Mr. Diabetes® is in the last stages of preparation to go back on the Wake Up and Walk® Tour. By the time you receive your next issue of E-Lerts™, he will be well on his way.

Update on our Schools Program: Over 1.74 million Defeat Diabetes^® Screening Tests to over 3500 schools. to read more

Happy Holidays and
Good Health,
Lisa M. Rasolt
Program Director
lrasolt@DefeatDiabetes.org

Awareness + Action = Prevention™
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WE NEED YOUR HELP to continue our highly recognized and well received programs, but we would like to do more. Defeat Diabetes Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Our web site is secure and all donations are tax-deductible.
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Latest News
Team Approach Delivers Motivational Diabetes Management The new diabetes management program, is designed to place patients at the center of their own care through a group-support concept and the healthcare team.
'Eating Clubs' Help Overweight Stick To A Diet 51-year-old Micki Conti of Denver is guiding others on their journey toward weight loss. Her compass is her ability to lose 220 pounds herself. Last summer, Conti formed a series of "eating clubs" - groups that met over eight weeks to dine together and learn healthier ways to choose and prepare food.
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Did You Know?
A Spoonful of Fiber can make the Digestion Slow Down
Here's a tip that will lower the glycemic index of any meal: Fifteen minutes before you begin eating, have a spoonful of Konsyl in a glass of water. It's true, this is normally intended as a mild laxative, but it's simply fiber. When you swallow that spoonful, the fiber forms a slippery lump which makes its way through your digestive tract, clearing out anything in its path. When you take some before eating, the fiber gets mixed in with the food and has the effect of slowing the speed of the digestive process.
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Ten Good Reasons for Checking Your Blood Glucose Helps You Make the Right Decisions. This reason is the most important, says Barbara Bradley, RN, MS, CDE. "Checking your blood glucose helps you make the right decisions about your self-management."
Obesity Gains on Smoking as Top Cause of U.S. Death Obesity is quickly catching up to smoking as the No. 1 cause of death in the United States. A report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed tobacco use was still the leading cause of death in 2000, killing 435,000 people, or 18.1 percent of everyone who died. But poor diet and physical inactivity caused 400,000 deaths, or 16.6 percent of the total, the report showed -- up from 300,000, or 14 percent of deaths, in 1990.
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Parents' Example Vital in Children's Eating Habits The parents of children who aren't eating the recommended five portions of fruits and vegetables a day may not be setting them a good example. Parental consumption was the strongest predictor of children's consumption. Setting an example is tremendously influential.
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Did You Know?
Americans Eating More Than Before
In this age of "supersized" everything, it shouldn't surprise you to learn that Americans are eating more than they did 30 years ago. A recent study by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) found that between 1971 and 2000, women's daily caloric intake increased by 22 percent, and men's by 7 percent. Women now eat an average of 1,877 calories per day, and men are up to 2,618 calories per day.
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Net Carbs Can You Really Exclude Sugar Alcohols, Glycerin, Polydextrose, and Fiber? The concept sounds simple — only carbohydrates have more than minimal effect on blood glucose. The problem with understanding it is, however, that different carbohydrates affect blood glucose to different degrees. That’s the basis of the glycemic index, which is having more and more influence on low-carb diets like that of the late Dr. Robert C. Atkins.
Americans Eating More Fat, Risking Health - Experts Americans are eating more fat and cholesterol as "low-carb" diets grow in popularity, but people do not seem to be losing weight and they are putting their health at risk, U.S. researchers said. If the trend continues toward more fat and fewer vegetables and grains, Americans could suffer more heart disease, already the No. 1 killer in the country, they warned.
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Diabetic Recipes recipes
I bet you haven't even thought about Passover or Easter yet. Well, get a head start now by checking out these great tasting holiday related recipes that are low fat and mostly low carb too. They are from Jyl Steinback, America's Healthiest Mom.

Fat Free Matzo Balls
Chicken Flavored Vegetable Soup
Delectable Fish Fillets
Carrot Tzimmis
Asparagus Dijon
Orange Jello Mold
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Islets of Humor
March 2004

By Theresa Garnero, APRN, BC-ADM, MSN, CDE
to read more about Theresa and see more of her cartoons
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Treatments on the Horizon
Unique Plants To Treat Diabetes Clinical trials may be done with three indigenous plants to South Africa which, have been shown to have diabetes-treating properties. Research has provisionally found the plants - prescribed by traditional healers to their patients - to be effective and non-toxic. If successful, a drug developed from the research would be much cheaper than existing commercial medicine for type 2 diabetes.
Sweet White Potato Extract May Help Curb Diabetes The results of a clinical trial confirm the beneficial effects of Caiapo, an extract of white sweet potatoes, on blood sugar and cholesterol levels in type 2 diabetic subjects. Caiapo is commercialized in Japan as a dietary supplement used to help prevent and control type 2 diabetes. It is derived from a variety of sweet white potato that grows in mountainous regions.
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Mr. Diabetes^® Says
Trust your hopes, not your fears.
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New Study To Test Drug For Preventing Diabetes Preventing diabetes rather than treating diabetes a new concept in medicine. Dr. Ralph DeFronzo is a researcher at the Texas Diabetes Institute in San Antonio and he is directing a national study on a new diabetes drug researchers hope can prevent onset of the disease. The San Antonio study will test the drug pioglitazone, which is one of several drugs that can make diabetics more sensitive to the insulin that their bodies naturally produce.
New Drug Helps to Quit Smoking and Lose Weight Double your odds of quitting smoking and lose 17 pounds in the process. The drug rimonabant (Acomplia) is effective for weight loss and smoking cessation, according to new study.
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Nutrition News
March, 2004
By Barbara Quinn, MS, RD, CDE

Diabetes and the New Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI’s) for Sodium, Potassium, and Water
Confused about nutrition advice? Join the club. Even the establishment of “established” recommendations has changed. Since 1997, researchers from the United States and Canada have joined the National Academy of Sciences to release a whole new set of dietary guidelines--Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI’s). These recommendations specify nutrient levels to prevent deficiencies as well as the amount needed to prevent chronic diseases such as heart disease and cancer. Here are a few highlights from the latest report on sodium, potassium, and water: to read more
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Readers' Forum

Q - What are the normal ranges for the hemoglobin A1c? Mine is now 11.7!! - Melissa - for our answer
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This concludes the Defeat Diabetes^® E-Lerts™ Newsletter.

If there are specific questions you have, you may reach us at info@DefeatDiabetes.org.

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The Defeat Diabetes Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Our web site is secure and all donations are tax-deductible.

Important Notice: The opinions and statements expressed in the Defeat Diabetes^® E-Lertsä Newsletter are directed at a general audience. Its intent is solely for informational, educational, and entertainment purposes and is not to be construed as medical advice or instruction. Please consult a health professional on any matters regarding your health and well-being, or if you are interested in anything mentioned in the Defeat Diabetes^® E-Lertsä Newsletter. The information presented here is believed to be accurate, based on the best judgment of the Program Director, but the reader is responsible for consulting with his/her own health professional on any matters raised within.