The Best Predictor For Type 2 Diabetes

In this blog, I will be summarizing and analyzing a journal article which focused on topic of Type 2 Diabetes. Type 2 Diabetes or also known as adult onset diabetes has been a growing problem around the world. Some of the factors that leads to Type 2 Diabetes include obesity, sedentary lifestyles, and high energy dense foods. (ex.high fructose corn syrup in soft drinks). High blood glucose over time can cause blindness, heart disease, stroke, etc.

In this article, the main purpose was to figure out the strongest predictors for type 2 diabetes among males and females. Specifically, the researchers wanted to understand which factor of obesity contributes to a higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes. These predictors include waist circumference ratio, BMI (Body Mass Index), and abdominal obesity (visceral fat). They measured the sexes separately because they noticed the difference between the "styles" of obesity. Lower body obesity (gynoid or pear shaped) was much more prevalent among females while upper body obesity (android or apple shaped) was much more prevalent among males.

Methodology

This study was based in Korea and a total of 4,400 households were surveyed and an average of 20 households were selected for further interview and questionnaires. In the end, the final study sample consisted of 4,684 respondents, over the age of 30 and has completed a health examination. The latter was to exclude any participants who had a history of chronic diseases.

The subjects were tested for their blood glucose levels in the morning after an 8 hour fast. To be diagnosed a diabetic, your blood glucose level would have to exceed 126mL/dL. Furthermore, your considered to have abdominal obesity if your waist circumference exceeds 90cm for men or 80cm for women. Last but not least, your considered obese if your BMI was over 25.

Among the top indicators listed, the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve was used to determine which indicator was the strongest predictor for type 2 diabetes.

Results

In the end, it was noted that both men and women expressed different levels of fasting blood glucose based on their abdominal obesity alone (didn't include BMI). However, the final results showed that BMI and waist circumference as the strongest predictors for Type 2 Diabetes among women. On the other hand, waist circumference was the only strong predictor for type 2 diabetes among men.





References:

Paek, K.W., & Chun, K.H. (2010). Sex differences of type 2 diabetes affected by abdominal obesity versus overall obesity. Yonsei Med, 51(6), Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=5&hid=112&sid=dad25e19-ff10-48d9-9914-2a7d535f33f5%40sessionmgr114

Healthy Diet + Physical Activity = Healthy Weight

In my previous blogs, I have been focusing on diet as a way to achieve a healthy life. One part that I didn't touch upon, which also has a significant impact on the health of an individual is physical activity. As a result, in this blog, I will be emphasizing on the importance of developing and maintaining a healthy body weight through daily physical activities and through a healthy diet.

Over the past 25 years, obesity has been a pandemic of a problem in the developing worlds. It is currently increasing in severity as childrens and youths are starting to develop obesity. Additionally, obesity is on its path to overtake smoking as the number one killer in North America. Tons of diseases and illnesses are linked to obesity including hypertension, coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroker, urological diseases and more.

So how does a healthy diet and physical activity maintain and promote a healthy weight? Simply put, healthy diets provide the sufficient energy required to perform physical activity. Without the essential nutrients in our diets, our body would perform poorly or not perform at all. For example, there are 9 essential amino acids which we must obtain from a protein source, whether that be from red meat, beans, or nuts, we need to consume these in order for our body to function properly. (Dill, 2011)

When we look at diet and physical activity, we should perceive it as an equilibrium, where diet is an intake of energy while physical activity is the output of energy. (Dill, 2011) If we intake more energy (eat more) than we expend energy (exercise), we will end up with excess energy leading to weight gain. This is a pretty straightforward concept. Looking at diet, one can either slow down or increase the process of weight gain through what we consume on a daily basis. For example, eating fiber can help lower LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein) oxidation which can reduce the risk of atherosclerosis. (Insel et al.,2011) Similarly, physical activity can also increase the process of weight gain faster or slower through the duration of physical activity. It should be noted that the Canadian guideline recommends at least 2.5 hours per week for adults ages 18-64.

Overall, the health benefits of having a healthy diet and physical activity will overlap with one another. For instance, decrease risk of chronic diseases such as cancer, osteoporosis, CVD, diabetes, etc. In conclusion, you should invest in yourself through healthy eating habits and physical activity levels to maintain and promote a healthy weight throughout the rest of your lives.

References:

Dill, R. (2011). Human nutrition: human issues. Unpublished manuscript, Department of Kinesiology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, Canada.

Insel, P., Ross, D., McMahon, K., & Bernstein, M. (2011). Nutrition. United States of America: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC.

Controversial Low Carb Diets

Recently, I completed an intersession course on Human Nutrition (KIN 110). In the course, one of the things we learned about was weight management and diet plans. Dieting has been around since the 17th century and has been changing ever since. One of the most infamous diet plans, and the one I will be focusing on in this blog, was created by Dr.Atkins in 1972 called the "Diet Revolution" (AKA: Low Carbohydrate Diet). One year after the introduction of this diet plan, the American Medical Association called the diet dangerous. (Insel et al., 2011) Yet, this diet plan still exists to this day, so somehow, this technique has to be successful....but also dangerous....?

Before moving into the controversial issues of the low carb diet, I should clarify what is a low carb diet. As the name implies, this diet is based upon a low intake of carbs as a weight loss tool. Specifically, this weight loss plan is designed to put your body into the state of ketosis by consuming 20-50g of carbohydrates per day. (Dill, 2011) The upside to this diet plan is that it allows you to consume an unlimited amount of fat and protein!! As you can see, the latter is what makes this diet plan so appealing.

So the controversial issue at hand is whether or not a low carb diet is the solution to weight loss.

On one hand, a low carb diet promotes weight loss through three mechanisms. First, low carbohydrate intake leads to the depletion of glycogen stores leading to an initial rapid weight loss from water. (Dill, 2011) Glycogen is the storage form of carbohydrate used by our body (so any excess carbs is stored as glycogen in our liver and muscles). Secondly, low carbohydrate intake leads to a production of ketones. Excess ketones in the body leads to the state ketosis (which is when your body does not have the energy from carbohydrates to break down fat). In this state, your appetite actually decreases and as a result, your overall energy intake decreases. (Dill, 2011) Last but not least, this type of diet tend to be low in total energy intake and as a result, results in weight loss. (Dill, 2011) Some studies even show that this diet plan can alleviate some cardiovascular disease risk factors. However, this study was done on adult rats, so the effects on human could vary.

On the other hand, the risks that associates with this diet plan includes nutrient inadequacy (ex. Vitamin E and A) from inadequate consumption of a variety of foods. (Dill, 2011) Secondly, this diet allows you to consume excess amounts of total fat and saturated fat which increases the risks for cardiovascular disease. (Dill, 2011) Thirdly, dehydration is very likely, due to the body trying to get rid of the excess by-products of excess protein intake through urine. (Dill, 2011)

So the question still stands: is it worth it?

Personally, I would have to say no. First of all, more studies need to be done on the effects of a low carb diet before we can associate weight loss to low carb diet. Furthermore, as I have learned in KIN 110, any type of diet won't work because our body DEFENDS itself against weight loss. (Dill, 2011)

Therefore, the apparent fact is that there are no short-cuts or easier ways to body weight loss but to keep ourselves active physically. Accordingly, the best solution is to incorporate physical activity into our daily lives.

References:

Dill, R. (2011). Human nutrition: human issues. Unpublished manuscript, Department of Kinesiology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, Canada.

Insel, P., Ross, D., McMahon, K., & Bernstein, M. (2011). Nutrition. United States of America: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC.

Acai Berry: The Super Berry?

Over the past year, there has been a lot of talk about a berry called "Acai Berry". This berry has been labeled by the media as the "Super Berry" or "Super Food" for its incredible health claims, such as anti-aging, weight loss, cure for diabetes, or even penis enlargers.

 

Personally, the first time I heard about these berries was through the constant spamming of emails in my Hotmail inbox. Because of the immense amount of spam I was getting about these Acai Berries, I was curious enough to search this up in MedLine (which is a database for scientific journals/articles). Not so surprised, there were only 3-4 articles on these berries. However, through these hypes, people (or should I say scammers) are willing to make a buck or two by creating ridiculous products that have miraculous health claims with no scientific evidence to back it up. As a result, the purpose of today's blog is to help you discern the credibility of certain websites.

This is the website I will be looking at: http://www.slimberry.com/customers?t=CD957_396553095

  So what makes this website less credible?

• Domain names ending with .net or .com are usually not a credible source of information. This is because ANYONE can make a domain name. 
• Furthermore, if you type in the link www.slimberry.com ,you'll notice that this site is actually based upon referrals. This means each customer will get an incentive to lure more customers into using their products. In my opinion, sites that use this technique has less of a credibility.
• The health claims stated are too good to be true. People claim to have lost weight 12 pounds in 2 weeks using this product.

• Most importantly, there are no scientific evidence what-so-ever, other than the statements given by the media. It is true that Acai berries are high in antioxidant but there is no sufficient data that links antioxidants to weight loss, as provided by the link above. (However, antioxidants have been linked with helping CVD, hypertension and infertility in men though)

• The statement made by the doctor doesn't link weight loss to acai berries but rather to a "healthy diet". Yet, they still claim it "dissolves fat tissues". In a way they are correct, but they are taking a sneaky approach to try and fool you into buying a product that has fast weight loss results. Having a "healthy diet" is a behavioural change which is a lot harder to do than buying this supplement and "thinking" its going to help you lose weight.

• They also talk about Acai's fat burning qualities: "Acai's fat burning qualities will help to free your system of waste, toxins, and excess pounds".  However, like above, no scientific evidence is provided.  
• It should be noted that the trial version isn't even free as well and there is no money back guarantee. This shows their confidence in their own products.

Finally, most of these Acai berry products often contain prescription medications. This means that it is not natural and the results you achieve are most likely not due to the Acai Berries.

In conclusion, always be careful of the information the web or any media related source gives you. If it sounds too good to be true, then it most likely is!

Sodium: Good or Bad for us?

First off, I would like to welcome you to my first official blog! :)

My name is Jeffrey and I'm currently a 3rd year college student trying to get a degree in Health Science. I'm taking KIN 140 because I'm really interested in health related topics. As a result, I wanted to learn about the dangers of having an unhealthy diet and the benefits of having a healthy diet. By doing these blog posts, I hope to achieve a better understanding through the research of the impacts of diet in general. Additionally, I want to share my own personal opinions and knowledge through these blogs. Thus, my blogs are directed towards anyone who has an interest in learning about the potential benefits and harm of a healthy and unhealthy diet. Technically, I will make my blogs as simple as possible so that anyone can read and understand my posts. So I hope you'll be interested to stick around!

I personally believe that diet is an important issue for everyone of all ages. This is because the choices we make, with regard to our diet, will have short and long term consequences/benefits later on in life. Currently, chronic diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular diseases contributes to a lot of the mortality here in North America. Even though there are a lot of factors that contribute to those chronic diseases; I believe that diet is an important contributor. To put it simply: everyone eats food! 3 meals a day, 365 days a year, and throughout our lives. As a result, it is important to make people aware of what they are putting in their bodies.

For my first blog, I would like to focus on "Sodium", which is an essential nutrient we take in our diet on a regular basis. The first thing that comes to mind when we talk about sodium is usually sodium chloride (AKA: table salt)

So is it good or bad for us? Well...on one hand, as an "essential" nutrient, we need to obtain sodium in our diet for our body to function normally. This includes the regulation of our body fluids such as water distribution and blood pressure (Insel et al., 2011). On the other hand, health problems arise from excess consumption of sodium in our diet.

So the answer to this blog should be clear that sodium is good AND bad for us depending on how much you consume. However, sodium deficiency is really rare in the western diet, so I will focus on the other side of the spectrum, which is excess sodium intake. American Heart Association states that the recommended daily intake of sodium should not exceed 2300mg. Compared to Canada, Health Canada recommends 1500mg of sodium a day. However, on average, people (Canadians & Americans) ingest around 3400-4000mg of sodium in ONE DAY!! As you can see, this is really problematic and could put a lot of strain on the cardiovascular system. Studies have shown that high sodium intake can lead to hypertension, stroke, renal disease, and other cardiovascular diseases (Barr, 2009). Moreover, sodium is often referred to as the "Silent Killer" because the symptoms of excessive sodium intake often occurs later on in life and is hard to detect before it is too late.

In my opinion, excessive sodium intake is a problem that is rooted more within the food industry than in ones behavior (as I will be talking about in blog 3). If you payed close attention to the nutrition labels on the foods that you eat. You'll soon notice that a lot of the foods contain A LOT of sodium with a SMALL amount of serving size. It should be noted that foods that don't taste salty can contain a lot of sodium as well.(For example, Bread and Cereal, etc..)

In conclusion, my take home message for you is to be more cautious about what you eat and try to read and compare the nutrition labels before you purchase something.

References:

 Barr, S.I. (2009). Reducing dietary sodium intake: the canadian context. Appl. Physiol. Nutr. Metab., 35(1-8), Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=ba3940eb-2aa8-4ac7-bc3e-ba0595bf05a2%40sessionmgr14&vid=4&hid=12

Insel, P., Ross, D., McMahon, K., & Bernstein, M. (2011). Nutrition. United States of America: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC.