What is Diabetes?

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is the body's inability to regulate the level of glucose in the blood. Glucose is the main form of sugar in the body. The body breaks down food into glucose and uses it as a source of energy. In healthy people insulin helps to regulate the glucose (sugar) levels. Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas (a long, thin organ located behind the stomach against the back).

In diabetics, the body does not produce enough insulin or does not use the produced insulin effectively. This results in a high level of glucose in the blood ("hyperglycaemia").

There are three main types of diabetes mellitus:

Type 1, earlier known as insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) or juvenile-onset diabetes mellitus. People with this type of diabetes make little or no insulin in their body, and need regular insulin injections for survival and management of diabetes. It usually starts in childhood, but can occur at any age. This ususally happen before age of 40.

 Type 2, (DM2), earlier known as non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) or adult-onset diabetes. This is the most common form of diabetes, and is strongly associated with genetic tendency and obesity. The body produces normal or even high levels of insulin, but certain factors make its utilization ineffective ("insulin resistance"). Sedentary lifestyle, unhealthy dietary patterns, and the consequent obesity are common causes. It usually starts in adulthood, but is beginning to be seen in obese adolescents also.

Type 3,Gestational diabetes mellitus, or pregnancy-induced diabetes.

Gestational diabetes is raised blood glucose levels during pregnancy. It develops in 5 % of all pregnancies but usually disappears when a pregnancy is over. Women who have had gestational diabetes are at increased risk (up to 40%) for later developing type 2 diabetes

What are the symptoms?

Symptoms depend on the type and duration of diabetes. Some of the signs and symptoms are related to the high blood sugar levels.

These include: Increased urination, Increased thirst, Hunger

Other common symptoms:

1.Fatigue
2.Blurred vision
3.Urinary and vaginal infections
4.Skin infections, especially fungal or more serious bacterial infections
5.Increased thirst
6.Frequency of Urine
7.Weight loss
8.Genital itching or regular episodes UTI
9.Slow healing of wounds
10.Excessive hunger

There may be weight loss, especially if the amount of insulin made by the body is decreasing. If insulin deficiency is marked, the person can become drowsy and then go into coma. This is called Ketoacidosis, and usually occurs in DM1. Rarely, if the diabetes is completely out of control, it can also occur in DM2. Other symptoms of ketoacidosis include: Deep rapid breathing, sometimes with a fruity odour to the breath Pain in the stomach, with nausea and vomiting.

What are the risk factors?

1.Indians Ethnicity
2.Family history of DM
3.BMI more than 23
4.Overweight
5.Waist is 80 inches in men over 90 inches for women.
6.Sedentary lifestyle
7.Impaired glucose tolerance
8.Gestational diabetes.

How is the diagnosis made?

Diabetes mellitus is diagnosed based on a high level of glucose or sugar in the blood. The doctor may suspect diabetes mellitus after taking the medical history and doing a physical examination. There are several blood sugar tests used for diagnosis:

Fasting plasma glucose test: In this test, a person is asked to fast overnight, at least 8 hours, and the level of glucose in the blood is then checked. Normal fasting plasma glucose levels are less than 110 mg/dl. A fasting plasma glucose level of more than 126 mg/dl usually indicates diabetes mellitus. A level of 110-125 mg/dl is called "impaired fasting glucose".

Post prandial (PP) plasma glucose: This is tested two hours after having a meal, which serves as a challenge for the body to regulate the blood sugar. Normal PP levels are <140 mg/dl; a glucose level of more than 200 mg/dl indicates diabetes mellitus, while a level between 140-199 mg/ dl is called "impaired glucose tolerance".

Random plasma glucose test: is that which is done at any other time. A level of 200 mg/dl or higher generally indicates the presence of diabetes.

Oral glucose challenge test (oGTT): The blood glucose is tested 2 hours after giving 75 gm glucose by mouth. This is useful for detecting borderline diabetes and a condition called "impaired glucose tolerance".

Oral glucose tolerance test: is the preferred way to diagnose pregnancy-induced diabetes. Ideally all pregnant women in India should have a blood glucose test done 30 minutes after taking 50 gm gluocse (screening test). If this is abnormal, the lady should undergo an oGTT: with 100 gm glucose (not the conventional 75 gm). Blood samples are then drawn at intervals of one hour upto 3 hours (ie at 1, 2 and 3 hours post-glucose).

What is the treatment?

Although diabetes cannot be cured, it can be controlled very successfully. The main aim of treatment of all types of diabetes is to achieve blood glucose control, blood pressure and cholesterol levels as near to normal as possible. This, together with a healthy lifestyle, will help to improve wellbeing and protect against long-term complications.

Stay Active

Being active is good for all of us but is especially important for people with diabetes. Physical activity, combined with healthy eating and medication that you may taking will help you to manage your diabetes and prevent long term complications. If you have concerns at all about becoming active, never be afraid to ask for advice.     

What are the Medication

People with diabetes often need additional treatment along with making lifestyle changes such as medication to control their Blood Pressure and blood fats. Treatment is decided by your specialist. But you should be aware of timings, dosage and its function in the body.

In diabetes stopping the treatment by your own can create lots of problems.

What are the complications?

Hypoglycemia is the common problem which can happen in pt who is being treated with oral medications or Insulin

Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) can be life threatening condition and it’s very important to act early.

Low blood sugar: a level below about 60 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dl) — occurs when there's too much insulin and not enough sugar (glucose) in your blood. Low blood sugar is most common among people taking insulin, but it can also occur if you're taking oral diabetes medications.

When your blood sugar is low you may feel:

Shaky or nervous, Tired, Sweaty, Hungry, Irritable, Impatient, Cold, Confused

You may also feel tingling around your mouth.

Reasons for blood sugar swings

1.In general, a blood sugar reading of more than 180 mg/dL or any reading above your target range is too high.
2.A blood sugar reading of 300 mg/dL or more can be dangerous. If you have 2 readings in a row of 300 or more, call us
3.Anything that can raise your blood sugar can cause it to go too high.
4.Right dose or kind of diabetes medicine,
5.Being ill or stressed,
6.forgetting to take your diabetes pills or insulin,
7.Doing less exercise than usual, or
8.Eating more carbohydrates than usual are all things that can cause your blood sugar to go too high.
9.Although it is frustrating, blood sugar levels can also be too high for no clear reason.

Sometimes these high levels may be the first sign of an infection, illness or stress.

Because blood sugar levels can go very high when you are ill, talk with your health care team about creating a „sick day plan‟ to manage your diabetes when you have a cold, flu or other illness.

What is the homecare treatment?

Pre Diabetes

Pre diabetes is when one has higher than normal glucose level but not high enough to be diagnosed with diabetes. Pre-diabetes is present when hba1c is over 6% -6.4%.

A person with pre-diabetes can be prevented to develop Diabetes by:

1.  Improving diet

a) Increase in consumption of foods high in fibre, such as whole grain and pulses, vegetables and fruits.
b) Choose foods lower in fat and saturated fat like by replacing products high in saturated fat (such as butter, ghee,) with vegetable oils high in unsaturated fat or using low fat spreads.
c) Choose skimmed or toned milk and products instead of cream and full fat milk.
d) Choose lean meats instead of fatty meat and processed meat products.
By changing cooking methods like opt for steaming, pressure cooking, boiling etc.
e) Choose fruits, unsalted nuts or low fat snacks instead of cakes, biscuits, namkeens etc.

2. Increasing physical activity – at least 30 minutes for 5 days in a week.

3. By reducing body weight, high blood glucose levels can return to normal which reduces the likelihood of developing T2D.

Benefits of weight loss

1. It reduces the risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer.
2. It decreases blood pressure, cholesterol.
3. Decreases triglycerides and glucose in blood.

Benefits of an active lifestyle

1. Burn calories.
2. Preserves the body’s muscle and bone.
3. Increases your metabolic rate.
4. Helps appetite control.
5. Improves health.

Maintaining a healthy weight and eating a healthy balanced diet, low in fat and rich in fiber and fruits and vegetables, as well as being physically active is an important part of managing blood sugar levels and avoiding other health complications.

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If You Are Drinking Lemon Water To Lose Weight, Here's What You Need To Know

Lemon water can help in reducing your daily intake of calories, but drinking regular water is as effective in losing weight as drinking lemon water.
You all must have heard numerous times that to lose weight, drink a glass of warm lemon water, as it acts as an effective fat cutter. Drinking water with a few drops of lemon in it has been proved to be helpful in aiding better digestion, boosting energy levels in the body and improving concentration. Lemon water not only improves hydration in the body, it also helps in making us feel satiated and full. However, experts believe that regular water is as beneficial as lemon water.

So while there are many things said and believed about lemon water and its benefits, here's all you need to know about lemon water and its weight loss benefits:

1. Lemon water is low in calories

1 glass of lemon water will have nothing more than 6 calories. Hence, it is an effective drink for losing weight. In fact, if you replace fruits juices and soda drinks with lemon water, it can help in reducing your daily calorie intake by almost 200 calories. So while lemon water is not entirely calorie free, it is effective enough to reduce our daily intake of calories.

2. Lemon water helps in boosting metabolism

According to research, a good rate of hydration in the body can improve the functioning of mitochondria, thus triggering energy in the body. Lemon water gives a boost to metabolism in the body, which is helpful in weight loss. This is the reason why people are always suggested to drink lots of water every day.

3. Lemon water improves hydration in the body

Keeping optimum levels of hydration levels in the body is important for transporting waste from the body, improving how the body performs physically and also regulating body's temperature. Moreover, improved rates of hydration in the body also aid weight loss. Since a majority of lemon water is water, it helps in improving the hydration levels in the body to a great extent.

4. You feel more full by drinking lemon water

Drinking lemon water or water is probably the safest way to feel full while not stuffing yourself with those extra unwanted calories. According to a study conducted in 2008, drinking half a litre of water before breakfast can reduce the number of calories consumed in that meal by almost 13%. Another study suggested that drinking water with food reduces hunger and increases the satiety during the meal.

5. Lemon water increases weight loss

Because of its effects on hydration, metabolism and satiety, lemon water can increase weight loss. Studies have suggested that people who drink more water or lemon water while on a low calorie diet, tend to lose weight faster than others. In fact, there are studies that prove that drinking more water garners weight loss, independent of diet or exercise. This implies for both regular water and lemon water.
Thus, consuming lemon water has various positive effects on the body, but even regular water has almost similar effects and is as good in garnering weight loss.

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Never Put These Foods in the Refrigerator

It is quite natural for all of us to want to preserve and protect the foods we purchase. With that in mind, we always think that the best way to do that is by putting them in our refrigerators. However, there are certain foods which should never be placed in the fridge. Below, we have put together an extended list of such foods. The results and certain entries, may surprise you.

BANANAS

Bananas in the fridge? Because they retain nutrients better outside the fridge, they should never be placed inside the refrigerator. According to Canadian Produce Marketing Association, bananas are better kept on the counter until they ripen. The cold temperatures actually slow down the ripening process of the bananas, while the moisture and darkness of the fridge will only facilitate rotting.

POTATO

Potato Growers of Alberta all agree; spuds should be placed in a cool, dry and dark space. By reason of the cold temperatures of the fridge, it can turn starch into sugar more rapidly. Because of that, keeping tots out of there, is best. It is also recommended that potatoes be removed from plastic or paper bags they may have been placed in. Also, keep them unwashed, as well in a well-ventilated cardboard box.

ONIONS

Placing your onions inside your refrigerator will eventually end up turning them moldy and soft. According to the National Onion Association in the U.S, unpeeled onions should be kept out of plastic bags and fridge. One of the reasons for this is because unpeeled onions require and need air exposure for maximum life. If you have peeled an onion though, then you should keep it in the fridge, in a covered container.

AVOCADO

If you purchased an avocado that’s not ripen, you should not place it in your refrigerator. Since they will need time to ripen, keeping in the cold cooler will deter and impede that process. Also, placing the avocado in your fridge should only be done if the avocado is already ripe and you won’t use it right away.

GARLIC

Believe it or not, placing garlic in your refrigerator will actually cause it to sprout. The garlic will also get moldy and even rubbery. Moreover, inside your fridge, the look of the garlic will rarely change. This means you won’t be able to tell if it’s any good until you finally slice it open.

BREAD

Nothing dries out bread faster than your refrigerator. In the event that you have made sandwiches with the bread, then you can place them in the fridge. The cold temperature will make the bread tough and chewy. Furthermore, the coldness tends to make the bread turn stale and harder, at a faster pace.

COFFEE

Since both ground coffee and beans require cool, dry and dark spots to retain their flavor & freshness, the fridge is not the place for them. Coffee and beans also need an airtight container. If you have large amounts of coffee that you won’t use right away, then you can freeze it. Just make sure to wrap the coffee in airtight bags. This way, you can store it for up to a month in your refrigerator.

TOMATOES

We all love tomatoes for their taste. But putting them in the refrigerator will cause them to lose all of their flavour. Plus, the cold air in the cooler stops the ripening process as well. And as we all know, ripening is what gives every tomato more taste and flavor. The cold temperature of the fridge will alter the texture of the tomatoes as well. Lastly, coldness breaks down the membranes within the fruit walls, according to Harold McGee’s On Food and Cooking. For best results, keep tomatoes out, and inside a basket or a bowl on your counter.

HONEY

Providing that you keep it in a tightly sealed place, honey will stay good almost forever. Therefore, storing it in your cooler doesn’t make sense. Honey, is a naturally preserved food so it needs no help from us. Ironically enough, placing honey in your refrigerator will in fact speed up the sugar crystallization process. The result of that will be the honey becoming almost dough-like, in form. Thus, making it harder or nearly impossible to scoop or use.

MELONS

If you haven’t opened your melons, then there’s no need to place them in your fridge. Research has demonstrated that storing melons in room temperatures, will in effect, keep the antioxidants levels the same. The studies were done by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Also, melons lost some of their beta-carotene content as well. Keep in mind though, that the research pertained to whole melons. Sliced melons can be placed in the fridge, but should be covered.

PUMPKIN

Charlie Brown loves his pumpkins. But he should never place them inside of a fridge, and neither should you. Pumpkins need to be placed in a well ventilated area. The location also needs to be dark, cool and dry. Basements, are perfect spots for pumpkins, according to the CPMA.

Olive Oil

Since storing olive oil in a fridge will turn it harder and make it condensed, it should never be placed there. Instead, put the olive oil in dark, cool place. Otherwise, you risk turning your olive oil into a butter-like density.


BASIL

The refrigeration cold will wilt basil a lot faster than normal. Also, basil can and will absorb any of the smells from other foods near it. Treat your basil in the same manner you would treat flowers. For best results, keep it outside of your fridge and let it sit in a cup of freshwater. Martha stewart tells us that if you want to store basil for longer periods of time, blanch it first, then freeze it.

PEANUT BUTTER

Nothing goes better with peanut butter than jelly. However, unlike most jams, peanut butter should be kept out of the refrigerator. Placing it inside your fridge, can eventually turn the PB hard and dry. Instead, keep the peanut butter in a cool, dark and dry place, such as your cupboard. This will keep the peanut butter smooth, soft and ready for spreading.

EGGS

It is a long debate whether you should keep eggs inside your refrigerator or not. One study suggests that keeping eggs whether in a refrigerator or not does not change their normal properties, so it can be said that if you keep eggs at room temperature, there should not be any problem. There is another study that reveals that keeping eggs inside the refrigerators spoil the natural taste and flavor of eggs, so it is wise to keep eggs outside of your fridge.

SALAD

Oil or vinegar based salad is capable of being okay for long period of time without refrigeration. Moreover, refrigeration of salad dressings brings bad smell to them. Keep in mind that there are some salads that are mayo or yogurt based should be refrigerated in order to keep them fine. So if you have some salad that has been already dressed, you can keep them away from your fridge without any hesitation.

KETCHUP

Having bacteria deterring acids is a boon for ketchup as you can expect to be okay with your ketchup up to more than years without refrigeration. The preservatives used in ketchup are very helpful in maintaining the quality of it for many days even after opening it. So if you have already opened a ketchup bottle and tensed with its decaying, then you will not have to worry anymore.

CITRUS FRUITS

Chill damage is a common effect of cold temperature to the fruits filled up with citric acid like oranges or lemons. These citrus fruits need natural temperature for ripening, so keeping them inside the refrigerators hampers this process. You will also see some spots as well as dull skin on these types of fruits if kept in the refrigerators.

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Aiyar calls Modi ‘neech aadmi’, faces retort from PM

Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar on December 7 called Prime Minister Narendra Modi a “neech aadmi (vile man)” and one who does “dirty politics”.

“He (Mr. Modi) is a neech kism ka aadmi (a vile man) who has no sabhyata (civility),” he said, attacking Mr. Modi after the latter accused the Congress of seeking votes in B.R. Ambedkar’s but trying to erase his contribution to building India.

The Prime Minister, while inaugurating the Ambedkar International Centre that was conceived 23 years ago, hit out at the Congress, saying parties seeking votes in Ambedkar’s name tried to erase his contribution to nation building. “Such was his (Ambedkar’s) incredible strength that when years after his demise efforts were made by such people to crush his philosophy, when efforts were made to erase his contribution towards nation building, his ideals could not be wiped out from people’s memory,” he said.

He said he would not be wrong in saying that “more people are still influenced by his (Ambedkar’s) ideas than the family for which such efforts (to erase his contribution) were made”.

Mr. Aiyar claimed that it was the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru who recognised Ambedkar’s potential. “What is the need for doing dirty politics on such an occasion,” he asked.

‘Mughal mentality’

Responding to Mr. Aiyar’s remarks, Mr. Modi termed them as “Mughal mentality”.

“Mani Shankar Aiyar today said I belong to neech caste, I am neech, this is an insult to Gujarat,” Mr. Modi said in Surat. “Have I done any neech work in my public life?”

While asking BJP workers not to respond to Mr. Aiyar’s remarks against him, the Prime Minister said, “This is Mughal mentality which hates people who even wear good clothes.

Apologise, says Rahul

Meanwhile, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi asked Mr. Aiyar to apologise to Mor. Modi. “BJP and PM routinely use filthy language to attack the Congress party. The Congress has a different culture and heritage. I do not appreciate the tone and language used by Mr Mani Shankar Aiyer to address the PM (sic). Both the Congress and I expect him to apologise for what he said,” Mr. Gandhi tweeted.

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Australia parliament passes same-sex marriage bill

The Australian Parliament voted on Thursday to allow same-sex marriage across the nation, following a bitter and divisive debate settled by the government polling voters in a much-criticised ballot survey that strongly endorsed change.

The public gallery of the House of Representatives erupted with applause when the bill passed to change the definition of marriage from solely between a man and a woman to “a union of two people” excluding all others. The legislation passed with a majority that wasn’t challenged, although five lawmakers registered their opposition to the bill.

The Senate passed the same legislation last week 43 votes to 12. After royal assent and other formalities, the law will likely take effect in about a month, with the first weddings expected about a month later.

Freedom of speech

Amendments meant to safeguard freedoms of speech and religion for gay-marriage opponents were all rejected, though those issues may be considered later. The government has appointed a panel to examine how to safeguard religious freedoms once gay marriage is a reality in Australia.

Lawmakers advocating marriage equality had argued that the national postal survey in November mandated a change of the marriage definition alone, so changing the law should not be delayed by other considerations.

“It is now our job as members of Parliament to pass a fair bill that does not extend or create any new discriminations,” an emotional government lawmaker Warren Entsch, who helped draft the bill, told Parliament. “It is a strong bill that already strikes the right balance between equality and freedom of religion.”

“It’s an historic day for Australia today and I think the celebrations around the country when we finally ... achieve marriage equality are going to be immense,” Janet Rice said before the vote. Rice is a minor Greens party senator who was only able to remain married to her transgender wife of 31 years, Penny, because Penny remained listed as male on her birth certificate.

Penny Wong, an opposition Labor Party senator who has two children with her lesbian partner, said- “I am feeling happy.”

Gay marraige

Gay marriage was endorsed by 62 per cent of Australian voters who responded to the government-commissioned postal ballot.

Most gay rights advocates believed the government should have allowed marriages years ago and saw various ideas for a public survey as a delaying tactic. The U.N. Human Rights Committee had called the ballot survey “an unnecessary and divisive public opinion poll.”

The current bill allows churches and religious organizations to boycott gay weddings without violating Australian anti-discrimination laws.

Existing civil celebrants can also refuse to officiate at gay weddings, but celebrants registered after gay marriage becomes law would not be exempt from the anti-discrimination laws.

One of the rejected amendments would have ensured Australians could speak freely about their traditional views of marriage without fear of legal action. It was proposed by Attorney-General George Brandis and supported by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, both gay marriage supporters.

Tony Abbott’s charge on Turnbull

Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott, who was a high-profile advocate for traditional marriage, told Parliament that Mr. Turnbull and opposition leader Bill Shorten had failed to deliver detailed protections for freedoms of speech, conscience and religion in the bill.

“A promise was made by the leaders of this Parliament and the promise has not adequately been delivered on,” Abbott said.

Abbott pointed to an Australian teenager who lost her job for advocating against gay marriage on social media and an Australian Catholic bishop who was taken before a state anti-discrimination tribunal over a pamphlet he published extolling traditional marriage. The complaint against the bishop was dropped.

“The last thing we should want to do is to subject Australians to new forms of discrimination in place of old ones that are rightly gone,” he said.

Government lawmaker Trevor Evans ruled out an Australian equivalent of the U.S. Supreme Court case in which a baker who refused to provide a wedding cake for a gay couple argued he was exercising artistic freedom and was exempt from Colorado anti-discrimination laws.

“Let’s be honest here, for a case like that to arise in Australia, it would require a gay couple who care more about activism than about the success of their own wedding, to find a business operator who cares more about religious doctrine than the commercial success of their own small business, and for both of them to commit to having a fight,” Evans told Parliament.

“Typical Australians would genuinely question the bona fides of the players in a case like that and the slim prospects of that occurring doesn’t warrant the pages and pages of commentary and debate that have been dedicated to it,” he added.

Marriage equality as inevitable

Several gay marriage opponents in Mr. Turnbull’s conservative coalition have regarded marriage equality as inevitable and have welcomed an end to an issue that has long divided the government ranks.

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann, a same-sex marriage opponent who oversaw the postal ballot, said he felt “great satisfaction” that the issue was resolved.

“It was a polarising issue on which good Australians had strongly and sincerely held views on both sides of the argument,” Cormann said.

“I and my colleagues on the coalition side always took the view that the best way to resolve a disagreement in the community like this is by giving the Australian people which we did, we kept faith with it, the Australian people embraced the process and the result was emphatic,” he said.

The result is a political win for Turnbull, who became prime minister after deposing Abbott in 2015 in an internal government leadership ballot.

Mr. Abbott was head-butted by a gay rights advocate during the postal survey campaign in September. Kevin Rudd, a centre-left Labour Party prime minister whom Mr. Abbott defeated in elections in 2013, blamed the postal ballot for an assault on his godson Sean Foster, 19, as he campaigned for marriage equality a week earlier.

Veteran gay rights campaigner Rodney Croome said he expected the first same-sex weddings in Australia would not take place until February.

The law will likely take effect after a month. State laws then require couples to give 28 days’ notice of their intention to marry, Croome said.

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