One of Australia’s leading diabetes experts has criticized a reported study published in the journal Nature, on February 2, 2012 that was written by Dr Robert Lustig, Dr Laura Schmidt and Dr Claire Brindis of the University of California San Francisco (UCSF). The co-authors  claimed that high consumption of sugar “largely mirrors the effects of drinking too much alcohol” and should be regulated like alcohol and tobacco. Dr Alan Barclay, head of research at the Australian Diabetes Council,... ...Read more »

A report released on 1 February, 2012 by the Australian Insitute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), has stated that although diabetes has increased significantly in Australia over the past 20 years, the rate of diabetes-related deaths is falling. The new web-based report, “Diabetes indicators in Australia”, shows the prevalence of diabetes in the Australian population increased from 1.5 percent to 4.1 percent over the 20 years to 2007-2008. AIHW spokesperson Lisa McGlynn said, “While increasing... ...Read more »

UK researchers have shown one way in which poor nutrition in the womb can put a person at greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes and other age-related diseases in later life. The researchers say their finding could lead to new ways of identifying people who are at a higher risk of developing these diseases and might open up targets for treatment. The team, from the University of Cambridge and the Medical Research Council (MRC) Toxicology Unit at the University of Leicester, have just published... ...Read more »

A team of researchers at the University of California, San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center and Columbia University have estimated that a nationwide tax on sweetened beverages in the U.S. would prevent nearly 26,000 deaths each year. Their research was based on the findings of previous U.S. research which estimated that a ‘penny-per-ounce’ tax would reduce consumption of sweetened beverages by 15 per cent over a decade. However, it appears the authors of the later study have... ...Read more »

Researchers from The Australian National University have discovered a new treatment for Type-1 diabetes by using a new form of complex sugar, heparan sulphate. Diabetes Type-1 is an auto-immune disease which currently affects some 130,000 Australians. The research breakthrough has been published today in The Journal of Clinical Investigation, a leading American medical journal. Dr Charmaine Simeonovic and Professor Christopher Parish from The John Curtin School of Medical Research have identified... ...Read more »

For years doctors have warned that too much salt is bad for your heart. Now, new research from the McMaster University, in Canada, suggests that both high and low levels of salt intake may put people with heart disease or diabetes at increased risk of cardiovascular complications. This is the second major scientific study this month that has questioned the health benefits of reducing the dietary intake of sodium. The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) today,... ...Read more »

Australian scientists have announced their finding of a crucial molecular link between eating a high fat diet and developing Type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body becomes less able to produce and use insulin. The disorder is associated with a high-sugar, high-fat diet combined with lack of exercise. The research was undertaken by Dr Laybutt and PhD scholar Mia Akerfeldt of the Sydney’s Garvan Institute. Their findings suggest a gene, known as Id1, appears to be the “master regulator”... ...Read more »

Eating a fatty fast food meal is never good for you, but washing that meal down with a coffee is even worse, according to a new University of Guelph study. Researcher Marie-Soleil Beaudoin has discovered not only that a healthy person’s blood sugar levels spike after eating a high-fat meal, but that the spike doubles after having both a fatty meal and caffeinated coffee – jumping to levels similar to those of people at risk for diabetes. “The results tell us that saturated fat interferes... ...Read more »

A new meta-analysis of 50 studies, including half a million subjects, has confirmed that eating a Mediterranean diet has a wide variety of health benefits for lifestyle diseases The Mediterranean diet includes lots of olives and olive oil (a great source of monounsaturated fatty acids), fruits, vegetables and wholegrain cereals, low-fat dairy, fish, nuts, and legumes, and moderate alcohol consumption with meals, but relatively little red meat. The Mediterranean diet, according to Dr. Panagiotakos... ...Read more »

Scientists at the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and collaborators from other institutions have identified a natural substance in dairy fat that may substantially reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes. The compound, trans-palmitoleic acid, is a fatty acid found in milk, cheese, yogurt, and butter. It is not produced by the body and so only comes from the diet.Researchers explain that trans-palmitoleic acid may underlie evidence in recent years that diets rich in dairy foods are linked to lower... ...Read more »