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The Health Zone Newsletter
Vol 11/2004

In this issue:
Overweight urged to slim down to cut diabetes risk
Stop Me Before I Binge Again! 6 Strategies For Taking Control

Overweight urged to slim down to cut diabetes risk
09 Nov 2004 15:46:45 GMT
Source: Reuters
By Patricia Reaney http://www.alertnet.org/

LONDON, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Half the world's diabetes cases could be eliminated by curbing the soaring number of people who are overweight, health experts said on Tuesday. Diabetes already affects 194 million people and the number is expected to rise to 333 million by 2025. But even a moderate weight loss can delay onset of the illness.

"Fifty percent of type 2 diabetes is potentially preventable by stopping excessive weight gain and obesity," said Professor Martin Silink, president-elect of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF). "A modest weight loss of 5-10 percent can result in major reductions in the risk of diabetes," he told a teleconference ahead of World Diabetes Day on November 14.

Diabetes is a chronic illness caused by a deficiency or lack of insulin. The hormone produced by the pancreas helps the glucose, or sugar, from food get into cells. If a person does not produce enough insulin or if it isn't used properly by the body, glucose stays in the blood. People with Type 1 diabetes do not produce any insulin and need daily injections. Type 2 diabetes, the most common type of the disease, is caused by an inability to make enough, or to properly use insulin. About 90 percent of sufferers have type 2 diabetes, which is linked to being overweight or obese.

"As weight, especially abdominal weight, increases, this makes the body less sensitive to the blood glucose level effect of insulin," Silink said. The incidence of diabetes has risen fast in recent decades along with the increasing number of people who are overweight or obese in developed countries. Scientists are now reporting a rise in type 2 diabetes in developing countries and in children.

"Worldwide, the total prevalence of diabetes at the moment is just over five percent. This is five percent of all adults between the ages of 20-79," said Silink. He described the increases in the disease worldwide as staggering. One in three children born in 2000 will develop diabetes during their lifetime, according to predictions by the Centers of Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia.

"The first step to an effective strategy on obesity and diabetes is to recognise the scale of the problem," said Professor Rhys Williams, vice president of the IDF. Diabetes also raises the risk of heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney damage and nerve disorders that can lead to foot ulceration and amputations.

Health care costs of diabetes range from 2.5-15 percent of annual health budgets, according to the World Health Organisation.

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Stop Me Before I Binge Again! 6 Strategies For Taking Control
By: Leanna Skarnulis, WebMD Weight Loss Clinic

It's time to stock up on holiday goodies again. No matter that you and many of your friends and relatives are counting calories this year. It would be a shame to be caught with an empty pantry if guests dropped by.

Why Do Special Occasions Make Us Vulnerable? Special occasions trigger binges for three reasons, says David L. Katz, MD, MPH, FACPM, author of The Way to Eat.

• First, they provide a social license to binge because everyone's doing it. "Indulgence loves company," Katz says.
• Second, they provide opportunity: "You're surrounded by foods like chocolate candy, and exposure begets indulgence."
• And third, they provide a festive feeling: "You think because it's not something you usually do that it's OK. You can compensate tomorrow."

Strategies for Taking Charge of Special Occasions And what can you do to stop a binge before it starts? Our experts have some tips for handing occasions that are likely to lead you to overeat.

1. Already bought your holiday treats? There's still time to stop yourself. "Save a bite-sized piece, eat it, and enjoy it," says Sandquist. "Give the rest to a homeless shelter. Don't take it to work." Put your imagination to work on healthier goodies to serve to guests -- like luscious fresh fruit or a raw vegetable platter.
2. Have a plan. Eat a nutritious snack before going to a party. Tell yourself you'll eat just half of what's served, then stick to your vow.
3. Plan active days off and vacations. "I love days of intense physical activity -- hiking, horseback riding, skiing, and wonderful celebratory meals at the end of the day," says Katz. "Don't assume you have to gain weight if you're indulging. Compensate with physical activity."
4. Identify your triggers. For example, if you're going to a family gathering, are you likely to feel resentful or guilty about long-standing differences with certain family members? Deal with these issues. Food can mask them but won't make them disappear.
5. Distinguish between indulging and bingeing. Occasionally allow yourself to indulge without eating out of control. The tendency to engage in black-and-white thinking is the hallmark of a problem with food, says Crandall. "If you think one Snickers makes a disaster, then you might think, 'Why not go all the way and really binge?'"
6. Snack often on nutritious foods to keep from getting overly hungry. Katz carries an insulated snack pack everywhere. It's filled with foods such as dried and fresh fruits, baby carrots, nonfat yogurt, trail mix, whole-grain cereal, nuts, and baked chips. "You have to defend yourself," he says. "You can't go out into the modern 'obese-ogenic' environment and hope not to get fat, just as you wouldn't go out in the rain without an umbrella and expect to not get wet."

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