New research from Kaiser Permanente finds that the popular Type 2 diabetes drug metfomin works twice as long for those patients that begin taking it within three months of their diagnosis, according to an article in the Times of India.

Metformin is prescribed for the vast majority of Type 2 patients. However, it typically stops working and additional drugs need to be added to the mix to help the patients keep their blood sugar under control. People with Type 2 diabetes produce the insulin, the hormone that regulates sugar levels in the blood, but don’t use it efficiently. Many need to take medicine to help control their sugar levels.

With patients taking Metformin within three months of diagnosis, the drug failed at a rate of 12% per year, according to the study. For those that began taking it one to two years after diagnosis, the drug failed at a rate 21.4%. Researchers say they believe the reason for the discrepancy is that by taking the drug early on patients are able to preserve some of their own body’s ability to control blood sugar levels.

Researchers say the study is important because it can help patients with Type 2 diabetes avoid paying extra for additional medications and can help them avoid some of the added risks and complications, such as weight gain, associated with some additional drugs.

However, one of the biggest barriers for doctors and patients is that many people living with Type 2 diabetes don’t know they have the disease until some of the complications have started to kick in.

via: Type 2 Drug Metformin More Effective When Taken Within Three Months of Diagnosis

Working with a small group of type 2 patients, Japanese scientists think that they may have found one reason why some people develop obesity that can eventually lead to diabetes: poor impulse control.

Researchers at Waseda University tested 27 middle-aged male type 2 patients and 27 nondiabetic patients of the same age and sex to determine their ability to control impulses. The participants were told to press a button whenever the correct prompt appeared on a computer screen. They were not to press the button otherwise, however, because doing so would lower their score.

According to the researchers, the type 2 patients scored significantly lower than the nondiabetic control group, indicating a lower level of impulse control. To the Japanese scientists, who say they checked for errors in their instruments and motor problems in the patients, the results suggest that type 2s may have an inborn “neuropsychological deficit” that lowers their ability to control impulses. If so, such lowered ability over the course of a lifetime could lead to obesity and the onset of metabolic syndrome, both precursors to type 2.

Hiroaki Kumano, the lead researcher, said that type 2s are always having to make quick decisions about what to eat or not eat-a constant challenge to impulse control that may have been compromised long before their diagnosis.

The test sample was far too small to provide conclusive evidence, but it does open the door to further research on differences in the brain that could invite the onset of obesity or diabetes.

The study has been written up in BioPyschoSocial Medicine.

via: Is Impulse Control Impaired in Type 2s?

In December the company submitted its application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Now, the agency has accepted that application for review, meaning the agency will take a close look at the application. It does not accept all applications for review.

The company says VIAject helps reduce the risk of both hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia (low and high blood sugar levels). The insulin is meant to be used in insulin pumps as well as injected during mealtimes.

VIAject has been tested in more than 850 patients in Phase 1, 2 and 3 clinical trials in the U.S., Germany, and India. The company says the application includes information that documents the product’s safety. It includes information about pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic and standardized meal studies, as well as two pivotal 6-month Phase 3 clinical trials of VIAject in patients with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. It also includes interim results from the long-term, 18-month safety extension trials for patients who completed the Phase 3 clinical trials.

via: Fast-Acting Insulin One Step Closer to FDA Approval

According to JDRF, the world’s largest charitable funder of research leading to a cure for type 1 diabetes and its complications, half of those diagnosed each year with type 1 diabetes are adults. Overall, adults with diabetes may have lived with the disease for more than 90% of their lives.  Moreover, adults newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes often don’t know where to turn to for support compared with a child recently diagnosed with the same disease, whose parents are often flooded with support and resources to help with coping and care for the child.  Many newly diagnosed adults also have different needs from children, and often feel isolated and confused amidst misinformation and misconceptions about the blurring lines between type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes is a chronic, debilitating disease affecting every organ system that strikes children and adults suddenly, and lasts a lifetime.  Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which a person’s pancreas stops producing insulin, a hormone that enables people to get energy from food.  People with type 1 diabetes must take multiple injections of insulin daily or continuous infusion of insulin through a pump just to survive.  Taking insulin does not cure any type of diabetes nor prevent the possibility of its eventual and devastating effects: kidney failure, blindness, nerve damage, amputation, heart attack, and stroke.  Unlike type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes is a metabolic disorder that is often diagnosed in adulthood in which a person’s body still produces insulin but is unable to use it effectively.  There are approximately 3 million Americans living with type 1 diabetes, and more than 30,000 children and adults are diagnosed every year.

According to Andrea Hulke, JDRF’s Director of National Outreach, JDRF recognizes that as people grow older, interests, priorities and needs change – especially for adults with type 1 diabetes who must make additional adjustments to manage and cope with the disease.  As a result, JDRF has developed an innovative program based on connection points (from the point of diagnosis and beyond) to identify with and support the evolving needs and priorities of the adult with type 1 diabetes.  The initiative seeks to engage and provide the adult type 1 diabetes community with support and resources by establishing specific content and tools around Life Stages, the phases of a person’s life living with the disease – point of diagnosis; relationships and marriage; pregnancy and children; in the workplace; and dealing with possible complications.

As part of this initiative, the Adult Type 1 Toolkit will serve as an essential “how-to” guidebook by providing practical medical information and insight for the adult with type 1 diabetes.   Written by adults who also have type 1 diabetes, the Toolkit includes advice for the newly diagnosed on how to deal with the diagnosis and management, and also addresses the psychological impact and different feelings that come with having to live with a chronic disease. Often patients experience feelings of shock, denial, fear, grief, loss, hopelessness, or depression upon hearing the news of their diagnosis.

Helpful advice is also given for the adult who has lived with type 1 diabetes for many years, and includes advice on how to tell friends, how to juggle the demands of diabetes at work, and how living with the disease impacts relationships, marriage, and parenting. The Toolkit teaches the patient to help others understand the disease, especially what to do in emergency situations.  The Toolkit also provides useful information on handling day-to-day activities with type 1 diabetes, including tips and information on diet and exercise, travel, work, and addresses the impact of type 1 diabetes on women’s and men’s health.

In addition, the Toolkit will offer services connecting the adult with type 1 diabetes with a network of other adults with the disease as well as “expert listeners,” JDRF volunteers who have experienced living life as an adult with type 1 diabetes and can relate to the unique experiences and challenges, thus providing a real, live support system for the patient.  The Toolkit will be available at any of the 85 local JDRF chapters nationally or by visiting http://www.jdrf.org/adults.

About JDRF

JDRF is the leader in research leading to a cure for type 1 diabetes and its complications in the world.  It sets the global agenda for diabetes research, and is the largest charitable funder and advocate of diabetes science worldwide.

The mission of JDRF is to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research.  Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that strikes children and adults suddenly, and can be fatal.  Until a cure is found, people with type 1 diabetes have to test their blood sugar and give themselves insulin injections multiple times or use a pump – each day, every day of their lives.  And even with that intensive care, insulin is not a cure for diabetes, nor does it prevent its eventual and devastating complications, which can include kidney failure, blindness, heart disease, stroke, and amputation.

Since its founding in 1970 by parents of children with type 1 diabetes, JDRF has awarded more than $1.3 billion to diabetes research, including more than $100 million in 22 countries in FY2009.

* * *

Source: JDRF press release

via: JDRF Launches Program to Support Adults with Type 1 Diabetes

This press release is an announcement submitted by JDRF, and was not written by Diabetes Health

A one-a-day injection to help control blood sugar and possibly help weight loss is about to be marketed in the US.

Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has received Food and Drug Administration permission to begin marketing its type 2 drug Victoza in the United States.
Victoza, the brand name for liraglutide, is a GLP-1* analog that is taken one a day by injection to help control blood sugar-and in some cases, help with weight loss-in patients with type 2 diabetes.

The drug, which has already been marketed in Europe, is being offered as both a monotherapy and as an adjunct to other diabetes drugs that are taken orally.

In making the announcement, Novo repeated its caution that Victoza is not insulin and it is not known if the FDA Gives Novo the Go-Ahead to Market Victoza in the U.S.drug can be safely used with insulin. The company further warned that Victoza is not a therapy for people with type 1 diabetes or people with diabetic ketoacidosis, and that the drug is not recommended for use with children.

The FDA’s approval comes in the wake of concerns that GLP-1 drugs like Victoza have been implicated in increased cases of pancreatitis, an inflammatory condition that can led to death. Novo, in attaching cautions to the drug’s use, recommended that type 2s with gallstones, high triglyceride levels, alcoholism, or previous episodes of pancreatitis tell their doctors about these conditions when considering taking Victoza.

Other cautions included relating that lab rats and mice developed thyroid tumors, some of which were cancerous, when given the medicine in Victoza. However, it is not known whether the drug causes thyroid tumors in people.

Novo also said type 2 patients or their family members who have Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome type 2 (MEN 2), a disease in which people have tumors in more than one gland in their body, should not use Victoza.

Victoza only stimulates pancreatic beta cells to produce insulin when blood glucose levels are high, making it unlikely to produce hypoglycemia in patients. However, if taken with an oral medication like a sulfonylurea, the combination could lead to hypoglycemia. Novo suggests that patients who do take Victoza with other diabetes drugs may want to lower the doses of those drugs to avoid episodes of too-low blood sugar.

Novo is currently testing an oral version of Victoza among 155 British patients with type 2. The hope is that an ingested rather than injected drug will be far more attractive to Victoza users.

The past year has seen Novo win extensive international approval for the drug. The 27-member European Union approved its sales on June 30, 2009, and Japan approved sales in January, 2010. Novo applied for marketing approval in China last August and is awaiting a decision.

*GLP-1-glucagon-like peptide-is a delicate gut hormone whose beneficial effects on the digestive system have made it one of the most promising diabetes therapies in modern times. Those effects include:

• Stimulation of insulin production
• Decrease of pancreatic glucagon production
• Increase in pancreas beta cell mass
• Inhibition of acid secretion and gastric emptying in the stomach
• Increased insulin sensitivity
• Increase in feelings of satiety, leading to less food intake

* * *
Source: Novo Nordisk press release

via: FDA Gives Novo the Go-Ahead to Market Victoza in the U.S.

The comes comes from Kalorama Information, an independent research firm in the life sciences field that recently published a survey entitled “What’s Next in Vaccines? HIV, Malaria, Rabies, MRSA and 30 Other Vaccine Targets in the 2010-2020 Pipeline.”

Currently, there are at least seven different diabetes vaccines being developed. Most of them are for Type 1 diabetes and are in Phase I testing, meaning they have a long way to go before being considered for the public, if they ever are. However, Diamyd Medical, a Swedish company is conducting a Phase III trial of 640 kids recently diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes to see if their vaccine can halt or slow the destruction of insulin-producing beta cells. The company claims its Phase II trial results show that those given the vaccine shortly after diagnosis have a much better diabetes status compared the a group given a placebo.

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the body mistakenly attacks and destroys insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. Insulin is the hormone that regulated sugar levels in the blood. Without the insulin-producing cells, people with Type 1 diabetes must inject themselves with insulin several times each day.

For drug companies, a diabetes vaccine could be a real boost to the bottom line, according to Kalorama. The firm predicts the markets for such a vaccine could hit $100 million by 2012 and $2.4 billion by 2020.

via: Diabetes Vaccine Expected to Hit Shelves This Decade: Study

New research has some holding out hope that the studying diabetic dolphins can lead to a better understanding of Type 2 diabetes in humans, according to a recent article published by Science News.

Researchers looked at bottlenose dolphins and how they went into a harmless diabetic state following overnight fasting. During this time they had high levels of sugar in the blood.  Carbohydrates, which turn into sugar, help fuel the brain. However, dolphins eat a lot of fish, which typically do not have a lot of carbs. Therefore, some researchers believe the dolphins have a “diabetic switch” that they can turn on and off in order to keep their brain well fed.

Humans with Type 2 diabetes do not become insulin resistant by choice. The exact cause is not fully known. Insulin is the hormone in the body that regulates the amount of sugar in the blood. People with Type 2 diabetes do not use insulin efficiently because their body tissue does not absorb sugar properly as instructed by insulin.

Insulin resistance in dolphins isn’t always a good thing either and humans and dolphins are not closely related, but the new findings advance previous research. Researchers hypothesize the diabetic switch may have been an evolutionary trait in dolphins. If so, there may be a diabetic switch in humans similar to the one seen in dolphins, as humans may have developed insulin resistance as a way to provide fuel to the brain during extremely cold temperatures, when food was sparse.

Flipping interesting eitherway…

via: Dolphins May Hold Clues to Type 2 Diabetes

Groups of experts from 16 universities in seven countries helped to create the guidelines for the system. The hope is that now that such a system is in place, it will help researchers understand the disease better.

While researchers still have many questions about the progression of the condition, they say such a system can help improve communication between those in the healthcare field, as well as lead to better patient care and more effective research and studies. The guidelines will categorize the condition by degrees of severity, making it easier for workers in the medical field to identify the stage of diabetic nephropathy.

Without such standards, it is difficult to get a grip on the condition, which can lead to death.

via: Researchers Develop Classification System for Diabetic Nephropathy

Black women in poor neighborhoods run a much greater risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, according to a recent article from WBUR.org. In fact, African-American women are twice as likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than non-Hispanic white women.

Part of that may be because of where they live. New research suggests that housing location is more important than your education level when it comes to diabetes risk. That’s because of the lack of access to full-service supermarkets and the availability of fresh produce and meats low in fat. The study’s authors also note that limited playgrounds and walking space outside contribute to a lack of exercise, in turn upping the risk of diabetes.  

The study’s authors conclude that it is therefore more difficult for people in poor neighborhoods to exercise and eat well. They suggest that public health advocates should work with city officials to improve conditions in poor neighborhoods to help fight the growing diabetes epidemic.

Type 2 diabetes, commonly referred to as ‘adult onset diabetes, impacts more than 20 million people in the United States. Another 57 million have prediabetes, a condition that can lead to Type 2 diabetes. People with Type 2 diabetes become insulin resistant, meaning their body produces the glucose-regulating hormone, but doesn’t use it efficiently.

Via: Housing Location Linked to Diabetes Risk

Bayer has released its A1CNow Selfcheck, an at-home testing kit that can give you your A1C results in just five minutes, according to a company press release.

While many diabetics test their blood sugar levels several times a day, an A1C test is designed to provide a big picture look at overall blood glucose control over a period of several months. It can tell patients and doctors how well a specific treatment plan is working. The American Diabetes Association says diabetics should aim to keep their A1C readings below 7%. High levels of sugar in the blood can lead to some of the disease’s more devastating complications, such as blindness, stroke, heart disease and amputations.

Bayer says the at-home device enables patients to stay better informed in between doctor visits and arm them with greater knowledge so that they can have a more meaningful discussion with their doctor during visits.

The company says the at-home test should not serve as a replacement for their healthcare provider-administered A1C test, but rather should be used to complement it. Currently, A1CNow Selfcheck comes as a 2-test-kit and sells for about $30.

via: Bayer Launches At-Home A1C Test Kit