This increase may be associated with targeted marketing geared toward normalizing alcohol consumption for women and other social pressures. Unfortunately, women are more likely to suffer negative health consequences from alcohol since they make less of the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase, which means alcohol levels can quickly reach toxic levels.

Alcohol is especially tricky for women with diabetes who take insulin or sulfonylureas, since the combination increases the risk of hypoglycemia. Yet, many people think alcohol will elevate blood sugars since it “tastes sweet”.  In addition, alcohol contributes to unwanted weight gain.

Key Message – Let’s ask women about their alcohol consumption and discuss limiting alcohol intake to no more than 1 drink a day (which is the recommended amount for all women, regardless if they have diabetes or not).

To learn more check out our May Diabetes Ed Newsletter!

Lower Vitamin D levels are more common in people who are overweight.

Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin that can be obtained through food and exposure to sunlight. Lack of outdoor activity can be partially blamed for the increase in Vitamin D deficiency which affects 40% of people in the United States. However, a recent study conducted by VU University Medical Center and Leiden University Medical Center recently found a link between Vitamin D deficiency and obesity.

The study assessed men and women from the ages of 45-65 and focused on fat in the liver, fat around the organs, and abdominal fat.

In women, the study concluded that excess abdominal fat had the greatest association with lower Vitamin D levels.

In men, there was a link between lower Vitamin D levels and excess abdominal and liver fat.

It is still unknown whether obesity lowers Vitamin D levels or if Vitamin D deficiency causes excess weight gain. More research is needed to understand the nature of this relationship.

One of the investigators, Rachida Rafiq comments, “Although we did not measure vitamin D deficiency in our study, the strong relationship between increasing amounts of abdominal fat and lower levels of vitamin D suggests that individuals with larger waistlines are at a greater risk of developing deficiency, and should consider having their vitamin D levels checked.”

Take home message for health care professionals?

• Consider evaluating Vitamin D levels in patients who are overweight.
• Encourage people with diabetes to make sure they are getting enough Vitamin D in their diet by having fun in the sun (while keeping hydrated and not getting over exposed) and consuming foods such as: fatty fish like  tuna, mackerel, and salmon, mushrooms, egg yolks, and Vitamin D fortified products!

To learn more about Vitamin D deficiency and its relationship to obesity, enjoy this article published in EurekAlert

Larger waistlines are linked to higher risk of vitamin D deficiency

Eating breakfast may help your waistline, a preliminary study suggests. Based on preliminary findings, breakfast eaters over their lifespan, gained 1/3 the amount of weight as breakfast skippers! 

Of course, the quality of the breakfast foods are important too. Based on research, breakfast fans tend to eat more fresh fruit, whole grains, veggies, beans and nuts through out their day. 

For all of us, and especially those living with diabetes, this is a great reminder to kick off your day with the most important meal of all!  

To learn more: Breakfast Fans Gain less Weight Over Time – Health Day

According to a new report from the UCLA Center for Health Policy and Research, approximately one out of every three kids living in California drinks one sugar-laden drink daily.  

Despite the obvious health risks such as obesity, tooth decay, type 2 and liver disease, 30.9% of children consume at least one sugary drink a day.

Diabetes educators play an important role in helping families, particularly with young kids, to identify hidden sugars, especially in the form of sodas and juices.

While soda consumption seems to be lowering in percentage, sports drinks have become more popular as an alternative. “The issue is that they’re often seen as a healthy alternative, but many of them contain large amounts of sugar,” Babey said. “They’re designed to be consumed by people who have been really exerting themselves for a long amount of time, but that’s often not who’s consuming them.”  A better alternative is water and a piece of fruit.

To learn more: Report: Sugar-laden drink consumption on the rise among California kids – San Diego Union-Tribune

You can also join our “The Joy of Six – Take the Pledge” to help spread sugar awareness in your community. 

Sonic introduces a new burger this year with a patty containing 25% mushrooms! The concept being that the burger has “less of the guilt.”

According to the World Resources Institute, if we were to replace 30% of beef in hamburgers in America, we could benefit not only our health, but the health of the planet.

Particularly by replacing beef with other more sustainable substitutes like mushrooms, we can reduce greenhouse emissions by a comparable amount of taking over 2 million cars off the road a year. 

To learn more please read the article below:

“Here’s Why Environmentalists Are Cheering The Latest Burger At Sonic Drive-In” – NPR

Check out our Plant Based Eating Resource Page

“The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologist recommends plant based diet for people with diabetes, yet many people and educators are unsure how to get started.” – Coach Beverly

Check out our resource page full of ideas, recipes and more!

“They killed Tony the Tiger. They did away with Cheetos’ Chester Cheetah. They banned Kinder Surprise, the chocolate eggs with a hidden toy.”

Facing skyrocketing rates of obesity in adults and children, the Chilean government is waging war on unhealthy foods.

Here is a list of the strategies health advocates fought hard to implement:

• packaged food companies must display black warning labels in the shape of a stop sign on items high in sugar, slat, calories or fat.
• nixing iconic cartoon characters from cereal boxes.
• mandatory packing redesigns
• new labeling rules
• prohibits sale of junk food in Chilean schools
• scrubbing ads for junk food on TV or radio from 6am to 10pm.
• a ban on marketing infant formula to promote breast feeding

The goal is to transform the eating habits of an entire country.

Soaring obesity rates are forcing governments around the world to confront one of the more serious threats to public health in a generation.

Nutrition experts say the broad effort is the world’s most ambitious attempt to remake a country’s food culture. 

This hard fought campaign for health was lead by Senator Girardi, a trained surgeon with a flair for the theatrical.

“Sugar kills more people than terrorism and car accidents combined,” Giardi said in an interview as he shook a box of Trix cereal for effect. “It’s the poison of our time.”

Read more: In Sweeping War on Obesity, Chile Slays Tony the Tiger  The New York Times.

Want to help your community get to a place of better health? 
Check out our Six A Day Sugar Pledge Resource page.

We have created this pledge campaign to raise awareness on the health risks of added sugar and the benefits of enjoying less.

By eating less sugar, we all get healthier.

The two most common sugars added to foods are sucrose (white table sugar) and High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS). From a biochemistry standpoint, these disaccharides are broken down into a 50/50 ratio of glucose and fructose.  The 50% glucose, enters the blood stream and is utilized for energy.

The other 50% fructose enters a different energy pathway.

Fructose gets a direct pass through the portal vein to the liver.  The liver utilizes needed fructose for energy and the rest is converted to fat. 

Over time, a liver bombarded with fructose develops fatty liver disease.

Fast Fact: Up to 70% of obese people with diabetes have fatty liver disease. 

If Fructose is unhealthy, what about Fruit?

Fructose is a type of sugar that occurs naturally in fruits and some vegetables.  The good news about natural fructose is that it is wrapped up as part of the food’s complete nutrient package which includes energy, fiber, and essential micronutrients. 

According to Beth Rosen, MS, RD, “The difference between fructose in fruit compared to High fructose corn syrup in sweetened beverages is the concentration. While a 20-oz bottle of cola contains 36 grams of fructose, an apple contains 12 grams of fructose per serving, and a serving of strawberries contains 4 grams. This means that you would need to eat 3 apples or 9 cups of strawberries to equal the amount of sugar in a soda.” 

Following the national guidelines, encourage patients with diabetes to enjoy eating about 3 servings of fruit, spread throughout the day.

Addes sugars are camouflaged in foods including ketchup, breads, granola bars, cereals, yogurts, and many other processed foods.
But, by far, most Americans consume their sugar in beverages including:

• Sodas and Sports Drinks (contain avg 6-12 tsps of sugar)
• Fruit Drinks (contain 6-10 teaspoon of sugar)
• Fancy coffees and other specialty beverages

Sugary Drinks Negatively Affect Health. Studies have found:

• Drinking one or two sugary drinks a day increases risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 26%

• After six months, daily consumption of sugary drinks increases fat deposits in the liver by 150 percent, leading directly to both type 2 diabetes and heart disease.