July 7, 2022 — “Time-restricted feeding could be key to combat obesity,” says the headline. The press release from the University of California at San Diego is a little more restrained, though. “A rhythmic small intestinal microbiome prevents obesity and type 2 diabetes,” it says. Then finally we get down to reality in the paper. There we find that […]
June 20, 2022 — Seeking remission from type 2 diabetes is an elusive goal for people who are facing this diagnosis. The very human wish is to banish this disease forever, but that’s not what remission really is. In fact, remission means a respite from an illness – not the promise of a cure. Physician Anne Peters describes the […]
June 7, 2022 — Just about any medical diagnosis can be a bit dehumanizing. Even more so when a medical professional takes it a step further and explicitly labels a person with their diagnosis. For most diseases, health professionals have long understood that labeling people in this way – as an “epileptic,” for example – is bad form. But […]
June 6, 2022 — Two ideas are hard to miss at the annual Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association. One is that it’s getting harder to treat and prevent diabetes adequately without treating obesity. Second is that health systems can’t handle this reality. They are systematically preventing adequate obesity and diabetes care. Distinct but Overlapping Diseases Let’s get […]
June 1, 2022 — When “health plans” tell someone seeking treatment for obesity it’s a vanity thing, we are not fooled. They simply don’t want to pay the bill. Health plan? Not really. It’s a lot like car insurance. It pays for a wreck. Not so much for preventing one. Writing in the New York Times today, Gina Kolata […]
May 21, 2022 — Competition can be a great thing. In the past few weeks we’ve been hearing a lot about tirzepatide. The FDA just approved it for treating type 2 diabetes, hailing it as an important advance. Tirzepatide for obesity is a couple of years away, but the initial results of pivotal studies have been extremely impressive. So […]
March 22, 2022 — Very early in the pandemic, it was clear that diabetes and COVID had a deep relationship. Along with obesity, diabetes was a key risk factor for a rough ride with COVID. But as the pandemic unfolded, data started suggesting this was a two-way street. COVID could give patients a higher chance of developing diabetes. A […]
March 17, 2022 — Should we be having potatoes for breakfast? An interesting new study this week adds to the evidence that when we eat different foods might matter for health outcomes as much as our choice of foods. Specifically, this research was an analysis of mortality in persons with diabetes based on NHANES data from 2003 to 2014. […]
February 1, 2022 — It is a familiar pattern, but no less disappointing because of that. A government commission issues a report and cries out for action. “Another health crisis challenges the U.S.: diabetes mellitus,” says the report issued yesterday by the National Clinical Care Commission. The report correctly identifies obesity as a key driver of rising deaths from […]
January 26, 2022 — The relationship between diabetes and COVID-19 grows more interesting by the day. Early in the pandemic, it became clear that diabetes is an important risk factor for severe complications with COVID-19. As more research emerged, it became clear that inflammation is a mediator for this risk. And now it seems that diabetes might even raise […]
