Sadly, Type 2 diabetes is now no longer known as adult-onset diabetes due to the epidemic of this form of diabetes in younger people, largely because of poor eating habits, obesity and a sedentary lifestyle. Investigators at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, USA, looked at children 7 to 9 to discover whether extra fat could be lining them up for Type 2 diabetes. Their results were published in the journal Obesity in September 2011.
The Study: One hundred and twenty-three children were included in the study, and several tests were given to obese and non-obese participants:
* oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT) showed obese children were less able to take in sugar while keeping their blood sugar levels normal than were non-obese children.
* obese children showed higher cholesterol and lower HDL (good cholesterol) levels than normal-weight children, and higher levels of LDL (bad cholesterol), fats in the blood, and blood pressure.
Insulin insensitivity is the hallmark of Type 2 diabetes. The obese children, having difficulty lowering their blood sugar levels to normal after eating sugar and carbohydrates, demonstrated they were not as sensitive to the insulin made by their body, not as much as they should be. Diabetics also tend to have high cholesterol levels, low levels of HDL, and high levels of LDL.
Metabolic syndrome varies among people, but it typically includes Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels. All the components of metabolic syndrome put people at high risk for heart and blood vessel disease.
It was concluded that obesity lined the children up for Type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome at as early as 7 years of age.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 17 per cent or 12.5 million children between the ages of 2 and 19 in the United States are obese. The rate of obesity among children and adolescents has almost tripled since 1980. Stopping the epidemic is important to prevent the serious complications of diabetes and metabolic syndrome in an ever-growing segment of society.
Parents can help their children to be healthy by planning and carrying out some healthy low-calorie meals. Instead of taking the family to McDonald's for an outing, families can spend the same time in the kitchen preparing something good for themselves.
* children can be taught to wash vegetables and place them onto a plate, and even cut them when they are old enough to wield knives safely.
* kids like using computers, so they can be set the task of finding the most healthful fruit and vegetable recipes for the family to eat.
* children love to take on responsibilities, so having them plant a garden, water it, pull weeds, and harvest what they have grown for the family's table can help to keep them both happy and healthy. Instead of watching television as a family, going out and playing every evening can help family members build bonds and develop healthier bodies.
Instead of watching television as a family, going out and playing every evening can help family members build bonds and develop healthier bodies.
By Beverleigh H Piepers
The Study: One hundred and twenty-three children were included in the study, and several tests were given to obese and non-obese participants:
* oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT) showed obese children were less able to take in sugar while keeping their blood sugar levels normal than were non-obese children.
* obese children showed higher cholesterol and lower HDL (good cholesterol) levels than normal-weight children, and higher levels of LDL (bad cholesterol), fats in the blood, and blood pressure.
Insulin insensitivity is the hallmark of Type 2 diabetes. The obese children, having difficulty lowering their blood sugar levels to normal after eating sugar and carbohydrates, demonstrated they were not as sensitive to the insulin made by their body, not as much as they should be. Diabetics also tend to have high cholesterol levels, low levels of HDL, and high levels of LDL.
Metabolic syndrome varies among people, but it typically includes Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels. All the components of metabolic syndrome put people at high risk for heart and blood vessel disease.
It was concluded that obesity lined the children up for Type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome at as early as 7 years of age.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 17 per cent or 12.5 million children between the ages of 2 and 19 in the United States are obese. The rate of obesity among children and adolescents has almost tripled since 1980. Stopping the epidemic is important to prevent the serious complications of diabetes and metabolic syndrome in an ever-growing segment of society.
Parents can help their children to be healthy by planning and carrying out some healthy low-calorie meals. Instead of taking the family to McDonald's for an outing, families can spend the same time in the kitchen preparing something good for themselves.
* children can be taught to wash vegetables and place them onto a plate, and even cut them when they are old enough to wield knives safely.
* kids like using computers, so they can be set the task of finding the most healthful fruit and vegetable recipes for the family to eat.
* children love to take on responsibilities, so having them plant a garden, water it, pull weeds, and harvest what they have grown for the family's table can help to keep them both happy and healthy. Instead of watching television as a family, going out and playing every evening can help family members build bonds and develop healthier bodies.
Instead of watching television as a family, going out and playing every evening can help family members build bonds and develop healthier bodies.
By Beverleigh H Piepers
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