Diabetic Digest - Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Readers:

My wife has been sick for the last 2 weeks. She started out with a cough and ended up with a rather stubborn case of bronchitis. Don't worry, she's much better now.

The weird thing was while she was sick, I wasn't. I didn't even get the sniffles. I just thought that due to the circumstances I would be in the same boat as her. Usually with diabetes the quality of your immune system depends on the quality of your health. The better your health and the better control you have on your diabetes the better your immune system will function.

I guess what I'm getting at is that my health, my control, my lifestyle, I must be doing something right. I must be taking better care of myself than I think I am, but that doesn't mean that there isn't room for improvement.

Staying healthy is a constant battle. It requires constant attention and maintenance, kind of little a puppy. And as of right now, my puppy's tail is wagging away, and it's my job to keep that tail wagging and avoid getting bit.

Regards,
Steve

Comments? Questions? Email Steve


*-- Diabetic News --*
Why diabetic women are likelier to develop kidney failure than men
By: ANI

Washington - A new study has linked a genetic variant on chromosome 2 with kidney failure in diabetic women but not in men.

Niina Sandholm from Helsinki University Central Hospital and Folkhalsan Research Center, in Finland designed a study to detect genetic variants that might predispose diabetic women to kidney failure and identified a genetic variant on chromosome 2 that was linked with kidney failure in women with type 1 diabetes but not in men.

Diabetic women with the risk variant had a nearly two-fold increased risk of developing kidney failure compared with diabetic women who did not have the risk variant.

The genetic variant is located close to a gene for a factor that interacts with the estrogen receptor and also helps regulate kidney function. It will be interesting to see if this factor plays a role in the gender-specific protection against kidney failure seen in this study.

The study will be published in Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

Original Article: Why diabetic women are likelier to develop kidney failure than men


*-- Diabetic Recipe --*
Pumpkin Muffins
Servings: 5
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes
Total: 55 minutes

Ingredients
cooking spray
1/2 cup canned solid-pack pumpkin
1 small ripe banana
1/2 cup 1% milk
1 tablespoon granulated brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons raisins

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Lightly spray 5 cups of a standard muffin tin with cooking spray. Fill the 6th cup halfway with water (the other muffins will burn faster if you leave an empty cup. This is a good baking tip to keep in mind).
2. In a food processor or blender, combine all ingredients except raisins until mixture is smooth. (if you don't have a food processor or blender, you can also use your handmixer.)
3. Stir in the raisins.
4. Spoon the mixture into the 5 prepared muffin cups.
5. Bake for 45 minutes.
6. Unmold and serve when cool enough to eat by hand or refrigerate for up to 1 week and serve cold.

Nutrition Information
Per serving: 75 calories (17% calories from fat), 2 g protein, 2 g total fat (0.5 g saturated fat), 15 g carbohydrate, 1 g dietary fiber, 44 g cholesterol, 133 g sodium
Exchanges: 1 carbohydrate (1 fruit)

Original Recipe: Pumpkin Muffins

***
Missed an Issue? Visit the Diabetic Digest Archives