January 02, 2019

Readers:

Happy New Year!!! I hope 2019 finds you well, but if not I have a great recipe for Homemade Chicken Soup. It's delicious and it always helps me to feel better when I'm sick. Maybe it'll help when Mr. Sniffles comes to town.

Have a good one! I'll talk at you soon.

Regards,
Steve

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Comments? Questions? Email Steve

*-- Diabetic News --*

Diabetes drug may also treat common heart failure syndrome, study says

A drug commonly used to treat type 2 diabetes could also help repair heart failure, a study says.

Close to half of all heart failure patients have HFpEF, which stiffens the left ventricle of the heart and reduces its ability to fill with blood. In turn, that leads to a lack of blood flow through the body, causing shortness of breath.

A study published Wednesday in the Journal of General Physiology discovered that diabetes drug metformin loosens the heart muscle protein tightened by HFpEF, enabling the heart to properly fill with blood before pushing out to the rest of the body.

Researchers from the University of Arizona were able to relax the left ventricle muscle of lab mice during their research.

HFpEF more commonly affects women with risk factors like hypertension, old age and obesity. However, no current drugs on the market treat the condition.

A 2016 study foiund that more than 8 percent of people over age 65 have HFpEF. Also, nearly half of all heart patients suffer from the condition.

That means people who suffer from HFpEF have little hope for treatment. In fact, people with HFpEF have a "poor" five-year survival rate, according to a 2017 study from the American College of Cardiology.

Now, metformin has brought in new hope for treatment. Researchers say the diabetes drug helps titin recoil after being stretched by adding phosphates that help make it more buoyant and flexible.

"We therefore conclude that metformin is a potential therapy for patients with HFpEF," Henk L. Granzier, a researcher at University of Arizona and study author, said in a news release. "Because the drug is already approved and well tolerated in humans, using it to target titin stiffness presents a unique opportunity for immediate translation to the clinic."

*-- Diabetic Recipe --*

HOMEMADE CHICKEN SOUP
INGREDIENTS:
1 tablespoons olive oil
1 large carrot, peeled and sliced
1 whole chicken, breasts removed and reserved
1 celery stalk, sliced
2 onions, diced 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 quarts boiling water 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
Salt Ground pepper
2 bay leaves

DIRECTIONS:
Heat the oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot and saute the breasts until they are light brown, about 5 minutes. Remove the breasts and set aside. Add the onions and saute until translucent, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove and set aside. Cut up the remaining parts of the chicken (not the breasts) into small pieces to allow them to release their juices in the shortest time possible with a chefs knife. Add the pieces to the pot, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes until no longer pink. Return the onion to the pot, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the chicken releases its juices, about 20 minutes. Add boiling water, reserved chicken breasts, 2 teaspoons of salt, and bay leaves. Cover and simmer until chicken breasts are cooked, about 20 minutes. Increase the heat if necessary. Remove chicken breasts and set aside. Strain and reserve broth. Skim fat from the broth, reserving 2 tablespoons to be used to cook the vegetables. Add the reserved fat to the soup pot and saute the remaining onions along with the carrot and celery for about 5 minutes. When the chicken breasts are cool enough to handle, remove and discard the skin and bones. Shred the breast meat into bite sized pieces and add to the pot. Add thyme and reserved broth; simmer until the vegetables are tender. Season with salt and pepper, add parsley and serve.

Category: Soups, Chicken
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