Sunday, March 31, 2013
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Byetta, Victoza, Bydureon Appear to Cause Pre-Cancerous Pancreatic Abnormalities
Page changed: Byetta, Bydureon, and Victoza
Content added:
Byetta and Victoza are molecules that are similar to naturally occurring GLP-1, however, changes in its molecular structure make them not break down as swiftly as naturally produced GLP-1, so their effects are longer lasting.
The original molecule that formed the basis for designing Byetta was found in the spit of Gila Lizards, hence Byetta's nickname of "Lizard Spit."
Byetta is injected and its half-life in the body is about two and a half hours, though some Byetta will remain as long as ten hours after injection.
However, this was a relatively short study, and it was run under the auspices of a commercial organization that profits from selling this very expensive drug.
A far more conclusive, and damaging study was conducted by highly regarded researchers at UCLA's Medical School. They carefully autopsied the pancreases of people with diabetes who had died of strokes and head injuries. About half of these people had been taking an incretin drug for at least a year. While most were on Januvia, one was on Byetta. The most troubling finding of this study was that all the people with diabetes who had taken these incretin drugs for a year or more had very abnormal findings when their pancreases were examined. The abnormalities included the presence of an abnormally high number of both beta cells and alpha cells--more than three times greater than normal and the fact that these cells were arranged in "eccentric" islets that were proliferating into the pancreatic ducts in an unusual way.
The people taking these incretin drugs were also found to have tiny glandular tumors scattered throughout their pancreases.
None of the people who had had diabetes but who had not taken these drugs displayed any of these abnormalities.
The proliferative changes observed were of the type associated with pancreatitis. The tumors found in the person taking Byetta were adenomas--a type of glandular tumor that starts out benign but can over time turn cancerous.
The scientists explain in their study that it is very likely that exposure to abnormally high levels of GLP-1 or to GLP-1 mimics is what is causing these changes, citing animal research which illuminates the mechanism involved. This means any incretin drug, be it a GLP-1 mimic or a DPP-4 inhibitor will cause these dangerous changes.
They also point out that people on these drugs despite having more than three times more beta cells than normal people were still diabetic, suggesting that the newly created cells were not functioning normally. In fact, they observed that that many of the cells found showed signs they had been secreting both insulin (secreted normally by beta cells) and glucagon (secreted normally by alpha cells) . This kind of secretion pattern is characteristic only of immature cells found only in fetal tissue. It is never found in normal adult humans.
These abnormalities are very serious. More importantly, they have also been found in animals treated with these drugs, so though this is only one human study, its findings should be taken as confirming that yes, the dangerous changes seen in animals taking these drugs also occur in humans.
Since the kind of tumors found here are undetectable until they cause pancreatitis or cancer, they are very worrisome. The researchers point out in their discussion of their findings that when there is any suspicion that a person has one of these benign pancreatic tumors the treatment is immediate surgery. But what they don't mention is that suspicion that such a tumor is present only arises when it is causing clear-cut symptoms.
Unfortunately, the first symptom of spreading tumors in the pancreas is an increase in blood sugar. Since doctors consider rising blood sugars in people with diabetes to be normal, the are unlikely to suspect a tumor until other, more troubling symptoms emerge at which time it may be too late to save the patient's life.
Bottom line: All incretin drugs are hazardous to your long term health no matter what their short term benefits.
The study is found here:
Marked Expansion of Exocrine and Endocrine Pancreas with Incretin Therapy in Humans with increased Exocrine Pancreas Dysplasia and the potential for Glucagon-producing Neuroendocrine Tumors. Alexandra E Butler et al. Published online before print March 22, 2013, doi: 10.2337/db12-1686. Diabetes March 22, 2013
You can read another discussion of what this study found HERE.
These findings are so disturbing and the potential for harm so large, that I can no longer see any reason to take any drug in this family.
The rest of this page describes more about these drugs and what people taking them report. I include them for historical purposes, but urge you not to experiment with these drugs now that we know what they do to the pancreas. Whatever their benefits, it seems foolish to take any drug that could cause abnormal cell growth in your pancreas and stimulate the growth of undetectable tumors that could over time turn cancerous or cause pancreatitis requiring surgery that could damage your pancreas and take away what limited function it still has.
Content added:
Byetta and Victoza
Byetta and Victoza are two drugs of the incretin drug family. Bydureon is a long lasting version of Byetta.What These Drugs Do
Byetta and Victoza are substances that mimic GLP-1, a hormone secreted by cells in the gut when people eat. GLP-1's functions include stimulating the secretion of insulin when blood sugars rise and controlling the valves that cause the stomach to empty food into the small intestine. GLP-1 passes into the brain, too, where it has effects on eating behavior and other metabolic functions that are not well understood.Byetta and Victoza are molecules that are similar to naturally occurring GLP-1, however, changes in its molecular structure make them not break down as swiftly as naturally produced GLP-1, so their effects are longer lasting.
The original molecule that formed the basis for designing Byetta was found in the spit of Gila Lizards, hence Byetta's nickname of "Lizard Spit."
Byetta is injected and its half-life in the body is about two and a half hours, though some Byetta will remain as long as ten hours after injection.
The Fatal Flaw with These Drugs: They Cause Abnormal Cell Growth and Precancerous Tumors in the Pancreas
For several years the FDA has been warning that Byetta and Victoza may be associated with pancreatitis, a painful inflammation of the pancreas that can destroy large portions of it and lead to full-fledged Type 1 diabetes. A study run by a big mail order pharmacy, Medco, which analyzed its patient's medical records appeared to suggest that Byetta was not causing pancreatitis. Acute Pancreatitis in Type 2 Diabetes Treated With Exenatide or Sitagliptin: A retrospective observational pharmacy claims analysis. Rajesh Garg et al. Diabetes Care Diabetes Care November 2010 vol. 33 no. 11 2349-2354However, this was a relatively short study, and it was run under the auspices of a commercial organization that profits from selling this very expensive drug.
A far more conclusive, and damaging study was conducted by highly regarded researchers at UCLA's Medical School. They carefully autopsied the pancreases of people with diabetes who had died of strokes and head injuries. About half of these people had been taking an incretin drug for at least a year. While most were on Januvia, one was on Byetta. The most troubling finding of this study was that all the people with diabetes who had taken these incretin drugs for a year or more had very abnormal findings when their pancreases were examined. The abnormalities included the presence of an abnormally high number of both beta cells and alpha cells--more than three times greater than normal and the fact that these cells were arranged in "eccentric" islets that were proliferating into the pancreatic ducts in an unusual way.
The people taking these incretin drugs were also found to have tiny glandular tumors scattered throughout their pancreases.
None of the people who had had diabetes but who had not taken these drugs displayed any of these abnormalities.
The proliferative changes observed were of the type associated with pancreatitis. The tumors found in the person taking Byetta were adenomas--a type of glandular tumor that starts out benign but can over time turn cancerous.
The scientists explain in their study that it is very likely that exposure to abnormally high levels of GLP-1 or to GLP-1 mimics is what is causing these changes, citing animal research which illuminates the mechanism involved. This means any incretin drug, be it a GLP-1 mimic or a DPP-4 inhibitor will cause these dangerous changes.
They also point out that people on these drugs despite having more than three times more beta cells than normal people were still diabetic, suggesting that the newly created cells were not functioning normally. In fact, they observed that that many of the cells found showed signs they had been secreting both insulin (secreted normally by beta cells) and glucagon (secreted normally by alpha cells) . This kind of secretion pattern is characteristic only of immature cells found only in fetal tissue. It is never found in normal adult humans.
These abnormalities are very serious. More importantly, they have also been found in animals treated with these drugs, so though this is only one human study, its findings should be taken as confirming that yes, the dangerous changes seen in animals taking these drugs also occur in humans.
Since the kind of tumors found here are undetectable until they cause pancreatitis or cancer, they are very worrisome. The researchers point out in their discussion of their findings that when there is any suspicion that a person has one of these benign pancreatic tumors the treatment is immediate surgery. But what they don't mention is that suspicion that such a tumor is present only arises when it is causing clear-cut symptoms.
Unfortunately, the first symptom of spreading tumors in the pancreas is an increase in blood sugar. Since doctors consider rising blood sugars in people with diabetes to be normal, the are unlikely to suspect a tumor until other, more troubling symptoms emerge at which time it may be too late to save the patient's life.
Bottom line: All incretin drugs are hazardous to your long term health no matter what their short term benefits.
The study is found here:
Marked Expansion of Exocrine and Endocrine Pancreas with Incretin Therapy in Humans with increased Exocrine Pancreas Dysplasia and the potential for Glucagon-producing Neuroendocrine Tumors. Alexandra E Butler et al. Published online before print March 22, 2013, doi: 10.2337/db12-1686. Diabetes March 22, 2013
You can read another discussion of what this study found HERE.
These findings are so disturbing and the potential for harm so large, that I can no longer see any reason to take any drug in this family.
The rest of this page describes more about these drugs and what people taking them report. I include them for historical purposes, but urge you not to experiment with these drugs now that we know what they do to the pancreas. Whatever their benefits, it seems foolish to take any drug that could cause abnormal cell growth in your pancreas and stimulate the growth of undetectable tumors that could over time turn cancerous or cause pancreatitis requiring surgery that could damage your pancreas and take away what limited function it still has.
DPP-4 Inhibitors Cause Abnormal Cell Proliferation and Pre-cancerous Changes in the Pancreas
Page Changed: DPP-4 Inhibitors Januvia, Onglyza, Trajenta, Combiglyze, Janumet, and Jentadueto
Text added:
Januvia was the first of a family of diabetes drugs that works by increasing the levels of GLP-1 in the bloodstream. Newer drugs in this family include Onglyza and Trajenta, as well as combination drugs which mix the incretin drug in the same pill as metformin. These drugs are Janumet, Combiglyze, and Jentadueto. GLP-1 is an incretin hormone that stimulates insulin secretion. Another kind of incretin drug, which includes Byetta and Victoza are artificially sythesized molecules that behave just like GLP-1 in the body but last longer. The DPP-4 inhibitors are quite different. They are pills that cause the GLP-1 your body secretes on its own to rise to a higher than normal level by
inhibiting the action of DPP-4. DPP-4 is an enzyme (a.k.a. protease) which when it is left to its own devices, chops up GLP-1 and another hormone, GIP. When DPP-4 is inhibited, GLP-1 does not get chopped up and remains active in the body. When GLP-1 is active, it stimulates insulin secretion when blood sugars rise.
However, this was a relatively short study, and it was run under the auspices of a commercial organization that profits from selling this very expensive drug.
A far more conclusive, and damaging, study was conducted by highly regarded researchers at UCLA's Medical School. They carefully autopsied the pancreases of people with diabetes who had died of strokes and head injuries. About half of these people had been taking an incretin drug for at least a year. All but one were on Januvia, the other was on Byetta. The most troubling finding of this study was that all the people with diabetes who had taken these incretin drugs for a year or more had very abnormal findings when their pancreases were examined. The abnormalities included the presence of an abnormally high number of both beta cells and alpha cells--more than three times greater than normal and the fact that these cells were arranged in "eccentric" islets that were proliferating into the pancreatic ducts in an unusual way.
The people taking these incretin drugs were also found to have tiny glandular tumors scattered throughout their pancreases.
The pancreases of none of the people who had had diabetes but had not taken these drugs displayed any of these abnormalities.
The proliferative changes observed were of the type associated with pancreatitis. Most of the tumors found in people taking Januvia were adenomas--a type of glandular tumor that starts out benign but can over time turn cancerous. They also found a 1 cm neuroendocrine tumor in the pancreas of one patient who had been taking Januvia.
The scientists explain in their study that it is very likely that exposure to abnormally high levels of GLP-1 or to GLP-1 mimics is what is causing these changes, citing animal research which illuminates the mechanism involved. This means any incretin drug, be it a GLP-1 mimic or a DPP-4 inhibitor will cause these dangerous changes.
They also point out that people on these drugs despite having more than three times more beta cells than normal people were still diabetic, suggesting that the newly created cells were not functioning normally. In fact, they observed that that many of the cells found showed signs they had been secreting both insulin (secreted normally by beta cells) and glucagon (secreted normally by alpha cells) . This kind of secretion pattern is characteristic only of immature cells found only in fetal tissue. It is never found in normal adult humans.
These abnormalities are very serious. More importantly, they have also been found in animals treated with these drugs, so though this is only one human study, its findings should be taken as confirming that yes, the dangerous changes seen in animals taking these drugs also occur in humans.
Since the kind of tumors found here are undetectable until they cause pancreatitis or cancer, they are very worrisome. The researchers point out in their discussion of their findings that when there is any suspicion that a person has one of these benign pancreatic tumors the treatment is immediate surgery. But what they don't mention is that suspicion that such a tumor is present only arises when it is causing clear-cut symptoms.
Unfortunately, the first symptom of spreading tumors in the pancreas is an increase in blood sugar. Since doctors consider rising blood sugars in people with diabetes to be normal, the are unlikely to suspect a tumor until other, more troubling symptoms emerge at which time it may be too late to save the patient's life.
Bottom line: All incretin drugs are hazardous to your long term health no matter what their short term benefits.
The study is found here:
Marked Expansion of Exocrine and Endocrine Pancreas with Incretin Therapy in Humans with increased Exocrine Pancreas Dysplasia and the potential for Glucagon-producing Neuroendocrine Tumors. Alexandra E Butler et al. Published online before print March 22, 2013, doi: 10.2337/db12-1686. Diabetes March 22, 2013
You can read another discussion of what this study found HERE.
These findings are so disturbing and the potential for harm so large, that I can see any reason to take any drug in this family.
The rest of this page describes more about these drugs and what people taking them report. I include them for historical purposes, but urge you not to experiment with these drugs now that we know what they do to the pancreas. Whatever their benefits, it seems foolish to take any drug that could cause abnormal cell growth in your pancreas and stimulate the growth of undetectable tumors that could over time turn cancerous or cause pancreatitis requiring surgery that could damage your pancreas and take away what limited function it still has.
Text added:
Januvia was the first of a family of diabetes drugs that works by increasing the levels of GLP-1 in the bloodstream. Newer drugs in this family include Onglyza and Trajenta, as well as combination drugs which mix the incretin drug in the same pill as metformin. These drugs are Janumet, Combiglyze, and Jentadueto. GLP-1 is an incretin hormone that stimulates insulin secretion. Another kind of incretin drug, which includes Byetta and Victoza are artificially sythesized molecules that behave just like GLP-1 in the body but last longer. The DPP-4 inhibitors are quite different. They are pills that cause the GLP-1 your body secretes on its own to rise to a higher than normal level by
inhibiting the action of DPP-4. DPP-4 is an enzyme (a.k.a. protease) which when it is left to its own devices, chops up GLP-1 and another hormone, GIP. When DPP-4 is inhibited, GLP-1 does not get chopped up and remains active in the body. When GLP-1 is active, it stimulates insulin secretion when blood sugars rise.
The Fatal Flaw with These Drugs: They Cause Abnormal Cell Growth and Pre-cancerous Tumors in the Pancreas
For several years the FDA has been getting reports that drugs in both families of incretin drugs were causing pancreatitis, a painful inflammation of the pancreas that can destroy large portions of it and lead to full-fledged Type 1 diabetes or even death. They recently decided to study the issue, though, in typical FDA fashion they merely asked for more research without warning doctors to take patients off these dangerous drugs. A study run by a big mail order pharmacy, Medco, which analyzed its patient's medical records appeared to suggest that Byetta and Januvia were not causing pancreatitis. Acute Pancreatitis in Type 2 Diabetes Treated With Exenatide or Sitagliptin: A retrospective observational pharmacy claims analysis. Rajesh Garg et al. Diabetes Care Diabetes Care November 2010 vol. 33 no. 11 2349-2354However, this was a relatively short study, and it was run under the auspices of a commercial organization that profits from selling this very expensive drug.
A far more conclusive, and damaging, study was conducted by highly regarded researchers at UCLA's Medical School. They carefully autopsied the pancreases of people with diabetes who had died of strokes and head injuries. About half of these people had been taking an incretin drug for at least a year. All but one were on Januvia, the other was on Byetta. The most troubling finding of this study was that all the people with diabetes who had taken these incretin drugs for a year or more had very abnormal findings when their pancreases were examined. The abnormalities included the presence of an abnormally high number of both beta cells and alpha cells--more than three times greater than normal and the fact that these cells were arranged in "eccentric" islets that were proliferating into the pancreatic ducts in an unusual way.
The people taking these incretin drugs were also found to have tiny glandular tumors scattered throughout their pancreases.
The pancreases of none of the people who had had diabetes but had not taken these drugs displayed any of these abnormalities.
The proliferative changes observed were of the type associated with pancreatitis. Most of the tumors found in people taking Januvia were adenomas--a type of glandular tumor that starts out benign but can over time turn cancerous. They also found a 1 cm neuroendocrine tumor in the pancreas of one patient who had been taking Januvia.
The scientists explain in their study that it is very likely that exposure to abnormally high levels of GLP-1 or to GLP-1 mimics is what is causing these changes, citing animal research which illuminates the mechanism involved. This means any incretin drug, be it a GLP-1 mimic or a DPP-4 inhibitor will cause these dangerous changes.
They also point out that people on these drugs despite having more than three times more beta cells than normal people were still diabetic, suggesting that the newly created cells were not functioning normally. In fact, they observed that that many of the cells found showed signs they had been secreting both insulin (secreted normally by beta cells) and glucagon (secreted normally by alpha cells) . This kind of secretion pattern is characteristic only of immature cells found only in fetal tissue. It is never found in normal adult humans.
These abnormalities are very serious. More importantly, they have also been found in animals treated with these drugs, so though this is only one human study, its findings should be taken as confirming that yes, the dangerous changes seen in animals taking these drugs also occur in humans.
Since the kind of tumors found here are undetectable until they cause pancreatitis or cancer, they are very worrisome. The researchers point out in their discussion of their findings that when there is any suspicion that a person has one of these benign pancreatic tumors the treatment is immediate surgery. But what they don't mention is that suspicion that such a tumor is present only arises when it is causing clear-cut symptoms.
Unfortunately, the first symptom of spreading tumors in the pancreas is an increase in blood sugar. Since doctors consider rising blood sugars in people with diabetes to be normal, the are unlikely to suspect a tumor until other, more troubling symptoms emerge at which time it may be too late to save the patient's life.
All DPP-4 Inhibitors Will Cause the Same Abnormal Growths Because They All Raise GLP-1
In addition, during the testing of one of the newer of these drugs, Onglyza, problems with thyroid tissue also emerged, suggesting that it not only causes abnormalities in pancreatic glandular tissue but also in thyroid gland tissue.Bottom line: All incretin drugs are hazardous to your long term health no matter what their short term benefits.
The study is found here:
Marked Expansion of Exocrine and Endocrine Pancreas with Incretin Therapy in Humans with increased Exocrine Pancreas Dysplasia and the potential for Glucagon-producing Neuroendocrine Tumors. Alexandra E Butler et al. Published online before print March 22, 2013, doi: 10.2337/db12-1686. Diabetes March 22, 2013
You can read another discussion of what this study found HERE.
These findings are so disturbing and the potential for harm so large, that I can see any reason to take any drug in this family.
The rest of this page describes more about these drugs and what people taking them report. I include them for historical purposes, but urge you not to experiment with these drugs now that we know what they do to the pancreas. Whatever their benefits, it seems foolish to take any drug that could cause abnormal cell growth in your pancreas and stimulate the growth of undetectable tumors that could over time turn cancerous or cause pancreatitis requiring surgery that could damage your pancreas and take away what limited function it still has.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
NSAIDS Taken with ACE Inhibitors and Diuretics Dramatically Increase Risk of Kidney Damage
Page Changed: Other Dangerous Drugs for People with Diabetes
Added the following:
Explained by Science Daily HERE.
Added the following:
Mixing NSAIDS with Diuretics and ACE Inhibitors Is Even More Damaging to the Kidney
A study published in the British Medical Journal found that:The results show that patients taking a double therapy combination of either a diuretic or an ACE inhibitors or ARB with an NSAID were at no increased risk of kidney injury. However, a triple therapy combination of a diuretic with an ACE inhibitor or ARB and an NSAID was associated with a 31% higher rate of kidney injury, particularly elevated in the first 30 days of treatment during which it was 82% higher.Concurrent use of diuretics, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors, and angiotensin receptor blockers with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and risk of acute kidney injury: nested case-control study. Francesco Lapi, Laurent Azoulay, Hui Yin, Sharon J Nessim, Samy Suissa. BMJ, 2013 DOI: 10.1136/bmj.e8525.
Explained by Science Daily HERE.
Thursday, November 8, 2012
More Evidence that Sulfonylureas Are Bad for the Heart
Page Changed: Amaryl, Glyburide, Prandin, Starlix: Drugs that Stimulate Insulin Secretion"
Added this text:
And if that wasn't enough, a study of the records of over 250,000 veterans found that "...for every 1,000 patients who are using metformin for a year there are two fewer heart attacks, strokes or deaths compared with patients who use sulfonylureas."
Science Daily: Metformin Offers Cardio Benefits Over Sulfonylureas in Diabetes,
Study Suggests Comparative Effectiveness of Sulfonylurea and Metformin Monotherapy on Cardiovascular Events in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Cohort Study Christianne L. Roumie, et al. Ann Intern Med. 6 November 2012;157(9):601-610
Added this text:
And if that wasn't enough, a study of the records of over 250,000 veterans found that "...for every 1,000 patients who are using metformin for a year there are two fewer heart attacks, strokes or deaths compared with patients who use sulfonylureas."
Science Daily: Metformin Offers Cardio Benefits Over Sulfonylureas in Diabetes,
Study Suggests Comparative Effectiveness of Sulfonylurea and Metformin Monotherapy on Cardiovascular Events in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Cohort Study Christianne L. Roumie, et al. Ann Intern Med. 6 November 2012;157(9):601-610
Monday, November 5, 2012
Page Changed: Healthy Blood Sugar Targets
Added the following text:
Added the following text:
What If You Can't Always Hit Your Target?
Many of us will see blood sugars higher than we'd like. The good news is that it takes many years of exposure to high blood sugars to damage your organs. If you spike occasionally, but maintain good control overall, your risk of complications is far lower than people whose blood sugar is routinely going up over 200 mg/dl for an hour after every meal--the target that the ADA recommends and most doctors consider "great control." Obsession and eating disorders are not healthy, and diabetes makes it very easy to become obsessed and develop an eating disorder. A few hours a week over your target blood sugar range are not an emergency. It's when you are spending a few hours every day over your target range that it's time to ramp up your efforts to get good control.Not so surprisingly, it is when you are spending several hours a day over 140 mg/dl (7.7 mmol/L) and seeing blood sugars spiking into the truly dangerous 200 mg/dl range (11 mmol/L) that your A1c will rise into the middle 6% range and your heart attack risk and risk of other complications will start to become significant.Sunday, November 4, 2012
The Rate of Obesity Has Skyrocketed, but The Rate of Diabetes Has Remained Relatively Low
Page Changed: You Did Not Eat Your Way to Diabetes
Added the following paragraph:
The CDC reports that "From 1980 through 2010, the crude prevalence of diagnosed diabetes increased ...from 2.5% to 6.9%." However, if you look at the graph that accompanies this statement, you see that the rate of diabetes diagnoses rose only gradually through this period--to about 3.5% until it suddenly sped upward in the late 1990s. This sudden increase largely due to the fact that in 1998 the American Diabetes Association changed the criteria by which diabetes was to be diagnosed, lowering the fasting blood sugar level used to diagnose diabetes from 141 mg/dl to 126 mg/dl. (Details HERE)
Analyzing these statistics, it becomes clear that though roughtly 65 million more Americans became fat over this period, only 13 million more Americans became diabetic. And to further confuse the matter, several factors other than the rise in obesity and the ADA's lowering of the diagnostic cutoff also came into play during this period which also raised the rate of diabetes diagnoses:
Diabetes becomes more common as people age as the pancreas like other organs, becames less efficient. In 1950 only 12% of the U.S. population was over 65. By 2010 40% was, and of those 40%, 19% were over 75.(Details HERE.)
At the same time, the period during which the rate of diabetes rose was also the period in which doctors began to heavily prescribe statins, a class of drugs we now know raises the risk of developing diabetes. (Details HERE.)
Added the following paragraph:
Obesity Has Risen Dramatically While Diabetes Rates Have Not
The rate of obesity has grown alarmingly over the past decades, especially in certain regions of the U.S. The NIH reports that "From 1960-2 to 2005-6, the prevalence of obesity increased from 13.4 to 35.1 percent in U.S. adults age 20 to 74.7." If obesity was causing diabetes, you'd exect to see a similar rise in the diabetes rate. But this has not happened.The CDC reports that "From 1980 through 2010, the crude prevalence of diagnosed diabetes increased ...from 2.5% to 6.9%." However, if you look at the graph that accompanies this statement, you see that the rate of diabetes diagnoses rose only gradually through this period--to about 3.5% until it suddenly sped upward in the late 1990s. This sudden increase largely due to the fact that in 1998 the American Diabetes Association changed the criteria by which diabetes was to be diagnosed, lowering the fasting blood sugar level used to diagnose diabetes from 141 mg/dl to 126 mg/dl. (Details HERE)
Analyzing these statistics, it becomes clear that though roughtly 65 million more Americans became fat over this period, only 13 million more Americans became diabetic. And to further confuse the matter, several factors other than the rise in obesity and the ADA's lowering of the diagnostic cutoff also came into play during this period which also raised the rate of diabetes diagnoses:
Diabetes becomes more common as people age as the pancreas like other organs, becames less efficient. In 1950 only 12% of the U.S. population was over 65. By 2010 40% was, and of those 40%, 19% were over 75.(Details HERE.)
At the same time, the period during which the rate of diabetes rose was also the period in which doctors began to heavily prescribe statins, a class of drugs we now know raises the risk of developing diabetes. (Details HERE.)
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