Studies on mice at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) may lead to an injection that cures Type II Diabetes. This metabolic disorder affects overweight and obese people, due to insulin resistance. The body needs more and more insulin to maintain steady blood sugar, and the pancreas cannot keep up. Diabetes can lead to eye … Continue reading “Gene Therapy Might Cure Type II Diabetes”
Diabetics and glaucoma patients could start wearing comfortable smart contact lenses to monitor blood sugar and intraocular pressure. Professor Jang-Ung Park and colleagues in South Korea1 have solved some of the problems associated with smart contact lenses by using graphene. They recently released a study documenting their breakthrough research. These biosensors may have broad applications … Continue reading “Smart Graphene Contact Lenses for Glaucoma and Diabetes Control”
Eye drops may soon replace gene therapy injections for Age-Related Macular Degeneration and Diabetic Retinopathy. 1 Delivering drugs to the back of the eye currently requires an invasive injection. The associated discomfort discourages many patients from consenting to this type of treatment. The new delivery technique is special eye drops that gently make their way … Continue reading “Eye Drops Instead of Injections for ARMD and Diabetic Retinopathy”
The Food and Drug Administration has granted approval for a new artificial pancreas that is hailed as a breakthrough for patients with Type I diabetes. Manufactured by Medtronic Plc, the MiniMed 670G1 combines an insulin pump with an insulin sensor. The sensor sends blood sugar data to the pump every five minutes. Then, the pump … Continue reading “New “Artificial Pancreas” for Diabetes”
The role of supplemental oxygen in diabetic macular edema was the subject of a pilot study in 2004. Diabetic macular edema or DME is a side-effect of diabetes. DME occurs when retinal blood vessels leak into the macula apparently trying to provide more oxygen to the retina. This leakage causes swelling, which, in turn, causes part … Continue reading “Diabetic Macular Edema and Supplemental Oxygen”
Middle-aged people and seniors are far more likely to develop Macular Degeneration, glaucoma, cataracts and diabetic retinopathy than those in their youth. It is true that some eye diseases strike the young. These tend to be genetically-based diseases, and they are rare. The incidence of eye diseases in the United States goes up dramatically with … Continue reading “Eye Disease in Seniors & Age 40+ Cataracts, Glaucoma, Diabetic Retinopathy, Macular Degeneration”
File this heart healthy fact away for next summer’s barbecue season: watermelon can help fight hypertension. Florida State University gave nine prehypertensive study participants the amino acid L-citrulline/L-arginine from watermelon extract for six weeks and all of them exhibited improved arterial function and lower aortic blood pressure. Watermelon is also a source of vitamins A, … Continue reading “Watermelon Helps Fight Heart Disease, Diabetes, and Eye Disease”
Research on turmeric spice indicates its potential to fight depression, cancer, diabetes, and neurodegenerative disease. The bright yellow spice, which lends color and flavor to mustard, curry, and other foods, also contains highly beneficial chemicals like curcumin. Curcumin has been studied widely in the past, but it only makes up about two to five percent … Continue reading “Turmeric May Guard Against Cancer, Lupus, Diabetes”
Diabetic retinopathy is an eye disease that is a complication of diabetes. In diabetes, levels of blood sugar are chronically elevated due to lack of insulin, an insulin insensitivity, or a combination of both. Just as sugar combined with water outside the body forms a sticky substance, excessive sugar in the bloodstream does so as … Continue reading “Diabetic Retinopathy Guide: When High Blood Sugar Damages the Eyes”
Google has announced plans to build a contact lens that can monitor blood sugar levels. The device that may come replete with miniature, flexible electronics, sensors and antennae. The lens would keep track of blood sugar levels via human tears. Google’s contact lens would be able to alert wearers when their blood sugar levels are … Continue reading “Google Contact Lens May Help Diabetes”