Jezebel: Diabetes

The Weight-Loss Drug That Wasn't

Anna North — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 19:05:00 EST

Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21 for short) was a hot prospect in anti-obesity research — and drug companies jumped into the fray, eager to capitalize. But now it appears that, like sticks and stones, FGF21 will break your bones. Here's the story of the hip new weight-loss drug that may never see the light of day. More »

Is Sugar the Next Booze?

Cassie Murdoch — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:20:00 EST

Sugar is delicious. It makes a bad day a little brighter; it makes food taste a little better; it makes cupcakes and pies. Sure, it may not be good for us, but why would we ever want to get rid of it? Well, we wouldn't want to, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't. At least that's what a new commentary published in the most recent issue of Nature argues. It may not be a bad idea, but you can bet there will be a whole nation of sweet-toothed people clutching their candy necklaces and screaming, "Do not fucking touch my dessert!" More »

Paula Deen's Diabetic Debut Is a Shitshow

Dodai Stewart — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 15:20:00 EST

This morning, Paula Deen was on the Today show, confirming that yes, she does have type 2 diabetes. And, she was diagnosed three years ago. "It is not a death sentence," Deen asserted. Still: Diabetes is a serious disease — the American Diabetes Association notes that diabetes causes more deaths a year than breast cancer and AIDS combined. Genetic factors contribute to the disease, but "lifestyle factors" — diet and excess body fat — are also part of the cause. But Deen's not going to get into that. More »

Paula Deen Has Diabetes

Dodai Stewart — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:20:00 EST

Butter, y'all. More »

Walgreens Employee Fired For 'Stealing' Chips During Diabetic Attack

Margaret Hartmann — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 20:07:00 EDT

If you're looking for a good place to have a hypoglycemic attack, Walgreens isn't it. In 2008 the company fired Josefina Hernandez for eating a bag of chips when she felt an attack coming on, even though she paid for them as soon as she was able to leave her cashier's post at a San Francisco store. Hernandez had worked for the store for 18 years and had no disciplinary record, but the company said it has a zero-tolerance policy for stealing. Now the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed a lawsuit against Walgreens for discriminating against disabled people. While the company says it values its employees, it seems it values a $1.34 bag of chips slightly more. More »

Chocolate Could Protect Against Diabetes

Anna North — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 12:25:00 EDT

Cathy, rejoice: research has suggested that eating chocolate reduces not just the risk of heart disease, but that of stroke and diabetes as well. More »

Brainwashing Is The New Weapon Against Childhood Obesity

Anna North — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 18:00:00 EDT

Most parents want their kids to eat healthy, but one memory expert had a somewhat disturbing solution. More »

Bok Choy Binge Lands Woman In Hospital

Katy Kelleher — Thu, 20 May 2010 17:30:00 EDT

A 88-year-old Chinese woman ate herself into a coma by consuming 2 to 3 pounds of raw, unseasoned bok choy every day for months. She was reportedly trying to control her diabetes. [The Body Odd] More »

10 Things You May Have Missed On TV This Week

Tracie Egan Morrissey — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 16:00:00 EDT

In this week's compilation of pop culture crap, Willie Nelson admits to Larry King that he's stoned on TV, Niecy Nash has a distracting booger, and someone invents porn for blind people, much to blind people's chagrin. More »

10 Facts About Casey Johnson

Tracie Egan Morrissey — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 20:00:00 EST

With the news that 30-year-old Johnson & Johnson heiress Casey Johnson passed away, people are wondering: Who is she and why should I care? Let us give you 10 facts via videography. More »

Champing At The Bit

Anna Holmes — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 09:10:00 EDT

[Washington, D.C., August 24. Image via Getty]

Issue of Vegan Pets Divides Vets, Owners • In The Works: Woodstock, 2009

Katy Kelleher — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 17:30:00 EDT

• Some vegan pet owners have begun feeding their animals vegan diets, because "living with a tiny carnivore" was too disturbing. Veterinarians remain skeptical. • More »

New "Exercise In A Pill" Still Requires, You Know, Exercise

Maria — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 09:30:00 EDT

Couch potatoes: what if scientists told you that you could enjoy all the benefits of exercise without any of that pesky effort and dedication? Sounds good, right? Who doesn't hate doing stuff? Well, researchers at the Salk Institute have found two drugs that can mimic athletic endurance in mice. Of course, theoretically, one still has to do exercise to reap the benefits of these "exercise pills," but that won't stop journalists (and the researchers who oversaw the project) from calling these drugs "exercise in a pill." More »

Researchers at the University of East Anglia...

Jennifer — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 13:20:00 EDT

Researchers at the University of East Anglia in Norwich think that chocolate might prevent heart disease in women with diabetes. But to prove their point they need 150 women to volunteer for their study and eat chocolate every single day for a year. Meanwhile, researchers at Yale are pretty sure that chocolate can prevent preeclampsia in pregnant women. Five or more servings of chocolate a day could be enough to reduce risk of developing the condition by at least 40%. [CNN, Telegraph] More »

Sugar-Free Babies

maria — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 10:45:00 EDT

Researchers have found that more American women are entering into pregnancy with diabetes, raising the potential for problems during their pregnancy and infants with diabetes and obesity. The study has found that diabetes increased fivefold among pregnant women 13- to 19-years of age (ack!), and doubled among pregnant women 20- to 39-years of age. The increase in diabetes among pregnant women is due to the rise in obesity, especially among black, Hispanic and Asian/Pacific Islander women. Well, our organic, hearth-baked, locally-grown, grass fed, fruit-juice-sweetened neurotic food obsessions are looking good right now! But considering the age of some of these women (uh, 13?) these problems could stem from lack of access to information about healthy pregnancies, let alone healthy eating habits. [Reuters] More »

A new eating disorder has developed among...

Jessica G. — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 17:45:00 EST

A new eating disorder has developed among diabetes sufferers called Diabulimia. Those who have diabetes do not produce insulin naturally, and therefore have to administer shots of insulin to maintain a healthy blood sugar and to digest carbohydrates. A common side effect of insulin is weight gain, so some people (mostly women) have been going off insulin all together and then gorging themselves on carbs and sweets, as without their insulin, they cannot digest those foods. In short, these diabulimics can eat whatever they want and still begin to waste away. According to Salon, diabulimics will "likely go blind, lose a limb, end up on dialysis, or suffer a sudden heart attack." Diabetics risk developing eating disorders at twice the rate of non-diabetics. This is pretty much the saddest thing we've read in weeks. [Salon] More »

Halle Berry keeps getting her (increasingly...

Jessica G. — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 16:45:00 EST

Halle Berry keeps getting her (increasingly swollen) foot in her mouth. First was unfortunate Jewish nose joke from last month, and now she's claiming that she cured her own Type 1 diabetes. Prego Berry said, "I've managed to wean myself off insulin, so now I'd like to put myself in the Type 2 category." This is technically impossible, as type-1 diabetes means the pancreas stops producing insulin permanently. According to doctors interviewed by ABC News, "If Berry was truly a Type 1 diabetic, it would be suicide to simply stop taking insulin. They surmised that the 41-year-old actress was either mistaken, misinformed or misdiagnosed, and probably always had Type 2, which tends to affect people later in life and can in some cases be overcome with a change in diet." Women who have Type 1 diabetes need to be especially vigilant about monitoring their insulin levels while pregnant, doctors say, or else they risk becoming fatally ill. [ABC News ] More »

Lose Money While You, Er, Weight

Anna Holmes — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 18:17:43 EDT

Dieting can be kind of expensive! We're not talking about $50 digital food scales, the $25/day prepared meal deliveries from Zone Chefs, or the monthly meal packages from, say, NutriSystem. Or even the dental work involved after one's stomach acid eats away at all that fragile tooth enamel! We're talking about dinnerware. Yup, apparently, one can lose 1-4 pounds a week just by using an artfully-designed, "affordable" thirty-dollar dinner plate. But wait! "Why not buy the Calorie Controlled Breakfast Cereal Bowl too?" And a "Male Plate" while you're at it? (What do you want to bet the male version allows for more food? Assholes). To be fair, the Diet Plate is said to have helped numerous diabetics get their illnesses under control, but at $30 a pop? Are the HMOs footing the bill? How about we just paste a photo of the cellulite on our thighs onto a piece of Royal Chinet and call it a day? More »

The Days May Be Different But The News Stays The Same

Anna Holmes — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 16:46:18 EDT

Have you heard? This 26-year-old woman — 9 months pregnant — has been missing for almost a week. Are you as sick and tired of hearing about abducted and assaulted young women and girls as we are? [CNN]