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A road to avoid

If patients with pre-diabetes lose between 5 and 7% of their weight and they exercise half an hour every day, five days a week, the risk for developing diabetes type 2 Mellitus can be lowered by 60 percent in 3 years.

 

In Part I of these two articles I indicated that obesity is the major risk factor for Diabetes Type 2, also known as Diabetes Mellitus. To understand how obesity can take you to a diagnosis of diabetes type 2, let us check a few facts.

 

The first thing you need to be aware of is that obesity is what ignites the spark. The extra fat accumulated in your fat cells releases cytokines, a kind of proteins that cause inflammation. In particular, the abdominal fat and the one found around your internal organs such as the liver, the heart, etc, are the ones associated with inflammation, indicates Dr. Brent Wisse at the Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle.

 

According to Dr. Wisse, the cells that form the fat tissue secrete a number of molecules that seem to send signals to your body parts; these molecules start the inflammatory process. These signals in turn cause resistance to insulin, a state where the glucose in the blood cannot get into the cells. Therefore, inflammation within your fat tissue may be a first step which results in diabetes and atherosclerosis.

 

As you can see, there is a relationship between obesity, the inflammatory process, and the appearance of resistance to insulin. These three factors are associated with a risk increase for developing diabetes type 2 or diabetes mellitus.

 

As insulin resistance increases, your body cells panic because they are not getting their food, glucose, and thinking the problem is not enough insulin in the blood, they call the pancreas to produce more, so that glucose can enter the cells. Obediently, the pancreas releases more insulin into the blood which does no good because the fat cells refuse to let glucose enter. Eventually, these irregularities cause the glucose level in the blood to go up after meals although at this stage it still remains normal before meals.

 

All this commotion causes the general level of glucose in the blood to go up little by little. Finally the pancreas gets exhausted with this back and forth glucose business and can not produce enough insulin to keep the glucose in the blood within normal levels. Of course, this process does not happen overnight; it may take between 5 and 10 years in an adult and the end result is pre-diabetes. The same process goes much faster in children.

 

When the pancreas cannot satisfy the demand for insulin, glucose in the blood will reach levels where your doctor will diagnose diabetes type 2. At this point, patients need oral medication to lower the glucose in the blood, help the system to release more insulin, and reduce insulin resistance.

 

With time, the production of insulin decreases even more and many patients with diabetes type 2 need insulin shots to control glucose. If the resistance to insulin continues for a long time, oral medication plus insulin shots could be necessary.

 

As you may also know, diabetes can lead to heart and kidney complications as well as nerve damage in the legs and the eyes. Most patients with diabetes die of heart attacks, a powerful reason to follow a balance diet that protects your heart.

  

Conclusion

I hope your understanding of how obesity can lead to diabetes mellitus type 2 helps you take the necessary measures to prevent this terrible disease. And if you are serious about losing weight, please, don’t embark in a crazy diet that offers you miracles in a few weeks because chances are it may not be a healthy diet and you will get those lost pounds back quite soon. Get yourself acquainted with the sound principles of healthy diets available to you. A good alternative is a Mediterranean diet since throughout many centuries this diet has protected the people of the Mediterranean basin from obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and many other chronic diseases.

 

 

We all ingest salt every day, whether we realize it or not. Various organizations, including the USDA, AHA, and Cooking Light magazine, recommend less than 2,300 milligrams sodium daily (the amount in one teaspoon of table salt) for healthy people. Most Americans consume closer to 4,000 milligrams a day.

Sodium has benefits, like helping to maintain the body’s right balance of fluids, says cardiologist Richard Katz, MD, director of the cardiology division of George Washington University. But ingesting too much salt is a prime cause of increased blood pressure. Higher blood pressure is a major cause of heart attacks and strokes, both of which can be reduced by minimizing salt intake.? Even among healthy adults there is usually room for improvement in the blood pressure department. “If blood pressure is 125/70, it’s better at 120/70″, Katz says. (The American Heart Association [AHA] notes that low blood pressure is relative for each person and is a concern when it drops suddenly. Your doctor can help you reach a blood pressure goal that best enhances your health.)

Only a quarter of sodium intake actually comes from salting our food, says AHA President Dan Jones, MD. More than 75 percent of sodium in our daily diets comes from the processed foods we eat. Salt is a natural preservative and it enhances flavor, so it’s no surprise that salt and other forms of sodium are included in packaged foods.

What do I need to to do change my salt intake and balance my super supplements?

The first step to keep sodium under control is to make smart choices at your grocery store. Choose sodium-free, low-sodium, or no-salt-added convenience foods. Always read the label! Reading the Nutrition Facts Panel is an easy way to gauge the amount of sodium present in a food. If an item contains more than 20 percent Daily Value (DV) of a nutrient, a serving of that food is considered to contain a high amount of that nutrient, according to the FDA; five percent DV of a nutrient is deemed low. For sodium, 20 percent DV equals 460 milligrams; five percent DV sodium is just 115 milligrams.

Lower-fat or fat-free products can be higher in sodium than their full-fat counterparts: An ounce of full-fat sharp cheddar cheese has less sodium than one ounce of fat-free cheddar. When fat is removed from foods, other things like sodium may be added to compensate. Still, if you’re trying to limit saturated fat in your diet by enjoying low and fat-free foods, the trade-off may be worth it if you limit sodium in other areas.

Disodium guanylate (flavor enhancer)

Disodium inosinate (flavor enhancer)

Sodium alginate (thickener)

Sodium benzoate (preservative)

Sodium bicarbonate (texture enhancer)

Sodium citrate (pH influencer)

Sodium hydroxide (pH influencer)

What should I do to in addition to lowering my intake of this not so great super supplement? Exercise can help keep your body balanced both inside and outand great super supplements can help. When you sweat, you secrete the salts in your body. However, if you work out hard or play hard for more than an hour, you should drink an electrolyte replacing sports drink because you can actually lose too much salt while working out for long periods of time.

To be successful in the workplace, employees have to possess transferable skills. Knowing about these skills will help teens and adults prepare to be successful in the workplace. Transferable skills are a product of our talents, traits and knowledge. These skills determine how you respond to new activities, work situations or jobs.

Transferable skills are non-job specific skills that you have acquired during any activity or life experiences. Student activities and experiences include campus and community activities, class projects, and assignments, hobbies, athletic activities, internships and summer part-time jobs.

Transferable skills fall into three (3) groups: Working with people, working with things, and working with data/information. These terms are defined below:

Working with people skills happen when people sell, train, advise, and negotiate.

Working with things skills occur when people repair, operate machinery, sketch, survey, or troubleshoot.

Working with data/information skills involve budgeting, researching, and analyzing.

The Secretary’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS) is a model for transferable skills resources and web sites. In 1990, a commission of schools, government, unions, and corporations developed five SCAN competencies and three SCAN foundation skills. The Five Competencies are: Resources, information, interpersonal, systems, and technology.

The meanings of the competencies are:

Resources competencies describe the allocation of time, money, material resources, facility resources, and human resources.

Information competencies involve acquiring, evaluating, organizing, maintaining, interpreting, communicating and processing information.

Interpersonal competencies include team participation, teaching, customer services, leadership, negotiation, and cultural diversity.

Systems competencies work with understanding systems, performance monitoring, and systems designs.

Technology competencies involve the selection, application, maintenance, and troubleshooting of technology.

Besides competencies, there are three (3) Foundation Skills: Basic, thinking, and personal qualities. The terms are explained below.

Basic skills involve reading, writing, arithmetic, mathematics, listening, and speaking.

Thinking skills include creative thinking, decision making, problem solving, seeing things in the mind’s eye, knowing how to learn, and reasoning.

Personal qualities are responsibility, self esteem, sociability, self-management, and integrity/honesty

Universities and professional organizations, such as California State University, Rochester Institute of Technology, Carnegie Mellon University, Quintessential Careers, and the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) agree these transferable skills are important. These organizations have created transferable skills surveys, exercises, and web sites.

The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) is a professional association connects more than 5,200 college career services professionals at nearly 2,000 college and universities nationwide, and more than 3,000 HR/staffing professionals focused on college relations and recruiting. NACE has compiled the twenty (20) top personal qualities/skills that employers requested the most:

1. Analytical skills

2. Communication Skills

3. Computer skills

4. Creativity

5. Detail-oriented

6. Entrepreneurial skills/risk-taker

7. Flexibility/adaptability

8. Friendly/outgoing personality

9. Honesty/integrity

10. Interpersonal skills (relates well to others)

11. Leadership and management skills

12. Motivation/initiative

13. Organizational and time management skills

14. Real Life Experiences

15. Self-confidence

16. Strong work ethic

17. Tactfulness

18. Teamwork skills (works well with others)

19. Technical Skills

20. Well-mannered/polite

Communication skills are the most popular skills listed on the web sites. Communication deals with speaking effectively, writing concisely, listening attentively, and other abilities that result in the expression, transmission and interpretation of knowledge and ideas. Communication skills help you communicate what you know. Examples of communication skills include:

Collaborating

Forecasting

Negotiating

Projecting

Publicized

Selling ideas, products or services

Speaking

Translating

Writing

Communication skills are involved in the other skills, such as organizational management, human relations, program administration, research & planning. Organization, management, leadership, and human relations skills are the ability to supervise, direct and guide individuals and groups in the completion of tasks and fulfillment of goals. Organization, management and leadership skills consist of:

Making decisions

Assuming and delegating responsibility

Organizing people and tasks

Negotiating agreements

Management and administrative skills organize and coordinate people, projects and events. As a manager, you handle multiple tasks, set priorities, and adapt to changing conditions and work assignments. As leaders, you use skills to motivate individuals and groups to assess, perform, set goals, evaluate, and follow through situations effectively.

Managers and leaders use human relations skills. Human relations, interpersonal, or people skills, develop rapport, negotiate, and help people overcome their differences.

In addition to human relations skills, managers and leaders need planning and reasoning skills. Program administration, research and planning are essential when you gather information, analyze data, present ideas, and generate solutions.

Analyzing, planning, and reasoning skills are used in the field of research. Research skills help you search for specific knowledge, determine future needs, investigate and record findings, find answers, and evaluate strategies.

Besides planning and reasoning skills, problem solving and creativity activities involve the ability to find solutions to problems using experiences, information, and available resources. Problem solving and goal setting involve assessing a situation, gathering information, identifying key issues, anticipating problems, and generating multiple solutions.

Transferable skills are also called Soft Skills. Simon Fraser University, a leader in management education, lists the ten (10) Soft Skills:

1. Adaptability

2. Communication

3. Dedication

4. Dependability

5. Energy

6. Flexibility

7. Hard-working

8. Honesty

9. Integrity

10. Leadership

There are free surveys, activities, and exercises that help identify your transferable skills. Examples of resources include:

Identify Transferable Skills Exercise

Identifying Transferable Skills in Career Planning

Identify Your Transferable Skills Survey

Transferable Skills Checklist

Transferable Skills Exercise

Transferable Skills Guidebook

Transferable Skills Survey

Resources:

Binghamton University, State University of New York, Career Development Center, LSG 500, PO Box 6000, Binghamton, New York, 13902-6000, 607-777-2400

Career Center California State University, Chico Chico, CA 95929-0700, (530) 898-5253

Career Center, Student Affairs, Carnegie Mellon University 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Identify Transferable Skills Exercise. Career Development Services, A Division of Undergraduate Studies, Auburn University, 303 Mary Martin Hall, Auburn, Alabama 36849, (334) 844:4744

Identifying Transferable Skills in Career Plann
ing. William E. Simon Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627:0107

Identify Your Transferable Skills. Career Center University of South Carolina H. WILLIAM CLOSE (BA) BLDG., 6th FL.

Job Outlook 2007, What employers want (and you need to have), National Association of Colleges and Employers, 62 Highland Avenue, Bethlehem, PA 18017-9085, 800/544-5272

Quintessential Careers, DeLand, FL 32720

Rochester Institute of Technology, Office of Cooperative Education and Career Services, 57 Lomb Memorial Drive, Rochester, NY 14623, 585.475.2301

Transferable Skills Checklist. Missouri State University, Career Center, Carrington 309, Glass 103, 901 S. National, Springfield, Missouri 65897, 877:836:JOBS

Transferable Skills Exercise. Wisconsin Job Center, 201 E. Washington Avenue, Madison WI 53702

Transferable Skills Guidebook. Simon Fraser University (SFU) BUSINESS, Career Management Centre, 2361, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, V5A 1S6

Transferable Skills Survey. Career Services, University of Minnesota Duluth, 22 Solon Campus Center, 1117 University Drive, Duluth, MN 55812:3000

University of Alabama Career Center, 330 Ferguson, 205:348:5848

USC Career Planning & Placement Center, 3601 Trousdale Parkway, Student Union 110, Los Angeles, CA 90089:4897, (213) 740:9111