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Controlling
Blood Sugar
Keeps Arteries
Healthy
PHILADELPHIA
(Reuters Health) - People with type 1 diabetes may be able to
substantially decrease their risk of heart disease by maintaining
tight control over their blood sugar, researchers said here on
Sunday.
``This is
the first demonstration that we may be able to affect the underlying
biological processes that lead to heart disease and stroke,''
Dr. David Nathan, co-chairman of the study and a researcher at
Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts, told Reuters
Health.
The findings,
presented at the American Diabetes Association's (ADA) annual
meeting, show that patients who maintained stable blood glucose
(sugar) for nearly seven years developed less fatty plaque in
their arteries, a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke,
up to 12 years later.
Nathan stressed
that plaque buildup inside the arteries, or atherosclerosis, is
still an early sign of heart disease. Therefore, the researchers
will continue to follow patients for several more years to determine
if the changes translate into a lower risk of heart attack and
stroke.
The report
was one of a handful of studies discussed at the meeting demonstrating
that aggressive control of high blood pressure and high cholesterol,
in addition to elevated blood glucose, can delay or prevent the
development of major heart and blood vessel disease risk factors
among people with diabetes.
Indeed, the
stakes are high for people with diabetes. About 75% of patients
die from heart disease or stroke and adults with the disease are
two to four times more likely to suffer a heart attack than people
without the disorder regardless of other risk factors, according
to the ADA.
What's more,
heart attacks and strokes generally occur earlier in people with
diabetes and patients are more likely to suffer a second heart
attack and to die as a result.
``Vascular
disease, especially heart disease for people with diabetes, is
lethal, devastating and extremely expensive to the individual
and to our nation,'' said Dr. Frank Vinicor of the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia.
But according
to Nathan, studies on risk factors for heart disease have historically
excluded patients with diabetes. While it is widely assumed that
controlling cholesterol and blood pressure is important for people
with diabetes as well as the population at large, a new crop of
research suggests that diabetics benefit from even tighter control,
Dr. Judith Fradkin of the National Institutes of Health, said
in an interview.
``Better control
(of these risk factors) will have a very significant impact,''
she said.
Fradkin and
other scientists cited the benefits of ACE inhibitor drugs for
blood pressure control and statin drugs to reduce cholesterol.
Lifestyle, including diet and exercise, can also help patients
control their disease and reduce their risk of heart disease and
stroke.
Reference
Source 89
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