Diabetes insipidus (DI) is a rare condition that occurs when the kidneys are unable to conserve water as they perform their function of filtering blood. It is often confused with diabetes mellitus because a symptom that both diseases have in common is frequent and excessive urination.

The word diabetes comes from the Greek word for siphon. A physician in ancient Greece coined the disease diabetes because sufferers passed water like a siphon.

The addition of insipidus and mellitus is to differentiate the concentration of the water passed by the person. Insipidus comes from the latin for no flavor. Urine passed by someone suffering from DI is highly diluted. Mellitus is also derived from the latin for honey and consequently diabetes mellitus (DM) is noted for passing urine that is sweet and concentrated.

There are four types of DI. These are :

Neurogenic diabetes insipidus - also called central diabetes insipidus.

This is caused when the anti-diuretic hormone or vasopressin produced by the hypothalamus and stored in the pituitary gland is not produced in sufficient quantity. Vasopressin causes the kidneys to preserve water but excrete the same amount of waste products.

Nephrogenic diabetes insipidus (NDI) also known as vasopressin resistance because the kidneys are unaffected by the secretion of vasopressin.

NDI is believed to by genetically passed on or caused by kidney diseases or as a side-effect of using drugs like lithium for other illnesses.

The third type is called gestagenic and occurs during pregnancy.

The fourth type is known as dipsogenic DI and is characterized by excessive fluid consumption. The excess fluids cause vasopressin to be supressed.

The primary symptoms of diabetes insipidus are excessive urination (polyuria) and excessive thirst (polydipsia). Symptoms for diabetes insipidus will be markedly abrupt. The sufferer will want to drink vast quantities of water. They will have difficulty sleeping as they will want to go to the toilet all the time. In the case of children there will be frequent bed wetting.

Diabetes insipidus testing involves a fluid deprivation test. As the name suggests the patient avoids drinking any fluids for a prescribed time period. The urine is then analyzed to determine it's concentration and composition.

Diabetes insipidus treatment involves having a good and plentiful source of fluid. In the case of neurogenic DI the drug desmopressin is taken to control the frequent thirst and urination.

There is no natural cure for diabetes insipidus but it doesn't pose any serious complications to the health if the person can take on fluids whenever they feel thirsty. It is confused with diabetes mellitus because the symptoms are similar but testing will determine which disease the person may be afflicted with.

If you are suffering from type2 diabetes, I would advise you to eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly in order to control your blood glucose level. This is a piece of advice you should read and re-read and make an essential part of your daily life. In this article I will tell you how your diet considerably affects your blood glucose level and how you, by following the right diet therapy for type 2 diabetes, keep type2 diabetes at bay.

Our pancreas creates a hormone called insulin whose job is to control the level of glucose present in our blood. The symptoms of type2 diabetes begin to show up when a string of problems occur in combination with insulin secretion and insulin resistance. Do you know what insulin resistance is?

People who suffer from type2 diabetes are generally unable to produce the amount of insulin required to control the glucose level in their blood. In other words, these people are generally insulin-resistant. The irony is that these people need to produce a large amount of insulin to keep with the increasing level of sugar in their blood streams. Since their pancreas doesn't produce the required amount of insulin, there is a lot of pressure on the beta cells to produce the required quantity of insulin. Now, if the beta cells are not healthy enough to produce the required amount of insulin, then the level of glucose in blood continues to rise and diabetes occurs. It is generally seen that lean and thin people are usually less prone to diabetes than obese people.

There is only one solution before you: you must make your muscles very sensitive to insulin. To do this, you need to do regular exercises and workouts and also have a healthy diet pattern. Regular exercises will make your muscles more sensitive to insulin and the result will be that less amount of insulin will be needed to control the blood sugar level in your body and there won't be any pressure on your beta cells to produce excess amounts of insulin. Once your blood sugar level is controlled you will be able to cure diabetes easily. Here are some of the things you can do in order to make your muscles sensitive to insulin:

1. If you are currently living a sedentary lifestyle, you should look for ways to increase the level of physical activity in your daily life. You should participate in sports and other activities, or visit a gym and do the workouts, etc. You can also participate in household chores in order to keep your muscles active.

2. If you are eating foods which contain a lot of calories in them you should change your diet patterns immediately! Adopt a diet that is rich in fat and protein and low in carbohydrates. You will have less amount of glucose in your blood if you eat foods that are low in carbohydrates. In fact I would say that a low-carb-high-fat diet is the ideal diet therapy for type 2 diabetes

3. You should try to lose some weight by doing workouts in gym or exercises at home

If you want to avert diabetes-related problems, you should see to it that your blood lipids never go out of their normal target range. If your blood lipids go out of normal range, you may suffer from heart diseases and stroke. The best way to keep your blood lipids within control is to change your lifestyle, take proper diet for diabetes high cholesterol, and take appropriate medications, more of which will be revealed in this article.

First of all, let me tell you a little about blood lipids and their functions.

There are in fact, several types of blood lipids in our body.

1. LDL or the bad cholesterol- The job of this lipid is to block or narrow down your blood vessels. If your blood vessels become too narrow for blood to pass, you may suffer from heart attacks. Keeping this lipid within the normal target range is the best way to protect yourself from heart-related problems.

2. HDL cholesterol or the good cholesterol: This is kind of antidote to the bad cholesterol. While the job of bad cholesterol is to block your blood vessels, the job of good cholesterol is to remove the blockades from the blood vessels so that blood can flow easily and smoothly.

3. Triglycerides- This is yet another type of cholesterol that is very harmful for your body. Like the bad cholesterol, the presence of too much of this cholesterol can lead to heart attacks and strokes.

A good way to know whether your blood lipids are within normal range or out of target is to have a blood sugar test. In fact, you should have a blood sugar test at least once in a year, if not more.

Do you how diabetes can trigger a heart attack?

Diabetic patients generally have a low amount of good cholesterol and a high amount of Triglycerides in their bodies. This creates problems. Worse- these people usually have small amounts of dense bad cholesterol which block the blood circulation. All these create the perfect environment for a heart attack. But of course all is not lost. You can still take charge of your life and control your blood lipids if you want to. You can take certain steps which will help you lower the amount of bad cholesterol and increase the level of good cholesterol. You can take the appropriate diet for diabetes high cholesterol as recommended by your doctor. In this way you will be able to avert any heart related problems.

Whether you are suffering from type1 or type2 diabetes, you need to follow a health diet, period. There is no question regarding the fact that the types of foods we eat and the diet pattern we follow have a considerable impact on the level of glucose in our blood. However, there are different opinions and views regarding the best diet cure for type 1 diabetes. In this article, I will tell what type of foods should be given to patents suffering from type1 diabetes. It is my hope that after reading this article, you will be able to change your diet pattern and incorporate only those foods in your diet that control rather than trigger type1 diabetes.

Several researches have been done over the years with regards to the diet cure for type 1 diabetes, and the general consensus is that a diet which is rich in fat and protein but contains a very low quantity of carbohydrates is the best diet cure for type 1 diabetes. Te main thing you need to remember is that you should consume as little carbohydrates as possible. The less the amount of carbohydrates you intake, the less your blood glucose level will be. However, since you are depriving your body of carbohydrates, you would need to eat foods which are rich in fat and protein in order to compensate your body for the loss.

One another thing that you should note is that insulin and food should be made to work with each other, not against each other. The best diet cure for type 1 diabetes is one which strikes a good balance between food and insulin. The activities of food and insulin are connected- insulin is a hormone that breaks down the food and takes away the excess amount of glucose and uses it to form energy or stores it elsewhere for future use. If insulin and food become out of balance then you won't be able to control diabetes even if you want to. People who do not suffer from diabetes however, won't be facing this problem as they produce the right quantity of insulin needed to control the flow of blood glucose that increase after having a meal.

You should include foods like rice, bread, pasta, and other starchy foods in your daily diet. In order to provide your body with the necessary protein, you must also include fresh fruits and vegetables in your diet.

It is obvious that a healthy diet is very important for a diabetes patient. However, you should also note that the amount of food you want and the time at which you have your meals also greatly impacts your blood sugar level. For example, if you consume huge quantities of a particular food and on top of that, take food at odd hours, you won't be able to prevent diabetes even if you are having a healthy diet. If you need more information regarding the best diet cure for type 1 diabetes, simply click on the link in my resource box below.

Type2 diabetes typically occurs to older adults who are aged about 40 or above. Actually, such was the case till 30 years ago. With our fast changing lifestyle patterns and the type of food we are having, even young adults and teenagers are now suffering from this disease. This is the reason why scientists and researchers are putting much stress on diet control for diabetes. We have nothing but our food and lifestyle to blame for the increasing number of type2 diabetes. The type of food we eat everyday and the kind of fast-faced lifestyle we lead is responsible for the doom. Diet control for diabetes is essential in order to stop the growing menace of type2 diabetes. In this article I will discuss how you can change your lifestyle in such a way so that you will be able to actually prevent this disease from even afflicting you!

Remember that no lifestyle or diet pattern is set in stone that cannot be changed. We, if we want to, can take charge of our lives. Once we take charge of our lives then controlling our lifestyle is not that hard. In fact, we can set a trend by following a healthy diet patterns and doing exercises regularly. And this is not a baseless claim. In fact, just now, I will show you some proof that will support my statements.

In order to determine what is the real cause of diabetes, researchers recently conducted a study on several of the diabetes patients whose blood sugar levels were much higher than normal. The patients were divided into two groups-Group A and Group B. patients belonging to Group A were asked to do regular exercises and eat foods which contain low amounts of carbohydrates but high quantities of fat and protein. Patients belonging to Group B were not asked to exercise or change their diet patterns. They were allowed to live their usual sedentary lifestyle and have their regular diet. They were given some medicines and the usual treatments. After six years, the results of the study were out. And it is no surprise that researchers found that patients in Group B had a considerable increase in the blood glucose level which is rather a bad indication for them. However, patients in Group A showed a considerable drop in blood glucose level. I think it is obvious to you from this case study how important diet control for diabetes is.

Without doubt, diabetes exercise program is one of the surefire ways to control diabetes. Diabetes is caused when the level of sugar in blood is above the normal range. Diabetes exercise program not only help you lower your blood sugar level, it also helps lowering the risk of heart diseases, something that is common among diabetes patients. Apart from that, diabetes also improves your overall health- mental, as well as physical. In this article, I will tell you about the virtues of workouts and diabetes exercise programs and which types of exercises should be done in order to control diabetes.

It is important to check your blood sugar levels before and after exercise, because exercises and workouts have a great impact on the level of blood sugar. Usually, diabetes is caused when our muscles become insensitive to the insulin present in the body. The benefit of doing regular exercises is that your body will become more and more sensitive to the insulin present in the body, which in turn will help controlling the level of glucose present in your blood. Therefore, if your blood sugar level is abnormal - either too high or too low, you should wait for your blood sugar level to become normal before you start exercising. Do you know what type of exercises should you do as part of your diabetes exercise program?

Usually, there are no specific set of exercises for diabetes patients. You can choose any cardio exercise (walking, running, cycling, aerobics, skating, warm-ups and cool-downs, tennis, etc.). In fact, any exercise that that increases the heart rate is good for diabetes patients. Aerobic exercises and strength training are also helpful in that they help strengthen your heartbeat, keep the muscles warm and help build up your stamina.

When you are just starting to exercise, don't just jump over to strength training. Perform low-level workouts, and then, increase the intensity of your exercise by stages. If in doubt, ask your doctor and I am sure he will be able to guide you as to what types of diabetes exercise programs are suitable for your body.

Diabetes among people over 65 years of age is increasing at an alarming rate. Usually about 40 per cent of diabetic patients are old people aged 65 years and above. The prevalence of such a high number of elderly diabetic patients in a family makes it one of the most common medical problems. That is why special diabetes diet for elderly has been created by researchers. Elderly patients generally tend to suffer from type2 diabetes. In this article, I will give you some tips regarding the diet that elderly diabetic patients should follow.

A diet which contains no more than 50-60 percent of carbs and less than 30 percent of fat seems to be the ideal diabetes diet for elderly, according to the American Diabetes Association. In other words, the diet recommended for the elderly diabetic patients is the same as the high-carb, low-fat diet that is consumed by average Americans. While such a diet maybe useful in the short term, it is doubtful whether a diet rich in carbohydrates would help much in the long term since carbohydrates are generally known to increase blood sugar levels rather than decreasing it.

Type2 diabetes has often been linked to obesity. Not that the elderly diabetic patients are usually obese, but a significant number of them have been found to be grossly overweight. This is the reason why elderly patients should try to lose weight through light exercises that don't put much strain on their bodies and yet, burn the calories. Studies have shown that elderly patients who have lost weight have shown a significant improvement in their blood sugar level. However, elderly patients have difficulty in maintaining long-term weight los strategies. They may lose weight in a short term period, but special stress should be given to long-term weight loss control strategies in order to curb the harmful effects of diabetes.

Diabetic beware. See if this makes sense to you.

Let’s cut right to the chase. I am so amazed by this tactic.

Did you ever wonder why we as a culture are gaining so much weight? And we are seeing more and more teenagers with weight issues. More and more fast food restaurants being built. What do most of them have in common? You got it. Lots of soda. Think about a diet that includes soda. Not plastic soda with artificial sweeteners. But soda with sugar

Check this out

Driving to your favorite Burger King or Wendy's or other fast food restaurant you start to think about what you will have to eat. Should I get the double burger or the salad? Should I start eating better today? As you enter the building your eyes transfix on those hanging in midair menus. You know the signs that state that if you purchase a bigger size you ONLY pay a few cents extra. Forget about that salad. That is for another day.

Here is the con. Can you see it coming?

That super sized meal sure looks good. All that added food and drink for a modest amount of coin. You are now the owner of a plastic glass that you can use over and over again to refill on soda. Did you win first prize?

You have paid the price. That is costing you your health. This diabetes diet is one that will keep you unfit.

More soda equals potentially more diabetes and other problems. These fast food restaurants are giving the beverage away to lure you and me into their stores. It is such a bargain and who doesn't like a sale?

Bigger is not always better. Especially when it comes to fast food, and huge drinks. Could the super sizing of America be partly responsible for outbreak in the diabetes disease? Maybe just maybe.

Hopefully this article made some sense and your view about soda and super sizing meals hits home for you.

I have been the super sizer. I could not get enough soda or fries to eat. Maybe those were two of the reasons I ended up as a diabetic. But I am learnig to eat in ways that will help me. If learning from someone that has been a diabetic for over 19 years and lost over 100 pounds makes sense to you then listen to The Diabetic Warriors MP3. It's free and it provides some practical steps to controlling diabetes.

Diabetes has become one of the biggest cash cows of the Medical industry; reaping in a staggering 10 million plus dollars a day. It is no wonder that there are so many ads on television with famous actors and musicians telling you that you can get your diabetes supplies delivered free to your home. But what those ads are not telling you is that there is a proven diabetes cure for over 95% of type 2 diabetes and 65% for type 1 diabetes. They do not want you to know that, and in fact, the pharmaceutical industry is at this very moment trying to get one of the ingredients of this known cure off the shelves and behind the counter.

Diabetes affects over 18 million people, another 15 million may not yet be diagnosed, and that is in the United States alone! Currently diabetes is the 3rd leading cause of death in America. The cause of diabetes is that the body does not produce, or properly use, the insulin necessary for the body to absorb glucose (sugar). This glucose then accumulates in the bloodstream until levels get dangerously high. This condition then leads to diabetes symptoms such as: lack of energy, unusual weight gain, restless sleep, blurred vision, and tingling sensations in the affected individual.

The reason so many individuals may have diabetes symptoms and are not diagnosed, is because one symptom of diabetes is a feeling of nausea. This is most likely because we all seem to be working harder and longer than ever before in an attempt to avoid falling behind in our daily routine. Therefore, feelings of fatigue and tiredness are usually associated with the price of living in the 21st century. Another symptom of diabetes is the need to urinate more frequently and usually goes unnoticed. The fact is, however, that all of these can point to the onset of diabetes.

If you, or some one you hold dear, has been diagnosed with diabetes then you have probably noticed that recently in magazines, books, on TV and the internet, there has been much talk about a possible natural cure for diabetes. The fact is, a Canadian University has been researching, for more than 20 years, a combination of herbs that have consistently been shown to provide lasting relief from diabetes, type one and type 2. This same combination has been heralded as a "Final Cure for Diabetes" by the Asian Diabetic Association. This natural diabetes cure has also been proven by several independent clinical studies to regulate blood sugar, and consequently in most cases, eliminate the need for costly and painful testing and injections.

This combination of vitamins and herbs for diabetes treatment, work three ways in the body to affect a diabetes cure. First they reduce blood sugar levels by blocking glucose absorption in the intestine and thus prevent adrenal hormones from stimulating the liver to produce glucose. Second, they eliminate insulin resistance by repairing cell receptors to better recognize insulin. Cells are then much more effective at metabolizing glucose which further normalizes blood sugar levels. Thirdly, they normalize insulin production, this stimulates increased production of an organic compound that is naturally produced by the body. For those who suffer from "type 2 diabetes", this organic compound is converted to insulin, normalizing and relieving stress on the pancreas, which allows it to heal. For those suffering from "type 1 diabetes," the aforementioned conversion is not possible due to destroyed beta cells. But nevertheless, this organic compound remains in the body and functions like insulin as a natural replacement.

There really should be no discussion about this subject as both eating healthy and staying physically fit will help you lead an active and illness free lifestyle. Plus there are many recurring diseases such as diabetes and heart disease which can be lowered just simply by eating more healthily. In this article we will look at the benefits of eating healthy can provide to you.

1. Eating healthy is probably the easiest and most important way in which you can keep active and shield yourself from the many diseases that are now around. By eating healthy you are boosting your energy levels, improving your bodily functions, your are helping to improve your immunity system and will also help to prevent excessive weight gain or loss. So by eating more healthily and combining this with exercise you could end up leading a longer and more vibrant life.

2. It allows you to meet your daily nutritional needs and your daily food intake should include some amounts of grain, fruit, vegetables, milk (or other dairy products), beans, oils and meat.

3. It will help you to enjoy life as you will have more energy to face the tasks before you. But even if your energy levels are up you may find yourself still no able to cope so also include some exercise in to your new healthy regime.

4. There are vitamins and minerals in healthy foods which can boost your immune system and shield you from many common illnesses. In some cases by eating more healthily you can actually reduce the risks that are often linked with such serious diseases as cancer and diabetes.

5. Just because you are busy does not mean you have to skip meals. If you are a normal weight then you can have 3 full meals a day with one or two snack breaks in the middle.

6. Stay away from sugar or else reduce the amount you have. So why not choose alternatives instead, for example have some fruit instead of reaching for a candy bar. Also choose foods which are high in protein as they will not make you feel as dehydrated as those which contain sugar.

The diabetes food pyramid is a food educational diagram aimed at simplifying the food choices that diabetics have to make. A new version of the food pyramid was released by the United States Department of Agriculture in 2005. The American Diabetics Association has commented that the diagram is useful for diabetics and can help non-diabetic people make sensible food choices that can serve to prevent further cases of the disease occurring.

The pyramid is divided into sections. Each section consists of a food group. The sections take up more surface area at the bottom of the pyramid and get less and less until the top. This relative surface area is a representation of the importance of each food group in a healthy diet.

Thus the bottom has most surface area and is most important in a healthy diet. The bottom section consists of grains and starches (or carbohydrates). These include oats, wheat, rice and rye. It also includes starchy vegetables like potatoes and peas. Dried pulses like lentils, black-eyed peas and other dried beans are also recommended.

The pyramid suggests 6 to 11 servings from this food group per day are part of a healthy diet. This of course will vary according to the size and age of the person, number of calories to be consumed each day and the individual goals set by the person.

The next sections that have equal surface areas are vegetables and fruit. Vegetables means raw or cooked from fresh ingredients. Vegetables are good for fiber, nutrients and vitamins. The pyramid guidelines for this food group are 3 to 5 serving a day for a balanced diet.

Fruit provides similar benefits as vegetables. They can also be used if a person thinks they need to supplement their vitamin intake. The pyramid recommends 2 to 4 serving of fruit a day.

Vegetables and fruit have featured in the 5-a-day campaign run by health authorities in many parts of the world, advocating 5 pieces of veg or fruit per day for a balanced diet.

The next section is diary products like milk and yogurt. Diary products are rich in calcium and other minerals that the body needs. To minimize fat intake low milk products should be used. The pyramid recommends 2 to 3 servings per day.

Meat products or meat alternatives are the next section. These products essentially provide protein to the body. Low fat protein is recommended. Lean red meat, chicken or fish are the preferred choices of the pyramid. It suggests 6 ounces of protein a day is adequate for a balanced diet.

The last section at the tip of the pyramid is the fats, sweet foods and alcohol. These include any alcoholic drinks, candy, cakes and ice cream. I know, if you have a sweet tooth that's pretty bad news. These food stuffs should be eaten occasionally or as a treat. There is no recommendation of a daily intake of these types of food.

The pyramid helps people to make the right choices of food groups to be eaten in a balanced quantity. The visual nature of the diagram helps to get the essential information across instantly. It can be found in most health food shops or on the Internet. Get a copy and stick it in your kitchen so that you can refer to it when cooking.

Diabetes and psychology are not often thought of as being complimentary but with the use of psychology the life of a diabetic can be drastically improved. To understand the role that psychology has to play it is first important to understand exactly what diabetes is and how it can affect the life of a diabetic.

85% of diabetics have type 2 diabetes which is the body’s resistance to insulin. Insulin is naturally produced in the body and helps to breakdown the glucose in the blood. The causes of type 2 diabetes are linked to obesity, inactivity and an unhealthy diet. In order to cope with diabetes the diabetic needs to avoid long periods of high blood glucose levels called hyperglycemia and also periods of hypoglycemia which is low blood glucose levels. To balance these 2 extremes a diabetic needs to monitor and regulate their blood sugar levels on a regular basis. If the diabetic doesn’t keep their glucose levels under controls they may encounter a whole host of unpleasant diseases and side effects.

The use of psychology comes in when it is necessary for a diabetic to make rapid and extreme changes to their lifestyle. Once diagnosed a diabetic must make these changes almost overnight so someone may go from a sedentary lifestyle of eating junk food and watching TV to having to eat regular healthy food and take regular exercise and well as monitor their blood sugar level. This rapid change can cause lots of problems for newly diagnosed diabetics.

The routines needed to monitor blood sugar levels and control the diabetes can be very complicated. As the majority of diabetes treatment is self care there can be serious problems if the person lacks motivation. Their condition can deteriorate and result in amputation of limbs or blindness. It is therefore imperative that the doctors use psychology to make the patient understand the importance of the illness.

Tests conducted in Canada and Germany into diabetes and psychology in recent years using fully qualified psychologists have resulted in increased levels of successful diabetes control. Whilst still relatively new the use of psychology has undoubted positive effects. With the current level of 125 million diabetes sufferers estimate to double to 300 million in the next 20 years it is important that doctors start to realise the obvious befits of psychology and incorporate psychology as part of the treatment plan for any diabetic.