Type 2 Diabetes - Does Vitamin D Benefit Blood Sugar Levels in Gestational Diabetes?

Type 2 Diabetes - Does Vitamin D Benefit Blood Sugar Levels in Gestational Diabetes?

Type 2 Diabetes - Does Vitamin D Benefit Blood Sugar Levels in Gestational Diabetes?

Scientists at Tabriz University of Medical Sciences in Tabriz, Iran, found vitamin D supplementation in women diagnosed with Gestational diabetes or diabetes of pregnancy, lowered their blood sugar levels and helped with their blood sugar control. The journal Nutritional Research and Practice reported on this study.

A total of 76 women with Gestational diabetes, between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy, were divided into groups of thirty-eight...

• one group received vitamin D supplements, while the
• second group was given a placebo.

Fasting blood sugar levels decreased 4.72 mg/dL (0.262 mmol/L) and their HbA1c fell by 0.18 percent. The placebo group saw increases in their...

• inflammation levels,
• fasting blood sugar,
• HbA1c,
• total cholesterol measurement, and
• LDL or unhealthy cholesterol reading.

The women in the vitamin D group received 50,000 IU of vitamin D once every two weeks for two months. The National Institute of Health in the United States recommends 600 IU every day for pregnant and nursing mothers. The possibility of supplementation should be discussed with your doctor or midwife.

Among other functions, vitamin D is an anti-inflammatory: Type 2 diabetes is an inflammatory disease. One way vitamin D could be helping in Gestational diabetes could be due to its anti-inflammatory properties. More research is needed to answer this question.

Fortunately, we now know some exposure to sunlight for a few minutes every day allows the human skin to make vitamin D. Some foods also provide the vitamin. Vitamin D sources are rare in vegan diets, but fortunately, mushrooms can make the vitamin when they are exposed to ultraviolet, just as human skin does. You can buy mushrooms that have already been irradiated, or irradiate them yourself by turning the mushrooms with their gills up and expose them to sunlight for 6 hours...

• you can add mushrooms to salads giving some flavor and texture.
• grill a portobello mushroom cap with tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, and nutritional yeast for a delicious veggie burger.
• nutritional yeast is used as a cheese substitute because of its cheesy, nutty flavor. It provides vitamin B12, a concern for vegans.

Chef Jamie Oliver suggests making mushroom soup with...

• dried porcini
• olive oil
• fresh mushrooms (irradiated)
• cloves
• garlic
• red onion
• thyme
• pepper
• vegetable stock
• parsley
• cheese (substitute nutritional yeast)
• lemon.

Vitamin D is also added to fortified orange juice, fortified soy milk, and some brands of cereals...

• one cup of fortified orange juice supplies 35 percent of your daily need for vitamin D,
• a cup of fortified soymilk provides 30 per cent, and
• one cup of Kellogg's Almond Crunch with Raisins supplies 19 per cent.

More sources are available, so be sure to read labels.

Although managing your disease can be very challenging, Type 2 diabetes is not a condition you must just live with. You can make simple changes to your daily routine and lower both your weight and your blood sugar levels. Hang in there, the longer you do it, the easier it gets.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9463961

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