Monday, February 7, 2011
Brain Abnormalities in Obese Kids With Diabetes
In the article Brain Abnormalities in Obese Kids With Diabetes, by Denise Mann, the effects of obesity in kids on their brains is discussed. According to an online study by Diabetologia adolescents who are obese and have type 2 diabetes, are having changes in their brains that is affecting how well they perform in school. Eighteen obese children who have type 2 diabetes and eighteen obese children who don't have diabetes were tested on memory, spelling, and intelligence. Those children with diabetes performed worse on these tests then those who didn't have diabetes. The reason for this is not fully know but according to Antonio Convit, MD, professor of psychiatry and medicine at the New York University Langone Medical Center in New York City, "we know the brain uses sugar as source of metabolism , and insulin resistance interferes with the body's ability to get more juice or sugar into the brain". Now researchers are trying to figure out a way to reverse the insulin resistance. The best way to do this is exercise. Lots and lots of exercise is the key to shedding the weight and restoring insulin to your body.
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It is scary to see that diabetes is now affecting the brains of children who have it. I know that diabetes already causes a lot of negative side effects, but adding the brain as one of them should really get people thinking about the health of their children. I think that a lot of diabetes cases are caused by obesity, so this study is just another eye opener to get future generations on track to health lives and to eliminate obesity.
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