An interesting article about a scientist doing genomics who was discovered to have a gene (or genes?) predicting an increased risk for T2, and lo and behold, he developed it while the study was going on. Dr. Snyder is 54, NOT obese, and is controlling with diet and exercise, but this is just another report that lends credence to the idea that T2 is genetic, and NOT just because people are fat, lazy slobs. I still read FAR too many responses to medical columns and diabetes websites blaming T2s for causing their own disease by getting fat and being sedentary, but increasingly, the scientific community is showing that it just ain't so.
This could be an interesting case study about the utility of early intervention. To quote the article "he was able to immediately modify his diet and exercise to gradually bring his levels back into the normal range and prevent the ongoing tissue damage that would have occurred had the disease gone undiagnosed" His T2 was caught at the earliest stage when presumably the diet intervention would need the be less severe.
The real question is will the reversal continue over the long term? Also will the diet intervention need to become more intensive over time, indicating the disease progressing independent of external intervention. Finally given the many types of genetic defects that can lead to T2, will this intervention work in people with different genetics?
This is of course good news to help fight the misinformation out there. Unfortunately, we need a lot more than a single case. Hopefully, this work will continue. It is now possible to get some personal genetic testing done at places like www.23andme.com. But I'm not sure how well the analysis of the genes from these companies related to the best genomic knowledge that might be applied in this work.
Has anyone considered getting these tests? It is not very expensive. It does seem kinda stupid for me to get the test to evaluate my diabetes risk, given that I now really, really, really have diabetes.
I've been interested in having this type of test done for some time, although more out of a sense of curiosity about my ancestry as opposed to it's effect on my health. I recently read a book called "Saxons, Vikings, and Celts: The Genetic Roots of Britain and Ireland" that shows how much knowledge about the ancestry aspect has progressed in the last few years, facinating. The price has really dropped over time.
Even though I now too really, really, really have diabetes, it would be interesting to know what the genetic component of my condition is. However, this could be a double edged sword since I might find out something I would rather not know, like something in my future I can do nothing about. In this situation ignorance could well be bliss, at least for me.
I already did get the test at 23andme. Interestingly, I showed reduced risk for T1, significantly increased risk for rheumatoid arthritis (which I don't have), and typical risk for T2 (and I don't have classic T2), and typical risk for obesity, (which I also don't have). What typical risk boils down to is mixed markers -- increased risk on some of them and reduced risk on others. All this tells me is that genomics is in its infancy, and of course, the commercial companies are not up to snuff compared to the cutting edge scientific studies.
The studies done on Dr. Snyder were much more complex, and I don't know if they were tracking just one gene or multiple genes. And I am certain that they haven't even come close to unraveling the genetic complexities of the various forms of diabetes -- heck they haven't even discovered them all.
So, to me, the message remains the same: let the scientists hash out the formalities and the names, and the causes of diabetes -- all WE can do is demand the treatment that works for us, and not let ourselves be treated wrongly because we don't fit into the box they are trying to stuff us into.
My brother who thinks he is a food and exercise expert and my sister who has diabetes 1 both say I ate my way into type 2. She got diabetes 1 in her early 20s. She will not help me or give me advice. I told her I changed to a vegetarian diet with pasta occasionally. She texts me back, “you need protein before you need pasta!” I texted her back, “oh, I forgot I take protein shakes too wiith blueberries in them.” Then she says, “You didn’t say that., you also need vitamins and mineErals too! You need to talk to Jason about this!” I told her I did not need to talk to him about it and that he is not a Dr or a diabetes specialist!" She says , “then don’t ask me for advice!” She is 59 and has had type 1 for 40+years and I was just diagnosed six months ago at the age of 57! My brother is 18 years younger than I am and works at a factory! My sister sells vitamins at a huge up price an d I refuse to ever buy any from her. She has my 80 year old mother buying them from her… I just found this site today and feel I have found a great place for help.
