The prevalence of diabetes is increasing worldwide. The World Health Organisation has estimated that there will be around 300 million diabetics by 2025. The largest increase will occur in Asia. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes is increasing due to a combination of factors: increasing lifespan, sedentary lifestyle, excessive intake of high energy foods, increasing prevalence of overweight/obese people. The Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study Group has clearly shown that changes in the lifestyle of both overweight men and women with impaired glucose tolerance can reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes by 58%. This finding was confirmed by the Diabetes Prevention Programme which found that lifestyle intervention in individuals with impaired fasting glucose or impaired glucose tolerance reduced the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 58%, whereas treatment with metformin reduced the risk of type 2 diabetes by only 31%. Both acarbose and troglitazone have also been shown to reduce the progression to diabetes in individuals who are at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Since the cure for diabetes remains some way off our concerted efforts should be directed at prevention of diabetes in order to curb the increasing prevalence of diabetes worldwide. Lifestyle changes are more beneficial than long term drug therapy in the prevention of diabetes and should be actively promoted.
Diabetes Mellitus, Non-Insulin-Dependent ; Prevention ; Diabetes ; Prevalence aspects ; Life Style

The injection of streptozotocin(stz) at a high dose (60 mg/kg) into young male rats produces direct beta cell destruction and leads to insulin dependent diabetes (IDD). In contrast the injection of multiple smal doses of stz (40 mg/Kg/d for 5 days) produce IDD, which resembles type l diabetes in man. The provocative effects of the pertussis vaccine (PV) and cyclosporin(CA) against the development of IDD induced by stz were studied. When PV in a dose of 3.75 X 10(10) microorganism was administered to single or multiple stz treated rats, hyperglycemia still developed and persisted during the experiment. No difference was noted in blood glucose levels, but plasma insulin levels were higher in PV treated rats. When CA (10 mg/kg) was administered daily to single or multiple stz treated rats, hyperglycemia seemed to be lower, but this was not statistically significant, however, plasma insulin levels were higher in CA treated rats. The results of this experiment suggest that PV and CA provide some protection to the beta cells of the pancreas.
Animal ; Blood Glucose/metabolism ; Cyclosporins/pharmacology* ; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental/prevention & control* ; Diabetes Mellitus, Insulin-Dependent/chemically induced ; Male ; Pertussis Vaccine/pharmacology* ; Rats ; Rats, Inbred Strains

To investigate whether BCG, lymphtoxin (LT) or bee venom (BV) can prevent insulitis and development of diabetes in non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice, we measured the degree of insulitis and incidence of diabetes in 24 ICR and 96 female NOD mice. NOD mice were randomly assigned to control, BCG-, LT-, and BV-treated groups. The BCG was given once at 6 weeks of age, and LT was given in 3 weekly doses from the age of 4 to 10 weeks. The BV was injected in 2 weekly doses from the age of 4 to 10 weeks. Diabetes started in control group at 18 weeks of age, in BCG group at 24 weeks of age, and in LT- or BV-treated group at 23 weeks of age. Cumulative incidences of diabetes at 25 weeks of age in control, BCG-, LT-, and BV-treated NOD mice are 58, 17, 25, and 21%, respectively. Incidence and severity of insulitis were reduced by BCG, LT and BV treatment. In conclusion, these results suggest that BCG, LT or BV treatment in NOD mice at early age inhibit insulitis, onset and cumulative incidence of diabetes.
Adjuvants, Immunologic/pharmacology* ; Age Factors ; Animal ; Bee Venoms/pharmacology* ; Cholesterol/blood ; Diabetes Mellitus/prevention & control* ; Diabetes Mellitus/immunology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Insulin-Dependent/prevention & control* ; Diabetes Mellitus, Insulin-Dependent/immunology ; Disease Models, Animal ; Female ; Islets of Langerhans/pathology* ; Islets of Langerhans/drug effects ; Lymphotoxin/pharmacology* ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred NOD ; Mycobacterium bovis/immunology* ; Triglycerides/blood