Diabetes is characterized by hyperglycemia due to defects in insulin metabolism. Chronic hyperglycemia results in organ damage, particularly to the eyes, kidneys, heart and vasculature. Type 1 diabetes is due to an absolute deficiency of insulin secretion, whereas type 2 diabetes is caused by a combination of insulin resistance and inadequate compensatory insulin secretion. Type 2 diabetes is the far more common form of the disease, accounting for 90-95% of cases (1).
In the U.S., diabetes now accounts for 12 percent of deaths, a significantly higher percentage than previous research has shown (2). The new figures make it the third-leading cause of death after heart disease and cancer. In Canada, the rate of death from diabetes is 9.3% (3).
The U.S. statistics are based on data collected within the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, or NHANES, and the National Health Interview Survey, or NHIS. The data showed that people with diabetes have about 90 percent higher death rates than people without diabetes. The researchers also found that diabetes as an “underlying cause of death” has been previously grossly underreported.
In 1980, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 5.53 million people in the U.S. with diabetes; in 2014, the most recent year for which statistics exist, that number jumped to 21.95 million people, a nearly 300 percent increase.
The Word Health Organization cites that the number of people with diabetes has risen from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014. What’s more, WHO states the prevalence of diabetes has been rising more rapidly in middle- and low-income countries (4).
These new statistics point to the need for strategies to combat the epidemic of diabetes. Research reviewed under the “Diabetes” category of flaxresearch.com provides compelling evidence for the role that the alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), lignans and fibre in flaxseed can play in reducing the onset of the disease and reduce its symptoms.
Dietary intake of ALA is associated with a modest reduction in diabetes risk. In a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies examining the relationship between omega-3 fatty acid intake and diabetes risk, both dietary ALA intake and circulating ALA biomarkers were associated with a trend towards lower risk of diabetes (5). Glycated hemoglobin occurs when glucose molecules attach to the hemoglobin in red blood cells. A hemoglobin A1C value of ³6.5% is a criterion for the diagnosis of diabetes. One of the mechanisms by which ALA may protect against diabetes is by increasing insulin sensitivity (6).
Human clinical trials provide support for a beneficial role for lignans in reducing the risk of diabetes. People with type 2 diabetes who received a flaxseed lignan supplement for 12 weeks had significantly reduced hemoglobin A1C compared to placebo (7). In addition, flaxseed lignan (543 mg/d) improved metabolic syndrome composite score in men after six months of treatment compared to those receiving a placebo (8). Metabolic syndrome is characterized by a cluster of risk factors (central adiposity; increased triglycerides, blood pressure and inflammation; and decreased HDL cholesterol) that raise the risk of developing insulin resistance and cardiovascular disease.
The effect of flaxseed soluble fibre on blood glucose levels in patients with type 2 diabetes has been examined. Participants were fed chapatti flatbreads with or without 5 g of flaxseed mucilage. Fasting blood glucose significantly decreased in the flaxseed group after three months (8.4 ± 0.4mmol/L at baseline; 7.6 ± 0.4 mmol/L after treatment). Insulin sensitivity also improved in patients receiving flaxseed mucilage (9).
There are a number of potential mechanisms by which flaxseed protects against diabetes. Studies on the benefits of flaxseed on diabetes prevention are very timely to stem a potential global epidemic.
References
- American Diabetes Association. Diabetes Care 2014;37 Suppl 1:S81-90.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2015. National Diabetes Statistics Report. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/statsreport14/national-diabetes-report-web.pdf
- Canadian Diabetes Association. 2016. www.diabetes.ca.
- Global Report on Diabetes – World Health Organization. apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/204871/1/9789241565257_eng.pdf
- Wu JH, et al. Br J Nutr 2012;107 Suppl 2:S214-227.
- Rajaram S. Am J Clin Nutr 2014;100:443s-448s.
- Pan A, et al. PLoS ONE 2007;2:e1148.
- Cornish SM, et al. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab 2009;34:89-98.
- Thakur G, et al. Int J Food Sci Nutr 2009;60 Suppl 6:126-136.