When it comes to managing your blood sugar concerns, it’s all about a balance of medical care, diet, exercise and lifestyle behavior. We have always been big proponents of all four to ensure our customers are happy with their blood sugar. Speaking to your doctor about your options is essential, and then taking steps with your daily diet and workout can help you stay on the right path.
New research might yield another tool to aid blood sugar health. Researchers have found a way to turn stem cells harvested from stomach tissue into cells that secrete insulin in response to rising blood sugar. Taking cells from humans, they were able to reprogram them and put them into mice who then had much better blood sugar levels. The scientists monitored the mice for six months, and the cells continued to function well, suggesting it could be a long-term treatment.
“This is a proof-of-concept study that gives us a solid foundation for developing a treatment, based on patients’ own cells,” said study senior author Dr. Joe Zhou, a professor of regenerative medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine.
Dr. Zhou said his lab still has work to do before the method is ready to be used on patients. They need the technique to be a “relatively easy harvesting of gastric stem cells from patients, followed by the transplant weeks later.” Right now, that isn’t a simple process that would be practical for clinical use.
When we cover medical discoveries like this, we always feel it’s important to stress that it’s impossible to tell how far it is from clinical use. These results are awe-inspiring. But so far, it’s only been proven in mice. Moreover, even if it was approved for human use, it’s not practical outside of a lab setting. Until this is available through medical insurance, it’s important to focus on the available tools.
We can’t wait for this to be a reality and available to our customers. However, until then, eating right and ensuring you get enough exercise and sleep can be incredibly helpful in maintaining healthy blood sugar. You should speak to your doctor about the best course of action to manage your concerns.
These amazing breakthroughs are inspiring, but they can take years before coming to the market. We’re excited to see where this research goes. But until it becomes a widely available therapy, keep taking care of yourself!
