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It appears that Diabetes research receives over a billion in funding each year just from the NIH [1][2]. As far as I can tell this doesn't include private fundi

It appears that Diabetes research receives over a billion in funding each year just from the NIH [1][2]. As far as I can tell this doesn't include private funding for cures/treatments. Maybe I'm misinterpreting the data here, but it looks like many people and many millions of dollars are devoted to solving real world problems like the one Scott Hanselman has. [1] General Disease research numbers http://report.nih.gov/categorical_spending.aspx http://report.nih.gov/categorical_spending.aspx [2] Diabetes funding by project http://report.nih.gov/categorical_spending_project_listing.aspx?FY=2011&ARRA=N&DCat=Diabetes http://report.nih.gov/categorical_spending_project_listing.a...

DanBC 14y ago
Diabetes has a variety of causes. Concentrating on just one cause - too much sugar in the diet - how much money is spent by producers of sugar on, for example, advertising each year? How much is paid by those producers of sugar in tax, and how much of that tax is used for research? I agree with your general point though.
- bhickey 14y ago
  Type II diabetes is almost entirely the result of obesity. Put on 10 pounds and your fasting blood glucose will skyrocket. Sure, there are genetic factors that predispose a person to insulin resistance, but the dominant factor is adipose tissue. Type I (juvenile/auto-immune) is more interesting. Sugar production in the US is heavily subsidized.
  - thecosas 14y ago
    Thanks for making the distinction. I've had Type I diabetes for over 20 years and occasionally get the "but you're not fat" comment. EDUCATE :o)
    - Evbn 14y ago
      They need to change the stupid name already. Hypoinsulinomia and caloroglucitis, or something.
      - thedamon 14y ago
        So totally agree. Especially when I learned of how many young type 1s have eating disorders because they think they must be fat :(
        anonymouz 14y ago
        That the general population does not distinguish between Type I and Type II Diabetes it an unfortunate fact of life. But that someone who is diagnosed with Type I Diabetes does not inform himself about it and learn about the difference is simply inexcusable stupidity.
      - shanselman 14y ago
        Totally. The fact that Type 1 and Type 2 share a name, and a "type" is insane.
  - mindcrime 14y ago
    Type II diabetes is almost entirely the result of obesity. Put on 10 pounds and your fasting blood glucose will skyrocket. Sure, there are genetic factors that predispose a person to insulin resistance, but the dominant factor is adipose tissue. Thankfully, the inverse is largely true as well. Develop diabetes, and if you lose enough weight, you can often avoid the need for meds altogether. I was just diagnosed as a type II diabetic about 3 months ago... they originally had me on injectable insulin and Metformin, but as I've lost weight (17 lbs in ~ 3 months) and switched to a low carb diet, I've been able to stop taking insulin and still see my blood glucose numbers move closer and closer to stabilizing in the normal range. I'm hoping (and my doctor seems confident) that if I lose more weight and stay active (and eat right) that I'll be able to drop the Metformin eventually. One thing this experience has taught me though, has been a much greater appreciate for the evils of simple sugars and high glycemic index carbs. I now look at a bottle of (non diet) soda and the idea of drinking that shit just makes me sick.
    - mindcrime 14y ago
      Also, just to be clear... I'm not suggesting that diet soda is exactly good for you. I plan to try and wean myself off of that as well, over time. But the sugar (HFCS really) in plain soda is just horrible, horrible, evil stuff... especially when it's in soda, since sugar that comes into your body in such a ready to digest form seems to hit your bloodstream much faster than, say, a piece of orange, which also has plenty of sugar (fructose) but has to be digested to get to the sugar.
      - DanBC 14y ago
        And there's a lot more sugar in a soda than in a piece of fruit. (although fruit juices have a lot of sugar, which is why people suggest that you drink small amounts or water it down.) A 3" orange has about 14 g of sugar. 12 oz (a 355 ml can) of coca cola has 39 g of sugar.
clivestaples 14y ago
I've had Type 1 diabetes for about 20 years now; it's a little bit of pain in the ass, but I don't get why people bellyache about it so much. Blood sugar meters? Check. Fast-acting insulin? Check. Insulin pumps? Check. Blindness, amputation and kidney failure are no longer guaranteed and I'm grateful as heck for that. For now I'll count my blessings: one of which is the fact that my wife has yet to find me laid out in a diabetic coma -- something that was very, very common less than 50 years ago.
- frabcus 14y ago
  My dad had type 1 diabetes. He had all the problems you mention, and died when I was 11. Yes, died essentially because the equipment wasn't as good back then (he was born in the late 1930s, died in the 1980s) as it is now. He also taught me to program when I was 7 (by pairing together on a ZX Spectrum!).
  - clivestaples 14y ago
    I'm sorry to hear. That he experienced so much pain and suffering, and that you lost him so young, is exactly the reason I can't feel sorry for myself (and no other diabetic should either). Awesome that his hacker spirit lives on in you...
- shanselman 14y ago
  Unless our hA1cs are under 6, it's more than likely that diabetes will be our ultimate cause of death. Type 1 diabetics almost always die of Type 1 diabetes. I think that's a good reason to bellyache. It's a big deal.
  - clivestaples 14y ago
    Historically, you're correct that our prognosis is poor. Then again, we cannot compare numbers with the generation before us because they were, more than likely, cruising around with sugars consistently in the 200-400mg/dL range. I realize that what works for me won't necessarily work for others, but I have a really hard time complaining in light of the fact that I regularly achieve A1Cs of less than 6.3 with nothing more than a glucose meter, syringes and some Humalog. Maybe I'm lucky, but testing sugars 4-8 times a day and injecting before every meal isn't hard work. Perhaps our demise will be miserable but for now I'm grateful for my current quality of life. It could be so much worse.

DanBC 14y ago

Diabetes has a variety of causes. Concentrating on just one cause - too much sugar in the diet - how much money is spent by producers of sugar on, for example, advertising each year? How much is paid by those producers of sugar in tax, and how much of that tax is used for research? I agree with your general point though.

bhickey 14y ago
Type II diabetes is almost entirely the result of obesity. Put on 10 pounds and your fasting blood glucose will skyrocket. Sure, there are genetic factors that predispose a person to insulin resistance, but the dominant factor is adipose tissue. Type I (juvenile/auto-immune) is more interesting. Sugar production in the US is heavily subsidized.
- thecosas 14y ago
  Thanks for making the distinction. I've had Type I diabetes for over 20 years and occasionally get the "but you're not fat" comment. EDUCATE :o)
  - Evbn 14y ago
    They need to change the stupid name already. Hypoinsulinomia and caloroglucitis, or something.
    - thedamon 14y ago
      So totally agree. Especially when I learned of how many young type 1s have eating disorders because they think they must be fat :(
      - anonymouz 14y ago
        That the general population does not distinguish between Type I and Type II Diabetes it an unfortunate fact of life. But that someone who is diagnosed with Type I Diabetes does not inform himself about it and learn about the difference is simply inexcusable stupidity.
    - shanselman 14y ago
      Totally. The fact that Type 1 and Type 2 share a name, and a "type" is insane.
- mindcrime 14y ago
  Type II diabetes is almost entirely the result of obesity. Put on 10 pounds and your fasting blood glucose will skyrocket. Sure, there are genetic factors that predispose a person to insulin resistance, but the dominant factor is adipose tissue. Thankfully, the inverse is largely true as well. Develop diabetes, and if you lose enough weight, you can often avoid the need for meds altogether. I was just diagnosed as a type II diabetic about 3 months ago... they originally had me on injectable insulin and Metformin, but as I've lost weight (17 lbs in ~ 3 months) and switched to a low carb diet, I've been able to stop taking insulin and still see my blood glucose numbers move closer and closer to stabilizing in the normal range. I'm hoping (and my doctor seems confident) that if I lose more weight and stay active (and eat right) that I'll be able to drop the Metformin eventually. One thing this experience has taught me though, has been a much greater appreciate for the evils of simple sugars and high glycemic index carbs. I now look at a bottle of (non diet) soda and the idea of drinking that shit just makes me sick.
  - mindcrime 14y ago
    Also, just to be clear... I'm not suggesting that diet soda is exactly good for you. I plan to try and wean myself off of that as well, over time. But the sugar (HFCS really) in plain soda is just horrible, horrible, evil stuff... especially when it's in soda, since sugar that comes into your body in such a ready to digest form seems to hit your bloodstream much faster than, say, a piece of orange, which also has plenty of sugar (fructose) but has to be digested to get to the sugar.
    - DanBC 14y ago
      And there's a lot more sugar in a soda than in a piece of fruit. (although fruit juices have a lot of sugar, which is why people suggest that you drink small amounts or water it down.) A 3" orange has about 14 g of sugar. 12 oz (a 355 ml can) of coca cola has 39 g of sugar.

clivestaples 14y ago

I've had Type 1 diabetes for about 20 years now; it's a little bit of pain in the ass, but I don't get why people bellyache about it so much. Blood sugar meters? Check. Fast-acting insulin? Check. Insulin pumps? Check. Blindness, amputation and kidney failure are no longer guaranteed and I'm grateful as heck for that. For now I'll count my blessings: one of which is the fact that my wife has yet to find me laid out in a diabetic coma -- something that was very, very common less than 50 years ago.

frabcus 14y ago
My dad had type 1 diabetes. He had all the problems you mention, and died when I was 11. Yes, died essentially because the equipment wasn't as good back then (he was born in the late 1930s, died in the 1980s) as it is now. He also taught me to program when I was 7 (by pairing together on a ZX Spectrum!).
- clivestaples 14y ago
  I'm sorry to hear. That he experienced so much pain and suffering, and that you lost him so young, is exactly the reason I can't feel sorry for myself (and no other diabetic should either). Awesome that his hacker spirit lives on in you...
shanselman 14y ago
Unless our hA1cs are under 6, it's more than likely that diabetes will be our ultimate cause of death. Type 1 diabetics almost always die of Type 1 diabetes. I think that's a good reason to bellyache. It's a big deal.
- clivestaples 14y ago
  Historically, you're correct that our prognosis is poor. Then again, we cannot compare numbers with the generation before us because they were, more than likely, cruising around with sugars consistently in the 200-400mg/dL range. I realize that what works for me won't necessarily work for others, but I have a really hard time complaining in light of the fact that I regularly achieve A1Cs of less than 6.3 with nothing more than a glucose meter, syringes and some Humalog. Maybe I'm lucky, but testing sugars 4-8 times a day and injecting before every meal isn't hard work. Perhaps our demise will be miserable but for now I'm grateful for my current quality of life. It could be so much worse.