Achieving treatment targets has been difficult in treating diabetic patients. This cross-sectional study describes the lipid profiles of patients with diabetes mellitus at a public primary health care centre in Sarawak, Malaysia. The targets for lipid control were based on the International Diabetes Federation recommendation (2002). 1031 patients (98% Type 2 Diabetes) were studied. Fasting lipid profiles were available in 990 (96%) patients. The mean total cholesterol was 5.3 +/- 1.0 mmol/L, Triglycerides 1.90 +/- 1.26 mmol/L, HDL-C 1.28 +/- 0.33 mmol/L and LDL-C 3.2 +/- 0.9 mmol/L. Overall, 22% of patients achieved the treatment target for LDL-C level < 2.6mmol/L. 67% of patients had HDL-C > 1.1 mmol/L and 42% of patients had a target TG level below 1.5 mmol/L. Of the 40% of patients who received lipid-lowering drug, 17% achieved LDL-C target, 50% had LDL-C 2.6-4.4 mmol/ L and 33% have LDL-C > 4.0 mmol/L. For the remaining 60% not receiving any lipid lowering therapy, 68% had LDL-C between 2.6-4.0 mmol/L and 7% had LDL-C level > 4 mmol/L. Dyslipidemia is still under-treated despite the availability of effective pharmacological agents and the greatly increased risk of cardiovascular diseases in diabetic patients.
Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a cluster of diseases comprising of obesity, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, and hypertension. There are numerous pre-clinical as well as human studies reporting the protective effects of honey against MetS. Honey is a nutritional food low in glycemic index. Honey intake reduces blood sugar levels and prevents excessive weight gain. It also improves lipid metabolism by reducing total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and increasing high-density lipoprotein (HDL), which leads to decreased risk of atherogenesis. In addition, honey enhances insulin sensitivity that further stabilizes blood glucose levels and protects the pancreas from overstimulation brought on by insulin resistance. Furthermore, antioxidative properties of honey help in reducing oxidative stress, which is one of the central mechanisms in MetS. Lastly, honey protects the vasculature from endothelial dysfunction and remodelling. Therefore, there is a strong potential for honey supplementation to be integrated into the management of MetS, both as preventive as well as adjunct therapeutic agents.
Matched MeSH terms: Dyslipidemias/prevention & control