http://www.cfri.ca/PDF/media/CFRI_JCI_Hammond_Nov8.pdf

*****IF***** this holds for ferrets, too, then it says that sugars
or fruits as treats could worsen the effects of adrenal neoplasia by
reducing a genetic regulator that can help keep sex steroid levels
lower. So, to be safest, go for the unsweetened treats for ferrets
with adrenal disease.

Note that this addresses specific simple sugars rather than complex
carbohydrates.

BTW, also notice in the text:
BEGIN QUOTE
The discovery dispels the earlier assumption that too much insulin
reduces SHBG, a view which arose from the observation that overweight,
pre-diabetic individuals have high levels of insulin and low levels of
SHBG. This new study proves that insulin is not to blame and that it's
actually the liver's metabolism of sugar that counts.
END QUOTE

which affects some other hypotheses about the generation of pancreatic
woes. There had already been epidemiological and other studies which
weakened some of those hypotheses. This perhaps also further weakens
some AS THEY ARE CURRENTLY STATED so unscores the vast importance of
actual veterinary health researchers doing the sort of investigation
into the generation of insulinoma and of diabetes which does not yet
exist. (There has been some interesting work into neural differences
perhaps playing a part in the onset of diabetes, and also some work
that beta cells tend to regenerate as a group rather than individually
which may say something about why problems can be sprinkled throughout
the pancreas if they share a trigger during a regeneration.) Now, that
is not to say that diet does not play a part, but if it does then more
and more it looks like it plays that part in different ways than
previously thought so that means that some of the assumptions which
fit the earlier hypothesis might or might not fit newer ones. If that
sounds like I am inserting a lot of "if, then", well, yes, I am because
the degree of lack of hard info warrants it. Like everyone else, I
won't know till we've got some hard research, something which is sorely
needed for our ferrets.

Press Release:
http://www.cfri.ca/PDF/media/CFRI_JCI_Hammond_Nov8.pdf
BEGIN QUOTE
NEWS RELEASE

Too much sugar turns off gene that controls the effects of sex steroids

New research supports advice to eat complex carbs and avoid sugar

(Vancouver -- November 8, 2007) -- Eating too much fructose and glucose
can turn off the gene that regulates the levels of active testosterone
and estrogen in the body, shows a new study in mice and human cell
cultures that's published this month in the Journal of Clinical
Investigation. This discovery reinforces public health advice to eat
complex carbohydrates and avoid sugar. Table sugar is made of glucose
and fructose, while fructose is also commonly used in sweetened
beverages, syrups, and low- fat food products. Estimates suggest North
Americans consume 33 kg of refined sugar and an additional 20 kg of
high fructose corn syrup per person per year.

Glucose and fructose are metabolized in the liver. When there's too
much sugar in the diet, the liver converts it to lipid. Using a mouse
model and human liver cell cultures, the scientists discovered that the
increased production of lipid shut down a gene called SHBG (sex hormone
binding globulin), reducing the amount of SHBG protein in the blood.
SHBG protein plays a key role in controlling the amount of testosterone
and estrogen that's available throughout the body. If there's less
SHBG protein, then more testosterone and estrogen will be released
throughout the body, which is associated with an increased risk of
acne, infertility, polycystic ovaries, and uterine cancer in overweight
women. Abnormal amounts of SHBG also disturb the delicate balance
between estrogen and testosterone, which is associated with the
development of cardiovascular disease, especially in women.

"We discovered that low levels of SHBG in a person's blood means the
liver's metabolic state is out of whack -- because of inappropriate
diet or something that's inherently wrong with the liver -- long before
there are any disease symptoms," says Dr. Geoffrey Hammond, the study's
principal investigator, scientific director of the Child & Family
Research Institute in Vancouver, Canada, and professor in the
Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology at the University of British
Columbia.

"With this new understanding, we can now use SHBG as a biomarker for
monitoring liver function well before symptoms arise," says Dr Hammond,
who is a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Reproductive Health. "We can
also use it for determining the effectiveness of dietary interventions
and drugs aimed at improving the liver's metabolic state."

Physicians have traditionally measured SHBG in the blood to determine
a patient's amount of free testosterone, which is key information for
diagnosing hormonal disorders. In addition, SHBG levels are used to
indicate an individual's risk for developing type 2 diabetes and
cardiovascular disease.

The discovery dispels the earlier assumption that too much insulin
reduces SHBG, a view which arose from the observation that overweight,
pre-diabetic individuals have high levels of insulin and low levels of
SHBG. This new study proves that insulin is not to blame and that it's
actually the liver's metabolism of sugar that counts.

This research was supported by a grant from the Canadian Institutes of
Health Research, the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, and
the BC Children's Hospital Foundation.

The Child & Family Research Institute is dedicated to world-class
research at the Children's and Women's Health Campus. It is the largest
research institute of its kind in Western Canada and it is supported
by the BC Children's Hospital Foundation. Research is conducted in the
areas of community child heath, diabetes, applied health research and
evaluation, infectious and inflammatory diseases, molecular medicine
and therapeutics, oncology, reproductive health, nutrition, genetics,
immunology, informatics, neurobiology and mental health. Incorporated
in 1995, the Institute works in close partnership with the University
of British Columbia, BC Children's Hospital and Sunny Hill Health
Centre for Children, and BC Women's Hospital & Health Centre, which
are agencies of the Provincial Health Services Authority. For more
information, visit www.cfri.ca.
END QUOTE

Sukie (not a vet)

Recommended ferret health links:
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html
http://www.miamiferret.org/fhc/
http://www.ferretcongress.org/
http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml
http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html

[Posted in FML 5788]