Restaurant owner, author and celebrity cook Paula Deen has been making headlines a lot lately. The southern belle, known for her love of foods that are rich in butter, sugar and all things creamy and fried was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Deen announced in January that she has type 2 diabetes and she has managed to drop two pant sizes since then. Her weight loss has aided in her feeling better and she achieve it through walking 30 minutes each day and cutting her portion sizes in half.

“I’ve dropped two pant sizes and I feel great!” Deen said. Although she is losing weight and dropping sizes, Deen doesn’t keep track of her exact weight. “We don’t have a scale in our house. Every six months I go for a physical and find out. Now it’s time to see the doctor. She’ll be so happy if I’ve lost weight,” Deen said.

Paula Deen has known she’s had type 2 diabetes for over three years, but didn’t officially announce her disease until this past January. She’s received a lot of backlash for continuing to cook foods that are high in fat and calories instead of raising awareness toward a healthier diet.

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Modern studies are now linking the obesity and diabetes epidemic to modern chemicals, not necessarily our diet and exercise habits.

Scientists are arguing that synthesized substances that are found in things like pesticides and water bottles are actually scrambling hormone signals. These disturbances are being blamed for tricking fat cells into taking in more fat. Another proposed result of hormone disruption is that the pancreas is being mislead into secreting excess insulin, causing interference in the  regulation of carbohydrate and fat breakdown. The main culprit being blamed is bisphenol A, known as BPA. This chemical is found in plastics and food-can linings.

The so-called endocrine disruptor has been the center of a recent Spanish study. “When you eat something with BPA, it’s like telling your organs that you are eating more than you are really eating,” says Angel Nadal, a BPA expert at the Miguel Hernandez University in Spain.

Nadal’s research also finds that BPA triggers the release of almost double the insulin needed to break down food. High insulin levels can desensitize the body to the hormone, which in some people may lead to weight gain and type 2 diabetes. These are arguable findings. The fact that a chemical, not our super-size fast food and sedentary lifestyles, is to blame for the insurmountable numbers of obesity and diabetes cases seems ridiculous, but is there truly merit?

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The city Health Department in New York is catching some heat for their latest ad campaign linking big soda portions and diabetes. One of the ads features an obese man who had his leg amputated due to type 2 diabetes. The ad reads “Portions have grown. So has type 2 diabetes, which can lead to amputations.”

The ads have caused a stir for their blunt messages, but the obese actor in the amputation ad is upset about the blunt appearance of his right leg.

27-year-old Cleo Berry, while living in NYC several years ago, participated in a paid photo shoot with photographer Morten Smidt. The photos were then sold to a stock photo company. The stock photo was purchased by New York City’s Department of Health, who digitally altered the photo to remove Berry’s right leg below the knee and used the photo as part of their anti-diabetes campaign.

Berry was floored.”I cried at my computer screen for, like, a minute,” he said. “I said: ‘Oh my gosh, they even gave me crutches. Come on, people.’ ”

It is common to alter purchased stock photos and Berry admits he signed a waiver before the photo shoot. The health department behind the ads dismisses the actor’s reaction, and thinks the ads are a part of something bigger.

“This issue isn’t about one actor but rather the 700,000 New Yorkers who struggle with diabetes, which kills 1,700 people a year and causes amputations in another 3,000,” said John Kelly, a spokesman for the health department, in a statement. “Advertising to warn the public about health concerns saves lives, and we will continue our efforts to warn New Yorkers about diabetes.”

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UPDATE 1/18/12: Paula Deen confirms on Today Show that she has type 2 diabetes, and has for three years. She says the disease “is not a death sentence,” and is partnering with Diabetes in a New Light. She told Al Roker she’s “always encouraged moderation” when it comes to her cooking.

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Cooking celebrity Paula Deen may be known for her high-calorie, butter-laden Southern cooking but she has alluded to health struggles in the past.  Today, The Daily reported that the Food Network star, cookbook author and restauranteur famous for her 1500-calorie donut burger is about to reveal that she has been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, a condition often associated with fatty foods and obesity.

The Georgia-born chef, who was once a single mother struggling to make ends meet has reportedly signed a multimillion dollar deal with Novartis to endorse the drug that she is taking to help control her condition.

Deen has faced past criticism, reportedly even from First Lady Michelle Obama, for her the high amounts of fat, salt and sugar in her dishes. Now that Deen has been diagnosed with a condition largely controlled by diet and exercise, sources are wondering whether her platform will change.

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No matter how heavy you are, if you have diabetes, losing weight will help you in your fight to control it. Experts say that losing even 10 or 15 pounds can bring about health benefits such as: 

• Lowered blood sugar
• Reduced blood pressure
• Improved cholesterol levels
• Less stress on your hips, knees and ankles

But the issue isn’t losing the weight, it’s maintaining the weight loss in order to sustain the health benefits.

One diabetic expert, Richard Kahn, PhD, who was the chief scientific and medical officer of the American Diabetes Association for nearly 25 years, is denouncing some weight loss programs as being ineffective in reducing the incidence of Diabetes and helping the patient to keep the weight from coming back. He outlined his theories in his paper that was published in the January edition of Health Affairs. Kahn stated that even though patients in one study lost 4% to 6% of their body weight, they regained 40% by the time the study ended three years later. He goes on the say that “one of the issues that prevents people from keeping the weight off is cheap, widely available, delicious food that we eat again and again.”

Listening to Kahn, one would conclude that it may be hopeless to even attempt weight loss because, in the end, you will just gain it all back and have to start over.

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