Diabetes and Syndrome X
Is diabetes a curable disease? People seem to attach to the label diabetes as if it were an incurable, life long disease process, which it can be without major changes. But the reality is that diabetes is just really bad sugar metabolism. There may be cases where there is actual physical damage or malfunction of the pancreas, such as IDDM, but for the vast majority, if people detach from the label, make some significant changes in their diet and supplementation, it is a curable condition. A diabetic can be as normal as anyone else (meaning the diagnosis is gone).
Diabetes is defined as a fasting blood sugar over 120 and a non-fasting blood sugar over 200…then you get the label. Ideal is considered a fasting blood sugar between 80 and 95, and a non-fasting blood sugar under 120…then you take the label off. So what makes the blood sugar too high or for that matter, too low?
It is not as simple as decreasing carbohydrate intake; although, that is a big part of it in most cases. It does involve other hormones such as cortisol, which is not produced by the pancreas. It does involve what fats you eat, not because of cholesterol issues but because every cell wall in your body is made from fat and these cells are the sites of millions of receptors, including insulin receptors. It also involves your aerobic capacity…anaerobic cells are much more efficient in converting sugar to energy. And it certainly involves many micronutrients, such as B vitamins, magnesium, calcium, lipoic acid, CoQ10, zinc, and others.
That makes the five core features of diabetes and Syndrome X (which is high blood sugar, cholesterol, and blood pressure; just not to the point of being labeled diabetic):
Sugar intake: If you eat more energy (sugars and carbohydrates) than you use, you will develop sugar metabolism issues just from the stress of processing more than the body can handle. Stored energy is fat…you get fat. Most diabetics, although not all, are overweight or obese. Reduce all carbohydrate sources.
Stress levels: The stress hormone cortisol will impair your sugar metabolism. Cortisol levels can rise from any stressor: mental, chemical, or physical. Here is the snowball going down the hill…stress impairs sugar regulation, and sugar regulation problems are stressful. We have to handle both. Chemical ways to reduce stress include avoiding stimulants such as coffee, eating alkaline ash minerals such as those found in greens, or supplementing B5 and/or choline to make more acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that calms the nervous system. It would also be a benefit to explore negative belief systems (NET), rest adequately, and meditate.
Fat intake: This is not about amount so much as type. The more fluid the fats you eat, the better your insulin works, which lowers blood sugar. Butter is solid at room temperature…olive oil hardens under refrigeration… flax oil will stay liquid in refrigeration, but harden in a freezer… and fish oils, quality fish oils, will stay liquid in the freezer. Trans fats are liquid oils that are chemically altered to harden, and they are in many processed, packaged foods you find in the grocery store (now, those don’t cross my lips, but in my sniffly, sneezy college days I enjoyed? plenty of these strange fats).
Aerobic capacity: The more you exercise aerobically, the better you regulate sugars. You don’t have to bounce around and dance in an “aerobics” class, just get out and walk. And know how to monitor your heart rate (180 – your age is fine as the top number for most). Aerobic muscle cells have more mitochondria per cell than aerobic cells. That is important because the mitochondria are the production factories for sugar into energy. So, walking and exercise will not only lower blood sugar, it will make you more energetic…nice.
Micronutrients: If we recall how sugar is processed (through glycolysis, the citric acid cycle and oxidative phosphorylation (remember biochemistry?)), we see that glucose enters the cell. Then it is converted to step 2 with magnesium, then some B vitamins, and other minerals, and eventually comes out as ATP or energy. If you eat refined flours or sugars, you get the sugar or glucose but none of the B vitamins or minerals. It is like the factory is half staffed, and you want to be at full production. You keep pouring in the raw materials, but you keep laying off the workers. Many researchers say that in order to get adequate vitamins and minerals, we must eat whole foods and take a quality multivitamin/mineral supplement (see Wellness, Usana).
If these five factors are handled, a large percentage of diabetics would be able to tear off that label and once again plan on a long full life of health and wellness.
Site design and development by Function Advertising™, Asheville, NC - More Information
