Nutrition. Vitamins. You.
It’s difficult enough to get out of bed in the morning. But for those who must regularly take pills, check their blood sugar levels or give themselves insulin every morning, they may have it a lot harder. Though, maintaining your health, especially with diabetes is …
Diabetes affects 29.1 million people in the United States, which equals 9% of the entire U.S. population. While Type 2 diabetes makes up about 95% of that number, many people still do not fully understand how it works. Here are the top seven myths about …
The collective expression of obesity, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, systemic inflammation and Type 2 diabetes is now commonly referred to by the term diabesity. This multi-faceted condition is predicted to be the single most pervasive global health epidemic of our time with as many as 366 million people affected worldwide by 2030[1]. Most will experience an estimated 8 to 10 year reduction in life expectancy[2]. Accordingly, it is hard to overstate diabesity’s impact. It is already the leading cause of heart disease, stroke, dementia, cancer and premature death. Unlike most prior epidemics, however, it is almost always precipitated by lifestyle as well as environmental factors[3].
Diabesity damage commonly begins long before full-blown diabetes manifests or is clinically diagnosed. During what is now diagnosed as pre-diabetes the stage is being set for the later, devastating ‘side effects’ of full-blown diabetes. These effects also include high blood pressure, fatty liver, depression, nervous system damage (which may lead to amputation of limbs), sexual dysfunction, retinopathy (blindness caused by damage to tiny blood vessels inside the retina of the eye), periodental and gum disease and heart disease. Accordingly, a clinical diagnosis of pre-diabetes should be treated as seriously as a diagnosis of diabetes.
Perhaps the single greatest driver of Type 2 diabetes is obesity. Simply put, as your waistline increases (elevated waist circumference is considered to be greater than 40 inches for men and greater than 35 inches for women) your risk of death from heart disease, cancer and so many other diseases increases as well. By making wise lifestyle changes that incorporate dietary modification, exercise and stress management, as well as targeted and high quality supplementation, effective weight loss can be achieved. Moreover, it is possible to limit or even completely reverse the effects caused by diabesity. Commonly lacking in people with Type 2 diabetes[4] as well as obese people in general are several minerals critical to maintaining healthy blood sugar levels. Chromium helps blood sugar enter the cells by supporting the natural function of insulin at the cell membrane. It assists in maintaining healthy glucose, insulin, cholesterol and HA1c[5] (a protein found in the body that is an indication of how well blood sugar has performed over the last three months) levels.
Vanadium, a mineral with insulin-like properties[6], promotes better blood sugar metabolism in both the muscle and the liver[7]. Magnesium, a critically important mineral, improves insulin sensitivity and helps lower HA1c levels in Type 2 diabetics and in non-diabetic adults.[8],[9] Not surprisingly these minerals are deficient or even missing in most American diets. Our diets provide the nutritional information our body translates into instructions for the genes that will either keep us healthy or make us sick[10]. Clearly, a healthful diet is critical for appropriate gene programming. In addition to eating a wide variety of real and whole foods, it is advisable to add a high-quality vitamin and mineral supplement to fill the gaps in our diet as well as to provide some of the minerals that may be lacking in our soil due to current agricultural practices.There are many widely studied nutraceuticals that have been shown to help precipitate good health and protect against the ravages of diabesity. Resveratrol, notably found in red wine and the skin of red grapes, activates the SIRT1 gene which turns on other genes that directly influence insulin and fat burning[11], and may be helpful for diabetics[12]. It decreases inflammation in fat cells and boosts adiponectin[13] (a hormone produced and secreted exclusively by adipocytes or fat cells that regulate the metabolism of lipids and glucose).
Green coffee berries contain polyphenols and chlorogenic acid which helps the liver metabolize sugar effectively by modulating the enzyme glucose-6-phosphatase[14], an enzyme that plays a key role in the homeostatic regulation of blood glucose levels. They have been shown to improve glucose tolerance, decrease cholesterol and triglycerides[15] and may also be effective in controlling mildly elevated blood pressure[16] which is common in diabetics. DHA (part of omega 3 fatty acids) decreases the inflammation[17] associated with blood sugar and insulin problems and directly boosts the production of adiponectin[18]. Diabetics tend to have high levels of AGEs or Advanced Glycation End-products. Damaging AGEs are formed by the cross-linking of certain proteins and sugars. The amino acid L-Carnosine may be effective in inhibiting AGEs formation. It may protect kidney cells from the effects of high glucose levels, helping to decrease the risk of diabetic kidney disease or nephropathy.[19],[20] It may also decrease protein cross-linking in the lens of the eye and help reduce the risk of cataract formation, a common diabetic complication[21].
The damage from chronic inflammation is well documented and people with diabesity tend to have extremely high inflammation levels. Fat cells generate inflammatory cytokines, chemicals that disrupt the body’s response to insulin, and leptin (a “satiety” hormone made by fat cells that is involved in the regulation of body fat), thus disabling their ability to properly metabolize sugars, fats, and protein[22]. A powerful spice, turmeric, and specifically its active ingredient curcumin, is very effective in quelling inflammation at the cellular level. Curcumin can improve blood sugar levels by increasing sugar uptake from the blood, decreasing new glucose formation and thus increasing insulin’s effectiveness. Curcumin also reduces dangerous inflammatory markers such as IL6 and TNF-Alpha that are generally elevated in diabetics and may also help to protect nerve and brain cells. As noted, by adopting meaningful lifestyle changes it is possible to stop, or even reverse the ravages of diabesity. With effective diet, supplements, exercise and stress management we can anticipate lives of extended health and wellness rather than fear an inevitable decline into the life-altering changes and ravages of diabesity.
Click here to view all sources and references for this article!
Diabetes is a very common illness. According to the latest data compiled in 2012, it affects 29 million Americans (1). On average, diabetes cost the United States 245 billion dollars in 2012 alone and this number seems to only be steadily increasing (2). But where …
Ninety-five percent of diabetes cases in adults are type 2 diabetes. Though several studies have shown that a healthy diet and regular physical activity can prevent diabetes all together, only a small amount of studies have been performed on the link between type 2 diabetes …
As one of the biggest threats to your overall health, sugar is one part of your diet that many dieticians and nutritionists say you should completely eliminate. When consumed in large quantities, sugar can lead to obesity and diabetes, just to name a few. But what else do you need to know? And how can it be safely consumed?
According to ABC News and research from recent studies, “For every additional 150 calories of added sugar downed per person per day, the prevalence of diabetes rose by 1 percent, even after controlling for obesity, physical activity and calories from other foods.” In other words, this study proves that sugar has a direct relationship with the increased risk of diabetes, regardless of how much physical activity or calories a person burns in one day. It has also been found to have a direct relationship with heart problems; A study conducted by JAMA Internal Medicine found that the more a person consumes, the higher the risk of developing heart disease.
The first step to knowing how to safely consume sugar is to know what to look out for. There are two types – natural and added. Natural sugar is commonly found in whole foods, vegetables and dairy products. These foods are a great source of fiber, protein, and calcium and also contain important vitamins and minerals that your body needs. Added sugars are artificially added to your food for flavor and preservation of processed foods. This is something that you should eliminate from your diet. The American Heart Association explains, “Increases in intake over the past four decades parallel our expanding waistlines, and studies have connected added sugar, not the naturally occurring kind, to heart disease and diabetes.”
Many packaged foods contain sugar – both natural and added. To figure out what kind is added in a product, review the nutrition label. If you see any of these sweeteners – brown sugar, cane sugar or juice, corn syrup, maltose or fructose – choose something else. Also remember, by law, the order of the ingredients on the ingredient label goes by weight, so the first ingredient listed is what the product is mostly made out of. Be vigilant and cautious of what you are about to put into your body.
According to the AHA, you should have no more than 100 calories or 6 teaspoons of added sugar per day. However, the average person consumes up to 18 teaspoons a day (more than double the suggested amount!) Most of the products people consume that are very high in sugar are sweetened drinks and pre-packaged, processed foods. To keep track of your intake while consuming these beverages and foods, remember that 1 teaspoon equals 4 grams.
A diet with a high consumption rate of fruits and vegetables can actually make you consume more sugar than you think. Fruit smoothies and dried fruits are packed with sugar, though many people would think they are the healthier alternative. While breaking down the vegetables for the smoothies in the blender, you are actually eliminating its fiber content. It is the fiber that slows down digestion and gives your body the time to metabolize it correctly. As a result, the calories in the fruits are actually stored as fat in your body. Without water, natural sugars become very concentrated. This is the reason why you must also be careful of consuming too much dried fruit. Portion your meals and dried fruit to make sure you are not consuming too much sugar.
Source: http://abcnews.go.com