Glucose: a kind of sugar that travels through the bloodstream; the main source of energy used by all human and animal cells. It enters your body every time you eat some food with carbohydrates.

Glucose regulated by two things: insulin and glucagon. Insulin is produced by the pancreas: it is a hormone which is released into your bloodstream every time there is detected a rise in glucose levels.

Normal blood glucose levels fall anywhere between 70 and 150mg. Such levels are usually lower in the early hours of the day; and they rise after a meal. A person who consistently has their blood sugar levels higher than 150, suffers from hyperglycemia. Conversely, anyone who shows a level that is below 70 suffers from low sugar, or hypoglycemia. Potentially fatal, hypoglycemia has symptoms that include lethargy, impaired mental functioning, irritability and unconsciousness. Persistent hyperglycemia can and does result in a condition of diabetes mellitus; the most common disease linked to sugar registration failure. And diabetes itself can manifest damages to one’s eyes, kidneys and nerves. This is why keeping normal blood glucose levels is essential!

Blood glucose tests continue to be used to measure the level of glucose in one’s bloodstream; for the purpose of checking for diabetes, monitoring the treatment of someone’s diabetes, or checking for a condition of hypoglycemia. And there is no single kind of glucose test. With the “fasting blood sugar” test, glucose levels are examined after an eight-hour fast (this test is usually the first one performed when checking for a condition of diabetes in someone). The levels of sugar in blood are considered normal if between 70 and 99. Then there is the “two-hour postprandial blood sugar” test: this measures glucose two hours after a meal.

Diabetes victims always want to know the best possible treatments for it. The best things for the assuaging the symptoms that it brings about - and they can be fatal in the worst cases - are natural options. In fact, natural options are just about always the more recommendable selection; for traditional medicines are notorious for generating some really nasty side effects sometimes. There is no need to risk suffering from these when natural products furnish relief so reliably.

This article shall discuss forms of natural treatment for diabetes as recognised in the modern day and age - may you procure a better knowledge of the alternative treatments available from reading this, to guide you when you seek to make the best possible decision for yourself (or for whoever it is that suffers from diabetes).

Food therapy is perhaps the most obvious form of natural treatment for diabetes. It is basically just keeping clear of certain kinds of foods and condiments while eating plenty of certain other kinds. Diabetics should always avoid a regular intake of refined sugar or biscuits, and also all sorts of processed and fried foods. They should also greatly limit how much red meat, caffeine and alcohol they consume. (Note that alcohol on an empty stomach greatly promotes hypoglycemia!) Fruit and vegetables, wholegrain products and plenty of water are always recommended; and fibre reduces your body’s need for insulin.

Be informed that doing regular exercise is good reducing the effects of diabetes - it is actually a fact that being overweight contributes substantially to Diabetes Type 2.

Bitter melon is known to be a natural treatment that is very effective against diabetes symptoms. For, it contains a compound that is very much like insulin.

Finally, you can buy certain herbal treatments, like Cat’s Claw, from health food stores.

This week someone very dear to me ended up in the hospital where she was told that she has Type II diabetes. I know that this disease is on the rise, but somehow when it happens to someone close to you, it goes from being an abstract statistic to a personal reality. One of my first thoughts after I heard the diagnosis was that her life has changed forever. She will need to take medication in some form and she will need to monitor her blood sugar carefully to maintain the right balance of insulin and blood sugar. And, it isn’t just about not eating sweets. She will need to eat at regular intervals and be aware of the fats, carbs and proteins of all of the foods she eats. She will need to get regular exercise and maintain a healthy weight. She will need to sleep regularly and manage the stress in her life. In other words, her health and well-being will be based on how successfully she balances all these components in her life.

As all these thoughts were racing through my mind, I had a sudden epiphany!

All of the recommendations that I was thinking about for her apply to me too-to all of us! The big difference between her and me is that she will need to balance her insulin levels manually, herself, with the help of her doctor, while those of us without diabetes can rely on our bodies to manage that important job for us. We take it for granted that our bodies will keep working in the way we expect, but the truth is, we all need to eat at regular intervals, be aware of the fats, carbs and proteins of all of the foods we eat, get regular exercise, maintain a healthy weight, sleep regularly and manage the stress in our lives.

Because our bodies are miraculous machines, we do have some margin in our lives for neglect, especially when we are young. We can overeat, under sleep, overstress, etc. and our bodies forgive us, make the adjustments, and go on. But only up to a point. Of course, as we age that point gets closer and closer. Eventually, there is little or no margin left, and we have to toe the line or else our bodies will fail. For a person with diabetes, whether due to heredity or lifestyle or a little of both, this moment may arrive sooner.

Having said that, I should point out that one of the grave concerns we have as a culture is that Type II diabetes is no longer a disease of old age. It is happening to people at a younger and younger age. This is partly due to the increased incidence of childhood obesity, and partly due to our food supply and sedentary lifestyles. It was probably easier to maintain balance in our lives when meals were mostly eaten at home, fast food and empty-calorie snacks were not commonplace, and television and video games did not play a large part in our children’s lives.

Just in case you don’t know what Type II diabetes is, here is a simple little primer. When you eat food and it digests, much of it is broken down into glucose, commonly called blood sugar. As the glucose enters your blood and is traveling to the various cells in your body to give you energy, etc., your pancreas releases a hormone called insulin that (among other things) signals your cells to receive the glucose, it goes into your cells, and all is well.

However, if your cells become resistant to the call from the insulin, such as in the case of obesity or family history or both, the glucose cannot get into the cells, and your pancreas will try harder to produce more insulin. Eventually, the pancreas may become exhausted and will not be able to meet even your minimal need for insulin. So now you have cells that are resisting the insulin and, at the same time, not enough insulin to trigger the cells to accept the sugar-a double whammy!

Since it is not getting into the cells, the glucose stays in the blood and some is excreted in the urine. High blood sugar is an unnatural state that can cause damage to all of the systems in your body and, if not treated, can be fatal. This is the reason your blood sugar levels, as well as the presence of “sugar” in your urine, are important indicators of where you are at in this process.

Your body has an amazing ability to compensate and keep you going, even under adverse conditions, but again, only to a point. One of the problems with diabetes is that it may not show any symptoms until much of the damage to your heart, nerves and blood vessels has been done. On the other hand, if you catch it early enough, the problems can be reversible.

There are some classic symptoms of diabetes, such as excessive thirst, excessive hunger, frequent urination, blurry vision, unexplained weight loss, and fatigue that you should be aware of, especially if you have a family history of diabetes. If you have any of these symptoms, it is a simple matter to get your blood sugar checked. Don’t wait for your body to give you a more alarming wake-up call. The sooner you discover that your blood sugar is elevated, the sooner you have a chance to correct it, and avoid the systemic damage this disease can cause.

Getting regular eye exams can also help. Many people have discovered that they have diabetes when visiting their eye doctor to get their glasses or contact lenses checked. They say that your eyes are the “windows of your soul”, but they also can be indicators of elevated blood sugar. In other words, the blurred vision you have been experiencing may not be due to a need for new glasses, but could have a more serious underlying cause.

I should note here that Type I diabetes, also known as “juvenile diabetes,” an autoimmune disorder, is not the same as Type II diabetes. Type II diabetes, which is more closely connected to lifestyle, also accounts for more than 90% of the diabetes cases that occur.

So, now we are back to where we started. Whether you or a loved one has been diagnosed with diabetes, whether you have a family history of this disease or not, you can put yourself in the drivers seat of your health. The first step is to educate yourself about healthy eating. Learn enough about the foods you eat to make good choices. Eat regular meals and healthy snacks, made up of fresh, whole foods with proportionate amounts of carbs, proteins and fats. Limit or avoid overly processed food, junk food and fast food. Become label savvy so that you can evaluate whether the products in the store aisles are worth your food dollars and will fit well into your healthy eating lifestyle.

If you are already diabetic, talk with a dietitian and let her help you set up a program that meets your particular needs. There are a number of excellent websites that can help you with meal planning and food choices, including the American Diabetes Association site at http://www.diabetes.org.

Please take advantage of all the wonderful resources available online and in your community to make the transition to a healthy lifestyle as easy as possible. You can do it!