Introduction :

This article is mainly intended to make the reader understand what diabetes is, what causes diabetes, the diagnosis, the signs and symptoms, the types and the treatment to help the reader remove his worst fears about this disorder.

So What is Diabetes?

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disorder characterized by the elevated blood sugar level. It occurs when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin, or put in other words, when the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces.

What Causes Diabetes?

Diabetes is basically a genetic disorder influenced by environmental factors such as obesity, lack of exercises and stress which may trigger the disease in predisposed individuals. Heredity is also one of the main reasons.

Signs and Symptoms :

Diabetes can appear with or without symptoms. The most common symptoms are increase in frequency in urine(poly urea), increase in thirst(polydypsia), giddiness, weakness, delayed wound healing and unexplained weight Loss.

Diagnosis :

Diabetes is diagnosed by a simple blood test for the presence of excess sugar. The blood sugar is measured in milligrams per deciliter or mg/dL which is the standard measuring unit. Any blood sugar reading that is 126 mg/dL, or higher is considered a diabetes diagnosis. If your reading is between 100 and 125 mg/dL, you will be categorized as prediabetes with Type2 in future unless you can reverse the direction.

Typical Glucose or Blood Sugar Level

- Fasting Blood Sugar: 70-99mg/dL

- 2 hours after eating(Post Prandial) : 70-145mg/dL

- Random(casual): 70-125mg/dL

Types of Diabetes :

There are three types of diabetes: Type1, Type2 and Gestational diabetes. Type1 diabetes is also known as insulin dependent diabetes or juvenile diabetes. It is most commonly diagnosed in childhood. Type2 diabetes, also called non-insulin dependent

Diabetes, is the most common form of diabetes. Gestinal diabetes occurs in pregnant woman(most commonly 24th to 28th week of gestation), but usually disappears when a pregnancy is over, Women who have had gestinal diabetes are at the increased risk of later developing Type2 diabetes.

Effects of Diabetes :

Diabetes can damage body vessels and nerves and decrease the body’s ability to fight infection.That is why it leads to all sort of complications. Diabetes can contribute to eye disorder and blindness, stroke, kidney failure, amputation and nerve damage.

Treatment :

First and foremost, you should consult a doctor as soon you find one of these symptoms. Depending on the type of diabetes[falling under one of the above mentioned categories] you would be prescribed a treatment. Natural diet and exercises help diabetic people to a great extent. Practising yoga is a natural way of keeping your body healthy and your mind peaceful. A life without stress and a light happy heart will help one to have good control over your body.

Conclusion :

Ok, the fact is ‘Diabetes is complex and complicated’. But it is definitely in your hands to make it ‘Simple and Keep it well under your Control’. Diabetes is a universal problem. Consult your doctor regularly and get your levels checked. Type2 diabetes is the prominent type, almost more than 80% of people have it. By maintaining a healthy diet, exercising regularly, practicing yoga and leading a sound healthy way of life, one can even get away without medication for Type2 Diabetes!!!!

If trends continue as they have, one in three Americans will develop diabetes during his or her lifetime. According to the Centers for Disease Control, today about 24 million Americans have diabetes already, and another 57 million have diabetes signs and symptoms, or it’s precursor, prediabetes.

For women, the disease can be a risk to both mother and child during a pregnancy as well as raising her risk of having a heart attack, at an earlier age.

And while the numbers of cases are growing, the public perception of this dangerous, life-altering condition continues to be full of myths and half-truths. Having the answers to some of the most basic questions will help you, or someone in your life, understand the disease better.

1. What’s the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes?

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that attacks insulin creating cells in the pancreas, most often diagnosed in those under 18, though it can strike at any age and calls for insulin to manage your condition. In type 2 diabetes the body loses its sensitivity to insulin, and while this form was once more common in older people, thanks to today’s rising obesity rates its now being found in people of younger ages. Type 2 is usually treated with changes to diet and exercise, sometimes oral medications or insulin.

2. How do you know if you have diabetes?

While diabetes can cause no symptoms, most often the signs that might signal this condition are frequent thirst and hunger, having to pee more than usual (since you’re drinking more), losing weight without trying, fatigue and irritability. To be sure, you’ll need to undergo a fasting blood test to measure the amount of sugar in your blood after not eating for at least eight hours. Normal readings are 99 mg/dL or lower; prediabetic levels range from 100-125 mg/dL and diabetes is any number over 126.

3. Is my risk higher because my mom or dad has diabetes?

Yes, if you have a close family member with the disease your own risk is higher. The risk of type 1 diabetes goes up by about 5%, for type 2 the risk increases by more than 30%.

4. Should I worry about my belly fat?

Absolutely. Extra fat about your waistline is linked to an increased risk of type 2 diabetes. Fat in this area, more so than in other parts of the body, increases insulin resistance, part of the trouble for type 2 diabetics. Being obese (or even overweight) can raise your risk of type 2 diabetes by more than 90 times. Perhaps the pancreas just can’t keep up with a bigger body.

Type 1 diabetes, by contrast, has nothing to do with your weight.

5. Can diet or exercise really prevent diabetes?

They can. Your doctor will tell you that you can prevent, or maybe delay, the onside of life-changing diabetes by eating a healthy diet and doing some regular exercise. If you already have diabetes, doing aerobic exercise and resistance training helps by encouraging muscles to use more blood sugar, and over the short term can reduce the amount of medication you need to take. Over the long term, regular exercise might lower the risk of complications like blindness or damage to nerves and kidneys.

A recent study found that type 2 diabetics who ate a Mediterranean-style diet, rich in fish, fruits, nuts and olive oil lost more weight and went longer without blood sugar lowering medication than those eating a low fat diet.

6. Can my sweet tooth lead to diabetes?

This is one of the oldest, and most doggedly persistent myths associated with diabetes - that having a sweet tooth or eating too much sugar causes the disease. This just isn’t true. What’s more, diabetics don’t need to avoid all sugar, but rather eat a diet rich in whole grains, protein, veggies and fruits; low in fat, cholesterol and simple sugars.

7. If I’m thin I can’t get diabetes, right?

While being overweight is a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes, 20% of diabetics are slim. The number of diabetics in thin Asian populations is growing, showing us that weight isn’t always the culprit with diabetes.

8. If I had gestational diabetes that went away, do I need to worry?

It’s smart to understand your risks - having gestational diabetes increases your chances of developing type 2 diabetes signs and symptoms to about 50%… so certainly not a guarantee of illness. Gestational diabetes occurs in about 4% of U.S. pregnancies each year and can be affected by factors like your ethnicity, your genetics and your weight. Losing weight, and being active, after the baby can limit your risk going forward.

According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), Diabetes now afflicts 20.8 million Americans, or 7% of our population. Only 5-10% of Diabetics are type 1, where through autoimmune destruction of insulin producing beta-cells, they now have a lifelong dependence on insulin. The rest are classified as type 2, resulting from insulin resistance (the cells of the body stop responding to insulin) combined with insulin deficiency. According to the ADA there are 54 million Americans who have prediabetes, or 17% of our population.

What’s causing this epidemic? Is it really “bad genes” or what we are putting into our bodies?

Diabetes is a serious, life-threatening condition that has everything to do with what one eats (excessive and poor food choices) and what one does not eat (nutritional deficiencies), and much less to do with the supposed biological fatalism of our genes. While geneticists apply vast amounts of time, energy and money to finding the “causes” of disease in our genes, much less attention is placed on research that has already proven that the consumption of foods like wheat, dairy and soy are major contributing factors in the development of type 1 diabetes, or that the consumption of high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oil contribute to the development of type 2 diabetes.

Blaming “bad genes” on diseases like diabetes is a convenient way to escape the obvious things we can do individually, and as a culture, to prevent the escalation of an already epidemic problem.

We shouldn’t settle for the unlikely prospect of a future “cure” via the pharmaceutical pipeline, gene therapy, stem cell research or similar scientific fantasies, when the cause (and therefore the cure) of diabetes may be as close to us as what is at the end of our fork.

It is universally accepted that type 1 diabetes is caused by the immune system attacking the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. Eventually the pancreas is no longer capable of producing insulin. While geneticist look for the “bad genes” that are supposedly “causing” the autoimmune problem, it is well documented that in susceptible individuals something in wheat known as gliadin stimulates diabetogenic class II HLA antigens on the surface of the pancreatic islet cells (cells that normally do no display these antigens), marking them for autoimmune destruction. [Do dietary lectins cause disease? BMJ 1999;318:1023-1024].

Not everyone who eats wheat will develop diabetes. Different people will exhibit differing degrees of susceptibility to wheat lectin and this is why it is right to say that there is a “genetic component” to the development of type 1 diabetes, or to any disease. But acknowledging the existence of genetic differences and differing susceptibilities to illness in a population is not to say that genes are “causing” the disease. In the case of wheat lectin, it is not the gene that is causing the islet cell to present an antigen on its surface. It takes wheat lectin to activate the genes necessary for this cellular transformation. To use an analogy, the genes predisposing one to higher risk for diabetes are like an “unloaded gun.” The “bullets” are certain allergenic foods like wheat, dairy and soy. The “triggers” that “fire” this “loaded gun” are varied, from prolonged exposure to these foods, to increased intestinal/gut permeability, vaccinations, viral infections, and perhaps a multitude of as of yet unknown factors.

If we know that the three most commonly lauded “health foods,” wheat, dairy and soy all are implicated in the development of type 1 diabetes, wouldn’t it be a good idea to remove them from the diets of our young as a precaution? What is the other alternative? Succumb to the fatalistic fallacies of the “gene theory” of disease, and just hope that our children won’t develop the disease because they do not have “the bad gene,” or have just been lucky in the game of nutritional Russian roulette?

Type 2 Diabetes - a preventable and reversible disease!

Type 2 diabetes, and the prediabetic state of insulin resistance that precedes it, are caused by the following preventable factors:

1) excessive consumption of calories.

2) inactivity; lack of exercise.

3) Consumption of high glycemic foods (foods that make the blood sweet):

a) primarily sugar and grain derived carbohydrates, e.g. pasta, cereal, crackers.

b) high fructose corn syrup, and other sources of concentrated fructose: e.g. sugar, agave.

4) hydrogenated oils

5) nutritional deficiencies of minerals, especially magnesium, chromium and zinc, and omega 3 fatty acids, as found in foods like flaxseed, walnuts and wild fish.

When we eat beyond our capacity, excess energy is stored in the body as glycogen and saturated fat. When through prolonged over-consumption of food our body no longer has room to store these unneeded calories, insulin resistance emerges. As if to protect itself from caloric over-saturation, the fat cells and muscle cells begin to lose the number of insulin receptors, thus reducing the amount of glucose that may enter. This causes the blood sugar to raise to unhealthy levels leaving the pancreas with no other option than to overcompensate and produce more insulin. If this cycle continues, eventually the insulin producing beta cells become enervated and lose their ability to produce insulin, resulting in full blown type 2 diabetes. Caloric restriction becomes of vital importance in forestalling the development of type 2 diabetes.

Exercise is essential in helping the body use up stored energy, converting calories consumed into calories burned. Exercise has the opposite effect of over-eating, increasing the number of insulin receptors in muscle, and increasing the sensitivity of the body to insulin; hence, releasing the pancreas of the burden of constant insulin production. Exercise also results in the release of appetite suppressing hormones and neurotransmitters which help to forestall over-eating.

Carbohydrates generally have an insulin secreting effect on the body because they have a high glycemic rating. That is to say, carbohydrates cause the blood to become sweeter than protein or fat, which are broken down slowly in the body, independently of insulin. Even so-called “complex carbohydrates” like puffed rice have higher glycemic ratings (110) than white sugar (80), which is 50% fructose, and therefore less likely to induce an insulin response than these “whole grains.” On the flip side, fructose while having a low glycemic rating, can raise blood sugar on the back end by reducing the affinity of insulin for its receptor, hence contributing to insulin resistance and elevating blood glucose.

When it comes to “whole grains,” no food category is associated with greater misunderstanding in realm of blood sugar disorders. The perception that “whole grains” are good for our health and should be consumed in plenty is based on the assumption that the millions of years of biological evolution that preceded the advent of the agrarian revolution (circa 10,000 b.c.) are no longer relevant. We spent 300,000 years as archaic homo sapiens in the capacity of hunters, gatherers and foragers, where the consumption of cereal grasses, and especially the seed form of these grasses, would not have occurred with any regularity, if at all. Our metabolism is simply not designed for large amounts of starch, sugar, and synthetically produced sweeteners and fats. We need fruits, vegetables, seeds and nuts, and high quality animal protein in plenty. Moreover evidence exists demonstrating that the glycoproteins in starchy grains known as “lectins,” can bind to the leptin receptors in the hypothalamus blocking out the appetite suppressing effects of the hormone leptin. This is one reason why bread, pasta, cereal, crackers, etc, can generate incessant cravings and contribute to a condition known as “leptin resistance.”

High Fructose Corn Syrup has been shown to cause insulin resistance in rats and humans. It also been associated with insatiable hunger and increased production of fat by the liver, along with other blood lipid alterations associated with “metabolic syndrome,” which includes high triglycerides, increased blood pressure, low HDL and elevated LDL.

Hydrogenated oils dramatically reduce the responsiveness of our muscle and fat to insulin, whereas, omega 3 fatty acids increase that responsiveness. A search of the biomedical citations on www.pubmed.gov shows a treasure house of research proving omega 3 fatty acids help to correct insulin resistance.

Numerous clinical studies have also been done showing that magnesium, gtf chromium, chelated zinc, alpha lipoic acid, cinnamon (ceylon or true cinnamon; not cassia or false cinnamon) all help to prevent, reduce or reverse the progression of type 2 diabetes.

The reason why these truly remarkable dietary supplements receive less attention than they deserve is because they are not “patentable drugs.” Mother Nature’s formulas are proprietary, but She does not grant patents! Rather, she offers these things to us to use freely for self-healing, if only we would listen and consider ourselves deserving enough to use them.