Diabetes Mellitus - part 1

Introduction

Of the 15 million Americans who have Type II diabetes, more than a
third are unaware of it. Another 21 million Americans have a greater
than 50/50 chance of developing the disease because they have impaired
blood-sugar metabolism. This year alone more than 187,000 people will
die of Type II diabetes, also called non-insulin-dependent diabetes
mellitus (NIDDM), making it the sixth leading cause of death by
disease. Each day, over 2,200 people are diagnosed with this chronic
life debilitating, expansive, and pro-aging disease.

What is Diabetes?
Glucose is a simple sugar found in food. It is an essential nutrient
that provides energy for the proper functioning of the body cells.
After meals, food is digested in the stomach and the intestines into
glucose and other nutrients. The glucose in digested food is absorbed
by the intestinal cells into the bloodstream, and is carried by blood
to all the cells in the body. However, glucose cannot enter the cells
alone. It needs assistance from insulin in order to penetrate the cell
walls. Insulin therefore acts as a regulator of glucose metabolism in
the body.

Insulin is called the "hunger hormone". As the blood sugar level
increases following a carbohydrate rich meal, the corresponding insulin
level rises with the eventual lowering of the blood sugar level and
glucose is transported from the blood into the cell for energy. When
the blood glucose levels are lowered, the insulin release from the
pancreas is turned off. When the blood sugar level drops below a
certain level, hunger is felt. This often occurs a few hours after the
meal. In normal individuals, such a regulatory system helps to keep
blood glucose levels in a tightly controlled range. Cravings for sweets
frequently form part of this cycle, which can lead to snacking, often
for more carbohydrates. If the cravings are not fulfilled, sensations
such as hunger, dizziness, moodiness, and a state of "collapse" can
result.

This system of auto regulation and homeostasis is the function of the
pancreas and it works around the clock. Dysfunction of this auto
regulation system - either inability of the pancreas to secrete any or
insufficient insulin, or pancreas overload from too much sugar ingested
over a long period of time, or over compensatory mechanism, or a
combination of these, results in the lack of insulin, and hence high
blood sugar. This is the hallmark of diabetes mellitus (commonly called
diabetes)

Two Types of Diabetes Mellitus
Type I diabetes mellitus is also called insulin dependent diabetes
mellitus (IDDM), or juvenile onset diabetes mellitus. It is an
autoimmune disease in which the pancreas produces no insulin at all,
and the patient relies on insulin medication for survival. Type I
diabetes tends to occur in young, lean individuals, usually before 30
years of age. Approximately 10% of the patients with diabetes mellitus
have IDDM. There is no cure for this type.

Type II diabetes mellitus is also referred to as non-insulin dependent
diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), or adult onset diabetes mellitus (AODM). It
is a metabolic disorder resulting from the body's inability to make
enough, or properly use, insulin. 90% of all Diabetes Mellitus are of
Type II. Type II diabetes mellitus occurs mostly in individuals over 40
years old. The incidence of type II diabetes increases with age. Unlike
type I diabetes mellitus, 80% of type II diabetic patients are obese.
Type II diabetes mellitus also has a strong genetic tendency.

It is nearing epidemic proportions, due to an increased number of
elderly people, a greater prevalence of obesity and a sedentary
lifestyle. In type II diabetes, patients can still produce insulin, but
do so inadequately. The pancreas in these patients not only produces an
insufficient amount of insulin, but also releases insulin late in
response to increased glucose levels. Some type II diabetics have body
cells that are resistant to the action of insulin (Insulin Resistance).
Finally, the liver in these patients continues to produce glucose
despite elevated glucose levels.

Type II diabetes once hardly ever struck before middle age, and the
older you are the more at risk you are. Now it is striking younger
people.

Symptoms of NIDDM
The early symptoms of untreated diabetes mellitus are related to
elevated blood sugar levels, and excretion of it to the urine. High
amounts of glucose in the urine can cause increased urine output and
lead to dehydration. Dehydration causes increased thirst and water
consumption. Some untreated diabetic patients also complain of fatigue,
nausea, and vomiting. Patients with diabetes are prone to developing
infections of the bladder, skin, and vaginal areas. Fluctuations in
blood glucose levels can lead to blurred vision. Extremely elevated
glucose levels can lead to lethargy and coma (diabetic coma).

The most unrecognized symptom of NIDDM is weight gain. High insulin
levels prohibit the release of serotonin, a neurotransmitter in the
brain that informs the body to slow down eating. Without serotonin,
there is a tendency to overeat, which then leads to a spiral of
excessive sugar intake. A viscous cycle of hyper-insulinemia resulting
in insulin resistance is set up. This in turn creates a "carbohydrate
addict" whose craving for a higher sugar intake continues to increase.
The same dietary factors that cause NIDDM lead to obesity. Eating
refined carbohydrates such as sugar, or carbohydrates that easily
converts into sugar such as yam, potato, or rice, creates more glucose
than the body can handle. Excess glucose then gets stored as fat. As
diabetes sets in, so does lethargy and inactivity, contributing further
to the vicious cycle of weight gain and worsening of diabetes.

Diagnosis of Diabetes

The fasting plasma glucose test is the standard and preferred way to
diagnose diabetes. Normal fasting plasma glucose levels are less than
110 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dl). If the overnight fasting blood
glucose is greater than 126 mg/dl on two different tests on different
days, the diagnosis of diabetes mellitus is made. Random blood glucose
alone is seldom used because it is not reliable.

Fasting blood sugar can be performed using a simple home blood sugar
(glucose) testing kit. Many doctors also take the hemoglobin A1C level.
This is a test to measure of the overall effectiveness of blood glucose
control over a period of time (two months). Elevated hemoglobin A1C
levels indicate a poor overall control of blood sugar.

Complications of Diabetes

Type 1 Diabetes:

Insulin is vital to patients with type I diabetes. Without insulin,
patients with type I diabetes can develop severely elevated blood sugar
levels. This leads to increased urine glucose, which in turn leads to
excessive loss of fluid and electrolytes in the urine. Lack of insulin
also causes the breakdown of fat cells, with the release of ketones
into the blood. Symptoms of diabetic ketoacidosis include nausea,
vomiting, and abdominal pain. Without prompt medical treatment,
patients with diabetic acidosis can rapidly go into shock, coma, and
even death. With proper treatment, the symptoms can be reversed
rapidly, and patients can recover remarkably well.

Type 2 Diabetes:

Short term complications are normally due imbalance of sugar level in the body as a result of:

A. Severely high blood sugar levels due to a lack of insulin. Symptoms are similar to that of Type 1 Diabetes described above.

B. Abnormally low blood sugar levels due to too much insulin or other
glucose-lowering medications. Low blood sugar can lead to nervous
system symptoms such as dizziness, confusion, weakness, and tremors.
Untreated, severely low blood sugar levels can lead to coma and
irreversible brain death.

Long-term complications are related to blood vessel diseases. Diabetes
causes diseases of the small vessels, which can damage the eyes,
kidneys, nerves, and heart.

Four major areas are involved:

A. EYE. Each year about 24,000 people lose their sight because of
diabetes. Diabetes is the main cause of blindness in adult. Eye
complications of diabetes (diabetic retinopathy) occur in patients who
have had diabetes for at least 5 years. Disease in these blood vessels
also causes the formation of small aneurysms (micro aneurysms), and new
but brittle blood vessels (neovascularization). Spontaneous bleeding
from the new and brittle blood vessels can lead to retinal scarring and
retinal detachment, thus impairing vision. Approximately 50% of
patients with diabetes will develop some degree of diabetic retinopathy
after 10 years of diabetes, and 80% of diabetics have retinopathy after
15 years of the disease.

B. Kidney damage from diabetes is called diabetic nephropathy. Kidney
disease usually occurs approximately 10 years after the onset of
diabetes. Each year, about 28,000 people initiated treatment for end
stage renal disease (kidney failure) because of diabetes. The
progression of nephropathy in patients can be significantly slowed by
controlling high blood pressure, and by aggressively treating high
blood sugar levels.

C. Nerve damage in diabetes (diabetic neuropathy) is also caused by
small blood vessel disease. Symptoms of diabetic nerve damage include
numbness, burning, and aching of the feet and lower extremities.
Seemingly minor skin injuries should be attended to promptly to avoid
serious infections. Diabetic nerve damage can affect the nerves, which
are important for penile erection, causing impotence. Diabetic
neuropathy can also affect nerves to the intestines, causing nausea,
weight loss, and diarrhea. About 60-70% of people with diabetes have
mild to sever form of diabetic nerve damage. The risk of a leg
amputation is 15-40 times greater for a person with diabetes. Each
year, more than 56,000 amputations are performed among people with
diabetes.

D. Heart Disease and Strokes. Patients with diabetes are 2-4 times more
likely to have heart disease, which is present in 75 percent of
diabetes-related death (more than 75,000 deaths due to heart disease
annually). Diabetic patients are also 2 to 4 times more likely to
suffer a stroke. Diabetes also accelerates the hardening of the
arteries (atherosclerosis) of the larger blood vessels, leading to
coronary heart disease (angina or heart attack), strokes, and pain in
the lower extremities because of lack of blood supply.

Diabetic men were more than twice as likely to die of all causes
compared with men without diabetes. As blood glucose increased, the
risk of dying climbed higher regardless of age, weight, blood pressure,
cholesterol and smoking status.

Researchers estimated that a reduction in blood glucose by just 0.1 per
cent could reduce mortality rates by about five per cent in western
countries.

Importance of Tight Blood Sugar Control

An aggressive and intensive control of elevated levels of blood sugar
in patients with diabetes is absolutely essential. Studies have shown
that in intensively treated patients, diabetic eye disease decreased by
76%, kidney disease decreased by 54%, and nerve disease decreased by
60%.

Aggressive control with intensive therapy means achieving fasting
glucose levels between 70-120 mg/dl; glucose levels of less than 180
mg/dl after meals; and a near normal hemoglobin A1C levels.

Not only will you feel better, stay healthy, and have more energy. You will also live longer.

Type II Diabetes - Curable?

Diabetes is a disease that has become prevalent only in the past 100
years. Before then, when everyone ate whole foods and sugar intake was
moderate, diabetes was hardly a problem. It's a simple of matter of
supply and demand. If the ingestion of grain products and refined
sugars exceed the demand, the body is put into high gear to rid itself
of the excess sugar. Diabetes is resulted when this process carries on
for an extended period of time and ultimately fails. No other disease
state can be cured as easily as NIIDM.

All you have to do is to reduce the supply of sugar to the body to a
moderate level without sacrificing energy production. The secret lies
not in avoiding carbohydrates as the most common source of sugar. The
key is knowing what kind of carbohydrate to eat and which kind to avoid

Diabetes Protocol

Attention

Because of tremendous individual variation, the use of nutritionals
should therefore be personalized for your body. One person’s nutrient
can be another person’s toxin. If you have a specific health concern
and wish my personalized nutritional recommendation, write to me by
clicking here.

The major goal in treating diabetes mellitus is controlling elevated
blood sugars (glucose) without causing abnormally low levels of blood
sugar. Type I diabetes mellitus is treated with insulin, exercise, and
a diabetic diet. Type II diabetes mellitus is treated with concurrent
employment of nutritional supplements, a low glycemic index diet to
control blood sugar level, and exercise. If these measures fail to
contain the elevated blood sugars, oral medications and insulin need to
be considered.

1. Key Nutritional Supplements

A VARIETY OF NUTRIENTS AND HERBS can help offset the toll diabetes
takes on your body. Supplements cannot, however, reverse the disease by
themselves. Incorporating these minerals and vitamins can help to
normalize blood sugar. If you already have diabetes or suspect you
might have it, consult a health care practitioner before taking any
supplements.

A. Chromium:.

Chromium is an essential trace mineral nutrient. Like iron, zinc,
selenium, copper, and several other essential trace minerals, chromium
plays a critical role in maintaining normal health and well-being.

Chromium helps insulin work efficiently. Many well controlled clinical
studies through the years and the majority show blood glucose
improvements in the patients tested.

Important studies include one from the Human Nutrition Research Center
of the United States Department of Agriculture conducted in 1996.
Researchers in the study randomized 180 adult-onset diabetics into 3
groups of 60 each: one group received placebo twice per day, the second
received 100 mcg twice daily of chromium as chromium picolinate and the
third received 500 mcg of chromium as chromium picolinate twice daily.
Their blood work was examined at baseline, at 2 months and at 4 months.
The patients were told to remain on their anti-diabetic medications and
continue with their diets and activity levels as before. The results
were impressive: blood glucose, insulin levels, cholesterol and
Hemoglobin A1C all decreased, with the higher dose generally (but not
always) more effective than the 200 mcg.

Dietary Intake of Chromium

Few foods are rich sources of chromium in the Western diet, the best
being organic meats, mushrooms, wheat germ, broccoli and processed
meats. Data from U. S. Government sources show that the great majority
of Americans get less chromium in their daily diets than the amount
recommended by nutrition experts. The RDA Committee recommends 50-200
mcg of chromium/day; the vast majority of Americans get less than 50
mcg/day. It is estimated that as many as 80% of all Americans are
deficient in this mineral and may not know it.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to get enough chromium by food alone
without excessive calories and obesity. To obtain 200 mcg by food
alone, one has to take in over 8,000 calories a day. A large part of
the problem has to do with processed food and the increase consumption
of sugar. The modern American consumes an average of 120 pounds of
sugar per year from all sources. These ingested sugars (such as table
sugar and products made with it) bring insulin and chromium into the
blood and cause chromium to be excreted in the urine after it's through
working with the insulin on the increase in blood sugar.

Inadequate chromium intake from processed food, increased chromium
losses due to increased sugar consumption, decreasing chromium tissue
levels as we age are the main reasons why the majority of Americans and
diabetics are deficient in chromium. Studies show an improvement in
blood sugar in significant numbers of diabetics and pre-diabetics with
modest chromium supplementation. It should, however, take place
alongside the two other proven ways of normalizing sugar: low-fat, high
complex-carbohydrate of low glycemic index type diets for weight
loss/weight maintenance and regular exercise.

Assessment of Chromium Status

Deciding whether or not someone is chromium deficient cannot be done
easily. Routine blood tests are generally not accurate. The only
generally accepted method for the assessment of chromium status is to
supplement an individual who has abnormalities of either blood sugar,
cholesterol, triglycerides or all three with the trace element. If the
laboratory values improve, then chromium insufficiency is presumed.

» Diabetes Mellitus - part 2
» Diabetes Mellitus - part 3
» Diabetes Mellitus