Based on the article by Carlos M Viana, a certified Clinical Nutritionist (C.C.N), Oriental Medical Doctor (O.M.D)
Diabetes is a health condition that has been on the rise in the last few decades, thanks to the processed food industry, lack of balanced diets, hectic and sedentary lifestyles, and genetic predisposition.
Every person can benefit from learning about this condition. By understanding just how widespread and harmful Diabetes is, a person can begin to take timely action against its effects and even prevent it.
Since some types of Diabetes are preventable it is important to understand the condition and to learn how to prevent it or manage it if you already suffer from it.
Diabetes and Its Types
Diabetes is a chronic health condition that affects how your body breaks down food into sugar to transform it into energy.
Every time you eat, most of the food is transformed into sugar and then delivered to the bloodstream, this is when a signal is sent to the Pancreas for it to release the hormone insulin. This hormone then acts as the key to let the sugar into the cells to use as fuel. 1
However, when you have diabetes, the body either does not make enough insulin to process the sugar, or it cannot use the insulin it makes properly, this varies depending on the type of diabetes.
Are you familiar with them?
Types of Diabetes
There are two types of diabetes.
With Type 1 Diabetes, the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas have been damaged and cannot produce enough insulin anymore, in this case, the use of artificial insulin is recommended.
However, most diabetics develop Type 2 Diabetes, this is where the insulin produced by the pancreas is damaged by diet and lifestyle decisions, this is called “Insulin Resistance”.
Insulin Resistance prevents the damaged insulin from delivering sugar to the cell to be converted into energy.
As a result, the pancreas starts to produce more and more insulin to control the increasing blood sugar, resulting in very high insulin levels in the blood or hyperinsulinemia, which can cause other health problems like:
- increased risk of being overweight
- having high triglycerides
- and having elevated blood pressure, among others.
Some people with insulin resistance may also develop a skin condition known as acanthosis nigricans. It appears as dark, velvety patches often on the backs of the neck, groin, and armpits.
Why Must it Be Managed Adequately?
Diabetes can be the cause of several very harmful health issues, some even dangerous, and since it is a chronic condition, it can cause a wide variety of adverse reactions to health in the long term.
However, Diabetes can be very hard to diagnose, since it does not usually have many signature symptoms that can be spotted right away, but some of the key markers are:
- Increased urination, often at night
- Big increase in thirst and hunger
- Unexplained fatigue
- Unexplained weight loss
- Blurry vision
- Tingling or numb hands or feet
If you suspect you have Diabetes the best way to know is to get tested at a lab by a certified Healthcare provider.
How Can I Prevent and Manage Diabetes?
Keep in mind that even though Diabetes and Insulin resistance usually appear in childhood or teen years, it can still occur at any age.
Regular medicine only tests fasting blood glucose, and if the lab results show consistently high glucose/blood sugar, the response is to give pharmaceutical diabetes medication, which can reduce the risk of Type 2 Diabetes comorbidity, the medical problems occurring with diabetics.
However, drug costs and potential side effects can be objectionable to patients who do not yet have an actual disease, like insulin-resistant patients for example, and many Board-certified clinical nutritionists do not consider high blood glucose alone to be Type II Diabetes.
Only when glucose (sugar) is present in the urine, it can be considered Type 2 Diabetes.
Trying to bring blood glucose to “normal” levels through medication is rarely accomplished, as sugar is not the main problem in Type 2 Diabetes, high insulin is.
Thus an intensive diet and lifestyle change can play an important role in diabetes prevention and management by reducing insulin resistance.
Part of Dr. Viana’s procedure is to recommend high-quality dietary supplements as well. For the reduction of insulin resistance and treatment of Type 2 Diabetes, he recommends:
- Chromium picolinate, which helps the hormone insulin perform its actions in the body, reducing insulin resistance.
- B complex vitamins, that play a critical role in how the body breaks down and uses carbohydrates, fats, and proteins for energy.
- Iron-Free multi-nutrient, to avoid any risk of nutritional deficiency and boosting the body’s defenses while recommending dark green vegetables as a natural iron source.
Get the Point! Insulin resistance is the beginning of Type 2 Diabetes and both can be improved with some changes in lifestyle.
Eating foods from your blood type list, eating more fruits and vegetables, and using the recommended good quality dietary supplements can help you reduce the risks of insulin resistance, as well as to prevent or manage your Type 2 Diabetes much better.
