What is Diabetes and how can you control it?

What is Diabetes and how can you control it? by Darrell Miller

After eating, the food we eat is broken down into sugar (glucose) through the process of digestion. This sugar then enters the bloodstream so that it can be delivered throughout the body, where it is called blood sugar. Insulin, which helps metabolize blood sugar and is made in the pancreas, takes blood sugar from the bloodstream and delivers it into the body's cells. This sugar provides energy to the cells in organs such as our heart, lungs, and kidneys, which help function properly.

Type 1 diabetes, also called insulin-dependant or juvenile diabetes, occurs when the pancreas no longer makes insulin. This is because the immune system becomes confused and begins attacking and destroying the cells in the pancreas that produce the insulin. Instead of going into the cells where it is needed, the sugar stays in the blood. Often beginning in childhood, people with Type 1 diabetes have to take a least one shot of insulin each day in order to stay alive.

The most common kind of diabetes, which often starts in overweight adults with high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels, is Type 2 diabetes. Although the pancreas is usually producing enough insulin in Type 2 diabetes, the body does not use the insulin effectively. In this type of diabetes, the cells do not respond to the insulin's attempt to enter with glucose, so in turn, the pancreas produces more and more insulin. Because the cells do not respond, high levels of glucose build up in the blood, causing Type 2 diabetes. Once the pancreas senses that the insulin isn't needed, it eventually stops making it. People with Type 2 diabetes often need to take prescription drugs to lower there blood sugar levels.

In both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, the sugar stays in the bloodstream rather than going into the cells where it is needed. After it builds up in the blood, it causes the cells to be starved for energy and, after a long time, damage to the blood vessels, nerves, eyes, and kidneys. Type 1 diabetes, which develops very quickly, can be recognized by symptoms including: frequent urination, intense thirst, increased hunger, and weight loss. Type 2 diabetes, on the other hand, develops very gradually without any symptoms at all. Unfortunately, Type 2 diabetes is usually only diagnosed after the occurrence of a complication, such as circulation problems, nerve damage, eye problems, or kidney damage.

All of these complications are caused by high blood sugar levels; however, most of them can be prevented. The longer these blood sugar levels are elevated, the greater the risk for having complications is. Because high blood sugar levels damage blood vessels, they eventually become thicker and less flexible. This causes poor circulation which can complicate healing. These high blood sugar levels also cause higher levels of fat in the bloodstream, which clogs and narrows blood vessels. This partial blockage will deprive the heart of necessary nutrients, resulting in a heart attack, heart pain, or a stroke. Because high blood sugars can cause nerve damage, a person with Type 2 diabetes may lose feeling in parts of their body or have a painful pins-and-needles-like feeling. Diabetes can also damage and weaken blood vessels in the retina, which causes them to leak fluid, resulting in a swelling in the eye, which will blur vision. Since the blood vessels are so fragile, they can break open and bleed into the eye, which will cause scar tissue to form, along with the possibility of the retina to break away from the back of the eye, resulting in visual impairment, or even blindness. The blood vessels in the kidneys can also be damaged, preventing it from filtering out the body's waste. The longer the blood sugar levels are left uncontrolled, the greater the amount of kidney damage that can occur. If the kidney damage isn't stopped, a kidney transplant or dialysis machine may eventually be needed.

All of these complications can be prevented through vitamins, minerals, and herbal supplements, which keep people with diabetes healthy and provide powerful tools that prevent the serious complications from occurring. The most helpful nutritional supplement should contain powerful vitamins, minerals, and herbs in a synergistic formula that can lower blood sugars effectively and provide nutrients which people with diabetes need. The supplement should be taken twice a day in addition to a high quality multivitamin. Because a diabetic formula is complementary, it means it should be taken in addition to your multivitamin, not as a replacement.

Since diabetes is a disease that requires active participation, you must be aware of your problem and be in control of it as much as possible. If you use a home glucose monitor to check your blood sugars, you may feel more comfortable checking your glucose levels more often when you first begin the diabetic formula supplement. However, you should always follow your doctor's recommendation as to how often you should check your blood sugar levels. According to most licensed health care practitioners, a good blood sugar range for most people with diabetes before a meal is from about 70-150, ideally between 70 and 120. By taking a supplement formulated especially for diabetics, your blood sugars should be right where they are recommended. Successful diabetes management means doing lost of positive things, among these include visiting your licensed health care practitioner often, choosing foods wisely and staying active, and taking a diabetic formula supplement, but remember, this diabetic formula supplement is meant to be an addition to a healthy diet, not a substitute.

About the Author
Visit VitaNet Health Foods at http://vitanetonline.com/, VitaNet sells Doctor's Choice for Glucose Regulation for Diabetics. Link to this site when using article.

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Diabetes and Glyconutrients

Diabetes and Glyconutrients By Jason Carriere

Today, most people with diabetes are only treating the symptoms. And many medications given to people with diabetes are actually compounding the underlying cause of the disease.

The best way to manage your diabetic condition is to address the actual cause. Doesn't that make more sense? So let's look at what type 2 diabetes really is.

The Simple Explanation

Other than the genes you inherited, there are two primary causes of diabetes:

1) a long-term diet that has been high in carbohydrates, and

2) nutritional deficiencies.

Your body breaks down carbohydrates into sugar (glucose) which then enters your blood stream. The more carbohydrates consumed, the higher your blood sugar goes. In response, your body produces insulin. Insulin's job is to push the blood sugar into the cells so they can use it for energy.

On the surface of the cells in your body are insulin receptors, which act like little doors that open and close to regulate the inflow of blood sugar.

After many years of consuming a high-carbohydrate diet, your cells have been bombarded with so much insulin that these doors begin to malfunction and shut down.

With fewer of these doors open, your body needs to produce even more insulin to push the glucose into the cells. More insulin causes even more doors to close and as this vicious cycle continues a condition called "insulin resistance" sets in.

When your body can no longer produce enough insulin to push the blood sugar into the cells, type 2 diabetes develops. It is simply an extreme case of insulin resistance.

The key point for you to understand is that your energy, wellness and longevity are primarily dependent on improving the sensitivity of your cells to insulin -- how well your cells open and close the doors and clear sugar from the blood.

What's the Bottom Line?

Since type 2 diabetes is really a severe case of insulin resistance, the solution to your condition is to find a way to increase the sensitivity of your cells to insulin and help your body get the sugar out of the blood and into the cells so it can be metabolized and turned into energy. (This inability to metabolize sugar is one of the reasons why most diabetics often feel tired and fatigued.)

The Deadly Effects of Excess Insulin

Your "metabolism" is the food processing and energy production system of your body. It is made up of many extremely fine-tuned internal processes, and can be thrown off by even the tiniest of imbalances.

Insulin is the master hormone of your metabolism. When it is out of balance and your insulin levels are consistently elevated, a long list of deadly complications are created:

* Heart Disease
* Hardening of the Arteries
* Damage to Artery Wallsv
* Increased Cholesterol Levels
* Vitamin & Mineral Deficiencies
* Kidney Disease
* Fat Burning Mechanism Shutdown
* Accumulation & Storage of Fat
* Weight Gain

In his best-selling book, "Protein Power," Dr. Michael Eades wrote, "When insulin levels become too high... metabolic havoc ensues with elevated blood pressure, elevated cholesterol and triglycerides, diabetes, and obesity all trailing in its wake. These disorders are merely symptoms of a single more basic disturbance in metabolism, excess insulin and insulin resistance."

Nutritional Deficiencies from Excess Insulin

Science has shown that excess insulin also causes your body to become deficient in many vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. It's a proven fact that being deficient in these nutrients is directly linked to and a cause of high blood sugar levels.

Chromium

Chromium is essential to proper metabolism and maintaining safe sugar levels. Excess insulin depletes your body's chromium. In "Protein Power," Dr. Eades further states, "The insulin receptor, the structure on the surfaces of your cells that actually become resistant to insulin, requires chromium to function properly. Deficiency of chromium is rampant - it affects 90% of the American population - because a diet high in starch and sugar puts a heavy demand on the insulin system to handle the incoming carbohydrate load, and that demand depletes chromium."

Chromium is critical to blood sugar metabolism and, and as a diabetic you can be pretty sure that you are severely deficient in this nutrient. If you ever wondered where your "sweet tooth" and sugar cravings come from, now you know - chromium deficiency!

Calcium and Magnesium are also depleted by excess insulin, which can cause many problems, as they are critical to over 200 biochemical processes in your body.

Other very important nutrients that excess insulin causes deficiencies in are Zinc, Selenium, Vitamin E, Vitamin C, Vanadium, B Complex vitamins, essential fatty acids, and many more.

Now that you know how and why people develop type 2 diabetes and know some of the consequences of not controlling your blood sugar level, here are your choices:

You can continue on with what you've been doing...

Or you can research the science and testimonials surrounding Glyconutrients.

Fortunately, your body has miraculous healing powers, is very resilient and operates in a very intelligent manner. If you give it the right fuel and the right nutrients, it will respond very quickly. Some exercise and the right attitude also help!

The first step is to switch your body from an out-of-control, nutrient-depleting and fat-storing machine into a clean, nutrient-rich, fat-burning machine!

To do this you must:

1) Restrict the carbohydrates in your diet, and
2) Take the right nutritional supplements.

These two actions are not optional or negotiable! Your body will only burn fat (and properly utilize nutrients) if its metabolism is balanced. Doing 1 and 2 above on a regular basis is the only way to address the root cause of your diabetic problem and balance your body's metabolism for the long-term.

Jason Carriere is an alternative health advocate and wellness crusader, specializing in glyconutrient education.

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