Showing posts with label insulin resistance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label insulin resistance. Show all posts

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Are Diabetes and Insulin Resistance Reversible?

Chances are you have been told at one point of another that diabetes is not reversible. You may have even consulted multiple physicians only to find out that the only thing you can do about your diabetes is control your blood sugar levels with medications or insulin. Chances are your doctor has told you that drugs and insulin are what will protect you from organ damage and ultimately a premature death. However, medications and insulin can actually increase your risk of a heart attack as well as increase your risk of a premature death.


insulin resistance



The epidemic of diabetes has been accelerated by the obesity epidemic. However, what you are not being told is how you can treat it without the need for medications and insulin. There is another way to help reverse this epidemic. Type 2 diabetes, formerly known as adult onset diabetes, is a huge concern. With over 100 million people in the world and over 20 million Americans suffering from diabetes, the end of the diabetes epidemic appears to be nowhere in site. What is even more alarming is the increase of type 2 diabetes in children. Previously, type 2 diabetes was never considered a childhood illness. One in three children born today will face diabetes during their lifetime.


The scary thing is that diabetes is an entirely preventable lifestyle disease. A report in The New England Journal of Medicine, demonstrates that 91 percent of all type 2 diabetes cases can be prevented through improvements in lifestyle and diet.


The Makings of a Diabetic Starts Early


For most people, diabetes often goes without diagnosis until its later stages. Insulin resistance, which occurs when the body becomes resistant to the effects of insulin, is the primary reason many individuals will develop diabetes.


If your diet is full of empty calories, an abundance of quickly absorbed sugars and carbohydrates (such as bread, rice and pasta), the body will slowly become more and more resistant to the effects of insulin. As a result, your body will need more and more to do the same job of maintaining your blood sugar levels. If you are experiencing high insulin levels, this is the first sign that you may be heading down the road to diabetes. High insulin leads to an increased appetite. This will lead to an increase in weight gain in the abdominal region. High insulin levels serve as a warning sign, they precede type 2 diabetes by decades.


Insulin resistance and the metabolic syndrome associated with insulin resistance are often accompanied by an increase in abdominal fat, fatigue after eating, sugar cravings, high blood pressure, low HDL, high triglycerides, problems with blood clotting as well as increased inflammation throughout the body.


These are clues and symptoms that are often picked up decades before an individual is actually diagnosed with diabetes. In fact, picking up on these clues may help you to prevent diabetes entirely.


If you have a family history of diabetes, obesity, heart disease and even dementia, you are much more likely to experience problems with insulin resistance.


Early Diagnosis is Key in Leading a Life Without Diabetes


Pre-diabetes as well as diabetes ARE reversible. Science shows that reversal of diabetes is very possible through an aggressive approach. This aggressive approach includes changes in diet, nutritional support and occasionally medications.


It is important to diagnose type 2 diabetes as early as possible. However, the reality of type 2 diabetes, is that it is often diagnosed very late. In fact, all doctors should aggressively diagnose pre-diabetes decades before a patient actually becomes a diabetic. By doing so, damage to the body can be prevented. Damage begins with even the smallest changes in insulin and blood sugar levels.


It is unfortunate that there is a continuum of risk from slightly abnormal insulin and blood sugar levels to being diagnosed an actual diabetic. This needs to be addressed as early as possible in order to prevent an individual from becoming a full blown diabetic.


One study found that anyone with a fasting blood sugar level of 87 is at increased risk of diabetes. The lowest risk group is any individual with a fasting blood sugar level of less than 81. However, most doctors are not concerned with blood sugar until it is over 110. Keep in mind that over 126 is concerned diabetic.


As a result, early testing is a must! Early testing is especially important for anyone with a family history of type 2 diabetes, central abdominal weight gain or abnormal cholesterol levels.


Do not wait until your sugar level is high; it will be too late!


Get Tested Before It’s Too Late


Below is a list of tests recommended for insulin resistance as well as diabetes. These are tests that any doctor can perform.


  • Insulin Glucose Challenge Test

  • Hemoglobin A1C Test

  • Lipids Profile

  • NMR Lipid Profile

  • High Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein Test

  • Homocysteine Test

  • Fibrinogen Test

  • Ferritin Levels

  • Uric Acid Test

  • Liver Function Tests


Are Diabetes and Insulin Resistance Reversible?

Friday, October 3, 2014

How Big of an Epidemic is Diabesity?

What life-threatening, energy-robbing, life-shortening condition affects one in two Americans, including 80 percent of overweight individuals and up to 40 percent of individuals who are at an average weight? What condition is responsible for more deaths than cancer, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease and dementia? What condition accounts for over 70 percent of our $2.4 trillion annual heathcare bill and will make up a majority of the $47 trillion spent globally over the next two decades as we deal with chronic disease? What condition is responsible for nearly twice as many deaths each years as infectious diseases cause? Do you know what condition is not even diagnosed in more than 90 percent of individuals suffering from it? This condition is known as diabesity. Have you heard of diabesity?


diabesity



What is Diabesity?


Diabesity is the largest health concern facing us as individuals, as families, as a nation and as a global community. Diabesity of the continuation of metabolic disturbances from minimal blood sugar as well as insulin imbalances to pre-diabetic to those with actual type 2 diabetes. This condition occurs at an alarming rate. If you think you are safe because you are at a “skinny” or “average” weight, guess again. This condition affects nearly 40 percent of individuals who appear to be at a healthy size. Fact: individuals may look thin but can be metabolically fat. When this occurs you have all the same risk factors for chronic disease and even death that those who are overweight do. Diabesity occurs in 80 percent of individuals who are overweight.


Diabesity acts as a slippery slope of health problems; one health problem leading to another. High blood pressure, elevated blood sugar levels and cholesterol problems can all pile on top of one another. This can easily lead to a decline in one’s health.


Can Diabesity be Reversed?


While diabesity may seem like nothing but bad news, there is good news when it comes to this condition. The good news is that diabesity can be reversed. For anyone who is willing to implement good lifestyle choices as well as a healthy, well-balanced diet, diabesity can be reversed! Health concerns including diabetes, elevated blood sugar levels, high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels are all the result of problems in our diets and lifestyle as well as environmental toxins.


By eliminating these concerns that are causing an individual’s body to be out of balance, individuals may be able to reverse the effects of diabesity and lead the way to a much healthier and happier lifestyle. Interventions with your doctor as well as basic lifestyle changes can help a patient to lose weight, make the necessary lifestyle changes and get their body back into balance.


What Do You Need to Do to Avoid Becoming a Diabesity Statistic? Fortunately diabesity does not have to be a sentence to an early death or a lifetime full of doctor visits and just not feeling good.


Testing. Testing if the first step that should be taken in order to make a recovery for the diabesity epidemic. Often times, diabesity may go unnoticed because many doctors are focused on testing fasting blood sugar levels. Your fasting blood sugar level is an ineffective test for diabesity. Ask your doctor for an insulin response test. This test is believed to be much more effective when it comes to diagnosing diabesity.


Diet. Choosing a healthy, well-balanced diet can much more challenging than it actually sounds. There is so much nutritional information out there. Much of the nutritional information out there contradicts itself. Fortunately, there are a few basic nutritional guidelines that everyone should follow whether you are looking to avoid diabesity of reverse diabesity. You should be eliminating sugars as well as processed carbohydrates from your diet. Those looking to reverse diabesity should consume whole foods including lean protein, vegetables, seeds and nuts.


Exercise. Exercise is going to play a huge role in your recovery from diabesity. Walking as well as other low-impact exercises (think swimming, cycling or using an elliptical machine) can help to balance your blood sugar levels as well as boost your metabolism. Start by exercising for 30 minutes each day. You should eventually be able to work yourself up to 60 minutes workout sessions, four to six days per week.


Reduce Your Stress Levels. Stress-reduction is very important in reversing diabesity. Stress plays a major component in diabesity as well as a number of other conditions. However, stress is often overlooked. Sure, small amount of stress are normal. However, being stressed out for an extended prior of time can increase insulin resistance as well as blood sugar imbalances. Yoga, meditation and visualization play a very important role in reversing diabesity.


Detoxification. Environmental toxins can have a huge impact on diabesity. For this reason, it is very important for patients to work to removal environmental toxins from their lives. Green cleaning products, filtered water and using glass containers instead of plastic containers can help to move you in the right direction.


Before beginning a new diet, lifestyle and exercise plan, you should always consult your doctor. By following these steps, patients of all ages and physical conditions should be able to take action against insulin resistance. You can get your life back and you can reverse diabesity.



How Big of an Epidemic is Diabesity?