Before we talk about reversing diabetes or discuss whether there's
really a natural cure for diabetes, let's
lay down our definition.
The simple definition is that diabetes is a disease in which the body either does not produce
or cannot properly use insulin.
The statistics about diabetes are staggering.
- More than 20 million Americans
have diabetes. That's 7% of the population!
- It's estimated that over 6 million of those with
diabetes don't even know it.
- 33% of today’s children will become diabetic.
- Diabetes
is the 7th leading killer in the U.S.
More amazing than the grim statistics is the fact that diabetes does
not have to be a life sentence. It can be controlled -- even reversed -- with a variety of natural supplements that complement
the body's own processes. In fact, many herbal and natural diabetes treatment remedies work so well at reversing diabetes
(and so quickly) that we've seen many diabetics drastically reduce their use of or come off medication all together.
There
are different types of diabetes and ranges of glucose intolerance -- Gestational diabetes, Pre-diabetes, type 1, type 2, Impaired
glucose tolerance (IGT), etc. The most prevalent by far (and what we focus on) is type 2 diabetes, affecting up to 95% of
all diabetics.
But hold on to your seat: the majority of type 2 diabetes cases are linked to diet and lifestyle!
While it's helpful to understand what causes diabetes and look at what goes wrong in our cells that causes our glucose management systems to be all out of sync, it's
equally helpful to be able to spot the signs and symptoms of diabetes.
You can also take this quick and easy quiz to see if you're at risk.
But if you already know your body struggles with sugar, now is the time to empower yourself with natural diabetes
treatment information to make a positive change towards reversing diabetes.
When we discuss what causes type 2 diabetes we give you the two primary culprits: poor diet and a sedentary lifestyle. So, as simple as it sounds, if you address both
of these, you will go far in preventing AND treating diabetes. See, simple! But simple doesn't mean it's easy so let's
go deeper.
DIET: Type 2 diabetes is a condition usually the result of many years of chronic metabolic insult, or in other words,
diabetes is the crop you reap when you sow years of poor diet and activity choices. But all of that can change by sowing better
seed!
Positive diet changes involve:
- Changing how we think about and treat sugar in our life.
- Redistributing the traditional food pyramid that's been ingrained in us since elementary school.
- Looking at herbs and other natural
substances that do the same thing as prescription drugs: help reduce after-meal elevations in blood sugar levels, and improve
insulin function and sensitivity. (and they often do it better)
- Acknowledging that "diet"
isn't a dirty word but simply means "what and how you eat". Therefore all of us who eat (which pretty much covers
everybody, doesn't it?) have a diet, everyday.
(More on diabetes and diet/nutrition coming very soon so stay
tuned!)
EXERCISE: This point can not be stressed enough. In fact, let me just be straight with you: THE major risk factor for
type 2 diabetes is obesity -- or more precisely, excess body fat. Approximately 80 to 90 percent of individuals with type
2 diabetes are obese. If these people were not obese, they would not have developed diabetes. That's the bottom line.
So while it might seem hard to believe that moving your body more could be a natural diabetes treatment, that's
EXACTLY what I'm saying (me and almost every diabetes authority you can find).
There's a reason why this correlation
exists. When fat cells, particularly those around the abdomen, become full of fat they secrete a number of biological products
that do a variety of things that all spell diabetes in the making (read more about this on our What Causes Diabetes page).
Thankfully, exercise helps reduce fat stores and provides many more benefits for reversing diabetes. More on
those things and about diabetes and exercise coming very soon!
