Type 2 Diabetes

Diabetes is an aging accelerator robbing people of energy, health, and well-being. Most people think of diabetes as a disease characterized by high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is really a problem of “blood sugar regulation.” Abnormal blood sugar control exists across a wide spectrum of stages. The early phases of diabetes, now called the Metabolic Syndrome, result in weight gain and rapid aging despite normal blood sugar levels. In fact, many people will die of the metabolic syndrome before they develop type 2 diabetes. Over time, blood sugar regulation problems progress to destroy organ function and clog arteries.

Type 2 Diabetes Discussion Outline

What is type 2 diabetes?
How does type 1 diabetes differ from type 2?
How to prevent or reverse type 2 diabetes?
Supplements that enhance blood sugar regulation

What is type 2 diabetes?

Diabetes and problems with blood sugar control have reached epidemic proportions, occurring at never anticipated rates. Six percent of adults are currently diagnosed with diabetes, and another 4% suffer from diabetes without knowing it. As we age, diabetes becomes more common, and by age 65, nearly 20% of Americans have been diagnosed with diabetes.

Diabetes is a chemical imbalance between blood sugar and hormone levels. Diabetes in ancient times referred to the production of large amounts of urine, and was called diabetes mellitus (large volumes of urine tasting like honey due to its sugar content)

Yet, diabetes is only the tip of the iceberg when we think about the disease problems associated with abnormal blood sugar regulation. Beneath the surface lies a much bigger problem. “The Metabolic Syndrome” represents the early stages of diabetes. It is nearly as devastating as diabetes, and much more common involving at least 25-35% of our current adult population. By age 65, 40% of adults are inflicted with this condition. The Centers for Disease Control has estimated that 47 million Americans already have the metabolic syndrome. They also predict that one third of Americans born in 2000 will develop the metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes within their lifetime. Unless we do something to change our current trend by the year 2050, the incidence of this rapid-aging syndrome will triple.

The medical term for type 2 diabetes used to be adult onset diabetes. The recent increase in the incidence of adult onset diabetes in children has forced health care providers to develop a new term, and the name “type 2 diabetes” has now been commonly accepted.

I am deeply concerned by the current trend in medicine where a physician diagnoses a person with type 2 diabetes and starts them on medications for a lifetime, often without even addressing that lifestyle changes could normalize their condition. From my perspective, type 2 diabetes should NOT be called a disease at all, as it is the end result of a lifestyle that doesn’t match your genetic make-up. Type 2 diabetes should be called a “desperate need for a lifestyle adjustment.”

How does type 1 diabetes differ from type 2?

While today 95% of diabetes is type 2 diabetes (used to be called Adult Onset Diabetes) diabetes in the old days was mostly type 1 diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes occurs when your pancreas stops making insulin, most often because the immune system attacks the cells in the pancreas that make insulin, and without insulin therapy people with this disease would fall into a coma and die fairly quickly. Type 1 diabetes is a disease that currently requires daily medical therapy with insulin. I want to be clear that you can’t reverse type 1 diabetes with lifestyle changes, yet, the same lifestyle changes that can reverse type 2 diabetes make type 1 diabetes much easier to control, and help to prevent the complications that otherwise seem rampant with poorly controlled type 1 diabetes.

“People with type 2 diabetes generally have super famine genes”, meaning they are bred to survive famine. People prone to developing type 2 diabetes also may have the genetic make-up of a champion endurance athlete. Type 2 diabetes is often a sign of underlying energy efficiency. With the genes of a famine survivor and endurance champion, you could run all day with less food (like the Pima Indians) and you could survive a bitter winter month without food (like some Eastern Europeans). Not surprisingly, there is often a strong family history for type 2 diabetes in people diagnosed with this process. But, give a person with type 2 diabetes genes a desk job, make them inactive, feed them typical American junk food, and you will weaken them, fatten them, and eventually kill them. The typical American lifestyle was never intended for someone with energy efficient genes.

The good news is that most people with type 2 diabetes can reverse this process through adequate lifestyle changes as outlined below.

My approach to preventing and treating diabetes is holistic, integrating cutting-edge dietary choices, exercise, muscle building, mental calm, and the use of supplements. While I will prescribe medications to treat diabetes, I prefer to give you a lifestyle that reverses the process completely.

How to prevent or reverse type 2 diabetes?

I’ve helped hundreds of patients to either prevent or reverse type 2 diabetes and reverse the metabolic syndrome. Here are the keys to your success:

You need to get fit. The most effective way to enhance blood sugar regular is through exercise. For details try my Age Busting Fitness Plan. If you need coaching support, then please contact one of our coaches. To prevent type 2 diabetes and reverse the metabolic syndrome, most people can do this with 40-60 minutes of activity daily. Once you have type 2 diabetes, it may initially take 1-2 hours of daily exercise for the first 1-2 months before you can return to prevention mode.
Enjoy eating my Sweet Sixteen Vitality Foods to prevent type 2 diabetes. If you already have type 2 diabetes, then one additional tip: avoid eating more than 3/4 of a cup of a grain or potato dish at any meal, and don’t have more than 3 servings of grain or potato dishes daily. Instead, focus on eating more lean protein, beans, nuts, and leafy (non-starchy) vegetables, plus enjoy two servings of fruit daily (such as berries, apples, or pears). With your food, be sure to get at least 30-50 grams of fiber daily. See the fiber table in the Appendix in Ten Years Younger.
Supplements that enhance blood sugar regulation. Supplements will not prevent or reverse type 2 diabetes by themselves, only exercise and healthy eating can do that, but they can help improve blood sugar regulation. Several key nutrients to optimize blood sugar control include: