Diabetes Mellitus

Are you having trouble managing your diabetes?

Or maybe you are pre-diabetic and looking for help to prevent progressing to diabetes.  You may just have some early warning signs.  It’s not too late to reverse some of those early symptom or even diabetes.

There is a growing incidence of diabetes around the world, and itis the fastest growing chronic health condition in Australia. Over 100,000 Australians developed diabetes in the past year.  The risk of diabetes increases with age, and at least 2 million Australians have pre-diabetes and are at high risk of developing type 2diabetes. In most cases, type 2 diabetes can be prevented. 

Diabetes occurs when the pancreas doesn’t secrete enough insulin or if the cells of the body become resistant to insulin. It’s a chronic condition with disordered carbohydrate, fat and protein metabolism, and elevated fasting blood sugar levels. It greatly increases risk of heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, retinopathy (damaged blood vessels inside the retina at the back of the eye), and loss of nerve function.

Diabetes Symptoms

Often there are no symptoms at first, and diabetes can go undiagnosed for a long time.

Some common symptoms can include:

• being more thirsty than usual
• passing more urine
• feeling tired and lethargic
• slow-healing wounds
• itching and skin infections
• blurred vision
• nausea and vomiting
• numbness
• mood swings

Test to confirm diabetes: Glucose Tolerance Test & Insulin

Type 1 Diabetes (Insulin-Dependent Diabetes)

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease where your immune system destroys the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, resulting in an inability to produce enough insulin. It is possible that the antibodies to the beta-cells develop in response to cell damage due to other factors (chemical, free-radical, viral, food allergy, etc.). Traditionally, type 1 diabetes developed before the age of 20. It used to be relatively uncommon, but its incidence is rapidly rising.   At this time it’s not possible to completely reverse type 1 diabetes although it can be successfully managed with insulin injections, nutrition and exercise.

Pre-Diabetes / Insulin Resistance

This is where your blood glucose and insulin levels are higher than normal.  Cells fail to respond to insulin and use it effectively, causing high blood glucose.  Your pancreas continues producing insulin in response to high blood glucose, but it’s not able to get the glucose into the cells and reduce blood levels.  This causes increased risk of heart disease, polycystic ovarian syndrome and high blood pressure. Without treatment, about one in three people with pre-diabetes will develop type 2 diabetes.  Pre-diabetes is very easy to turn around with some simple diet and lifestyle modifications.

Metabolic Syndrome / Syndrome X

As your insulin resistance progresses and your blood sugar levels increase, excess glucose is also stored in the liver or muscles as glycogen. The liver and muscles can only store a limited amount of glucose as glycogen.  Any carbohydrates that are consumed beyond the storage capacity are converted to and stored as fat. There is practically no limit on how many calories the body can store as fat.  This leads to increased sugar and fats in your bloodstream which leads to high triglyceride levels and increased body fat (especially abdominal fat). It is strongly associated with high blood pressure, abnormal cholesterol and triglyceride levels, excess abdominal weight, poor liver function, fatty liver disease, general inflammation and increased cardiovascular risk.

Type 2 Diabetes (Non-Insulin Dependent Diabetes)

Thisis a progressive condition with many contributing factors. Historically its onset was after 40 years of age in overweight individuals, but today with rising obesity levels it is present in all age groups, even children.  In type 2 diabetes, your pancreas can still produce insulin, in fact often too much at first, but the body becomes unable to use it properly. This is an advanced stage of insulin resistance, which is typically caused by a diet that is too high in sugars and sugar forming foods.  When you have inadequate insulin signalling, sugar cannot get into your cells and instead builds up in your blood.  Excess glucose is also stored in the liver or muscles as glycogen or stored as fat.  Approximately 90% of individuals categorized as having Type 2 are obese. Achieving ideal body weight can help restore normal blood glucose levels in many cases. Even if Type 2 diabetes has progressed to the point where insulin deficiency is present, weight loss nearly always results in significant improvements in blood glucose control and dramatic reductions in other health risks such as cardiovascular disease.

Gestational Diabetes

Gestational diabetes affects three to eight per cent of pregnant women. Generally after the baby is born, the mother’s blood glucose levels return to normal. Gestational diabetes can cause excessive growth in the baby and if glucose levels remain elevated, the baby may be larger than normal.  Gestational diabetes can be monitored and well managed to reduce these risks. A healthy and nutritious well balanced diet is essential, along with exercise and monitoring blood glucose.  Women are at greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes after experiencing gestational diabetes.

Diabetes Insipidus

Diabetes Insipidus has nothing to do with diabetes caused by high blood sugar levels. It is characterised by extreme thirst and the passing of vast amounts of urine. It is caused by insufficient hormone vasopressin that instructs the kidneys to retain water. Without enough vasopressin, excessive water is lost from the body in urine, causing extreme thirst.  Without treatment, Diabetes Insipidus can cause dehydration and accumulation of salts in the blood.  Diabetes Insipidus can be treated with medications, vasopressin replacement and a low-salt diet.

Complications

High blood glucose levels can result in serious complications. These include: nerve damage to the feet and other parts of the body (neuropathy), foot ulcers or infections resulting from circulation problems and nerve damage, kidney damage (nephropathy) eye damage (retinopathy), sexual problems including erectile dysfunction, heart disease (for example, angina or heart attacks) and stroke.

Hypoglycemia

This can result when blood sugar levels fall after too much insulin, exercise or skipping meals in a Diabetes Type 1 patient (or a Type 2 patient receiving insulin treatment).

The symptoms of hypoglycemia include:

• Tremor
• Sweating
• Dizziness
• Hunger
• Headache
• Change in mood

Diabetic Ketoacidosis

Ketoacidosis is a medical emergency. This occurs mostly in patients with type 1 diabetes, especially if unwell or misses an insulin dose. However, it can also be the first indication of Type 1 Diabetes.  The symptoms of ketoacidosis are:

• Loss of appetite
• Weight loss
• Vomiting
• Excessive passing of urine
• Altered consciousness
• Coma

Seek medical help immediately if these symptoms occur.

How Can I Help?

• Assessing and identifying metabolic changes that may increase your diabetes risk
• Assessing your glucose / insulin levels and factors affecting these
• Helping to restore pancreatic function
• Helping to regulate and manage blood glucose levels
• Increasing your insulin sensitivity
• Restoring carbohydrate and fat metabolism
• Helping you to lose and manage your weight as needed
• Guiding you through diet and lifestyle changes
• Developing a healthy eating plan to suit your individual needs
• Helping to get you moving in an exercise programme that you enjoy
• Assessing and supporting cardiovascular risk factors such as blood pressure, cholesterol, weight, and activity
• Reducing your progression to complications

There’s a lot that can be done for the prevention and treatment of diabetes.

Herbs, essential nutrients and remedies can support treatment and help to reduce inflammation & oxidative stress, support microcirculatory health, improve liver and pancreatic function, control blood sugar levels, and increase insulin sensitivity.

What Can You Do?

• Implement suggested dietary changes.
• Lose weight if necessary.
• Reduce sugar and carbohydrates from your diet.
• Be physically active as often as you can. Physical activity along with moderate weight loss can help to restore the body’s ability to respond to insulin, lower blood pressure, improve triglycerides and normalise cortisol levels.
• Manage stress levels and reduce stress exposure. Practice relaxation therapies – yoga, massage, meditation.
• Check your blood glucose levels regularly.