The average American consumes an astounding 2-3 pounds of sugar each week, which is not surprising considering that highly refined sugars in the forms of sucrose (table sugar), dextrose (corn sugar), and high-fructose corn syrup are being processed into so many foods such as bread, breakfast cereal, mayonnaise, peanut butter, ketchup, spaghetti sauce, and a plethora of microwave meals.
In the last 20 years, we have increased sugar consumption in the U.S. 26 pounds to 135 lbs. of sugar per person per year! Prior to the turn of this century (1887-1890), the average consumption was only 5 lbs. per person per year! Cardiovascular disease and cancer was virtually unknown in the early 1900's.
The "glycemic index" is a measure of how a given food affects blood-glucose levels, with each food being assigned a numbered rating. The lower the rating, the slower the absorption and digestion process, which provides a more gradual, healthier infusion of sugars into the bloodstream. On the other hand, a high rating means that blood-glucose levels are increased quickly, which stimulates the pancreas to secrete insulin to drop blood-sugar levels. These rapid fluctuations of blood-sugar levels are not healthy because of the stress they place on the body.
One of sugar's major drawbacks is that it raises the insulin level, which inhibits the release of growth hormones, which in turn depresses the immune system. This is not something you want to take place if you want to avoid disease.
An influx of sugar into the bloodstream upsets the body's blood-sugar balance, triggering the release of insulin, which the body uses to keep blood-sugar at a constant and safe level. Insulin also promotes the storage of fat, so that when you eat sweets high in sugar, you're making way for rapid weight gain and elevated triglyceride levels, both of which have been linked to cardiovascular disease. Complex carbohydrates tend to be absorbed more slowly, lessening the impact on blood-sugar levels.
Sugar depresses the immune system.
We have known this for decades. It was only in the 1970's that researchers found out that vitamin C was needed by white blood cells so that they could phagocytize viruses and bacteria. White blood cells require a 50 times higher concentration inside the cell as outside so they have to accumulate vitamin C.
There is something called a "phagocytic index" which tells you how rapidly a particular macrophage or lymphocyte can gobble up a virus, bacteria, or cancer cell. It was in the 1970's that Linus Pauling realized that white blood cells need a high dose of vitamin C and that is when he came up with his theory that you need high doses of vitamin C to combat the common cold.
We know that glucose and vitamin C have similar chemical structures, so what happens when the sugar levels go up? They compete for one another upon entering the cells. And the thing that mediates the entry of glucose into the cells is the same thing that mediates the entry of vitamin C into the cells. If there is more glucose around, there is going to be less vitamin C allowed into the cell. It doesn't take much: a blood sugar value of 120 reduces the phagocytic index by 75%. So when you eat sugar, think of your immune system slowing down to a crawl.
Here we are getting a little bit closer to the roots of disease. It doesn't matter what disease we are talking about, whether we are talking about a common cold or about cardiovascular disease, or cancer or osteoporosis, the root is always going to be at the cellular and molecular level, and more often than not insulin is going to have its hand in it, if not totally controlling it.
The health dangers which ingesting sugar on an habitual basis creates are certain. Simple sugars have been observed to aggravate asthma, move mood swings, provoke personality changes, muster mental illness, nourish nervous disorders, deliver diabetes, hurry heart disease, grow gallstones, hasten hypertension, and add arthritis.
Because refined dietary sugars lack minerals and vitamins, they must draw upon the body's micro-nutrient stores in order to be metabolized into the system. When these storehouses are depleted, metabolization of cholesterol and fatty acid is impeded, contributing to higher blood serum triglycerides, cholesterol, promoting obesity due to higher fatty acid storage around organs and in sub-cutaneous tissue folds.
Because sugar is devoid of minerals, vitamins, fiber, and has such a deteriorating effect on the endocrine system, major researchers and major health organizations (American Dietetic Association and American Diabetic Association) agree that sugar consumption in America is one of the 3 major causes of degenerative disease.
A good source of supplies for diabetics is diabeticdrugstore.com. They offer healthy eating diabetic food, hard to find sugar free candy and medical alert jewelry for diabetes care.
Honey is a simple sugar
There are 4 classes of simple sugars which are regarded by most nutritionists as "harmful" to optimal health when prolonged consumption in amounts above 15% of the carbohydrate calories are ingested: Sucrose, fructose, honey, and malts.
Some of you may be surprised to find honey here. Although honey is a natural sweetener, it is considered a refined sugar because 96% of dry matter are simple sugars: fructose, glucose and sucrose. It is little wonder that the honey bear is the only animal found in nature with a problem with tooth-decay (honey decays teeth faster than table sugar). Honey has the highest calorie content of all sugars with 65 calories/tablespoon, compared to the 48 calories/tablespoon found in table sugar. The increased calories are bound to cause increased blood serum fatty acids, as well as weight gain, on top of the risk of more cavities.
Pesticides used on farm crops and residential flowers have been found in commercial honey. Honey can be fatal to an infant whose immature digestive tracts are unable to deal effectively with Botulinum Spore growth. What nutrients or enzymes raw honey does contain are destroyed by manufacturers who heat it in order to give it a clear appearance to enhance sales. If you are going to consume honey, make sure it is raw, unheated honey. Good to use in special cures, but not as an every day food. It is not much better than white or brown sugar.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Monday, October 6, 2008
IMPORTANCE OF EXERCISE AGAINST DIABETES.
Regular exercise is good for your general health as well as for your diabetes. Exercise makes your heart stronger and improves your circulation. Exercise improves your muscle tone and strength. Exercise helps you manage stress and helps you feel better about yourself. All of these help to make you more fit.
Exercise helps to reduce your risk of developing heart disease. Exercise helps lower the level of triglycerides and raise the level of HDL or "good cholesterol" in your blood. Exercise also helps lower your blood pressure. High blood pressure contributes to many of the chronic complications that can occur with diabetes.
Exercise helps you lose weight or maintain your weight by burning calories. By following a meal plan and exercising regularly, you can lose weight and maintain it at a desirable level. Exercise over time will increase the amount of muscle and decrease the amount of fat stored in your body. Muscle cells use more sugar and improve your blood sugar levels.
During exercise your body uses more sugar for energy than when your body is at rest. This can result in a rapid lowering of your blood sugar if you are taking insulin or an oral sulfonylurea (such as glipizide, glyburide, or glimepiride). You may have hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) during or after exercise. It is important that you keep your blood sugar in a safe range while you exercise. In order to do this, there must be a balance between the sugar used for energy while you exercise, the sugar available from food, and the medication you are on to lower your blood sugar. Testing your blood sugar is the best way to check this balance.
If you are at risk for hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) when you exercise, always be prepared. Sometimes hypoglycemia is harder to recognize when you are exercising because the exercise may make you sweaty or light-headed. Testing your blood sugar if you suspect an hypoglycemia is very important. If possible, exercise with a family member or friend who could help you if needed. Always carry some form of identification that says you have diabetes. Be sure to take some quick-acting form of sugar with you when you exercise such as glucose tablets or gel, Life Savers® or fruit juice.
If you have Type 1 diabetes, exercise is always balanced with your meal plan and insulin to control your diabetes. Changes may have to made in your insulin or food intake or both before and after exercise to prevent you from having hypoglycemia (low blood sugar).
If you have Type 2 diabetes, exercise helps to increase the sensitivity of your body cells to insulin. With this increased sensitivity, your own insulin works better and your blood sugar levels get better. When exercise is done at least every other day it is more likely to have this effect. Exercising regularly and following a meal plan may get your blood sugars in the target range without medication. In many people with Type 2 diabetes, medication is needed. Exercise is then used with a meal plan and the medication to control your diabetes.
Getting Started With Exercise.
You should talk over any plans you have for starting an exercise program with your doctor. Your doctor will assess the state of your health and decide whether you have heart disease or diabetes complications before advising you about exercise. Your doctor will give you information about exercise and your diabetes therapy. When you start an exercise program, you should start slowly and gradually build up your strength.
Choose an exercise you will enjoy and one which will fit with your lifestyle and physical abilities. The best type of exercise is aerobic exercise. This is exercise which is continuous over an extended period of time and uses large amounts of energy. Examples of this type of exercise are walking, running, bicycling, and swimming. These forms of exercise are more likely to help control your blood sugar than activities that require only short bursts of energy like many team sports and calisthenics. Exercises that are static and involve heavy lifting and total body straining should be avoided. These kinds of exercise do very little to benefit your heart or make your body's cells sensitive to insulin.
Walking is a very good form of exercise. Almost anyone can start a walking program. You can start out slowly and go a short distance and then gradually build up how fast and how far you walk. Walking is easily fit into your lifestyle and requires only a good pair of shoes and comfortable clothing. You can walk outdoors or indoors, alone or with others, and in all forms of weather. Enclosed malls have become an excellent and popular place to walk when the weather is bad.
Whatever exercise you choose should be done regularly and about the same time of day. It is best if you exercise daily but that may not be possible in your life. If daily exercise is impossible, a minimum of every other day (3-4 times per week) is the key to having exercise being of help in managing your diabetes. You should identify which days and times you will be able to exercise and then follow this schedule. This will help you plan for any change that you may need to make in your diabetes therapy because of exercise.
Self-Care for Exercise
If you have Type 1 diabetes, you may need less insulin or more food or both when you exercise. Trial and error over time will help you determine what insulin or food changes your body will need for safe blood sugar levels during exercise. The extra food you eat to provide sugar for exercise should not be subtracted from your meal plan. Blood sugar testing before and after exercise helps you know if the changes you make in your insulin or your food intake or both were right for you. If you are starting a new exercise, and especially if the exercise is done for a long time, you will need to also do blood sugars during exercise. Keeping careful records will help you establish the pattern of your blood sugar response to exercise.
You may prefer to adjust your insulin for exercise. This would be the best action to take if you are trying to lose weight and are doing planned exercise. Reduction in the amount of rapid or short acting insulin prior to exercise will reduce the amount of extra food you might have to eat to prevent or treat hypoglycemia. If you have certain days of the week when you are very active and other days when you get very little exercise, your insulin regimen may be adjusted to match these changes in your exercise pattern. If you notice a pattern of decreased blood sugar levels after you begin exercising, your intermediate or long-acting insulin doses may need to be decreased. Your doctor or nurse should be asked about adjusting you insulin for exercise.
Often you will need to eat extra food before you exercise. Whether you will need extra food before exercise and how much food you will need depends on several factors. The factors you will need to consider are when your insulin is peaking, when you last ate a meal or snack, how long and how hard you plan to exercise, and your blood sugar level. If your blood sugar is less than 80 mg/dl, you will always need a snack prior to exercise. The amount will depend on how long and how hard you plan to exercise. If your blood sugar is 80-180 mg/dl, you will need a snack if you plan exercise that is of moderate intensity and for 30 minutes or more. If your blood sugar is 180-240 mg/dl, you will not need a snack prior to exercise, but may need one later if the exercise is for 30 minutes or more. The longer and harder you exercise, the more extra food you will need to eat.
Trial and error over time will help you figure out what food your body will need for safe blood sugar levels during exercise. The extra food you eat to provide sugar for exercise should not be subtracted from your meal plan. Blood sugar testing should be done before and after exercise to help you figure out how exercise affects your blood sugar levels and whether you ate the right amount of food. If you are starting a new exercise, and especially if the exercise is done for a long time, you will need to also do blood sugars during exercise (approximately every 30 minutes). Keeping careful records will help you establish the pattern of your blood sugar response to exercise.
Exercise should be avoided if your blood sugar is consistently 300 mg/dl or more or you have ketones in your urine. Your diabetes should be brought under better control with adequate amounts of insulin before you exercise.
Exercise can increase how fast your insulin gets absorbed from the injection site. This could cause a rapid drop in your blood sugar level and may result in an insulin reaction. Because of this you should consider the type of exercise you will be doing when you choose an injection site. Insulin will be absorbed more rapidly if it is injected in fatty tissue over a muscle you will be exercising within an hour.
Your blood sugar level often continues to decrease after exercise. This occurs most often after exercise that is strenuous and of long duration. During exercise of this type, your muscles use sugar from your bloodstream and sugar that has been stored in your liver and muscles in the form of glycogen. During the hours after exercise, your body restores this glycogen by taking sugar out of the blood. This may take up to 24 hours and can result in hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). To prevent hypoglycemia after strenuous and prolonged exercise, your should eat extra food after you have quit exercising. It is very important to do a blood sugar test at bedtime when you have exercised vigorously and increase your bedtime snack to prevent a nighttime insulin reaction.
If you have Type 2 diabetes and are overweight your goal should be to exercise without increasing your food intake. If you are using a meal plan only for management of your diabetes, you are not at risk for your blood sugar dropping too low during exercise so extra food will not be needed. If extra food is needed to keep your blood sugar normal when you exercise, you will not be successful in losing weight. It is important that you not view exercise as a reason to eat extra food. Keep in mind that exercise may make you feel hungry. If this happens to you, try doing exercise just after you have eaten the biggest meal of the day.
Your blood sugar levels will probably be stable during and after exercise but it is possible that you may have hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) if you are taking insulin or an oral sulfonylurea (such as glipizide, glyburide, or glimepiride) especially if your exercise is strenuous or prolonged. You will need to follow the self-care guidelines for exercise and Type 1 diabetes. Hypoglycemia must be treated with extra food immediately. Hypoglycemia during or after exercise may mean that your medication dose needs to be reduced. Call your doctor or nurse about the hypoglycemia. Blood sugar testing helps you find out about the effect exercise is having on your diabetes control.
Foot Care for Exercise
When you have diabetes you are at greater risk for foot injury when you exercise. Nerve damage may decrease your ability to feel an injury to your feet. Impaired circulation can mean slow or poor healing when injuries do occur. Prevention of injury to your feet is very important. When you talk to your doctor about starting an exercise program, you will be advised about whether your legs and feet can safely tolerate the type of exercise your are planning.
Check your feet before and after exercise. Look for breaks in the skin, redness, blisters, or unusual swelling. If any of these problems occur, contact your doctor immediately. Wear shoes that fit properly and that are appropriate for the type of exercise you will be doing. Wear cotton socks, preferably white, and change them during exercise if they become damp.
Diabetes Complications and Exercise
Long-term complications such as eye or nerve damage may be worsened by inappropriate or strenuous exercise. This is why it is so important to check with your doctor before you begin an exercise program. If you have eye problems, exercises that require straining, such as weight lifting, can cause further eye damage. If you have nerve damage or poor circulation to your feet, exercises that produce a lot of impact on your feet, like running, can cause foot sores that you do not feel, possibly leading to serious damage before you notice the problem. The goal is to prevent worsening of any problems you have by selecting the proper exercise for you.www.diabetespreventions.blogspot.com
Exercise helps to reduce your risk of developing heart disease. Exercise helps lower the level of triglycerides and raise the level of HDL or "good cholesterol" in your blood. Exercise also helps lower your blood pressure. High blood pressure contributes to many of the chronic complications that can occur with diabetes.
Exercise helps you lose weight or maintain your weight by burning calories. By following a meal plan and exercising regularly, you can lose weight and maintain it at a desirable level. Exercise over time will increase the amount of muscle and decrease the amount of fat stored in your body. Muscle cells use more sugar and improve your blood sugar levels.
During exercise your body uses more sugar for energy than when your body is at rest. This can result in a rapid lowering of your blood sugar if you are taking insulin or an oral sulfonylurea (such as glipizide, glyburide, or glimepiride). You may have hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) during or after exercise. It is important that you keep your blood sugar in a safe range while you exercise. In order to do this, there must be a balance between the sugar used for energy while you exercise, the sugar available from food, and the medication you are on to lower your blood sugar. Testing your blood sugar is the best way to check this balance.
If you are at risk for hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) when you exercise, always be prepared. Sometimes hypoglycemia is harder to recognize when you are exercising because the exercise may make you sweaty or light-headed. Testing your blood sugar if you suspect an hypoglycemia is very important. If possible, exercise with a family member or friend who could help you if needed. Always carry some form of identification that says you have diabetes. Be sure to take some quick-acting form of sugar with you when you exercise such as glucose tablets or gel, Life Savers® or fruit juice.
If you have Type 1 diabetes, exercise is always balanced with your meal plan and insulin to control your diabetes. Changes may have to made in your insulin or food intake or both before and after exercise to prevent you from having hypoglycemia (low blood sugar).
If you have Type 2 diabetes, exercise helps to increase the sensitivity of your body cells to insulin. With this increased sensitivity, your own insulin works better and your blood sugar levels get better. When exercise is done at least every other day it is more likely to have this effect. Exercising regularly and following a meal plan may get your blood sugars in the target range without medication. In many people with Type 2 diabetes, medication is needed. Exercise is then used with a meal plan and the medication to control your diabetes.
Getting Started With Exercise.
You should talk over any plans you have for starting an exercise program with your doctor. Your doctor will assess the state of your health and decide whether you have heart disease or diabetes complications before advising you about exercise. Your doctor will give you information about exercise and your diabetes therapy. When you start an exercise program, you should start slowly and gradually build up your strength.
Choose an exercise you will enjoy and one which will fit with your lifestyle and physical abilities. The best type of exercise is aerobic exercise. This is exercise which is continuous over an extended period of time and uses large amounts of energy. Examples of this type of exercise are walking, running, bicycling, and swimming. These forms of exercise are more likely to help control your blood sugar than activities that require only short bursts of energy like many team sports and calisthenics. Exercises that are static and involve heavy lifting and total body straining should be avoided. These kinds of exercise do very little to benefit your heart or make your body's cells sensitive to insulin.
Walking is a very good form of exercise. Almost anyone can start a walking program. You can start out slowly and go a short distance and then gradually build up how fast and how far you walk. Walking is easily fit into your lifestyle and requires only a good pair of shoes and comfortable clothing. You can walk outdoors or indoors, alone or with others, and in all forms of weather. Enclosed malls have become an excellent and popular place to walk when the weather is bad.
Whatever exercise you choose should be done regularly and about the same time of day. It is best if you exercise daily but that may not be possible in your life. If daily exercise is impossible, a minimum of every other day (3-4 times per week) is the key to having exercise being of help in managing your diabetes. You should identify which days and times you will be able to exercise and then follow this schedule. This will help you plan for any change that you may need to make in your diabetes therapy because of exercise.
Self-Care for Exercise
If you have Type 1 diabetes, you may need less insulin or more food or both when you exercise. Trial and error over time will help you determine what insulin or food changes your body will need for safe blood sugar levels during exercise. The extra food you eat to provide sugar for exercise should not be subtracted from your meal plan. Blood sugar testing before and after exercise helps you know if the changes you make in your insulin or your food intake or both were right for you. If you are starting a new exercise, and especially if the exercise is done for a long time, you will need to also do blood sugars during exercise. Keeping careful records will help you establish the pattern of your blood sugar response to exercise.
You may prefer to adjust your insulin for exercise. This would be the best action to take if you are trying to lose weight and are doing planned exercise. Reduction in the amount of rapid or short acting insulin prior to exercise will reduce the amount of extra food you might have to eat to prevent or treat hypoglycemia. If you have certain days of the week when you are very active and other days when you get very little exercise, your insulin regimen may be adjusted to match these changes in your exercise pattern. If you notice a pattern of decreased blood sugar levels after you begin exercising, your intermediate or long-acting insulin doses may need to be decreased. Your doctor or nurse should be asked about adjusting you insulin for exercise.
Often you will need to eat extra food before you exercise. Whether you will need extra food before exercise and how much food you will need depends on several factors. The factors you will need to consider are when your insulin is peaking, when you last ate a meal or snack, how long and how hard you plan to exercise, and your blood sugar level. If your blood sugar is less than 80 mg/dl, you will always need a snack prior to exercise. The amount will depend on how long and how hard you plan to exercise. If your blood sugar is 80-180 mg/dl, you will need a snack if you plan exercise that is of moderate intensity and for 30 minutes or more. If your blood sugar is 180-240 mg/dl, you will not need a snack prior to exercise, but may need one later if the exercise is for 30 minutes or more. The longer and harder you exercise, the more extra food you will need to eat.
Trial and error over time will help you figure out what food your body will need for safe blood sugar levels during exercise. The extra food you eat to provide sugar for exercise should not be subtracted from your meal plan. Blood sugar testing should be done before and after exercise to help you figure out how exercise affects your blood sugar levels and whether you ate the right amount of food. If you are starting a new exercise, and especially if the exercise is done for a long time, you will need to also do blood sugars during exercise (approximately every 30 minutes). Keeping careful records will help you establish the pattern of your blood sugar response to exercise.
Exercise should be avoided if your blood sugar is consistently 300 mg/dl or more or you have ketones in your urine. Your diabetes should be brought under better control with adequate amounts of insulin before you exercise.
Exercise can increase how fast your insulin gets absorbed from the injection site. This could cause a rapid drop in your blood sugar level and may result in an insulin reaction. Because of this you should consider the type of exercise you will be doing when you choose an injection site. Insulin will be absorbed more rapidly if it is injected in fatty tissue over a muscle you will be exercising within an hour.
Your blood sugar level often continues to decrease after exercise. This occurs most often after exercise that is strenuous and of long duration. During exercise of this type, your muscles use sugar from your bloodstream and sugar that has been stored in your liver and muscles in the form of glycogen. During the hours after exercise, your body restores this glycogen by taking sugar out of the blood. This may take up to 24 hours and can result in hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). To prevent hypoglycemia after strenuous and prolonged exercise, your should eat extra food after you have quit exercising. It is very important to do a blood sugar test at bedtime when you have exercised vigorously and increase your bedtime snack to prevent a nighttime insulin reaction.
If you have Type 2 diabetes and are overweight your goal should be to exercise without increasing your food intake. If you are using a meal plan only for management of your diabetes, you are not at risk for your blood sugar dropping too low during exercise so extra food will not be needed. If extra food is needed to keep your blood sugar normal when you exercise, you will not be successful in losing weight. It is important that you not view exercise as a reason to eat extra food. Keep in mind that exercise may make you feel hungry. If this happens to you, try doing exercise just after you have eaten the biggest meal of the day.
Your blood sugar levels will probably be stable during and after exercise but it is possible that you may have hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) if you are taking insulin or an oral sulfonylurea (such as glipizide, glyburide, or glimepiride) especially if your exercise is strenuous or prolonged. You will need to follow the self-care guidelines for exercise and Type 1 diabetes. Hypoglycemia must be treated with extra food immediately. Hypoglycemia during or after exercise may mean that your medication dose needs to be reduced. Call your doctor or nurse about the hypoglycemia. Blood sugar testing helps you find out about the effect exercise is having on your diabetes control.
Foot Care for Exercise
When you have diabetes you are at greater risk for foot injury when you exercise. Nerve damage may decrease your ability to feel an injury to your feet. Impaired circulation can mean slow or poor healing when injuries do occur. Prevention of injury to your feet is very important. When you talk to your doctor about starting an exercise program, you will be advised about whether your legs and feet can safely tolerate the type of exercise your are planning.
Check your feet before and after exercise. Look for breaks in the skin, redness, blisters, or unusual swelling. If any of these problems occur, contact your doctor immediately. Wear shoes that fit properly and that are appropriate for the type of exercise you will be doing. Wear cotton socks, preferably white, and change them during exercise if they become damp.
Diabetes Complications and Exercise
Long-term complications such as eye or nerve damage may be worsened by inappropriate or strenuous exercise. This is why it is so important to check with your doctor before you begin an exercise program. If you have eye problems, exercises that require straining, such as weight lifting, can cause further eye damage. If you have nerve damage or poor circulation to your feet, exercises that produce a lot of impact on your feet, like running, can cause foot sores that you do not feel, possibly leading to serious damage before you notice the problem. The goal is to prevent worsening of any problems you have by selecting the proper exercise for you.www.diabetespreventions.blogspot.com
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