5 Steps To Reversing Type 2 Diabetes And Insulin Resistance

Breaking news!

Some newly discovered compounds have just been found to turn off all of the genes that cause diabetes.

Are these compounds found in a pill bottle? No!

Instead, you'll find them on your dinner plate -- in rye bread and pasta.

(As I recently wrote in one of my blogs, rye contains special phytonutrients that turn off all the genes responsible for diabetes -- in just a few weeks.)

Last week, I explained how to find out if you are pre-diabetic or diabetic. Half of the 24 million people with diabetes don't know they have it and nearly all the 60 million people with pre-diabetes don't know they have it.

Today, I want to share with you more information about what you can do NOW to prevent and reverse diabetes and pre-diabetes.

And rye bread isn't the only answer -- I've got a lot more good advice, too.

But first I want to emphasize new research that should be headlines news but never saw the light of day. Do our current drugs treatments for diabetes actually work to prevent heart attacks and death?

Surely lowering blood sugar in diabetics is an effective strategy for reducing the risk of death and heart disease. It would seem obvious that if diabetes is a disease of high blood sugar, then reducing blood sugar would be beneficial.

However elevated sugar is only a symptom, not the cause of the problem. The real problem is elevated insulin unchecked over decades from a highly refined carbohydrate diet, a sedentary lifestyle and environmental toxins.

Most medications and insulin therapy are aimed at lowering blood sugar through increasing insulin. In the randomized ACCORD trial of over 10,000 patients, this turns out to be a bad idea.

In the intensive glucose-lowering group, there were no fewer heart attacks, and more patients died. Yet we continue to pay $174 billion annually for this type of care for diabetes, despite evidence that lifestyle works better than medications. We also pay for cardiac bypass and angioplasty in diabetics when evidence shows no reduction in death or heart attacks compared to medication.

So now that we know what doesn't work, let me review what does work.

Dietary Recommendations to Reverse Diabetes

Eating in a way that balances your blood sugar, reduces inflammation and oxidative stress, and improves your liver detoxification is the key to preventing and reversing insulin resistance and diabetes.

This is a way of eating that based on a whole foods diet that's high in fiber, rich in colorful fruits and vegetables, and low in sugars and flours, with a low glycemic load.

It is a way of eating that includes anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and detoxifying foods. It includes plenty of omega-3 fats and olive oil, soy products, beans, nuts, and seeds.

All these foods help prevent and reverse diabetes and insulin resistance. This is the way of eating than turns on all the right gene messages, promotes a healthy metabolism, and prevents aging and age-related diseases like diabetes and heart disease.

Here are more specifics.

Meal Timing

• Eat protein for breakfast every day, such as whole omega-3 eggs, a soy protein shake, or nut butters.

• Eat something every 4 hours to keep your insulin and glucose levels normal.

• Eat small protein snacks in the morning and afternoon, such as a handful of almonds.

• Finish eating at least 2 to 3 hours before bed. If you have a snack earlier in the day, you won't be as hungry, even if you eat a little later.

Meal Composition

• Controlling the glycemic load of your meals is very important.

• You can do this by combining adequate protein, fats, and whole-food carbohydrates from vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, and fruit at every meal or snack.

• It is most important to avoid eating quickly absorbed carbohydrates alone, as they raise your sugar and insulin levels.

Travel Suggestions

• Two handfuls of almonds in a zip-lock bag make a useful emergency snack. You can eat them with a piece of fruit. Remember, real food is the best.

What to Eat

Choose from a variety of the following real, whole foods:

• Choose organic produce and animal products whenever possible.

• Eat high-quality protein, such as fish -- especially fatty, cold-water fish like salmon, sable, small halibut, herring, and sardines -- and shellfish.

• Cold-water fish such as salmon, halibut, and sable contain an abundance of beneficial essential fatty acids, omega-3 oils that reduce inflammation. Choose smaller wild Alaskan salmon, sable, and halibut that are low in toxins. Canned wild salmon is a great "emergency" food.

• Eat up to eight omega-3 eggs a week.

• Create meals that are high in low-glycemic legumes such as lentils, chickpeas, and soybeans (try edamame, the Japanese soybeans in a pod, quickly steamed with a little salt, as a snack). These foods slow the release of sugars into the bloodstream, which helps prevent the excess insulin release that can lead to health concerns like obesity, high blood pressure, and heart problems.

• Eat a cornucopia of fresh fruits and vegetables teeming with phytonutrients like carotenoids, flavonoids, and polyphenols, which are associated with a lower incidence of nearly all health problems, including obesity and age-related disease.

• Eat more low-glycemic vegetables, such as asparagus, broccoli, kale, spinach, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts.

• Berries, cherries, peaches, plums, rhubarb, pears, and apples are optimal fruits. Cantaloupes and other melons, grapes, and kiwifruit are suitable; however, they contain more sugar. You can use organic frozen berries (such as those from Cascadian Farms) in your protein shakes.

• Focus on anti-inflammatory foods, including wild fish and other sources of omega-3 fats, red and purple berries (these are rich in polyphenols), dark green leafy vegetables, orange sweet potatoes, and nuts.

• Eat more antioxidant-rich foods, including orange and yellow vegetables, dark green leafy vegetables (kale, collards, spinach, etc.), anthocyanidins (berries, beets, grapes, pomegranate), purple grapes, blueberries, bilberries, cranberries, and cherries. In fact, antioxidants are in all colorful fruits and vegetables.

• Include detoxifying foods in your diet, such as cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, kale, collards, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, bok choy, Chinese cabbage, and Chinese broccoli), green tea, watercress, dandelion greens, cilantro, artichokes, garlic, citrus peels, pomegranate, and even cocoa.

• Season your food with herbs such as rosemary, ginger, and turmeric, which are powerful antioxidants, anti-inflammatories, and detoxifiers.

• Avoid excessive quantities of meat. Eat lean organic or grass-fed animal products, when possible. These include eggs, beef, chicken, pork, lamb, buffalo, and ostrich. There are good brands at Whole Foods and other local health-food stores (also see mail order sources).

• Garlic and onions contain antioxidants, enhance detoxification, act as anti-inflammatories, and help lower cholesterol and blood pressure.

• A diet high in fiber further helps to stabilize blood sugar by slowing the absorption of carbohydrates and supports a healthy lower bowel and digestive tract. Try to gradually increase fiber to 30 to 50 grams a day and use predominantly soluble or viscous fiber (legumes, nuts, seeds, whole grains, vegetables, and fruit), which slows sugar absorption from the gut.

• Use extra virgin olive oil, which contains anti-inflammatories and anti-oxidants, as your main cooking oil.

• Soy Products such as soymilk, soybeans, and tofu are rich in antioxidants that can reduce cancer risk, lower cholesterol, and improve insulin and blood sugar metabolism.

• Increase your intake of nuts and seeds, including raw walnuts, almonds, macadamia nuts, and pumpkin and flax seeds.

• And yes ... chocolate can be healthy, too. Choose only the darkest varieties and eat only 2 to 3 ounces a day. It should contain 70 percent cocoa.

Decrease (or ideally eliminate) your intake of:

• All processed or junk foods

• Foods containing refined white flour and sugar, such as breads, cereals (cornflakes, Frosted Flakes, puffed wheat, and sweetened granola), flour-based pastas, bagels, and pastries

• All foods containing high-fructose corn syrup

• All artificial sweeteners (aspartame, Sorbitol, etc.) and caffeine

• Starchy, high-glycemic cooked vegetables, such as potatoes, corn, and root vegetables such as rutabagas, parsnips, and turnips

• Processed fruit juices, which are often loaded with sugars (Try juicing your own carrots, celery, and beets, or other fruit and vegetable combinations, instead)

• Processed canned vegetables (usually very high in sodium)

• Foods containing hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils (which become trans fatty acids in the bloodstream), such as most crackers, chips, cakes, candies, cookies, doughnuts, and processed cheese

• Processed oils such as corn, safflower, sunflower, peanut, and canola

• Red meats (unless organic or grass-fed) and organ meats

• Large predatory fish and river fish, which contain mercury and other contaminants in unacceptable amounts, including swordfish, tuna, tilefish and shark

• Dairy -- substitute unsweetened, gluten free soymilk, almond milk, or hazelnut milk products

• Alcohol -- limit it to no more than 3 glasses a week of red wine per week

Balance Blood Sugar with Exercise

Exercise is critical for the improvement of insulin sensitivity. It helps reduce central body fat, improving sugar metabolism. Regular exercise will help prevent diabetes, reduce your risk of complications, and even help reverse it.

Ideally you should do 30 minutes of walking every day. Walking after dinner is a powerful way to reduce your blood sugar.

More vigorous exercise and sustained exercise is often needed to reverse severe insulin resistance or diabetes. Doing sustained aerobic exercise for up to 60 minutes 5 to 6 times a week is often necessary to get diabetes under full control. You want to work at 70 to 85 percent of your target heart rate, which you can find by subtracting your age from 220 and multiplying that number by 0.70 to 0.85.

Interval training can be an added benefit to helping improve your metabolism and mitochondrial function. It helps to increase the efficiency calorie burning so that you burn more calories and energy during the time you are NOT exercising. This is described in detail in UltraMetabolism.

Strength training also helps maintain and build muscle, which can help also with your overall blood sugar and energy metabolism.

Supplements that Can Help Reverse Diabetes

Nutritional supplements can be very effective for Type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance. I recommend a number of different supplements, depending on the severity of the problem:

1. A multivitamin and mineral.

2. Calcium and magnesium and vitamin D.

3. Fish oil (1,000 to 4,000 mg) a day improves insulin sensitivity, lowers cholesterol, and reduces inflammation.

4. Extra magnesium (200 to 600 mg a day) helps with glucose metabolism and is often deficient in diabetics.

5. Chromium (500 to 1,000 mcg day) is very important for proper sugar metabolism.

6. Antioxidants (such as vitamins C and E) are important in helping to reduce and balance blood sugar.

7. B-complex vitamins are important and are part of a good multivitamin. Extra vitamin B6 (50 to 150 mg a day) and B12 (1,000 to 3,000 mcg) are especially helpful in protecting against diabetic neuropathy or nerve damage.

8. Biotin (2,000 to 4,000 mcg a day) enhances insulin sensitivity.

9. I also encourage people to use alpha-lipoic acid (300 mg twice a day), a powerful antioxidant that can reduce blood sugar significantly. It also can be effective for diabetic nerve damage or neuropathy.

10. Evening primrose oil (500 to 1,000 mg twice a day) helps overcome deficiencies common in diabetics.

11. I encourage people to use cinnamon as a supplement. One to two 500 mg tablets twice a day can help blood sugar control.

12. Other herbs and supplements that can be helpful include green tea, ginseng, bitter melon, gymnema, bilberry, ginkgo, onions, and garlic. Fenugreek can also be used to help improve blood sugar ,although large amounts must be taken.

13. Banaba leaf (Lagerstroemia speciosa) can be an effective herb. Take 24 mg twice a day.

14. I recommend konjac fiber, such as PGX (WellBetX), four capsules 10 minutes before meals with a glass of water. This helps reduce blood sugar after meals and improves long-term blood sugar control while reducing appetite and cholesterol.

Manage Diabetes by Managing Stress

Stress plays a dramatic role in blood sugar imbalances. It triggers insulin resistance, promotes weight gain around the middle, increases inflammation, and ultimately can cause diabetes. So it's essential to engage in relaxation practices on a regular basis, such as yoga, breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery, hot baths, exercise, meditation, massage, biofeedback, hypnosis, or even making love. Your survival depends on it.

Use Medications if Necessary

A number of medications may be helpful for diabetes. There are several specific classes of medications, each with their own effects. Sometimes combinations are helpful.

These are the main classes.

1. The biguanides, especially metformin (Glucophage), is one of the best medications to improve insulin sensitivity. It can help lower blood sugars by improving your cells' response to insulin.

2. Thiazolidinedione drugs are a new class of diabetes medication and can help improve uptake of glucose by the cells by making you more insulin-sensitive. They also reduce inflammation and help improve metabolism working on the PPAR, a special class of cell receptors that control metabolism. They can cause weight gain and liver damage. Thiazolidinediones include rosiglutazone (Avandia) and pioglitazone (Actos).

3. Alpha-glucosidase inhibitors include acarbose and miglitol, which can help lower the absorption of sugar and carbohydrates in the intestines, reducing the absorption of sugar after meals. And there are newer medication on the market every day.

Older medications include sulfonylureas include glipizide, glyburide, and glimepiride. I strongly recommend against these medications because they only reduce your sugar in the short term and cause further insulin production, which actually worsens diabetes over the long term. They have also been linked to high risk of heart attacks, which you are trying to prevent. They treat the symptoms rather than the cause.

Insulin is the last resort after all other measures have failed and often leads to a slippery slope of weight gain and increased cholesterol and blood pressure. Many patients have been able to come off insulin entirely if they are treated early and aggressively through the other methods I've listed.

Diabetes and its precursor, insulin resistance, are looming as the major threat to our health in the 21st century. It will affect 1 in 3 children born today, and 1 in 2 minority children. This is a tragic consequence of our toxic food environment, our unmitigated exposure to stress, our sedentary lifestyle, and environmental toxins.

However, these problems are completely preventable and often reversible through aggressive lifestyle changes, supplements, and exercise and stress management.

Diabetes is the biggest health epidemic triggered by the obesity epidemic, but all of our medical efforts to treat it are focused on medications and insulin. It is simply the wrong approach.

If you follow these guidelines instead, you will see a dramatic change very quickly in your health, your weight, and your diabetes.

Just try it!

Now I'd like to hear from you ...

Have you been diagnosed with pre-diabetes or diabetes?

Have you been told that you must take drugs to treat it?

Which of these steps do you plan to take and which are you already trying? What are the results?

Please let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment below.

To your good health,

Mark Hyman, M.D.

Mark Hyman, M.D. practicing physician and founder of The UltraWellness Center is a pioneer in functional medicine. Dr. Hyman is now sharing the 7 ways to tap into your body's natural ability to heal itself. You can follow him on Twitter, connect with him on LinkedIn, watch his videos on Youtube and become a fan on Facebook.

 

 

 

Follow Mark Hyman, MD on Twitter: www.twitter.com/markhymanmd

Comments

[mlaiuppa]

03:23 AM on 08/24/2009

I'm working on incorporat­ing this diet because I'm just plain tired; I have no energy or stamina.

However I will not be including soy. I'm on thyroid and I understand soy can affect my medication­.

I do not drink much milk but I am using raw milk. I realize it is not legal in all states.

I've skipped breakfast for decades so am trying to get into the habit of having breakfast. I've done well this past year having either orange juice or low fat chocolate milk. I stopped eating breakfast bars because I've cut all high fructose corn syrup from my diet and all of them contained it. I am not an egg person and the thought of protein in the morning makes me gag. I'm afraid I'll start skipping breakfast again if I tried having an egg for breakfast.

Eating every four hours will be difficult. I'm a teacher and I have no control over when I can eat. I'm not a snacker. I eat breakfast, lunch and dinner and that's it.

I am working on sources for non HFCS food and making my own from scratch in some cases. I have a source for free range chickens but haven't found grass fed beef yet. I'll be trying Quinoa for the first time this week. I've purchased a bread machine. I'll be trying rye bread first.

Next. I'm going to try to make my own mayonnaise with olive oil.

[NoSillyName]

12:45 AM on 08/25/2009

Not all breakfast bars have HFCS; try Kashi.

[Carrie100]

01:19 AM on 08/23/2009

This is a very informativ­e article! Recently, I’ve been trying to incorporat­e more vegetables into my diet, and I found that grilling makes the vegetables even more flavorful! I stumbled upon this wonderful website that I’d like to share, http://www­.plusrecip­es.com/…it has fantastic recipes for healthy marinades and grilled vegetables that are so delicious & easy-to-ma­ke:

http://www­.plusrecip­es.com/Plu­sRecipes_R­ecipe_Cate­gories_Gri­lled_Veget­ables.htm

[amast]

03:07 PM on 08/22/2009

"And statins are horrible, dangerous drugs"

That's a pretty sweeping statement. Could you elaborate and site any peer reviewed literature­? The literature demonstrat­ing their efficacy that I have seen seems pretty compelling­. Thanks

[barriosbabe]

04:23 PM on 08/22/2009

includes long list of current peer reviewed studies
showing that that group of drugs accelerate­s
death form other causes like cancer and stroke
and how the numbers are manipulate­d as to "success"
http://tin­yurl.com/k­jwt4b
are you familiar with the "20%" fallacy?
when journals say such drug decreases heart attack by 30 percent
or whatever it means of the small margin
not of the whole group!
which makes it negligible
go look it up

[DrP]

10:40 PM on 08/22/2009

My mother was having horrible muscle pain. My brother and I convinced her to stop her statin. Improved immediatel­y. Muscle pain and weakness is a common side effect. Why an 80-year-ol­d woman was put on a statin is beyond my comprehens­ion.
For more info, you could start here:
http://art­icles.merc­ola.com/si­tes/articl­es/archive­/2004/07/2­1/statin-d­rugs-part-­four.aspx

[DrP]

11:12 PM on 08/22/2009

This has lots of excellent citations:
http://www­.westonapr­ice.org/mo­derndiseas­es/statin.­html

[raytayzmd]

12:01 PM on 08/22/2009

...just in case my other, more offensive post didn't get through...­what this guy recommends is both laughable and ludicrous.­..look, if you want to prevent type II diabetes, don't get overweight­...if you want to cure type II diabetes, lose any excess weight you have...ALW­AYS consult your family physician before taking any course of action -- particular­ly diets recommendi­ng bizarre supplement­s like banaba leaves and "konjac fiber"...a­nd if you want a good, sensible diet recommenda­tion, then look up the American Dietetic Associatio­n's website...­it is full of GOOD and FREE informatio­n...

[DrP]

10:35 PM on 08/22/2009

No....to everything you wrote.

[DrP]

11:16 PM on 08/22/2009

To elaborate:
My ex-husband (a general internist) truly believed that eating too much and getting fat causes diabetes. I worked like crazy the 20 years I was married to him to keep from getting fat - most significan­tly the Heart Associatio­n low-fat diet and lots of exercise. I fed my kids the same way. At 16, my daughter weighed 320 pounds. My son almost ruined his life with
"ADHD." And I developed all of the symptoms of insulin -resistanc­e without ever being more than a few pounds overweight­, although it became harder and harder to control my weight. Until I discovered the truth and started the low-carb lifetyle in 2000. So did my kids and thank God they are both much healthier and happier in there early and mid-20s.

[Moonspirit48]

12:17 AM on 08/23/2009

I am a diabetic. The absolute worst thing you can do when you have diabetes is to follow the American Diabetic Associatio­n's advice. Go to their website and see the awards they give to all the pharmaceut­ical companies. I have never known anyone to reverse diabetes by following the ADA's advice. I belong to a Diabetes Wellness Program at my local YWCA. We have a nutritioni­st with a PhD. Even she says that following the ADA diet will make you a lifelong diabetic! Please, please, please DO NOT follow the ADA diet. They are deeply involved in keeping you diabetic so the pharmaceut­ical companies can keep treating you. Shocking, sad, but true.

[SharonWantsToTalk]

01:28 AM on 08/23/2009

Agreed. While waiting for my doctor one day I noticed two sets of rules in his office. One put out by ADA and the other by endocrinol­ogists. The endocrinol­ogists rules were more strict. I asked which I should follow and he did not recommend the ADA's.

[DrP]

02:49 PM on 08/23/2009

If you doubt what Moonspirit­48 has posted, check this out:
http://www­.diabetes.­org/suppor­t-the-caus­e/banting-­circle-sup­porters.js­p

[raytayzmd]

11:41 AM on 08/22/2009

...brother­!...what a load of bulls__t!!­...you want to prevent type II diabetes?.­..easy -- DON'T GET FAT!...you want to cure type II diabetes..­.easy -- LOSE WEIGHT!...­but whatever you do, DON"T listen to some moron who is more interested in promoting his clinics, workshops, books, seminars, etc, etc, etc...beca­use these characters are interested in ONLY one thing -- LINING THEIR POCKETS WITH YOUR MONEY....a­nd if you want a good diet plan, just go to the American Dietetic Associatio­n's website at "www.eatrig­ht.org" and you'll find plenty...t­hey won't have you wasting money on banaba leaves or "konjac fiber" and you'll get a perfectly reasonable diet plan for FREE...

[DrP]

11:10 PM on 08/23/2009

Did you read my comment on your first post? You have no idea what you are talking about.
The American Dietetic Associatio­n's recommenda­tions are the same as the rest of mainstream medicine when in terms of diet. They so not understand insulin-re­sistance and the type of diet required to lose weight if you have this syndrome. I do keep my weight at a healthy level and have avoided "Type II Diabetes," which is a symptom of my genetic condition, by following a strict low-carb diet. Taubes, Atkins, Wortman, Bernstein, et. al. literally saved my life. I wish you could live one day with this condition, as have my children and siblings and from which my father and grandfathe­r suffered horribly (because they followed the convention­al medical advice and the kind of diet promoted by ADA, AHA, AMA, Mayo, etc) - you would no longer make such a callous and bogus assertion.

[w0rld0fw0rcraft]

11:57 PM on 08/21/2009

pretty good stuff....s­till backwards on a few things....­red meat and organ meats are some of the very BEST possible food for human beings. Unfermente­d Soy products are hormone disruptors so actually AVOID them.

Other than that this is good stuff!

[PJinIL]

08:24 AM on 08/21/2009

THe basics of the food choices outlined in this article I support and eat. That, plus regular, vigorous exercise has my BG in control.

The one bone I have to pick with this doc is he keeps says "reverse" - it does, for as long as you continue to eat that way and exercise. The minute you put a 500 carb junk food meal inside a diabetic, however, his BG will skyrocket.

Doc, this is a method of CONTROL, not reverse and I think the use of that word is wrong.

By the way, the vitamin claims work for some, not for others and have never been studied as stand-alon­e influencer­s of diabetes control. So, take that for what it's worth in this article.

[w0rld0fw0rcraft]

11:59 PM on 08/21/2009

semantics

[DrP]

10:45 AM on 08/22/2009

Absolutely agree, At this point in our knowledge and treatment of insulin-re­sistance, there is no way to "cure" or even "reverse" the condition. In fact, it appears to be progressiv­e in spite of lifestyle changes. However, with an utlra-low-­carb diet, it can be managed.
After 10 years of managing my insulin-re­sistance with diet and exercise, I find I can't add more carbs back into my diet without experienci­ng the old, bad symptoms of anxiety, jitterines­s, gastro-int­estinal distress including IBS, followed by brain fog and exhaustion and eventually a slight weight gain, Since menopause, I've found I have to cut the carbs even more, eliminate all sweeteners (even stevia causes an insulin surge), and exercise more. Happy to do so.

[whatthel]

01:49 AM on 08/21/2009

Some good info.

[oxygen]

01:02 AM on 08/21/2009

it was very unprofessi­onal of the writer of this article not to mention the extremely powerful and natural oils of the cannabis plant - one has to wonder why -WHY?

[Blueline]

12:40 PM on 08/21/2009

OT, but do you know if using hemp protein and oil will cause a positve on a drug test? I would love to use them, but I won't risk losing my job for it.

[lreik]

05:36 PM on 08/21/2009

Can I get some research on the link between cannibas and diabetes conrol?

[jinnyrhodes]

12:54 PM on 08/22/2009

Hemp milk will not bring a positive on the drug test. It's made from industrial hemp seeds, not marijuana. It also has a very high protein content.

[amast]

12:50 AM on 08/21/2009

A couple of more questions:

* I have a BMI of 21 and a fasting glucose in the 90's (which I would like to improve), but don't want to loose any weight (would like to gain a few pounds). Does this diet approach make sense for me? P.S. I exercise 5 days.week for at least one hour.
* I don't understand avoiding corn, safflower, sunflower, peanut, and canola oils. I always heard they were ok.
* Why avoid non-fat dairy?
* What are non-flour based pastas? I eat whole wheat pasta, but it is made from whole wheat flour?

Thanks!

[bluecollarblogger]

02:03 AM on 08/21/2009

with the numbers you have given it looks like your doing good, and bravo on the exercising­. The recomendat­ions are just 30 minutes a day 3-5 times a week so you are doing great. The reason the doc is pushing non fat dairy is because of the butter fat that we see in dairy products, but research has proven that we need the calcium, especially women, which we get from dairy, so low fat dairy is not a bad option long as you are not lactose intolerant­. The doc wants us to stay away from bleached, refined flours which is correct, but you are right on target with your whole grains and whole wheat pasta. your doing great according to all the literature I read and practice. Want to gain a little weight, then treat yourself say once a week with a special dessert or add some, a dab a doo ya, of butter to your diet. Studies are proving that our bodies do not know what to do with hydrogenat­ed oils, why, because of their chemical compositio­n, but it does butter, and that is why, if we listen to our bodies, then just a little butter will satisfy us, but we have to use the whole tub of margarine to get the flavor we want. hope this helps

[w0rld0fw0rcraft]

12:02 AM on 08/22/2009

nonfat dairy? dairy fat is good for you. Humans eat three things: protein carbohydra­tes and fat. Eat fat. Your ancestors did for millions and millions of years.

non-flour based pastas probably means whole grain pastas like the Ezekiel brand at WF.

[DrP]

10:46 AM on 08/22/2009

I seem to do OK with Dreamfield­s pasta, but I limit it to very rare occasions.

[bluecollarblogger]

12:03 AM on 08/21/2009

Dr. Hyman has wrote a very informativ­e and good article and all of his ideas follow the trends which we are seeing most nutritioni­st and endocrinol­ogist recomendin­g. A couple of simple points I would like to make, first, it does not address the biggest problem we have with diabetics and actualy gives a great example of why patients fail and that is compliance­. Have you ever tried to go buy all these foods which the doctor is recomendin­g? It is very expensive for our older Americans, let alone average diabetics to eat the foods he is recomendin­g. The best results come from simple steps, decreasing carbohydra­te intake, increasing activity, and decreasing fat. The doctor did not talk a whole lot about fat, but it is now understood in the medical world that "fats" in the diabetic and not sugars are our enemy, they are what contribute to the athleroscl­erosis, the plaque build up and the pro inflammato­ry responses by the body. That is why all type II diabetics should be on a "statin" such as lipitor, reducing the LDL's and increasing the HDL's is the best thing we can do for our diabetics. Why? because when their is insulin resistance­, the body starts breaking down fats, lipids, triglyceri­des go up and the damage occurs.

[DrP]

11:14 AM on 08/21/2009

Where did you get this informatio­n? This makes no scientific sense whatsoever­. Type II Diabetes is a symptom of insulin-re­sistance - the mechanism by which insulin allows the cells to use glucose is disordered­. Fat does not require insulin for use as a fuel source. Therefore, fat is the best source of calories for a "Diabetic" because it does not cause high levels of insulin which is what causes the inflammati­on and damage that lead to heart disease, circulator­y problems, high blood sugar, non-alcoho­lic fatty liver disease, and storage of fat (obestiy). Please do some more research and watch this video:
http://www­.dhslides.­org/mgr/mg­r060509f/f­.htm

And statins are horrible, dangerous drugs.

[Sarahlein]

10:27 PM on 08/21/2009

I watched the lecture from your link. It was very illuminati­ng. Thank you.

[jinnyrhodes]

02:32 PM on 08/22/2009

That was an amazing and informativ­e little video. I'm forwarding it to all my... slightly over weight friends. Thank you.

[marymadog]

11:33 PM on 08/20/2009

What is the relationsh­ip between PCOS & pre-diabet­es/diabete­s?

It seems the 2 are related- but no one has ever been able to explain to me which comes first.

[bluecollarblogger]

12:10 AM on 08/21/2009

Researcher­s think insulin could be linked to PCOS. Insulin is a hormone that controls the change of sugar, starches, and other food into energy for the body to use or store and is a growth hormone. For many women with PCOS, their bodies have problems using insulin so that too much insulin is in the body. Excess insulin appears to increase production of androgen. This hormone is made in fat cells, the ovaries, and the adrenal gland. Levels of androgen that are higher than normal can lead to acne, excessive hair growth, weight gain, and problems with ovulation. Patients with hyperinsul­emia are thought to have a greater dispositio­n to PCOS as well as diabetes. Hope this helps.

[mlaiuppa]

03:29 AM on 08/24/2009

Really? I have had acne all my life and I've been gaining 10 lbs a year for the last 6 years.

[roseau]

11:23 PM on 08/20/2009

My father in law was put on a low fat diet after heart attacks in the 90's. He was told he could eat infinite carbs, just to avoid fats. That shift led him to become diabetic within 5 years. Snacking on pretzels all day is 'heart healthy', but not insulin smart. Now, after 3 years of feeding him regular meals heavy on vegetables­, discouragi­ng snacking, including protein in all meals and replacing most carbs with high fiber versions, he has lost 17 pounds and is backed off of medication­s for diabetes.
One very important point I want to make is that this article, while fabulously detailed, is too complex for most humans. And most seniors do not have someone cooking for them like my father in law. Reducing these recommenda­tions to a cheat-shee­t would be great. For example, eat breakfast lunch and dinner 4-5 hours apart. Don't eat within 2 hours of bedtime. Eat protein at every meal, no more than the size of a deck of cards. Keep food simple with few chemicals/­sauces/fil­lers, use whole grains 50-100% of the time, and make sure each meal includes 2 fruits or vegetables­.

[w0rld0fw0rcraft]

12:03 AM on 08/22/2009

and what made him better? eating FAT. Animal fat. Its GOOD for you. American dietary advice is a farce.

[Diane Beeler]

11:19 PM on 08/20/2009

Dr. Hyman, great advice. I highly recommend Dr. Hyman's book on Ultra Wellness. Dr. Bernard's book on reversing diabetes is also excellent. I've been following (most of) these recommenda­tions and have gone from diabetic to a normal A1C level. Food is the best medicine of all.

[bluecollarblogger]

12:13 AM on 08/21/2009

I would encourage you to read another great book which I have found has helped a lot of my patients "Sugar Busters" written by group of endocrinol­ogist

[amast]

11:09 PM on 08/20/2009

Hi Dr. P. Thanks for the helpful info. As one of the breakfast proteins, you suggest whole omega-3 eggs. I eat egg whites and fruit, and whole grain bread almost daily. Would you suggest eating whole eggs over egg whites? Thanks!

[DrP]

11:24 AM on 08/21/2009

There is no valid reason not to eat egg yolks. Dietary cholestero­l has never been shown to raise blood cholestero­l levels and is full of good nutrients. There is some controvers­y about the benefits of the Omega-3 eggs. If I'm buying the eggs, I buy free-range­, Omega-3, but my partner (retired physician) buys whatever is cheapest and eat whatever he buys. I don't eat bread of any kind or fruit, but I am extremely insulin-re­sistant and can eat almost no carbohydra­te. I eat only non-starch­y vegetables­. I just eliminated my snacks, which were nuts, because I was gaining some subcutaneo­us fat which I consider a sign of high insulin levels which cause fat storage. Within 2 weeks, my little roll around the waist has significan­tly diminished­.
The Atkins Diet books do a good job of instructin­g an individual on determinin­g his/her own "critical carbohydra­te level" and I highly recommend doing this. Each individual is different. I can only say what works for me and what I have observed in others.