What Doctors Don't Tell Diabetics About Fats And Carbs

If you recently have been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, chances are your nutritional advice has fallen into one of two mutually exclusive categories:

Eat fewer carbs. Your body turns almost all carbohydrates into glucose either quickly or slowly, so to get your blood sugar levels down, eat less carbohydrate.
Eat more carbs. You have diabetes because you are overfat, so replace the fat in your diet with carbohydrate.
It's enough to make you wonder if doctors and nutritionists really know how to treat diabetes, but there is, despite what you may hear from true believers in one kind of diabetes diet or another, value in both approaches.

The idea that diabetics should eat less carbohydrate makes inherent sense. Diabetes is a condition in which either the body is not making enough insulin or insulin does not work effectively. If you are not going to inject insulin or take drugs that sensitize cells to insulin or use medications that force the pancreas to produce more insulin, it makes sense to give your insulin less to do.

In type 2 diabetes, at least in the earlier stages, the body can produce insulin slowly, but not fast enough to take care of a "dump" of carbohydrate from a high-carb meal. For these diabetics, it makes sense to eat a different kind of carbohydrate, the more slowly digested carbohydrates associated with low-glycemic index foods like whole grains and vegetables. Even whole grains and vegetables, however, add up, and there are no "freebies." Too many turnips can raise blood sugars as much as too much cake, only much more slowly.

But what if you ate almost no carbohydrate at all? Wouldn't this be even better for getting blood sugars down?

There is a growing number of doctors and diabetics finding success with diets that allow 1/10 to 1/5 as much carbohydrate as suggested by the American Diabetes Association. The body still needs insulin to move glucose into cells, because about 23 per cent of the amino acids in high-protein foods are eventually transformed into sugar. The body does not need as much insulin, however, and blood sugars do not swing up and down as they do on high-carb diets, even "good carb" diets. And fats do not turn into blood sugar.

The problem comes when diabetics try to mix the two approaches, eating both high-fat and high-carb, or alternating high-fat and high-carb. If you eat a meal that's mostly carbohydrate, the liver will sense raising blood sugar levels and stop converting its stores of glycogen into even more glucose. If you eat a meal that is high in both fat and carbohydrate, the liver will not sense the load of glucose and stop releasing sugar. This is because the liver is "blinded" to glucose levels by the fatty acids released in the digestion of fatty foods.

A high-fat meal can cause excess production of glucose by the liver for as long as seventy-two hours. And in those seventy-two hours, elevated levels of sugar in the bloodstream can "turn off" muscle cells in ways that make them less sensitive to insulin the next time the diabetic eats any kind of meal, either high-carb or high-fat.

This principle is why both vegan raw foods diets and Atkins-style diets work for getting blood sugars down, provided any food that is consumed is consumed in moderation. The good news is, diabetics who manage to keep both blood sugar and blood fatty acids low for 72 hours begin to repair insulin sensitivity, sometimes to the level of people who do not have diabetes, whichever approach they use.

Effects Of Drinking Alcohol With Diabetes

Diabetes is a disease where the body does not properly use or produce insulin. The cause of this disease is still a mystery that affects over 20 million people in the United States. It is estimated that over 6 million individuals are not aware they have diabetes.

Mixing alcohol and diabetes can be risky business. It is hard enough for diabetics to control their diets without using alcohol. They not only have to pay attention to what they eat, but how much they eat. It is only through proper diet and planning careful meals that diabetics can gain control of the disease and regulate it in order to live healthier, longer lives.

Drinking too much alcohol makes it very difficult for the body of a diabetic to maintain the proper blood sugar levels in their system. Alcohol is quickly absorbed into the blood stream without fully metabolizing in the stomach. It can take a normal person about two hours to metabolize one average alcoholic drink. But when a person that is diabetic drinks alcohol, they are at risk of developing low blood sugar very quickly.

People with diabetes that drink alcohol will always be putting themselves at risk of developing low blood sugar. Low blood sugar is what causes diabetics to having reactions. When alcohol is consumed, the liver focuses all it's attention to clear the alcohol from out of the body. This means that the liver does not have time to provide the glucose the body needs, leading to low blood sugar, a diabetic's nightmare. When a diabetic has been consuming alcohol, even a shot of Glucagon will be ineffective in raising the low blood sugar because the alcohol will stop the Glucagon from working.

After everything is said and done, this does not necessarily mean that a person who has diabetes should never consume alcohol. This is something that needs to be discussed with a doctor. People who suffer from type II diabetes are better candidates for having an occasional drink. There are even some documents in medical journals that discuss how women with type II diabetes can lower risks of complications associated with the disease by consuming alcohol in moderation. The alcohol's effects can decrease insulin resistance only when the alcohol consumed is a couple of drinks per day. If, after checking with your doctor and if your doctor says you can drink alcohol on occasion, then use some commonsense guidelines when drinking alcohol.

Do not drink alcohol on an empty stomach. Eating some food before drinking helps the alcohol to metabolize faster, so your blood sugar level has a better chance of not falling. Drink light beer instead of the regular variety. When consuming mixed drinks, stay with the sugar free mixes. When drinking wine, stay with the dry wines. Always drink in moderation. If you do not, then you are putting yourself at risk with your diabetes. Anymore than a couple of drinks can cause your blood sugar to begin falling too low.

Overall, diabetes is the silent killer. It would be much safer to not drink at all. If you do consult with your doctor and it is alright to have a couple of drinks on occasion, then ensure you only do drink in moderation for your own health's sake.

Systoms of Type 1 Diabetes And Treatment

What is diabetes? Diabetes is a disease caused by a lack of insulin (a hormone) in the human body. Insulin is needed by the body to metabolize (breakdown) the sugar that we eat. When insulin is not available the sugar levels in the body can rise to extremely high levels which can cause diseases of various body parts like the kidneys, eyes, nerves, hearts etc. There are two types of diabetes. Type 1 diabetes develops when the body can't produce the natural hormone insulin. If left untreated, symptoms include excessive thirst, passing excessive urine and weight loss.

Symptoms of Type 1 diabetes

Type 1 diabetes only takes a few weeks to develop. The initial symptoms include:

• Increased production of urine (polyuria)• Excessive thirst (polydipsia)• Tiredness • Loss of weight

If type 1diabetes isn't treated at this stage, the body begins to produce chemicals called ketones. This is because it tries to use energy sources other than glucose. The ketones build up in the bloodstream, leading to a condition called diabetic ketoacidosis. Diabetic ketoacidosis causes additional symptoms, including:

• Vomiting • Stomach pain • Rapid & shallow breathing • Increased pulse rate• Sleepiness

Without treatment, diabetic ketoacidosis can lead to coma and, eventually, death.

Having type 1 diabetes increases your risk for many serious complications. Some complications of type 1 diabetes include: heart disease (cardiovascular disease), blindness (retinopathy), nerve damage (neuropathy), and kidney damage (nephropathy). All patients need to be regularly screened for these complications to prevent long term damage.

People with diabetes type 1 need to:

• check blood sugar levels a few times a day by testing a small blood sample• give themselves insulin injections, or use an insulin pump• eat a balanced, healthy diet and pay special attention to the amounts of sugars and starches in the food they eat and the timing of their meals (carbohydrate tracking)• get regular exercise to help control blood sugar levels and help avoid some of the long-term health problems that diabetes can cause, like heart disease• work closely with their doctor and diabetes health care team to help achieve the best possible control of their diabetes and be monitored for signs of diabetes complications and other health problems

Treating type 1 diabetes

Type 1 is treated with insulin replacement therapy - usually by injection or insulin pump, dietary control, typically including carbohydrate tracking, and careful monitoring of blood glucose levels using Glucose meters. Oral medicines generally do not have much role to play in treating this disease since there is virtually no insulin production in this disease. For more information visit http://www.simplyanswer.com offers the much needed information and support to its user. Post your question freely and get the assistance of medical experts online.

Your child’s nutrition (1): What are you programming Your child for?

The discerning parent would know why a dull child is not doing well at school.Food choice and breakfast may play a very important role. These days, adults are so busy trying to work to generate enough income to keep body and soul together that they do not pay attention to food choice and combination in their homes. Feeding properly seems to be a task for even families with a lot of money. Why? It’s simply because a good balanced diet requires attention and care. Preparing such meals can also be time consuming.

Tired and worn out parents have a way of feeding their children fast and ready-to-cook, tired and worn out parents find it easy to feed their children fast ready-to-cook meals.some family most especially Nigerians and Africans eat rice and stew on a daily basics!, for some others, plain noodles are permanently on the menu. Where are the fruits, vegetables, essential amino-acids, essential fatty acids, etc. The fast food treats do not make it any better; they only add a lot of saturated and trans fats, salt, sugar, etc. Today, we will take a look at free sugar in relation to a child’s diet and health. The sugar that we refer to is the table sugar used on a daily basis to manufacture drinks, confectionery, added to foods at home like beverages, custard, pap, etc. How does it affect your child¡_s health, especially in high content?

Sugar in your child’s diet: Sugar is a very popular chemical in our daily diet. Three sources provide over two thirds of the free sugar our diet and especially the diet of our children. These are, soft drinks, table sugar, which we add to foods, like tea and confectionery like biscuits, cakes, etc. Unfortunately, these are the very foods which are popular with children. This is largely because these foods are promoted by intense advertising and have a profound effect on food choice by children. Immediately after watching one of these glamorous adverts promoting highly sweetened drinks, my son nearly always asks me if he can have it. I firmly tell him no and explain that it is bad for him if he wants to grow up to be big and strong! Only careful parental guidance will teach a child to choose a fruitover a sweet when offered both.

As populations got more civilized, the amount of sucrose (sugar) they consumed increased. Prior to that, most of the sugar in the diet was from fruits; fructose – fruit sugar.

Sugar and the Teeth: I must applaud dentists. They have continually educated the public on the harmful effects of sugar on the teeth. They seriously deserve this commendation because the sugar cartel are a very powerful international body. Sugar sells and it is available everywhere. It is interesting to note that sugar was so scare in England during queen Victoria’s time, that only the elite ate it. The Queen, on the other hand, ate so much sugar; because of her privilege, that all her teeth were rotten! Many countries, especially in the third world; have traditionally eaten a high starch low sugar diet.¨ These population, like Nigeria, used to have a low incidence of dental caries i.e. holes in the teeth were not common. The deterioration of dental health, grew with the introduction of free sugars and foods high in it into their diet.

This is in line with research conducted by Newburn et al in 1980, which concluded that starchy foods are not cariogenic (i.e. they do not decay the teeth to cause holes in them). I will not usurp my esteemed dentists job by writing on how sugar decays the teeth. It suffices for me to say here, that a low sugar diet is compulsory for your child’s dental health to be good.

Sugar and Nutrient Deficiency; Drinking large quantities of soft drinks can lead to deficiencies in several important vitamins and minerals. A survey of more than 4,000 children, aged 2 to 17 years, foundthat soft drinks consumption rose 41% between 1989 and 1995. Soft drinkers were less likely to get the recommended levels of Vitamin A or calcium, and were at increased risk of magnesium deficiency. Sugar depletes magnesium, and the high levels of phosphoric acid in soft drinks can combine with calcium and magnesium in the gut to cause a loss of these vital minerals.

Children and Diabetes: Type 2 diabetes used to be called "adult-onset" diabetes, because it mostly occurred in people over 50. But this is no longer so. The rising rate of diabetes in children is epidemic. Dr. Gerald Bernstein, an endocrinologist with New York's Beth Israel Medical Center said, "If you go back 20 years, about 2% of all cases of new onset diabetes (type 2) were in people between 9 and 19years old. Now, it's about 30% to 50%." It is now a well established fact that the incubation of type 2 diabetes is directly related to diet (about 90%). More specifically a diet that continually floods the blood with a high sugar content; a diet high in refined carbohydrates and free sugars. Children with a positive family history maybe programmed to develop type 2 diabetes earlier if they are fed the later type of diet.Sugar and obesity: The combination of high sugar and high fat in food is a very deadly one. This is because the presence of sugar in the blood after a meal is digested makes the pancreas to secrete insulin. Besides it normal function of helping to metabolise sugar, insulin makes the body deposit fat cells! You can see that this is an unwholesome combination.

You are more likely to put on weight much faster with the sugar in your diet encouraging the deposit of fat. Obesity is increasingly becoming a problem in children. Besides inactivity (not burning energy by engaging in physical activity), a diet combination as is being described here is one of the major contributors to the rising problem of child obesity. We will talk more about obesity in children.Sugar blues: An intake of a high sugar food gives a sudden boost, a temporary high. The habitual intake of such items leads to the craving for the quick sugar

high when one does not have it. Have you observed the speed with which some people gulp down a bottle of soft drink? As if their very life depends on it!

Today’s youths have been described as jetfighters.¨ They refuel on the move. They live off junk food, confectionery like sweet and canned drinks. A condition described as reactive hypoglycaemia¨ has been found to be common among them. This is the sugar blues, which occurs immediately after their blood is deprived of their high sugar fuel. They feel extreme tiredness, depression, aggression and have been known to even attempt suicide! In North America, a Professor Schoenthaler even traced it to criminal behaviour.

Most importantly, families should device ways to reduce the amount of free sugars in their children’s diet. Soft drinks should be few and far between, and even then, diluted. Water is by far the most satisfying fluid. If you teach your child to appreciate and drink plenty of water, then they are less likely to have sugar addiction.



This article may not be entirely true for American audience,it may be well suited to fellow Africans and Aisians