Type 2 Diabetes – reversal is a possibility
Nobody’s talking about a cure for Type 2 Diabetes but reversal is a possibility
Type 2 Diabetes is one of the most important health epidemics facing the world at the moment. Here are some of the incredible stats. There are estimated 422 million diabetics worldwide and by 2014 that will rise to 642 million. China has the highest prevalence with 100 million sufferers. It causes 1.5 million deaths globally and every 6 seconds someone dies from diabetes. One in 11 adults has diabetes.
Current treatments
Type 1 Diabetes has been the subject of intense research to find effective treatments. It’s a severe disease that affects mainly young people and has major effects on their future health. Its main cause is auto-immune, where the pancreas which makes insulin is destroyed by the persons own immune system. Treatments being researched include vaccines, transplants, stem cell therapy and treatments to halt the immune over-activity. Great strides are being made but we are still a long way off from having these treatments widely available.
Type 2 Diabetes on the other hand has languished with research focusing on an increasing array of anti-diabetic drugs. There are so many genes involved with Type 2 diabetes, over 80 at the last count, that effective gene therapy is perhaps a pipe dream. Herbals treatments and supplements like cinnamon are also being researched.
There’s a lot of discussion about the different treatments available and talk about prevention but in reality, we aren’t even touching the problem. Many diabetics live in low income countries where people have less access to health care and education about healthy eating. But even in high income countries, many people are unaware that changing your diet can make a huge difference to your risk and need for treatment.
It seems prevention and delaying the onset are the best ways of making sure Type 2 Diabetes isn’t a problem for you. The best time for this is at the pre-diabetes stage. However, more and more people are improving their diet, restricting sugar and high carbohydrate foods and achieving great results. While we don’t talk about cure, reversal of the process to normal blood values is becoming more common. The conclusion is reversal to normality is possible but the longer you have diabetes the harder that is to achieve.
So what it’s the best way to prevent or reverse Type 2 Diabetes?
Well, the best answer is ‘Don’t get it in the first place’.
Here are 3 tips to preventing Type 2 Diabetes
1) The number one priority is to get checked out – when you ask for a fasting blood glucose, ask for a fasting insulin as well. High levels of fasting insulin, indicates a problem long before your blood glucose becomes abnormal. Get checked out every year. If your insulin is high – change your diet then and there
2) If Type 2 Diabetes is in your family, you’re very overweight or you eat a lot of sugar, you are at risk.
3) Don’t wait until you are diagnosed as diabetic. Take action at the pre-diabetes stage. It can be done…
In the next few weeks, I’ll be giving you more tips on preventing and managing diabetes with healthy eating, so watch this space…
