Browsing all articles tagged with Diabetes
Dec
6

How Changing Your Diet Can Help With Yeast Infections

There’s so many different ways that you can get a yeast infection. One of the main reasons people get a yeast infection is due to using oral contraceptive pills, using oral steroids, about to get your period, having diabetes, use of applications like soap, douche, hygiene products, and wearing clothing that is damp and/or warm. There are a number of solutions to treat the infection. Along with these treatments, you also need to understand the importance of diet.  If you have a yeast infection you really want to deal with it.

When it comes to adhering to a diet for the use of treating a yeast infection you should really call it a detox. Yeast infection is a direct result of an overgrowth in some areas of a natural occurring microorganism, your doctor will call this microorganism Candida albicans.  There are many ways you can detox your body.

A basic part of the diet is of course to consume plenty of water. The water will really help your body with the detoxing process. It helps flush out the toxins inside the body. In addition to water, drinking fresh fruit juices and even tea be added to the liquid intake. But emphasis is given to drinking at least eight glasses of water daily. 

Eating a diet filled with fresh food is also a very good idea. Avoiding foods that have a lot of fat in it is best, this is not only important for treating your infection but for your general health as well. Avoid overcooking your food too. Foods have a tendency to loose much of its nutrients when heat is applied so be sure to cook your food just right. Steamed and sautéed would be the ideal cooking preparations. Vegetables don’t need cooking, just make it a salad and you’re ready to go. However, we do suggest that you avoid eating sweet vegetables like carrots, corn, potatoes, onions, and sweet potatoes.

Try and eat as much garlic as you can also. Garlic contains antibacterial properties which help in getting rid of the overgrowth of yeast. A diet rich in green vegetables but lower in meat is also good. Fish, beef, lamb, poultry and eggs are okay in moderation.

Oct
12

Soda Water Explained

Soda Water is a outstanding, refreshing drink for diabetics, because it is totally free of carbohydrates and sugars.

Soda water, or carbonated water, is plain water to which carbon dioxide (CO2) gas has been added; it is also referred to as sparkling water. It is the main ingredient of most “soft drinks.”. Carbonic acid — soda pop — results from the process of carbonation.

By using a seltzer bottle filled with water and then “charged” with carbon dioxide, soda water (also called club soda) can be produced right at home. Club soda is often just the same as plain carbonated water; however, in some instances, it can have a small amount of table salts, as well as sodium trace minerals. These additives could possibly make the taste of home made slightly salty. The process also occurs naturally in some areas and produce carbonate mineral water.

Sparkling mineral water sometimes causes a little dental decay. Sparkling water’s potential affects on dental problems are slightly greater than with non-sparkling water, but the problem is not a major one. Higher rates of tooth decay are caused by regular soft drinks, not by sparkling water. The rate is so low it suggests that carbonation of drinks may not be a significant factor in causing dental decay.

Water coming from the ground, usually from artesian wells, is often filtered among layers of minerals; these layers contain various carbonates; the water absorbs carbon dioxide gas released by the carbonates. The result? Natural sparkling water. Sparkling mineral water is created if the filtered water picks up enough different minerals to add a flavor.

Basically, soda water is just water and carbon dioxide. Sparkling mineral water is a naturally-occuring product of carbonation. In 1794, a jeweler constructed a device to produce an artificial carbonated mineral water.

A taste test of several carbonated drinks was conducted; it was deemed that Perrier, a sparkling natural mineral water, kept its fizz the longest.

The gentle fizz of club soda may be a welcome alternative for consumers who feel seltzer to be a bit harsh. During the taste test, club soda seemed to be milder, and a little sweeter, than the standard carbonated water.

Since club soda, sparkling mineral water, seltzer, and carbonated water have no calories, this makes them a dieter’s choice over soda pop and tonic water.

Tonic water is a type of carbonate drink; it contains water, sugar, carbon dioxide and quinine. Quinine was originally added to tonic water to help cure or prevent malaria. Today it is commonly mixed with gin and lemon or lime for an alcoholic drink.

So, soda water is not so hard to understand, as these simple facts reveal.

Oct
12

The Diabetes Diets

Diet for Diabetes

There is some confusion around the most appropriate diet for the diabetic with no single regime being proven to help the condition.

There is conflicting dietary advice given almost every day from so called experts in their fields. This is made worse by the popular press selectively reporting snippets from medical papers that often has the effect of skewing the misinterpreting the original message.

Undoubtedly, refined white sugar and products containing this substance are not going to be helpful for the diabetic simply because of the almost immediate absorption of this substance into the blood as glucose. But there is more to a diet suitable for diabetics than just sugar considerations.

Some have claimed that type 2 diabetes can be cured by diet alone. Although the diabetic associations are adamant that no cure for diabetes exists.

Christian Roberts of the University of California undertook research into diet and diabetes and found that in 50% of those studied, who followed a diet based on pritkin principles, the type 2 diabetes symptoms were reversed.

The regime for this study involved participants exercising for one hour every day and following a diet that was based on vegetables and whole grains with a little animal protein.

Another small study in the USA concluded that high fibre diets assisted in keeping blood glucose levels low.

There is controversy over the dietary recommendations being offered by the diabetic associations both in the UK and the USA . Many associations advise diabetics to follow a low fat, carbohydrate based diet.

The problem everyone faces in understanding what represents a safe diet, is in knowing which research to trust. Just about every piece of research undertaken has an agenda to be fulfilled. It may be that the research is being sponsored by a drug company to prove the benefits of a particular drug treatment; it may be that the research is undertaken by someone who is simply setting out to prove a pet theory. There is too little research that is truly independent and undertaken without prejudice to the outcome.

It has been suggested, and some would say proven, that an Atkins type diet high in fat and protein and low in carbohydrate is the most suitable for a diabetic and it would certainly seem logical that restricting (particularly refined) carbohydrates would help to prevent elevated glucose levels in the blood stream.

There is a link between insulin, glucose and cholesterol – particularly what is termed “bad cholesterol” and proponents of the Atkins diet claim that cholesterol levels are not adversely affected by this diet regime. Of course there are contrary views.

It is important for diabetics to realize that everyone has an individual metabolism and physiology. What may be a healthy diet for one person could be life threatening for another. A diet based around healthy protein – organic white meat and fish; natural carbohydrates – vegetables, salads and fruit; and monounsaturated fat supplemented by the essential fatty acids is a good starting point. Once this is established there is no reason why, under controlled conditions, individuals should not try introducing whole grains to see what effect they have on their glucose levels. In this way diabetics can assess for themselves what represents a healthy, life saving diet.

Oct
8

Diagnosing A Sign of Diabetes

Even though the recognized and simple tests can reveal a higher than normal blood glucose level, the results can be guaranteed without having one of several clinical blood sugar tests to confirm the diagnosis: two of the more recognized tests are the blood glucose test after fasting as well as the oral blood glucose intolerance test. Your symptoms are considered in combination with your results. Where you think diabetes is the issue but have no symptoms, you need a repeat blood test carried out on a different day.

Detecting Diabetes Symptoms

Diabetes must be diagnosed by way of clinical blood tests. Type 2 diabetes is not as easy to diagnose as type 1, owing to the signs and symptoms are generally more serious and develop much faster. For some people, detecting type 2 diabetes only happens when you notice an early signs of diabetes or other conditions. One case study is when abnormal changes at the back of your eye may be noticed at a routine eye examination.

If you are experiencing signs of diabetes, your symptoms will be detected in the lab through a series of diabetes test: a random blood glucose test, a fasting blood glucose test, and an oral glucose tolerance test. As they stand, the urine and finger prick tests are not sufficient, to provide conclusive evidence, to confirm or discount the presence of diabetes.

With a 6 – 7 millimoles blood glucose test result, your blood glucose is not normal, but that in itself does not confirm diabetes. The labs specialist can describe what the results mean and your options and any impact they have for your future.

What if you do have diabetes

One of the main aims of diabetes care is to prevent long-term complications, so right after receiving your positive test results, you will be invited back for some simple check ups so that you health can be monitored and to make sure your diabetes is under control. Your test results form the starting point for your yearly check-up, which will be referred to as your annual review date. If these tests show up any complications, you’re in the right place for the corresponding type 2 diabetes diet support.

Height, Weight And Body Mass Index

One of the tests after being diagnosed with diabetes is to check your BMI (Body Mass Index). This is an easy indicator if you’re overweight or not.

Blood Pressure is Critical

High blood pressure is particularly common in people with Type 2 diabetes. In the event that you suffer prolonged periods of high blood pressure, it will be suggested that you take various drugs to lower it.

Your Feet Are The Key To Your Health

A doctor can check the blood flow through your feet and nerve supply and can show you how to protect your feet.

Eye Examination

This test if for blood vessel damage at the back of the eye using either a special eye camera or an ophthalmoscope.

Any More Tests?

Another series of blood tests are performed to check your liver, kidneys and thyroid are all operating at optimum levels, and your blood fat ratio is healthy. A HbAlc test will measure your blood glucose levels during the last 2 months. Finally they’ll ask for a urine test as this can signify a problem with your kidneys.

Oct
6

Control Your Blood Sugar With Natural Vitamin Supplements

Diabetes is an inflammatory condition caused by the autoimmune system, and manifests as resting hyperglycemia. Your blood glucose levels have to be maintained within fine concentration limits:  both too high and too low a blood glucose concentration can be dangerous to your well being.

Your blood glucose level is generally controlled by insulin and glucagons, both of which are biosynthesized in the pancreas. Insulin works by making the glucose bioavailable to the mitochondria to convert into energy, while glucagon, the lesser known of this twosome, stabilizes the level of insulin and mobilizes it to do its job. There are two types of diabetes, known as Type I and Type II or A and B.

Type I diabetes, also known as juvenile onset diabetes, is an autoimmune condition in which the immune system destroys Beta cells because they are recognized as being foreign.  It is the Beta cells that generate insulin, and so the condition can be fatal. Patients with Type I diabetes must take insulin throughout their lives, and while potential cures are currently under investigation, none are yet available.  Although insulin can be effective it does not guarantee survival, and a better form of treatment is required.

Type II diabetes is by far the more common of the two, and is a form of resistance to insulin, where the body cells cannot use insulin properly.  The pancreas initially reacts to this by producing more insulin in response to the increased blood glucose level, but through time it loses its ability to produce insulin as a reaction to an increase in blood sugar, even though this occurs as a result of digesting a meal.

The exact causes of either type of diabetes are not known for sure, although the general mechanism by which they work is known. However, Type II diabetes is believed to be due to some form of interaction between genetics and environment, and it is known that the majority of Type II sufferers are obese and also over 40.

The treatment for this type of diabetes is rarely insulin, but a controlled diet, control of your cholesterol level and blood pressure, exercise and specific medicines designed for sufferers of this form of diabetes.  However, there are also natural supplements that can be used to control your blood sugar levels. Diabetes was the sixth leading cause of death of the USA in 1999, with 450,000 deaths,  and by 2005 had reached about 300 million sufferers world wide. It is therefore a serious and widespread condition, though Type II is less serious than Type I. 

It is important to do what you can to control your diabetes, since after several years it can lead to problems with your nerves, eyes, kidneys and gums, and can also lead to heart disease. With diabetes you are at least twice as likely to have a stroke or heart problem as those without it, although you can reduce the risk of this by keeping your blood pressure under control, and the levels of fats in your blood to a minimum. Stopping smoking helps, and there are some natural treatments that can also help you control your diabetes.

The most important means of control is to reduce your blood sugar levels. While there are natural products that will help you to do that, do not stop taking the medication prescribed by your doctor, but use these in addition to what you are already taking.  Among specific substances that can help are:

Chromium:  chromium helps your body to use insulin properly. When taken in the form of chromium picolinate, it helps to replace chromium that diabetics appear to be short of. Human studies have indicated that chromium can decrease insulin levels and improve the metabolism of blood sugar in those with Type II diabetes. Some claim that chromium is harmful to health, but the general opinion is that it helps, though you should consult your doctor before using it.

Cinnamon:  If you take cinnamon daily, your blood sugar levels should gradually decrease.  It appears to enable your cells to make better use of the insulin your blood, although there still discussion as to the mechanism by which this occurs and of the active ingredient in cinnamon that promotes it.  Some claim it to be a flavonoid known as methylhydroxychalcone polymer, or MHCP.  However, others claim it not to be MHCP, but polyphenol type-A polymer.  Whichever it is, many people are finding cinnamon to be effective in reducing high levels of blood sugar to a more manageable level.

Milk Thistle:  It is known that antioxidants can help to control blood sugar, and the flavolignins in Silymarin marianum, an herbal extract available from milk thistle seeds, work in this manner. It is also good for protecting the liver from toxins.  Although it is not clear how it is done, silymarin appears to help to control Type II diabetes possibly by way of liver digestion of sugars in the blood.  The liver processed glucose and improving its function through the consumption of milk thistle could help reduce blood sugar as well.

Mulberry:  The Chinese make what is known as “sugar control herbal tea” from mulberry leaves, green tea and jasmine.  Mulberry leaves contain adenine, pectin and choline, and also high levels of Vitamins A and B types. This tea is used by the Chinese to control blood sugar levels, which might occur through the antioxidant effect of the mulberry constituents. 

Salacia oblonga:  This is an herb used in India and Sri Lanka that appears to cause a dramatic drop in the levels of insulin and sugar in the blood. It binds to enzymes in the intestine that break carbohydrates down into sugars, and so reduces the amount of sugar in your blood.  That in turn reduces the amount of insulin released by the pancreas.

Apple Cider Vinegar:  There is evidence that apple cider vinegar can help to control your blood sugar levels if taken before a meal.  Just two tablespoons appears sufficient to give a noticeable result. This is one of those home remedies that might be just anecdotal, but might also work, so is worth trying.

Zinc:  It has been discovered that diabetics suffer a deficiency in zinc.  This mineral plays a part in the storage and production of insulin in your body, and a deficiency could cause an increase in your sugar level. Oysters, pecans, almonds, lamb and chicken are all good sources of zinc.

Glyconutrient complexes: we know that diabetes is an autoimmune disease for type I individuals.  Supporting a properly function immune system requires a good diet as well as a diet rich in Glyconutrients.  The polysaccharides found in glyconutrient formulas can help the immune system communicate better with the body and just possibly correct some autoimmune diseases which attach our cells.

These are the natural supplements that people are taking to help control their blood sugar and diabetes. It is important that you take nothing that interferes with the medicines given to you by your physician, so you should let your doctor know of any natural supplement that you are using in addition to your prescription medicines. However, it is possible to control your blood sugar with natural supplements, and those mentioned above are just a few of the natural substances available that can help diabetics control their condition and so avoid the side effects.