If you consult purported “health experts” on Type 2 Diabetes, like the American Diabetes Association or the Mayo Clinic, you’ll hear claims that it can be managed, even prevented, but not reversed. While still not accepted by most mainstream medical professionals, the idea of reversing diabetes is gaining in popularity, specifically because the science behind diabetes and how it impacts the body is becoming clearer. Reversing a condition like Type 2 Diabetes does not necessarily imply a fully cured state, but those who work to reverse their diabetes find a freedom from prescription drugs, regaining of normal insulin sensitivity, and an ability to maintain healthy blood sugar levels (1).
Should you be concerned about Type 2 Diabetes?
When 1 in 10 people you know may have or soon be diagnosed with it, like your parents, friends, and even your children, the answer is a resounding “yes!” The National Diabetes Statistics Report published by the Center for Disease Control in 2014 shows that nearly 10% of the U.S. population have diabetes (Type 2 diabetes accounting for 90-95% of all cases), with a rate of increase of about 1% every 2 years (2, 3). Even more alarming is the 86 million Americans, over 25% of the American population, that have prediabetes, many of which are undiagnosed and don’t even know it.
While most mainstream “health experts” have the public’s best interests in mind, they fail to approach disease from a functional or holistic standpoint, focusing solely on symptoms rather than the root cause. In the case of Type 2 Diabetes, the cause is often reported as an “inability to produce sufficient insulin” or “poor blood sugar regulation.” While these are both side effects of the condition, they fall short of outlining the true cause.
Type 2 Diabetes is caused by the loss of both insulin and leptin sensitivity
(4), 2 important hormones involved in the metabolic process of managing sugar, energy, and fat storage. A loss of insulin sensitivity is generally a result of a diet too high in sugar and sugar-forming foods. The high amounts of sugars in the blood will cause the body to over-produce insulin. When this happens for a long enough period of time, the overabundance of insulin overwhelms and eventually deafens insulin receptors. The result is insulin resistance, a condition where the body fails to recognize insulin and the signals it normally gives for fat storage. Excess insulin will cause excess fat storage, a big problem considering fat cells produce another key metabolic hormone, leptin.
Leptin’s main job is regulating appetite by telling the body when it’s hungry and full. It also manages overall body weight by telling the body what to do with extra energy from food sources like carbohydrates. The more fat cells in your body, the more leptin will be produced, resulting in an overabundance of leptin. Just as insulin resistance occurs from overproduction of insulin, leptin resistance follows suit with leptin resistance, creating a snowball-like effect. This snowball makes it increasingly tougher for your body to manage satiety (cravings), fat stores, and blood sugar levels resulting in increasingly mismanaged cravings, overeating, and excessive body weight.
Many individuals who fail to make sufficient diet and lifestyle changes upon a Type 2 diagnosis, begin with insulin injections. Given that the body is already producing more than enough insulin, it makes sense that adding even more insulin with injections only exacerbates the problem and can often cause the individual to become insulin-dependent. In effect, this can actually move their condition to Type 1 Diabetes, where natural reversal is much more difficult (5). Additionally, those who are not receiving insulin injections but rely on the common drugs like Avandia (rosiglitazone) or Metformin, both non-insulin based blood-sugar-lowering drugs, have an increased risk of cardiovascular complications (6).
Considering these factors, reversing Type 2 Diabetes naturally, without drugs and conventional medical treatment like insulin injections, is not only possible but essential.
The safest and most effective strategy is reversal of the condition by restoring both insulin and leptin sensitivity. This is only accomplished through diet and lifestyle changes. Most doctors will advise some diet changes (like switching to “diet” products or eating less desserts) but these recommendations miss the mark and will not produce enough change in the body to regain insulin and leptin sensitivity. Your health and well-being is important to us so we’ve put together a comprehensive plan to naturally reverse Type 2 Diabetes and will be sharing it in part 2 of this series. Stay tuned!
- Reversal of Type 2 Diabetes: Normalisation of Beta Cell Function in Association with Decreased Pancreas and Liver Triacylglycerol, Diabetologia, 2011: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21656330
- National Diabetes Statistics Report, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014: http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/statsreport14/national-diabetes-report-web.pdf
- Successes and Opportunities for Population-Based Prevention and Control at a Glance 2011, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2011: http://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/aag/ddt.htm
- The Role of Leptin/Adiponectin Ratio in Metabolic Syndrome and Diabetes, Horm Mol boil Clin Investig, 2014: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25389999
- Insulin Administration May Trigger Type 1 Diabetes in Japanese Type 2 Patients with Type 1 Diabetes…, Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 2014: http://press.endocrine.org/doi/abs/10.1210/jc.2014-1759
- Development of Heart Failure in Medicaid Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Treated with Pioglitazone, Rosiglitazone, or Metformin, J Manag Care Pham, 2014: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25166288