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As usual, thank you for following along, and I hope these blogs and videos are making you think and look at life a little differently.
The other day after the Election I heard someone complaining about how the world was going to end as a result.
As this person lamented, I heard them say something that really grabbed my attention and that was something to the effect that affordable healthcare would no longer be available, and now,
“… we were going to have to take care of ourselves!”
Wow. If anyone has watched only a few minutes of any of my videos they know where I stand on taking care of yourself, and in fact, tens of thousands of scientific papers are presented each year stating that the treatment for almost all of the nasties that might wipe you off the face of the earth IS lifestyle changes and self-management and self-discipline.
Lifestyle changes are NOT an alternative to medication and other remedies, lifestyle changes are THE treatment for most diseases and disorders as they work the best, present very few if any side effects, and are the most cost-effective!
Most medications for chronic illnesses such as diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and so on only maintain a person in a “Pre-” status, that is PRE-diabetic, PRE-hypertensive, and often set the stage for the person’s next disease or disorder.
Okay.
Insulin is a hormone produced in the pancreas and it is responsible for regulating our blood glucose/sugar levels by removing glucose/sugar out of the bloodstream and putting it into the cells of the body for energy.
The cells have receptors that allow for the intake of glucose and if everything is working well, no problem.
Insulin sensitivity is how readily the cells allow insulin to transport glucose into the cells for energy.
The more sensitive the better, the less sensitive the worse.
In fact, insulin sensitivity can be so low that it is called Insulin Resistance, and the cells actually resist insulin and its attempt to transport glucose into the cells.
As you can imagine the more resistant the cells, the higher a person’s blood sugar levels.
So what happens if the cells are not Insulin Sensitive or are actually Insulin Resistant?
Insulin has to figure out something to do with the excess sugar, and in most cases, it converts it to fat and stores it in the fat cells.
Since insulin is also a growth hormone it will cause tissues to grow so that it has places to store excess sugar.
This can be seen as skin tags, especially around the neck, and dark velvety patches of excess skin around the back of the neck, elbows, knees, and eyes.
So the body is literally growing tissue to store sugar if it can’t put it where it’s supposed to go.
Here’s a thought.
Cancer is sometimes considered the body’s attempt to grow or make another body.
Isn’t it interesting that the number one food of cancer cells is sugar/glucose?
Could cancer simply be the body’s attempt to find a place to store all of that excess glucose?
Something to think about.
So how would a person know if they were Insulin Resistant?
If a man’s waist is 40 inches or greater, he’s Insulin Resistant.
If a woman’s waist is 35 inches or greater, she’s Insulin Resistant.
Skin tags dark velvety skin patches of excess skin as described above, and a blood pressure over 130/80 are all indicators of Insulin Resistance.
There is a blood test if you like needles, and it’s called HOMA-IR, or Homeostasis Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance.
Multiply your fasting insulin level with your fasting glucose level and divide that number by 405.
Numbers around 1 indicate a High Sensitivity Level, while numbers 2.9 or above mean Insulin Resistance.
One would think that a Type 2 Diabetic would be Insulin-resistant, right?
And yet, most often Type 2 Diabetics are prescribed Insulin as a means to overcome the resistance and force glucose into the cells.
It might work for a short while, but resistance is resistance and it will only worsen unless the person changes their lifestyle.
In fact, insulin for a Type 2 Diabetic converts greater amounts of excess sugar into fat which is stored in the fat cells.
The person’s belly just keeps getting bigger and bigger as they become sicker and sicker.
Why would someone do this, when eliminating sugar, grains, and grain flours would bring a person’s blood sugar levels to normal in about a week?
What other problems come from chronically elevated blood sugar levels?
High glucose levels:
- impair immune function which leads to chronic inflammation,
- lead to elevated pro-inflammatory cytokines which contribute to tissue and organ destruction and increased chronic inflammatory responses,
- leads to vascular damage which results in inflammatory responses and chronic inflammation
High inflammatory levels lead to heart disease, obesity, cancer, and diabetes.
Hyperglycemia is considered a pro-inflammatory condition and a cause of severe vascular damage.
In fact, elevated blood glucose is responsible for elevated cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
This is something you statin junkies might want to know as you try to reduce your risk of heart disease and strokes by lowering cholesterol with statins, but without doing anything to handle elevated blood sugar levels.
It won’t work, and it doesn’t.
Alright, so let’s leave this blog at that, and I’ll talk to you again next week.
In the meantime, Paragon Chiropractic really can help you get this blood sugar stuff figured out. Just let us know!
Take Care,
Dr. Dave
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