Writings: Labels Sample 811rv Days Diabetes Algae		Janie on Diabetes This post was in response to someone listing symptoms of diabetes and asserting that I would enevitably end up with diabetes due to my high fruit consumption. It has information I gathered from various sources about diabetes and fruit. It was originally on the VegSource Raw and Nutrition discussion board, but was deleted with the whole thread as the orignal post was deemed too offensive by the VegSource staff. I personally had some of the symptoms of pre-diabetes gathering after I stopped my high fat raw vegan diet and went back to cooked, then lacto-veggie, then veggie+poultry and fish. They are all gone now that I've been doing 811rv & my weight and blood sugar are stablized. I have never seen any scientific evidence of consumption of fruit causing pre-diabetes or diabetes. In fact everything that I could find suggests there is a definite connection between obesity and/or excess dietary fat and the onset of Type 2 diabetes. There is also a connection of stress as well as a diet low in fiber and sedentary lifestyle. BTW, FYI – meat and animal products contain no dietary fiber and fruits contain both soluble and insoluble fibers, both of which maintain various functions – including blood sugar levels. This is part of the reason why animal products and juices are not recommended in 811rv BTW – lack of fiber in both, can cause digestive and/or blood sugar problems. The fibers in fruits are one of the main reasons why diabetics are encouraged to eat fruits, even though their already established insulin resistance makes the timing of all eating tricky if following the standard food pyramid. From the VegSource Raw & Sports board FAQs: I have heard that too much sugar is not good for you, so why the emphasis on eating so much sweet fruit? Before the body’s cells can utilize food for fuel, the food must first be converted into sugar, whether the originating food is carbohydrate, protein or fat. Carbohydrates are the easiest to convert to useful sugars. Fruits are mostly simple carbohydrates. It is much easier on the digestive system to process fruits for fuel because they are composed primarily of sugars, requiring much less digestive energy, and they come in a complete nutritional package of vitamins, minerals, proteins, and fats. When there are insufficient carbohydrates present to convert to sugar, the body will transform fat and protein into sugar, but at a higher cost: more time and energy spent on digestion with the creation of toxic residues. The sugars that are not good for you are the refined sugars (empty calories) and those that come from complex carbohydrates such as pasta, rice, cereals and bread, which must be refined and cooked and require a lengthy conversion process in the body. Most of the so-called "sugar metabolic diseases," like diabetes, that have made people afraid of fruit sugar are caused instead, by excess fat. Still, "too much" sugar is indeed bad for you. It ranges from difficult to almost impossible to get too much sugar from fruit, however. and I have candida or a yeast infection, and I’ve been told to avoid too much sugar. How can I eat so much sweet fruit when it’s full of sugar? Excess fat is the culprit in candida, not sugar, per se. When fat levels in the blood rise, so does blood sugar, because excess fat inhibits insulin from performing its function of escorting sugar out of the bloodstream. The excess fat lines the blood vessel walls, the cells’ insulin receptor sites, the sugar molecules themselves, and the insulin with a thin coating of fat, thus blocking and inhibiting normal metabolic activity. Too much sugar in the blood is as life threatening as too little and can result in serious illness or death. Yeast, or candida, is a constant presence in the blood; it serves as a life preservation mechanism, blooming when there is an excess of sugar in the blood stream to bring blood sugar down to a non-threatening level. When the sugar is distributed and used by the cells of the body, the yeast quickly dies off as it is supposed to. If fat levels stay chronically high due to a poor diet, sugar will remain in the bloodstream and feed the large candida colonies instead of feeding the 18 trillion cells of your body. Starved for fuel, these cells can no longer metabolize energy, and you become tired, and feel rundown. Because all carbohydrate, fat, and protein that we eat is converted to simple sugar (glucose) if it is to be used by the cells for fuel, the way out of this cycle is not to eat less sugar, but to consume less fat. When fat levels drop, the sugar starts to get processed and distributed again, and the yeast levels drop because there is no longer excess sugar available. and Is it all right to juice fruits and vegetables? With a few exceptions, it is preferable to consume the whole food rather than to extract part of it and drink it. Drinking fruit or carrot juice without the pulp being present to slow the absorption rate of the nutrients can spike the blood sugar and throw your blood chemistry out of balance. Better to consume the whole fruit. One exception is fresh-squeezed citrus fruits, since a significant portion of the pulp is generally retained with the juice. The other "exceptions" are to blend fruits such as melons, and to make smoothies out of various fruits like bananas and strawberries. Liquefying the entire fruit in a blender turns it into a juice or a thick smoothie, while keeping the entire nutritional package together. Blending whole tomato, celery and orange together makes a thick, tasty, salad dressing. Don’t believe me or the FAQs? Here are a few online references that I just grabbed quickly… From the site you linked us to (http://www.brist.plus.com/diet-fruit.htm, specifically): Health Benefits High in fibre and very low fat, fruit has many health benefits. These include protection against Cancer and Coronary Heart Disease - see the 5 a day link. This makes fruit a recommended source of carbohydrate for everyone but especially diabetics. And from the same site http://www.brist.plus.com/what.htm: So What is Diabetes? Diabetes is a condition where sugar (glucose) in the blood is not processed normally by the body. Damage to many of the bodies systems can begin to occur when sugar levels in the blood are excessively high for prolonged periods. The higher these blood sugar levels are and the more often they occur the greater is the risk of damage. and later in the same section: In untreated Diabetics there is insufficient Insulin produced by the Pancreas to mop up all the sugar in the blood in the normal time leaving blood sugar levels high. This can be due to a failure of the Pancreas in Type 1 Diabetes or due to the body becoming resistant to Insulin with the body gradually needing more and more Insulin to deal with the same amount of sugar in Type 2 Diabetes. From The American Diabetes Association: All About Diabetes Diabetes is a disease in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin. Insulin is a hormone that is needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. The cause of diabetes continues to be a mystery, although both genetics and environmental factors such as obesity and lack of exercise appear to play roles. And from a different page at the same site: Which foods are unhealthy? Fat is a nutrient, and you need some fat in your diet. But too much fat isn't good for anyone. And it can be very harmful to people with diabetes. Too much fat or cholesterol may increase the chances of heart disease and/or hardening of the arteries. People with diabetes have a greater risk of developing these diseases than those without diabetes. So, it is very important that you limit the fat in your diet. Fat is found in many foods. Red meat, dairy products (whole milk, cream, cheese, and ice cream), egg yolks, butter, salad dressings, vegetable oils, and many desserts are high in fat. I took their (American Diabetes Association) risk test BTW, and even though my dad has diabetes, I scored as low risk. The results also said Keep your risk low by: * Keeping your weight in control (or losing weight if you are overweight) * Staying active most days of the week * Eating low fat meals high in fruits, vegetables and whole grain foods From their Evidence-Based Nutrition Principles and Recommendations for the Treatment and Prevention of Diabetes and Related Complications section on fat in the nutritional guidelines for health professionals: Recommendations A-Level evidence * Less than 10% of energy intake should be derived from saturated fats. Some individuals (i.e., persons with LDL cholesterol >=100 mg/dl) may benefit from lowering saturated fat intake to <7% of energy intake. * Dietary cholesterol intake should be <300 mg/day. Some individuals (i.e., persons with LDL cholesterol >=100 mg/dl) may benefit from lowering dietary cholesterol to <200 mg/ day. B-Level evidence * To lower LDL cholesterol, energy derived from saturated fat can be reduced if weight loss is desirable or replaced with either carbohydrate or monounsaturated fat when weight loss is not a goal. * Intake of trans-unsaturated fatty acids should be minimized. * Reduced-fat diets when maintained long-term contribute to modest loss of weight and improvement in dyslipidemia. C-Level evidence * Polyunsaturated fat intake should be ~10% of energy intake. and the section on prevention: Prevention The importance of prevention of diabetes in high-risk individuals is highlighted by the substantial and worldwide increase in the prevalence of diabetes in recent years. Genetic susceptibility appears to play a powerful role in the occurrence of type 2 diabetes in certain populations. However, given that population gene pools shift quite slowly, the current epidemic likely reflects marked changes in lifestyle. Lifestyle changes that are characterized by decreased physical activity and increased energy consumption have together promoted obesity, which is a strong risk factor for diabetes that itself is influenced by both genes and behavior. Despite the difficulty in maintaining a reduced body weight long-term, several studies have demonstrated the potential for moderate sustained weight loss to substantially reduce the risk for type 2 diabetes. Clinical trial data from both the U.S. and Finland now strongly support the potential for moderate weight loss to reduce the risk for diabetes (6,7). An active lifestyle also has been demonstrated in a number of prospective studies to prevent or delay the development of type 2 diabetes. Both moderate and vigorous exercise decrease risk of impaired glucose tolerance and type 2 diabetes. Reduced intake of total fat, particularly saturated fat, may reduce risk for diabetes. Increased diabetes incidence is reported with increased intake of dietary fat, independent of total calories, although this effect is not demonstrated in all studies. It appears that all types of dietary fat (except n-3 fatty acids) may have an adverse effect on insulin sensitivity. Saturated fat may have the greatest effect. Increased intake of polyunsaturated fat, in the context of appropriate total energy intake for weight management, may reduce the risk for type 2 diabetes. Recent studies have provided evidence for reduced risk of diabetes with increased intake of whole grains and dietary fiber. Although selected micronutrients may affect glucose and insulin metabolism, data to document their role in the development of diabetes are scarce or inconsistent. Moderate alcohol intake has been related to improved insulin sensitivity and reduced risk for diabetes. However, insufficient data exist to support a specific recommendation for moderate alcohol intake for prevention of type 2 diabetes. No nutritional recommendations can be made for prevention of type 1 diabetes. Breastfeeding may be beneficial. Although increasing obesity in youth may be related to an increase in the prevalence of type 2 diabetes, particularly in minority adolescents, there is insufficient data at present to warrant any specific recommendations for prevention of type 2 diabetes in youth. Increased physical activity, reduced energy and fat intake, and resultant weight management may prove to be beneficial. and their section on special considerations for Type 2 Diabetes: Nutrition recommendations for a healthy lifestyle for the general public are also appropriate for persons with type 2 diabetes. Because many persons with type 2 diabetes are overweight and insulin resistant, medical nutrition therapy should emphasize lifestyle changes that result in reduced energy intake and increased energy expenditure through physical activity. Many people with diabetes also have dyslipidemia and hypertension, making reductions in dietary intake of saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium desirable. Therefore, the emphasis of nutrition therapy for type 2 diabetes is on lifestyle strategies to reduce glycemia, dyslipidemia, and blood pressure. These strategies should be implemented as soon as the diagnosis of diabetes is made. Increased physical activity can lead to improved glycemia, decreased insulin resistance, and reduced cardiovascular risk factors. Division of food intake, three meals or smaller meals and snacks, should be based on individual preferences. Treatment with insulin or insulin secretagogues requires consistency in timing of meals and carbohydrate content. Multiple insulin dosing regimens allow for a more flexible food intake and lifestyle in persons with type 2 diabetes. From the International Diabetes Foundation: What is diabetes? Diabetes is an illness which occurs as a result of problems with the production and supply of insulin in the body. Most of the food we eat is turned into glucose, a form of sugar. We use glucose as a source of energy to provide power for our muscles and other tissues. Our bodies transport glucose in our blood. In order for our muscles and other tissues to absorb glucose from our blood, we need a hormone called insulin. Without insulin, our bodies cannot obtain the necessary energy from our food. Insulin is made in a large gland behind the stomach called the pancreas. It is released by cells called beta cells. When a person has diabetes, either their pancreas does not produce the insulin they need, or their body cannot use its own insulin effectively. As a result, people with diabetes cannot use enough of the glucose in the food they eat. This leads to the amount of glucose in the blood increasing. This high level of glucose or "high blood sugar" is called hyperglycaemia. High levels of glucose in the blood can lead to medical complications. From Discovery Health on Insulin Resistance: All meals become sugar After you eat a meal, whether steak or vegetables or fish, it all gets broken down into usable energy for the body — sugar. While there are proteins and amino acids and other molecules that are obtained from our diets, sugar, or glucose, is the main energy source for our cells and especially our brains. So, to keep things simple let's say that food and beverages (except water) become sugar that will be transported via the blood to the tissues, muscles, and organs. Insulin: The key to sugar entry into cells Insulin is the hormone responsible for getting the sugar shuttled into our cells for use as energy. Insulin is frequently described as the 'key' that unlocks the door to our cells allowing energy to enter. The cells in our body can become resistant or less sensitive to insulin and fail to open the door. This condition is known as insulin resistance and is a pre-cursor to diabetes. When our cells don't respond to insulin, excessive amounts of sugar are left to float around in the bloodstream, this is known as hyperglycemia. If not used, the excess sugar can then be converted to and stored as fat. In addition to causing obesity, the excess sugar can create problems in blood vessels and nerves, as is seen with poorly controlled diabetes. Without realizing that the cell is resistant to insulin, and in an attempt to correct the situation, the body responds to the excess sugar by releasing more insulin, which perpetuates the problem. Insulin Resistance Promotes Fat Storage Elevated insulin levels increase the transport of fatty acids, also obtained from our diet, into fat cells. When fat cells are stuffed with high levels of fat, the body beings to manufacture more fat cells. While the body is able to add new fat cells, it is impossible to reduce the number of existing fat cells via natural means. So insulin resistance promotes fat storage by the conversion of sugar to fat and fat cell stuffing. To make matters worse, when the body becomes resistant to insulin, the metabolic rate of the fat cell itself is also affected. Remember — fat cells can give up FFAs and other molecules to provide energy for the body in times of food shortage. Insulin resistance causes fat cells to be broken down at a slower rate because there appears to be plenty of fuel (sugar) around already. From an article entitled, The Apple Figure and Insulin Sensitivity: Take a Slice Out of Insulin Resistance (talking about a body shape similar to an apple): Why is the apple figure risky? Fat cells located in the abdomen release fat into the blood more easily than fat cells found elsewhere. Release of fat begins 3 to 4 hours after the last meal compared to many more hours for other fat cells. This easy release shows up as higher triglyceride (TG) and free fatty acid levels. Free fatty acids themselves cause insulin resistance. From http://www.rice.edu/~jenky/sports/Insulin.athlete.html: High fat stores down-regulate insulin receptors and cause a resistance to circulating insulin. The other 20% of insulin resistant individuals -- who are not obese -- have a genetically inherited insulin receptor that does not work properly. and It is not hyperinsulinemia that is the problem, it is the receptor. It has been repeatedly shown in the medical literature that increasing the sensitivity of peripheral insulin receptors reduces hyperinsulinemia and hypertension. This process is termed insulin sensitization and is accomplished by aerobic exercise, low-fat / high-carbohydrate diet, and reduction of excessive body fat. Conversely, obesity and high fat diets have been shown to induce insulin resistance. and There are many published studies which show that starting insulin resistant individuals on a high carbohydrate / low fat diet reduces hyperinsulinemia, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. For example in a study published in the American Journal of Cardiology (Am J Cardiol 1992;69:440-444), diabetic patients (NIDDM), insulin resistant patients, and normal controls were started a 3 week program of diet ( 75 - 80% carbohydrate, 10-15% protein, and <10% fat) and exercise. In all there were statistically significant reductions in blood pressure, insulin levels, and triglycerides. Additionally, high-carbohydrate / high-fiber diets have been shown to lower cholesterol and may reduce the risk of colon cancer. From http://syndromex.stanford.edu/InsulinResistance.htm What is Insulin? Insulin is a hormone secreted by the pancreas. It helps the body utilize blood glucose (blood sugar) by binding with receptors on cells like a key would fit into a lock. Once the key insulin- has unlocked the door, the glucose can pass from the blood into the cell. Inside the cell, glucose is either used for energy or stored for future use in the form of glycogen in liver or muscle cells. What is insulin resistance? Insulin resistance occurs when the normal amount of insulin secreted by the pancreas is not able to unlock the door to cells. To maintain a normal blood glucose, the pancreas secretes additional insulin. In some cases (about 1/3 of the people with insulin resistance), when the body cells resist or do not respond to even high levels of insulin, glucose builds up in the blood resulting in high blood glucose or type 2 diabetes. Even people with diabetes who take oral medication or require insulin injections to control their blood glucose levels can have higher than normal blood insulin levels due to insulin resistance. Why is insulin resistance in the news? More and more people in the U.S. are becoming obese, physically inactive, or both. Obesity and physical inactivity aggravate insulin resistance. Also, people who are insulin resistant typically have an imbalance in their blood lipids (blood fat). They have an increased level of triglycerides (blood fat) and a decreased level of HDL (good) cholesterol. Imbalances in triglycerides and HDL cholesterol increase the risk for heart disease. These findings have heightened awareness of insulin resistance and its impact on health. and What is the best diet for people with insulin resistance? Research indicates that low fat diets may aggravate the effect of insulin resistance on blood lipids. Therefore, for individuals who are insulin resistant, a diet low in saturated fat (less than 10 percent of total calories) and more moderate in total fat content (40% of total calories) may be beneficial. This recommendation is different from the low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet that many health organizations recommend to help prevent heart disease. Specifically, they recommend decreasing fat intake to less than 30 percent of calories. Some groups recommend even lower levels of dietary fat. It is also beneficial to maintain an appropriate body weight because obesity can aggravate insulin resistance. To maintain an appropriate weight, regulate caloric intake and maintain a physically active lifestyle. A registered dietitian can assist with developing a proper diet plan for people with insulin resistance, or a family history of type 2 diabetes. From The Health Report August 16, 2004 - Fat Cells and Diabetes Type 2: Norman Swan: One of the mysteries here, or one of the confusing things, if insulin’s role is to get sugar from glucose, from the bloodstream inside cells, why should there be all this activity in fat cells? Why aren’t they just receptacles where you can go and pull your energy when you need it? Alan Saltiel: That’s a good question. I think a lot of us are trying to figure this out right now, so it’s kind of a mystery. In mice, where it’s been studied the best, it’s very clear that insulin is the master regulator of the clearance of sugar from the blood into cells, especially muscle and liver. But also that the major regulator of the storage of energy. In the case of muscle, energy is stored mainly as starch, in the case of liver, it’s stored as starch and fat, and in the case of the fat cell, it’s stored mainly as fat. Norman Swan: So what you’re saying there before you go on, is that insulin essentially can park long-term energy, and in a sense it’s like a car park attendant? Alan Saltiel: Yes, that’s exactly right, that’s exactly what it does, or what it tries to do. What happens sometimes though is that the ability of the fat cell to store fat is exceeded, it reaches a threshold where the body almost starts to spill fat out of the fat cell, and then it has to go somewhere, so it ends up going into liver and muscle, and the accumulation of fact in liver and muscle seems to make the liver and muscle less sensitive to insulin. So insulin can now continue to be able to put down energy and store energy as fat in those tissues, but loses its ability to remove the glucose from the circulation, the sugar from the circulation. So one of the consequences of that is something that we call insulin resistance, where the body responds to the fat storing effects of insulin, but fails to respond to the sugar clearing effects of insulin. From NutraIngredients : Low Fat diet increases insulin sensitivity 06/02/2004 - Dutch scientists reveal that low-fat product diet is better than smaller portions of normal high-fat food for preventing diabetes in obese people. Lead researcher Martin Muurling at the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research put obese mice on different diets in which the total energy intake and the final body weight were the same. He then studied the impact of these diets on insulin sensitivity. He found that mice that only received low-fat products were more sensitive to insulin than mice that ate small portions of high-fat food. A low-fat diet is a more effective remedy for diabetes than eating less calories, concluded the researcher. He also reports that the consumption of fish oil had no positive effects on reduced insulin sensitivity in the mice, and notes that a diet with fish oil "cannot prevent or remedy diabetes in the case of somebody who is already less sensitive to insulin due to a high-fat diet". Clinically obese people sometimes suffer from a certain form of diabetes, type II diabetes mellitus, because more fatty acids are released from the adipose tissue during obesity. These fatty acids can reduce the functioning of the beta cells in the pancreas as well as the sensitivity of various tissues to insulin. From Eating Well With Diabetes: Is it true that I shouldn't eat bananas or grapes? No - All fruits and vegetables are extremely good for you. Eating more can reduce your risk of coronary heart disease, some cancers and some gut problems. You should aim to eat at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables per day. This also helps to improve the overall balance of the diet. Eat a variety a different fruits and vegetables to ensure maximum benefit. From Netwellness' FAQ on Diabetes: Does eating a lot of sugar really cause diabetes? No. People who eat foods high in sugar are at risk of gaining weight because sugar adds calories. Being overweight is associated with developing Type 2 diabetes, but eating sugar does not cause diabetes. From Lifeclinic's section on sugar: A high intake of sugar does not cause diabetes, but if a person is diagnosed with diabetes the amount of simple sugar eaten daily often needs to be reduced. and on Fats: Some fat is also necessary to maintain healthy skin, hair and nails, so you shouldn’t cut all fat out of your diet. But in general, most people in the United States consume too much fat – which can lead to heart disease, obesity, diabetes and many other health problems. and on Diabetic Diet: Soluble fibers are found mainly in fruits, vegetables and some seeds, and are especially good for people with diabetes because they help to slow down or reduce the absorption of glucose from the intestines. From Medical News Today:< Why is fiber (fibre) important in your diet? 12 Jun 2004 What can fiber do for you? Numerous epidemiologic (population-based) studies have found that diets low in saturated fat and cholesterol and high in fiber are associated with a reduced risk of certain cancers, diabetes, digestive disorders, and heart disease. However, since high-fiber foods may also contain antioxidant vitamins, phytochemicals, and other substances that may offer protection against these diseases, researchers can't say for certain that fiber alone is responsible for the reduced health risks they observe, notes Joyce Saltsman, a nutritionist with FDA's Office of Food Labeling. "Moreover, no one knows whether one specific type of fiber is more beneficial than another since fiber-rich foods tend to contain various types," she adds. From Fiber: Not a Nutrient (but still necessary): Fiber is only found in plant foods, such as fruits, vegetables, and grains. It is NOT found in animal products like milk, cheese, fish, poultry, or meat. Fiber gives the plants structure and is indigestible by humans (it is digestible by some other animals, such as cows). Since it is not digestible, it adds no calories. Statistics have maintained that high fiber diets reduce cholesterol levels and cancer rates. Next -- >>>