Sugar Drives Diabetes

We are told virtually every day that diabetes is a major epidemic in this country, and that it can lead to a number of other diseases such as cardiovascular disease, strokes, cancer, and heart failure.

Billions of dollars are spent on medications and other treatments for diabetic complications, including amputations. And yet, like cancer, there is compelling evidence that the vast majority of Type 2 diabetes cases can be cured with a proper diet and by using a few supplements. Most of the complications associated with diabetes can be prevented as well. For a detailed discussion on how to prevent and control diabetes, read my report "The Diabetes Solution."

It all goes back to how we eat. When I was growing up, Coca-Cola came in a 6-ounce bottle. Today, in many fast-food restaurants and convenience stores, the serving size has swollen to a 72-ounce monstrosity. As I walk around the shopping center, I see people of all ages swilling these sugar-laden death drinks.

And it’s not just kids. Studies have shown that people over age 50 have dramatically increased their intake of these drinks.

Is there any evidence that a high intake of sugar, especially high-fructose corn syrup, can be hazardous to our health? In fact, you wouldn’t have time to read even the titles of all the articles on this subject — there are that many. But the media remains silent because they fear losing advertising revenue from the makers of soft drinks.

Once the pancreas becomes exhausted and begins to fail, high sugar intake causes the body to produce massive amounts of free radicals (atoms with unpaired electrons) and lipid peroxidation products, which damage every tissue and organ in the body. This is why diabetes is associated with so many complications including heart attack, stroke, and kidney failure.

Thousands of studies have shown that these complications are caused by free radicals and lipid peroxidation products, yet a scientific-based program of antioxidant supplementation is never even suggested by physicians, even diabetes specialists.

There is compelling evidence that most cases of Type 2 diabetes can be cured by diet alone. Most plant extracts, such as cinnamon, curcumin, quercetin, luteolin, resveratrol, and kaempferol, improve insulin function and thereby lower glucose levels. In addition, these plant extracts have powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, and neutralize lipid peroxidation products. (For more information on how other natural supplements can improve your health, read my newsletter "Extend Your Life: 4 Supplements That Will Help You Live Longer.")

The supplement R-lipoic acid is not only a powerful antioxidant, it also dramatically lowers blood sugar in diabetics and can even reduce insulin requirements for insulin-dependent diabetics. R-lipoic acid has also been shown to heal diabetic neuropathy, a very painful nerve condition seen in diabetics.

The diet required to cure Type 2 diabetes also cures most hypertension (high blood pressure). Numerous studies have shown that antioxidant combinations lower abnormally high blood pressure. Research has also shown that the reason hypertension is associated with atherosclerosis is that high blood pressure triggers the generation of free radicals in the walls of blood vessels.

The bottom line is that the proper antioxidant combinations will stop the very things that make both diabetes and hypertension so dangerous to our health: inflammation, free radical formation, and lipid peroxidation. Yet, the way these disorders are treated in this country, you would think we knew absolutely nothing about these diseases.