Type 2 diabetes is a condition that gradually develops from metabolic disorders that transforms into prediabetes. Type 1 and type 2 diabetes are both the same in one certain aspect: there is an excess of glucose in the body that is not being converted by the cells into energy.
In our current junk food culture, type 2 diabetes is a much more common condition than type 1. With type 1 diabetes, a person’s pancreas does not produce enough amounts of insulin. Insulin is usually produced in the pancreas to properly metabolize glucose into energy.
The cells of the body have become resistant to insulin in type 2 diabetes. The insulin receptors start to malfunction even if the pancreas is able to produce what normally should be an adequate amount of insulin. Adding insulin into the body is not a solution for type 2 diabetes.
As with Chinese medicine, Western medicine also recommends lifestyle modification such as exercise and diet for type 2 diabetics. People consuming low nutrition, high calorie processed carbs and living a sedentary lifestyle with no exercise can expect conditions such as prediabetes, metabolic disorder syndrome, and obesity.
Beverages and processed foods containing high fructose corn syrup and lots of refined sugar and other types of food products that are hard for the body to convert into energy regardless of one’s insulin production, are known huge contributors to prediabetes which can devolve into type 2 diabetes eventually.
Simple exercises such as 20 minutes of brisk walking three or four times a week can be very helpful in avoiding prediabetes or diabetes. Following a SAD or standard American diet is absolutely not recommended! In its place, a diet of high-fiber whole foods to help resolve diabetes symptoms is highly suggested. Replacing processed or refined sugars with artificial sweeteners is not a solution for type 2 diabetes, prediabetes, or obesity.
In fact, artificial sweeteners worsen the symptoms of diabetes, which are varied and may include chronic itching, yeast infections, eye problems, neuropathy, pain and numbness in the feet and lower legs, chronic thirst, frequent urination, and fatigue. Type-two diabetes is not determined by its symptoms but by the levels of glucose in your blood.
Chromium, magnesium and other mineral supplements have exhibited improved insulin reception.
Exploring the Chinese medicine approach
The two most commonly used traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) modes of treatment for prediabetes and type-two diabetes is acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine. Acupuncture can help address neuropathy symptoms, including pain or numbness in the ankles and feet.
The inclusion of Chinese herbs into the treatment can substantially lessen insulin resistance and resolve metabolic disorders. Apart from enjoying a long history of successful applications, a lot of Chinese herbs have been scientifically proven to produce very good results.
Sweet tea tree (Cyclocarya paliurus) – This plant is indigenous to China and has been used since time immemorial for medicinal purposes. In controlled animal studies, extracts from this plant have led to marked improvements in type 2 diabetes symptoms.
Sanguis draxonis – This herb has been used for the successful treatment of diabetes 2. Sanguis draxonis helps enhance oral glucose tolerance, lowers insulin resistance and even protects the pancreas.
Bother powders or extracts of sweet tea tree and sanguis draxonis can be bought at Chinese drugstores or online, where both pincers of Chinese medicine can be concurrently experienced to reverse and relieve diabetes type 2, especially if complemented with lifestyle modifications.
To conclude, one can reverse or relieve diabetes type 2 with supplements, lifestyle changes, acupuncture, and herbs. This is much better than managing your condition with toxic medications that produce side effects and are costly.
Ni Nan Gilbert is a licensed acupuncturist in Bellmore, NY, and the founder and clinical director of Ni Nan Healing Art Center.