A patient came into my office recently, and during our initial interview she indicated that she wanted to lose weight. She was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and has been on Glucophage for 4 years, which is a commonly prescribed diabetes drug.
I discussed with her that I would be
muscle testing for
food sensitivities, and she interrupted me by exclaiming:
"The doctors said now I can eat whatever I want, that's the purpose of the drug I'm on." In my firm sometimes snarky fashion, I went onto explain that she may think she can eat whatever she wants, but it doesn't mean that the foods she is eating aren't causing a problem for her body, and this may be why she has no luck losing any weight. The drug may be lowering her blood sugar, but the cause of the problem is still there. The drug acts as a Band-Aid for her blood sugar symptom. We'll get back to her later.
Symptoms of Low and High Blood Sugar
A person with low blood sugar issues may have symptoms of feeling tired, restless, memory issues, allergies, irritability, easily annoyed, weak, depressed, foggy and may awaken in the middle of the night and not be able to fall back to sleep. On the other hand, symptoms of high blood sugar may include nausea, headaches, breathing difficulty, thirsty often, increased urination, emotional ups and downs, and bowel irregularities.
The organs and glands that are involved in blood sugar regulation include the adrenal glands, which produce cortisol and epinephrine. These hormones increase blood glucose levels. If the adrenal glands are not functioning properly, cortisol may be high and keep blood glucose levels high. A general diagnosis may be given as Type 2 Diabetes, but this in actuality may be adrenal induced diabetes. In this specific case, by helping the
adrenal glands to function better, this may balance blood sugar levels.
The liver is also a key player in the blood sugar game. The liver converts glucose to glycogen, which is the storage form of glucose. This process is acted on by the hormones epinephrine or glucagon. If the liver is not functioning properly, this process will be compromised. A properly functioning liver will pacify swings in blood sugar. The liver also forms new sugar, and this process is affected greatly by cortisol.
The thyroid plays its role in blood sugar balancing, because thyroxine and triiodothyronine influences insulin output by the pancreas, which contributes to the overall absorption of glucose.
The pituitary gland is also involved in affecting blood sugar, because it secretes adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). ACTH stimulates cortisol secretion by the adrenals glands, which increases blood sugar levels. If the pituitary gland isn't functioning properly, blood sugar levels may be inadequate.
The pancreas produces insulin and glucagon, which tell the body to keep sugar in the blood or bring it into the cell. The pancreas is a key organ in balancing blood sugar.
So, now you get the picture how everything is interrelated, and balancing the organs and glands that play a role in blood sugar are vital.
Some of the major causes of blood sugar imbalances are food sensitivities. Food sensitivities affect every organ and system in the body. I find that
gluten, dairy and corn sensitivities are the biggest blood sugar perpetrators. Everyone has their unique individual sensitivities, so the key is to identify your individual food sensitivities and stop eating them until they are resolved.
Phthalates in cleaners, perfumes, nail polish, skin products, packaging and other toxic chemicals are endocrine disruptors. Endocrine disruptors alter hormone production, including insulin. Studies have found that people with high levels of phthalates in their urine, have a much higher incidence of diabetes. Pesticides, industrial chemicals and pollutants, and
heavy metals are also endocrine disruptors, which may lead to blood sugar imbalances.
Dysbiosis such as
Candida and fungal issues are a major source of blood sugar imbalances, Candida feeds off of sugar and causes leaky gut syndrome, which leads to imbalances in blood sugar.
Okay, so how do you balance blood sugar naturally?
- Avoid white sugar, white rice, potatoes (white, red, blue, yellow), and white flour.
- Avoid processed foods.
- Avoid foods you are sensitive to.
- Stay away from foods over 55 on the glycemic index (berries and apples are low, dates and pineapple are high).
- Detoxify (clean up your body from dysbiosis and toxicity) and figure out what you need for this process through applied kinesiology and muscle testing
- Avoid sugar, agave, Xylitol, Sorbitol, and artificial sweeteners (liquid Stevia is best).
- Alcohol is sugar (limit it).
- Get nutritional supplement support; gymnema sylvestre, cinnamomum cassia, zinc, cataplex gtf, chromium, biotin, magnesium, zinc, b vitamins, licorice, rhemmania, body guard (phylanthus fraternus) and many other supplements can help to balance blood sugar and keep people off medications.
- Eat or drink these foods (as long as you are not sensitive to): green beans and green bean juice, dark leafy greens, cinnamon, sesame seed oil, olive oil, walnuts, chickpeas (hummus), almonds, lentils, avocados, coconut oil, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds.
- Exercise - especially yoga and chi gong, studies have found that balanced exercise (not the over training kind- you know who you are) balances blood sugar
- The healing sound FU (pronounced FOOOOOOOOO, not pronounced inappropriately :)) has a positive effect on balancing blood sugar. It is chanted in a low barrotone tone. Chant FOOOOOOOOO, with your entire breath three times per day.
- Deep breathing and meditation
- Rubbing a reflex point on your left side between the 7th and 8th ribs where they meet the cartilage for about a minute, every other day.
- Get your spine adjusted, several studies in the Journal of manipulative and physiological therapeutics show the positive benefit of mid thoracic adjustments and lowering blood sugar. The connection to this area and the sympathetic nervous system plays a role in this benefit.
So, that patient I was telling you about in the beginning of this newsletter, I discovered many food sensitivities, including gluten, soy, corn and white rice. She went through a major clean up, as I helped her detox from fungal issues and pesticides. She weighed 250 pounds and lost 80 pounds. Oh, she's not done-the weight keeps coming off and she just got off her medication, AND her blood sugar numbers have never been lower!
Nutrition response muscle and reflex testing is a wonderful tool to get to the root of blood sugar problems, contact my office if you would like further information!
