Natural Remedies for Type 2 Diabetes

Diabetes treatment can include many elements, including traditional medications, alternative medicine, and natural remedies. Please read till the end & come to a conclusion.

Alternative therapies encompass a variety of disciplines that include everything from diet and exercise to mental conditioning and lifestyle changes. Examples of alternative treatments include acupuncture, guided imagery, chiropractic treatments, yoga, hypnosis, biofeedback, aromatherapy, relaxation exercises, herbal remedies, massage, and many others.

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, part of the National Institutes of Health, defines complementary and alternative medicine as a "group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products that are not presently considered to be part of conventional medicine." Complementary medicine is used with conventional treatments, whereas alternative medicine is used instead of conventional medicine.

Some people with diabetes use complementary or alternative therapies to treat diabetes. Although some of these therapies may be effective, others can be ineffective or even harmful. Patients who use complementary and alternative medicine need to let their healthcare providers know what they are doing.

What Alternative Treatments Are Used As Diabetes Treatment?

Acupuncture

Acupuncture is a procedure in which a practitioner inserts very thin needles into designated points on the skin. Some scientists say that acupuncture triggers the release of the body's natural painkillers. Acupuncture has been shown to offer relief from chronic pain. Acupuncture is sometimes used by people with neuropathy, the painful nerve damage of diabetes.

Biofeedback

Biofeedback is a technique that helps a person become more aware of and learn to deal with the body's response to pain. This alternative therapy emphasizes relaxation and stress-reduction techniques.

Guided imagery is a relaxation technique that some professionals who use biofeedback also practice. With guided imagery, a person thinks of peaceful mental images, such as ocean waves. A person may also include the images of controlling or curing a chronic disease, such as diabetes. People using this technique say these positive images can ease their condition.

What Natural Dietary Supplements Are Used for Diabetes Treatment?

Chromium

The benefit of added chromium for diabetes has been studied and debated for several years. Several studies report that chromium supplements may improve diabetes control. Chromium is needed to make glucose tolerance factor, which helps insulin improve its action. Because of insufficient information on the use of chromium to treat diabetes, no recommendations for supplementation exist.

Ginseng

Several types of plants are referred to as ginseng, but most studies of ginseng and diabetes have used American ginseng. Those studies have shown some sugar-lowering effects in fasting and after-meal blood sugar levels as well as in A1c levels (average blood sugar levels over a three-month period). However, larger and more long-term studies are needed before general recommendations for use of ginseng can be made. Researchers also have determined that the amount of sugar-lowering compound in ginseng plants varies widely.

Magnesium

Although the relationship between magnesium and diabetes has been studied for decades, it is not yet fully understood. Studies show that a deficiency in magnesium may worsen blood sugar control in type 2 diabetes. Scientists say that a deficiency of magnesium interrupts insulin secretion in the pancreas and increases insulin resistance in the body's tissues. Evidence suggests that a deficiency of magnesium may contribute to certain diabetes complications. A recent analysis showed that people with higher dietary intakes of magnesium (through consumption of whole grains, nuts, and green leafy vegetables) had a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes.

Vanadium

Vanadium is a compound found in tiny amounts in plants and animals. Early studies showed that vanadium normalized blood sugar levels in animals with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. A recent study found that when people with diabetes were given vanadium, they developed a modest increase in insulin sensitivity and were able to decrease their insulin requirements. Currently researchers want to understand how vanadium works in the body, discover potential side effects, and establish safe dosages.

Coenzyme Q10

Coenzyme Q10, often referred to as CoQ10 (other names include ubiquinone and ubiquinol) is a vitamin-like substance. CoQ10 helps cells make energy and acts as an antioxidant. Meats and seafood contain small amounts of CoQ10. Supplements are marketed as tablets and capsules. The evidence is not sufficient to evaluate CoQ10's effectiveness as a complementary or alternative therapy for diabetes. CoQ10 has not been shown to affect blood sugar control.

What Plant Foods Are Used for Diabetes Treatment?

The following plant foods are sometimes used for diabetes treatment, particularly for those with type 2 diabetes.

• Brewer's yeast
• Buckwheat
• Broccoli and other related greens
• Cinnamon
• Cloves
• Coffee
• Okra/ lady finger/ bhindi
• Peas
• Fenugreek seeds/methi
• Sage leaves photo

Most plant foods are rich in fiber, vitamins, and minerals, which are important to good health in people with diabetes. Some revealing new studies show that certain plant foods -- cinnamon, cloves, and coffee -- may actually aid in fighting inflammation and help insulin, the hormone that helps controls blood sugar. Studies have shown that cinnamon extracts can increase sugar metabolism, triggering insulin release, which also affects cholesterol metabolism. Clove oil extracts (eugenol) have been found to improve the function of insulin and to lower glucose, total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides. Recent findings indicate that an unknown compound in coffee (not caffeine) may enhance insulin sensitivity and reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Still, the scientific evidence thus far does not support the role of garlic, ginger, ginseng, hawthorn, or nettle in benefiting blood sugar control in people with diabetes. If you have diabetes and are considering taking any of these herbal substances for diabetes treatment, be sure you talk to your doctor before you take them.

What Weight Control Substances Are Used for Diabetes Treatment?

The following plant foods are sometimes used for diabetes treatment, particularly for those with type 2 diabetes.

Since weight and diabetes are linked, many people with diabetes turn to natural alternative therapies for diabetes treatment, particularly those that claim to help with weight loss, including:

• Chitosan is a sugar that is obtained from the hard outer skeleton of shellfish, including crab, lobster, and shrimp. It is used for medicine
• Garcinia cambogia (hydroxycitric acid)s a derivative of citric acid that is found in a variety of tropical plants including Garcinia cambogia and Hibiscus subdariffa.
• Chromium
• Pyruvate-a salt, ester, or anion of pyruvic acid. Pyruvate is the end product of glycolysis and may be metabolized to lactate or to acetyl CoA.
• Germander- Any of various usually aromatic plants of the genus Teucrium, with purplish or reddish flowers.
• Momordica charantia (Chinese bitter melon)often called bitter melon, bitter gourd or bitter squash in English, has many other local names. Goya from the indigenous language of Okinawa and karavella from Sanskrit are also used by English-language speaker
• Sauropus androgynus (sweet leaf bush) also known as katuk, star gooseberry, or sweet leaf, is a shrub grown in some tropical regions as a leaf vegetable.
• Aristolochic acid- are a family of carcinogenic, mutagenic, and nephrotoxic compounds commonly found in the Aristolochiaceae family of plants, including Aristolochia and Asarum (wild ginger), which are commonly used in Chinese herbal medicine. Aristolochic acid I is the most abundant of the aristolochic acids and is found in almost all Aristolochia species.Aristolochic acids are often accompanied by aristolactams.
  Aristolochic acids are slightly soluble in water, have a melting point between 281 and 286 degrees celsius, and have a bitter flavor.

In addition, transdermal (skin patch) systems as well as oral sprays have been developed to purportedly reduce appetite and facilitate weight loss. One patch system uses homeopathic amounts of 29 different compounds to reduce appetite. What is the bottom line? There's not one published study available on its efficacy.

Are Herbs Really Safe for Diabetes Treatment?

In 2003, ephedrine -- also known as ma huang -- became the first herbal stimulant ever banned by the FDA. A popular component of over-the-counter weight loss drugs, ephedrine was found to have some benefits. However, the evidence of its ability to cause harm was far more compelling. In high doses, ephedrine has been known to cause insomnia (difficulty falling and staying asleep), high blood pressure, glaucoma, and urinary retention. This herbal supplement has also been associated with numerous cases of stroke.

Chitosan has received a great deal of recent publicity. It is derived from seashells and has the ability to bind to fat and prevent its absorption. Although it is said to facilitate weight loss, available studies thus far have not been encouraging.

Germander, Momordica charantia, Sauropus androgynus, and aristolochic acid have been associated with liver disease, pulmonary disease, and kidney disease.

The other so-called "obesity remedies" listed have not been rigorously studied, and those that been reviewed have yielded disappointing results.

Also, a recent survey of herbal preparations for obesity found that many preparations contained lead or arsenic and other toxic metals. Some also contain other undeclared ingredients. Occasionally, there was mistaken plant identity as well.

What to Consider Before Using Natural Therapies for Diabetes Treatment

Before you think about using a natural therapy for diabetes treatment, be sure to consider the following:  

• Discuss any drugs you use, including herbal products, with your doctor before taking them.
• If you experience side effects such as nausea, vomiting, rapid heartbeat, anxiety, insomnia, diarrhoea, or skin rashes, stop taking the herbal product and notify your doctor immediately.
• Avoid preparations made with more than one herb.
• Beware of commercial claims of what herbal products can do. Look for scientific-based sources of information.

Select brands of natural products carefully. Only purchase brands that list the herb's common and scientific name, the name and address of the manufacturer, a batch and lot number, expiration date, dosage guidelines, and potential side effects.

ps- this is only for information, always consult you physician before having any particular food/ medication/exercise/other remedies.

ps- those interested in recipes are free to view my blog-

http://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/

for info about knee replacement, you can view my blog-

http://Knee replacement-stick club.blogspot.com/

for crochet designs

http://My Crochet Creations.blogspot.com

Sciatica- What It is, Remedies, Alternate therapies, rehab

What Is Sciatica?
Sciatica refers to back pain caused by a problem with the sciatic nerve. This is a large nerve that runs from the lower back down the back of each leg. When something injures or puts pressure on the sciatic nerve, it can cause pain in the lower back that spreads to the hip, buttocks, and leg. Up to 90% of people recover without surgery.


Symptoms of Sciatica
The most common symptom of sciatica is lower back pain that extends through the hip and buttock and down one leg. The pain usually affects only one leg and may get worse when you sit, cough, or sneeze. The leg may also feel numb, weak, or tingly at times. The symptoms of sciatica tend to appear suddenly and can last for days or weeks

Sciatica or Other Back Pain?
Up to 85% of Americans experience some type of back pain during their lives. But this doesn't always involve the sciatic nerve. In many cases, back pain is the result of overextending or straining the muscles in the lower back. What most often sets sciatica apart is the way the pain radiates down the leg and into the foot. It may feel like a bad leg cramp that lasts for days.

Who Gets Sciatica?
Most people who get sciatica are between the ages of 30 and 50. Women may be more likely to develop the problem during pregnancy because of pressure on the sciatic nerve from the developing uterus. Other causes include a herniated disk and degenerative arthritis of the spine.



Cause: Herniated Disk
The most common cause of sciatica is a herniated disk. Disks act like cushions between the vertebrae of your spine. These disks get weaker as you age and become more vulnerable to injury. Sometimes the gel-like centre of a disk pushes through its outer lining and presses on the roots of the sciatic nerve. About 1 in 50 people will get a herniated disk at some point in life. Up to a quarter of them will have symptoms that last more than 6 weeks.


Spinal Stenosis
Natural wear and tear of the vertebrae can lead to a narrowing of the spinal canal. This narrowing, called spinal stenosis, may put pressure on the roots of the sciatic nerve. Spinal stenosis is more common in adults over age 60.

 Spinal Tumours

In rare cases, sciatica may result from tutors growing inside or along the spinal cord or sciatic nerve. As a tumour grows, it may put pressure on the nerves that branch off from the spinal cord.

Piriformis Syndrome

The piriformis is a muscle found deep inside the buttocks. It connects the lower spine to the upper thigh bone and runs directly over the sciatic nerve. If this muscle goes into spasm, it can put pressure on the sciatic nerve, triggering symptoms of sciatica. Piriformis syndrome is more common in women.

A Fat Wallet Can Trigger Piriformis

You might not think of too much cash as a source of pain, but a fat wallet can trigger piriformis syndrome. The condition can affect men who wear their wallet in the back pocket of their pants. This puts chronic pressure on the piriformis muscle and can aggravate the sciatic nerve over time. You can avoid this problem by keeping your wallet in a front pocket or jacket pocket.

Injury or Infection

Other causes of sciatica include muscle inflammation, infection, or injury, such as a fracture. In general, any condition that irritates or compresses the sciatic nerve can trigger symptoms. In some cases, no specific cause of sciatica can be found.

Diagnosing Sciatica
To determine whether you have sciatica, your doctor will ask you how your pain started and where exactly it is located. You may be asked to squat, walk on your heels or toes, or raise your leg without bending the knee. These muscle tests can help your doctor determine if it is the sciatic nerve that is irritated.

Diagnostic Imaging
Your doctor may order imaging tests, such as an MRI, to get more information about the location and cause of the irritated nerve. An MRI can show the alignment of vertebral disks, ligaments, and muscles. A CT scan using contrast dye can also provide a useful picture of the spinal cord and nerves. Determining the cause of sciatica can help guide the course of treatment. X-rays can help identify bony abnormalities but can't detect nerve problems.


Complications Related to Sciatica
If you develop a loss of bladder or bowel control, contact your doctor right away. This can be a sign of a medical emergency that requires surgery to avoid permanent damage. Fortunately, this complication is rare. Most cases of sciatica go away within a few days or weeks and cause no lasting harm.

Sciatica Relief: Ice and Heat
There are steps you can take at home to ease the pain of sciatica. A heating pad or ice pack may be especially helpful. Apply the heat or ice for about 20 minutes every two hours. Experiment to see which provides more relief, or try alternating between heat and ice.

 Medication
Over-the-counter pain relievers can provide short-term relief from sciatica. Acetaminophen and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen are options. Your doctor may give a steroid injection to further reduce the inflammation.


Stretching Exercise To Give Relief
While your sciatica is healing, try to remain active. Motion can actually help reduce inflammation and pain. A physical therapist can show you how to gently stretch the hamstring and lower back. Depending on your medical condition, certain exercises may not be recommended. Your doctor may also recommend taking short walks.

Injections
In severe cases, a doctor may recommend injecting steroids into the spine area to reduce inflammation. It delivers the medication directly to the area around the sciatic nerve.

Surgery
If your sciatica is due to a herniated disk, and it's still causing severe pain after four to six weeks, surgery may be an option. The surgeon will remove a portion of the herniated disk to relieve the pressure on the sciatic nerve. About 90% of patients get relief from this type of surgery. Other surgical procedures can relieve sciatica caused by spinal stenosis.


Sciatica Rehab

After back surgery, you will generally need to avoid driving, lifting, or bending forward for about a month. Your doctor may recommend physical therapy to help you strengthen the muscles in the back. Once your recovery is complete, there's an excellent chance you'll be able to get back to all your usual activities.


Complementary Therapies

There is evidence that acupuncture, massage, yoga, and chiropractic adjustments can relieve typical lower back pain. But more research is needed to determine whether these therapies are helpful for sciatica.


Preventing Sciatica
If you've had sciatica once, there's a chance it will return. But there are steps you can take to reduce the odds:
Exercise regularly.
Maintain good posture.
Bend at the knees to lift heavy objects.

These steps can help you avoid back injuries that may lead to sciatica.

ps- this is only for information, always consult you physician before having any particular food/ medication/exercise/other remedies.

ps- those interested in recipes are free to view my blog-

http://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/

for info about knee replacement, you can view my blog-

http://Knee replacement-stick club.blogspot.com/

for crochet designs

http://My Crochet Creations.blogspot.com/

I've not given details about designs, but those interested are free to mail me for the same.

Doctor says Alternative Treatment Works better for Cancer

Written by a doctor who suffers from cancer and he uses alternative rather than conventional medicine that involves chemo etc. 
 

Subject: Cancer treatment is about making money...provoking thoughts

 

I posted this article, which may have some provoking thoughts: The below is absolutely 100% true and as a doctor I have been telling people this for 15 years now. No one wants to listen. Folks need to wake up. Cancer treatment is about making money. It is a 120 billion dollar a year industry in the United States alone and estimated to be a 600 billion dollar a year industry worldwide. A successful cancer case according to the American Cancer Society and the American College of Oncology and Hematology means that the person survives for 5 years. Both the American Cancer Society and the American College of Oncology and Hematology admit that a person is likely to survive cancer for 7 to 10 years even if they do absolutely NOTHING. Of course, only the doctors get those magazines - not you, the cancer patient. Alternative medicine's track record of curing cancer is 10 times higher than that of conventional medicine. Note that I say CURE. Remember another thing. A TUMOR is just a symptom. It is not the cause of cancer.  Science is cause and effect. Remove the cause and the effect disappears. I am in my third battle with cancer right now. I have not done any chemotherapy or radiation or surgery for any of my bouts with cancer. I survived leukemia, I survived Non Hodgkins Lymphoma and now I have Glioblastoma which is supposedly an incurable form of brain cancer. I was given two months to live 5 months ago.  I have been using Chinese herbs, high doses of vitamin C, acupuncture, chiropractic, homeopathy and nutritional changes. Yes, at first it got worse. It had metastasized to my lymph nodes, my lungs and my bones. As of this week, I am happy to say that there is no evidence now of any cancer in my lymph system or my bones. I had 6 tumors in my lungs, now there are only two. The tumors in my brain have shrunken tremendously. I never did any of their chemo, radiation or surgery.  Here is a very interesting statistic that you can only have access to by being a doctor. Every year more than 1,000 doctors oncologists (cancer doctors) are diagnosed with cancer. Less than 10% of them choose to do the treatment that they have been giving to their patients. Sort of like the fact that less than 25% of all pediatricians vaccinate their own children because of the fact that the risk of sudden death or serious side effects from the vaccination is higher than the risk of catching the disease one is being vaccinated for. This is not bullshit people - it is truth.  Medicine is about money, not about your health and the system traps people, especially the elderly, disabled and poor into a deadly treatment regime that puts them in an early grave. Meanwhile, all the jet set billionaires are flying off to Europe and paying big bucks for alternative treatments and getting cured. Does alternative medicine work all the time? No. Of course not. Nothing works all the time. But there is a reason for that. You don't die until it's your time to die. Nothing can make you live longer than that time. However quality of life comes into play. Those cancer patients who use alternative therapies for their cancer, yet still die from the illness, suffer a much higher quality of life. They die able to spend time with their families and even recognize their family members. They don't become emaciated like those who do chemotherapy or radiation do and rarely is a person who goes under the treatment of chemotherapy able to recognize anyone for the last few days of their lives. Their bodies become ravaged to the point that you can't even recognize them either. They suffer at a much much higher rate and they have one let down after another as doctors tell them, ahhh - it's looking good, only to tell them on the next visit it's looking worse, you need more chemo and radiation. AFTER YEARS OF TELLING PEOPLE CHEMOTHERAPY IS THE ONLY WAY TO TRY ('TRY', BEING THE KEY WORD) TO ELIMINATE CANCER, JOHNS HOPKINS IS FINALLY STARTING TO TELL YOU THERE IS AN ALTERNATIVE WAY .