Diabetes and natural medicine

Type 2 diabetes is on the rise in our society due to increasing levels of obesity and sedentary lifestyles.

According to Dr. Michael Lyon, our diet has an enormous influence on preventing and treating this disease. His new book is called How to Prevent and Treat Diabetes with Natural Medicine.

"Essentially what we are entering is an era where nutrition is no longer just part of prevention but it's now a part of active treatment," Lyon said. "We can see conditions like diabetes literally reversed, where people can turn a corner and have a completely different outcome."

Lyon said that most people are becoming aware that carbohydrates have an adverse affect on health. But, he said, primarily what people need to learn is that the quality of carbohydrates is what's important. Products made with white flour, or food such as white rice or high glycemic-index foods should be avoided. Stick to high-fibre foods and those made with whole grains.

"Basically a slow-release form of carbohydrate instead of getting something...like an injection of sugar into the blood," Lyon said. "Even diabetics seem to think starch is okay when in actual fact white flour products are absorbed within the first few centimetres of the intestine. It's like giveing yourself an injection of sugar."

Even more important than the fibre is the kind of fibre you eat, Lyon said. Wheat bran and brown rice are water insoluble fibres but things such as legumes and oat bran have even better properties.

Besides blood sugar control, things like antioxidants are extremely important, he said. The colourful fruits have bioflavonoids and lots of plant-based phytochemicals have important roles to play in protecting your organs against the damage that can occur from diabetes.

When it comes to fats, again it's about eating the right type. Lyon said that diabetics can lower the risk of complications by having small protions of nuts every day. Nuts are good sources of monounsaturated fats, omega 9 fats and omega 3 fatty acids, he said.

• Green tea has a wealth of benefits and should be incorporated into the diet.
• Also, coffee has been shown to be protective agianst diabetes, so Lyon says go ahead and drink it.
• Ginseng, Lyon explained, is one of the hottest topics in diabetes reaearch right now. There's a lot of stuff on the market to be weary of, but methods of standardization are in the works so people will soon be able to access highly-standardized extracts from both American and Korean ginseng, each of which are important in the fight against diabetes.
• PGX fibre is based around konjac glucomannan, a root from Asia that combined with different fibres at different ratios, makes a very viscous water-soluble fibre. Lyon said that some research showed that by drinking it, they found that it lowered blood sugar by 20 per cent in a diabetic, lowered insulin levels by 50 per cent and it dramatically increased insulin sensitivity. PGX fibre serves as a meal replacement and will soon be available in seven different flavours, Lyon said.

For more about diabetes and natural medicine, visit Dr. Michael Lyon's website at www.naturalfactors.com.