I
was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes in late August 2001 (aged 59).
For the first week I was in denial, and completely devastated. Finally,
I realized that I may as well accept the truth and do something
about it. Fortunately, my doctor practices complementary medicine
similar to that of Dr.
Andrew Weil and he started me on a 3-month plan that included
diet and exercise to see how well I controlled myself. This gave
me the confidence to take charge of my life.
Supplements
I had always thought
that I was very healthy, I take the following supplements:
- Glucosamine,
500mg (joint and cartilage maintenance)
- Saw
Palmetto, 900mg (prostrate health)
- Siberian
Ginseng, 900mg (energy)
- Soy Isoflavones,
40mg (antioxidant)
- Ultrazyme
(digestive
enzyme)
- Hawthorn
Berries, 1.05grams (heart and circulation)
- Garlic,
600mg + 20mg cayenne
(garlic entire body and immune booster; cayenne
stomach)
- Grape
Seed
antioxidants, 60mg (fights free radicals)
- Gingko
Biloba, 40mg extract + 400mg leaf (circulation and brain)
- Full Spectrum
Minerals (daily multiple mineral)
- Male vitamin
supplement (daily multivitamin)
- Flax
Seed oil, 1000mg (Omega-3 essential
fatty acid)
- Melatonin,
3mg
My Dr. added (they
help with glucose metabolism):
Living
with diabetes
Like everyone else,
I began learning about diabetes. My first realization was that in
my case my diabetes was caused in part by heredity (grandmother
and aunt) but mostly because of gluttony. I did some calculations
and I was eating about 4000 to 5000 calories per day before my diagnosis.
I had a bad Coke-a-Cola habit (4 or 5 per day) and a sweet tooth.
My diet was heavy in starches and sugar. Now I average between 1200
to 1500 calories per day and very few starches. Most of my carbohydrates
come from fruit and vegetables. I still struggle with the sweet
tooth although I quit Coke cold turkey.
My biggest help
has come from:
Now 2-1/2 months
(as of November 4, 2001) into my new life-style I weigh 167-lbs
down from 185-lbs (I was 200 a year ago). My average blood glucose
reading is 97.5 mg/dl (5.4mmol/L). I tested three times/day during
my first month and now I test once/day: on Monday, Wednesday and
Friday I test in the morning; on the other days I test in the evenings.
My readings have a standard deviation of 10.5mg/dl (0.6mmol/L) which
isn’t all that bad. However, I did loose it one day when I went
on a binge which included eating two large doughnuts and that evening
my glucose was 143mg/dl (7.9mmol/L). I try walking (very briskly)
for 45 minutes at least four times per/week.
I attribute what
success that I have had to:
- Dr. D’Adamo’s
books and diet advice. Eliminate foods harmful to your blood type
- Exercise. I
definitely notice the difference on days I walk
- Reduced caloric
intake
- Meditation
Cutting back on
the feed bag, and eliminating foods that I dearly craved was my
hardest task to date. Keeping on track will be my biggest challenge
in the future. Web sites like Rick's & Malcolm's have been a very
big help.
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