Author:
Dr B. S. Suvarna
B.A, D.I.Hom[Lond.], M.I.H, PhD,PGDPC(Psychotherapy & Counselling, USA)
HOMOEO PHYSICIAN
MAMTHA HOMOEO CLINIC
Jeevan Shanthi, Near AIT Girls Hostel, Bypass Road, Kalyan Nagar, CHIKMAGALUR 577102
Karnataka State, INDIA
Diabetes is a condition where by the body is unable properly to process the metabolism of sugar . this results in an increased sugar level in the body , which produces many of the symptoms described , the condition also affects the micro-circulation of the blood in the small blood vessels giving rise to complications affecting other organ systems , including the kidneys , eyes , nervous system , the heart and the brain . Sugar is metabolized by the hormone insulin which is produced by the pancreas , a small glandular tissue behind the stomach , two forms of diabetes occur ; that affecting young people which is due to pancreas malfunction and very little production of insulin and adult –onset diabetes which is often associated with poor diet and obesity . This latter is the result of over use of the pancreas which produces insufficient insulin to process the excess carbohydrate intake , diabetes is a life long condition and as yet no cure has been found , although the symptoms can be controlled by diet and medication .
Causes : both forms of diabetes have a hereditary tendency . If both parents have diabetes , the risk of a child developing it is greatly increased . Late on-set diabetes is definitely brought about by a high sugar / starch diet , but this is not the case in the early onset type , where sufferers are usually thin , certain drugs can precipitate diabetes –steriods and some of the oral contraceptives are example of these .
Symptoms : thirst and the passing of copious dilute urine is the most common early sign due to the high level of sugar in the blood . Loss of weight in early onset type is common together with tiredness , skin infections (thrush) and itchiness of penis and vagina are common , disturbance in menstruation is common , pins and needles in advanced cases , together with leg ulcers , difficulty with focusing and disturbance of vision , complications of long term diabetes include more serious problems including blindness , loss of mobility , failed circulation and gangrene, thickening of the arteries and an increased risk of heart attacks , kidney infections and eventually kidney failure .
Prevention and self help : A whole food diet incorporating complex , carbohydrates (oats , whole wheat ) and the avoidance of all refined sugar products not only prevents but helps to eradicate late-onset diabetes .
Keep to the recommended body weight for your height and age . if you have diabetes , keep it under good control and have regular check ups .
Hypoglycaemia attacks ( when the sugar level in the blood is too low because of over treatment ) can be controlled by proper monitoring and having barley sugar sweets available to eat when the warming signs of an attach appear.
Regular exercise will help as well as special yoga breathing exercises . No alternative therapy can cure diabetes , although control can be improved and medication reduced , if you follow good naturopathic advise , regarding diet, herbal medicines are some times given to improve the working of the pancreas . Goats rue and gentian are thought to stimulate insulin , garlic taken raw or in the form of garlic capsules , will reduce the effects of fatty imbalance and protect the heart . Daily porridge (oats0 will help stabilize sugar levels and a high fiber diet may reduce the need for medication , all are worth trying under medical supervision .
When sugar is found in urine , it is termed diabetes , patient becomes weaker , losses flesh is emaciated .
Walking is said to be the best treatment for diabetes , orthodox doctors will undertake a series of base line tests , then prescribe a specific diet ( both early and late onset diabetes respond well ) you may be asked to see a dietician and be given a list of foods to avoid and those to eat . If you need insulin infections you will be thought how to administer these yourself and how regularly to test your blood and urine to help you monitor your own blood sugar levels ; regular checks are important to pick up early complications , homoeopathic medication will be prescribed for most cause of adult onset diabetes and there are perfectly safe to take regularly .
Diabetes is understood in simple terms , what diabetes is –Diab= flow through , Mel= sweet urine, passing through your body , it is a metabolic disorder of insulin . Pancreas secretes the hormone insulin that helps to convert sugar into heat and muscle power , loss of insulin means that the sugar is not utilized . sugar content of blood rises and unused sugar is excreted through urine . lipids also get deranged , heredity plays an important role , but at the predisposition level ; needs a precipitating factor to get expressed , like stress .
First understand clearly how diabetes develops :
The hormone insulin , made in the pancreas , helps control levels of sugar glucose , which is needed to fuel many chemical processes . In a healthy person , when food is digested
- glucose levels in the blood stream rise
- the pancreas releases insulin
- which helps body cells into glycogen , which is stored in the liver
- and muscles until needed for fuel , hormones regulate the release of insulin by causing blood sugar level to drop .
- which in turn causes the pancreas to secrete less insulin
- in a person with diabetes mellitus ; the pancreas insufficient levels of insulin or the body is unable to use the insulin it makes ; after food is digested .
After food is digested , if the pancreas can not produce enough insulin , the body is forced to break down fats instead of glucose for energy , poisonous chemicals called ketones are excreted in the urine .and also build up in the blood stream leading to ketoacidosis a serious condition that may cause coma or death . If it is unable to to use insulin properly , glucose is locked out of cells and circulates through the body without being absorbed , high levels of sugar in the blood and urine impair the body’s ability to fight infections and may lead to ketoacidosis.
The main stay for diabetes is “ prevention” : diet , more diet and exercise , does not mean starvation , but a healthy balanced nutrition which is good even for the family .
Mainly focus on fats : butter , margarine , oil , bacon’s cream , meat , milk and nuts , restrict to 60-75 gms a day .
Proteins : meat , fish , cheese , milk and eggs , small quantities found in bread , potatoes , and vegetables , you can be generous with proteins , especially lean protein.
Carbohydrates : purest carbohydrate is sugar , avoid this as far as possible , eat cereals , bread and rice , eat in moderation .
Diabetes prevention is easier and a must , diabetes is a silent killer . All the more dangerous because it is silent , HIV and Ca kill , but they kill upfront and an enemy upfront is easier to accept and deal with , then the hidden enemy , about whom we can even be lulled into thinking it has gone away . For the diabetes prone the danger is in some unseen future , and too far away .
Diabetes prevention is always a much , much better way but more so here , as there is no cure , also you have the added advantage of knowing what you are preventing , and then once again , look at the flip-side advantages ; you will force your self to keep trimand there is no better turn –on then looking fit and beautiful .
Homoeopathic medicines :
This has little to offer the management of diabetes but may help with individual or constitutional symptoms . Phosphrous—–is often prescribed to reduce symptoms .
Syzigium jambolanum Q —-most useful , no other remedy causes in so marked a degree , the diminution and disappearance of sugar in urine .
Specific remedies for diabetes , both these should be taken one dose in morning and the other dose in the night continuously for some days—natrum sulph 6X and natrum phos 6X
Secale cor —when there is much thirst , burning in palms and soles
Other medicines –acid phos , cephelendra , helonias , rhus tox , and terebenthina , lactic acid , argent met .
