Simple Health Cures

   Sexual dysfunction is any problem that regularly interferes with an individual’s sexual performance. Both men and women with diabetes are more likely to experience this problem against their counterparts who are not diabetic.

   Sexual problem due to diabetes that effect men are erectile dysfunction or impotence, ejaculation problems and low levels of testosterone. In case of diabetic women the sexual problems they commonly experience are vaginal dryness, pain during intercourse, decreased vaginal sensitivity, difficulty climaxing and as a result decreased sexual desire.

   Diabetic angiopathy or damaged blood vessels and diabetic neuropathy or damaged nerves are one of the main reasons for sexual dysfunction amongst diabetics. This damage is due to poor control of blood sugar. Other factors that contribute to this problem are obesity, urinary tract infection, yeast infection, overactive urinary bladder, depression and fatigue. All of the above are more or less result of diabetes.

   Having diabetes can mean early onset and increased severity of these problems. People who keep their blood sugar levels in check can lower their risk of early onset of sexual problems.

   Some of the common symptoms of sexual dysfunction to watch for in men are listed below:

   Minimal discharge of semen during ejacultion

   Fertility problems

   Cloudy urine

   In Women the following symptoms may occur:

   Reduced interest in sexual activity

   Loss of sensation in the genital region

   Frequent ability in reaching orgasm

   Frequent yeast infections

   If left untreated sexual dysfunction can affect an individual’s quality of life. If can increase stress, trigger depression and can even interfere with a diabetic person’s management of blood sugar levels.

   Sexual dysfunction due to high blood pressure can be reduced through managing blood sugar levels, diet and exercise and in some cases medication. Individuals suffering from sexual dysfunction due to psychological factors can benefit from sex therapy and mental health counseling.

   Gastro paresis is also known as delayed gastric emptying. It is a medical condition involving partial paralysis of stomach, due to which food remains in the stomach for a longer part than normal. The most common cause of gastro paresis is diabetes.

   Normally, stomach contracts through vagus nerve to move food down into the small intestine for digestion. Gastro paresis may occur when the vagus nerve is damaged. Food then moves slowly or stops moving through the digestive tract. Gastro paresis may be chronic or transient.

   Chronic gastroparesis is mostly due to autonomic neuropathy. This may occur in people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Over the years the vagus nerve gets damaged due to high blood glucose, resulting in gastro paresis.

   One of the complications of gastro paresis is that it can make diabetes worse by making blood sugar control more difficult. When food that has been delayed in the stomach finally enters the small intestine and is absorbed it results in rise of blood glucose levels. Since gastro paresis makes stomach emptying unpredictable, a person’s blood sugar levels can be erratic and difficult to control.

   Symptoms of gastro paresis include early fullness, abdominal pain, stomach spasms, heartburn, nausea, vomiting, bloating, gastro esophageal reflux, lack of appetite and weight loss. It is diagnosed with tests such as x-rays, ultrasound, breath test and gastric emptying scans.

   Treatment of gastro paresis depends on the severity of the symptoms. In most cases, treatment does not cure gastro paresis it is usually a chronic condition. Treatment helps you manage the condition so you can be as healthy and comfortable as possible.

   Treatment includes dietary changes, oral medications and adjustments in insulin injections for people with diabetes.

   The perfect red ripe tomato bursting with juices and rich flavor is appetizing and impacts great taste to food. Most of the people do not eat it in its raw form and cook it and consume it as gravies, sauces, and ketchups. The good news is that fortunately cooking brings out one of the important antioxidants in tomatoes, lycopene.

   Studies show that daily consumption of tomatoes fulfills the body’s daily requirement of minerals and vitamins and therefore exerts a protective effect on it. Daily consumption of tomates alleviates diabetes and reduces the oxidation, thus exerting protective effect against cardiovascular diseases.

   Platelets are responsible for the blood’s ability to clot. Clotting can go too far, however, and cause strokes, heart attacks and other life-threatening problems. In diabetes patients, platelets are stickier. As a result of this excessive “stickiness” for instance, people with type 2 diabetes have an increased risk atherosclerosis and cardiovascular problems, such as heart attack and stroke.

   It has been observed that lycopene in tomatoes act as blood thinners. The regular consumption of tomato has proved to decrease the levels of LDL cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood. These lipids are the key culpits in cardiovascular diseases and lead to deposition of fats in the blood vessels.

   Tomatoes are low in carbohydrates and useful for diabetics who want to lose weight. They also control the amount of sugar in a diabetic person urine effectively.

   Besides that it also prevent urinary tract infection, reduces hypertension and improves vision. Vitamin K which is abundant in tomatoes is essential in blood clotting and controls bleeding. All of the abovementioned health problems are associated with diabetes and thus assert importance of including tomatoes in one’s diet to keep all the  abovementioned health problems at bay.

   You can catch diabetes from someone else:

   Diabetes is not an infectious or contagious disease. Scientist don’t know for sure exactly what causes the disorder, but it can’t be caught from another person, like a cold or the flu. There, does, however appear to be a genetic link with type 2 diabetes. If a family member has the condition, you’re at higher risk for the disease.

   There’s only one dangerous kind of diabetes:

   Not so. Diabetes refers to a group of disease- all of which require serious attention that have in common the body’s inability to properly convert glucose from food into energy, leading to a high level of sugar in the blood. The main kinds include type 1 ( formerly known as juvenile-onset diabetes), type 2 ( once called adult-onset diabetes), and gestational (which occurs only during pregnancy). The suspected causes differ for each type, but managing any type of diabetes requires balancing food, physical activity, and if needed, medications. And while people with type 1 diabetes need to take insulin every day for their entire lives, type 2 diabetes is no less of a concern, because ignoring it could lead to devastating complications such as blindness, heart attack and stroke.

   Only people with diabetes need insulin:

   Everyone needs insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas that allows the body to convent food into energy for activity. People who don’t have diabetes make and use the right amount of this chemical. People with diabetes either don’t make any insulin, don’t make enough, or can’t use the insulin they make properly. If you or someone you’re caring for has type 2 diabetes, it’s important to balance food, activity, and in some cases medications, which may include insulin injections or an insulin pump (insulin isn’t available in pill form), to get the necessary amount of this essential hormone. And to dispense with another myth in this area. Insulin is a tool to manage diabetes, not a cure.

   It is a known fact that how intricately weight is entwined with type 2 diabetes. Researchers suggest that obesity and higher body mass index elevate the risk of contracting type 2 diabetes

   Since research suggests that bantaric surgery, also known as one form of weight loss, offers more than cutting pounds, it is increasingly being seen as one more option and also as an avenue to learn more about the mechanisms behind diabetes. This surgical intervention may prove to be the most profound discoveries since the discovery of insulin.

   Not only does baritaric surgery appears to be safe but also it appears to stave off diabetes for a long time. Some studies also indicate that weight loss surgery can lead to long term remission of diabetes. Total mortality was also found to be less than one percent. The people who were more likely to have their diabetes return were the ones who were insulin dependent at the time of surgery, which indicated that their disease was more severe.

   Laparoscopic gastric banding is another weight loss procedure. It can have a sustained and meaningful impact on diabetes and morbid obesity since the two are interrelated. This spells as good news for people with morbid obesity that have tried and failed to lose weight. Weight loss surgery in the hands of a skilled surgeon may be safer than previously thought but it isn’t entirely risk free.

   It could cause complications for people with a history of sleep apnea or a history of blood clots. Sleep apnea means temporary stoppage of breath while sleeping and it is associated with vascular changes and high blood pressure. Even with the risk of a surgery factored in, weight loss surgery can be a life saver for obses people.

   An individual  who suffers from high levels of blood sugar is more likely to develop serious health problems like infections, blood clotting and inability of cuts and wounds to heal. In addition to that one is highly susceptible to contract diabetes.

   To avoid all this and to lead a healthy stress free life one can follow the steps mentioned below tp prevent high blood sugar.

   Stay fit and healthy, Exercise is something that human body was designed to do on a regular basis so it is a habit that everyone must adopt for life and not just to control blood sugar levels. Through regular exercise one can achieve the fitness and health. The added benefits of regular exercise are that it helps lower blood sugar and fights infection. It also helps to control body weight and regulates cholesterol levels and blood pressure.

   Healthy diet, It plays an important role in regulating blood glucose levels. Low glycemic foods are better option than high glycemic foods. It is because low glycemic foods take a longer time to be digested by body, whereas high glycemic foods enter the blood stream quickly thereby making the pancreas work harder to produce insulin. The examples of low glycemic foods are fruits like pears, apples and oranges. Oatmeal, beans, peas, granola and peanuts are all low glycemic foods. Fast food should always be avoided because it is a rather fast way to contracting chronic disorders like diabetes.

   The trap that most people fall into is the kind of system they adopt by being too lazy to exercise and not eat healthy foods. Fitness and health can be attained by simple adopting exercise and healthy diet in one’s life, which is not such an uphill task considering the amount of rewards it reaps.

    One of the effective ways to control type 1 diabetes and to control blood sugar if one’s doesn’t use insulin is to count carbohydrates. This technique of counting carbs helps determine the amount of carbs intake and thus enables an individual to spread the intake throughtout the day, thereby preventing high blood sugar just after the meal.

   Carbohydrate counting is mandatory to a diabetic because it is the nutrient that affects the blood sugar the most. Therefore counting carbs can help one control blood sugar which is the most important thing to control diabetes.

   Let us elaborate and understand carbohydrate counting to simplify our lives. It is a recommended method of meal planning for diabetics. It is natural then that it translates into adding the amount of carbohydrate in an individual’s diet. Spreading this intake throughtout the day helps one to keep the blood sugar in check and prevent high blood sugar after eating.

   This is specific to carbohydrate because it is the nutrient that affects the blood sugar levels most as compared to any other nutrient. It is important to note that all forms of carbohydrates increase blood sugar.

   Foods that contain carbohydrates are:

1) fruits and vegetables

2) milk and yogurt

3) Starchy foods like bread, cereals, potatoes, corn and dry beans

4) Sugar laden foods like cakes and candies

   Sugar rich foods have more carbohydrates in a serving than starch containing foods. It is a notion that one can’t eat sugar when one contracts diabetes. That’s nit true. However, if foods that are high in sugar make up a large part of one’s diet, then one is not eating enough of other, more nutritious foods. After reading this information, we should be ready to plan regular meals and snacks and calculate the amount of carbohydrate in our diet.

   Blueberry Leaf Tea- The leaves of the blueberry plant have been found out to have hypoglycemic properties beneficial to diabetics. Several cups of the blueberry leaves is enough to bring down blood sugar levels to normal. The leaves are first soaked in cold water, and then boiled for 5-10 minutes. This preparation should be taken at least a few times a day for three months to be able to see a visible and significant changes in blood sugar levels. The anthcyanic acid present in blueberry leaves is the ingredient thought to be the main ingredient in the metabolism of carbohydrates. You may also take in anthcyanic acid in capsule forms available in several health stores.

   Prickly Pear Cactus- The nopal, or prickly pear cactus is a food product found in Mexico and is called nopal. It is thought to have hypoglycemic properties. They can be diced and placed in a salad or in tacos. Research in Mexico have shown that when the cactus stem was boiled and then ingested significant drop in blood sugar within one hour, with glucose levels continuing to decline for two hours. It is also believed to decreases insulin resistance.

   Gymnema Sylvestre- A popular in alternative medicine  in India known as the ayurveda makes use of this plant. Gymnema sylvestre. It is common to find this plant being used in treatments in alternative medicine, especially for diabetes. In fact, studies have shown improvements in the control of blood sugar by people with type 1 diabetes. It is also effective in treating people with type 2 diabetes since tests have shown a decrease in the dosage of oral medications sometimes to a point to allow oral agents to be discontinued completely. Unfortunately, the use of this plant has only been seen in abnormal blood sugar levels. The benefits of this plant have not been subjected to controlled studies.

   Researcher have reported that Geevec, a wonder drug that has effectively treated leukemia and other cancers, may reverse type 1 diabetes too. These experiment were conducted on mice and it has been observed that not only did it prevent and cure diabetes, but also led to long term remission of diabetes even after discontinution of therapy.

   The cancer drugs like Geevec treat cancer by inhibiting a small subset of tyrosine kinases, which are enzymes that modify cells’ signalling protein through biochemical change. Kinases are therefore agents of proliferation that cause inflammation and cancer.

   Since type 1 diabetes is caused by an autoimmune response which destroys insulin secreting cells in pancreas, the scientists sought to determine if one or more of the tyrosine kinases blocked by the cancer drugs might also be responsible for the destructive inflammation in the pancreas. If so, the drugs might be a promising discovery to treat diabetes.

   This is an encouraging sign since this new class of compounds may modulate auto immunity. It is a potentially good discovery since it has been observed that with other diabetes reversing drugs, when the drug is stopped the disease comes back immediately. On the other hand it has been observed that in case of cancer drugs prolonged remission of diabetes occurs even after the drugs is discontinued.

   The only thing that is working against this drug is that its potential safety is still unknown. Another drug called Rituxan was designed to wipe out immune cells called B lymphocytes. These cells multiply out of control and result into lymphoma. They are also known to destroy insulin producing cells.

   When Rituxan is administered to a patient it makes body produce more insulin initially. However it was observed that over a period as the effects of the drug faded, the insulin production began to decline. Thus cancer drugs may spell good news for diabetics, but more research is needed.

   People with diabetes must eat a special diet:

   A healthy diet for someone with diabetes is the same as a healthy diet for anyone else. How does that look! A wholesome meal plan is based on whole-grain foods, lean protein, vegetables, and fruit. Such a diet is low in fat (particularly saturated and trans fats) salt, and simple sugars. So called diabetic foods offer no special benefits. The best bet is to skip these costly commercial offerings and head for the produce aisle instead.

   Eating too much sugar causes diabetes:

   No, chocaholics aren’t destined to develop diabetes. The disease is thought to be caused by a combination of genetic and lifestyle factors. And the high level of sugar in someone’s bloodstream is not the same thing as the refined stuff you buy in bags from the supermarket. That said, being overweight can increase the risk for developing type 2 diabetes, and eating a lot of sugar can pack on the pounds. It your family has a history of diabetes, eating healthfully and exercising regularly is recommanded to keep everyone’s weight in check. For those who already have diabetes, those same things will help them manage the disease.

   People with diabetes can’t eat anything sweet:

   Relax- despite what you may heard, a piece of cake or a couple of cookies won’t cause a health crisis. In fact, sweets can be eaten in moderation by people with type 2 diabetes, if eaten as part of a healthy meal plan and combined with exercise, according to the American Diabetes association.

   Still while avoiding sweet treats isn’t mandatory, limiting them is. Sweets often contain not only empty calories but a lot of sugar, a carbohydrate that raises glucose levels considerably. For better glucose control, diabetics should have dessert only after a low-carb meal. It’s important to eat that chicken breast, broccoli, and salad before dishing into some ice cream.