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[I347]Insulin Resistance In Diabetes

by JoAnn Graham, JoA

Insulin resistance has become one of the most widespread health problems in America. High-stress lifestyles, too much chemical laden, high-carb processed food and a lack of exercise have created an epidemic of insulin resistance and Type 2 Diabetes. But you don’t have to be one of those statistics!

Adopting these five simple lifestyle and diet changes corrects the problems that cause insulin resistance. If you are already insulin resistant, these five changes can prevent your condition from deteriorating into Type 2 Diabetes. And if you have already been diagnosed as a diabetic, it's still not too late to control blood sugar levels and improve your health with these vital five steps. Though each person is different, it is even possible for some people to reverse diabetes and restore normal pancreatic functions using these five steps.

1: Exercise!
30 minutes of brisk walking or similar exercise, 3-5 times a week, can prevent you developing insulin resistance or diabetes. If you're already insulin resistant or diabetic, exercise will help improve insulin sensitivity and lower blood sugar levels.

2. Avoid processed foods.
Packaged and processed foods contain at least two things that contribute to insulin resistance and eventually diabetes: high-fructose corn syrup and trans fats.

High fructose corn syrup is a chemically altered sugar that your body cannot use, but your pancreas still detects it as “sugar” and attempts to release it to your cells as fuel by secreting insulin. Consuming too much of it will send your blood sugar soaring, contribute to weight gain, hypertension (high blood pressure) and Type 2 Diabetes. This insidious stuff is in absolutely everything--even foods that you wouldn't suspect of containing sugar, such as crackers, salad dressings--even tomato sauce! Non-diet soft drinks and virtually all commercially packaged juices contain high levels of fructose corn syrup.

Trans fats are notorious for causing inflammation in the arteries and other problems. They also seem to contribute to the onset of diabetes, though how is not entirely understood. You'll find trans fat in most packaged cake and frosting mixes, many cookies and other baked products, non-dairy coffee creamers, and margarines. Virtually all "stick" type margarines contain trans fat--check the label, and you'll see. Your body cannot metabolize these chemically altered fats, which simply build up in your tissues, damaging cells and contributing to life-threatening arterial blockage.

3. Eat more whole grains, fresh fruits and veggies
Along with contributing important nutrients and aiding digestion, these foods can help to stabilize blood sugar and insulin levels by slowing down your digestive process. Unlike "simple" carbohydrates like white bread, potatos and pasta--which quickly break down into sugar, causing your blood sugar levels to soar and insulin levels to spike--these more complex foods digest more slowly, causing sugar to be released more gradually into your blood, avoiding the destructive "sugar spikes" that come from eating starchy foods.

4. Add the "right" fats to your diet
Not all fats are "bad". In fact, fat is an essential nutrient which your body needs. The key is making sure the fat you add to your diet is the right kind of fat. Unlike synthetic or chemically altered "trans fats" or "hydrogenated fats", your body can digest "natural" fats, such as mono- and poly-unsaturated vegetable oils. Fats and oils high in "essential fatty acids" (EFAs), such as those found in salmon, tuna and avocados help reduce "bad" cholesterol levels and raise "good" cholesterol levels. Flax seed oil is another beneficial source of fat, as are those found in nuts. In additrion to fats, nuts and flax seed add other valuable nutrients to your dietary mix.

5. Add important nutrients to your diet
It's difficult for us to get sufficient nutrients from food alone--because processing strips food of nutrients, and because today's mass-production farming methods result in soil that is "depleted" of important minerals and vitamins. A good multi-vitamin/mineral supplement can help to solve this problem. But if you are insulin resistant or diabetic, you should be sure that your supplement contains certain trace elements and vitamins that help to control blood sugar and lower insulin levels. These include:

Chromium - in the form of chromium picolinate, it helps control blood sugar and insulin levels

Magnesium - this is the nutrient that most often seems to be lacking in both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetics, so evidence is strong that a lack of this trace mineral in your diet can be a determining factor in whether or not you develop diabetes, regardless of family history, lack of exercise, etc.

Manganese - its role in preventing diabetes and insulin resistance is still being researched, but lower than normal levels of manganese are another thing most diabetics seem to have in common, so it would stand to reason that getting adequate levels in a daily supplement might help to prevent the onset of diabetes.

Vanadium - aids in the metabolism of sugar and increases the insulin sensitivity of cells.

B Vitamins - Stress can deplete your body of all-important B-viatmins and cause blood sugar levels to rise. The B vitamins help to prevent stress-related damage.

B3 (Niacin) - is valuable for circulatory health, and also key to metabolizing carbs, fat and protein.

B6 - this powerful antioxidant helps protect you from the destructive effects of diabetes like nerve and heart damage.

B12 - vital to the proper functioning of nerve cells, B12 is another good anti-stress nutrient, and may actually help prevent the nerve damage (neuropathy) associated with diabetes.

For more information about diabetes, insulin resistance and glycemic index dieting, plus diabetic and glycemic index recipes, please visit

This article is for informational purposes only. It is not intended, nor should it be used as medical advice. Consult your physician before beginning any diet or exercise program.

In order to understand insulin resistance, it is first important to understand how the body's normal insulin-glucose cycle works, then what can go wrong with this cycle.

What is Insulin Resistance?

Insulin resistance is just what it sounds like - the pancreas produces more insulin than the body's cells need. What's more interesting is how insulin resistance develops in the first place.

How Should the Insulin Cycle Work Normally?

Your body has a finely-tuned mechanism for determining how much sugar is needed in the cells in order to function properly. The cycle goes like this:

The body has some glucose in each of its cells. Cells use up glucose due to activity. Brain cells use glucose if you're thinking a lot (like doing a math problem or writing a speech). In fact, brain cells use around 20% of all the glucose your entire body needs - it's an area that needs constant glucose in order to function!

The pancreas detects that the cells need more fuel - glucose - to carry on their functions. This organ produces insulin and sends it into the bloodstream. In a properly-functioning system, the cells absorb the insulin, which then triggers them to absorb more glucose.

The cells, triggered by the insulin, take in more glucose to keep their functions going.

As the level of circulating glucose declines, the insulin spurs your liver to produce more glucose. If it has lots of sugars nearby, it will use those (like when you've just eaten a candy bar). If there is less sugar, it will go to complex carbohydrates. If there's none of that around, the liver will convert fat to glucose.

The glucose then circulates in your bloodstream and finds its way to the cells, whose appetite has been whetted by the insulin that they've absorbed.

And If I'm Insulin-Resistant, How does It Go Wrong?

The body's finely-tuned insulin-glucose cycle worked well when we were all pursuing active lifestyles. The caveman hunters who had to run after prey every day got lots of exercise. And they ate foods that were unprocessed: game meats, complex carbohydrates (whole grains such as rice or wheat) and lots of fiber from tubers and other vegetables. The body never had an excess of sugars, as they just weren't available in the diet.

This virtuous cycle persisted until a hundred years ago. People still worked hard in the factories and the fields, and food was generally wholesome.

In modern times, sedentary lifestyles and the high consumption of refined starches (like white bread) and sugars (like soft drinks or juice) have led to a disruption of this insulin-glucose cycle. The body consumes too much sugar and the cells use too little glucose. The result: circulating glucose levels and circulating insulin levels remain high as the pancreas tries to offset the overabundance of sugars in our system. Over time the cells become resistant to insulin, which means that ever increasing amounts are required for the same response.

The result is insulin resistance. It's a plague, but one that can be combatted by reducing our intake of refined sugars, losing a few pounds, and getting off the couch and putting our muscles to work!

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Both JoAnn Graham & Scott Meyers are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

JoAnn Graham has sinced written about articles on various topics from Acid Reflux, Diabetes Treatment and Lose Weight. Since being diagnosed as a Type 2 Diabetic, JoAnn Graham has learned a great deal about insulin resistance and how the Glycemic Index helps control blood sugar levels and improve health. By sharing what she has learned, she hopes to help others avoi. JoAnn Graham's top article generates over 1300 views. to your Favourites.

Scott Meyers has sinced written about articles on various topics from Diabetes Treatment, Health and Skin Care. Scott Meyers is a staff writer for , a resource for helping you achieve a naturally healthy body, mind, and spirit. You may contact our writers. Scott Meyers's top article generates over 22200 views. to your Favourites.