by Charles Weber, MS – email; isoptera at att.net

Diabetes can be seriously debilitating, initially leading to constant fatigue, somnolence and blurred vision, and if left untreated, progressing to eye deterioration, nerve deterioration, blindness, limb amputations, heart disease, diseases of the organs, hypertension, coma, and death. It costs well over 200-400 billion dollars worldwide with the country of Nauru spending 40% of the health care budget there on it. Diabetics in the USA lose $9000 extra each year or more, The statistics about diabetes are staggering [Scully]. The brain does not need insulin to absorb glucose as do the other cells, but it still can be affected by diabetes indirectly. The most noticeable symptom is insatiable thirst coupled with frequent urination. The body works overtime as it flushes glucose out, along with a loss of water, electrolytes and other minerals. Other symptoms include dizziness, tingling in feet and hands, thrush, genital itching, weight loss and extreme tiredness. If left to go its own course glucose cannot be used as a fuel, and so the body mobilizes its fat reserves as a source of energy. This is what causes rapid weight loss. The liver also converts fats to ketone bodies as an alternative fuel for the brain and other organs that are capable of using them. Ketone bodies are acidic, and in excess concentration cause ketoacidosis that can lead to coma.

Diabetes has been steadily rising since 1989. In the United States diabetes is the leading cause of new blindness in working-age adults, of new cases of end-stage renal disease and of non-traumatic lower leg amputations. In addition, cardiovascular complications are now the leading cause of diabetes-related morbidity and mortality, particularly among women and the elderly. In adult patients with diabetes, the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) is three-to-five fold greater than in the general population. Also diabetics are more susceptible to tuberculosis. Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States and costs the American economy approximately $98 billion annually. It has been found that autoantibodies, including islet cell antibodies (ICA), glutamic acid decarboxylase antibodies (GADA), and antibodies directed against protein tyrosine phosphatase/IA2 (IA2-Ab), appear in the circulation years before clinical onset of diabetes and permit increasingly precise disease prediction [Gale].

I will attempt to explore the affect of insulin on other hormones, especially cortisol, to suggest that some poison in food such as capsaicin may be causing diabetes, and to touch on some dietary considerations, especially potassium and copper.

Sugar diabetes, type I, is caused by a destruction of the isles of Langerhan cells (beta cells) in the pancreas. These cells secrete insulin, a peptide or small chain amino acid hormone that regulates the transposition of glucose into the cells. In spite of years of experience in injecting insulin into the body to thwart this defect, people with diabetes have poor health. This poor health manifests itself as degeneration of the feet and eyes, among other things.

One major problem which people with diabetes face is that the insulin is injected episodically in massive doses. Since insulin, as is the case with most peptide hormones, has a half-life in the blood stream measured in only a few minutes for insulin [Hoffman], Insulin is cleared by the liver in about 15 minutes. The concentration in the body varies over wide extremes. The body has a way of varying the secretion of other hormones in an attempt to keep the most important parameters of physiology at a reasonably optimum level. However, compensating for insulin's variation can result in some disadvantageous compromises.

For instance, when large amounts of insulin enter the body, serum sugar content drops precipitously. Probably in an effort to correct this rather dangerous situation, there is a sudden upsurge in cortisol secretion [New England Journal of Medicine]. Cortisol gives effects which ramify throughout the body. The effect, which the body is undoubtedly utilizing in this case, is the degradation of many proteins in order to produce glucose from them. The connective tissue is especially degraded [Houck, et al], probably because this is the tissue that the body can most afford to lose short term. There is also a suggestion that insulin’s indirect affect in increasing hydrogen ion or acidity (decreasing pH), because of potassium entering the cell with the glucose to form glycogen, could be an important part of health degradation [Moore 1986]. One way to avoid this would be by continuous infusion or by much more numerous injections of smaller doses, say every ten minutes, with a high-pressure injector. A device has been created that will do this, and is discussed here.The Mayo clinic is currently developing an “artificial pancreas” in an attempt to solve this problem. It seems to me that it would also be helpful to eat glucose producing foods before the injection rather than after if both the above strategies are impractical in a particular case or time. Eating foods high in potassium should be advantageous also because one of the steroid hormones used to stimulate excretion of potassium, 11deoxycorticosterone, inhibits glycogen formation [Bartlett], so presumably potassium withdrawal into the cells would be more of a problem when that hormone declines. Blood glucose homeostasis requires that fasting concentrations lie between 35 and 58 millimoles per liter. This is termed the basal level (Waugh & Grant 459). Most health professionals agree that avoidance of high blood glucose concentrations is the number one priority for anyone suffering from diabetes, and it is undoubtedly important. The way this is handled by diet is with complex carbohydrates called starch, which consist of long chains of glucose molecules and are created by plants. If eaten in the form that the plant created it, the plant tissues serve to delay the digestion (break down) of the carbohydrate. However, if the carbohydrate is processed by, for example, milling or grinding, it becomes more easily digested. If the carbohydrate is subjected to moist heat it is hydrolyzed, as in the baking and boiling process, and becomes gelatinized. (Garrow p65). In this form it is readily converted to maltose by pancreatic amylase, which in turn is rapidly converted to glucose by the liver. Pritchford claims that a whole food diet with well chosen foods can eliminate the need for medicines in type 2 diabetes (non insulin dependant diabetes or NIDDM) and external insulin in most people, even mitigating type I diabetes somewhat (Pitchford pp371-377). In my opinion raw seeds such as oatmeal and wheat (wheat soaked in water) can be digested and taste at least as good as the slimy porridges and bland breads otherwise eaten. See this site for a defense of glycemic index, which term embodies the above concept. Of course some foods such as potatoes and cabbage must or should be baked or cooked because they have mild poisons in them that are destroyed by heat. Eating diets high in dairy products, vegetables, fruits, and low in alcohol reduces the incidence of type 2 diabetes in Japanese men. However it was undoubtedly primarily the vegetables and not the dairy products because it has been found that milk increases the insulin resistance of type two diabetes, perhaps due to low copper of milk. So while milk may reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes, it would seem that it increases the intensity of those who do get it. These strategies should be explored.

It has been discovered that pancreatic amyloid deposits of amylin are a hallmark of type 2 diabetes and considerable evidence indicates that amylin oligomers are cytotoxic to beta cells. Secoiridoid oleuropein aglycon, which is present in olive oil, consistently protected beta cells against toxicity of amylin [Rigacci].

When glucose enters the cell, it takes potassium with it [Knochel 1984] to form glycogen, or animal starch. As a result a dangerous, potentially lethal, low serum potassium can result. It is potentially lethal because the serum potassium must be kept at 4.8 milliequivalents per liter (187 milligrams per liter) [Lans] for nerve impulses to travel efficiently. For this reason it is probably important for people with diabetes to eat foods adequate in potassium, including those foods eaten to provide immediate glucose. This would be especially important for those who still secrete insulin (insulin resistant or type 2 diabetes) because people with a potassium deficiency secrete less insulin [Mondon] and potassium as well as magnesium, vegetable oil, and calcium were inversely associated with type 2 diabetes for non obese women. It is instructive to know what the possible causes of high blood potassium are. Most causes of high blood potassium are probably renal (kidney) failure. Diabetes causes over 30% of kidney failure for unknown reasons. In kidney failure during diabetes, potassium elevates after eating 100 grams of glucose, unlike normal people who show a slight decline [Knochel p447]. The slight decline in normal people is no doubt related to the fact that insulin along with adrenaline stimulates the cell’s potassium pump in muscles [Flatman]. I suspect that this in order to furnish potassium to form glycogen. I do not know what strategy diabetics with kidney failure should follow.

Glucose intolerance from low potassium develops exclusively associated with lower insulin secretion rather than the cellular response to insulin [Rowe][Gardner 1952]. The response time of insulin to glucose loading is also decreased in previously starved people by potassium supplements [Becker]. It could be an adaptation to avoid low plasma potassium resulting from the potassium entering into the cell in order to associate with glycogen that would otherwise occur. Low cell potassium can inhibit the insulin response independently of serum potassium [Spergel]. It is important to consistently get sufficient potassium in the diet because it takes a long time to rebuild low cell potassium and low cell potassium is very dangerous because of heart disease. The cell has enormous amounts of potassium normally so it takes a long time to build it up if it becomes depleted. Apparently the glycogen in the liver increases, though.

Hyperglycemia can be managed by glucose-insulin-potassium (GIK) regimen [Das]. Use of GIK should keep in mind a new discovery that diabetics excrete vitamin B-1 at a much higher rate than other people, which leads to a vitamin B-1 deficiency. If potassium supplements are given during the wet heart disease of beriberi (thiamine or vitamin B-1 deficiency) the heart disease is made much worse [Mineno][Gould]. Wet heart disease is impossible if potassium is also deficient [Folis]. Instead a muscular atrophy similar to that from vitamin E deficiency appears [Hove][Blahd]. During a vitamin B-1 deficiency the heart loses potassium [Mineno]. This may be why heart damage in beriberi resembles that in a potassium deficiency. If you have heart disease it would be a good idea to try hard to find out which kind it is. If potassium is supplemented it would seem wise to supplement with vitamin B-1 as well or use foods high in it. I assume this would be especially pertinent if you drink wine because wine has a poison in it that interferes with potassium excretion [McDonald]. The reverse is probably also the case, maybe even during diabetes. The vitamin B-1 deficiency would be much worse if refined, unfortified food is eaten or food that has sulfites added. This last is because sulfites destroy vitamin B-1 in the intestines [Amerine] [Fitzhugh]. Such foods poisoned with sulfites are wine, vinegar, pickles, olives, salad dressing, canned clams, fresh, frozen, canned, or dried shrimp, frozen lobster, scallops, dried cod, gelatin, pectin jelling agents, cornstarch, modified food starch, spinach pasta, gravies, hominy, breadings, batters, noodle/rice mixes, shredded coconut, vegetable juice, canned vegetables (including potatoes), pickled vegetables (including sauerkraut), dried vegetables, instant mashed potatoes, frozen potatoes, potato salad, corn syrup, maple syrup, fruit toppings, and high-fructose syrups such as corn syrup and pancake syrup, instant tea, liquid tea concentrates, beer, bottled lemon juice, some baked goods, some dried fruits, and some meat in dog and cat food. Even if you are eating foods adequate in vitamin B-1 you could still possibly have a problem with vitamin B-1 deficiency if you are using diuretics [Suter] [Wooley]. There is something in tea leaves that antagonizes vitamin B-1. Also, the symptoms of a vitamin B-1 deficiency can materialize even if vitamin B-1 is adequate if magnesium is deficient, say from Crohn’s disease [Dyckner, Nyhlin, Wester]. Extruding wheat flour at temperatures approaching 100 degrees C can cause losses of vitamin B-1 as high as 34%. Phenolic compounds in blueberries [Hilker] and rice bran [Chaudhury] destroy vitamin B-1. A folate deficiency prevents thiamin absorption in rats. Folate is the most common B vitamin deficiency in the world. [Howard] Betel nuts destroy vitamin B-1. The diet can vary widely as to vitamin B-1 [Dept. of Health]. Also the use of benfotiamine, as is sometimes used during fibromyalgia, would probably be dangerous during potassium supplementation, since it is said to deplete the body of vitamin B-1. Vitamin B-1 deficiency may be suspected in refugee immigrants, critically ill patients, and alcoholics. Vitamin B-1 deficiency can result in cardiac failure, neuropathy, or Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome (from alcoholic beverage over use), which last can not be cured with oral supplements even though classic thiamine deficiency symptoms do not show [Thompson]. Diabetics should keep in mind a new discovery that type 1 diabetics excrete vitamin B-1 four times normal people and type 2 diabetes three times, which leads to a vitamin B-1 content in plasma one fourth as high in diabetics. This is due to a malfunction of thiamine absorption from thee urine in the proximal kidney tubules. It is probably the reason why high-dose thiamine and benfotiamine therapy increased transketolase expression in renal glomeruli, increased the conversion of triosephosphates to ribose-5-phosphate, and strongly inhibited the development of microalbuminuria. This was associated with decreased activation of protein kinase C and decreased protein glycation and oxidative stress—three major pathways of biochemical dysfunction in hyperglycemia [Babaei-Jadidi]. Erythrocyte vitamin B-1 was normal in diabetics, probably because there were increased thiamine transporters THTR-1 RFC-1 in the cell wall. Therefore erythrocyte thiamine can not be used to determine thiamine status [Thornalley]. You may see a discussion of the imbalance of thiamin relative to potassium in regard to heart disease in this article. You may see here the way to acquire a VIII. very comprehensive book about potassium nutrition and physiology including the potassium/vitamin B1 interaction. It is called “POTASSIUM NUTRITION in Heart Disease, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Gout, Diabetes, Metabolic Shock (hyperkalemia), and High Blood Pressure”. The table of contents and the introduction are shown.If you decide to use potassium supplements instead of food, I recommend that you acquire the above book. That imbalance between potassium and thiamin as affecting heart disease is also discussed in that book.

Potassium in the blood was found to increase by use of sesame oil. In a study involving 40 hypertensive diabetic patients (22 male 18 female) on medication (atenolol, a beta-blocker, and glibenclamide, a sulfonylurea anti-diabetic drug). Using sesame oil in place of other cooking oils for a period of 45 days was found to bring about significant improvements. Subjects were given sesame oil (Idhayam Gingelly oil) and instructed to use it in place of their usual cooking oil for a period of 45 days. After 45 days of sesame oil use, both systolic and diastolic blood pressure reduced significantly. Furthermore, reductions were found in body weight, body mass index, girth of waist, girth of hip, waist:hip ratio, plasma glucose, HbA1c, TC, LDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, and plasma sodium levels, while plasma potassium levels increased. The activities of enzyme antioxidants and levels of non enzyme antioxidants increased, while the levels of TBARS decreased. After 45 days of sesame oil use, the subjects were instructed to stop using sesame oil and instead cook with groundnut oil for 45 days. After this substitution, blood pressure was found to increase. The authors of this pilot study conclude that substitution of sesame oil as the sole edible oil has an additive effect in further lowering BP and plasma glucose in hypertensive diabetics [Sankar]. I do not know what in sesame oil does this.

The observations about potassium are reinforced circumstantially by a study that used a so called "vegan" diet with vegetables and legumes to cure diabetes, but no refined food, meat, or milk which showed substantial improvement including much less loss of protein from the kidneys [from a dead URL]. Milk removal can not be an important part of a reduction of incidence of type 2 diabetes because milk consumption in populations of men reduces incidence of type 2 diabetes [Choi, Arch Intern Med] although, because it increases the severity of those who have type 2, not drinking milk may be a good idea for them. Of course part of the above improvement of the vegan diet could have been increase of other nutrients, including vitamin C. It has been found that there was significantly less DNA damage when vitamin C was higher in the blood plasma in type 2 diabetes even in the presence of hyperglycemia [Choi, Diabet. Med.]. It is not necessary to give up meat, milk and eggs so far as potassium is concerned and they provide several essential nutrients that vegetables do not. Calcium and magnesium, as well as potassium [Chattergee] have been found to be inversely related to type 2 diabetes [Colditz]. Magnesium deficiency may be a common factor associated with insulin resistance and vascular disease [Nadler]. Low serum magnesium is a predictor of type 2 diabetes [Kao]. However no correlation of type 2 diabetes was observed from dietary intake[Kao]. So it would seem that magnesium in most diets would be sufficient to prevent type 2 diabetes in the absence of some other factor, most likely a poison. It has been proposed that magnesium and potassium supplementation would ameliorate vascular degeneration in at least a third of diabetics [Whang].

People with diabetes are prone to atherosclerosis, fatty degeneration of the liver and heart disease. People with diabetes have low magnesium tissue levels. They often develop eye problems (retinopathy). People with diabetes with the lowest magnesium levels had the most severe retinopathy. The lower the magnesium content of their drinking water, the higher is the death rate of people with diabetes from cardiovascular disease. A larger percentage of magnesium is absorbed from water than is absorbed from food. In an American study the death rate due to diabetes was four times higher in areas with low magnesium as compared to areas with high levels of magnesium in the water. So magnesium supplements may be in order for diabetic people who eat junk food and maybe for everyone with diabetes of both types. It is possible to receive a lethal dose of magnesium just from gargling with Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate) [Gerard]. Since this is so, this would be another argument for getting as much nourishment from food as possible and perhaps for not using excessive supplements of any nutrient interminably once body content is normal. However magnesium chloride is said to be more advantageous than other forms for a wide variety of afflictions recognized as far back as 1914, including diabetes, asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia, emphysema, pharyngitis, tonsillitis, hoarseness, common cold, influenza, whooping cough, measles, rubella, mumps, scarlet fever; poisoning, gastro-enteritis, boils, abscesses, whitlow (paronychia or inflammation around a finger nail), infected wounds, and osteomyelitis (inflammation in bone marrow). This is probably because absorbing as the chloride solves the hydrogen ion or acidity problem. In more recent years Vergini and others have confirmed these earlier results and have added more diseases to the list of successful uses: acute asthma attacks, shock, tetanus, herpes zoster, acute and chronic conjunctivitis, optic neuritis, rheumatic diseases, many allergic diseases, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and beneficial effects in cancer therapy. It is very popular in Russia where they are amazed that it has not caught on in western medicine. Magnesium as the sulfate is probably not a desirable oral supplement since sulfate is an excretion product and the sulfate should have the same affect as adding sulfuric acid to a normal diet, whatever that is. Magnesium chloride could conceivably be in a similar position to some extent, especially during pain and certainly if the kidneys are badly damaged. Also, it is the chloride in table salt that increases blood pressure, not the sodium [McCarty 2004][Boegshold], so magnesium as the chloride could be disadvantageous for people with high blood pressure.

One person reports getting red cell magnesium up to normal with magnesium orotate supplement and Epsom sulfate foot baths every other day, along with choline citrate supplement in the hope the last helps with absorption. Magnesium as the orotate (Pyrimidinecarboxylic acid, also known as orotic acid or vitamin B13, Animal Galactose Factor, Oro, Orodin, Oropur, Orotonin, Oroturic, Orotyl, or whey factor. B13 is not really recognized as a vitamin because it is manufactured in the body by intestinal flora.) It has been shown to be more readily absorbed than the carbonate [Schlebusch]. Athletes had their swimming, cycling and running times decreased in the magnesium-orotate group compared with the controls and their insulin system markedly affected [Golf]. I suspect that this was primarily due to the orotate itself, because orotate is incorporated into RNA, enabled by biotin [from a dead URL]. Biotin reduces blood glucose content in both type one diabetes [Reddi] and type two [McCarty 2007]. Orotic acid is not necessarily always good in excess since it is said to bind zinc to a non-biologically active state and can damage the liver, but I would think that the 50 to 100 milligrams that has been recommended should be safe, but I have no sure information. Sources of orotate are whey, yogurt, beetroot, carrots, and jerusalem artichoke, but not human milk.

The importance of potassium is further reinforced by the fact that high serum concentrations of cortisol cause greater excretions of potassium [Barger]. If arthritis is involved the situation is probably worse yet because rheumatoid arthritics have a low whole body potassium content [LaCelle]. In addition, it may be that low insulin may cause greater excretion of potassium and magnesium because of affects on the energy furnished to their cell wall pumps. I have no information on this last. Disordered potassium metabolism that is expressed as hypokalemia (that is, a serum potassium level below 3.5 mmol/L) can result in cardiac arrhythmias, muscle weakness, hypercalciuria (increased calcium excretion in the urine), and glucose intolerance. Such disorders, which are correctable by potassium administration, can be induced by diuretics, chloride-depletion associated forms of metabolic alkalosis, and increased aldosterone production (Knochel, 1984). Hypokalemia reduces the capacity of the pancreas to secrete insulin and therefore is a recognized reversible factor in glucose intolerance (Helderman et al., 1983). There is some limited evidence that hypokalemia can also confer insulin resistance (Helderman et al., 1983; Pollare et al., 1989), which is type 2 diabetes. A low potassium diet (580 milligrams per day ~15 millimoles per day]), which did not induce frank hypokalemia, resulted in a decrease in plasma insulin concentration and a resistance to insulin action, which were reversed when dietary potassium was supplemented with 4800 milligrams per day (64 millimoles per day) of potassium chloride or about 2400 milligrams of potassium (Norbiato et al., 1984). Ideally potassium intake should total more than 3500 milligrams per day. This last should be enough for almost all normal situations. Decreased erythrocyte and plasma potassium concentrations have been associated with glucose intolerance (Modan et al., 1987). That intake brought them up to a value that is probably the minimum daily requirement. Diuretic-induced-hypokalemia leads to insulin resistance (hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia) and glucose intolerance (Helderman et al., 1983). In one trial, individuals with diuretic-induced hypokalemia did not achieve reduction in cardiovascular events compared to diuretic-treated individuals without hypokalemia (Franse et al., 2003). Because moderate potassium deficiency and its adverse side effects can occur without hypokalemia, hypokalemia (low blood potassium) is not a sensitive indicator appropriate for use to establish adequacy. The first mild obvious adverse symptoms start to show up below about 4.4 milliequivalents per liter. Total body potassium is always depleted in diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) but serum/plasma potassium may be low, normal or high. Therefore potassium must be corrected cautiously in that situation if supplements are used [Yared]. Also it is crucial to make sure that vitamin B-1 is adequate if potassium supplements are used, or the heart disease of beri-beri could be triggered. There also has been developed recently a test that uses electron bombardment of a single mouth mucous cell by electrons in order to generate distinctive x-rays. It is said to cost $175 for a determination and determines other electrolytes inside the cell at the same time. This is very encouraging because previously very expensive machines were necessary to determine cell content. In particular, it may yet prove to be mildly disadvantageous to use potassium chloride routinely. Use of this supplement should have the same affect as adding hydrochloric acid to a normal diet, whatever that is.

The accepted view is that hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) results in glycosylation of protein, which is a cause of health problems during diabetes. However, it has been proposed that the acidity of cell fluid of people with diabetes, which shows up even when the blood serum is not abnormally acidic, may be a large part of those health problems [Moore 1991]. If this is so, using potassium supplements as the chloride or sulfate may yet prove to be disadvantageous, and has been shown to raise blood pressure somewhat since potassium as the chloride given to rats has been shown to increase blood pressure rather than lower it as does the bicarbonate. Eating foods that have unmetabolizable (not burned) anions (negative ions), which many fruits and some vegetables no doubt have (but I have no information as to which ones), may be also disadvantageous. It is conceivable that this may even include vinegar and some citrus fruit, even though both the acetate and citrate are at least partly metabolized. In view of common use of these last foods, this matter should be explored. You may see a site which discusses nutrients alleged to assist people with diabetes.

People with type 2 diabetes should attempt to alleviate it as much as possible nutritionally. However for those for whom nutrition does not take care of the problem completely, there are two compounds that show great promise if leptin deficient mouse experiments are an indication. They are 4-phenyl butyric acid ((PBA) and an endogenous bile acid derivative ursodeoxycholic acid, the taurine conjugated derivative (TUDCA) [Ozcan]. These compounds have a good safety record and have been approved by the FDA for other diseases. Taurine amino acid itself seems to be advantageous and is easily obtainable. Taurine ameliorates kidney damage in general [Trachtman]. As much as 6 grams per day are said to be harmless [McCarty 2006, p67]. See below for a more extensive discussion. However taurine is not advantageous in protecting the kidneys from glomerular damage unless it is combined with N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC) in rats [Odetti].

I would suggest that a partial solution to the problem of poor potassium and magnesium nutrition would be to place a tax on all food that has had potassium or magnesium removed by food processors and use it to completely fund all Medicare and workman’s compensation for injuries and disease that relate to diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, heart disease, high blood pressure, fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue syndrome. This would also take the onerous tax burden now incurred for them and place it on the shoulders of those who help cause the problem. To get such a law passed it will probably be necessary to convene a constitutional convention to reverse the Supreme Court ruling that corporations are individuals and can make unlimited political donations and ads because food processors will lobby vigorously against it and will bribe law makers.

Large doses of vitamin B3 (nicotinamide, niacinamide, or niacin) prevents onset of insulin dependant diabetes [Kolb]. They believe that cell death pathways are modified through affects on poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), and to a lesser extent (mono) ADP-ribosyl transferases (ADPRTs). 26 milligrams per kilogram of body weight were just as effective as 50 [Visalli]. Children with antibodies treated with vitamin B-3 (niacin) had less than half the onset of diabetes incidence in a 7 year time span as the general population and even lower incidence relative to those with antibodies as above, but no vitamin B-3 [Elliot and Pilcher] [Mandrup]. The mechanism of action appears to be (a) inhibition of macrophage and interleukin-1-mediated beta cell damage and (b) inhibition of nitric oxide production. The anti-oxidant role of B-3 may also be involved [Andersen]. This would seem to indicate that a vitamin B3 deficiency should be avoided, and in particular, to eat NO refined flour and to eat little corn. Vitamin B3 deficiency causes pellagra disease. Niacin itself is not toxic, but the chemicals converted by niacin are toxic to the skin and liver in overdose, and high doses of niacin should only be reached with gradual increase. [Wikipedia]. Petrie recommends no more than 250 milligrams per day for adults [private communication]. He believes that type I diabetes can be cured if it is caught before all the isles of Langerhan cells have died (newly diagnosed) using niacinamide or vitamin B-3, but not the nicotinic acid form. He is backed up by a study of newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes in which three patients out of seven were in clinical remission, but none in the placebo group [Vague]. This was first proposed by Lazerow in 1950 [Lazarow].

It is said that some uncontrolled experiments have shown beneficial results using inositol (also called vitamin B-8) for diabetic neuropathy. Recommended dose is 500 milligrams twice daily. It is possible that this phenomena is related to inositol helping to power the potassium pumps [Bian] [Allard]. If so, getting enough potassium may be a better or at least also necessary way. There is also evidence that alpha lipoic acid (ALA) will modulate insulin sensitivity in type 2 diabetes significantly [Ruus], Acetyl-l-carnitine has shown promise to help prevent damage to the nerves of diabetics and reduce pain and enable nerve regeneration [Sima].

It has been shown that degradation products from over cooked foods make mice prone to diabetes more susceptible after eating foods high in those products.

Life long supplementation with vitamin E has been proposed in order to minimize the oxidation of low density lipids and thus prevent or delay heart disease in type 1 diabetes. Also see this site. Of course most of those supplements should not be necessary if wheat germ is eaten.

An experiment using cocoa significantly improved the cardiovascular function of ten people with type 2 diabetes. The researchers attributed this to flavinoids.

It has been found that shields against electromagnetic radiation enable some people to have less severe symptoms of type I and 2 diabetes [Havas].

Rats which ingested fluoride in their drinking water had type 2 diabetes produced [Lupo]. Fluoride causes bad effects equal to or worse than that to the thyroid, brain, etc. so fluoride water should never be imbibed or bathed in or food treated with fluoride insecticides.

An interesting phenomenon associated with diabetes is that Hispanic people in Texas have three times the rate of diabetes as Anglicans. One in ten adult Hispanics have diabetes. The chance that this is a genetic defect by itself is vanishingly small. 62-94% of the time only one twin has diabetes, which all but rules out a genetic defect. Diabetes in previous years was invariably fatal so there would be little chance of such a recessive gene remaining in the population in such large numbers. There is a chance that mitochondria genes are involved peripherally [Wallace], but it is highly unlikely that the ongoing type of mitochondria genetic damage implied with this could be dramatically different in the races in the absence of an environmental circumstance as well. There is little chance that a microorganism is involved directly since these people live in close association with each other. In any case, years of search have failed to show any pathogen. Recent research hints at a virus as part of the cause [von Harrath], but no definitive proof exists. A poison in the air seems unlikely since pure air blows off the Gulf most of the year. Besides, everyone is breathing the same air. The last circumstance is also true of water. This leaves food, the most important circumstance in our environment. There is a good chance that one of the foods which Hispanics eat more of than Anglicans has a poison in it which affects the isles of Langerhan disproportionately. All foods eaten in any quantity in greater amounts by Hispanics than others should be tested on primates in controlled experiments. I would be in favor of placing peppers high on the list, especially chili pepper [Weber 2008], since these come from a family of plants, Solanaceae, many of whose members have very vicious poisons. Chili peppers were domesticated in their Brazilian center of origination as long as 6000 years ago from a family of plants that probably originated in Bolivia [Perry]. It has been found that a substance in peppers known as capsaicin (8-methyl-N-vanillyl-6-nonenamide). along with a related compound (resiniferatoxin) placed on human skin cancer cells kills them, so chili is a good candidate. Also capsaicin is mutagenic (causes genetic defects) [Nagabhushan]. A receptor, vanilloid receptor subtype 1 (VR1), forms a nonselective cation channel in the plasma membrane that mediates some of the effects of capsaicin and its analogues, which are named vanilloids. This is thought to be the mechanism for capsaicin’s use to inhibit pain [Suth]. Chili is especially likely since capsaicin placed on the nerves surrounding the insulin cells in mice kills the nerves. Then, when the researchers injected the neuropeptide "substance P" normally deficient in the nerve cells in the pancreases of diabetic mice, the diabetes instantly cleared up and remained that way after one injection. Capsaicin causes changes in many hormones and molecules in the body such as tumor necrosis factor and other immune hormones, some of them dramatic [Kang]. This is very ominous. It is possible that preliminary evidence could be obtained by immersing isles of langerhan cell cultures in extracts of these foods. If any are found to be poisonous, perhaps the situation could be resolved by breeding the poison out of the edible parts. That chili could be involved is hinted at by virtue of the fact that insulin secretion is inhibited after a meal high in sugar is eaten with chili [Ahuja]. It is possible that chili acts in synergism (reinforce each other) with a copper deficiency since adequate copper prevents diabetes in ATZ poisoned mice [Sitasawad].

Dr. Beale speaks of having a worm that one can do experiments involving diabetes on. Maybe you could use such a technique in your experiments.

. .Capsaicin has been proposed for weight reduction, pain inhibition, and other purposes. Before any of this is attempted, there should be long term experiments involving chili in conjunction with a copper deficiency with regard to diabetes.

Deborah Cavel-Greant [private communication] has pointed out that Hispanics have considerable Indian genes and that Indian tribes from Mexico to the Arctic have high rates of diabetes. She points out that her Tuscarora people of the Cree are plagued by diabetes and do not eat chili much. So if they do not eat peppers much, and peppers are involved, something else may be also, or that Indians are more susceptible to chili than others. It is possible that there is a genetic component because diabetics have skin nerve regeneration more inhibited by capsaicin than non diabetics [Polydefkis]. A survey should be performed to determine this. The Pima Indians in Arizona have a higher diabetes rate than white people living nearby and they have a much higher chili consumption [Reid]. Pima Indians in Mexico have very low rates, but I do not know their chili intake. It is conceivable that marginal diabetes may have added an additional problem to the problem of poor resistance to introduced disease in explaining why the South and Central American Indians collapsed so quickly before the advance of the Europeans. There is a strong correlation between populations that eat chili and deaths due to heart disease and diabetes.

A worldwide study of the incidence of juvenile diabetes showed variations of 350 fold between regions [from a dead URL]. There were no correlations with ethnicity or races or climate. So some kind of poison still seems to be all that is left. If so, it would be very desirable to find out what it is. If there is a poison in food, chili can not be the only poison if it is a poison, for a study found a 47 percent increase in diabetes among veterans with the highest levels of dioxin in their bloodstream. Dioxin is the compound in Agent Orange linked to health effects in laboratory animals. The result is based on 1997 physical examinations of 1,000 Air Force veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange during the nine years that it was used as a defoliant and crop killer in Vietnam. [from a dead URL]

It has been found that bafilomycin, a toxin found in some bacteria called streptomyces that infect vegetables such as potatoes, sugar beets, turnips and radishes, may predispose babies of mothers who eat such food. Pregnant mice that ate tiny amounts of the toxin, which cannot be destroyed through cooking, were far more likely to have babies that later developed type 1 diabetes. The evidence is backed up by a high rate of diabetes in Finland and Sardinia, where root crops are eaten in large amounts.

A large number of other poisons have been proposed to increase the risk of diabetes. They include arsenic, alloxan, aspartame, MSG, benzene, bisphenol in container plastic, pthalates, and pentachlorophenol (PCP). There is also a small association of diabetes with statin therapy. It is possible that this small association is because people are on statin therapy because of the cholesterol hypothesis, and cholesterol is raised from a copper deficiency.

Lectins, plant proteins which bind certain carbohydrates, have been proposed as making certain cells susceptible to autoimmune destruction.

Another poison which may yet be shown to predispose to diabetes is the drug, olanzapine (trade name Zyprexa), belonging to a relatively new family of medications called atypical antipsychotics, which are used to treat schizophrenia, paranoia and manic-depressive disorders. Other drugs in this class include clozapine, risperidone, quetiapine and ziprasidone. The researchers found metabolic abnormalities ranging from mild blood sugar problems to diabetic ketoacidosis and coma in patients who had been prescribed olanzapine, most of whom were otherwise not known to be diabetic. Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is a serious condition in which a person experiences an extreme rise in blood glucose level coupled with a severe lack of insulin, which results in symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, stomach pain and rapid breathing. Untreated, DKA can lead to coma and even death.

Aspartame, a zero calorie sweetener, has been found to accentuate diabetes. It has been proposed that aspartame will damage the hypothalamus, which part of the brain controls steroids and seems to be defective in CFS. Aspartame degrades to the very poisonous methyl alcohol (methanol), poisonous because it can become formaldehyde. Aspartame is suspected to cause blindness, systemic lupus, maybe heart disease [Lutsey], and cancer [Soffritti] among other things, and mimics multiple sclerosis in some people. One of my respondents proposes that the chemical structure mimics 'real' phenylalanine, and is selectively/preferentially able to cross the blood-brain barrier into the brain, where it locks into place, preventing the 'real' chemical from getting to where it's supposed to go. See this site for Dr. Christine Lydon’s discussion of some of its affects and history of the politics of getting it declared safe. If you would like to write a letter to your state or federal legislator, you can see an elaborate letter for that here. It is a good idea not to eat or drink anything laced with aspartame. If you have been eating aspartame there is a web site that suggests some ways of detoxifying it. If you use the vitamin B-1 as they suggest, be absolutely certain that your potassium is adequate or you could trigger a heart attack.

Also it has been found recently that persistent organic pesticides (POPs) absorbed by eating fish are associated with type II diabetes [Lee]. The researchers entertained the possibility that type II diabetes make people absorb persistent organic pesticides more readily than others, rather than the other way around. However they think this is unlikely. They find that these poisons are synergistic with obesity. This may explain why obese people seem to be more prone to type II diabetes. However, it is not likely obesity itself that makes people prone, but rather a sedentary life style, a life style that causes both the obesity and poor health [Charansonney]

Of course nutritional deficiencies or imbalances can not be ruled out as contributory factors yet and may yet prove to partly treat diabetes. There have been studies that indicate that vitamin D supplemented in the first year of life reduces diabetes in later years [Hypponen]. Children treated with 2,000 IU daily of vitamin D from their first birthday onward had an 80% decreased risk of developing type 1 diabetes throughout the next 20 years, so I assume that 5 times that amount would be safe for adults. People getting no sunlight should supplement with at least 1,000 IU of vitamin D, which is 5 times the usually recommended amount [Glerup], The majority of normal people are too low in vitamin D also. Studies in the past establishing normal levels were based on the general population who are marginally deficient. They should have been based on levels in life guards. Recent studies reveal that current dietary recommendations for adults are not sufficient to maintain circulating 25(OH)D levels at or above 80 nmol or 32 µg/L, especially in pregnancy and lactation [Hollis]. Recommended blood contents and intake are discussed here. Since naked Africans receive 10,000 IU, Vieth suggests that concerns of toxicity are inappropriate [Vieth]. There has been established a wide margin of safety above current intakes [Kimball]. Masterjohn proposes that vitamin D toxicity, when much too much is taken, is from a concurrent vitamin K and a vitamin A deficit [Masterjohn]. An additional advantage is that apparently epidemiological studies and circumstantial evidence show lower rates of multiple sclerosis, hypertension, osteoarthritis, and colorectal, prostate [Chan], inflammation, influenza, tuberculosis, breast, and ovarian cancer when vitamin D is adequate [Tavera-Mendoza]. Some of these effects may be because of more efficient absorption of magnesium and calcium as enabled by vitamin D. We are now able to better identify sufficient circulating 25(OH)D levels through the use of specific biomarkers that appropriately increase or decrease with changes in 25(OH)D levels; these include intact parathyroid hormone, calcium absorption, and bone mineral density. Using these functional indicators, several studies have more accurately defined vitamin D deficiency as circulating levels of 25(OH)D lower than 80 nmol or 32 µg/L. Recent studies reveal that current dietary recommendations for adults are not sufficient to maintain circulating 25(OH)D levels at or above this level, especially in pregnancy and lactation.

Lack of sufficient exercise is already known to contribute. You would think that exercise immediately after a meal would be most advantageous, in order to help mitigate the surge in blood sugar then, but I know of no clinical evidence. Being over weight or obese has been statistically linked to being diabetic. I consider it unlikely that fat or fat cells themselves have a significant affect on diabetes, and fat as a cause has recently been discredited [Gibbs]. In any case fasting should not be prolonged because muscle wasting is dangerous and weight reduction is not a factor in amelioration of rheumatoid arthritis, at least, from vegetarian diets. However, both over weight and diabetes linked to a third factor, such as not enough exercise or poor nutrition, is quite possible. Also extra fat may be soaking up the fat soluble vitamin D. It has been found that DHEA hormone supplements significantly decrease abdominal fat and insulin action in elderly people [Villereal]. It also has been shown that DHEA increases insulin sensitivity in type II diabetes [Dhatariya]. It would be a good idea to wait until long term experiments demonstrate that this is safe for sure. Other adrenal steroids have a dubious safety history.

Deficiencies of the nutrients chromium, magnesium, potassium, and pyridoxine (similar to vitamin B-6) are said to potentiate hyperglycemia during pregnancy as discussed in the following abstract; -- “There is an increased requirement for nutrients in normal pregnancy, not only due to increased demand, but also increased loss. There is also an increased insulin-resistant state during pregnancy mediated by the placental anti-insulin hormones estrogen, progesterone, human somatomammotropin; the pituitary hormone prolactin; and the adrenal hormone, cortisol. If the maternal pancreas cannot increase production of insulin to sustain normal glycemia (sugar status) despite these anti-insulin hormones, gestational diabetes occurs. Gestational diabetes is associated with excessive nutrient losses due to glycosuria. Specific nutrient deficiencies of chromium, magnesium, potassium and pyridoxine may potentiate the tendency towards hyperglycemia in gestational diabetic women because each of these four deficiencies causes impairment of pancreatic insulin production. This review describes the pathophysiology of the hyperglycemia and the nutrient loss in gestational diabetes and further postulates the mechanism whereby vitamin/mineral supplementation may be useful to prevent or ameliorate pregnancy-related glucose intolerance” [Jovanovic-Peterson]. Vitamin B-6 supplementation has been found to reduce nerve damage in diabetics [Jain]. In cases of juvenile diabetes, there were lower than normal levels of reduced glutathione, ceruloplasmin oxidase activity, zinc, copper and sodium, while the other elements show no significant changes [Awadallah]. Zinc and arachidonic acid were found to lower glucose via improvement in insulin sensitivity in genetically diabetic rats [Song, 2003]. This may be because insulin requires zinc [Pfeiffer, p143]. Omega 3 and omega 6 vegetable oils have been found to protect against chemically induced diabetes [Suresh], so it could be that our current foolish custom of hydrogenation vegetable oils may be predisposing us to diabetes, at least type 2.

Magnesium has been found to improve insulin sensitivity and metabolic control in type 2 diabetic patients [Rodriguez-Moran]. In non insulin dependant diabetes (NIDDM or type 2) patients, daily Mg administration, restoring a more appropriate intracellular Mg concentration, contributes to improve insulin-mediated glucose uptake. The benefits deriving- from daily Mg supplementation in type 2 patients are further supported by epidemiological studies showing that high daily Mg intake are predictive of a lower incidence of type 2 diabetes or NIDDM [Barbagallo]. Fung, et al suggest that the reduction in risk for type 3 diabetes or NIDDM from whole wheat is because of its magnesium content [Fung]. Potassium can not be absorbed efficiently in the presence of a magnesium deficiency and magnesium tends to be correlated with potassium intake. In a severe deficiency of magnesium, potassium can not be absorbed at all. So it is possible that the efficacy of magnesium is operating largely through its affect on potassium. Total body magnesium does not predict a deficiency, but blood serum must be low for that. If blood magnesium is 25% low, the enzymes depending on magnesium fail to operate adequately, including those responsible for its own absorption [from a dead URL].

Because the amino acid, taurine, is thought to be advantageous for people with diabetes, magnesium taurate may be the best supplement to take. Taurine supplements have been found to give some protection to the retinas of diabetic rats [DiLeo]. Taurine or 2-aminoethanesulfonic acid is an acidic amino acid sulfonated rather than carboxylated, which is found in high abundance in the tissues of many animals, especially sea animals. Taurine is also found in plants, fungi, and some bacterial species, but in far less abundance. It is an amine with a sulfonic acid functional group, but it is not an amino acid in the biological sense, not being one of the twenty protein-forming compounds encoded by the universal genetic code. Small polypeptides have been identified as containing taurine, but to date there has been no report of a transfer RNA that is specifically charged with taurine [from Wikipedia]. It is essential to babies.

There is strong evidence that taurine could have beneficial affects on type I diabetes, and could reduce organ peroxidation and plasma lipids. The retina, lens, and nerves respond better to taurine than other organs [Franconi]. Taurine has been used for high blood pressure [Fujita], migraine headache (I suspect that less than 1000 milligrams can remove the headache caused by allergy to peanuts and some spices from personal experience), high cholesterol, epilepsy, macular degeneration [Bian] [Allard], Alzheimer’s disease, liver disorders, alcoholism, and cystic fibrosis, and depression. Keep in mind that some people may have a genetic defect that limits the amount of taurine tolerated and that adequate molybdenum may desirable. Taurine may make a copper deficiency worse, based on a single case history [Brien Quirk, private communication]. This may be because taurine may be mobilizing copper and zinc into the plasma [Li]. So if you should decide to take taurine, make sure your copper intake is more than adequate, as well as your zinc.

It has been found that supplements of the amino acid, taurine, will restore the abnormal electrocardiogram present during a potassium deficiency by an unknown mechanism. This information has been used in several case histories by George Eby to control a long standing type of cardiac arrhythmia called pre atrial contractions (PACs), a benign but irritating and nerve racking heart problem, with 2.5 grams of taurine with each meal.

Experiments have indicated that acetyl-l-carnitine amino acid may reduce pain during diabetes, diabetic neuropathy, and maybe help in nerve regeneration and insulin resistance. It has shown safe advantageous affects for numerous diseases that are involved with the nervous system such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, Alzheimer’s disease, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis .

Copper depletion doubled glucose in blood of diabetic rats fed glucose, 50% higher for sucrose [Cohen, et al 1982]. There must be a couple of copper catalyzed enzymes somewhere in the process, therefore. One investigator has suggested that buildup of copper in the kidneys of people with diabetes is responsible for the kidney damage which sometimes appears in people with diabetes (based on rats) [Gassman]. People with diabetes probably absorb copper two times more readily than normal people [Craft & Failla]. This may be the reason why diabetics have a reduced chance of getting an aortic aneurysm [Blanchard]. Therefore people with diabetes may have a narrow safe range of intake. It would be desirable to find out. It is possible that this is an adaptation evolved to help forestall a synergism of copper deficiency with a poison that causes diabetes. The pancreas can be irreversibly destroyed by a copper deficiency in rats inside a few months, but the isles of Langerhan are not affected [Smith, et al] [Fell]. Even so, there is somewhat of negative correlation between copper in drinking water and onset of juvenile diabetes [Zhao]. So it is possible that people with partial destruction of their beta cells could cut back on their medication with proper nutrition. As already mentioned in conjunction with chili It is possible that adequate copper could help prevent insulin dependant diabetes since it does so for ATZ poisoned mice [Sitasawad] and copper in drinking water has somewhat of a protective affect [Zhao]. It could be that copper produces its effects through super oxidase dismutase because it has been shown that the antioxidant metalloporphyrin-based superoxide dismutase (SOD) can prevent or delay the onset of the so called autoimmune cascade in diabetes, using mice as subjects. [Haskins]. Once insulin dependant diabetes sets in handling copper may be a problem and may be part of the difficulty with poor health afflicting people with diabetes. It has been found that taking vitamin C supplements increases mortality from cardiovascular disease in diabetic post menopausal women [Lee]. This may because of the fact that vitamin C increases the need for copper. Shellfish and liver are the richest sources of copper, with leafy vegetables fairly high. You may see an article that discusses copper in food and a table which shows copper and zinc in foods expressed as milligrams per thousand calories at this site.

Houstis seems to think that reactive oxygen species (ROS) cause type 2 diabetes. ROS are radical forms of O2 that arise as by products of mitochondrial respiration and enzymatic oxidases spurred on by TNF and dexamethasone (an analog of cortisol). [Houstis]. If so, this would be additional circumstantial evidence that copper is involved in type 2 diabetes, since it is copper catalyzed enzymes that remove ROS. Epidemiological evidence should be obtained to see if there is a correlation with aneurysms, hemorrhoids, herniated discs and other copper deficiency caused diseases.

Another nutrient which is probably helpful in type 2 diabetes is chromium. It must be in the trivalent form, in which form it is very safe. Chromium picolinate will mute some of the affect that smoking has on insulin resistance [McCarty 2005]. There is considerable evidence that chromium is advantageous for type 2 diabetes. I have heard of a single case in which taurine chromium supplements considerably improved tinnitus ringing of the ears, which is often associated with type 2 diabetes. The Food and Nutrition Board of the NRC has recommended a "safe and adequate" range for dietary chromium of 50 to 200 mcg per day [National Research Council]. Food intake analyses suggest that, on average, Americans consume below the adequate level. For example, one analysis of 22 diets designed to be well balanced showed a range of daily intakes from 8.4 to 23.7 mcg per 1,000 calories (mean 13.4 mcg). [Anderson 1992]. The signs and symptoms of chromium deficiency in mammals include impaired glucose tolerance, elevated circulating insulin concentration, glycosuria, fasting hyperglycemia, hypoglycemia (I do not know why both these last two should be both involved if they are), impaired growth, elevated circulating cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations, neuropathy, decreased insulin binding, decreased insulin receptor number and impaired humoral immune response. A junk food diet low in meat is probably the most likely way to be afflicted with a chromium deficiency. 1000 mcg of chromium picolinate per day was necessary to see the full range of body biochemical benefits in China [Anderson 1997a]. Chromium with a valence of three is not toxic in large amounts probably because chromium is absorbed less from high concentration. Chromium chloride and chromium picolinate have been fed to rats at thousands of times the National Research Council's upper limit (on a body-weight basis) with no evidence of toxicity [Anderson 1997b]. Other valence states of chromium ARE toxic though.

Fructose high in the diet will enhance insulin resistance [Elliot and Keim]. This may be because of the adverse affect that fructose has on a copper deficiency.

Inositol is thought to increase sensitivity to insulin [Lamer], perhaps because of inositol’s requirement for the electrolyte cell wall pumps. It has been discovered that two anthocyanins, which are colored pigments in foods, cyanidin-3-glucoside and delphinidin-3-glucoside, stimulate insulin production [Jayaprakasam]. This may prove to be useful in type 2 diabetes. There is always an element of risk in medicines that affect body functions, however. So more long term experience would be desirable before making extensive use of this.

It has been suggested that the herbal sweetener, stevia, may have safe advantageous properties for diabetes. The advantages may be both for insulin production and for utilization (I have no information on the safety of long term use. Because something is natural does not guarantee its safety).

It has been proposed that sulforaphane in broccoli can lower the risk of heart disease in diabetics. It is currently being investigated.

Iodide reduces the amount of insulin necessary during type I and Type II diabetes. Iodide also stimulates the immune system. It is possible that supplementation with as much as 50 milligrams of iodide per day to start would augment immunity against fungal infection, syphilis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. To see an extensive discussion of iodide, see this site.

Probiotics have been found to be advantageaos in preventing diabetes [Latinen][Yadev 2007][Yadev 2008]. A probiotic can be defined as a preparation of, or a product containing, viable, defined micro-organisms in sufficient numbers, which alter the microbiota by implantation or colonization in a compartment of the host and by that exert beneficial health effects in this host. Probiotic preparations and products most commonly contain strains of lactobacilli, bifidobacteria or saccharomyces, or mixtures of these strains. Probiotics for children during the first 6 months of their life reduces the antbodies that correlate with future risk of diabetes to almost zero [Lungberg] . Probiotics during pregnancy markedly reduced gestational diabetes [Luoto].

An encouraging development for type I diabetes is the discovery that implanting the gene for cdk-6 in the kidneys of mice caused them to start to produce insulin. It is possible that some day it will be possible to cure diabetes. I hope so.

Using insulin to alleviate diabetes is a marvelous advance, but there is no excellent substitute for preventing the disease in the first place, and research should be directed to ruling out possible causal and contributing factors in our environment, especially foods. It is possible that, if all the poisons that are discovered affecting diabetes are removed and all of our food becomes nutritious by virtue of food processors not degrading it, diabetes might subside to a low ebb. Use of refined flour and sugar is without a doubt especially damaging in regard to nutritional deficiencies. In addition, mental state is fairly important and there is evidence that blood sugar after meals is improved by laughter during meals.

The health of people in the USA is abysmal , and a major part of it is poor nutrition. As the 12th century physician, trying to cure by diet before he administers drugs, said; “No illness that can be treated by diet should be treated by any other means" or as Hippocrates expressed it in 460 - 377BC; "If we could give every individual the right amount of nourishment and exercise, not too little and not too much, we would have found the safest way to health." It would seem that a healthy life style has been known for a long time. It is my belief that an unprocessed, unfrozen, not canned, high in vegetables diet would keep a large majority of people reasonably healthy and without the need for fad diets. 80% of Americans do not eat adequate vegetables, but even though 72% of Americans take vitamin or mineral supplements daily or sometimes [Sardi p148], their health is atrocious, especially old people. This is probably due to the impossibility of fitting reasonable amounts of the macro nutrients such as potassium and magnesium into capsules, as well as some nutrients missing or supplied in huge amounts.

I would suggest that a partial solution to the problem of poor nutrition would be to place a tax on all food that has had essential nutrients removed by food processors and completely fund all Medicare, Medicaid, and workman’s compensation for injuries and diseases that relate to the nutritional deficiency. This would also take the onerous tax burden now incurred for them and place it on the shoulders of those who cause the problem. And this tax burden is not the only burden. Half the bankruptcies in the USA are caused by medical bills. Achieving this would be much more likely if the money was removed from politics and there were runoff elections. The Health Freedom Foundation is currently attempting to solve the problem by lobbying government legislatures to change the laws and agencies’ organization.

You may see some proposed theories regarding type 2 diabetes at this site. There has been an experiment performed that transformed body cells into insulin secreting cells in mice [Zhou]. So there is hope for a cure in the future.

CONCLUSIONS
In the mean time, if diabetics administer their shots continuously or at least every twenty minutes or so, get more than enough potassium, vitamin B-1, and magnesium, get the correct amount of copper, make sure their carbohydrates are not sugar or predigested, and maybe apply some of the harmless ameliorative actions above, I suspect that they will be able to live a long and reasonably healthy life.
If there are any insulin secreting cells left, it may prove possible to cure even type 1 diabetes with nicotinamide.
The onerous financial burden on those who have diabetes and on Medicare could be largely lifted by taxing those who cause or exacerbate diabetes. This would be made possible by run off elections and government election financing of campaigning.

SOME TERMS USED in DIAGNOSING DIABETES
BG = Serum blood glucose concentration (90 is normal above 140 is abnormal) 400 is sufficient to be admitted to hospital. HbA1C - Haemaglobin Adult division 1c. Measures glycosylation of haemaglobin. Haemaglobin is recycled every 90-120 days so this is an indicator of excess serum glucose over that period. Below 5.5% is normal. Diabetic target range is 6.5% -7.5%, over that spells increased risk of heart disease, myopathy, amputations, blindness and death.

REFERENCES are shown below.

Nick Edmonds provided some useful information for some of the statements above, especially about diagnosis and information about the glycemic index.

SOME USEFUL LINKS To HEALTH SITES

. You may see here the way to acquire a very comprehensive book about potassium nutrition and physiology. It is called “POTASSIUM NUTRITION in Heart Disease, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Gout, Diabetes, Metabolic Shock (hyperkalemia), and High Blood Pressure”. The table of contents and the introduction are shown.

There is evidence that insulin can furnish protection against Alzheimer’s disease.

There are many useful tips about eating habits for diabetics here.

There is an article discussing anacardic acids in cashew nuts and maybe mangos to cure a tooth abscess which might prove useful. Cashews may yet prove to work for gram positive acne, leprosy, staphylococcus, and tuberculosis also.
Copper nutrition and physiology. Copper in food for aneurysms, hemorrhoids, slipped discs, emphysema, anemia, and maybe gray hair from a copper deficiency.
Regulation of Potassium and Sodium: How steroids regulate electrolytes (potassium and sodium)
The Purpose of Cortisol: Cortisol is Proposed to be an Immune Hormone against diarrhea.
There is evidence that cell phones can produce tumors. Using remote ear phones would seem to be a good idea.

Fluoride in city water will cause fluorosis discoloration of teeth, weakened bones, damage to the kidneys and immune system, bone cancer and, worst of all, damage to the nerves resembling Alzheimer’s disease. It will also cause damage to ligaments resembling arthritis. For a forum that discusses iodide (an antidote for fluoride) access this site.

See this site for some links to health articles.
For a procedure that discusses tetrathiomolybdate for removing copper and thus preventing further solid cancer growth and Hodgkin’s, see this site. This might buy some time until you can persuade a doctor to try tumor necrosis factor or interferon or an opioid antagonist drug called Naltrexone (Naltrexone in the large 50 mg size, originally manufactured by DuPont under the brand name ReVia, is now sold by Mallinckrodt as Depade and by Barr Laboratories under the generic name naltrexone) that blocks some endorphin receptors. Said blockage is thought to cause the body to temporarily secrete more endorphins, especially after midnight at night. These endorphins are thought to stimulate the immune system. It appears to be especially effective for minimizing symptoms and retarding progression of multiple sclerosis. Advice how to proceed if you have been taking cortisol may be seen here. (MS) (also see these sites; this site and this site and a trial). A few doctors have had encouraging results in Crohn's Disease, and even to some extent in cancer. Low doses of Naltrexone (LDN), 1.5 to 4.5 milligrams, at bedtime is used (timing is important, and it is important not to buy slow release forms). It is said to have no known bad side effects at those doses other than insomnia the first week or two in some. There is also reports from an extensive survey in this site. and an extensive discussion at this site. I think some clinical studies on Naltrexone are in order, and it should not be a prescription drug (I have a petition to make Naltrexone an over the counter drug with the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research FDA Rockville MD 20857, Re; Docket No. 2006P-0508-CPI. Perhaps if enough people wrote supporting the petition it could be enacted). Though side effects appear unlikely, it is not proven over longer periods. Dr. Gale Guyer of Advanced Medical Center located in Zionsville, Indiana also is using it for cancer. Cris Kerr of Case Health, Australia produced this free ebook “Those Who Suffer Much, Know Much”. It contains 51 patient testimonies of health success using low dose naltrexone (LDN) as a treatment option (30 for multiple sclerosis). Supporting information is included; interviews and perspectives from 19 health professionals, an explanatory article, and comprehensive scientific and advocate reference lists.

Olive leaf extract has shown clinical evidence of effectiveness against a wide range of viruses, including AIDS [Bihari], herpes, and cold viruses. It sometimes produces a Herxheimer or pathogen die off symptoms (from effectiveness against bacteria?). There is evidence that it is synergistic (reinforce each other) with Naltrexone. There have been a few case histories of improvement in what were probably arthritis patients and CFIDS patients. The active ingredient is said to be oleuropein or enolate. There has been very little follow up research done on it.

Also it has been found that curcumin in turmeric or curry powder will inhibit several forms of cancer, including melanoma. People who live in India where these spices are eaten, have one tenth the cancer elsewhere.
Here is an article with anecdotal evidence for pressurized oxygen, zinc, vitamin B6, and vitamin C after head injuries. They also claim a fair percentage of prison inmates from psychiatric disorders after head injuries.
See this site for evidence of a correlation between magnesium deficiency and cancer. There is also an extensive article about the use of magnesium for depression.

EPILOGUE

A site is available which shows. foods which are high in one nutrient and low in another (including calories). This last site should be especially useful for a quick list of foods to consider first, or for those who must restrict another nutrient because of a genetic difficulty with absorption or utilization

You may find useful for definitions and easy to use a search for abstracts of journal references, "Gateway". or a list of medical search engines (but see Google’s toolbar below).

The very extensive USDA Handbook #8 may be seen here. To access the information you must press "enter" to search, and then divide Kcal into milligrams of potassium. That last table is very comprehensive, is used in search mode, and even lists the amino acids. There are also links in it to PDF types of printouts from the table for individual nutrients available here. Just click on the “A” or “W” button for the nutrient you desire.

You may see a long list of diabetes organization sites here.

There is a free browser called Firefox, which is said to be less susceptible to viruses or crashes, has many interesting features, imports information from Iexplore while leaving Iexplore intact. You can also install their emailer. A feature that lists all the URLs on a viewed site can be useful when working on your own site.

If you have Iexplore, there is a tool bar by Google that enables you to search literature articles only (the “scholar button”, which is probably the best literature searcher, or http://scholar.google.com ), search the internet from the page viewed, mark desired words, search the site, give page rank, etc.

There is a free program available which tells on your site what web site accessed you, which search engine, statistics about which country, statistics of search engine access, keywords used and their frequency. It can be very useful.

The author has a degree in chemistry and a master of science degree in soil science. He has researched this subject for 40 years, primarily library research. He has cured his own early onset of arthritis. He has published articles on allied subjects in; The Journal of Theoretical Biology (1970, 1983), The Journal of Applied Nutrition (1974) which gained the best article of the year award, Clinical and Experimental Rheumatology (1983), and Medical Hypotheses (1984, 1999, 2007, 2008) This article is solely funded by the author.

Send email to Charles Weber; ----- isoptera at att.net – or; phone = 828 692 5816

Confidentiality of data relating to individual patients and visitors to a medical/health Web site, including their identity, is respected by this Web site. The Web site owner undertakes to honor or exceed the legal requirements of medical/health information privacy that apply in the USA.

All printed rights to this article are reserved. Electronic rights are waived.

Here is an argument that the human race descended from many progenitors in Human Female Evolution, that you might find interesting.

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Allard J, Lennon DP, Greenwood MR, Buckenham AJ, Hawthorne JN. 1993 Reduced sodium pump activity in inositol-deficient HL-60 cells: no evidence of control by protein kinase C. Biochim Biophys Acta. Dec 16;1220(1):66-68.

Amerine MA Ough CS 1972 Recent advances in enology. CRC Critical Reviews in Food Technology V2 issue 4407-526.

Andersen HU, et al. 1994 Nicotinamide prevents interleukin-1 effects on accumulated insulin release and nitric oxide production in rat islets of langerhans. Diabetes 43, 770-777.

Anderson RA, et al. Dietary chromium intake: freely chosen diets, institutional diets, and individual foods. Biol Trace Elem Res 1992;32:117-21.

Anderson RA, et al. 1997a Elevated intakes of supplemental chromium improve glucose and insulin variables with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes;46:1786-91.

Anderson RA, et al. 1997b Lack of toxicity of chromium chloride and chromium picolinate. J Am Coll Nutr;16:273-9.

Atkins RC 2003 New Diet Revolution, Vermilion .

Awadallah R, El-Dessoukey EA, Doss H, Khalifa K, el-Hawary Z 1978 Blood-reduced glutathione, serum ceruloplasmin and mineral changes in juvenile diabetes. Z Ernahrungswiss 17(2):79-83.

Babaei-Jadidi R Karachalias N Ahmed N, Battah S, Thornalley PJ 2003 Prevention of Incipient Diabetic Nephropathy by High-Dose Thiamine and Benfotiamine. Diabetes 52; 2110-2120.

Balzer J et al 2008 Sustained Benefits in Vascular Function Through Flavanol-Containing Cocoa in Medicated Diabetic Patients. Journal of American College of Cardiology. 51; 2141-2149. Barbagallo M, Dominguez LJ, Galioto A, Ferlisi A, Cani C, Malfa L, Pineo A, Busardo' A, Paolisso G. 2003 Role of magnesium in insulin action, diabetes and cardio-metabolic syndrome X. Mol Aspects Med. 2003 Feb-Jun;24(1-3):39-52.

Barger AC Berlin RD Tulenko JF. Infusion of aldosterone, 9 alpha fluorohydrocortisone, and antidiuretic hormone into the renal artery of normal and adrenalectomized unaesthetized dogs: effect on electrolyte and water excretion. Endocrinology 62; 804, 1958.

Bartlett GR MacKay EM 1949 Insulin stimulation of glycogen formation in rat abdominal muscle. Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. Med. 71; 493-495.

Baumgartner TG 1991 What the practicing nurse should know about thiamine. Journal of Intraven. Nursing 14;130-135.

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