Weight Loss and Diabetes, Factors That Lead to Them, and Food as Medicine

Diabetes, a blood sugar problem with various causes, including and most importantly by insulin resistance created when the pancreas feels it has to continually kick out high levels of insulin, or created when the pancreas can’t kick out enough insulin to address blood sugar levels, seems to be on the rise as reported by Dr Mercola and others.

One drug was featured in an article this summer on CTV as follows:

“After having been off Ozempic for a few days, Janeiro says he’s waiting for his symptoms to go away as the medication is cleansed out of his body, something both Harris and Norman are patiently waiting for too.

“It’s not something to mess around with,” Norman said. “I’m really worried if they (side effects) are going to be long term, and what has it done to me long term?” she said.”

“Norman hopes other Type 2 diabetics considering using Ozempic understand the side effects fully before taking it on.

“I’m not saying that every medication is without a side effect. We all know that the majority of them do have lots of side effects, but do your homework, do your research, really ask a lot of questions and do what’s best for you. “”

This same drug goes by another name in the USA, Wegovy, and created by the same company, Novo Nordisk.

As Mercola reported:

“FDA approval for the most recent of those drugs — Wegovy (semaglutide) — was released with the hope it would increase weight loss.

Wegovy reportedly works by suppressing a person’s natural appetite, which is supposed to lead to eating fewer calories and subsequently losing weight. Novo Nordisk, manufacturer of Wegovy, has limited the number of doses patients are allowed to use since the demand for the drug is currently outpacing the company’s ability to manufacture it.

The medication comes with a boxed warning of the risk for thyroid C-cell tumors, including medullary thyroid carcinoma, in animal models. Serious side effects from the drug include anxiety, blurred vision, confusion, depression, difficulty swallowing, seizures, slurred speech and trouble breathing. Wegovy cites more possible side effects including pancreatitis, low blood sugar, kidney failure, increased heart rate and thoughts of suicide.”

“As Dr. Michael Greger, founder of NutritionFacts.org, describes, there is mounting scientific data to support using ginger to help lower blood sugar and improve insulin sensitivity. He begins by describing a case report of a 45-year-old businessman in Austria who was determined to stop using diabetes medication by changing his diet and including specific nutritional ingredients.

The businessman was able to stop taking his oral medication after four weeks and lowered his hemoglobin A1c to 6.4% after three months and 6.0% after six months. Normal hemoglobin A1c for people without diabetes is lower than 5.7%; 5.7% to 6.4% indicates prediabetes. The writers noted that multiple drug therapy was normally needed to handle glucose levels. Using ginger not only is potentially effective in treatment, but also in prevention.”

EDIT Jan 26, 2024

Unfortunately, as reported by Dr Mercola in January 2024, the makers of these drugs are coming up with novel ways to get them into people’s hands, including a telehealth line people can call.

Mercola makes the following suggestions to replace such harmful drugs with more natural methods (there are clickable footnotes in the link above for this quote below):

“A far better way to increase GLP-1 is to colonize your gut with Akkermansia muciniphila, a bacterium that naturally secretes a GLP-1-inducing protein that raises systemic levels of GLP-1. Recent research confirms Akkermansia’s ability to improve glucose homeostasis and ameliorate metabolic disease through this mechanism.”

“Akkermansia is inversely associated with obesity, diabetes, inflammation, leaky gut and metabolic disorders. It is also inversely correlated with lipopolysaccharides (LPS), an endotoxin secreted by gram-negative gut bacteria known to contribute to leaky gut and hinder mitochondrial energy production.”

“The good news is the abundance of Akkermansia in your gut can easily be enhanced through dietary interventions, such as:

~ Supplementing with probiotics and prebiotics that promote Akkermansia growth in the gut — Specific examples include Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Bifidobacterium animalis, Lactococcus lactis (probiotics) and oral fructo-oligosaccharides (oligofructose or FOS, a common prebiotic).

~ Eating more fiber — The short-chain fatty acids that form from fiber as it ferments in your intestines feed beneficial bacteria, including Akkermansia.

~ Increasing FODMAP’s in your diet — FODMAP refers to “fermentable oligo-, di- and mono-saccharides and polyols,” which include fructose (found in fresh fruit) and lactose (found in milk and other dairy products).

~ Boosting intake of dietary polyphenols — Black tea, red wine grape extract, cranberry extract and Concord grape, specifically, have all been shown to significantly promote growth of Akkermansia.

~ Avoiding alcohol and high-fat diets — Several studies have shown a correlation between high-fat diets (60% fat or higher) and significantly reduced Akkermansia colonization. Ditto for alcohol consumption.

~ Berberine: a compound that’s extracted from goldenseal, barberry, Oregon grape and tree turmeric. Some are even calling it “nature’s Ozempic,” as it helps regulate blood sugar and improve insulin sensitivity and gut microbiome diversity that may contribute to weight loss.”

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EDIT March 19, 2024

The Food Revolution Network published an article by Ocean Robbins, about a flavinoid anti-oxidant called Rutin. He had this to say:

“… in 2023, a randomized, placebo-controlled trial examined what happened when adults with type 2 diabetes took 500 mg of rutin every day for three months. One group got the rutin, and the other got a placebo. The rutin group improved on a bunch of different disease markers, including fasting blood glucose, insulin, A1c (a long-term and stable measure of blood sugar), and various cholesterol levels and ratios.”

He gives a list of various foods that rutin can be found in, such as apples, asparagus, cherries, buckwheat, yarrow, and olives. He says that in a 2016 rat study, rutin outperformed insulin. He recommends that you obtain your rutin from food, to avoid potential side effects that can occur from taking the supplement.

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With 89 different foods and counting, it is thoroughly possible to build a nutritional regimen that addresses both Diabetes and weight loss without the use of medication. Ginger‘s entry in my Nutritional/Medicinal Wholefoods Database is quite long! It’s number of beneficial uses for the gastrointestinal, nervous, and cardiovascular systems is amazing! Needless to say, when I saw what Mercola was sharing, I was cheering!

In another discussion on Diabetes by Dr Mercola, a report funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in 2021 (be wary of this foundation’s goals when they share useful info!), shared the following list of causes for Type 2 Diabetes:

Mercola notes differences between Types 1 and 2 Diabetes this way:

“Unlike Type 1 diabetes, which is caused by an autoimmune reaction, during which the body mistakenly attacks and destroys insulin-producing cells in the pancreas known as beta cells, Type 2 diabetes is often caused by lifestyle factors.”

Mercola has a few recommendations to share, namely, avoiding statin drugs, increasing magnesium intake, avoiding ultra-processed foods, reduce consumption of foods containing Omega-6, and even when and how often you eat. He recommends:

“Eating a balanced, healthy diet of fresh, organically raised fruits and vegetables and steering clear of artificial sweeteners — which are also linked to Type 2 diabetes — and all processed foods is the best way to take control of your glucose levels. The timing of your meals also matters.”

EDIT Sept 27, 2023

Another 2023 article released by Dr Mercola, discusses Psyllium Husk as an effective diabetes, weight loss, IBS, and blood pressure food source.  This article resulted in several new entries in my Nutritional/Medicinal WholeFoods Database!  At only 7 pages long, I’d encourage you to read it.  This grain, if available where you live, is even known to assist in rebuilding the gut lining, aiding in leaky gut repair.

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If you’re wondering what a list of foods might look like to help in your own blood sugar management, get in touch with me and after going over your client intake form, we can go over what such a list might look like for your situation.

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