Don't Live With Diabetes, Conquer It (2025)

21/01/2023

This is the first time I've posted to my page in a couple of years. Time is marching on. I guess the Covid-19 pandemic caused me to lose focus for what was my passion; control bodily inflammation and thereby stave off chronic disease and illnesses. I did really well for about 5 years controling my insulin resistance, almost got to my goal weight of 145; just 9 more pounds to go! However, I recently realized I was fighting against my genes. You see, I have both genes for diabetes. The mystery of my life was suddenly revealed. All my life I wondered why I was the only fat one in my family of 7. I as the only girl was teased and belittled growing up because I was fat. My mother weighed 92 pounds and I was always being compared to her. At 8 years old I weighed 50 pounds. I didn't realize it at the time of course, but I was probably the heavyiest child in my school. My mother started giving me diet pills. Perhaps the school nurse had suggested them. I was a very active child growing up. Always outdoors running and playing but still being made fun of because I was heavier than all the other kids. I guess that is why I never became obese, only overweight. So, my weight has yo-yoed all my life. When I was 18 I for no apparent reason lost my appetite and my weight dropped from 132 to 118. It was so wonderful to be attractive to boys for the first time in my life. I now realize that the sudden change in my appetite was probably due to my leptin hormone deciding to work for some unknown reason. It was around this time that I enlisted in the Air Force. No weight problems to hold me back! I signed on under the delayed enlistment program awaiting a slot at basic training. I enjoyed dating and going out for the first time ever. Then the day came for me to ship out for basic training in San Antonio, TX. By this time I weighed 110. I never did get down under 100 like my mom. I recall clearly when I arrived at my permanent duty station at George AFB in California, things were more spread out and we didn't have the busses coming around regularly to take to work, the chow hall, BX store, etc. I seldom ate at the chow hall back then because it was too far to walk from my dorm. I recall buying beef jerky and other snacks that didn't require refrigeration and keeping them in my room. So my weight remained good. I believe my ideal weight back then was 120. I'm sure I was within that number. Then I met my future husband. I recall him taking me to Denny's for breakfast, because breakfast was his favorite meal. I could not finish that big plate of food. I began to be sick at my stomach. This was a feeling I'd never had before. Growing up I had a big appetite and if it was a food I loved, I was a bottomless pit. Again leptin was working for me. Sadly, if you ignore leptin's signals often enough and over eat, it stops talking to you.
Then we married and I got pregnant right away. Of course I didn't know I was pregnant but seemingly overnight I developed a roll of fat around my abdomen. People I worked with asked me if I was pregnant. I was very offended that they noticed I was getting fat. Of course they didn't know my history. Finally, I missed my period and went to the clinic, and the test was positive. I was about 6 weeks along. I didn't realize at that time that I probably had gestational diabetes, although I did alway wonder why I showed so early in my pregnantcy.
The next day, my period started, at least I thought it was my period so I thought there was a mistake with the test. The next morning I woke in a puddle of blood; the bed was soaked. Of course I realized that wasn't normal. So I called off work and went to sick call. The doctor told me I was having a miscarriage and a large clot was holding my uterus open so I was continuing to bleed heavily.They transported me to the AF hospital at March AFB for a D&C. The first surgery I'd ever had. I remember waking up in agony. That was it! I never wanted to get pregnant again, nor have children.
So life went on for many years as planned. By then my biological clock was ticking. My husband decided he wanted a child, so we tried to get pregnant and succeeded. However, at 7 weeks gestation I had another partial miscarriage and had to have another D&C. My doctor said I probably had too little progestrone in my body to maintain a pregnancy so if I got pregnant again they would check and if needed give me progestrone shots. I now believe that because my thyroid was low or borderline low, my hormones were out of wack.
Well, I got pregnant again right away. I guess my progestrone was normal now because I never had to have the injections. My first pregnancy that went to term and I had gestational diabetes. My max weight with this one was 202 lbs. I was as round as I was tall and when it came time to deliver, the baby was too big so I had my first c-section. The baby was a girl, weighing 10, 11 ozs.
My doctor told me he believed having just one child was child abuse. Besides my husband wanted a boy to name Jonathna as well. So when our daughter was 1 yr old we tried for a boy and I had no problem getting pregnant. Again, I had gestational diabetes. My max weight this time was 212. The most I've ever weighed in my life. I had told my doctor that this time I wanted my tubes tied. I learned I was a fertile mertyl and had no problem getting pregnant. The jurney was just to hard on me. Boy or no boy this was my last pregnancy. This time, I had eclampciea so they delivered the baby at 37 weeks via c-section. The baby, a girl weighing close to 13 lbs, had to stay in the NICU due to low blood sugar.
No more pregnancies but I was left with a hernia from the first one
and a lot of loose skin because I had been streached out so far. By now my daughters were 4 and 6 years old. I decided to get the hernia fixed and a tummy tuck. Yet another abdominal surgery to recover from. I did manage to get down to a size 10. Smallest size I'd worn in a long time. But didn't stay there very long. By now I weighed around 156 and had hypoglycemia. At this time I had terrible brain fog and had to write everything down. I once forgot to pick my daughter up from preschool. Still, I felt relieved because I was not diabetic, but the doctor said eventually my pancreas would become exhausted and I'd be a diabetic.
Years passed and I continued to yo-yo with my weight. but managed to hold off the diabetes diagnosis. I finally tried the Adkins low carb diet and got down to 142. I was told by people I knew I was too skinny; I looked haggard! Thanks for calling me a hag. Of course I bounced back up again and before I knew it I was 198! The most I'd weighed without being pregnant. I decided I could no longer fight my biology. I Was just different from everyone else on the planet. I decided to never diet again because I always gained it all back plus 10. I could not take another 10 lbs on my 5 ft 2inch, medium frame and I ate whatever I wanted. Surprisingly I lost weight without trying. I was 182 and stayed at that weigh until I was told I was diabetic. Yes, I'd lost weight because I was diabetic.
I began my current journey about 6 years ago. I have not been able to date to conquer my leptin/insulin resistance but I still haven't given up. I believe the key for people like me is intermittent fasting and extended fasts of at least 4 day. It is difficult because I live with 4 people that eat whatever they want and I'm the cook. So right now I'm at 178.4 and experience hypoglycemia right around 11 am which is very unpleasant and I hate the symtoms. I've got to be strong and not give up.

12/10/2020

This is the best explanation of FAT I've ever run across. My doctor, of course, uses the BMI measurement to suggest that I am no longer obese; I'm merely overweight. I recall, possibly in the 80s, that some researcher discovered that a person could be overweight, but still fit. It didn't really click with me at the time, however, I couldn't help noticing that the lady at my gym that conducted the swim aerobics classes was more than a little overweight. I remember wondering at the time, how she could be conducting these classes everyday, more than once a day and still be carrying all that fat? This article helps me to see that I don't have to be a stick, 125 pounds, to be healthy and live a rich life without chronic disease making me miserable. Controlling insulin is the key that I have discovered to not only controlling insulin, but bodily inflammation that causes chronic disease. I'm 5'2 and my goal weight is 145. It's a journey that I've been on for over 6 years now. I've not given up because I'm always learning.

"The Many Dimensions of Fat
Shedding those extra pounds can be tough—especially if you try too hard

By Conan Milner
October 1, 2020 Updated: October 1, 2020
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Some factors of the American obesity epidemic are obvious. We lead sedentary lives with an abundance of tantalizing calorie-dense foods made from combinations of sugar, fat, and salt.

These factors alone make losing fat hard enough. But the addition of other, more subtle factors can make the job even harder.

We’re bigger than ever, but, at the same time, more image-conscious than ever. And when our image fails to meet our expectations, it can fuel issues of self-worth and make us lose confidence in our ability to exercise self-control.

Plus, we live in a world of instant gratification. This doesn’t give us much practice with activities like fat loss, which take time and patience.

These social and psychological factors don’t contain any calories, but they’re a big reason why so many people with aspirations to slim down simply give up, or turn to drastic measures.

Our feelings about fat change with the times. Throughout history, beauty standards have ranged from stick-thin to generous curves. But the problems associated with fat are much more than an issue of aesthetics.
Consequences

Health and fat are intimately entwined. Obesity is linked to death via heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, not to mention it puts extra stress on joints having to haul that excess mass around.

Obesity also makes for more complications during surgery. Most hospitals now require three separate consent forms for anyone with a BMI over 40.

Excess fat can also weaken our immune system. Studies from France, China, and the United States have consistently found that heavier patients infected with COVID-19 were more likely to die than their leaner counterparts. And vaccines are generally less effective in people with excess fat.

While such health facts can occasionally help inspire us in the battle to lose fat, many of us are much more motivated to chuck our excess baggage based on how we look.
Efforts in Vain

For New York plastic surgeon Dr. Thomas Sterry, that inspiration came when he turned 40. A friend snapped a photo of him at the beach from behind as Sterry was protecting his toddler from the waves.

“I saw the photo and said, ‘Who’s that fat bald guy with my kid?!’ I spent the next 10 years fighting the good fight,” he said.

Sterry cut out carbs and treats, and went to the gym religiously. But even after all that sacrifice, his image still fell short of expectations.

“Just before my 50th birthday—as I realized I didn’t look substantially better—I called a friend and had him suck my flanks,” he said.

Despite his profession and his own personal frustration, Sterry maintains that diet and exercise is still the best strategy to lose unwanted weight. It may not be the quickest, easiest, or most exciting answer to fat loss, but Sterry says this method can get to places that even the best surgeon can’t touch.

“Plastic surgery is a trick on mother nature. We can get away with little things here and there,” he said. “The fat that we can remove is only a small portion of what people carry inside their belly, in their liver, and in between the spaces.”

There are endless diet and exercise options for losing fat, but the trick is finding a method that you can live with long term. Running five miles a day and starving yourself can certainly take off the pounds, but how long can you keep that up?

Sterry said that his routine got him close to the image he was seeking, but it required an
“unreasonable lifestyle” to maintain.

“I dropped carbohydrates completely, got up at 5:30 AM to hit the gym before my kids got up, never enjoyed an ice cream cone with them, and lived on a lot of rabbit food,” he said. “Sure, I looked better, but it was unsustainable.”

When sustainability is the goal, you might need to lower your expectations. Not everyone has the time, energy, or genetic disposition to look like a superhero in leisurewear.

But we can still maintain a healthier fitness level.
How Much Is Too Much?

Despite our unrealistic beauty standards and cultural hangups about fat, we actually need to carry some. The ultimate goal isn’t a body of pure muscle, but achieving a healthy balance.

Fat plays an important role in our biology. Fat is basically stored energy. In a well-fed society of people who sit most of the day, this feature becomes more of a burden than an asset. But in times of famine, an energy store means survival.

Women typically carry more fat than men. Hormones help drive this pattern—estrogen encourages fat, and testosterone suppresses it. This extra layer of softness gives women the additional energy necessary to grow and feed offspring.

It’s clear we need some fat, but how much should we carry? There are lots of opinions, but Sterry says the answer is elusive.

“When I got my Master’s Degree in Exercise Physiology, there was a lot of debate about people who were technically overweight but were still able to outperform the vast majority of the population in various exercise tests,” Sterry said. “The question became which is more important—to be fit or fat?”

But people don’t usually ponder this question. Instead, we’re all about the numbers. What does the scale say? The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a slightly more sophisticated metric called the body mass index (BMI). The figure is calculated by your weight relative to your height. Obesity is classified as a BMI of more than 30. Extreme or severe obesity is classified by a BMI of more than 40.

But Sterry says BMI doesn’t tell the whole story.

“We know that many very muscular people have a high BMI but clearly have very low-fat content (think NFL player types). So is it the weight that matters?” he said.

Some suggest that a better gauge of health is body fat percentage—the amount of fatty tissue you carry relative to the rest of your body’s mass. You can get an estimate of this figure with skinfold thickness measurements, bioelectrical impedance devices, or underwater weighing. An easier method is just to eyeball it—compare your own naked torso next to a body fat percentage chart and find your closest match. Close the door first.

According to the American Council on Exercise, an acceptable body fat range for men is between 18 and 24 percent fat, and women between 25 and 31 percent. Any more than this is considered obese.
Techniques for Losing Fat

There’s no solid consensus marking the difference between healthy and unhealthy when it comes to fat, but there are some facts that everybody generally agrees with. One is that belly fat poses more of a health risk than fat found on other parts of the body. Another is that hormones play a fundamental role in how much fat we carry.
Avoiding Insulin Resistance

The hormone best associated with fat is insulin. This hormone unlocks the cells of our body so they can take in glucose from the food we consume.

Insulin resistance happens when our cells will no longer accept the glucose, despite insulin knocking at their door. In this case, excess calories are just stored as fat.

According to biochemist and author of the Zone Diet, Dr. Barry Sears, even people with higher body fat percentages can still be healthy as long as they don’t have insulin resistance. But it doesn’t mean they’re out of the woods.

“As long as you don’t have insulin resistance, you can be considered to have metabolically healthy obesity (MHO). However, it’s just a matter of time before inflammation increases in your fat stores. Now that excess fat becomes a breeding ground for the development of chronic disease and acceleration of aging.”

Sears says that what makes obesity such a major health concern is the excess inflammation it can generate. Inflammation is at the heart of nearly all chronic disease, and it creates a vicious cycle with excess fat. As systemic inflammation increases, the body accumulates fat more easily and makes losing fat that much harder.

So how do we safely and reliably get rid of fat? According to Sears, the basic strategy is to reduce calories without malnutrition and hunger. You need to balance insulin to cut fat, but you also don’t want to eat too little and disrupt your glucagon hormone and throw your blood sugar off.

“This balance is controlled by the protein-to-carbohydrate ratio at every meal, Sears said. “You need a calorie-restricted diet with adequate protein, moderate carbohydrate, and low fat, but rich in fiber.”
Intermittent Fasting

The Zone Diet isn’t the only method to address insulin resistance. Naturopathic doctor Christian Gonzalez recommends intermittent fasting (IF). This diet is less about specific foods, and more of a timed approach to eating.

Think of IF as a daily mini-fast. Instead of a typical fast where you go days or even weeks without eating, in IF you restrict all your meals to an eight-hour block of time. The remaining 16 hours you fast, except for water.

Sugar and carbohydrates trigger the biggest spikes in insulin, but the body secretes this hormone with every snack, meal, or nibble of food we take. The idea behind IF’s fat-loss power is that an extended period without insulin in the system helps make cells more sensitive to it.

“You’re not eating, so you’re not giving your body that sugar or glucose that goes into your cells. When there’s no more glucose for the body, then we start breaking it down from our liver,” Gonzalez said. “Our bodies are so smart that they recognize you’re not giving me this fuel, so let me go get fuel from somewhere else.”

Another advantage of a 12- to 16-hour daily fast is that it has been shown to trigger human growth hormone, which helps the body build muscle and burn fat.

“We also see burning of visceral fat, the disease-promoting fat around the organs. Another beautiful thing that happens is the reduction of inflammation,” Gonzalez said. “Lowering that inflammation is one of the number one indicators for long-term health.”
Exercise

Besides food, the other tool you control in the quest to trim fat is exercise. And, just like your diet, it has to be something that works for you so you can sustain it long term. Fitness is a lifelong process, so be kind with yourself. Try to make the journey enjoyable, even if the results are slow.

To burn off our stored energy, fat loss typically calls for cardio (exercises that get your blood pumping and make you breathe harder), but fitness experts emphasize that a complementary weight training/resistance program is a must for long term success. It may not make the numbers on the scale fall as fast, but having more muscle makes the body more sensitive to insulin, and burns more calories at rest.

Unlike muscle, fat accumulates with ease and age, so keeping it off takes sustained effort. And you’re more likely to keep the effort up if you don’t feel abused or deprived in the process. Although some individuals are able to take a punishing approach to slimming down, they may be hurting their health rather than helping it.
Acceptance

Yoga teacher Jess Penesso, who designs workouts to help women lose fat, spent 15 years thinking she would be happier if she could just shed 10 pounds. Her goal was the grail of fat loss—visible abdominal muscles—anatomy that only begins to reveal itself once you fall below 15 percent body fat.

But chasing after the highly coveted “six-pack” only left Penesso miserable.

“I told myself that ‘I’d love my body when…’ This was from years of consuming media and stories from friends and family that I believed. It led to disordered eating, drinking too much, and low self-esteem,” Penesso said.

Penesso says her life changed when she dropped the expectations, and simply fell in love with what her body could do.

“The less I obsessed about fat, the more my body seemed to change,” she said. “I’ve made peace with the body I have and love it right now (even with some fat) while having goals to feel the best I can.”
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21/12/2019

Your genes don't have to be your destiny. Medical researchers are are using gene therapy to help people with chronic and life threatening diseases, like cancer. What if we didn't damage our mitachondria to the point of chronic illness in the first place. Then we wouldn't need to go bankrupt trying to cure our diseases.
Turn on your good health genes by changing your diet in a very drastic way. Go back to the garden, God's garden. Study Genesis and see how He fed Adam and Eve. Eating of meat didn't happen until after the fall. Later in Leviticus, God gave his children dietary guidelines to follow. Good fats (olive oil), grains that weren't filled with preservatives, fillers, additives, and overly processed in a factory, fresh fruits and veggies in abundance. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a vegan. As God showed Peter; nothing that God has created is dirty and unfit to eat. The so called foods produced by the food industry are filled with additives that cause obesity, and are not compatible with good health.Eat as clean as you can; no processed foods, low carb, high good fats (use coconut oil for cooking, do not cook with olive oil; free radicals which are health destroying particles are created when olive oil is cooked at high heat; OK to use at end of cooking or cold as in salad dressing), and moderate protein. Eating too much meat is damaging as well because the excess to the body's needs is converted by the liver and stored as fat and too much fat in the abdominal area is unhealthy.
Did you know your body repairs itself each night as you sleep? Without the proper building blocks to make repairs to our genes, the damaged genes will be expressed not the healthy ones. God knew what he was doing when he made our marvelous bodies that are able to continue to function despite years of abuse, however there comes a time when the damage becomes too overwhelming. The result chronic illness and terminal disease. Even damaged bodies can be restored to health by following God's owner's manuals for our bodies; the BIBLE.

16/12/2019

Diabetes is NOT a chronic, progressive disease that has to be managed with meds. It's a lifestyle disease that can be reversed.

25/09/2018

Altzheimer’s: A Brain on Fire

A person doesn't have to be a diabetic, although diabetics are at a higher risk of Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s is now being called diabetes of the brain or T3D. High circulating insulin is THE culprit in many chronic diseases. When a person eats constantly of high carb foods, the inflammation in their body, due to the insulin being pumped out by the pancreas in an effort to drive the glucose into the cells, is damaging their cells. This damage takes years in most cases, that’s why most chronic diseases were once considered diseases of the old, however, today, more and more children are being diagnosed with cancer and Type 2 Diabetes, ( T2D). The brain, whose fuel is mostly glucose, develops the plaques of Alzheimer's in an effort to try and protect itself from the continuous onslaught. Doctors tell their patients that they need to eat 3 meals a day, with 2 snacks. The foods touted as "healthy" are foods that spike the blood sugar, such as fruits, grains, and of course, dessert. There's a rush of sugar that hits the blood stream from the small intestine where the food is broken down. The pancreas, doing its job, secretes insulin to drive the glucose into the cells where it is needed for fuel. That's 6 insults to the cell, with no break, of a very inflammatory hormone called insulin. If you know or have known of someone that has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's, their brain is on fire (inflamed), fighting to defend itself.

24/09/2018

Diabetics that control their blood sugar with diet alone, no meds, don't have to worry about this potentially deadly situation.

Don't Live With Diabetes, Conquer It

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