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Diabetes
Diabetes is a far more serious condition than most people understand it to be. Diabetes mellitus causes premature aging of blood vessels and hence most diabetics live somewhat shortened lives because of the blood vessel complications of their diabetes. These can cause heart attack, stroke, and circulatory problems affecting other organs like the kidneys and eyes. While it is important to control blood sugar levels in diabetes, this does not remove all the complications of being diabetic. That is why at The California Institutes of Preventive Medicine we perform additional blood tests, take retinal photographs, and carry out sensory testing on diabetics, looking for early damage to vital systems. If you use the Internet, you can get further reliable information about diabetes at the website www.lillydiabetes.com
Most people assume that diabetics do not produce enough insulin. This is certainly true for those few who became diabetic in childhood. But, what is surprising is that people who become diabetic as adults actually have more insulin than normal circulating in their bodies. However, that insulin is largely inactivated by fat in their diet or in their body. This is actually good news because it means that major reductions in fat intake can often reverse diabetes. For instance, in our Weight Program we followed 320 overweight diabetics, many on insulin or oral anti-diabetic medication, and found that 74% of them were off all medication and no longer diagnosably diabetic at the end of the Weight Program. In addition, high fiber diets have been shown to reduce a person's tendency towards diabetes. Although all this is easy to talk about, it is difficult to accomplish on one's own so you should call CAIPM at NNN-NNNN to learn what sort of help is available. The bottom line is that being diabetic is dangerous, but major changes in eating habits and body weight provide an option for three out of four adult-onset diabetics to give up the risk of being diabetic. In other words, it is often possible to lose weight and diabetes.
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