A sweet tooth can be dangerous to your health

As a nation we are getting fatter and sicker. More than 60% are obese and this percentage is rapidly growing; 25% of Australians are pre-diabetic and don’t know it.

Physiotherapist, acupuncturist and nutritionist, Verona Chadwick says, “A sweet tooth can be dangerous to your health. Spikes in blood sugar or glucose stimulate the brain to signal insulin to deposit the sugars into the cells as fat. Over time you get fatter, need more and more insulin to do the same job, and that’s where the trouble starts”.

If you chose to avoid the warning signs, building insulin levels can be the beginnings of chronic pain and illness. High insulin promotes inflammation that silently ticks away under the radar and can be responsible for exaggerated muscle pain, arthritis, heart disease, kidney disease, fatty liver, osteoporosis, fatigue, sexual dysfunction, chronic pain and even cancers.

The years of poor diet choices and a simmering pre-diabetic state leave you vulnerable to the full blown disease and all its consequences.

Verona asks the questions, “Do you rely on a sugar fix and coffee to make it through the day? Do you wake in the early hours unable to get back to sleep? Are you having trouble losing weight despite trying to cut back on the carbs and exercising?”

If the answer is yes, chances are you have a disturbance of sugar metabolism and the stress hormone cortisol. Sugar highs followed by a sugar low put huge demand on cortisol to recover blood sugar back to a stable level. Excess demand for the stress hormone promotes abdominal fat, breaks down muscle and potentially drains your energy reserves.

“Despite the doom and gloom, I have good news for everyone who is keen to turn their life around: it is never too late to lose a bit of weight, improve fitness and restore your youthful energy”, says Verona. “A pre-diabetic state can be reversed and many diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes are able to manage it with diet”.

With smart diet and lifestyle choices it is possible to get control of sugar cravings, ease muscles aches and pains, and feel fantastic.
Do you have or have had Type 2 diabetes? What are your recommendations for maintaining your energy and health?