Reversing Diabetes article by Gabriel Cousens M.D

[Guest guest]

Excerpt from Chapter 4: There is a Cure for Diabetes

 

The first principle to heal diabetes naturally is a prudent diet that we call

the Culture of Life anti-diabetogenic diet: organic, plant-source only, live

(raw) food, relatively high complex carbohydrate, 15-20 percent (low to

moderate) plant-based fats, moderate protein, low glycemic index, low insulin

index, high minerals, no refined carbohydrate (especially white flour and white

sugar), high fiber, moderate caloric intake, and prepared with love.

 

This Culture of Life diet, updated with the concept of individualization as

explained in detail in Conscious Eating, is best known as the Genesis 1:29

Garden of Eden diet. Some people need more protein (plant-sourced), and others

need a diet higher in complex carbohydrates, depending on one's constitution.

Regardless of your constitution, however, this diet is high in vegetables and

phytonutrients. A high-phytonutrient diet naturally includes a variety of

antioxidants such as carotenes, vitamin E, vitamin C, phenol compounds, and

resveratrol. You know you are getting these when there is a full rainbow of

colors in your vegetables, fruits, and grains, as colors are actually the

pigments containing phytonutrients, which turn on the anti-aging, anti-cancer,

and anti-inflammatory genes. Most important, these phytonutrients turn off the

diabetes-causing genes and turn on the anti-diabetic genes. In Genetic

Nutritioneering, Jeffrey Bland, PhD, explains how the hormone insulin indirectly

speaks to the genes and alters gene expression. Insulin also influences the

other hormones in the body. A healthy flow of insulin in the body not only helps

us control blood sugar, but is linked to a healthy balance of many other

hormones, including insulin-like growth factor, human growth hormone, cortisol,

somatostatin, serotonin, noradrenalin, and leptin. Our control of hormones is

found through our diet, stress, exercise patterns, and, of course, the food we

take into our body. Emerging research confirms that the type of carbohydrates we

eat also influences the expression of our genes through their effect on the

secretion of insulin, glucagons, and other cell signaling hormones. So when we

eat, we need to consciously consider that what we eat speaks to our genes, and

therefore positively or negatively affects our gene expression.

 

Our genes carry messages that describe how sensitive we are to insulin and blood

sugar. In other words, we have free choice to modify the expression of these

genetic messages, by what we eat, how we exercise, how we create stress in our

life, and the toxins (such as drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, and heavy metals) that

we bring into our system. The point is that whether or not there is an onset of

insulin resistance depends on our food and lifestyle. Insulin is a major

regulator of the diabetic genes. When our insulin levels are not in homeostasis,

our genes that favor the diabetic process are activated.

 

Studies have found that when individuals consume animal-protein-rich foods their

insulin output is greater. This research done with the insulin index, shows that

meat, dairy, and fish can create an excess release of insulin—that is, they have

a high insulin index and therefore imbalance the system. Research by Gene

Stiller, PhD, found that a protein-enhanced diet often increases insulin

resistance. Research generally shows that diets containing whole and natural

vegetable protein have a lower insulin response than refined high-fat foods. It

has been found that the amino acid mix in vegetable protein, although complete,

is slightly different than, and offers certain advantages over, animal protein.

Specifically for diabetes, vegetable protein positively affects many aspects of

our metabolism, including the improvement of insulin sensitivity and the

reduction of toxic reactions. Simply changing the excess of calories in the diet

and improving the ratio of protein to carbohydrates and fat according to your

constitution can actually improve the regulation of blood sugar levels.

 

Phytonutrients

 

One of the most potent components of food that affects gene expression on the

molecular level is phytonutrients. Research on phytonutrients supports the

general findings we've summarized; for example, 82 percent of 156 different

published dietary studies found that fruit and vegetable consumption helped

protect against cancer. People who eat more fruits and vegetables have about

one-half the risk of cancer mortality than those people who are not plant

eaters. Plant-sourced diets are very high in phytonutrients, which include a

variety of antioxidants, carotenes, vitamin E, vitamin C, phenolic compounds,

and terpenoids. We get more than twice the phytonutrients from the same amount

of calories on the nutrient-dense live-food diet, which also is a natural

calorie-restricted diet. The Tree of Life World Cuisine naturally stimulates and

reactivates the anti-aging, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, and anti-diabetic

genes, and turns off the diabetes-causing genes with the aid of the rainbow menu

of phytonutrients. These phytonutrients include: the allyl sulfides in garlic

and onions, potent stimulators of improved phenotypic expression for diabetes

and aids in controlling blood sugar with their sulfur components important for

insulin function; phytates in grains and legumes, with anti-cancer effects;

glucarates in citrus, grains, and tomatoes, improving the gene expression of

detoxification; lignans in flax, improving the metabolism of estrogen and

testosterone; indoles, isothiocyanates, and hydroxybutene in cruciferous

vegetables, improving detoxification against carcinogens; ellagic acid in

grapes, raspberries, strawberries, and nuts, improving antioxidant function; and

bioflavonoids, carotenoids, and terpenoids, reducing inflammation and improving

immunity. Inflammation is definitely affected by our gene expression. My

favorite anti-inflammatory food is ginger; it has active phytochemicals called

gingerols, which have been shown to be quite effective in the treatment of

arthritis and other inflammation problems. Used in conjunction with curcumin,

these two have been shown to improve gene expression in regard to the

anti-inflammatory response. One popular flavonoid is quercetin. Found in apples,

onions, and garlic, quercetin helps improve gene expression related to allergy

and arthritis, and helps maintain the integrity of vascular tissue for improved

circulation. Bioflavonoids, of which quercetin is one, are among the most

important modifiers of gene expression, in addition to being antioxidants.

 

Once we understand this first principle about eating a Culture of Life

anti-diabetogenic diet, we start to understand that what we take into our body

has very important healing effects. In a October 1997 article in Science by Dr.

Caleb Finch, a professor at the Andrus Gerontology Center at the University of

Southern California, Finch clearly makes the point that heredity plays a minor

role in determining lifespan. One of the most important roles in longevity is

connected to lifestyle.This principle applies to the tendency to be diabetic. If

we do not activate the diabetes-producing genes, with poor diet and lifestyle,

then diabetes will not manifest.

 

Prevent and Reverse Diabetes or Reclaim Your Health

 

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Gabriel Cousens M.D. Core Program.

 

Three Options: Transformation Program, Reversing Diabetes & Cancer Prevention.

 

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This program includes 7 Day Juice Fast, 4 Day Zero Point Training, 7 Day

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We recommend combining this and any retreat

with a Whole Person Healing with Dr Dan Engle!

 

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