Even though ours is a pill-popping, drug-oriented culture, food is really our best medicine.

In 90% of all chronic and degenerative diseases, poor diet is either the direct cause or a significant factor. This is especially true for Type 2 diabetes.

There is no stage of Type 2 that can’t be helped by making some smart dietary changes. And the earlier they are made, the more dramatic the health improvements will be.

The “prescription” is simple

As Dr. Ripich and I demonstrate in The 30-Day Diabetes Cure, a few simple changes in a patient’s eating habits can actually reverse Type 2 so that all metabolic functions, including the body’s insulin production, return to normal.

Here’s the shorthand version…

1. Quit consuming the foods and beverages that spike your blood sugar and trigger the insulin response (sweets, sodas, juices, plus refined carbs such as bread, baked goods, pasta, chips, and grain-based commercial foods, like breakfast cereals). Over-consuming these can cause Type 2, and even small amounts will make it worse.

2. Start eating more of the foods that heal the damage that insulin-resistance and diabetes have done to your body. These are what I call “the diabetes-healing superfoods[JP1] .” Here are the top 5 according to extensive scientific research…

Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)

If you have diabetes or prediabetes, controlling blood sugar has a huge impact on how you feel — and this marvelous monounsaturated oil can really help.

A 2006 study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine put people on either a low-fat diet, a Mediterranean diet emphasizing EVOO, or a Mediterranean diet emphasizing nuts. Those getting more olive oil and nuts had significantly lower blood sugar levels than those on the low-fat diet.

Thanks to the powerful antioxidant, oleocanthal (responsible for the strong, peppery “bite” freshly-pressed olive oil produces when consumed) EVOO also reduces inflammation, one of the root causes of diabetes. (Beware: Inflammation destroys the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas.)

Getting inflammation under control is essential for healing — and reversing — Type 2 and prediabetes. The study mentioned above also found that the olive oil diet lowers C-reactive protein, an indicator of systemic inflammation.

Unfortunately, the olive oil in your supermarket won’t cut the mustard. EVOO’s inflammation-fighting properties begin to fade after pressing. The longer it sits around, the weaker it gets. (Most supermarket olive oil can be a year old — or older.)

Worse, the olive oil industry is rife with scandals. Because of the premium price it commands, many companies are tempted to fluff up their products with cheaper oils, such as soybean and rapeseed, to their products to maximize profits.

That’s why I never buy supermarket olive oil, even from the big natural foods chains. Instead, my EVOO is delivered to my home just days after it has been fresh-pressed, thanks to my good friend T. J. Robinson, a.k.a “The Olive Oil Hunter.” And the flavor of T.J.’s olive oils puts those supermarket brands to shame.

Pacific wild-caught salmon

In 2010, University of California researchers discovered that the omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA in cold-water fish improve insulin sensitivity and reduce inflammation.

This is good news for folks with any type of blood sugar disorder, but the story keeps getting better…

A 17-year-long study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that elevated blood levels of omega-3 protect against sudden death from heart disease — while lower levels actually increase the danger.

Here’s why this is important: 75% of diabetic fatalities are caused by heart attack or stroke. That’s an astonishing number!

It’s easy to see why preventing and healing cardiovascular disease is so important if you have diabetes — which is why omega-3 fish is a true “diabetes superfood.”

You should try to eat two or three servings per week, but be sure to go “wild,” and avoid farm-raised fish. Farmed salmon is notoriously low in omega-3’s … contains unhealthy chemicals such as polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) … is frequently genetically-engineered “Frankenfish” … and is raised in ecologically “dirty” conditions.

In Alaska, wild salmon are protected, while farmed salmon are banned. When you purchase salmon labeled “wild Alaskan,” you’re getting a clean product with high levels of omega-3. My favorite source is Vital Choice, a family-owned fishery that delivers superior-tasting salmon to my front door for about the same price I used to pay at Whole Foods.

Their canned wild salmon costs much less than their fresh-frozen filets — yet the omega-3 content is just as good. My very favorite MyHealingKitchen.com recipe using canned wild salmon is Salmon Burgers with Citrus Dressing. Yum!

Beans and legumes

There isn’t a better food for controlling blood sugar, reducing medication needs, and reversing Type 2.

Beans contain natural compounds that lower blood sugar … reduce your body’s need for insulin (your own and in drug form) … and give your poor, overworked pancreas a much-needed rest.

In addition, beans and legumes are packed with so much fiber that adding them to any meal lowers its total glycemic load, lowering the total rise in blood sugar. Beans eaten today also improve your glucose tolerance tomorrow, which gives you twice the bang for your bite!

In addition, beans and legumes provide an abundant supply of magnesium. Getting more of this healing mineral will improve your blood sugar immediately — and a new study conducted in Brazil on patients with Type 2 diabetes just proved it.

Researchers found that patients who got more magnesium had lower blood sugar levels after meals. Here’s why…

Your body’s capacity to produce insulin relies heavily on magnesium, which activates the insulin receptors on your muscles and cells. And there’s more…

A major study conducted by Harvard Medical School followed 85,000 women for 18 years and found that individuals who consumed the most magnesium lowered their risk of developing diabetes by 30 percent.

One of my favorite beans is fava. It has a buttery, nutty flavor that is unique and unusual. Try our Fava Bean Soup with Spicy Greens. And if you’re in the mood for French comfort food, curl up with our Chicken and White Bean Cassoulet. “Medicine” never tastes so good!

Onions

Onions are one of the top food sources for the trace mineral chromium, which produces a powerful benefit on blood glucose levels. Research shows that chromium helps your body use insulin more efficiently, maintains steady blood sugar levels, and reduces the need for diabetes drugs.

Chromium deficiency and diabetes often accompany each other, according to a study published in Diabetes Care. This isn’t a surprising when you realize that the symptoms of chromium deficiency (such as out-of-control levels of glucose, insulin, triglycerides, and high cholesterol) resemble those of prediabetes.

A recent study published in Biochemistry shows that chromium is an insulin potentiator, meaning that it makes your insulin more effective. For people with insulin resistance or full-blown diabetes, this is a big benefit because chromium lessens your need for your body’s own insulin (or your insulin dose) to normalize your blood sugar levels.

One cup of raw onion (about ½ cup cooked onion) gives you 24mcg of the government’s “adequate intake” recommendation of 25 — 35mcg of chromium. So sauté up a big batch of onions, add some garlic and herbs, and throw them on salads, toss them in soups and fritattas, and use them to smother a juicy, grass-fed burger.

I’m especially fond of the Onion Tomato Relish we created in our Test Kitchen, which goes swimmingly with most savory meals!

Nuts

These little diabetes-busters are bursting with healthy fats, vitamins, and lots of minerals. If you’re prediabetic, or want to avoid Type 2, eating nuts will cut down your risk. If you already have diabetes, nuts help you manage your blood sugar and weight.

Almonds are particularly beneficial because they’re high in protein and antioxidants, and have a low glycemic index (GI). According to a study published in Metabolism, eating almonds with a meal reduces the GI load of the entire meal!

Nuts contain monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), which reverse insulin resistance. And remember the diabetes-heart disease connection? Nuts are another weapon in your heart-healthy arsenal, as studies show that daily consumption of nuts cuts the risk of heart attack by 35%.

In another study, women who ate peanut butter more than five times a week were 20% less likely to develop Type 2 diabetes or cardiovascular disease. BONUS: None of the women who ate nuts had any significant change in their weight. In fact, those who ate the most nuts tended to weigh a little less!

A study published in the International Journal of Obesity found that those who ate almonds as part of a low-calorie diet for 6 months reduced their need for diabetes medication.

Try a small handful of unsalted nuts as a midday snack. Just be conservative. Author Tim Ferris in his new book, The Four-Hour Body, describes nuts as a “domino food” because eating a few easily leads to munching a bunch of these high-calories treats.

Another option: Spread almond or peanut butter on raw celery sticks or apple slices for a hunger-quashing snack.

Now it’s your turn

Do you have any favorite diabetes-healing foods or recipes you’d like to share? Please do so here — we’d love give them a try.

PS: To celebrate Diabetes Awareness Month our way, we’ve organized 30 Days of Giveaways at http://www.30daydiabetescure.com/ .

We’re giving away 30 amazing diabetes-healing prizes worth over $1,000, including RenewLife Omega-3 supplements … a Vital Choice gift certificate … high-end artisanal extra-virgin olive oil … $275 of 360Cookware … plus many others!

You can enter any and all of the 30 giveaways up until midnight on November 30th. A new giveaway debuts each day!

Enter once per day to increase your chances of winning. So, go for it and good luck.

That’s why we created these low-calorie, blood sugar-friendly goodies made with SLIMTEVIA, the all-natural sweetener that’s three times as sweet as sugar — but with 90% fewer calories.

And because SLIMTEVIA is made from stevia and natural fruit sugar, it won’t spike your blood sugar the way other sweeteners do.

So, go ahead:  Live (and love!) a little with these yummy Valentine’s Day treats — from our heart to yours…

Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake

Flourless Chili Chocolate Cake with Strawberry Sauce

Chocolate Pecan Macaroons

If you’re 65 or over, chances are you take one (or more) of the four drugs responsible for a whopping 60% of seniors’ emergency room visits and subsequent hospitalizations caused by adverse reactions. (This doesn’t include the people who visited the ERs and were then sent home).

A recent study in New England Journal of Medicine reports that for every 10 seniors hospitalized because of bad drug reactions, 6 are there because of prescriptions for diabetes and heart disease.

It’s a finding that echoes a message we’ve been sharing at MyHealingKitchen for quite a while. Although many seniors are helped by their medications, more than 100,000 are harmed every year. And the 4 described below are the worst offenders.

Many times, simple improvements in a person’s diet and lifestyle can make these dangerous drugs unnecessary. (Food, after all, really is our best medicine.)

If you, or a loved one, is on any of these drugs listed below, I’ve also included some “food substitutions” that will provide similar benefits without the dangers.

Of course, you should never discontinue any medication without first consulting your doctor — but solid research shows these foods produce similar drug-like benefits, albeit safely.

1. Coumadin (warfarin)

Coumadin, a widely prescribed blood-thinner, is responsible for 33% of all seniors’ ER visits and hospitalizations for adverse drug reactions.

This serious medication is given to people who have blood clots near the heart, in the lungs or people who experience arrhythmias or have mechanical artificial heart valves. Coumadin can cause people to bleed heavily, externally or internally without clotting — a kind of drug-induced hemophilia. Common side effects include severe bleeding, bloody stool, chest pain, vomiting, difficulty moving and numbness.

What to do: Ask your doctor to revisit the prescription. Do you still need it? Could he/she switch you to something less risky?

It may be permissible for you to switch to some of these “anti-clotting foods” instead: Omega-3 rich seafood … strawberries and other berries … dried fruits such as prunes and apricots … and fresh veggies, such as broccoli and avocado.

You can add these anti-clotting spices and herbs to the list, too: Cinnamon … rosemary … peppermint … ginger … thyme … cayenne pepper … and curry powder. Many of our MyHealingKitchen recipes contain these ingredients, especially our heart-disease healing recipes.

2. Injected insulin

Some 14% of seniors hospitalized after an urgent care visit arrive there due to insulin injections gone awry.

Surprised? This doesn’t shock us at all, given that according to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, 1 in 20 type 1 diabetics will die of severe hypoglycemia caused by an insulin overdose.

Type 1 diabetics must inject insulin, but they can dramatically reduce their dose by making healthful food and lifestyle changes. (Those simple adjustments are detailed in our bestselling book, The 30 Day Diabetes Cure).

In our book, Dr. Ripich describes one of his type 1 patients — a man named Jay — who lost 20 pounds, reduced his insulin dose by 80%, and found more energy and better health as a result.

Before Jay began our program, his doctors condoned him eating sugary foods and refined carbs, as long as he injected “enough insulin.”

But “enough insulin” after over-consuming sugar and refined carbs can easily be “too much” — and deadly. The smaller the dose, the less chance you’ll have a hazardous or fatal reaction.

What to do: If you’re a type 1 diabetic and you inject insulin as part of your medical regimen, it’s time to use diet and exercise to improve your insulin sensitivity, which will reduce the amount of insulin you’ll need to inject.

If you’re a type 2 diabetic who is currently injecting insulin, good news! Once you get your diabetes under control with The 30 Day Diabetes Cure, you’ll be able to make insulin injections a thing of the past.

3. Aspirin and clopidogrel (Plavix)

Whatever you do, don’t switch out “an apple a day” for “an aspirin a day.”

People with diabetes and high blood pressure are often advised by their doctors to take a daily aspirin — because they’re at a higher risk of a heart attack. But aspirin and clopidogrel are responsible for 13% of all hospitalizations of the elderly due to adverse drug reactions.

All of us, whether we have heart disease or not, are urged by doctors and drug ads to take a daily aspirin to protect us from heart disease. Few realize that aspirin is far from harmless.

A recent Daily Mail article reported that a British study released in September found that aspirin can double the chances of dangerous internal bleeding in people without a history of heart disease, while having zero effect on the rate of heart attacks or strokes.

Another study showed that 4% of healthy people who take aspirin on a daily basis are hospitalized for gastrointestinal bleeding.

Plavix, a form of clopidogrel, is so commonly harmful that a Google search turns up the link “Plavix Injury Lawyers Now Accepting Claims Nationwide.” The drug has been linked to cerebral hemorrhage, stomach ulcers, brain bleeding, plus — drum roll! — heart attacks.

The most commonly reported Plavix side effect is fatal bleeding. And it’s known for causing thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura, or the formation of blood clots in the body’s small blood vessels.

What to do: Check with your doctor to see if the risks of taking aspirin or clopidogrel drugs outweigh the benefits. Whether or not heart disease is a concern for you, substitute the little white pill for the heart-healthful foods mentioned above in the Coumadin section. (You can find out more about the best and worst foods for a healthier heart here.)

Like Coumadin, aspirin is taken for the heart, to discourage blood clots from forming. It’s also taken to counteract inflammation. But there are a variety of delicious foods that perform these same services.

So drop that bottle, and stock up on anti-inflammatory foods such as olive oil, onions, wild-caught Pacific fish, and plain yogurt.

4. Oral diabetes drugs (Metformin, Glucophage, etc.)

Nearly 30 million Americans have diabetes (1-in-10!) and that number is rapidly increasing every year.

Even more troubling: One in three people in the US is pre-diabetic and doesn’t know it.

The vast majority (95%) of diabetes is type 2, the kind caused by poor diet and lifestyle, yet doctors are not telling patients to make better choices. They believe (mistakenly) that people just won’t change their habits.

As a result, they put patients on drugs that eventually lead to decreased health, amputations, vision loss, painful neuropathy, and early death. These oral hypoglycemic agents (Metformin and Glucophage, to name a few) are the fourth highest cause of all seniors’ urgent hospitalizations due to adverse drug reactions.

Read drug company ads or listen to your doc, and all you’ll hear is: “Side effects and complications are rare.” Well, that doesn’t exactly jibe with the CDC’s findings. In fact, it’s contradictory.

Here are some of the more subtle signs of a Metformin overdose (which leads to lactic acidosis, a poisoning of the blood due to excess lactic acid and insufficient oxygen): Sweating, shakiness, blurred vision, cold sweats, irregular heartbeat, labored breathing, and fatigue. Scarier symptoms include seizures, confusion, difficulty speaking, coma and death. Yikes.

What to do: If you’re not yet diagnosed with diabetes, do all that you can to stay that way. Avoid sugar and processed white flour products. Eat whole foods including quality protein (grass-fed beef … organic chicken … wild salmon … non-hormone dairy products … artisanal cheese), vegetables, fruits, and whole grains.

For some yummy ideas, dig into our MyHealingKitchen diabetes-healing recipes here.

We’ve witnessed thousands of type 2 diabetics reduce and completely eliminate dependence on oral hypoglycemic agents by making the simple food and lifestyle changes laid out in our book, The 30 Day Diabetes Cure. Check out one of our very favorite success stories: Doug Nasur.

Don’t become another unfortunate statistic

It’s too late to re-examine your daily pill cocktail when you’re racing to the ER. These 4 prescription drugs can be truly dangerous — even when taken exactly as prescribed.

That’s true for the 60,000 seniors who found themselves at the ER or checked into the hospital because of an adverse drug reaction.

You can avoid the hospital entirely by reviewing your drug regimen with your doctor — and by getting a second opinion from a doc or health practitioner who brings complimentary alternative medicine options to the table, like our very own Dr. Stefan Ripich (co-author of The 30 Day Diabetes Cure).

Now it’s your turn…

Are you currently taking any of these 4 drugs? Have you noticed any adverse reactions?

Have you been to the emergency room or because of them? Please share your experiences and the safer alternatives you’ve adopted here.

I receive lots of emails every day.

And it always touches my heart to hear from readers who have restored their health by following the advice in The 30-Day Diabetes Cure and ARTHRITIS INTERRUPTED.

But this week I also received an email from the American Diabetes Association (ADA) bearing the subject line, “Who’s Your Diabetes Hero?”

This wording caught my eye because I’m just putting the final touches on a book entitled “Diabetes Heroes,” which will be released next
month.

For the book, I’ve been interviewing folks from across the US — and as far away as Slovenia — about how they reversed their Type 2
diabetes, got themselves off their meds, and returned to a normal, healthy life.

No more finger-sticks. No more symptoms.
No more drugs. No more diabetes.

These were very sick people when they began. Some had blood sugar in the 400+ range. Others endured multiple surgeries on their heart and eyes. A few were at death’s door because of diabetes and its terrible complications.

But with sheer courage, they decided to do whatever it takes in order to kick diabetes out of their lives.

Their doctors were flabbergasted at their success. Their spouses are ecstatic. And many of these “ex-diabetics” say they feel like they’ve participated in a miracle.

So this was the type of “diabetes hero” I thought the ADA was referring to in their email to me.

Boy, was I wrong!

Among the 6 attributes required to be an ADA “hero,” one needs to…

“Accept health setbacks with courage and dignity”

“Keep medical appointments and follow the caregiver’s advice, even when the advice is tough to hear”

“Check their blood glucose levels many times a day, without complaining”

Sound like familiar advice?

These as the very traits that doctors love in a “good patient,” aren’t they? Follow orders. Take your meds. Don’t make waves. And don’t expect too much.

It doesn’t matter that passive, compliant patients — and studies confirm this — never do as well as the ones who educate themselves
about their condition, ask their doctors tough questions, get involved in their own treatment, and aren’t afraid to rock the boat.

Incredibly, being a “hero” in the eyes of the ADA simply means following the herd.

Yet when you examine the outcomes of most diabetics — even those who follow doctor’s orders to a T — they’re not so good.

Despite all those drugs, 84% of diabetics die from heart attack and stroke … 67% have high blood pressure … 70% suffer painful neuropathy … and they account for 60% of all non-traumatic limb amputations.

Then there’s all that kidney disease, blindness — and now, Alzheimer’s (currently being referred to as “Type 3 diabetes”).

Anyone interested in becoming
a “martyr to medicine?”

I might be stretching it here, but to characterize following a failed treatment protocol as “heroic” reminds me (just a little) of the jihadist call for martyrs. (“Just strap on these explosives, blow yourself up, and you’ll become a hero to our cause.”)

So if the current medical treatment for Type 2 is failing miserably — and statistics clearly show it is! — what’s the “cause” the ADA wants you to become a martyr to?

I’ll tell you…

It’s “mo’ money, mo’ money, mo’ money” for the ADA.

Last week I explained why, despite its incessant, mantra-like promise of a “diabetes cure just around the corner,” the ADA will never deliver one.

Reason?

There’s far more money in treating diabetes, than in curing it.

Cure diabetes and all those patients go away — along with the $400 billion annual revenue the Diabetes Industry rakes in from glucose monitors, test strips, glucose monitors, diabetic foods, motorized scooters, heart surgeries and multiple medical procedures that diabetics require over their
remaining years.

And, of course, all those drugs…

Which is really what the ADA is about

Most people think the ADA is a group of dedicated researchers, tirelessly searching for a diabetes cure.

The public believes the ADA is genuinely serious about its declared goal to “Stop Diabetes” (this year’s campaign slogan).

But probe deeper and some troubling conflicts of interest become apparent.

First of all, the ADA is a very big business (even though its official tax status is “non-profit”). Its 2009 annual report cites a 12-month budget to be a whopping $205 million — more than 60% of which came from “donations and special events.”

So, who’s doing all this “donating?”

You may be surprised to learn that the lion’s share of the ADA’s funds comes from drug manufacturers, food companies, and the makers of products that benefit from the diabetes explosion.

The ADA’s corporate sponsors include Walgreens, Rite-Aid Pharmacies, Roche Laboratories, Catherine’s Plus Sizes, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and many other pharmaceutical companies.

In fact, the list of ADA donors is a who’s who of Big Pharma, with the major drug companies kicking in millions in 2008 alone — including $2.8 million from Takeda Pharmaceuticals, the maker of the ADA-approved diabetes drug, Actos.

Take a closer look at their annual report, and you’ll find they’ve even created special categories for their biggest donors.

The elite inner circle, called the “Banting Circle Elite,” includes members that receive special consideration in return for a $1 million minimum gift. The lesser “Banting Circle” is for companies that can only afford a paltry $500,000 donation.

And — surprise! — it turns out that every “circle” member is a drug company.

Not that the ADA is shy about where it’s true allegiance lies. Its Strategic Plan states that its internal goal is to “maximize corporate, pharmaceutical and foundation contributions” … in order to achieve “an annual compound growth rate of 9.1 percent.”

How will they achieve this?

How else? By helping to create more customers and sales for their pharmaceutical “partners.”

Are you starting to get the picture?

More than half of the ADA’s massive budget goes for “information, advocacy, and public awareness” — but guess what it is “advocating and informing” the public about?

You got it: Drug treatment.

Yes, its true: The ADA’s primary “Stop Diabetes” educational strategy is to vigorously encourage diabetics to test their blood sugar regularly and to take their drugs faithfully.

Maybe I’m missing something here, but I just don’t see how this approach will halt the spread of diabetes, which is already a global epidemic (now 350 million people — and counting).

Call me cynical, but the only thing this advice will achieve is to make the ADA’s pharmaceutical partners even wealthier.

The ADA’s history with Big Pharma

The ADA’s relationship with the drug industry is nothing new. It dates back to 1940, when it was founded with a large gift from the drug maker Eli Lilly.

Twice in the past decade, the ADA’s 12-member Executive Committee has been headed by former top executives of drug or medical equipment companies. The New York Times reports that the most recent treasurer of the ADA is also the Director of Investor Relations for Johnson & Johnson.

Given its close ties to the drug industry, it’s hard for me to believe that the ADA is objective and impartial in its treatment and public education recommendations. Duh.

Drug companies, you see, sell $15 billion worth of diabetes drugs in the US each year — and the ADA is the lynchpin of their marketing strategy. The New York Times explains how these drug companies continually advertise to doctors in ADA journals and announce new medicines at ADA conventions, where a coming-out party for a new drug can drive a stock price higher.

Oh, and then there’s the “official ADA diet”

Yes, the ADA does advocate a diet to go along with all those drugs.

But, incredibly, it’s the very same carbo-whopper diet (60% carbs or more!) that causes insulin resistance and Type 2 in the first place.

And that’s just not my opinion.

According to Dr. Walter Willett of Harvard School of Public Health: “Over-consumption of sugar and other rapidly-absorbed carbohydrates can cause excessive demand for insulin and ultimately lead to failure of the pancreas to secrete adequate amounts of insulin.”

Dr. Willett cites three major, long-term studies confirming this: The Nurses’ Health Study I (127,000 participants), the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study (52,000 participants), and The Nurses’ Health Study II (116, 000 participants).

“All three studies showed that people with a higher intake of refined starches and sugars had approximately twice of risk of
diabetes compared to those with a low intake,” he concludes.

The ADA would love us to believe that Type 2 is caused by our genes, or by dietary fat, or by being overweight, or by anything but the carb-centric Western diet that’s top-heavy with refined grain products and sweeteners.

So, how can the ADA advocate such a destructive diet?

Despite numerous research studies to the contrary, the ADA stubbornly insists that “fat is the enemy” and recommends that everyone — especially diabetics — eat a low-fat, high-carb diet.

The official reason is that, since heart disease is what ultimately kills the majority of diabetics, they need to eat less fat to protect themselves.

But low-fat diets have never been proven to prevent heart disease. In fact, research shows just the opposite…

Not one clinical study has ever been able to show that a low-fat diet has prevented a single heart attack. And this includes the famous Framingham Study, the Multiple Risk Factor Intervention Trial (commonly referred to as “Mr. Fit”), or the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI), the largest and most expensive diet study ever conducted.

“Dietary fat used to be public enemy No. 1,” says Dr. Edward Saltzman of Tufts University. “Now a growing and convincing body of science is pointing the finger at carbs, especially those containing refined flour and sugar.”

Dr. Walter C. Willett, who was one of the principal investigators on the Nurses’ Health Study, concurs: “If Americans could eliminate sugary beverages, potatoes, white bread, pasta, white rice and sugary snacks, we would wipe out almost all the problems we have with weight and diabetes and other metabolic diseases.”

So why does the ADA still push carbs?

One reason might be that a large chunk of the ADA’s funding comes from food companies who sell some of the worst products that contribute to diabetes and obesity — including Coke, Pepsi, Dr. Pepper, Hershey’s, Cadbury Chocolates, and various refined-carb breakfast cereals.

These companies essentially buy an endorsement from the ADA (at $500,000 a pop!), which includes the right to use its logo on their
foods.

Snack foods such as SnackWell’s Sugar-Free Lemon Créme cookies have sported the ADA logo, despite the fact that these cookies contain almost as many calories as ordinary sweets.

Kraft Foods’ deal with the ADA allowed it to paste the ADA logo on Post Raisin Bran, Cream of Wheat, Sugar-Free Jell-O, and Cool Whip Lite.

And — get this — the ADA’s Continuing Education Courses for registered dieticians are being taught by the Coca-Cola Company’s Beverage Institute. Talk about bizarre!

The bottom line? Follow the ADA dietary recommendations and you’ll be sicker than ever, as your disease spirals out of control — while you battle the drugs’ side effects, to boot.

How “heroic” does that sound?

“The first corporate-sponsored disease”

(if you don’t count lung cancer)

To my mind, the ADA’s advice is “pie in the sky” deceit, pure and simple.

It leads diabetics to believe they can continue to consume the foods and beverages that gave them Type 2 in the first place, just as long as they control their blood sugar with drugs.

This way, the ADA can continue taking big money from Big Food and Big Pharma — which are the folks who made you sick, and are keeping you sick.

So I guess you could call diabetes “the first corporate-sponsored disease” (if you don’t count lung cancer).

Still, it’s good business.

The ADA’s strategy ensures a steady stream of new diabetes customers and revenue. This ensures that it’s well-heeled execs and “partners” can maintain their lavish salaries, private jets, cushy perks, and lifetime pensions (currently more than 27% of the ADA annual budget).

Yeah, sure. The ADA wants to “Stop Diabetes” about as much as the Columbian cartels want drug addicts to “just say no” to cocaine.

What really works?

If the ADA was sincere about wiping out Type 2, it could do it a heartbeat by launching a massive public awareness and education campaign promoting a diabetes-reversing diet and lifestyle, instead of pushing drugs and carbs.

This means telling people to eat exactly the opposite diet that the ADA currently recommends. Here’s proof…

More than a dozen peer-reviewed studies published since 2003 show that a low-carb, high-fat diet is more effective at reducing overall heart-disease risk than the ADA’s low-fat, high-carb guidelines.

“Many people are essentially cured of their [Type 2] diabetes by low-carbohydrate diets, but that message is not getting out,”
says Dr. Richard Feinman of the SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Studies in 2004 at the Minneapolis V.A. Medical Center and the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, and published in Diabetes have produced groundbreaking research — though sadly, little-reported — showing dramatic results.

The researchers found that Type 2s diabetes significantly improved their blood glucose levels simply by switching from the ADA’s low-fat diet (55% carbohydrates, 15% protein, and 30% fat) to a low-carb diet (20% carbs, 30% protein, and 50% fat).

“We were shocked,” said Dr. Frank Q. Nuttall, the chief investigator. “We thought they’d be improved, but we didn’t think it would be improved as much as it was. The results were better than you get when you put patients on oral agents (drugs).”

Two months later, Dr. Nuttall released another cutting-edge study in Nutrition and Metabolism, which also found that diabetics can manage and control their disease simply by eating ample protein and fats, and restricting carbs — without needing to lose weight or taking insulin medications.

Just say no to drugs — and the ADA

These are the very same results being achieved by thousands of Type 2s (now “ex-Type 2s”) who have followed The 30-Day Diabetes Cure.

In the words of the plan’s creator, Dr. Stefan Ripich: “It’s not rocket science — and it’s not the latest discovery. This proof has been around since the turn of the 20th century. The cure for diabetes is what you eat, not the pills you take.”

As word of our success spreads, the ADA is facing a serious rebellion in the diabetic community that it once though it had in its back pocket.

Type 2s, discouraged by their lack of improvement on the ADA plan — and intrigued by the success of patients who have completely reversed their diabetes — are rising up to snatch back their health from mainstream medicine. Here are just a few examples…

Meet the real Diabetes Heroes

Kathy Wozniak has a family history of diabetes, which includes both of her brothers, and her parents.

She recalls her mother following the ADA diet religiously: “Looking back, I realized it wasn’t so good for her. It was the kind of diet that encouraged her to stay on her meds. She died of cancer, while also suffering from diabetes complications.” (A recent study found that diabetics have a 1.4 times greater risk of dying from cancer than people without diabetes.)

Many people think that obesity causes Type 2, but Kathy is evidence to the contrary. She’s not overweight — nor does she have a sweet tooth. Nonetheless, she was diagnosed in 2007.

When her doctor tried to put Kathy on medication, she resisted and chose The 30-Day Diabetes Cure plan instead.

As a therapist, she saw firsthand (via her clients) how years of diabetes medication can age the body. (She worked with people recovering from limb amputations due to diabetes.)

When she read The 30 Day Diabetes Cure, she realized that although she didn’t overeat or eat sweets, her regular consumption of processed foods was to blame.

“I thought I was eating healthy, but the book really helped me see exactly what the majority of our foods are made of,” she says. “I didn’t realize it before, but there’s so much out there that’s just poison.”

“When I read the book, I realized ’anyone can follow this diet, not just diabetics.’” For Kathy, it’s a way of life now.

Doug Nasur had Type 2 since he was 18. At 56, he weighed over 350 pounds, had several heart attacks, and was taking more than 30 different mediations. When his brother gave him a copy of The 30-Day Diabetes Cure, he decided to turn his life around.

Following the day-by-day plan, he lost 100 pounds, dropped his daily insulin dose from 280 units to 65, and now has a completely normal A1C. His new goal is to get off insulin entirely this year.

Bev Lofty is a nurse and full-time RV-er who travels the US with her husband. Despite spending her life “on the road,” she follows The 30-Day Diabetes Cure plan faithfully and heartily recommends it at every campground she stops at.

Her father, brother, brother-in-law, uncle and grandmother were all diagnosed. Her grandmother loved pie and died in a diabetic coma.

“The year before I found out that I had diabetes, I had a bowl of ice cream with syrup and nuts every night,” she says. “I was addicted to it.”

“Watching my brother-in-law die of diabetes just tore me apart,” she says. “After that, I said to myself, ’Bev, are you going to die like this or are you going to do something about it?’” That’s when she discovered The 30-Day Diabetes Cure.

So far, it’s working like a charm for her.

Donna Davis is a gospel singer who’s been blind since birth. After her Type 2 diagnosis, she followed the ADA’s diet to a “T” for five years. But it didn’t help.

Not long ago, her doctor warned her that her pancreas was failing and she needed to go on insulin or she would die.

There was just one problem: Because she’s blind, Donna can’t use an insulin pen without help — and she didn’t have any.

Then she discovered The 30-Day Diabetes Cure (and translated the book into braille). Even though she’s only been on the plan for a brief time, her progress is excellent.

Her A1C, once 8.6, in now 6.0. Her daily blood sugars have dropped from the 300s to the nearly 100. She’s shed 25 pounds and has lost the depression that used to bedevil her.

“A lot of people laugh when I tell them about the plan. They don’t want to give up the foods they love. But I tell them ’I’m gonna live, thank you! You wanna die? Go ahead.’”

Do you know a hero like this?

If you know of a true Diabetes Hero who has busted free from the chains of Type 2 and the ADA propaganda, please tell me about him/her here

And don’t be shy. If you are the hero or heroine, I want to hear about your victory.

There’s still room to include you in my new Diabetes Heroes book — and if your story is chosen, you’ll be rewarded with a spiffy, new Polar Heart Monitor.

No matter what, please forward this article to everyone you know who has diabetes so they realize the game is rigged against them – and that their only hope is to break free while they still can.

“If not me, who?” If not now, when?”

The dictionary defines a hero as “a person of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his/her brave deeds and noble qualities.”

I couldn’t agree more. It takes great courage free oneself from old habits and addictions — and to break away from the herd to follow your own truth.

It’s so much easier to stay on the couch and remain in denial. (But there’s nothing heroic — or hopeful — about that.)

And the wondrous thing about courage is that it’s contagious.

You may think you’re simply saving your own skin. But what you don’t realize is that your courage and example will inspire others to save their lives too.

We need more heroes these days

More and more, today’s governments, corporations, and institutions are discouraging us from thinking and acting for ourselves — and from being courageous.

That’s because courageous individuals represent a scary threat to their dominance and control.

You — yes, you! — can spark a revolution. And the first step is to take back control over your own health and wellness.

The healing isn’t in a pill, or a syringe, or a doctor’s advice.

The healing is waiting within you right now.

Give it a chance, please.

TV chef and cookbook author Paula Deen admitted Tuesday that she has Type 2 diabetes.

Deen, known as the Sugar Queen of Southern-Fried Cuisine, went public with her diagnosis in prime time on the Today Show.

But what really shocked everyone was…

She revealed that she had Type 2 for three years ago, but kept it to herself, while continuing to crank out such sugar-laden abominations as The Krispy Kreme Burger (a hamburger on a donut) and her Ultimate Fantasy Deep-Fried Cheesecake.

Deen told the Today Show that she kept her diabetes a secret “because I had to figure out things in my own head.”

What it appears she was really “figuring out” was a multimillion-dollar endorsement deal with Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharmaceutical company that makes Victoza, a non-insulin injectable diabetes medication that Ms. Deen began promoting at her “debut” in front of the nation Tuesday morning.

“I have no regrets”

Deen said she didn’t plan to change her own lifestyle or cooking style drastically, other than to scale back on fat, dairy, and eggs (which don’t cause diabetes, by the way), reduce her portion sizes of unhealthful foods, and visit her treadmill occasionally.

So I guess we can’t expect Paula Deen to dedicate her show to diabetes-healing recipes … low-carb meals … or lifestyle changes – even though numerous studies show that Type 2 can be completely reversed with a few, simple diet and lifestyle changes.

Instead, her message to the 25-30 million Americans with Type 2 will be: “It’s OK to eat and drink whatever you want, just as long as you take your Victoza.” (Though I doubt the average diabetic can afford the $500-per-month price tag for this new drug.)

This is advice that the Type 2 community doesn’t need.

“It’s about heredity, honey.”

Deen blamed her Type 2 on “heredity,” rather than the over-the-top, carb-crazy recipes she created in her cookbooks and on her Food Network cooking show, Paula’s Best Dishes.

“It’s about heredity. It’s about age, lifestyle, race. I’m the only one in my family who has it,” she said in a USA Today interview, likening diabetes to sheer chance or “Russian roulette.”

But by her own admission, no one in her family has a history of diabetes.

Nonetheless, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) was quick to jump to her defense.

“You can’t just eat your way to Type 2 diabetes,” said Geralyn Spollett, the ADA’s director of education.

Oh, really?

According to all the research I’ve read, a high-carb diet is the primary cause of Type 2 — and is the main reason diabetes has become a global epidemic, according to the World Health Organization.

The ADA would love us to believe that Type 2 was caused by our genes, or by dietary fat, or by being overweight, or by anything but the sodas and refined carbohydrates in our modern diet — and the 150 pounds of sugar that Americans consume, on average, every year.

This is because a large chunk of the ADA’s funding comes from selling their Seal of Approval to the manufacturers of high-carb food products, including companies such as Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Hershey. (Their other major funding source is diabetes drug companies — $19 million in 2009!)

No wonder the ADA continues to recommend a diet of 60% (or more) carbohydrates — even for people with diabetes. That’s where much of their money comes from.

Paula, You Could Help So Many People!

Rather than educate herself about diet and lifestyle, and then dedicate her life and her TV show to helping diabetics get well, she says she won’t change her diet or her ways.

Instead, she’s chosen to become a spokesperson for a drug that will do nothing to reverse Type 2 – or to protect diabetics from nasty complications, such as heart attack, stroke, vision loss, painful neuropathy, and limb amputations.

This, despite a pile of research showing that many of these drugs are practically useless – and some are actually dangerous.

Two large studies in America and in Australia demonstrated that using drugs and insulin to control blood sugar provided no reduction in heart attack rates or death from diabetic complications.

In fact, controlling blood sugar levels with an aggressive use of drugs and insulin significantly increased the number of deaths from heart disease or any cause.

This finding also has been confirmed by the 2008 ACCORD study of 10,000 Type 2 patients, in which those in the group reducing its blood sugar with aggressive drug therapy had a 22% higher death rate than the control group.

Lifestyle changes are the best diabetes “medicine”

Paula Deen’s decision to promote Victoza, rather than to change her diet, provides her fans with the wrong example and little hope.

This is because numerous studies confirm that lifestyle changes are twice as effective as drugs when it comes to fighting diabetes.

In a study of 3,000 people reported in the New England Journal of Medicine, those who improved their diet and exercise habits for three years saw a 58% decrease in diabetes risk — whereas those taking the leading diabetic drug experienced only a moderate 31% decrease.

In other words, the diet and lifestyle approach was nearly 100% more successful.

Which changes would be most effective for Paula?

Because most people aren’t sure what works – or where to begin – I created a day-by-day, “one step at a time” plan for completely reversing Type 2 called The 30-Day Diabetes Cure.

Based on the successful clinical program developed by Dr. Stefan Ripich, The 30-Day Diabetes Cure has helped thousands of people to get off their drugs and return to a normal, healthy life.

These lifestyle changes are life-savers

Paula Deen and other public figures should realize the tremendous influence they exert on the health and lives of people who trust them.

This is a very serious disease — and the medical approach is currently losing the fight against diabetes.

Every 10 seconds, two new cases of diabetes are diagnosed.

Every 10 seconds, someone dies of diabetes-related causes.

Every 30 seconds, a leg is lost to diabetes, leading to more than one million diabetic amputations a year.

And 75% of all diabetics will die of a heart attack due to the severe artery damage and elevated blood pressure that high blood sugar cause.

Give it a try, Paula

Nothing would make me happier than seeing Paula Deen become an enthusiastic example of real healing, instead of accepting a life sentence of expensive drugs that offer no protection – with no possible chance of freedom from diabetes.

If you’re struggling with diabetes, or know someone who is, I invite you to visit The 30-Day Diabetes Cure website (www.30daydiabetescure.com) to learn more about how to completely reverse Type 2.

And if you see Paula Deen, please pass her the message.The Truth About Paula Deen’s Diabetes

I love eating our vegetables! We only steam them with a little olive oil, coconut oil, a little bit of real butter and a dash of sea salt. I eat vegetables every day and it is fun finding new veggies to put in there. Today we had carrots, cabbage, yellow squash, zucchini, cauliflower, bean sprouts, broccoli and various nuts. Add a small bowel of beans and you’ve got a delicious meal.

Now the good news, I knew I couldn’t smoke in the hospital and I was going to have to quit. I had tried many times before on my own but always failed miserably. And then it finally hit me, the Lord was trying to get my attention! (by the way, I’m a sinner saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ). That night in the hospital I laid my burden on the “altar” for the first time and I asked the Lord to let me live to see my grand babies grow up. It’s now been a year and a half since I smoked and all desire has been removed. I had to refuse all medical procedures while I was in the hospital due to no insurance, ( heart catherization and possible open heart surgery).  I checked out and went home being treated with only meds at this time.  I also went ahead and filed for social security disability thinking I would never be able to practice again because I was so weak and always out of breath, plus I had severe neuropathies in my left hand and all the way down my left leg ankle and foot. I was a complete wreck not knowing what to do next or if I was going to make it or not! Here I was on eleven different drugs for different problems- blood pressure, heart damage, oral diabetic drugs and insulin!

Fast forward to 2011. Another great complication of diabetes is having teeth problems. I went to my oral surgeon to see what could be done because all my upper teeth were becoming loose.  He said there is nothing I  can do until I know what is going on with your heart, I can’t put you to sleep for fear of another heart attack. Well in the meantime my disability had come through and I was also sent a Medicaid insurance card. I went to see a new cardiologist that had also worked on my oral surgeon.  He did the heart-cath and gave me the bad news, 2 arteries were 100% blocked and 1 was 50% blocked!  This was on a Friday and the cardiologist said to me, I want you to see the cardiac surgeon on Tuesday and have surgery on Wednesday! The only thing that was keeping me alive was my heart had grown collateral arteries around the blockages and getting blood to my heart. (Ain’t God good?  He was keeping me alive!).

Having survived the surgery, I now was on a mission to get better. I felt like I had been run over by a semi truck. Oh did it hurt! Nice big scar down my chest and glued back together! I started cardiopulmonary rehabilitation about 1 month after surgery and have been going ever since because I enjoy it and it has helped remarkably in my recovery. It is now January 2012 and I get a email from a friend telling me about the 30 Day Diabetes Cure.  I had already been doing a lot towards my recovery except my diet. It was much better but I was still consuming sugar and fast carbs. Hey, I now had pills and insulin right? I could now ear whatever and not worry about how it affected me, if my sugar got to high, get out the ol syringe pump a little insulin in and everything will be great. I was already starting on a controlled regiment to cut out my blood pressure meds when I got the email from my friend. I had begun experimenting on my own with certain foods to see which ones really shot my sugar and was learning right quick that what I had been doing was insane!  Now comes the good part, this email was no accident! I truly believe it was sent to me by devine appointment! My mind and body was ready to receive and I was willing to listen to someone help me heal my body-enter Dr. Stephan Ripich. I now know why my life was spared. Once I get through this program I feel like God is calling me to share this material and teach others on how to reverse their diabetes. I want to start teaching a class at my church so others won’t have to go through what I did. I won’t apologize for my faith, and I don’t care about being politically correct, because the great physician Jesus Christ healed me, you are able to read my story. One more thing, I want everyone to know that if it were not for my dear lovely wife who went to hell and back with me through all of this, and was always by my side taking care of me, I don’t think I would have made it. Thank you honey, I love you. With that being said lets get on with day 1.

Day 1

Wow, cut out all sweets for the next 10 days? Well, no problem. The information in the book before day one put me in a great frame of mind to really understand and bring back all the knowledge I had been taught in my professional training.  The first thing that came to my mind was, this going to be great, I’m finally on the right path to healing my body! I just new in my heart that I was going to succeed! Thank you Dr. Ripich, what a journey we are going to go on!

Have you conquered or greatly improved your diabetes by following The 30-Day Diabetes Cure plan? If so, please tell us your story so we can be feature you as one of 12 Diabetes Heroes featured in our upcoming book, “Diabetes Heroes.”

If you’ve successfully turned your life around using our diabetes-reversing plan and tips, I’d love to share your story in order to inspire others who currently are struggling to control their blood sugar and take back control of their health.

Should your story be selected as one of our top 12 “hero profiles,” you’ll be awarded a Sportline Pedometer to honor your achievement.

If you know a diabetes hero or consider yourself one, please send an email briefly describing your story to editor@brainstorms.biz so we can get in touch with you.

Just imagine how much pain and suffering your example could help eliminate — and how many lives you might help save!

I had to let everyone know that Franks blood sugar was 80 this morning. OH MY WORD! He has not taken Metformin for a while now. In fact, he hasn’t had lisinopril, synthroid or gabapentin either. He does feel the numbness and tingling in his feet after a long day on his feet, but he doesn’t want to take it. Frank goes back to his Dr. on the 20th and I will definitely keep you posted.  I want to thank you again and just let you know how grateful we are for this wonderful cure for diabetes. Oh, I almost forgot, he made his 165 #’s goal and I am at 135 #’s right now. The new and improved us picture coming soon…

So, now what? It’s been 30 days and you’ve turned your life around for the better—it’s time to celebrate! And the best way to do that is by making this day, day 30, all about you and the promise you made to yourself. Start your day early to reflect on the success you’ve had. Then treat yourself to a diabetes-healing breakfast. Buy yourself a bouquet of flowers, share the day with someone special and allow yourself to feel gratitude for having made this transformation.

Remember, this isn’t the end—it’s the beginning. Celebrate with this congratulatory package! It’s filled with diabetes-healing gadgets and helpers. For example, Tart and Sweet, a fantastic book filled with 101 canning and pickling recipes will empower you to preserve local, organic produce…all year long. Learning these techniques will help you stay on track with your new lifestyle because you’ll always have canned fruits, veggies and unsweetened jams at hand.

Also included is the Hydracoach, an intelligent water bottle that keeps track of your fluid consumption during the day and calculates your personal hydration needs. It helps you make goals for yourself as you go about your day—it even factors in how much exercise you’ve done or if you’re at a high altitude–and you can track your progress. So as you continue your 30 minutes of walking a day, you’ll have all of the fuel you need to keep it up!

For a delicious treat that you can eat, the Cabot Organic Cheese Selection package will surely tickle

your taste buds—and you won’t have to feel guilty about it. Cabot is a cooperative, run by the farmers and their families (ie, the opposite of Big Food) and eating quality cheese is one of the cornerstones of staying healthy, satisfied, and full. It will fill you up without getting you off track.

If you’ve heard of being “bored to tears,” the phrase should be “bored to death.” Boredom is a very real health risk for most Americans. In a study published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, those who were severely bored by their jobs had a 250% greater risk of dying from heart disease than their no-bored peers. Add in the bad habit of overeating when bored, and you’re headed in the wrong direction.

But there’s a way to keep food entertaining without the excess. Cooking can be fun, and most of all, help you to appreciate the healthy, diabetes-fighting meals you create! Find your passion and purchase the Diabetes Healing Cookbook, which features 60 original unpublished “meals that heal” developed in the MyHealingKitchen.com  Test Kitchen. Combine this book with the excellent, day-by-day coaching in the 30 Day Diabetes Cure, and diabetes doesn’t stand a chance!

It’s important to keep learning new things. Make time for the things that you love doing. When you allow yourself to relax and engage your mind in the world around you—boredom is gone for good! (And so is unhealthful eating-as-entertainment.)

This, is where supplements come into the picture. High-quality supplements paired with your already nutrient-rich diet will help your body regain its natural balance. And I know there are tons of options out there for you—where should you begin? With your doctor’s permission, start off with the Big Three: fish oil, CoQ-10 and Alpha-lipoic acid (ALA). Fish oil’s got the omega 3′s, CoQ-10, a nutrient made by the energy-producing mitochondria in your body will help you burn body fat, and ALA will control blood sugar levels and improve your nervous system.

Once you’ve introduced the Big Three into your routine, try adding other helpers like Magnesium or the fish oil alternative, Phytoplankton. The omega-3’s in fish oil and Phytoplankton is well-documented to turn off inflammation in your joints and arteries, lower blood sugar levels, even relieve depression! Go straight to the source with Phytoplankton supplements from Activation Products. Oceans Alive, a concentrated marine phytoplankton that Activation offers, is a super-potent micro-algae, “Fresh Harvest Captured,” and requires no refrigeration.

Give their Topical Magnesium a go to0, because this supplement is a crucial macro-nutrient for your health. It’s required to absorb and regulate calcium, to power the movement of electrically charged ions through the blood and maintain strong bones and ligaments. In fact, a University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill study found that participants who took in the highest amount of magnesium were half as likely to be living with diabetes 20 years later than those who took the lowest amounts. In other words, those that didn’t take enough magnesium were 53% more likely to develop diabetes!

And while I’m sure you want to jump right in and try all of the supplements mentioned above, it’s best to give them some time. Introduce one a new supplement and give it several weeks to work. These aren’t drugs that act immediately; these nutritional helpers take time to build up in your system before you’ll notice their benefits.

But…green drinks include the highest concentration of plant nutrients and contain, ounce for ounce, more phytonutrients than an equivalent amount of leafy green veggies. The magic lies in the blue chlorophyll, which boosts the production of stem cells. You can find this in algae like single-cell spirulina and chorella, which are packed with protein, amino acids, enzymes-all proven to boost metabolism and lower blood sugar. And green drink powders are great for your pancreas and reduces the inflammation of tissues and organs.

Try Ultra Greens from Dr. Sears for a quick and easy mix of these phytonutrient-rich ingredients. Just two spoonfuls a day feeds every cell in your body and helps eliminate the toxins hiding in your blood, tissues and organs. This concoction’s got  ”super foods” like barley grass (500% times more iron than spinach), spirulina (65% protein) and chlorophyll (great for stem-cell production).

Going Green is easy because there are so many ways to do it! Take a pill-supplement or mix powder with water, vegetable juice, milk or soy milk. In either form you’ll be getting the green kick you need to enhance your blood sugar metabolism, immunities, and reduce inflammation.

The Stretchmatic Strength System from Naturecast Products offers a non-traditional exercise program that will build strength-without the weights. For just 20 minutes several times a week, you’ll increase your energy levels and your muscle mass-all while improving circulation. The system is broken down into three target areas: the quadriceps, hamstrings, and calves. When all of these muscle groups are strengthened and more flexible, you’ll feel great…strong…vital…ready to take on the world.

Why? As you build lean muscle, your body clears more sugar from your blood. Lean muscle is highly sensitive to insulin. As you build it up, your insulin sensitivity will improve because your body responds to this type of training by pumping more blood through your muscles. And even after your workout, the benefits keep coming! Over time, the more muscle mass you build, the more calories your body burns, even when you’re resting.

To make matters worse, cleaning products contain everything from formaldehyde to hydrofluoric acid-all labeled as “irritants.” But when you look at the harmful effects these POPs have on your body, you might say they’re a bit more than irritating.

But with eco pioneer Seventh Generation’s Healthy Home gift set, the all-natural products will let you stay on top of home care without having to fret about exposure to needless industrial toxins. (Chores are enough of a bummer without health-damaging fumes and residues.)

The set includes…

Free and Clear Natural All-Purpose Cleaner

Free and Clear Natural Glass and Surface Cleaner

Emerald Cypress and Fir Tub and Tile Cleaner

Emerald Cypress Toilet Bowl Cleaner

Disinfecting Wipes

Natural Hand Cleaner

A jumbo roll of recycled paper towels

And a cute Seventh Generation reusable shopping bag (Using a reusable shopping bag can save 300-700 disposable shopping bags per year!)

Everything in this package is free of harsh fumes, harmful chemicals, aerosols or dyes.

Charity begins at home–and so does health. Short of living in a bubble, it’s  impossible to eradicate all toxins, but you are in charge of your home–and with Seventh Generation’s essential oil-scented products, green cleaning is both safe and enjoyable.

Take action now and assemble a team of those you know will support you as you follow the plan. Stay positive by surrounding yourself with positive people. Get the help you need to get to the next level.

If you haven’t noticed by now, 30 Day Diabetes Cure is not a diet. It is a lifestyle change that can actually save your life. It’s easy to feel discouraged and frankly, it’s part of the journey. The changes you are making are not just monumental–it takes bravery and commitment. Have you given in to some of your old cravings or skipped your daily walk? Breathe, it’s okay. You don’t need to throw your plan to the wind because of a few slip-ups.

We’ve been raised to believe that willpower is a virtue, not a “muscle.” But in the book Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength, groundbreaking science from Roy Baumeister and New York Times health writer John Tierney shows that people have more willpower when they’re well-rested…when their blood sugar isn’t low…when they haven’t just made several decisions in a row. It also reveals that working on increasing your discipline about one thing (like standing up straight) strengthens the power of your willpower when it comes time to exercise it on something else. But those are just a few of the valuable, applicable insights within Willpower, and steeping in its lessons won’t just ramp up your success with The 30 Day Diabetes Cure; it will do so in every area of your life.

Are you ready to re-enter the “outside world”? I think you are.  But even the most determined 30DDC-ers can find the irresistible food traps in the “real world” difficult to beat without adequate preparation.

 It’s important for you to feel confident that you can have an active social life–without feeling deprived. What’s more, you now know how to prepare yourself for the challenges you may face once you step out of your comfort zone. How? Don’t put yourself at the mercy of whatever foods are at hand.

 With this Picnic Time Turismo Insulated Cooler backpack, you can easily bring along healthful snacks (and even lunch) when you’re out for the day, or traveling via “trains, planes and automobiles.”

You won’t have to eat what the airport food court (or flight attendant) has to offer, because you’ll have  diabetes-healing snacks and goodies to eat at blood sugar-regulating intervals. The food wastelands on the long stretches of the US highways will have nothing on your lined tote containing everything from veggies, dips, hard-boiled eggs—even artisan cheeses. When you’re swimming in a sea of greasy burgers and gooey cinnamon buns, your ”goodie bag” of healing treats will keep you headed in the right direction.

If you’re not aware of how much you’re eating, you simply cannot control consumption and you will gain weight. It’s easy to overeat when you’re otherwise engaged because your brain isn’t paying attention. Eat too quickly and your body won’t release the same amount of leptin, meaning you won’t get that “I’m full” sensation until it’s too late.

Cravings and comfort foods account for 75 percent of overeating, researchers say. Foods like ice cream or your favorite chocolate cake satisfy an emotional hole and can have the same chemical effects as recreational or prescription drugs. But that instant gratification has nothing to do with real hunger and can lead to guilt and intestinal problems like heartburn and gastroesophageal reflux disease.

A great way to start really thinking about your foods is to keep a journal. How much did I eat? When did I eat it? Why? Putting your choices into context will help you remove your old habits. Keeping track of your diet and exercise with the Body Minder and Diet Minder diaries from MemoryMinder Journals help you to break down your day, meal-by-meal and activity-by-activity. There are options to set weekly goals, keep track of your total carbohydrate intake, and note ups and downs in mood and vitality.

Consciousness is key when you’re engaged in self-healing…and in that department, these journals deliver. 

important medicine for diabetes. Now that you’ve introduced at least 30 minutes of walking into your daily regimen, you’re read to kick it up a notch! Low-impact, low-stress movement is the way to bring your fitness routine to

the next level.
Everyone’s exercise regimen is different. With the 30 Day Diabetes Cure, there’s wiggle room for variation in your plan. Some participants maintain a strict schedule of activities, while others prefer to switch it up and go solo. A great tool for all folks, however, is a pedometer. These nifty devices keep track of how any steps you’ve taken—and motivate you to take more!

The Sportline 308 Snapshot Pedometer, offers a complete view of all of your fitness data on the same screen. No more scrolling through multiple pages to track down data. This device includes a distance tracker, calorie-burn tracker, measures the length of your strides, among many other things. The best part? Unlike some bulkier pedometers, this slim, sleek beauty fits nicely in your pocket.

Keeping track of your steps will help you set goals for yourself and remind you of the progress you’re making. Work up to 10,000 steps a day. Break it up into three shorter walks, or hit the marker in the morning—it’s totally up to you. Walking regularly will add muscle, boost mood, increase mental clarity, improve insulin sensitivity, and tone your frame. Be creative in hitting your goal! Make extra trips to the car when unloading groceries or take the long way home. Every step counts.

Walking 5,000-10,000 steps per day will decrease your risk of developing metabolic syndrome by 40%. And a study revealed that women who wore pedometers during their 30-minute daily walks took significantly more steps than women given the same exercise routine who did not wear pedometers.

PS: It’s not too late to enter the KeenFit walking pole giveaway (or any of the other 30 Days of Giveaways. The benefits of adding this one small element to your walk are pretty impressive. Not only are you engaging your upper body to create a total body workout, but you’re also increasing your calorie burn by up to 46 percent! The poles will assist you in balance and relieve stress from your knees, hips, and other weight-bearing joints.

Sleep deprivation worsens insulin resistance, increasing your chances of developing diabetes and making it worse if you’re managing the condition. If you sleep less, your brain releases the chemical cortisol. Cortisol  gives you a temporary spurt of energy, but disrupts blood sugar metabolism.

But wait, there’s more! Sleep deprivation also affects your appetite, causing weight gain—regardless of your physical activities or food intake.

And popping sleeping pills are no quick fix. Prescription sedatives have side effects ranging from dizziness and back pain to anxiety and memory-loss. They still disrupt your metabolism and may lead to addiction.

A natural supplement like DeltaSom from Best Life Herbals can help you get the sleep you need, every night. It’s non-groggy formulation allows you to wake up, bright-eyed and fresh—no prescription required. The nutrients in DeltaSom restore your levels of melatonin to youthful levels in its synthetic time release form—which means it does not contain additives, binders, fillers, or animal parts that may carry viruses. DeltaSom’s formula will improve your quality of sleep and enhance your morning alertness without the side effects found in other supplements.

Taking this (combined with a concerted effort to make time for at least 8 hours of sleep a night) will help you restore your body’s ability to regulate insulin levels and set your metabolism back on track.

For those with chronic illnesses like diabetes, higher-impact forms of exercise like running on
the treadmill or lifting weights can be damaging to the joints and muscles. Yoga increases flexibility, tones muscle, and provides superior stress relief—without the wear and tear.

So, take a deep breath and get started with this high quality “minty” yoga mat from Yogamint. Wake up, roll it out onto your bedroom floor, and set your body—and your mind—on the healing path. Yoga movements stimulate the vagus nerve, which is responsible for controlling your heart rate, breathing, and your digestion. Stimulating this nerve with yoga will boost your energy, balance your hormones, and give depression a run for its money.

Once you’ve got a rhythm, pair regular yoga stretches with Yogamint’s Food & Flow video series that connects healthy eating and your yoga practice. Each monthly episode has a theme- Radiance, Love, Strength – and features a vegan cooking class paired with a yoga exercise. Combining healthy mind and body movements with the right healing foods will increase the benefits of your practice exponentially.

In fact, diabetes and depression are directly linked. According to the ADA, up to 20 percent of people with Diabetes are depressed.

But you can battle the blues with an unlikely candidate–fish oil.  The omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil–more specifically its EPA, or eicosapentaenoic acid—are beneficial for mild depression.

Taking a quality fish oil supplement is a MUST if you’re suffering from depression. We’re so happy to be giving away Norwegian Gold Super Critical Omega because these gels combine concentrated EPA, DHA and other powerful Omega oils, as well as Vitamin D (a diabetes mega-helper) to promote optimum digestive function and enhance overall health. I love this formula because it’s burp-free and its benefits don’t stop at mood improvement! The high-EPA, super-concentrated oil blend supports healthy heart function,; helps reduce stiffness in joints and, and helps reduce anxiety. Added Vitamin D3 supports cognitive function and bone health. These are all things to “feel good” about.

Take one or two daily and remember to keep up with other simple remedies like walking outside (it boosts your serotonin and can alter your mood for the better), or journaling and talking to an understanding friend.

Be sure to avoid the TV-advertised one-a-days you find in your local drugstore. These are nearly worthless because their ingredients are based on the “bare minimum” official Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA), now upgraded to the Recommended Daily Intake (RDI).

The RDA evolved from the old Minimum Daily Requirement (MDR) set by the government. This means the nutrients in most of the popular multis contain the minimum doses necessary to prevent nutritional -deficiency diseases, such as scurvy (vitamin C), beriberi (vitamin B1), and others. This certainly is not how to guarantee optimal health.

These mainstream multis are notoriously feeble. For example, Consumer Reports recently concluded that Centrum is the worst vitamin for seniors in its class. (There goes that advertising revenue!)

Consumer Reports also found that The Vitamin Shoppe’s One Daily failed to dissolve in a simulated stomach environment, while containing less vitamin A than its label claims.

You can avoid this pitfall by sticking to high-quality, bioavailable multivitamins that are reasonably priced and lab-tested. One of my favorites is Ultimate Daily Support, formulated by Dr.William Campbell Douglass. It’s a terrific multi that contains a broad list of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, amino acids, and enzymes that easily are absorbed and quickly bioavailable.

I started eating beans every day, and for some reason, my family was not subjected to the combination I mentioned earlier. Great! Now I eat them with gusto. I put them in salads, in soups, in a bowl to snack on. I learned about beans I never knew existed. And of course I had a lot of fun finding organically grown beans. I figured that if you want to eat healthy and make good food choices like eating beans, you might as well eat only those grown without using hormones and pesticides. I also realized that although fresh, organic beans are great for you, you can also find beans in a can that only have two or three ingredients: beans, water and a little salt. This made it a lot easier for me to enjoy beans without too much work. Just open a can, drain the water, rinse them thoroughly and pop them in your mouth. Now that is something I know I can do.

Tomorrow (I peaked ahead) is going to be tough. I am about stress. It’s how I got here in the first place.

[Editor's note: Many people have reservations about beans as Michael and his family first did--that's why we put together this list of helpful tips about their pros and how to prevent their "cons," here.]

 That being said, I do enjoy oats and try to work them into my breakfast routine. I was not much of a fruit lover–my palate tended toward oranges, apples, bananas, but never a kiwi or mango. Now I understand that those types of fruits actually heal. It was just important for me to stay away from sugary juices or fruits like watermelon.

 By Day 12, my weight was down about 8 pounds and I was completely off of insulin–no Lantis, only a Metformin pill a day. My mind was as sharp as it has ever been. My energy level was through the roof and I started increasing my level of exercise. Frankly, I was feeling absolutely awesome. For once, I was actually looking forward to having blood work done! It’s nice having some bread and fruit back in my diet after abstaining for 11 days!

My current fitness regimen (if you could call it that) consisted of walking, cycling, rip-sticking (A two wheeled skateboard), and rollerblading. I hated lifting weights but I decided to try adding two or three days a week of reps.

Still, the best exercise for anyone of any fitness level is to walk 45 minutes a day. The difference in benefit between being sedentary and walking is huge whereas the difference between walking and running is much smaller. So even a little walk is hugely beneficial.

I also decided to join a gym, despite the fact that I don’t enjoy working out in one. I’d much rather do some fun exercise or something athletic than to be a mouse for an hour running on a treadmill or elliptical machine! I’ve always been athletic and played sports into my 40s. I love hockey, golfing, table tennis or to toss a ball around, but working out in a gym just doesn’t do it for me. That being said, I did join one and will try to discipline myself to use it a few times a week. Bottom line: get off the couch and get active.

It was doing very nicely until my son decided to cook his meal – in the oven, where I had left the mince to finish defrosting. (I have an obsession about flies and never leave any food out or uncovered.) If he had put his meal onto the top shelf, he would have found it but…….nope! It finished defrosting very nicely thank you, started cooking and went straight into the bin. I’m not good on taking risks with part defrosted, part cooked meat.

 So now what……..yes, you’ve guessed. More chicken. I was hungry enough not to care and I love vegetables, so on went the steamer and I avoided the kitchen while things were cooking, so as not to slip and eat something I shouldn’t.  I could have had an omelette, I suppose, but I had egg salad for lunch, and that would just have been one egg too many. The evening wore on, I ate and waited a while and then took a walk on the treadmill before falling into bed.

 Reminder to self to go through the recipes and make an actual meal plan for the week in the future, rather than just buying in ingredients and deciding on a on a day-to-day basis. I’m getting there……slowly. Planning and preparation is vital.

Regular meditation produces profound benefits on the body and brain. As Deepak Chopra reports in his book Ageless Body, Ageless Mind, “We now know that meditation may actually reshape the brain, modify our responses to daily situations and train the mind.… In terms of aging, the most significant conclusion (about meditation) is that the hormonal imbalance associated with stress – and known to speed up the aging process – is reversed. This in turn slows or even reverses the ag­ing process, as measured by various biological changes associated with growing old. From my experience with studies on people using Transcendental Meditation, it has been established that long-term meditators can have a biological age between five to 12 years younger than their chronological age.”

Enter to win Wild Divine’s Secrets of Meditation program,
which includes the Wild Divine iOM hardware.

Headed for the pub again where I knew I could have the grilled chicken with no added anything, passed on the fries, dressings, sweet corn and had a salad minus the pasta, as it was white and was smothered by some kind of gloopy sauce.

The lunch was a diabetes-healing success, but I hadn’t planned on having an evening meal, so ended up having chicken again, and used up the rest of the mushroom soup by pouring it over the chicken.  That was pretty delicious, and of course had beans in it.

The more often you eat beans, the faster your blood sugar will normalize.

Canned beans are high in BPA, sodium, and even have a higher glycemic index than home-cooked. Subtract time and fuss from the process with today’s giveaway.

This 360 Cookware 4-quart pot (a $275 value!), can work like a pressure cooker without all of the pressure cooker anxiety. Its “vapor technology” creates a seal that locks in heat and reduces cooking time. That means that your home-cooked beans take less time to go from rock-hard to succulently soft.

I also love 360 Cookware because you can steam veggies without a steamer insert, and with just a smidge of water, so that the nutrients don’t leach into that cooking liquid–they stay in the vegetables! Ever notice how emerald green water is after you steam broccoli, asparagus, or spinach? Wouldn’t you rather your food hung onto those precious green nutrients? Instead, unless you’re super-conscientious, you pour that precious green water down the drain.

360 Cookware is also “green” conscious in another way–it’s built so that you need less heat to get the job done–which is great for the earth and your household energy budget. How? The heat doesn’t just “touch” your food on the bottom of the pot; your food is also cooked by heat coming at it from the sides and lid.

You can have your beans and eat them too–and cut down on the times you turn to canned beans to get your fix.

 Today is Getting off the Couch Day. Not something I need to add into my daily routine, really, but I’m beginning to think that mowing the lawns, swinging the electric hedge trimmer  without cutting the wire for a third time, and picking up the clippings isn’t enough exercise. I had sort of looked at any kind of exercise as being part of my daily 30 minutes worth but I now think that I need to incorporate walking as well. Walking, if you look at the book, is the best way, and so I am going to try and do that as the core exercise and just count anything on top as icing.

 A beautiful day, usual Sunday affair in the garden, doing the crossword and just relaxing. I went over Phase 2 again to refresh my mind regarding what was coming up, and then went through all the recipes I had printed out before I started. I categorized them into the following categories:

“I can eat that now,” “I can’t eat that yet,” “I still don’t have an ingredient for that one,” and came down to the Rosemary Mushroom Bolognese Stew with white beans. I love mushrooms, and it sounded scrumptious.

 The only thing I didn’t have was the half cup of red wine. I’m not convinced alcohol is allowed yet anyway, and as I don’t like red wine and didn’t have any, I left it out. I think that was probably an error, as I enjoyed the soup, but didn’t find it filling enough.

Maybe the wine gives it that little ‘je ne sais quoi’ or thickens it slightly but it wasn’t anything like a stew, although I noticed that it is also billed as a soup. Soup it is too. I topped up with yogurt, cinnamon and a few walnuts and took a stroll on the treadmill. It felt good to cook something different.

 [Editor's note: To thicken sauces and soups, chop up onions, then puree them with a little water, and add to sauce while it’s cooking.]

I am desperate to try making a ‘natural’ curry of some sort. I love curry and it’s SO good for me. I am beginning to fall out of favor with chicken. I bought some minced, organically raised pork for a change, and think I will try to make a chili, with beans and curry spices, but I’m not sure about the tomatoes. These tinned or carton varieties are too sweet. Maybe use fresh ones? It’s about how to make the curry sauce thicker without using one of those pre-prepared packets or jars.

 [Editor’s notes: Use chopped fresh roma tomatoes, seeded bits removed.]

 If you’re not sufficiently active to burn off excess glucose, blood sugar levels become constantly elevated, your cells begin to resist insulin’s effect so that greater amounts of insulin are required and you wind up with Type 2 diabetes.

 Walking is an excellent entry point to daily exercise. But if you want to get more out of your jaunts, add KeenFit walking poles (today’s giveaway!). Walking poles take the pressure off lower joints. Researchers have also noticed that pole walking helps improve muscular endurance of the upper body, and tames neck and shoulder pain. Studies also found that poles help lift depression (by making it easier for people to get more physical activity). And get this: walking poles increase the calorie expenditure of a walk by up to 46%!

 Ok, ok, I know I have an addictive streak in me but I just couldn’t let that reading rest. I took it again later and it was down to 8.8.

 The natural fiber in whole grain foods is essential for controlling your blood sugar. Whole grains also increase insulin sensitivity.

 Unfortunately, most “whole wheat” products at your grocery are totally bogus (see our recent expose here): white flour products tinted with food coloring to look less pasty.

 Arrowhead Mills’ whole grain products are the real deal.

Today’s giveaway is compliments of Arrowhead Mills:

-Organic Old Fashioned Oatmeal, 1 lb.

-Organic 4 Grain Plus Flax Hot Cereal, 1.5 lb.

-Organic Stone-Ground Whole Wheat Flour, 2 lbs.

-Gluten Free All-Purpose Baking Mix, 1.75 lbs.

That’s 7.25 pounds of healing, whole grain goodness!

As I commented earlier, my cravings for sweets and processed foods,pastries and anything but whole grain breads (which I still only eat sparingly) was pretty much gone. I had many occassions to be around those kinds of food; the ones that got me in trouble in the first place, but wasn’t even really tempted to eat them. With the arrival of Day 11 came an understanding of just how bad the “bad” fats and oils were for me. I know that there were foods that I enjoyed, and still do every now and then, that contained junky oils and fats that I wasn’t even aware of (ignorance was bliss). Now the cat was out of the bag.

No more cheap vegetable oil or foods containing over processed oils and fats that no longer metabolically resembled food; in fact I would consider them to be an “anti” food! Olive oil is the one oil that I’ve always used with the understanding that it was actually beneficial to health because it was a good fat. Being of Italian descent, olive oil was a staple.

However, my favorite condiment was Miracle Whip. I ate it on bogona, ham, turkey, hot dogs…every one of them loaded with HFCS and BAD fat! That was pretty much my lunch diet for 45 years.

Since starting the program, reading labels had become so important to me that I downloaded an app on my phone called “Fooducate.” So by simply scanning the barcode with my phone I became an expert at finding hidden oils or perhaps cheaper oils in many products that at first glance appeared to be healthy choices. Well, Fooducate wasn’t happy with what my average breakfast consisted of; processed meats in addition to eggs and toast.
I learned that while an occassional helping of these foods may not be harmful, eating too much of them could cause or exacerbate existing health conditions. So I started treating breakfast more like lunch; including turkey, tuna and other clean, minimally processed animal protien. And of course, yogurt.
So although I was educated a bit about fats, the book more precisely defined how these bad oil and fats could cause conditions in my body that are thought to be behind many illnesses and systemic diseases.
Well now my cupboards are stocked with Extra Virgin Olive Oil, coconut oil and sesame oil. My refrigerator features lean, unprocessed, free range, grass fed beef, chicken, bison and several varieties of fish and seafood; salmon and tuna, all wild caught Pacific whenever possible. Bottom line: I like fat! And now I know that fat loves us!

Editor’s note: check out our article on healing fats for diabetes! And also keep in mind that grapeseed oil is a healing fat that is safe to use at high cooking temperatures, unlike olive oil.]

 I forced myself to eat properly, but obviously the reasons I had sought comfort in food didn’t go away, and the weight eventually went back on during pregnancy and then beyond. I say ‘obviously’ because that weight gain, yo-yo dieting for most of my adult life led me to where I am now, writing a blog about my journey to reverse Type 2 diabetes.

 Hindsight is a wonderful thing, isn’t it? If I’d known then what I know now…well, I didn’t, but that’s life. I also didn’t know that I could have completely avoided developing diabetes too. The older folks in the family all used to tell me that I would eventually become diabetic and so did my doctor, due to the family history. Grandmother using insulin, both parents, all my great aunts and of course that went along with the heart disease, gout, angina, you name it, they had it. Not a good genetic legacy. Understatement.

 What nobody said, and most probably because at that stage in diabetes research nobody yet knew, was that it could be avoided. Completely. I think the nearest anyone came to it was that phrase, ‘You are what you eat.’ I seem to recall it was to do with weight loss, but it might have helped in the fight to control sugar and thereby diabetes too.

 I was brought up in the north east of England, almost in Scotland. It’s cold up there and we were tall, thin children in a house with an open fire, a coal stove in the kitchen and no central heating. We were pretty healthy, but cold! My mother was an excellent cook and she used to keep us warm with delicious buns, cakes, porridge for breakfast with golden syrup drizzled over it.

We went to school in a nearby town and were starving by the timewe plopped off the bus at the end of the road and almost ran home. Straight in through the back door littering the floor with satchels, hats, scarves, gloves and into the downstairs bathroom. PHEW.

 Then on with ‘little tea.’ I can see now where my penchant for comforting, warm, stodgy food started. Little tea was just something to keep us going until ‘Big Tea’, the evening meal. Carbs and more carbs and delicious they were too. I transferred to a local secondary school (not noted for my academic talent) and have distinct memories of coming home, walking across the fields and eating at least half a loaf of toasted white bread slathered with butter. I suppose that once my comfort level had been reached I must have stopped and eaten the other half the next day.

 Bit of a digression there but I think it’s important to see where and how things developed because this isn’t all about genetics, it’s to do with emotions too and why one eats or overeats in the first place and why we seek the foods that make us ‘feel good.’

 So, I’m anxious. No, that’s not really true. I’m terrified of adding the things back into my diet which I have not eaten for ten days and I feel great. Am I going to feel fuzzy again, is my sugar level going to go back up, am I heading towards failure?. Can I really add these things and be following the plan…

 Faith. Just keep the faith in the system.

 Today has not been a good day so far. I’ve taken an emotional dip which I’m annoyed with myself about. The euphoria and the results so far have been fantastic. I don’t want that to change. Plus it’s not even today but tomorrow so I reckon some more thinking and self-counseling is in order here.

 I shall try one of the recipes this evening, curry I think, and work out what I’m going to eat for the next week and prepare the shopping list.

Foods high in good fats – wild Alaskan salmon and the mono-unsaturated fats in extra virgin olive oil, avocados and nuts – also lower your cholesterol, prevent obesity and insulin resistance, and reduce dangerous inflammation, all essential for healing your diabetes.

Today’s featured giveaway is a “liquid gold” bottle of extra-virgin olive oil from T.J. Robinson, “The Olive Oil Hunter.”

T.J.’s fresh-pressed oil is produced by hand on small family farms. When the olives are perfectly ripe, farmers pick them by hand and the oil is made on site in small batches. And then it is immediately bottled and loaded on a plane to be shipped to members of T.J.’s Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club.

Yesterday was a scorcher – about time we had some decent weather but today it’s back to the British summer and therefore no gardening. I had the front hedge, the front lawn and the rest of the chairs to clean up on the list today so it’s going to be tricky to find things to do, that don’t bore me rigid and lead to the non existent yummy comfort food in my fridge.

I loathe housework with a vengeance. I admit it. I have a fridge magnet which states, “I cleaned my house last week. I’m sorry you missed it!” Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not a dirty person in the least, but dusting and vacuuming just bores me stupid.

These days I tell myself it’s all exercise and that gets the job done, to music and especially as it’s ZUMBA day and the class isn’t running as the girl is on holiday. FOR TWO WEEKS……ok, bop around the house a bit more, extra on the treadmill and keep it moving.

 I couldn’t face more eggs in my salad for lunch today. When you can’t eat the meats and fish one can be a bit tied – time to add an avocado and I put some butter beans into it too. I’m not sure I should have done that but I know that beans and pulses are ok…..so here’s hoping. Strangely I didn’t have a good night’s sleep. I didn’t eat anything other than usual but had what I call ‘a busy night.’ I first noticed these kinds of nights way before I was diagnosed with diabetes.

My GP didn’t have an answer so I started keeping a food diary and of course, worked out that it was pasta, potatoes, noodles etc that were the culprits. So I stopped eating them for a while and then introduced brown pasta, brown rice, sweet potatoes and gave up on the noodles completely.

So why did I have not one, but two ‘sugar rushes’ last night? The only thing I can put it down to is maybe my body is detoxifying itself. I suffered incredible itching for the first few nights too at about 10 pm – maybe that was detoxifying work too? If anyone reading this knows the answer then please post it in a comment below.

I KNOW I didn’t have any sugar; chicken, veggies, one small, orange type, sweet potato and yogurt for dessert. I don’t suppose I mentioned that I’m lactose intolerant, did I? I can eat yogurt and cheese but can’t take milk in its natural state.

I’m hoping that by the end of the 30 days I will not only be free from diabetes but also the chronic sinusitis/rhinitis that has plagued me for years–to the extent that as an opera singer/musician I have had to stop singing completely as my nasal passages are permanently blocked and I can’t hear when I’m singing flat! My secret wish next to not having diabetes is to be able to sing again and not have the neighbours rushing for their ear plugs.

I’m starting to panic! I’m going on holiday next week to Cornwall. A truly beautiful county famed for it’s Cornish pasties, clotted cream, real ale……….none of which I ate before – well, not true, I allow myself one cheese and onion pasty from the best pasty shop I know in Truro – so why am I panicking? No idea.

I think it’s to do with my timing, really. I chose to get stuck in, begin the journey with the thought at I want to do this NOW and if I wait another month, that’s a month lost of being diabetes free. Typical Aries. Jump right in with both feet and just assume it will be ok. It will. I will be in a self catering environment, it’s got a fridge, it’s on wheels so I can take it to the farmer’s markets and stock it before we go………..I shall be at Day 20 when we arrive………ok, let’s re-read Phase 3 now and be prepared. I wasn’t a Girl Guide for nothing you know : )

 OH MY GOSH!!! I’m stunned. I went to the store this evening to pick up a few things I needed and as it was quite took the opportunity to have a chat to the chief baker. They make most of their products in the kitchens there and I asked him what kinds of wholgrain bread they made. I explained why I wanted to know and what I have being buying religiously from them ever since I was first diagnosed and cut out white bread.

He very politely informed me that the BROWN, multi-grain seedy loaf that I have been eating is WHITE bread, made from WHITE flour and that it only has the appearance of brown bread because of all the seeds. I think he must have repeated it at least three time because I just couldn’t believe him. I even took him to the shelf to make sure we were talking about the same loaf. We were.

He then took me down the bread aisle and showed me what I should be eating, but of course it’s not made on the premises and comes nicely packaged in a plastic bag. I’m still stunned now. All those years when I thought I was doing the right thing only to find that I was eating white bread heavily disguised as brown. The only positive thing I can say is that at least I know now and to warn others, don’t assume, check and check again before you buy anything. As this bread is made there it doesn’t come with a list of ingredients on it. BIG mistake and one that I won’t be making again.

 Tonight’s omelette was delicious, in once piece but now I need to work on not burning it.

 Tomorrow I’m heading inside the bubble ………….

I’ve always liked veggies but they weren’t my “go to” favorites. In this chapter I learned exactly how and why vegetables were the key to health. So naturally packed with nutrition, vegetables appear designed to carry life to whatever animal consumes them, and especially humans. Several friends of mine are devoted vegetarians. The appear healthy and fit, content in their lifestyle and they don’t seem to be fazed by the lack of meat and fish in their diet.

I enjoy meat too much to go crazy (just kidding) and stop eating good meats. But my diet is probably 70% veggies and I absolutely feel much better both physically and mentally. I have now developed a “craving” for broccoli, kale, cuke and zukes, tomatoes, romaine lettuce and spinach; red and green and yellow peppers are like candy now.

For lunch I generally pack about 4 cups of raw mostly organic veggies such as celery, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, carrots, and a wedge of Laughing Cow cheese. When I do have soup, I usually choose bean, vegetable, barley, chicken and some broths. At night for a snack I may have some walnuts, yogurt, celery with a little cream cheese, a small salad with cherry tomatoes, hot peppers, bell peppers, cukes and carrot. Salad as a snack! Who would have thunk?

Because I now eat so many vegetables, the challenge has become keeping my menu fresh by discovering and combining these power foods into meals that both fill and nourish me most efficiently.

And that ends the 10 sugar fast. I did it. I abstained from all forms of sugar, ate no bread or fast carbs, eliminated my hunger for bad foods and sweets, added all the good things that were suggested, increased my exercise and the results spoke for themselves. I was almost totally off all insulin, in fact I had none for the last 5 days and my sugars were hovering around 120. Not great but 300% better than 10 days prior.

I have work ahead of me but I am proud of and pleased with my progress so far. I had stuck with it, followed Dr. Ripich’s instructions to the T (mostly) and it just worked. Everyone is impressed by the result and my attitude, including my wife, who has started going with me to the farmer’s market; something she and I would never have done together pre-30 Day Diabetes Cure. So, Day 10 is done. Bring on some fruit!

How do vegetables work so much healing magic? For one thing, they’re incredibly low in calories, meaning you can eat your fill without gaining weight. And because they’re rich in all-important fiber, they slow down the digestive process so glucose is metabolized slowly. That means they provide your bloodstream with a steady supply of energy, instead of spiking it up and down like a roller coaster. On top of that, they’re loaded with roughage that scoops up choles- terol, fats, toxins and waste products and escorts them out of your body.

 The Green Polka Dot Box, a new, online, warehouse-priced natural and organic food delivery service, is gifting one lucky winner with a $50 gift certificate. They’ll soon be adding a produce line to their offerings, but in the meantime, check out the rest of their deeply discounted organic offerings!

I managed to acquire two kinds of refried beans. They are the only ones I can find, the sugar content is so small I thought my eyes had failed me and one lot are spicy whilst the others are just plain.

I really love the spicy ones and as curry is good for diabetes I didn’t think it would alter the eating of them too much. However, I have discovered that the ordinary ones are completely different. A totally different consistency, and more akin to that stuff one shoves into a baby’s mouth, scrape across their lips as they play about with it before swallowing and then put back in again until it’s all gone. In short, I really don’t like them, AT ALL.

There MUST be somewhere, a supermarket, a store, a health food shop where I can get ordinary refried beans…….but failing that I’m going for more of the spicy ones. Oh and I still can’t find unsweetened pomegranate juice………

[editor's note: you can make refried beans by pureeing a drained can of pinto or black beans in the food processor or blender. Season as desired.]