Metabolic Health. Volume 1.

This is my first monthly blog post on metabolic health.  These posts will come out on the first Monday of each month. 

The metabolic health posts may be for you if:

·         you have two or more of the symptoms from the “How is your Metabolic Health” post,

·         your A1c is creeping up or

·         your doctor has said you need to keep an eye on your A1c. 

It may also be for you if:

·         you are pre-diabetic (A1c 5.7 or higher or fasting BG higher than 90) or

·         diabetic (A1c of 6.5 or higher or fasting BG higher than 115) or

·         you are interested in the subject or want to avoid any of the above before they happen.

If you want to receive just the general health blogs, but not the metabolic post, drop me a line. 

Let’s get some definitions out of the way for all future blogs on this subject. When I talk about diabetes on this blog, I will be talking about type II diabetes.  If I ever talk about type I diabetes, I will call that out.  Type I diabetes is an autoimmune disease and has some similarities to type II, but is different.  I will also abbreviate blood glucose to BG.

Depending on who you are talking to, they may use the terms: reversing, curing, or putting into remission your insulin resistance, pre-diabetes or diabetes.  They used to (and in many places still do) say you “control” your type II diabetes which implies that once you have it, you will always have it and all you can do is keep your blood glucose in check.  This just isn’t the case.  I will call it reversing.  Reversing diabetes may mean something a little different for different people.  For some, it may mean A1c below a certain number and fasting or post meal BG under a certain number without any medications.  For others, it may mean the same but with certain types of medications.

Many people that have a strong family history of diabetes believe “This was in my genes and was going to happen to me and there is nothing I can do about it.”  If you have some of these thoughts, the sooner you can get past them, the sooner you can work on reversing your diabetes and be a shining example for your family of what can be done.

People can also beat themselves up with the thoughts of “I did this to myself, now I need to live with it.”  These thoughts will only get in your way.  There is a load of information to take in and figure out what works for you so clearing yourself of the past will be of great help. 

More now than ever you need to become your own healthcare advocate.  It is not enough to schedule visits with your doctor and do what he says.  You should read, study and work with your doctor to do what is best for you. 

Many studies show that patients with type II diabetes that work with a health coach have significantly better long-term outcomes. If you think it would be helpful for you, search for a health coach that is a good fit for you to help you attain your health goals.

Thank you for reading.