Entries in Modern Diseases (37)

Saturday
Oct202012

Type 1 diabetes resolves in child following removal of gluten from diet. One more reason to avoid grains.

Researchers at the Copenhagen University Hospital in Herlev, Denmark report on a 6-year old boy diagnosed with Type I diabetes who was placed on a gluten free diet. Although gluten-free is not full Paleo, it's certainly a step in the right direction. Twenty months later, the child does still does not require insulin. This is a very important result in this otherwise serious and lifetime disorder. Further studies are recommended.

 

Related Post 

SUCCESS STORY: CHILD WITH REMISSION OF DIABETES ON THE PALEO DIET 

Sunday
Oct072012

Success Story: Child with remission of diabetes on the Paleo diet

On September 10, 2009, I took my six-year-old daughter to the pediatrician for what I thought was a urinary tract infection. She had been very thirsty and going to the bathroom excessively. Little did I know these were the symptoms of hyperglycemia. Her blood glucose was tested at 542 in the doctor’s office, and she spent two days in the hospital. During that time she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes…

We decided that all of us needed to clean up our diets. Since we worked out in a CrossFit gym, the diet that came to mind was the Paleo Diet.

What happened next was amazing! My daughters insulin needs plummeted. During the next week, we made numenours calls to the endocrinologist to adjust her dosage downward. After two weeks, she was completely off insulin…

A few months later

We now have a solid six months of total remission under our belts.

JoAnne
The Paleo Answer 

 

Related Posts

Tuesday
Sep182012

Patient's fatal heart attack turns doctor to Paleo diet

As I drove home I could not get one thing out of my mind.  This gentleman had been to my office to see me just the week before, and I was very encouraging to him about how things were going.  He was in his early 60’s, and suffered from high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, and obstructive sleep apnea.  The thing is, they were all VERY WELL CONTROLLED! His blood pressure was perfect, his diabetes numbers mirrored that of a non-diabetic patient, and his cholesterol was well below the goals set by multiple cardiovascular studies.  In addition, his cardiologist had convinced him that his meat based diet was the culprit of his seemingly uncontrollable heart disease, and he had adapted a strict vegan diet for well over a year.  In many parts of the country that’s not too hard to believe, but to a Cajun from the land of boudin and pork cracklins, this was quite the feat! So, I asked myself…how could this skinny, well controlled hypertensive, diabetic, vegan Cajun gentleman in his early 60’s have just died from his fourth heart attack?  Something was wrong!

PaleolithicMD

Saturday
Aug112012

New hypothesis: Acellular carbohydrates promote obesity

Ian Spreadbury of the Gastrointestinal Diseases Research Unit, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada published “a novel hypothesis of obesity” in the May 2012 issue of Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity: Targets and Therapy. (Abstract & PDF link)

He compares the cellular carbohydrates of the ancestral diet with the acellular carbohydrates of “flours, sugars, and processed foods.” The key issue is carbohydrate density:

Due to being made up of cells, virtually all "ancestral foods" have markedly lower carbohydrate densities than flour- and sugar-containing foods, a property quite independent of glycemic index.

Replacing refined grains with whole grains doesn’t seem to help much:

Whole grains are mooted to be healthier than refined grains, yet comparisons between grain consumption habits in industrialized societies indicate the effects of replacing refined grains with whole grains yield only modest improvements to health.

The dense acellular carbohydrates of modern foods may trigger obesity (known to be associated with low-level inflammation) by inflamming the GI track:

The present hypothesis suggests that in parallel with the bacterial effects of sugars on dental and periodontal health, acellular flours, sugars, and processed foods produce an inflammatory microbiota via the upper gastrointestinal tract …” (emphasis added)

A diet of grain-free whole foods with carbohydrate from cellular tubers, leaves, and fruits may produce a gastrointestinal microbiota consistent with our evolutionary condition, potentially explaining the exceptional macronutrient-independent metabolic health of non-Westernized populations, and the apparent efficacy of the modern "Paleolithic" diet on satiety and metabolism.” (emphasis added)

Saturday
Apr282012

Gout: the “disease of kings”

First identified by the Egyptians in 2640 BC,” gout has been known as “the unwalkable disease,” the “disease of kings,” and a disease of affluence. Mark Sisson has a nice review of gout and its suspected causes and prevention. Mark’s conclusion:

But perhaps the best way to avoid gout? Get healthy. Eat well. Exercise intensely from time to time. Avoid refined sugar. Avoid obesity, hyperinsulinemia, and metabolic syndrome.

Monday
Apr022012

Is sugar toxic? You decide.

Thursday
Mar222012

“Fascinating insight”: Inflamed cells circulating in bloodstream

Chronic inflammation rears its ugly head. This time, as inflamed, deformed cells circulating in the bloodstream at the beginning of a heart attack. According to Science News:

In people experiencing the opening throes of a heart attack, cells from the inner lining of blood vessels — called endothelial cells — get set adrift in the bloodstream.

Cardiologist and study investigator Dr. Eric Topol observes:

 These are sick cells that have been subjected to profound inflammation. (emphasis added)

Cardiologist Christopher Boos, not involved in the study, calls this new finding “a fascinating insight,” but notes it is “very much in the exploratory phase.”

According to the researchers, the number of these inflamed circulating endothelial cells per unit, know as the cell count, “may serve as a promising clinical measure for the prediction of atherosclerotic plaque rupture events.”

You can access the abstract in Science Translational Medicine here. Learn more about the dangers of chronic inflammation in the posts below: 

Wednesday
Dec142011

Vitamin D and Depression  

By Gerard Guillory, M.D.
The Care Group 

A study published in the November 2011 issue of the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings found that low vitamin D levels are associated with depressive symptoms; these symptoms are especially likely in persons with a history of depression. The study included 12,594 participants between November 27, 2006 and October 4, 2010. Serum vitamin D levels were analyzed and patients were screened for depressive symptoms. The results of the study lead the Mayo Clinic to conclude that, "Higher vitamin D levels are associated with a significantly decreased risk of current depression", giving even more evidence that vitamin D is a beneficial supplement.

Many experts feel that the higher incidence of depression in the winter months, so-called seasonal affective disorder or "SAD" occurs as the result of lower vitamin D levels as a result of less sun exposure. 

If you are feeling a little blue around the holidays don't forget to take your vitamin D or take a vacation to a warm, sunny destination. Doctor's orders.

Tuesday
Sep202011

Paleolithic Nutrition: Alzheimer’s and Diet

Americans over the age of 65 have a one in a million chance of winning the lottery, and a one in eight chance of developing Alzheimer’s.

Dr. John
Lecture: New Research on the Role of Nutrition in Neurological Function

By John Michael

There are currently 5.4 million people with Alzheimer’s disease in the United States, and “barring medical breakthroughs,” by 2050 that number is projected to grow to as much as sixteen million. According to the Alzheimer’s Association’s 2011 Facts and Figures, “between 2000 and 2025, some states and regions across the country are expected to experience double-digit percentage increases in the overall number of people with Alzheimer’s.” Nor is the United States alone in experiencing an increase in this disease. A recent study reported a growth in the number of cases in Beijing, and in Britain the Prince of Wales last year warned of a coming epidemic. 

Click to read more ...

Monday
Sep122011

Celiac disease is not a disease

“HLA antibodies complexed to alpha-/beta-gliadin.” Image: Wikimedia CommonsThe New Oxford American Dictionary defines a disease as:

a disorder of structure or function in a human, animal, or plant, esp. one that produces specific signs or symptoms or that affects a specific location and is not simply a direct result of physical injury

For this discussion, the key point is “a disorder of structure or function.” With celiac disease (CD) however, there is a problem: the person does not have “a disorder of structure or function.” Their structure or function would have been just fine before the agricultural revolution. There is nothing wrong with the person; the problem is the invented diet of the agricultural revolution. (Consider it this way: if someone is suffering from chronic mercury exposure, you do not say they have mercury disease, you say they have mercury poisoning.)

 

Click to read more ...

Wednesday
Aug312011

Paleolithic Nutrition: Diabetes and the Modern Diet

Copyright iStockphotoBy John Michael

Diabetes, especially its Type 2 variant, is spreading around the world. Globally, there are now “more than 350 million people” who suffer from this insidious disease, according to an article in the British newspaper The Guardian. This article goes on to state, “About three million deaths a year are attributed to diabetes and associated conditions.” Here at home, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) disclose, “25.8 million people in the United States (8.3% of the population) have diabetes,” and, “of these, 7.0 million have undiagnosed diabetes.” They conclude their list of statistics with this sobering appraisal: “If current trends continue, 1 of 3 U.S. adults will have diabetes by 2050.”

While only a small portion of people with diabetes worldwide suffer from Type 1, which is, according to the CDC, “an autoimmune disease that may be caused by genetic, environmental, or other factors,” the majority of suffers worldwide have Type 2 Diabetes, which is “usually associated with older age, obesity and physical inactivity, family history of type 2 diabetes, or a personal history of gestational diabetes.” Both disorders concern either “a shortage of insulin” in the body, “or a decreased ability to use insulin, or both.” Mark’s Daily Apple has a great blog that explains the complex dynamics of this disease here.

In an excellent article on the growing consensus that excess dietary carbohydrates are connected to the growth of modern diseases like heart disease, obesity, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes, The Los Angeles Times quotes several medical experts. 

"Fat is not the problem," says Dr. Walter Willett, chairman of the department of nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health. "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."

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

"The country's big low-fat message backfired," says Dr. Frank Hu, professor of nutrition and epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health. "The overemphasis on reducing fat caused the consumption of carbohydrates and sugar in our diets to soar. That shift may be linked to the biggest health problems in America today."

While a consensus has not yet been achieved among medical professionals as to whether excess carbohydrates and sugar are indeed responsible for the uptick in modern diseases like type 2 diabetes, the message captured in the Los Angeles Times article is echoed by Mark Sisson, who, on his blog, excoriates a reputable diabetes organization’s suggestion that sufferers include in their diets large portions of “breads, grains, beans, pasta, and other starches.” “If you want to develop type 2 diabetes,” he writes regarding the organization’s nutritional advice, “I’m stumped for a more expeditious way to do it.”

By shifting from the typical American to a modern approximation of the Paleolithic diet, we come to eat foods that our bodies are adapted to digesting efficiently. Novel foods like the processed grains that comprise the typical diet's excess in carbohydrates, are quickly converted to blood sugar, which, if not used, as is often the case with calories in our sedentary society, is then stored as fat. As our waistlines burgeon, our risk for type 2 diabetes increases; a Paleo diet, which avoids industrial foods in favor of more ancestral fare, reduces our waistlines, and so, by restoring our natural state of health, protects us from the specter of modern disease.

Related Entries
Paleolithic Nutrition: Diet in the Neolithic  
Paleolithic Nutrition: Diet and Modern Disease 

Friday
Aug192011

Quote: Gluten a factor in infertility?

Diagnosing celiac disease in an infertile woman would be particularly beneficial if the low-cost (and low-risk) therapy of pursuing a gluten-free diet could improve chances for conception.

Janet Choi, MD 
EurekAlert