Managed, ... to beat drug resistence!

 

Hello folks,

I now come back to you with happier results. It has taken longer than I envisaged indeed but I managed to beat drug resistance and brought down my blood sugar levels. For those who are reading this blog for the first time, please do read my previous blogs on Diabetic Food blogs. I had shared with you all that my fasting blood sugars were 400 + and PPBS… was in the range of 463 although my three meals comprised of oats and plenty of vegetables! I took a huge risk and refused insulin on the doctors’ face.

Now, after a long battle with diabetology drugs  by reducing my tablet intake to half of the minimum dosage available of glycomet - to about 125 mg (the minimum dosage of Glycomet available is 250 mg) I managed to bring down my FBS from 400 to 180. 

My practise of yoga, Pranayama and cycling were certainly helpful in that, despite nasty blood sugar levels I fortunately did not suffer a stroke. But the diabetology drugs I was administered when my HBA1c level shot up to 10 in 2016 left me begging for mercy. There were Carbon monoxide deposits on the soles of my feet which – doctors call neuropathy – left me unable to do regular walking. Before consulting the Diabetologist I used to do 180 minutes of work out per day (1 hour each of yoga, walking and cycling,) but the diabetology treatment had immunised me against the tablets or maybe the word to be used is resistance. It made me so sluggish that I could not bring myself to do 3 hours of exercises the whole week.

The diabetology drugs or tablets left my skin with warts, lips looked like lava rocks at the base of any active volcano! These tablets also increased my weight, when I had been struggling so hard to lose weight. Sleep disorder meant I could not fall asleep till 2.30 a.m. and I could not wake up before 9.30 a.m.

My nutritionist counselled me to adopt a diet rich in dietary fibre, and pro biotics so that I can revive the stem cells and functioning of gut bacteria. Ideal meals include: 

• One cooked meal 
• 1 vegetable rich meal and 
• 1 fruit meal per day with one hour of moderate exercise. 
• She also advised me to avoid dairy products of all kinds. No fried stuff. I find it difficult to give up dairy. My dairy consumption is limited to milk in coffee or tea, and we South Indians cannot really give up curd rice! I tried valiantly to consume oat milk, soy milk, almond milk and coconut milk but failed…. As these increased my weight. My cousin told me not to give up milk because milk consumption is part of our culture and we are genetically predisposed to milk consumption. He said yes give up heavy dairy products like Paneer, Khova or cheese, but thin fat free milk is ok in moderation – for sustenance.

I adapted the nutritionist's recommendations to prescribe to myself the following meal plans: 

In all I measured and consumed 5 raw vegetables, 5 cooked vegetables, 5 types of green leafy vegetables per day, 5 fresh fruits, 5 dry fruits, 5 sprouts, 5 spoonfulls of low calories lactose free dairy products and 5 Table spoons of different kinds of cereal during the day spread out over three meals.

This I made into a meal plan which I recommend for diabetes reversal:

1.      Protein filled breakfast; (2 Tablespoons each of three different kinds of sprouts, plus 2 pieces each of 3 different seasonal fruits, 1 glass of fruit juice or if you can digest it, 1 glass of milk, and a cup of coffee or tea. 

     Grandma would say Idlis are three portions carbohydrates and one portion of protein anyway! that is native nutrition for you in one crisp sentence!

2.      Lunch with loads of vegetables and a small portion of carbohydrates;

3.      Early Dinner comprising loads of vitamins, and minerals and probiotics… without an iota of carbohydrates gives a good night's sleep for diabetics. (Normally 1 mug of freshly made vegetable soup, 1 small bowl of fresh vegetable salad, is the ideal supper for me). 

Soups can be wholesome, nutritious, delicious and satiating for dinner!

4.      Bed time snack, in case of feeling grubby should be no more than a glass of oat milk.  

Breakfast includes a bowl of raw or cooked sprouts with raw vegetables or fruits or grated coconut. One can add fat free salad dressings like spiced coconut milk or Piri piri, Lunumeiris, or garlic flakes with chilli flakes and freshly grated coconut. Those disinclined to use garlic may opt for herbs like Mint, Dill, Basel, lettuce, spinach, fresh oregano etc… there is absolutely no limit on green leaves’ consumption. Sprouts made from different lentils like Moong, buckwheat, red kidney beans, chickpeas, black eyed pea, peas, beans etc can all serve as 1 bowl of sprouts for different days of the week. 1 bowl of sprouts + 1 bowl of three different fruits makes one feel full, satiated and satisfies the taste buds too. Add a glass of fresh fruit juice or plant based milk. A cup of coffee with plant based milk like soymilk, oatmilk, and almond milk or similar for caffeine addicts…

This leaves you so fully satiated that there is absolutely no cravings for mid meal snacks and one starts detesting junk food over a period of 10 days!

Those with a serum creatinine of anything more than 2% are advised by doctors to avoid protein so they should avoid sprouts and whole lentils.  No eggs either, - for those with higher serum creatinine. Infact those with serum creatinine of anything above 2%, - doctors prescribe, – should avoid plant protein too.

Sources of plant protein include beans, lentils, and sprouts. Personally I see no harm in intake of protein equivalent to 10% of one’s body weight  or about 2 tablespoons of either beans, lentils, and sprouts per day; because after all vegetarians do need proteins for sustenance. But I am not sure I can assert against doctors’ advice.

However, here is an anecdote to share. Someone I know was largely vegetarian, but had a serum creatinine of around 5.6%, had been taking insulin and maintained HBA1c of 7.6%. Yet she suffered from loss of kidney functioning, her legs starting swelling – gradually immobilising her; she underwent a heart stent insertion, suffered COVID 19 in the past two years. Cumulatively it took a toll on her kidneys. Her diet was excellent according to doctors. She would eat only egg whites with broccoli salad for breakfast, 2 Phulkas with vegetables for lunch and salads and oats for supper. But her kidneys gave way and she recently breathed her last.

The point I am making is that protein of any kind (plant based or animal based) is hard on the kidneys especially for those taking insulin. Remember synthetic insulin is also an animal protein.

In my considered opinion and practical experience one ought to avoid insulin unless it is inevitable, and resort to all kinds of native nutrition remedies to reverse diabetes instead of succumbing to insulin intake.

Nutraceuticals made from native nutrition like Amla Gooseberry, Jamun seeds, neem leaves, fenugreek seeds / sprouts, bitter gourd are extremely effective. One small glass of cold pressed juice of each of the above listed native Nutraceuticals plus a strict diet and regular exercises will show results in one week flat.

Even if one consumes a whole glass of say 200 Ml of Amla juice per day it has absolutely no side effects. 

Allopathic doctors abhor and advice against Ayurveda on grounds that it has arsenic compounds or the effect on molecules differ from allopathic medicine. So let us not consider Ayurveda for a minute. Just native nutrition or any plant based product that conform to traditional tenets of agriculture like say A 2 milk or seasonal vegetables, balanced nutrition, will help reverse diabetes. Infact my nutritionist swears that by avoiding dairy products, in one year one can reverse diabetes completely.

One can either eat one whole gooseberry or Amla per day either in the form of cold pressed juice or fresh fruit. One can also grate Amla into virtually any food and consume it too. Very rich source of Vitamin C it has the potential to reverse not just diabetes but revive stem cells for reversal of increase in serum creatinine, and can reverse neuropathy in people suffering from Diabetes.

Sample meal Plan for 10 days:

Breakfast: 2 tablespoons each of 3 varieties of sprouts + 2 pieces of 3 varieties of seasonal fruit, + 1 glass of plant based milk / A 2 milk + 1 glass of fresh fruit juice without sugar. + 1 cup of coffee / tea.

Mid milk snack: 1 small cup of 5 different dried fruits. + 2 fresh green herbs (Oregano / Dill / mint / basil.

Lunch: 2 Phulkas / 1 small millet roti with 1 cup of vegetable curry + 1 cup of Dal. If you are craving for rice, go for 3 tablespoons of red rice with either Sambar or vegetable soup / buttermilk.  

Supper: Ideally fluids only:  Soups / salads / fruit juice / 1 cup of seasonal fruit / millet soup & nutraceuticals only.

In case you need dairy products go for either A 2 milk or dairy substitutes like whiteners.

I find oat milk particularly helpful as a bed time snack.

This meal plan is ideal to support 1 hour of vigorous exercises per day.

 Please follow this diet / meal plan for 10 days and revert with feedback to director@digitaldiscourse.org.in During these 10 days please check your blood sugar for FBS, PPBS and RBS  daily, record it and share it with me by email, as indicated. Follow this as required for 1 month / 1 Quarter and so on for most effective results.   

Count me in your journey!

Best wishes,

Malini

Photo courtesy Creative Commons Openverse

Text and research: Malini Shankar, 

 Digital Discourse Foundation