Diabetes, that insidious saboteur of human vitality, manifests primarily in two guises: Type 1 and Type 2. The former, an autoimmune blitzkrieg, annihilates the insulin-producing beta cells of the pancreas, leaving its victims dependent on external insulin – a cruel twist of biological fate.
The latter, more prevalent and insidious, is often the bastard offspring of our modern indulgences. Here, the body’s cells become deaf to the siren call of insulin, resulting in a pernicious rise of glucose in the bloodstream.
The aetiology of Type 2 diabetes is a veritable smorgasbord of contributing factors. Obesity stands as the principal villain, with sedentary lifestyles and diets replete with sugary drinks and processed foods acting as eager accomplices.
Genetics, too, play their part, as does the relentless march of Father Time; advancing age increases susceptibility.
Turning our gaze across the Atlantic, the United States finds itself in the throes of a diabetes epidemic. As of the latest reckonings, approximately 37.3 million Americans are afflicted with this metabolic malady, accounting for 11.3% of the populace. Each year, an additional 1.2 million souls are initiated into this unwelcome fraternity.
Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, the situation is scarcely more sanguine. Over 5.6 million Britons are now living under the shadow of diabetes, with Type 2 constituting the lion’s share of cases. Alarmingly, a significant portion remains undiagnosed, blissfully unaware of the metabolic tempest brewing within.
Diabetes thrives in the fertile ground of modern excess and inactivity. It is a stark testament to the perils of our contemporary lifestyles, demanding a re-evaluation of our daily habits lest we continue to fall prey to this silent scourge.
The spleen, that shy, retiring organ no one thinks about, is the seat of all our cravings – an unsung villain in the saga of sugar addiction. Let it falter, let it weaken, and suddenly you’re prowling the kitchen at midnight, driven by an insatiable need for biscuits and regret.
Enter sugar, alcohol, caffeine – the holy trinity of modern excess. The more you consume, the more your blood sugar surges, triggering a tidal wave of insulin, a desperate attempt to restore order. Fail to rein it in, and congratulations, you’ve now got hyperglycemia – a word that sounds faintly exotic but really just means your body is waving a white flag.
Cross the final threshold, and the medical profession will solemnly hand you a diabetes diagnosis, as though bestowing a knighthood you never wanted.
Many years ago a nurse in Edinburgh admitted to me:
“The diet we recommend to diabetics is not designed to cure but to ensure patients remain on insulin for life.”
This can happen at any time, to anyone, depending on how sturdy you were to begin with. The pharmaceutical industry spotted an opportunity, rubbed its hands together, and in the early 1900s, pronounced diabetes incurable.
It has since made billions from a condition that could have been prevented or, at the very least, mitigated.
History tells a simple story: we’ve been eating ourselves into an epidemic. TheTruthAboutCancer took a look at the sugar consumption trends over the past 300 years, revealing:
- In 1700, the average person consumed about 4 pounds of sugar per year.
- In 1800, the average person consumed about 18 pounds of sugar per year.
- In 1900, individual consumption had risen to 90 pounds of sugar per year.
- Today -The average American eats (or drinks) 34 teaspoons of sugars a day, which is equal to 500+ calories daily. This averages more than 100 pounds of sugars per person each year.
The statistics are relentless. In 1890, just 3 in 100,000 people had diabetes. By 2012, that number had soared to nearly 8,000 in 100,000. Today in the UK, one in every 16 people is diabetic, a number that continues its steady, merciless climb.
Type 1, type 2 – different routes, same destination. In England alone, nearly 277,000 people battle Type 1 diabetes, while over 3.5 million wrestle with Type 2. The consequences are dire: blindness, heart attacks, strokes, kidney failure, lower limb amputations – the body’s slow and painful surrender.
And yet, we still line checkout aisles with gleaming towers of sweets, conveniently positioned at child height, as if training the next generation to accept their fate. Diabetes, once simply a disease, now has a new, more grotesque name: diabesity. If your waistline has crept beyond 40 inches for men, 36 for women, consider yourself officially on the guest list.
The real tragedy? It didn’t have to be this way. But where’s the profit in prevention?
In September 2001 they changed the definition of a vaccination from “a product that stimulates a person’s immune system to produce immunity to a specific disease, protecting a person from that disease” to “a preparation that is used to stimulate the body’s immune system against diseases”..
But this sleight of hand is not limited to vaccines.
The above image was taken from my book “The Body Speaks”
Graeme Dinnen
ResourcesForLife.net
PS. Who is the greatest killer of all time? Genghis Khan, Mao Tse Tung or Joseph Stalin? No, it’s ……click here
Leave a Reply