Alternative treatment

[catty]

Hi
I do not want to start a debate :) but I was wanting to hear from anyone who has combined Alternative Medicine (bio coms, vager, homepathic, accupuncture etc any of them) and treating with modern medicine for Type 1 diabetes.

Or following a Low Carb , High protein diet (maybe dr mecolas)

MAybe there has been a thread all ready on this so I will see if I can do a search!

Thanks:D

[Maddogg]

I don't know much about alternative medicine, but I do know that physical activity, even little physical activity (30 minute walk, going up a few flights of stairs...) can drastically improve the effects and efficiency of insulin.

This might be a bit off topic but it definitely affects type 1 diabetics!

I was a mover for 2 summers (for North American/Allied agents), now I know that being a mover is a pretty physically demanding job with very long shifts and lots of physical activity. The point is, when I worked a shift as a mover, whether it was a 2 hour shift or a 12 hour shift (longest shift ever was 20 hours including 2 hours of driving) Most of the time i had to dramatically reduce my insulin intake to avoid hypos, some days I woudn't even take insulin (maybe a bit of humulin, but no humalog at all), eat somewhat irregularly and still have fairly stable bg's. The first year I was a mover I got so many hypos I almost passed out on the job, and also got lost driving home (in a city i've living in for 10 years) after a hard days work.

Its really quite suprising how much a little or a lot of physical activity will improve the effects of insulin, not to mention saving money on your next prescription...

Just my 2 cents

[murphysl]

I am currently on a raw-vegan diet, with no starch, and only three fruits allowed (coconuts, lemons, and limes). It was not easy to follow at first. In fact, after a month I thought I might never get off of diet soda. I take many supplements as well, such as Sugar balance (a combination formula by allergy research group) and Quantum pancreas (a combination formula by Quantum Nutrition labs). I also use homeopathic remedies. If you are interested, I can email you or post the other supplements I take too.

The diet and the supplements I use were prescribed by my MD(H) Gabriel Cousens. He did sort of a case study a short time ago, using a program he developed for helping diabetics. It seemed to be pretty successful. There is a video clip about it that you can see here: Raw for 30 Days (http://www.rawfor30days.com/)

Oh, there has been a similar thread started recently, but I’m glad you started another one :) --they seem to
get lost fairly quickly. Here is the old thread: http://www.diabetesforums.com/forum/other-medications/18690-natural-alternative-health.html?highlight=natural+health

[dbc]

I follow a low carb, high protein diet, as do many other folks on the forum. It works for me, but isn't for everybody, I think.

[jeggeman31]

I am currently on a raw-vegan diet

How long have you been on this diet and how is it working for you?

[murphysl]

How long have you been on this diet and how is it working for you?

Hi Jim, I have been on Dr. Cousen's diet/supplement program for diabetes for about a year now (although I started getting in to raw food diets in 1998 with "Hallelujah Acres", and I saw Dr. Cousens for about 2 years before he developed the program).

So far, this program has worked better for me than anything else I have tried. I haven't been on the diet without also taking the supplements, so for my situation, improvement could be due to diet, supplements or both.

The conditions in which I have noticed improvement for myself are adrenal fatigue, depression, anxiety, joint inflammation (mainly trigger fingers/thumbs), digestion, and mineral deficiencies. I have been able to reduce the amount of insulin I use a little, just not as much as the type 1's in the study. Since everyone is different, there could be a lot of reasons as to why my improvement in this area has been slower. For one thing, I am doing the program at home rather than spending a month at the tree of life center--being there would likely allow a person to get away from day-to-day stress. I've also been type 1 longer than those in the study--32 years. But, I'm still hopeful that my health will continue to improve.

If anyone has other questions, feel free to post, personal message, or email.

Oh, if interested, there is more technical information about this diet in Dr. Cousens' book, Rainbow Green, Live Food Couisine.

[jeggeman31]

I watched that video, and I am not sure I could follow that diet. I don't have the will power.

[murphysl]

I watched that video, and I am not sure I could follow that diet. I don't have the will power.

It took a lot of will power for me, especially at first. At least I was able to go on it gradually over several years. I don't know how the people in the video managed to do it "cold turkey" like they did.