Every year between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, we’re more tempted than usual to eat sweet foods. Cookies, cakes, candies, and pies are more plentiful than at any other time. If you’re diabetic, however, you know that many sweet foods are forbidden. Or are they?

Actually, there’s a common sweetener that’s safe for diabetics that not many people know about. In fact, when I looked through nearly a dozen recent books on natural, integrative programs for diabetes, not one of them included information about the benefits of this sweetener. I don’t understand how they could omit this important information.

Ronnie heard this surprising news from one of her integrative doctors. She has had type-1 diabetes most of her life. Since her body doesn’t make much insulin, she has to be extremely careful with how much of any kind of sugar she eats. Like many diabetics, she’s become an expert on how the body absorbs various sweeteners and how much of each she can tolerate at any time. And she regulates her blood sugar with diet and insulin.

She knows which fruits are safest for her and which starches cause her blood sugar to spike. Ronnie is very careful not to eat foods that have been sweetened with cane sugar or high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). She knows a lot about blood sugar regulation, but she was flabbergasted when one of her doctors suggested that she eat some honey every day. Ronnie was also surprised to learn that often the first treatment used around the world for glucose intolerance is none other than honey.

So she began by putting one level teaspoon of honey in her food each day and found she could eat a few more carbs without having her blood sugar spike like it did in the past. Honey actually helped stabilize her blood sugar for a number of months until severe stress affected it. Ronnie’s pancreas still produces a little insulin, so she continues to check her blood sugar four times a day and gives herself insulin shots as needed. She uses honey periodically and carefully, and is getting more familiar with using it.

Dr. Ron Fessenden, MD, has found that many diabetics do best when they eat three to five tablespoons of honey a day in divided doses. The amount and type of sweetener that works best for any diabetic can vary tremendously, but honey has its place in the diet of many diabetics.

Getting the right sugar

In type-1 diabetes, the body doesn’t produce insulin. You need enough insulin to unlock liver cells so that glucose can fuel them. Glycogen is the form of sugar that the liver stores for energy until it’s needed. And honey makes glycogen.

With type-2 diabetes, the most common kind, the body doesn’t make enough insulin or is unable to use it properly. Then, frequently, sugar (glucose) builds up in the blood. That’s called high blood sugar or hyperglycemia.

Honey contains an ideal amount of fructose and glucose that actually lowers blood sugar levels by removing glucose from circulation in the bloodstream. Our bodies tolerate honey much better than sucrose or glucose alone.

We need stored glycogen to feed our brain and muscles. We’ve all experienced a time when our brain is foggy, or we feel weak until we eat some form of sugar. In many cases, the right sugar — the balanced sugar — is honey. Sucrose and high fructose corn syrup don’t make glycogen like honey. Instead, they trigger an insulin response.

When you don’t have enough stored glycogen, your brain makes stress hormones: adrenalin and cortisol. These hormones turn muscle protein into glucose. Over time, the stress caused by cortisol leads to insulin resistance, impaired glucose metabolism, diabetes, and an increased risk for heart disease and obesity.

All carbs are not alike

Not all starches and sugars affect blood sugar levels in the same way. The glycemic index (GI) is a system of measuring the rate at which a gram of carbohydrate raises blood sugar. Cane sugar has a GI of 100 and causes a rapid rise in blood sugar. Honey has a GI of 55 and is considered to be a moderate glycemic food — one that regulates blood sugar rather than causes it to spike.

In addition to glucose and fructose, honey contains over 180 different substances including 25 different sugars. These include vitamins, minerals, amino acids, enzymes, fats, and antioxidants. In fact, honey is more like a fruit than a sugar. Some or all of these additional nutrients may explain honey’s beneficial effects on blood sugar levels.

Before rushing out to stock up on honey, you may want to test the starches and sugars in your diet to see if you are particularly sensitive to any of them. You can find a list of foods on the Internet that are high on the GI and are likely to trigger a blood-sugar spike. Test your blood sugar twice: before eating a particular food you’re questioning and then two hours later.

Honey helps lower blood sugar

It may surprise you as much as Ronnie, but it’s true. Honey significantly lowers insulin in non-diabetics, and it stabilizes blood sugar levels in diabetics. When 48 type-2 diabetics in a recent study ate small amounts of honey throughout the day for eight weeks, it lowered both blood sugar and HbA1c. HbA1c is a blood test that identifies the average blood sugar level over a period of time, not just in the moment.

Just how much honey should a diabetic eat to help regulate their blood sugar? Ron Fessenden, MD, in his little book, The Honey Revolution (World Class Emprise, 2010), suggests three to five tablespoons a day in divided doses. He recommends one or two tablespoons of honey in the morning with fruit, yogurt, or cereal. Then, another one or two tablespoons mid-day with fruit or a snack, and one tablespoon at night to help you sleep. But always talk with your doctor before including honey in your diet to decide how much is wise for you to begin using. And monitor your response carefully.

What if your diabetes is really bad? Fessenden has found that the worse a person’s diabetes, the greater the positive effect honey has on their blood sugar. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you should add honey to a diet that’s already high in carbohydrates. What makes the most sense is to replace most sugars in your diet with honey.

Abdulrhman, Mamdouh, Mohamed E. Hefnawy, Rasha Ali and Ahmad Abou El-Goud. Honey and Type-1 Diabetes Mellitus, Pediatric Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Abbasia - Cairo, National Institute of Diabetes, Cairo Egypt.

Bahrami M, Ataie-Jafari A, Hosseini S, Foruzanfar MH, Rahmani M, Pajouhi M. “Effects of natural honey consumption in diabetic patients: an 8-week randomized clinical trial.” Int J Food Sci Nutr., 2009 November;60(7):618-26.

Fessenden, Ron, MD, MPH and Mike McInnes, MRPS. The Honey Revolution – Restoring the Health of Future Generations, WorldClassEmprise, Inc, December 2008.

Why Many People Become Delirious After Surgery – And How You Can Avoid This Mental Confusion

Four years ago, I explained how a decline in mental function often follows cardiac and other surgeries. These changes in cognition can last a day or two or months. They can even be permanent. They’re one reason why some people avoid surgeries. Even necessary ones. Especially if they’ve seen mental changes in a friend or family member.

A study in the July 2012 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine said that many people become delirious after cardiac surgery. I’m not talking about a handful of people. These researchers found that delirium occurs in up to 75% of heart patients! But mental confusion isn’t limited to heart patients. It occurs after many surgeries.

Memory loss after surgery is very common. In fact, if you have any surgery, major or minor, you’re at risk for some memory loss. I’ll explain why in a minute. First, let me explain a little about delirium.

Delirium is not just a babbling or rambling on. It’s an acute change in mental function that appears quickly – like after surgery. When you’re delirious, it’s difficult to communicate and function normally. You lose your focus easily and it’s hard to think and reason rationally. You could experience changes in perception. And this occurs when you’re recuperating from major surgery.

For this most recent study, researchers assessed the cognitive function of a group of patients about to have cardiac surgery using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MSME). They tested the patients before surgery, each day they stayed in the hospital, and at 1, 6, and 12 months. Cognitive function dropped right after surgery, then it recovered in most people during the following year. The patients with delirium had a larger drop in cognitive function two days after surgery than those free of delirium. But the worst finding was that the patients with delirium recovered most slowly and never returned to baseline levels at the end of a year!

So we know there’s an association between surgery and delirium, but what is it? Why do so many people suffer from this loss of mental acuity after surgery? And how can you avoid going down this same path? Without a reason, there can be no solution.

I’ve identified at least one reason for post-operative mental confusion and difficulty in thinking clearly. In fact, I experienced a mild case of delirium after having surgery for a broken leg. Then I eliminated the reason for this impairment. It didn’t take a year or even a month. It took one day.

What was going on

I knew I had broken my leg, but I didn’t know where I was – in the hospital or in the rehab facility. I knew it was one or the other, but which? I looked around slowly and carefully and still couldn’t tell. I was prepared for this reaction, so I was more interested in what I was experiencing than scared. Still, this was an uncomfortable feeling.

Across from my bed sat a plant and several bouquets. I remembered asking a nurse to put them on a shelf where my roommate could see them. Ah … that meant I was in rehab. I hadn’t shared my room in the hospital. Slowly, my memory improved and I not only knew where I was, my thinking was becoming more normal.

Memory loss after any surgery is called POCD (postoperative cognitive dysfunction). Doctors don’t know its cause, but I do. This condition comes from anesthesia. So later that day, I asked a visiting friend to smuggle in a supplement that binds to heavy metals and pharmaceuticals. It removed any traces of anesthetics and my memory was as good as ever the next day.

Later, I discovered that several anesthetics (ketamine, benzodiazepines, propofol, atropine, and scopolamine) can produce delirium. This is a form of POCD that can strike as much as 50% of older patients having heart surgery or hip replacement.

These residues can remain in your body, especially your brain, for the rest of your life. That’s why it’s vital to remove all traces of anesthetics after any operation.

Pain medications can have the same effect. They also can cause POCD. This occurs primarily when your doctor gives them to you intravenously.

In a French study, researchers reduced cognitive decline considerably simply by giving patients oral pain pills or epidural injections instead of through an IV. So talk to your doctor before any surgery and insist on getting your pain meds through an epidural or from oral pain pills. This alone can greatly reduce your chance of losing your mental sharpness.

Most detoxification programs can’t remove anesthesia and pain medications. In fact, most oral detox formulas aren’t particularly effective.

The best one I’ve found, and the one I used that cleared my mind, was PectaSol Detox Formula. It’s a product made from sodium alginate and modified citrus pectin that increases your body’s normal detoxification system. It effectively binds to toxins in your blood and intestines, including residual anesthetics, before they can be absorbed in your tissues.

Take two capsules morning and night on an empty stomach — and away from pain medications. I suggest a one- to three-month course since we’re all exposed to heavy metals and drug residues. In fact, I take it periodically for three months just to clean up my blood. You can get PectaSol Detox Formula from Advanced Bionutritionals (800-791-3395).

POCD is a frightening side effect from surgery. Just know that if surgery is necessary, there’s a solution that’s simple and effective.

Cohendy, R., et al. “Anaesthesia in the older patient,’” Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care, January 8, 2005.

Crosby, G., MD and D.J. Culley, MD. “Anesthesia, the aging brain, and the surgical patient,” Canadian Journal of Anesthesia, 50:R12 (2003).

Saczynski J., et al. “Cognitive trajectories after postoperative delirium,” N Engl J Med, 2012.

Wang, Y., et al. “The effects of postoperative pain and its management on postoperative cognitive dysfunction,” Am J Geriatr Psychiatry, January 2007.

These Nutrients Can Help Reverse Hypothyroidism and Eliminate Fatigue

Low thyroid function is yet another consequence of aging. You may have been told that your thyroid tests are normal. Yet, if you are frequently cold, constipated, have brittle hair, and have unexplained fatigue, your thyroid gland may not be functioning optimally.

Hypothyroidism (low thyroid function) is an epidemic, and some endocrinologists believe that as many as one in four women have thyroid problems. Many go undiagnosed. One reason so many women have thyroid problems may be that our thyroid glands are twice as large as a man’s. This causes a need for more supportive nutrients. And stress is another reason. When we’re stressed, our thyroid glands get even larger. This increases our need for even more nutrients to support the gland.

But how do you determine if your thyroid is underactive? Not by blood tests, although that’s the usual route. Thyroid blood tests are poor indicators of thyroid function. Yet, allopathic doctors tend to base their treatment on them.

Years ago, I went to a seminar about the thyroid for doctors of integrative medicine. The speaker, thyroid expert Richard L. Shames, MD, asked how many of the attending doctors used blood tests to determine whether or not their patients had a thyroid problem. Not one of these integrative doctors did. Instead, they took the time to perform comprehensive workups, which included asking a lot of questions and listening closely to their answers. They could tell by a person’s symptoms and physical appearance whether or not their thyroid was likely to be low.

Not only do traditional doctors rely on blood tests to evaluate thyroid function, their solution is most often to prescribe thyroid medication. Whether this is natural thyroid or synthetic, there’s a step you can take before pills: specific minerals.

Your thyroid needs enough of two minerals to function well: iodine and selenium. Getting enough of one is just not good enough, and deficiencies are common.

Iodine regulates the thyroid

Your thyroid and breast tissues contain high amounts of iodine. Insufficient iodine can lead to hypothyroidism and breast cancer. And most people aren’t getting enough iodine.

In 1940, the typical American diet contained 500-800 mcg of iodine. By 1995, this amount had dropped to 135 mcg. You can read about this problem in more detail in my book, 456 Most Powerful Healing Secrets (800-610-2107). In it, I also explain how dietary iodine (iodine 127) protects against the harmful iodine 131 that is a byproduct of nuclear energy.

Iodine also protects against breast cancer. Here’s how: Low iodine can increase the production of estrogens. And your lifetime exposure to estrogens increases your risk for breast cancer. Iodine normalizes the effect of estrogens on breast tissues.

In one study on iodine in the thyroid and breast tissues of rats, Dr. B. Eskin, who has been researching this subject for more than 30 years, found that when rats became deficient in iodine they became hypothyroid. Then when they gave these rats estrogen, their breast cells became pre-cancerous. When they gave them iodine, their abnormal cell growth stopped.

Most doctors believe that 150 mcg of iodine a day is enough. Dr. Guy E. Abraham, MD, who has studied iodine for decades, disagrees. He has found that 50 mg of iodine and iodide is needed to normalize iodine levels. Iodide is necessary because this is the form of iodine that the thyroid gland uses.

You can get a 24-hour urine test for iodine sufficiency designed by Dr. Abraham from Doctor’s Data, Inc. (800-323-2784). If you’re low, order his iodine/iodide formula, Iodoral® (800-223-1601).

Selenium and the thyroid

You need iodine to produce thyroid hormones, and selenium to support the conversion of T-4 (stored thyroid hormone) into T-3 (active thyroid hormone). We get selenium through our food. There used to be more selenium in our soil, where our foods would absorb it. Now, many farmers grow their crops in nutrient-depleted soil.

It’s rare for healthy adults to be deficient in selenium, but we’re not always as healthy as we think we are. People with digestive problems like irritable bowel disease or celiac disease — or even a gluten sensitivity — are more likely to need additional selenium. Since there are so many undiagnosed digestive problems as we age, it’s best to get evaluated for low selenium.

A simple blood test can measure the amount of selenium in your blood. If it’s low, you can take 200 mcg a day in supplement form — the amount found in Healthy Resolve multivitamin (800-791-3395). Or you can eat two to four Brazil nuts a day to improve your selenium status and boost your immune function.

In a New Zealand study, researchers gave 59 participants two Brazil nuts a day or a placebo for three months. The nuts contained around 50 mcg of selenium per serving. They found that eating two Brazil nuts a day was as effective for increasing selenium status as a 100 mcg selenium supplement.

Try taking one or both of these minerals for three to six months, and see whether or not your fatigue has improved. Begin with the simple and obvious first steps: addressing the cause of fatigue, not just its symptoms.

Thomson, Christine D., Alexandra Chisholm, Sarah K. McLachlan, and Jennifer M. Campbell. “Brazil nuts: an effective way to improve selenium status,” American Society for Clinical Nutrition, 2008.

“Selenium – The missing link for treating hypothyroidism?” February 3, 2012 in Food & Nutrition, Immunity, Thyroid Disorders | 84.

NUTRITION DETECTIVE

Why I Won’t Eat Fat-free Salad Dressings, and You Shouldn’t Either

Do you use fat-free salad dressings to keep your weight down? Many people do. Fat-free dressings have become so popular that you can find them available in most restaurants. But opting for this dietary adjustment isn’t as smart as it may seem. Not if you want to get the maximum nutrients out of your foods.

Let’s face it, one big reason for eating fruits and vegetables is that they’re packed with healthful antioxidants and other beneficial nutrients.

But the type and amount of fats you eat in a meal containing fat-soluble vitamins like vitamins A and E determines how much of these nutrients you can absorb and utilize. That’s what a study out of Purdue University found when they tested salad dressings with different kinds of fats for carotenoid levels. Carotenoids are plant pigments that the body turns into vitamin A — like beta-carotene and lutein. They are extremely beneficial in lowering a person’s risk of cancer, macular degeneration, and heart disease.

A prior 2004 study from Iowa State University found that carotenoids were more bioavailable in full-fat dressings than in either low-fat or fat-free dressings. This more recent study took a closer look at the kinds and amounts of fats used.
For this study, a group of participants ate salads with dressings made from butter (saturated fat), canola oil (monounsaturated fat), or soybean oil (polyunsaturated fat). Each salad contained 3, 8, or 20 grams of dressing. Here’s what the researchers found.

Soybean oil was dose dependent. The more soy oil dressing on the salad, the
more carotenoids they absorbed. With the monounsaturated fats dressing, made from canola or olive oil, the carotenoid absorption was the same when they ate 3 grams or 20 grams. So if you want to lower your calories and still get plenty of antioxidants, pass on the fat-free dressing. Use a little full-fat salad dressing made with olive oil instead.

Goltz, Shellen R., Wayne W. Campbell, Chureeporn Chitchumroonchokchai, Mark L. Failla, and Mario G. Ferruzzi. “Meal triacylglycerol profile modulates postprandial absorption of carotenoids in humans.” Molecular Nutrition & Food Research, 2012; 56 (6): 866 DOI: 10.1002/mnfr.201100687.

LETTERS

Q: I have osteoporosis. My doctors want me to take Boniva, but I don’t want to. I’ve taken natural remedies like calcium and bio-identical hormones for 25 years, but nothing seems to have been absorbed to prevent osteoporosis. Does strontium benefit women who have osteoporosis or only those who are preventing it? — D.N. e-mail

A: It helps both. Ultimate Bone Support, which contains strontium along with other bone-conserving nutrients, definitely prevents bone loss. But let’s not start there. If you’re concerned with your ability to absorb calcium and magnesium, you could have a gluten sensitivity. This inability to digest gluten blocks the absorption of minerals like calcium and magnesium, as well as protein. If gluten is part of your problem, you should eliminate all traces of it (wheat, rye, barley), including soy sauce and other hidden sources.

Next, I’d suggest you take an increased dose of Ultimate Bone Support (two tablets morning and night on an empty stomach) along with Calcitonin nasal spray for at least six months to a year. Calcitonin is a prescription drug made from salmon. It’s safe (unlike Boniva) and gives your bones additional support. I’ve talked about this program in past newsletter articles which are available to all newsletter subscribers at www.womenshealthletter.com.

Q: I just bought a tablet computer like the iPad. I use it in the evening before going to bed, but it seems like I have more problems getting to sleep than I used to. Is there any reason why my tablet computer could be affecting my sleep, or is this just my imagination? — R.S., email

A: It’s not your imagination. The iPad, and other tablet computers, reduce your melatonin levels and interrupt your sleep. Your mobile phone, computer, TV, and other sources of light have the same effect. Their self-luminous backlit displays suppress melatonin, the hormone that regulates your body clock.

You may get away with using your tablet computer or other devices for a short time without upsetting your sleep. But using them for long periods of time will definitely have a negative effect. A study out of the University of Southern California found that exposure to light for two hours from these electronic devices can reduce your melatonin levels by 22%.

As we age, our melatonin production naturally lessens. This is why so many seniors have problems sleeping. Using a tablet computer for two hours or more before going to bed re-sets your body clock from sleepy to alert. You’d be much better off playing with electronic devices like this one in the morning instead of at night.

If this isn’t possible, try one or more of the following: Wear a Sleep Bracelet, talked about in the September 2012 newsletter (800-237-9477); listen to the radio or meditate an hour or more before bed time instead of watching TV; take melatonin before going to bed (or, if melatonin makes you drowsy, try Advanced Sleep Formula — 800-791-3395), or reduce the time you’re exposed to all light sources — including TVs — to no more than one hour before going to bed.

“Light level and duration of exposure determine the impact of self-luminous tablets on melatonin suppression,” Applied Ergonomics, 29 August 2012.