There are multiple types of diabetes: diabetes mellitus (type 2), type 1 diabetes (autoimmune) and gestational diabetes. All can be well managed through naturopathic medicine (you will still need insulin for type 1).
Did you know type 2 diabetes (diabetes mellitus) can be reversed? To understand this, let’s start from the beginning. When you are eating, your blood sugar levels increase and your insulin levels increase in response. Insulin brings the blood sugars to the cells for energy production – this is essential. Overtime, with aging, unhealthy habits, high carbs and stress, the cells become less sensitive to insulin and more resistant to it. Therefore, now we need more and more insulin to be able to bring those sugars into the cells for energy = insulin resistance. High insulin levels create a lot of inflammation, hormonal imbalances etc. However, the most important thing is that after a long time in insulin resistance, the pancreas starts producing less of it. This is when type 2 diabetics need insulin support.
What naturopathic medicine helps with, is making the cells more sensitive to insulin as well as blood sugar management. It is highly effective in reversing type II diabetes while improving quality of life by targeting other metabolic aspects such as: hypertension, high cholesterol, kidney health etc. Often times, patients come off of medications easily or don’t need to go on them in the first place, this is individualized.
Symptoms of diabetes include:
Depending how your blood sugars are managed, it can affect: heart health, digestive system, fertility, eye health, kidneys, osteoporosis, erectile dysfunction, depression, dementia etc.
With Dr. Tali, prevention is key. You will be referred for an extensive blood work measuring not only your blood sugars but also your insulin levels. Discovering insulin resistance in early stages is key to diabetes prevention. It takes a while before it develops, sometimes you can be a few years in insulin resistance stage.
While diabetes is a cause of high blood sugars and insulin resistance, there are many factors that influence that.
Other predisposing factors include:
For more information on insulin resistance and the relation to weight loss and hormones, read the article ‘Let’s Talk Weight Loss’ .
Dr. Tali’s evidence based natural approach to treating diabetes is getting to the root cause of it. You will dive deep into your health habits and go system by system in order to figure out what are the factors that are predisposing you to blood sugar imbalances. The goals for diabetes management is get control over blood sugar levels, improve insulin resistance and prevent complications arising from blood sugar dysregulation. Dr. Tali, a Toronto naturopath, strives to reverse your type II diabetes using evidence based herbal medicine, supplements, nutraceuticals, diet, nutrition, acupuncture and lifestyle factors. The treatments will be individualized to your body and needs as no two bodies are the same.
Your comprehensive individualized treatment will also address any other symptoms you are experiencing due to your blood sugar dysregulation / insulin resistance / diabetes. Such as fertility, hormonal imbalances, fatigue, digestive issues, brain fog, etc. Preventative medicine is key in diabetes as we want to prevent any future complications such as preserving kidney and heart health.
If you are on any conventional medications, Dr. Tali always checks for interactions and communicates back and forth with your doctor with regards to re-dosing.The goal is to gain full management of your blood sugars and reduce your medications.
Type 1 diabetes is autoimmune and it usually starts in childhood. This is due to the immune system attacking the beta cells of a pancreas, which therefore produce little to no insulin. Although this type is insulin dependant, naturopathic medicine can help manage blood sugar levels, increase overall quality of life and help in complication prevention / damages.
Gestational diabetes happens throughout pregnancy, to understand how naturopathic medicine can support you throughout your pregnancy journey, please see page ‘prenatal care’. It’s important you get the right support and management as sometimes it develops into diabetes after birth. Therefore, prevention is key.