Health and You

To maintain a correct blood sugar, the following seven principles have to be adopted by the diabetic patients, whether they have low-sugar or high sugar.

Principle one:
Adopt a diet higher in protein, lower in simple carbohydrates and with only a moderate amount of fat. A diet of nuts, wholesome grains like wheat, ragi and very little of rice, all kinds of wholesome grains and for fat a little raw-coconut or mustard of sesame seeds.

Principle two:
Eat slow absorbing carbohydrates rather than faster foods. i.e., whole grains, fruits and vegetables which break down sugar in a time consuming manner.

Principle three:
Grace, don’t stuff. Try spacing out the meals into smaller, less elaborate snacks.

Principle four:
Say good-bye to fast foods. Most of the highly refined, sugary foods contain hyper concentrated sugar. These “sweet nothings” are enough to challenge the sugar thermostat of a big elephant. Every bit of these sticky sweet confections throws the pancreas into a high-stage, red alert, in a biochemical panic to combat the infusion of high power sugars. The wild variations of sugar and insulin will put a tremendous strain on the pancreas and other organs, at once sending the energy level through the roof, then bringing it crashing down again, which leads to hyperglycemia/hypoglycemia syndrome. Therefore, give up those fast foods/junk foods today itself.

Principle five:
Say good-bye to tea, coffee, alcohol and tobacco. Since diabetes is a disease of unnecessary ups and downs, it is better to minimize the causes of these gyrations. Getting rid of artificial stimulants is the best way to do this. Further, the cycle of low blood sugar and high stimulants puts a real strain on several of the most important organs, including adrenal glands, stomach, nervous systems and cardio vascular systems. So give them up today itself.

Principle six:
If you are overweight, reduce. Losing weight will help the arteries and kidneys not to mention the sex life. It may also help lower the risk of fluctuations in the blood sugar level.

Principle seven:
Always be on the move. Do some exercises whenever you get time. Especially do some yoga or simply walk for 40 minutes every day, early in the morning, on empty stomach. Always sit straight, which will help you to burn fat faster.

When a patient feels like Hypoglycemia related symptoms, take a low-sugar, high-protein snack such as a handful of nuts or some low-fat-butter milk or some complex carbohydrates. If after eating, the patient feels the symptoms subside, it suggests that the problem may be due to an over sensitive food-insulin-blood sugar action. Instead of this, if the patient takes refined sugar or simple carbohydrates, that will make a high-sugar reaction. What the patient actually needs is a high protein or complex carbohydrates (Groundnuts / Coconuts / Dates / Papaya) that will gradually release protein or complex carbohydrates into the blood stream which will not only of if. In short, the effect will be ‘retarded release of sugar’.

Joints form the junctions between the bones in the body. They are an important part of the skeletal system and aids in weight support, binding the bone parts, supporting various movements of body, assist bone growth etc. They are otherwise called as articulations. The overuse, degeneration, faulty attack by the immune system and infection causes the disorders in joints. This article deals with some of the common joint disorders.

Some of the joint diseases are as follows.

Arthritis

This disease results in the joints becoming inflamed and painful. It has been found that arthritis occurs in about 50 million people in U.S. Arthritis exists in about 100 different types. Some of the types of arthritis are rheumatoid arthritis, Lyme arthritis, osteoarthritis, gout, etc. The common symptoms include pain in joints, swelling of joints, fever, low blood pressure etc.

Types of arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis

This type of arthritis is an autoimmune disease usually resulting in adults. It is commonly a systemic illness with anemia, fatigue, changes in the eyes, lungs, heart etc. This painful condition results when the normal healthy tissues of the body is affected by the immune system. The disease causes the synovial membrane to become thick and inflamed. Damages occur in the articular cartilage. Arthritis attacks many types of joints. Replacement of joints that are severely damaged by surgical procedures can treat this disease.

Lyme arthritis

This disease is due to the bacterial infection transmitted through tick bite which causes intermittent arthritis in many joints. The symptoms include pain, fatigue rashes, etc. The use of antibiotics to treat the disease is quite effective.

Osteoarthritis

This is a degenerative disease and most usual form of arthritis. The age is a factor in its occurrence as the chance of getting the disorder increases with age. In this kind of arthritis the softening and gradual disintegration of articular cartilage happens. This causes the articular surfaces to become rough. Pain develops in joints and difficulty arises in moving the body parts. The commonly affected joints are which are present in hips, fingers, vertebral columns etc. The drugs used in treating osteoarthritis are anti inflammatory medications.

Bursitis

This joint disease nothing but the inflammation of bursa. This disorder is due to stress applied to bursa or the overuse of joints. Bursa is present between the Achilles tendon and the heel bone. Sudden physical activities in high magnitude cause the inflammation. Tennis elbow is a type of bursitis. This form attacks the bursa which is present in between the skin and olec-ranon process.  Usually doctors suggest the patient to take rest as a part of their treatment procedure.

These are only some of many types of joint disorders. It is necessary to treat these disorders with appropriate care before they could become dangerous.