Type 3 Diabetes - Is there such a thing?

Diabetes is a huge problem in Australia, nearly 1,000,000 Australians have been diagnosed and according to Diabetes Australia there are around 100,000 new diagnoses each year.

Put simply, diabetes is a group of metabolic diseases in which a person has high blood sugar, either because the pancreas does not produce enough insulin, or because cells do not respond to the insulin that is produced. This high blood sugar may produce the classical symptoms such as polyuria (frequent urination), polydipsia (increased thirst) .

Most people are aware there are two types of diabetes, Type 1 and Type 2. Type 1 generally has a younger age of onset and is dependent on insulin medication.

Type 2 usually develops later in life and is particularly related to poor lifestyle (obesity, lack of activity & especially diet). If lifestyle is not corrected they will eventually become dependent on insulin medication also. As societies become affluent more and more people are afflicted by Type 2, and at a younger age.

Scientists are now considering categorising a third type of diabetes, Type 3.

Type 3 diabetes is different from the previously known two types in several ways. Previous thinking was, unlike most cells of the body, neurons or brain cells were not particularly dependent on insulin, to permit glucose into their cells. For this reason the brain was generally considered to be relatively unaffected by insulin levels. However according to research by Neuropathologist Suzanne De la Monte and others, reported in the New Scientist, Sept 2012, this is not entirely accurate.

Most modern diets contain too much fat, and refined carbohydrates (sugar, white flour etc.). These create both insulin resistance and a tendency for blood sugar levels to rise. The pancreas responds to this rise by releasing more insulin and as a consequence brain cells produce more beta amyloid protein. These amass to form beta amyloid plaques which are the lesions that result in Dementia, this is Type 3 diabetes. Therefore obviously if you have, or are at risk of Type 2, you are at a very high risk of developing Type 3 i.e. Dementia.

Solution

Keep a healthy diet.

There are two key aspects of a healthy diet which will help you avoid diabetes, your diet needs to be right which means plant strong i.e. naturally high in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. By far, most of the bulk and calories of your diet needs to be derived from unprocessed plants foods.  You should also avoid refined carbohydrates, fats and oil, (even the so called leaner meats have a high percentage of their calories in the form of fats).

It is also imperative you are physically active. It is usual to observe an improvement in guest’s blood sugar levels after just a few days at Hopewood.