The causes of insulin resistant diabetes are numerous; however, the primary risk factors are being overweight and inactive. Insulin resistant diabetes is a cyclic disease. Your liver, muscle and fat try to absorb sugar from your blood. When your blood sugar level is high, your body increases the amount of insulin it produces to induce the cells in your body to take up more sugar. After a prolonged period of overuse, the insulin receptors on your cells start to malfunction and shutdown. This leads to higher blood sugar levels and more insulin being released, causing more malfunction and shutdown of your insulin receptors. To tackle insulin resistant diabetes on your own, you need to tackle the primary component that you can control: blood sugar levels.
Step 1
Minimize the amount of simple carbohydrates. Your body immediately coverts simple carbohydrates into a quick source of sugar that elevates your blood sugar. Fruit and vegetables high in fiber are ideal options although you should making sure that you only eat fruit along with a protein source to slow down the fruits natural source of sugar from entering your blood stream so quickly. Lean proteins will also help to fuel your body and maintain your sugar levels. Diabetes.com reports "most overweight people can improve insulin resistance by losing just 5 to 10 percent of their weight." Maintaining a diet rich in lean proteins, complex carbohydrates and healthy fats will help lead you to a lower weight.
Step 2
Limit daily sodium. Minimizing your daily sodium intake to 500 to 1500 mg per day will help you control your diet, which will lead to weight loss and lower blood sugar levels. Staying away from processed or prepackaged foods will help to minimize your sodium levels. Sodium will not only make you retain water but it will increase your appetite in the process. Initially, you will notice very rapid weight loss; however, you should be aware that this is only water weight. After a couple weeks of a low sodium diet, you will have already lost all the water weight that you can and your appetite should be shrinking leading to future fat loss. Kitty Gurkin Rosati, author of "The Rice Diet Renewal," reports remarkable results after following a low sodium, complex carbohydrate diet for 30 days. You must ensure that you eat 500 mg of salt per day. Your body needs a minimum amount of salt to function properly.
Step 3
Exercise three to five times per week. In general, you should try to just move more. Many people aim for 10,000 steps per day, which is a great goal, but aiming for a dedicated 30-minute workout three to five times per week over whatever you are currently doing will go a long way to helping you lose weight and maintain your blood sugar levels. Dr. Laurie Goodyear at the Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston has proven that exercise utilizes a completely different mechanism than insulin to lower blood glucose levels. Thus, regardless of your level of insulin resistance, exercise will instigate your skeletal muscles to uptake glucose from your bloodstream.
Step 4
Measure your fasting glucose when you wake up. Keeping a daily log of your fasting glucose levels will help you figure out exactly what eating and physical activity benefits your blood glucose levels best. Simple single prick glucose meters are available at any drug store so that you monitor your sugar levels clearly. The American Diabetes Association indicates that a normal fasting glucose level should be 70 to 150 mg. If your glucose level is consistently at 130 mg or higher, you should consult your physician about any medicinal options while you work on lowering your blood sugar levels on your own.
Things You'll Need
- Blood glucose meter
References
- Diabetes.com: Insulin Resistance
- "The Rice Diet Renewal"; Kitty G. Rosati, M.S., R.D., L.D.N.; 2010
- Pub Med.gov: "Annual Reviews Medicine"; Exercise, glucose transport, and insulin sensitivity.; L. Goodyear et. al.; 1998.
- American Diabetes Association: Living with Diabetes
