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Fibromyalgia Monthly Newsletter
Fibromyalgia Newsletter – April 2004
Do you have symptoms that relate to insulin imbalance? When I work with clients who have fibromyalgia, I often ask them if they tend to have hypoglycemia, insulin resistance, or diabetes symptoms. These types of blood sugar imbalances can cause fibromyalgia pain to get worse. In this newsletter we will look at the role of insulin and how it can affect your health especially if you have fibromyalgia.
Fibromyalgia and Blood Sugar
Insulin has many roles in the body. It maintains sugar levels in our cells where we create energy. If we cannot get sugar into the cells we become tired more easily. Overtime this can lead to hypersensitivity to pain that is associated with fibromyalgia.
Insulin is a storage hormone. Insulin builds muscle and stores amino acids from protein. Insulin also stores magnesium for future energy production. Insulin also takes excess glucose from carbohydrates and stores them as fat. Many people with insulin imbalances have excess weight, especially in the upper abdomen area. Insulin also controls salt and water retention in the body, and may contribute to rising blood pressures and imbalances in the cholesterol profile. Excess insulin will cause adrenalin to be secreted even when you are not stressed.
Reactive hypoglycemia, the first stage of blood sugar imbalance occurs two to three hours after eating a high carbohydrate breakfast or lunch. Symptoms of reactive hypoglycemia are shakiness or tingling, pounding heartbeats, perspiring, and concentration problems. These symptoms occur because excess insulin causes adrenalin to be released.
We crave carbohydrates because we need energy. Yet when we eat carbohydrates, we stimulate insulin production. Insulin is supposed to move blood sugar into our cells, where it is burned as fuel. When there is an excess of insulin as well as an excess of carbohydrates, the excess carbohydrates are stored as fat in fat cells. The excess insulin also prevents the carbohydrates from being used for energy. You not only gain weight, but you are also prevented from losing these excess fat deposits because of the excess carbohydrates.
If it progresses toward insulin resistance you will have symptoms of excess body fat, high blood pressure, high triglycerides/cholesterol, fluid retention, dry skin, decreased memory chronic fatigue, irritability, mood swings, and sleep disturbances. These symptoms are very similar to associated conditions of fibromyalgia.
Insulin balances affect other areas of our metabolism. It slows our thyroid hormone conversion from T4 to T3. It affects the calcium absorption rate into our bones, and it affects how our muscles store sugar to burn for energy. When we burn sugar stored in our muscles, before burning fat, we get more muscle weakness and fatigue. This is why it takes a long time to recover after exercise or exertion
The cholesterol and triglyceride levels become more out of balance. You can measure the level of insulin resistance by looking at the ratio of Triglycerides / HDL. If the ratio is greater than 4.0 then you probably have an insulin imbalance.
How Do We Balance Insulin Levels?
All carbohydrate foods stimulate the secretion of insulin. Use the Glycemic Index / Glycemic Load Chart on my general website NaturalChoicesForYou to alter your diet to include more foods that take longer to digest, thus maintaining sugar and insulin balances better. You can learn more about this chart by reading the article on Insulin Resistance on that website also.
Use good fats, from fish oils, flax oils, and or olive oil to lower the glycemic level of any carbohydrates you do eat. If you eat breads or rolls, it would be beneficial on your blood sugar to put butter or olive oil on it, than to eat it plain. Incorporating essential fatty acids (the good fats) into your diet will help provide the fuel for building new muscles and will stimulate energy production.
Remember, insulin triggers an adrenalin response. So taking in anything that further stimulates adrenalin like coffee, tea and colas will make insulin resistance worse. Gradually reduce the level of caffeinated drinks in your diet and change over to pure water. Also, regular exercise will decrease the amount of insulin in your blood improving both blood sugar and insulin levels.
Recommended Books and Articles
If you would like to know more about insulin imbalance and Metabolic Syndrome, you can read the book called “Syndrome X” by Jack Challem, Burton Berkson, and Melissa Diane Smith. It has a complete nutritional protocol for balancing blood sugar levels, and talks about the importance of using low glycemic index foods.
Supplement of the Month
If you believe you have blood sugar imbalances there is a supplement called GlucoBalance available at NaturalChoicesForYou as the featured product of the month. Of all of the nutritional supplements available to help balance blood sugar, this one seems to have the most ingredients, like chromium and niacin, that work together most effectively. The only other supplement I would make sure you are using for blood sugar control is EPA-DHA Complex, Omega-EFA, or another omega-3 and omega-6 supplement regularly. You can order essential fatty acids at Dr. Jane Oelke's Meta E-Health website.
Remember, if your fibromyalgia symptoms came on gradually, this could be due to weakness in your metabolism. Altering your diet, and adding the appropriate nutrients, can make a huge change in your fibromyalgia symptoms.
Jane Oelke, N.D., Ph.D.
Natural Choices, Inc.
"Building Your Health Naturally"
DoctorOelke@aol.com
www.NaturalChoicesForYou.com
www.NaturalChoicesForFibromyalgia.com
1-888-893-7225
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