This article is the last of our series of Diabetes related posts to close out Diabetes Awareness month this November.

A dose of prevention for you and your kids

Diabetes has become a full-blown epidemic in the U.S. and Canada. Twenty-six million people have been diagnosed with the disease; millions more unknowingly live with it. Among the newly diagnosed are children as young as age five.

The exponential rise of diabetes across North America is no mystery. It’s directly tied to our consumption of processed, refined foods, compounded by our increasingly sedentary lifestyle. If we return to a more natural way of eating and living, the vast majority of us need never worry about diabetes and its associated dangers — blindness, limb amputation, kidney failure, and premature death.

Switching to a healthier, more active lifestyle may pose an inconvenience. But it’s far outweighed by the inconvenience of having to live with a chronic disease.

What is diabetes?

Diabetes occurs when the pancreas doesn’t produce or doesn’t properly utilize insulin, the hormone that stores and releases blood sugar (glucose) for energy. It comes in two main forms: type 1 and type 2.

Type 1 diabetes (also known as juvenile or insulin-dependent diabetes) is the rarer form of the disease. In it, the beta cells of the pancreas are completely destroyed, requiring lifelong insulin injections. Experts still don’t know what causes type 1 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes is far more common and, in some ways, more insidious. Experts agree on one of its main causes: over-consumption of simple carbohydrates, which are found in foods that contain refined sugar and refined grains such as white flour, rice, and bread.

How type 2 diabetes develops

One contributing factor to Type 2 Diabetes is the consumption of white bread. White bread is a byword for bland innocuousness. But ironically, it’s foods like white bread that give rise to type 2 diabetes.

When you eat a piece of white bread, it rapidly breaks down into blood sugar due to the dearth of fiber, protein, and essential fat. Your pancreas responds by secreting increased amounts of insulin. If you continue eating simple carbohydrates without sufficient fiber, protein, and essential fat, your body will keep secreting more and more insulin to cope with the surge in blood-sugar levels.

Too much insulin leads to two major health problems: it causes excess glucose to be stored as fat, contributing to weight gain; and it causes blood sugar to drop, a state known as hypoglycemia. To counter the symptoms of hypoglycemia — fatigue, moodiness, and mental fogginess — most people will consume sugary or starchy foods, prompting the vicious cycle to begin all over again.

The body gradually grows accustomed to these fluctuations in blood-sugar levels. As a result, the warning signs of impending disease may go unnoticed for months, even years.

Amid all the bad news, however, there is some good news: unlike type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes is preventable.

Help from whole foods

To keep blood sugar balanced, you should eat smaller meals that put less stress on your pancreas and, above all, reduce your daily intake of refined sugar and other simple carbohydrates.

Buy unprocessed, whole foods instead of packaged goods. Whole foods include unrefined grains, legumes, vegetables, fruit, nuts, and seeds. These are the most natural foods you can eat and contain an abundance of fiber and essential nutrients without refined sugar or any other unhealthy additives.

Eat as much fresh, raw food as possible. Vegetables contain more nutrients raw than cooked, since the heat of cooking destroys many vitamins and enzymes. Be sure to include fruit in your diet, as well: apples, pears, plums, peaches, cherries, and grapefruit are particularly beneficial. Given that fruit does contain natural sugars it’s important to consult your physician to understand how much fruit to eat on a daily basis.

Experiment with healthy foods

If eating this way is new to you, take the time to experiment with unfamiliar foods and recipes. Start your day with muesli made from raw oats instead of sugary breakfast cereals or baked goods. Try recipes with quinoa or kamut pasta, brown basmati rice, and bulgur wheat in place of the usual plain white rice and noodle dishes.

Read food labels to ascertain sugar content: some foods, such as pop, consist almost entirely of sugar. Use butter, nuts, seeds, fruits, and whole-grain snacks to replace baked goods and sweets.

If you must indulge your sweet tooth, small amounts of stevia and fructose are the best sugar substitutes. Artificial sugar substitutes, such as aspartame and saccharine, may actually promote weight gain and increase sugar cravings.

Get active

Along with eating well, exercise is also vital for preventing diabetes. Regular exercise stabilizes blood sugar levels and reduces the body’s need for insulin.

The best way to start an exercise regimen is slowly but regularly. Just 30 minutes of walking a day offers enormous health benefits and can help to balance blood-sugar levels.

By eating well and being active, you can avoid becoming another statistic and live the long, diabetes-free life you deserve.

Related Diabetes Awareness Month posts:

WalkingSpree’s 30 Days to ask “Why you should care about Diabetes” calendar.

For Diabetes Awareness Month, you can download WalkingSpree’s Diabetes Awareness calendar with walking tips for posting in your workplace or on your fridge as a reminder of the importance of every step you take.

D-Blog day

Your kids will love this delish sandwich

There’s one guarantee with the Chocolate and Strawberry Sandwich: the lunchbox will be empty when your child returns home. Despite the decadent concept, the sandwich provides healthy whole grains, good fats, vitamin C, and antioxidants. This recipe makes about four sandwiches.

Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

1/3 cup (85 mL) hazelnuts, with skins on

1/4 cup (60 mL) maple syrup

1 to 2 Tbsp (15 to 30 mL) cocoa powder, to taste

1/4 cup (60 mL) enriched vanilla soymilk, approximately

Sandwiches

1 loaf whole grain bread, cut into

1/2-inch (1-cm) thick slices

1 cup (250 mL) organic strawberries, thinly sliced

To prepare the Chocolate Hazelnut Spread, preheat oven to 400 F (200 C). Place hazelnuts in single layer on shallow baking pan. Toast until skins are almost black, about 15 minutes.

Wrap hot hazelnuts in a clean kitchen towel and rub them until most of the skins have come off. Discard skins.

Process nuts in bowl of food processor, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally, until the nuts have become like nut butter (about five minutes).

Add maple syrup and cocoa to hazelnut butter, and process until smooth (about five minutes). Add soymilk as necessary to achieve consistency of cream cheese. Transfer Chocolate Hazelnut Spread to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Makes 1/2 cup (125 mL).

To prepare Chocolate and Strawberry Sandwiches, spread each slice of bread with about 1 Tbsp (30 mL) Chocolate Hazelnut Spread. Top with sliced strawberries. Cover with another slice of bread and wrap tightly or place in sandwich container.

Use Feng Shui to help clear your home of stress

Do you step into your home with a sense of serenity? Or is it with a sense of foreboding as you contemplate that leaky faucet, those piles of unopened mail, and your family’s ever-growing mountains of “stuff”?

If you’re souring on home sweet home, try borrowing some ideas from Feng Shui (pronounced “fung shway”). Arranging space to be in harmony with nature might seem like a New Age fad, but it’s actually an ancient Chinese concept with many practical applications. The main premise is that what you place in your environment and how you arrange and balance those objects can enhance — or hinder — your heath and well-being.

Basic Feng Shui

In her book Feng Shui and Health, Nancy Santopietro compares clutter in the home to cholesterol in your bloodstream: just as high cholesterol clogs your arteries and leads to physical illness, so too can clutter clog your home and feed feelings of stress and anxiety.

Keep your home as free from clutter as you can. Anything disorganized, unused, or unfinished qualifies as clutter — papers that need to be recycled, old clothes that could be given away, broken-down appliances that are gathering dust. Besides removing clutter, be sure to promptly repair or replace worn-out or damaged items, such as broken light bulbs and squeaky doors.

Once you’ve toned down on the visual noise, pacify your home with echoes of nature. The sound of gurgling water can breathe more life into your environment. Tropical plants such as lucky bamboo, dracaena, and ivy are easy to keep and will help to naturally renew the indoor air.

Regularly clean and air out your home. Also plug sinkholes and put toilet seats down. Make sure your doorways and entryways are clear of obstacles.

Install lighting appropriate to the area. Have high-quality luminous lighting in rooms that require greater attention to detail, such as in the kitchen or office. Reduce the amount of lighting in areas like the den or bedroom to help create a quieter, more relaxed environment.

Bathe your home in a sufficient amount of sunlight to uplift and soothe the spirit. (In areas of your home that don’t have access to natural light, full-spectrum light bulbs will do the trick.) Open drapes and add mirrors to draw in the sunlight.

Find a quiet spot in your home that can be reserved for meditation, soul-searching, and creative thinking. Add plants, a comfy chair or couch, and soft lighting, all of which will help to foster a sense of relaxation.

In Feng Shui, the bedroom is considered an inner sanctum. Position your bed so that the view is of something nurturing, rather than straight into the bathroom or down a hallway. Remove TVs or other electronic devices that can distract you from a sound sleep. Above all, don’t work in your bedroom: the goal is to never compromise its status as your ultimate oasis.

Feng Shui for the Office

You can also apply Feng Shui principles to the workplace to help relieve stress and unleash creative energy. You don’t even have to devote a lot of time to rearranging things. According to Kirsten Lagatree, author of Feng Shui at Work, “Subtle changes, such as the placement of your desk or use of color in a room, can bring dramatic results.”

As in the home, clutter in the workplace gives rise to mental and emotional chaos. Keep your desk tidy by dedicating at least an hour per week to organizing it.

When decorating, choose complementary, muted colors over bright colors and/or colors that clash. Avoid an overabundance of white: it reflects light, leading to eyestrain.

Make sure your computer screen is the brightest object in your line of sight. If the overhead light is too bright, your eyes will have to work overtime to make out what’s on the screen.

Bring in some plants or a tabletop fountain to add an element of nature to your office.

Situate yourself in what Feng Shui practitioners call the “Command Position” — with your desk facing the door. Having your back to the door can make you feel vulnerable, increasing stress.

Remember: You don’t have to believe its claims of mysterious cosmic energy to enjoy the very real benefits of Feng Shui. By transforming your space into your personal refuge, you can achieve greater relaxation and reduce your stress, thereby improving your overall health.

What you need to know about the listeria outbreak

A tiny but potentially deadly microorganism has prompted a massive recall of meat products in Canada. In late August, several people in the province of Ontario became sick after consuming “ready-to-serve” deli meats. Inspections later determined the meat to contain listeria monocytogenes, a bacterium found in soil, vegetation, animal feed, and feces (both human and animal). Consuming listeria-contaminated food can lead to a virulent form of food poisoning known as listerosis. For most people, according to Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer, “the risk posed by listeria is very low.” However, the resulting condition can be quite harmful and even fatal for the elderly, babies, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems. Three dozen cases of listerosis have been either confirmed or are suspected and at least 12 deaths have been reported since the outbreak began. Here are some more key facts on listeriosis and meat products:

• Symptoms of listerosis mimic those of the flu and include nausea, vomiting, cramps, diarrhea, headache, constipation, and persistent fever. They usually appear within two to 30 days and up to 70 days after consuming contaminated food. In extreme cases, symptoms may be followed by a brain or blood infection, either of which can result in death. For a complete list of food products that have been recalled by the Public Health Agency of Canada due to concerns over listeria monocytogenes, click here. (Source: Public Health Agency of Canada)
• To avoid contamination, refrigerate foods promptly and keep the refrigerator at 4°C (40°F) or colder. Thoroughly cook or boil foods such as hot dogs and poultry products. Avoid raw, unpasteurised milk or foods made from it, such as raw milk cheese. Wash raw vegetables thoroughly before eating them. Clean all utensils, cutting boards, and work surfaces with a mild bleach solution (5 ml/1 tsp. bleach per 750 ml/3 cups water) before and after use. Separate utensils for raw and cooked foods. Follow “use by” dates, especially on packaged goods with a long shelf life. Wash your hands before, during, and after handling any type of food, especially raw meat and poultry. (Source: Public Health Agency of Canada)
• Although most processed meat products remain safe for human consumption, you’d be wise not to make them a staple of your diet. Cold cuts, bologna, and hot dogs contain nitrites (a chemical used to preserve their pink color), which can combine with stomach acid to produce nitrosamine, a suspected cancer-causing agent.

Why kids are the experts on rejuvenation

Ask a skin-care model or those covertly greying men in the Grecian Formula ads: where looks are concerned, we all want to be youthful.

Yet what we eagerly seek on the outside, we routinely bottle up on the inside. Faced with a disapproving adult world, we quickly learn to repress our playfulness, exuberance, and curiosity. We put on poker faces and follow strict schedules that leave no time for fun and games.

As adults, we may continue to look young thanks to our genes or the wonders of cosmetic rejuvenation therapies. But we’ll never enjoy true rejuvenation — complete renewal of the mind, body, and spirit — if we don’t embrace our inner youthfulness.

The secret to rejuvenation is living in the moment. It enables us to get a true break from whatever’s on our minds.

Kids are the undisputed experts at living in the moment. By absorbing deeply whatever the moment has to offer, they’re able to go forward with renewed energy, increased vitality, and a fresh perspective on life. What could be more rejuvenating than that?

Here are five more important lessons about rejuvenation that kids can teach grownups:

1. Give yourself permission to feel what you’re feeling.

Have you ever seen babies cry after a spill or being separated from a toy, only to break out into a glorious smile seconds later when someone does something to amuse them? Believe it or not, those babies may actually be schooling us.

Denying and burying your emotions will only leave you stuck in them. You’ll do much better to simply feel whatever you’re feeling without any resistance. All you need to do is let the emotion wash over you and then let go of it when it no longer feels good. You’ll be amazed at how good it can feel (temporarily) to grieve or have a self-righteous fit of anger. After a while, however, these feelings no longer feel good. That’s when it’s time to let them go.

2. Don’t worry, be happy.

Unlike adults, kids don’t splurge a lot of emotional capital on worrying. Part of the reason is because they don’t have as many responsibilities as grownups. But they also aren’t as worried about maintaining their status or a carefully cultivated image (we’re talking about little kids here, not tweens or teens, of course!). For them, each day is a fresh start. Take your cue from the youngsters. Plan ahead, but don’t become bogged down in unhealthy worrying. Focus on enjoying the present, while moving ahead on your goals for the future.

3. Have a laugh.

Laughter isn’t something to be stifled but encouraged. As well as inducing positive emotions and feel-good endorphins, it improves lung capacity and cardiovascular health, and produces antibodies that help to strengthen the immune system. But while a fit of the giggles is considered cute and charming in kids, chances are you’ll be curtly told to “grow up” if you spontaneously burst into laughter as an adult. So try to find some socially acceptable outlets for laughter. Go see a comedy, watch a funny TV show, or spend time with a friend whose witticisms crack you up. Amid all the hilarity, you’ll be experiencing some serious rejuvenating benefits.

4. Get excited.

Everything excites kids: going to the mall, seeing a doggie, the shapes they think they can make out in the clouds. As adults, we may be older, wiser, and a lot more jaded, but we still need to indulge our inherent yearning for childlike wonderment and excitement as often as we can.

What thrills and captivates you? If it’s the beauty of nature, go for long nature walks. If it’s the mysteries of the universe, buy a telescope and explore the heavens from your backyard. If it’s a favorite musical artist, make a point of seeing them the next time they’re in town. Make whatever excites and inspires an integral part of your rejuvenation program.

5. Get out and have fun.

Remember when your friends used to show up at your door and ask your parents if you could “come out and play?” While those days of sandboxes and jumping jacks may be done, we still need to get out and have fun if we want to enjoy rejuvenation. Playing a sport like baseball lets us socialize and have an excuse to run around and think of nothing beyond catching and hitting a baseball. The arts offer another potential playground for adults. In fact, according to a Swedish study, attendance at cultural events, reading, and playing music may even help you to live longer.

No matter what your preferred form of rejuvenation, give yourself ample opportunities to laugh, get excited, have fun, and generally feel like a kid again. No kidding!

Did you know?

In its earliest usage, the word “rejuvenation” — derived from the Latin root word for “young” — literally meant to become young again.