How To Prevent And Reverse Diabetes Through Diet 2

Hello,

Below are three emails continuing the January 23, 2012 post:

January 29, 2012

Hi again,

First of all, I really appreciate your thoughtful response, and have been contemplating how I will apply it to my situation. I'm eager to give it a try, so this morning, went in to get a "before" set of labs drawn, and then chose to eat simply of greens, vegs, sweet potato, white potato, and berries today. My main concern for myself, is will I be able to sustain it! So far, I think yes. I am interested in your book.

I like your wording of "calorie normalization" rather than "calorie restriction". Puts an entirely different spin on the concept.

A few more questions: first, I'd read somewhere that quinoa is metabolized as alkaline, but I guess this must be in error? I'd also read somewhere that almonds are the only nut metabolized as alkaline, but then it's also true that these acid/base listings of various foods are not consistent one to the next. So sounds like I should avoid all grains (not really a hardship).

You didn't mention mushrooms in your talk. Are you positive, negative, or neutral regarding them?

Regarding potatoes, what do you think of having a sweet potato plus some white potato every day (the third meal of the day to have other roots...probably parnsip, rutabaga, carrot, beet, or for another source of calories/starch, winter squash. Or do you really think it's best to have 2 sweet potato/day and avoid the white potato? Other varieties of sweet potato are not easily or reliably available here (Charlotte, NC).

Re purslane, never seen it before, but have read it's high in oxalates. As I have no history of kidney stones, if I can find some, I guess this shouldn't be a problem? daily? I will be using no form of oil or plant foods high in fat (seeds, nuts, avocado), and have not used flax since listening to your talk.

Regarding supplements, I noted in your VHS lecture that you feel they generally are not necessary with the exception of B12 and maybe D. But what about iodine? I currently take about 150 mcg iodine/day (liquid solution), 2000 IU D, plus zinc when I remember (25 mg), and 1000 mcg B12 once or twice a week. No other vitamins/minerals. Do you think zinc can be well enough absorbed on a vegan diet that I can dispense with that?

How do you feel about fruit/veg smoothies? I've been drinking a smoothie made of 1 cup frozen mixed raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries, 1 cup of frozen raw collards (chopped pretty small, so the one cup is pretty compactly packed), and 1/2 cup commercial pasteurized pomegranate juice. Is this too glycemic because of damaging fiber by blending, for diabetes, or do you feel that we should really eat, rather than drink, our calories (Dr. McDougall), or is this a recommended positive dietary addition for the nutrient density, raw cruciferous, and more absorbable vitamix blended form (Dr. Fuhrman)?

I'll let you know how it goes, maybe by an email every three months or so. The next set of labs (the "after" version) is scheduled to be drawn June 4th. If I can't make this work, though, I think I'll know a lot sooner than that! But I'm VERY optimistic that I can mostly avoid migraine on this plan, so my primary remaining concern is how my blood sugar will do with all the potato (low fiber and glycemic compared to beans and oat groats...but I couldn't sustain a diet emphasizing those either, because of the migraines!).

Thanks again, and do let me know how to obtain a copy of your book.

Ann

P.S. I also appreciate your respectful stance regarding Dr. McDougall's and Dr. Fuhrman's contributions to the field. I've been shocked at all the "bashing" that can be found on websites by their "followers", pitting one against the other. In my opinion, we're all in this together, and you provide a unique, and I think, very helpful synthesis of the two plus further developing your own ideas regarding optimal human nutrition.

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Hi Ann,

Your considered questions are great and highly appreciated. They force me to analyze everything I know and to learn new things.

Forever The Rainbow Taste Sensations: Health, Kindness And The Plant Life Cyclewill be published in paper form in February for $27.99. Here's what I can do for you - if you send $37.99 via PayPal right now to mdasa1@gmail.com you'll get the book mailed to you in February AND I'll immediately email you the ebook version. In other words - you'll get immediate access, plus get the paper book soon.

If avoiding all grains is not a hardship that's great. Like you said, it's true that these acid/base listings of various foods are not consistent one to the next . I say this and more about acid/base in my book.

Quinoa is a blink-of-an-eye recent technological-age addition (3-7,000 years) to human diets just like all those tiny little grains. (Whereas leaves, buds, vegetable-fruits, sweet fruits, and roots & tubers go back millions of years.)

There's nothing magical or of dire necessity in any pile of grains or seeds. They are just convenient for storage.

My mother never fed me mushrooms (complex fungi) as a child so I've never liked or really eaten them. BUT I do get my fungi fix via nutritional yeast (simple fungi).

I probably average about 3 sweet potatoes to every 1 potato. Here in Hawaii we have 4 distinct varieties of SP's easily available, along with taro root, dasheen and cassava root. Some of these may be available in your locality if you have an Asian market anywhere near you.

Yes purslane is high in oxalates, but mostly meat-eating men who don't drink water get kidney stones - so shouldn't be a problem. You don't have to eat purslane as most all greens contain sufficient omega-3, and the ideal omega-3 to omega-6 ratio. It's just that purslane is super easy to grow. You might have a hard time to find purslane commercially. It grows wild and I think the wild version tastes the best. If you would like I can mail you some seeds (the plants make thousands of them). You can try growing them indoors now, and definitely outdoors in the spring. I like to eat a little daily or at least every other day cooked or raw.

This photo makes them look larger than life.

Iodine: I don't eat packaged foods so I don't take in too much salt but when I use a little salt at the table I use iodized salt. When I was taking zero table and added salt, I ate dulse flakes for iodine and which are naturally salty - used them like salt.

Many non-seed vegan foods like basil, dill weed, spearment, asparagus, mushrooms, spinach, okra, parsley, and sea vegetables for example, have good per calorie amounts of zinc in them. Napa cabbage has tons (well not tons) - has a very high amount of zinc it. My wife Sunanda and I have Napa cabbage about once or twice a month. If you eat these things I think you can dispense with the zinc supplements.

What's your B-12 blood level? If it is above the reference range level you can adjust you B-12 down like I did to 1000 mcg every two weeks or whatever keeps your levels near the upper limit.

I blend whole-fruit smoothies spiced with various sweet spices (cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, clove, cardamon) using a bit of water and not any fruit juice. I also blend spiced and flavored greens and vegetable-fruits. I think I'm lazy to chew. I wish I could really eat all my food. The main thing is to not use fruit or vegetable juice (because they are fractionated, concentrated foods) to blend with, only water. But I certainly spice up everything.

Related to CR/CN and to all this is one's blood total cholesterol and LDL levels.

Three major independent sources (Framingham Heart Study, China Study & Dr. Esselstyn from the Cleveland Clinic, and concurred by a fourth source the editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Cardiology, Dr. William Roberts) have discovered that when you keep your blood cholesterol and LDL levels below 150 mg/dL and 80 mg/dL respectively with proper diet not by drugs, then you become cardiovascular disease proof (not lower-the-risk, but eliminate).

I suspect that in your case when you have both your diabetes and migraines controlled your levels will be below 150 & 80.

Thank you for the sentiments and ideas expressed in your P.S. You may notice the word "Kindness" in the Forever The Rainbow book title.

I'll look for your PayPal payment and then send out the ebook immediately, followed by the paper book soon.

Madhava

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Madhava,

Just wanted to say thanks for this reply, too. A lot of "food for thought". Sounds like I can reduce/stop the zinc and iodine and reduce B12. If it's not too much trouble, I'd be excited to receive some purslane seeds and give it a try. My two boys love plants and gardens, and eating what they pick, so this could be good for all of us!

Again, I appreciate the time you've spent replying...will spend the evening with your book.

Ann

How To Prevent And Reverse Diabetes Through Diet

Greetings,

Below is a recent exchange of emails:

January 23, 2012

Hi Madhava,

I just watched your YouTube talk given at the Veg. Soc. of Hawaii, and found it very, very interesting. [Forever The Rainbow - How The Colors Of The Garden Can Save Your Life, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6fAzKKfGjc]

I've been going in circles with my dietary approach to diabetes and would like your opinion. I'm 49 yrs old, diagnosed with diabetes during my first pregnancy at age 40--my doctors are calling me a "type 1.5 diabetic "(pancreatic autoantibodies negative) -- was maintained on insulin for about a year, came off it, then got pregnant again and immediately needed insulin again, stayed on it for about 2 years at that point.

Diabetes got better, but not gone, after each delivery, and then I found Dr. Fuhrman's site and on his recommendation, ate plenty of greens, beans, 3-4 oz nuts/seeds/day (to maintain weight; have a BMI of 18 and he didn't want me to drop too low). My blood sugars continued erratically high, but with plenty of (exhausted) exercise, was able to stay off insulin, with a HgbA1C of 5.8-6.2.

However, this diet has been increasingly difficult to sustain as have been plagued by frequent, long-lasting migraines (making me curtail exercise), which I recently found was related to my bean and nut consumption, and to a lesser extent, gluten consumption. Avoiding these three categories, and continuing on a vegan, no-junk-food diet, has improved the migraine tendancy a lot. But it's been hard to find something to eat, as I have been "brainwashed" to believe that a diabetic should avoid rice and potatoes. And I really want to avoid insulin.

I had also been so thoroughly indoctrinated with the belief that nuts/seeds are a necessary, vital component of a healthy diet, that when I discovered Dr. John McDougall's approach to diabetes, it was with fearful disbelief that I tried going high starch, no/low fat.....and found my blood sugars amazingly improved. But again, it was hard to follow his plan as I felt I needed to avoid legumes and gluten (migraine), rice and potatoes (too glycemic for diabetics); that left corn, sweet potato, and some of the more exotic (to me) non-gluten grains.

Because of these perceived restrictions, I have recently been contemplating going the meat/veg route, avoiding starches.and sweets...but the truth is, I don't really like meat and I do like starches!

So I was very interested to hear your comment on the YouTube talk, that roots and tubers are the healthier choice of starch over beans and grains. Also was "blown away" by your comment that nuts are toxic.

My question to you, then, is:

Do you think I could maintain my health, avoid insulin, and have enough energy to be active, on a diet of primarily potatoes and quinoa, plenty of a variety of nonstarchy greens and vegs, and one or two moderate servings of fresh fruit (primarily berries or apples)? No other grains, no legumes, no nuts/seeds (but maybe flax???), and not much of any fruit? (worried about missing out on health benefits of lots of fruit, or is this just hype?)

Other health issues, in case it's relevant, is a tendancy to high lipids (total chol 334 a few yrs ago, down to 177 on a Dr. Fuhrman diet with the 4 oz nuts/seeds), and a recent diagnosis of osteopenia. I'm 5'1", 95#. Also have gall bladder disease, but have found off the SAD [standard american diet] diet it's not too problematic, so have avoided the recommended surgery. My only medicine is synthroid. I have never been overweight, and gained 23# with each pregnancy.

Thanks for any thoughts or opinions, and thanks for the talk to the VSH.

Ann

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Greetings Ann,

Thank you for your tenacity to resolve your diabetes and to find the perfect diet for you!

OK here we go...

Joel Fuhrman and John McDougall - two great guys, must be harmonized to help all the good people like you who are, as you say - "going in circles".

My talk given at the Veg. Soc. of Hawaii was aimed toward that goal, and I'm so glad it hit home for you (as it has for a surprising number of others).

You have caught many things from the talk. Here's more:

According to the National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health in 2007, based on unchallenged studies since 1935, calorie restriction (CR) (which is actually calorie normality (CN) with high nutrients) is the ONLY intervention PROVEN to extend both average and total, healthy, cognitive, disease free lifespan. In other words - excess calories are toxic.

In view of calorie restriction/ calorie normality studies, Dr. Fuhrman is correct about high nutrient-to-calorie-ratio foods being of primacy. But then he recommends nuts and seeds which although they have lots of nutrients also have lots of calories - therefore nuts and seeds are a poor choice by his own formula.

Dr. McDougall is correct that human civilizations have existed on a starch based diet. But how long is 5-10,000 years of grains and beans compared to the 2,000,000 or whatever years that near-humans have existed, and the 250,000 to 500,000 years of fully modern humans?

Australopithecus the 1st upright walking man (2-3 million years ago), existed (according to scientists at the Harvard anthropology department, et al) on a great ape's diet of mostly leafy greens, vegetable-fruits and sweet fruits, but added root-tubers and stem-tubers (scientifically called USO's for underground storage organs) that great apes don't generally eat.

So humans and their direct ancestors ate fruits and vegetables, and roots and tubers until relatively recently. Roots and tubers are human's starches. Grains, and to a lessor extent beans are technology's starches.

Roots and tubers are alkaline, while grains and to a lessor extent beans are acid forming in the body.

I called nuts "toxic" to make the point that they are high calorie foods - remembering that CR/CN studies have established that high calorie foods are "toxic".

You might want to read my book: Forever The Rainbow Taste Sensations: Health, Kindness And The Plant Life Cycle being published next month but available now for pre-order. ($20 sent via PayPal to mdasNow@gmail.com.) The whole thing is explained there in detail.

Now to your specific question:

The answer is YES! With some simple adjustments.

I would ask you to think in terms of the plant's reproductive life cycle.

As the successive harvest-able plant parts appear from leaf/stem, to bud/flower (broccoli, artichoke et cetera), to fruit (green beans, pumpkin, cucumbers, berries et cetera), to tuber, to seed in the plant's life cycle, the plant has more time to accrue and store energy in the form of calories.

That is to say leafy green vegetables have the highest nutrient to calorie ratios, and that seeds are the most calorie dense.

With CR/CN and high nutrient to calorie ratios in mind the preferential order and highest volume of eating, is to eat greens, buds, vegetable-fruits, sweet fruits and tubers (especially various types of sweet potatoes) foremost and generally in that order; or in descending proportions in that order, within each of a few different preparations. Quinoa is a seed so that would be last and least volume-wise.

Calorie-wise it works out that you get about equal calories from each stage of the plant's life cycle because each stage gets more calorie dense.

This is the IDEAL. In practice, any order and reasonably balanced volume of leaves, buds, vegetables, fruits and tubers is great. The next notch down is beans. According to National Geographic's Blue Zone investigation of the longest lived populations on the planet, beans are OK in smaller amounts. Again all this in in Forever The Rainbow.

A garden is a SUPER GREAT HELP. Greens grow the fastest especially when they get a good amount of water. Vegetable-fruits like green and yellow beans and sweet snap peas (LEGUME FRUITS) are both very healthy AND prolific and add nitrogen to the soil. Beans and peas (legumes) in their FRUIT FORM are THE healthy way to eat beans and peas - and by growing them, the best way to fertilize your garden.

Our vegan-organic garden (no animal sourced fertilizer like blood and bone meal as often used in organic growing ) is the single best thing my wife Sunanda and I ever did for our health.

Sunanda is from India (I'm from Pennsylvania and we live in Hawaii) and she will be co-author of the upcoming plant life cycle diet, veganic produce cookbook. Can you suggest a title?

About flax: Are you familiar with purslane (the most commonly eaten green in the world - except Europe and the US)? Did you know that most greens have sufficient amounts of omega 3 fatty acids? Do you use even a drop of vegetable oil in your diet?

Purslane which tastes great and is so easy to grow you can hardly stop it, is the highest or close to the highest source of omega 3 fatty acids. With a little purslane & a reasonable amount of other greens, and when one does not take one drop of separated vegetable oil, or nuts both of which are high in omega 6, then flax seed meal is not necessary. I no longer eat flax seed on any kind of a regular basis.

About fruit: Fruit is the part of the plant that holds the seeds. There are two broad categories of fruit. Non-sweet or vegetable-fruits; and sweet fruits. Vegetable-fruits (green beans, eggplant, okra et cetera) tend to grow on the ground and sweet fruits tend to grow on trees and bushes - not absolutely, but generally. In natural and favorable tropical or sub-tropical climates where humans lived until they were cast out of Eden so to speak and had to move to unfavorable northern latitudes - as far as easy availability of edibles, mostly there are leaves and fruits.

Generally people think of only sweet fruits when they think of fruits.

Don't exclusively eat sweet fruits - but your: "...moderate servings of fresh fruit (primarily berries or apples)", sounds great to me!

There are also a lot of starchy vegetable-fruits. Various types of squash /pumpkin squash are some. Ohh, you should taste my wife's Kabocha /Japanese pumpkin curry!

Or green banana curry. Or green papaya curry. Or breadfruit curry. In other words these sweet fruits are vegetable-fruits before they get old enough to become sweet.

Oh my, don't get me started on the varieties of great foods you can eat, especially in consideration of all the spicing techniques both my wife and I have developed over the years.

About active energy and weight: Ideal weight is the weight you have the most energy - energy here meaning that you feel good to do things. If you are too thin or too heavy while eating this way, simply eat proportionately more or less of everything - either by eating more often/less often or more/less at one time. Or shift slightly one way or the other in eating amounts of various foods according their life cycle stage/ nutrient-to-calorie ratio. It's in the book again.

There is so much more to say.

We love you and your interest and enthusiasm for food healing and health.

I hope I have answered your questions. If not or if you have more questions please ask and I'll answer them succinctly, and not ramble on like this email.

I'm very interested for you to stay in touch and update us on your experiences and progress. And with your permission, maybe feature you in a future book.

I'd also like to know that if the Plant Life Cycle Diet works for you, and after you are firmly established in it - if with your doctor's supervision, you will be able to get off synthroid.

Kind regards,

Madhava Das

Forever The Rainbow Taste Sensations: Health, Kindness And The Plant Life Cycle

Greetings,

Forever The Rainbow Taste Sensations: Health, Kindness And The Plant Life Cycle will be published in February 2012 and is available now to pre-order by sending $20 via PayPal to: mdasNow@gmail.com.

In the book you will learn how to regain paradisiacal health. It is so simple, but the forces of commerce, politics and family tradition are almost insurmountable to overcome.

It's about addiction. The simple thing is to stop and NEVER eat the bad things again.

The exploitative world postulates: "All things in moderation can be a part of a healthy diet."

NOT TRUE! Cigarettes, crack cocaine, heroine, and atomic bombs for example are not good in moderation.

Well, neither is ANY processed food, especially even one drop of oil - even olive oil. And neither is one bite of ANY animal food.

If you were starving on a desert island and a chicken walked by that would be one thing. But we're not in any way near that kind of a situation.

Forever The Rainbow details the proofs of the above statements.

If you have any sense or any desire to 1. Stop killing animals or 2. Stop killing yourself and your friends and relatives - then you will be benefited by reading this book.

And to not tease you with so many promises and make you buy the book to find out the life saving information - here's the bottom line: It has been shown by three highly credible independent educated, scientific sources that by maintaining a total cholesterol blood level below 150 mg/dL by eating only whole plant foods without taking drugs you become cardiovascular disease FREE AND PROOF even if you already have problems.

Here are the sources: 1. The head of the premier and longest running (over 50 years) heart health study, the Framingham Heart Study. 2. A PhD scientist and best selling author funded for 27 years by the National Institutes of Health. And 3. An MD practitioner from the famed Cleveland Clinic.

Cover price is only $27.99 for this life prolonging and saving book - but it is available at the present time for the discounted price of just $20 sent via PayPal to mdasNow@gmail.com.

Here are two testimonials of many: “Thanks Madhava for all the explanation. I have read Dr. Fuhrman, Dr. McDougall, Dr. Esselstyn, Nathan Pritikin and Dr. Campbell & am now trying to put all the information together & determine what I am comfortable with. I loved all your information & how you summarized & harmonized everyone. I found it all very helpful.” ~ Lori Pitkowsky, Cornell University Student

“Ditto! Very clever & effective. Humor & appeal to be current & up to date (not, God forbid, a "yesterday" person) works to get the message across.” ~ Margo Wood, Doctor of Education from Boston University, Associate Provost & Dean of Graduate Studies & Professor of Literacy Education at the University of Southern Maine

President of Nutritional Research Maui, I am a long time practitioner and healer, and am certified by Cornell University and the T. Colin Campbell Foundation in plant-based nutrition.

Trust Your Heart

Western society is based on cow slaughter. That's why vegetarians and vegans historically were minimized in popular opinion.

Now even though the science (detailed in Forever The Rainbow Taste Sensations) is so strong in mercy's and health's favor, the few who are merciless continue to straight out deny the truth - what would you expect from the merciless?

Trust your heart. Trust that if your heart recoils at the thought of seeing a cow hanging by its hind legs with its throat slit and warm blood dripping down - if your heart recoils at that thought, then maybe there's a reason you recoil, and maybe you should think about going in the merciful (and healthful) direction.