Manage Diabetes with Vanadium

Managing Diabetes with Vanadium

Vanadium is a trace element that occurs naturally in both animals and plants.

Although it is not yet classified as an essential nutrient, Vanadium is a very important potential medicinal agent mainly because it appears to mimic the actions of insulin because of its unique ability to normalize blood glucose levels. Animal studies and a few human studies have proven that vanadium lowers blood sugar level and improves sensitivity to insulin. In one human study, vanadium also lowered the total bad cholesterol (LDL).

What is the relationship between vanadium and diabetes?

Research shows that vanadium improves the body’s metabolism of glucose (also known as blood sugar). Moreover, it promotes the glucose of blood sugar into the cells where it is normally broken down and used to produce energy.

Compounds of vanadium have several insulin-like effects which include the ability to significantly improve insulin resistance and homeostasis in patients with diabetes mellitus. Moreover, it improves muscle and liver sensitivity in patients with type II diabetes.

How does vanadium work?

The compounds found in vanadium have the ability to stimulate the uptake of glucose, lipid and glycogen synthesis in adipose, hepatic and muscle tissues and the activities of gluconeogenic enzymes (glucose-6-phosphate and phosphoenol gluconeogenesis) in the kidney and liver. Moreover, the lipolysis in cells contributes to the anti-diabetic mechanisms and insulin-like effects of vanadium.

Vanadium activates various vital elements in the insulin signal transduction path-way in order to mediate metabolic actions of insulin in the body. Vanadium enhances insulin action and signaling because it increases the tyrosine phosphorylation of various substrate protein sand also inhibits the activity of PTPases (protein tyrosine phosphatases) which are negative regulators of the insulin signaling pathway.

· Hypoglycemic effect of Vanadium

Peroxovanadium and organic compounds have an acute glucose-lowering effect a few minutes or hours after their administration. Moreover, vanadium compounds have proven to be quite effective in modifying lipid and glucose metabolism in cultured cell lines, adipose tissue, muscle and the liver.

· Effect on glucose transport

Vanadium evokes an increase in the transportation of glucose which is psychologically relevant. It also restores the cell surface translocation and expression of insulin sensitive protein in the skeletal muscle and heart. Therefore, vanadium enhances glucose transportation through an effect on protein GLUT-4.

· Effect on glucogenesis

In addition to the stimulation of uptake and utilization of glucose, vanadium also decreases the production of hepatic glucose which in turn improves glucose homeostasis.

Clinical studies in human subjects have documented significant improvement in insulin sensitivity and glycaemic control.

Dietary sources of Vanadium for Diabetes

Some of the best sources of vanadium are

shellfish,
mushrooms,
parsley,
black pepper,
dill weed,
radishes,
cereals,
olives,
corn,
wine,
grains,
beer, and
grain products.

On the other hand, vanadium exists in various forms, including vanadate, vanadium oxide, vanadium pentoxide, and vandyl sulfate which are commonly found in various nutritional supplements.

Some of the herbs that contain vanadium in average amounts include parsley and dill.

How should vanadium be taken?

Vanadium supplements should not be given to children. Although we don’t know the exact amount of vanadium needed by the human body, the average diet normally provides 6 to 18 mcg of vanadium.

Precautions

Due to the interactions with medications and the potential side effects of vanadium, dietary supplements should be taken under the supervision of a knowledgeable and reliable medical practitioner. Common side effects of vanadium include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, gas and stomach pain.

People with anemia, an infection, high cholesterol, or health problems that cause low white blood cell count should not take vanadium without consulting a doctor first. Since vanadium may lower the blood sugar level, diabetics who are taking medication to control their blood sugar (drugs for diabetes) might be at risk of low blood sugar and hypoglycemia if they take vanadium.

Vanadium doses of more than 1.8 mg per day can cause kidney or liver damage.

Possible interactions

People who are being treated with medication such as antiplatelets (blood thinners) or anticoagulants should not take vanadium without consulting a health care provider. The risk of bleeding might increase when vanadium is taken with colopidogrel (plavix), warfarin (Coumadin), aspirin and heparin.

It is evident that the relationship between vanadium and diabetes is possibly promising and tenuous all at the same time. However, diabetes mellitus is still a major health problem for humans despite the availability of various oral glycaemic drugs and insulin.

Therefore, there is need for new therapeautic approaches that can treat diabetes effectively and more efficiently.

Lower Blood Sugar Fast

The chief concern among diabetics and those who are running the risk of diabetes is high blood sugar and people are forever looking for new ways to lower blood sugar fast. The truth is that once blood sugar levels are raised the only way possible to lower them quickly is through the use of insulin. Without insulin the blood sugar levels will only drop very slowly as long as no other food is eaten and the body rids itself of excess glucose through other means, and this definitely will not lower blood sugar fast.

When sugars and carbohydrates are ingested the body converts these into glucose, and while glucose is used by the cells of the body for energy, if healthy blood glucose levels are not maintained damage can be done to many of the body’s systems.

Glucose, once in the blood can only be used by the cells when insulin is present. It is the insulin which causes the glucose to be able to enter the cells where it is used for energy, and without insulin or in cases of insulin resistance the glucose can build to unhealthy levels in the blood and without insulin it is impossible to lower blood sugar fast.

The healthy blood glucose levels for normal people is between 60 and 100, and any glucose level higher or lower then this may signify the development of diabetes. In most cases the onset of diabetes will be accompanied with increased thirst, increased urination and incessant hunger.

If you have experienced these symptoms for any length of time it may be a good idea to visit your doctor for a simple glucose tolerance test which will determine if your body is regulating glucose correctly. If you are diagnosed with diabetes and you carefully manage your treatment you can still live a long, normal, and active life as long as you carefully maintain healthy blood glucose levels by keeping tabs on your eating habits and medication usage and remember, once its elevated there’s no way to lower your blood sugar fast.

Freestyle Flash Glucose Meter

The freestyle flash glucose meter is among the best and most reliable on the market. When it comes to properly managing blood glucose levels a reliable glucose meter is a must have. The key to fending off the worst diabetes complications is by maintaining a blood glucose level that is as close to normal as possible. In order to do this the diabetic patient must be constantly vigilant and keep a close watch on their glucose levels. In these cases only the most reliable and easy to use meters, like the freestyle flash glucose meter, will do the job as it needs to be done.

When it comes to charting or keeping a log of blood sugar readings the newest and best meters, such as the new freestyle flash glucose meter, has usb access so they can be plugged directly into your computer so that your blood sugar log can be updated and read with just a few clicks of the mouse.

If you are diligent in keeping a chart or log of your blood sugar levels you will begin to see patterns and trends so that you may even be able to anticipate changes before they happen. In this way you will be constantly prepared to manage any changes in sugar levels through medication management of dietary changes. A freestyle flash glucose meter makes this a simple test.

Not only should a good glucose meter be reliable and easy to use, but it should also be fast and require a minimum of blood. Nobody likes the idea of sticking themselves three four or five times a day to draw blood to check their sugar.

With the newer blood glucose meters, like the Bayer blood glucose meters, only a very small amount of blood is needed. This means that a smaller pinprick can be used and less discomfort experienced. The freestyle flash glucose meter is among the best available and are a vast improvement over the glucose meters of the past.

Normal Blood Sugar Count

There is really no such thing as a normal blood sugar count, since so called “normal” sugar levels can be effected by the patients weight, build, age, and other health conditions. Only a physician can determine what a normal blood sugar count is for the individual and it is of utmost importance that sugar levels be maintained as close to “normal” as possible to head off the myriad of detrimental effects that come from constantly elevated or decreased sugar levels.

For starters there are two types of diabetes, type one which usually begins to cause problems in early childhood, and type two which usually becomes a problem during the adult years. The body needs sugar to function, not table sugar, but a special sugar called glucose which the body processes from the foods we eat. In order for glucose to be used by the cells it requires a hormone called insulin to be present in the blood.

Insulin is produced by the pancreas and in type I diabetes the pancreas has either a decreased or completely absent insulin production and requires that the patient inject themselves with insulin in order to keep their normal blood sugar count somewhat normal. Type two diabetes also results from poor or absent insulin production but is often manageable with special diets or oral medications.

As a general rule the normal blood sugar count for a healthy person should be between 80 and 100 milligrams per deciliter. As stated before this is a general rule and cannot be applied to every person in every circumstance. When it comes to the correct answer for what a specific persons normal blood sugar count should be the person’s physician should be the one to make the ruling because they are familiar with all the person’s healthcare needs and how they may affect individuals normal blood sugar count.

Blood Sugar Testing Machine

When someone mentions a blood sugar testing machine the device they are referring to is usually called a glucometer. A blood sugar testing machine is designed to read the level of glucose, or sugar, in a drop of blood so that the blood sugar level can be tracked.

The use of a blood sugar testing machine is pretty simple and straight forward.

To use the machine a special test strip is placed in the machine, then a drop of blood is collected by pricking the skin (usually on the finger) with a lancet, the drop of blood is placed on the test strip and the machine “reads” the amount of sugar (glucose) in the blood.

Though there is a huge variety of different makes and models of blood sugar testing machines on the market, they all work in virtually the same way, some may require a little smaller drop of blood and some may “read” the sugar level quicker than the others, but the basic principal remains the same.

The use of a blood sugar testing machine has been quite common since one of the chief concerns in the proper management of diabetes is to keep blood sugar levels as close to normal as possible.

With the use of the glucometer the diabetic patient can check their blood sugar quickly, and almost painlessly in the convenience of their own home. The ease of use of the blood sugar testing machine makes it possible for the blood sugar to be tested many times per day so that the blood sugar levels can be manipulated via dietary changes or medication administration.

The key to the proper treatment of diabetes lies in the ability to keep blood sugar levels as close to normal as possible. While insulin and other medications and dietary changes can be used to manipulate blood sugar levels, without the humble blood sugar testing machine this would be an impossible task.