diabetic neuropathy | Diabetes Healthy Solutions

Diabetic Foot Pain

Are Your Experiencing Diabetic Foot Pain?

Being a diabetic, many parts of the body get damaged, due to having too much glucose in the blood for extended periods. One of the main complaints of diabetics, I’d say would have to be the feet! In a nutshell, the cause of diabetic foot pain is mainly brought about by two main conditions

1. Diabetic Foot Pain & Nerve Damage

Diabetic neuropathy (damage to the nerves) is a very common complaint that occurs in the legs and feet. Basically, this condition occurs as a result of the normal process of the disease.

This condition can be quite dangerous:

you may not feel any pain,
you may not feel hot or cold
sores, ulcers, and even infection may be present and you’ll never know as you can’t feel it.

How often do we hear the words ‘my feet are killing me’!

Well, those words may well be too true for diabetics, unless good care is taken of your feet and in turn, lessen the diabetic foot pain you are experiencing. There are many home remedies for Diabetic Neuropathy.

Diabetic Foot Pain Treatment

Start by checking the trend of your blood sugar readings over the past few weeks (has it been a little on the high side). You should ask your Health care professional, his opinion regarding an A1c test. This test determines your levels over a time period. If your blood sugar levels are constantly high, this can contribute to nerve pain.
A good little gadget is a diabetic foot roller.Just gently massage your feet by running them over the roller. This may help reduce the severity of the pain.
Massaging the feet with some specialized diabetic foot cream, can play an essential role in preventing some of the problems.
Make sure you always wear good-fitting, comfortable supportive shoes. You could also invest in some inserts for extra comfort.

2. Diabetic Foot Pain and Poor Circulation.

Diabetes often also brings about poor circulation to the legs and feet. Once again, this is due to high glucose (sugar) levels in the blood, and the effects this has on the arteries, veins and capillaries. Capillaries tend to stiffen and get thicker with extra fatty deposits – this causes problems with delivering correct amounts of oxygen and vital nutrients to the tissues. (Peripheral vascular disease). Veins can swell up, when there becomes more blood they can cope with. Blood then pools into the legs and feet, sometimes even leaking out onto the skin.

diabetes foot nerve pain — diabetes and joint pain

I was visiting my Mom recently – she has problems with her feet due to poor blood flow. She bought herself a Circulation Booster and I tell you, the difference for her, was amazing!

How can I help Foot Pain from Poor Circulation?

It’s a great idea to have a regular check-up with your podiatrist – perhaps once every 6 months.

2. Wear support hose, or get yourself a good pair of ‘diabetic socks’, for when you have long periods of sitting, or when traveling.

3. If you are a smoker, give up! If you are suffering from Peripheral vascular disease (bad circulation) you will definitely benefit from giving up smoking.

4. EXERCISE EXERCISE! Of course, the best way to improve this condition is to make sure you get regular exercise. Walking is great! If you can manage 20-40 minutes a day, 5 days a week, this will make a significant difference to your circulation. A perfect situation is to make sure that you are walking quick enough to puff a little, but not too much so that you have problems holding a conversation.

To sweat just a little is also good. It means your body is working. You will have to make this a life change – a regular part of your daily life from now on. If you’re not quite up to 5 days a week, just start with 2 or 3 and build it up over time.

Once again, massage is great and may also help to reduce diabetic foot pain.

Medication for Diabetic Neuropathy

Diabetes is a lifelong condition affecting your insulin and blood sugar levels. One of the affiliations of diabetes is diabetic neuropathy. This condition often affects nerves in one’s feet or legs.

As with most medical conditions, diabetes and its side conditions have many remedies and medications. Below is a medication for diabetic neuropathy guide.

What is Diabetic Neuropathy?

It is a type of nerve damage occurring if you are diagnosed with diabetes. High glucose (blood sugar) levels can negatively affect the nerves throughout your body.

Depending on the nerves affected, diabetic neuropathy symptoms range from numbness and pain in the feet to complications in the digestive system, heart, and blood vessels.

The American Diabetes Association recommends immediate screening for diabetic neuropathy once you are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. For type 1 diabetes, screening is recommended five years after diagnosis.

Unfortunately, diabetic neuropathy has no known cure. Therefore, the goal of seeking treatment and medication for diabetic neuropathy include:

To relieve pain
To manage complications and restore functions
A slow progression of the disease.

Diabetic Neuropathy Medication

Before starting any medication for diabetic neuropathy, consult with your doctor to discuss the safety and potency of the medication. When managing and treating diabetic neuropathy, you will come across natural and pharmaceutical remedies.

Over-the-Counter Medication for Diabetic Neuropathy

OTC medication provides pain relief, especially if your diabetic neuropathy is in its early stages. However, avoid taking these without first consulting your doctor. For nerve pain relief, you can use topical medications, for example, Capsaicin cream, which is applied directly to the skin to reduce pain.

Some examples of FDA-approved prescription medications that are used to treat diabetic neuropathy include:

Lyrica
Cymbalta
Nucynta.

Prescription medication available for diabetic neuropathy are:

Anti-depressants: These medications block pain messages from getting to your brain

Anti-seizures (anti-epileptics and anti-convulsants): These slow down the nerve signals heading to your brain, subsequently hindering pain messages.

Opioids: These are highly potent analgesics. Opioids provide immediate relief from intense pain. However, opioids can be highly addictive and should be used under a doctor’s strict medication.

Topical medication: A common topical prescription medication is a lidocaine patch that relieves pain, especially on the feet.

TENS: This is an FDA-approved non-medication treatment for diabetic neuropathy. The SENSUS Pain Management device

Natural Remedies for Diabetic Neuropathy

General OTC medication focus on reducing pain and discomfort. In addition, several natural treatments and remedies can help reduce symptoms and manage diabetic neuropathy(peripheral neuropathy). These include:

Vitamins

A few cases of diabetic neuropathy are related to vitamin deficiencies. A vitamin deficiency can cause significant nerve damage.

Generally, vitamin B is vital for your nerve health. While you can get vitamin B from supplements, a natural alternative is to consume Vitamin B-rich meals. Another functional vitamin is vitamin D that also hinders nerve pain.

According to the Foundation for Peripheral Neuropathy, the vitamins and supplements that can help you manage diabetic neuropathy include:

Vitamin E
B-complex vitamins
Acetyl-l-carnitine (ACL)
Alpha-lipoic acid
Omega-3 fatty acids
Glutamine
Magnesium and calcium
N-acetylcysteine.

Cayenne Pepper

Cayenne pepper contains capsaicin which is used in topical creams for its pain-relieving properties. Capsaicin reduces the intensity of pain signals sent via the body. Adding cayenne pepper into your diet can help manage diabetic neuropathy.

Acupuncture

This ancient treatment method promotes natural healing by stimulating your body’s pressure points. It triggers the nervous system to release chemicals that can alter the pain threshold or experience. Moreover, it promotes an energy balance in your body that affects your emotional well-being.

Dietary Changes to Help Diabetic Neuropathy

Dietary changes that lower your blood sugar levels ease or prevent the symptoms of neuropathy. A fiber-rich diet or one low in simple carbs prevents blood sugar spikes. Moreover, avoiding the following products might help prevent diabetic neuropathy:

Sweets
Processed snacks
White bread products, including pasta.

Alternative dietary changes you can make include:

Reducing or eliminating alcohol intake
Limiting intake of trans or saturated fats
Consuming fewer than 2,300mg of sodium daily
Eating high fiber foods
Eating antioxidant-rich foods such as fatty fish, walnuts, blueberries, and flaxseed oil, which fight inflammation

Bottom Line

There is no known cure for diabetic neuropathy. However, the above medication for diabetic neuropathy can help diabetic patients manage their condition efficiently. Consult your doctors before using any peripheral neuropathy remedy, whether natural or pharmaceutical, to avoid complications.

What is Extracellular Matrix Replacement?

Extracellular Matrix Replacement is a non-cellular structure that regulates the function, structure, and communication of cells and tissue through a network of macromolecules.

The highly dynamic structural network of the extracellular matrix continuously undergoes changes mediated by various matrix-degrading enzymes during pathological and normal conditions. Interactions of the cell-extracellular matrix are facilitated mainly by heterodimer molecules and are very important to the structure of the tissue.

Deregulation of extracellular matrix structure and composition is associated with the progression and development of many pathologic and psychological conditions. Therefore, it is important to understand the function and structure of the extracellular matrix as well as its role in wound healing and neuronal regeneration in the PNS (peripheral nervous system) and CNS (central nervous system).

What is the function and structure of the extracellular matrix?

ECM (extracellular matrix) comprises of non-cellular constituents that form a scaffold for the cellular components within tissues. Its structure is essentially made up of fibers, proteoglycans, collagen, and multi adhesive proteins.

The main functions of the ECM include:

Facilitating communication between cells
Forming a support structure for cells
Regulating essential cell processes such as differentiation, migration, and growth
Segregating tissues
Tissue repair

There are two main types of extracellular matrices, each with a different structure;

interstitial matrices and
pericellular matrices.

Interstitial matrices surround cells whereas the pericellular matrices are cell-associated.

The basement membrane which is found between the connective and functional tissue is a good example of pericellular matrices. The structure of the basement membrane provides an important anchoring layer that ensures functional cells are kept together. Cells within the extracellular matrix communicate through integrate signals and surface receptors that are associated with their specific function.

Moreover, cells play a critical role in the formation of the ECM through the secretion of multi adhesive proteins and matrix macromolecules. Therefore, differences in the extracellular matrix structure influence the biomechanical practices of the entire network as well as signals that determine cell response.

What is the relationship between the extracellular matrix and diabetes?

Diabetic neuropathy is one of the serious complications of diabetes. Morphological changes are caused by changes in the extracellular matrix. Therefore, basement membranes thicken and the tubulointerstitial space and the glomerular mesangial matrix are expanded as a result of increased amounts of the extracellular matrix.

In diabetic neuropathy, the proteoglycans in the extracellular matrix exhibit a complex pattern of changes. The proteoglycan in the tubulointerstitial space and the mesangium are increased but decreased in the basement membranes. There are also significant changes in the structures and amounts of heparan sulfate chains.

Such changes affect growth factors that regulate cell-extracellular matrix synthesis and growth factors, whereas cell attachment affects podocytes and endothelial cells.

Enzymes that modulate heparan sulfate structures, including sulfatases and heparanase, are implicated in diabetic neuropathy. Other enzymes also modulate proteoglycans and extracellular matrix proteins, such as serine proteases and metalloproteinases, as well as their inhibitors.

In diabetic neuropathy, changes in the levels of these enzyme classes and their corresponding inhibitors are seen in the kidneys and plasma. Signaling pathways, hyperglycemia, and several growth factors affect extracellular matrix synthesis and turn over in diabetic neuropathy. Whether extracellular matrix components can be effectively used to detect early kidney changes is a very important research topic.

One of the key elements in diabetic neuropathy is changes in the ECM of several components in the kidneys. Therefore, changes seen in the extracellular matrix are critical in diagnostics as well as therapeutic and prognostic purposes.

Tissue Regeneration

The extracellular matrix is the main factor necessary in the process of creating new tissue and networks. Many different factors trigger the growth of extracellular matrix or help form a synthetic extracellular matrix. Currently, extracellular matrix replacement is involved in many mechanisms including wound healing and neurological regeneration capacity associated with neurodegenerative and/or pathological disease.

The wound healing process is largely influenced by the proliferation and migration of fibroblasts in the site of injury. Fibroblast is a part of the extracellular matrix and it determines wound healing outcome. Fibroblasts produce collagen that links to the wound and it also affects the reepithelialization process that closes the wound. During proliferation, fibroblasts produce type III collagen and aid in wound closure.

An important part of the tissues’ holding capacity is the extracellular area which is mainly occupied by the extracellular matrix. Even though the extracellular matrix mainly consists of collagen, the composition varies depending on the ground or developing molecules. However, the extracellular matrix is composed of three main classes of biomolecules. Proteoglycans, linked to glycosaminoglycans and fibrous protein (collagen, laminin, vitronectin, elastin, and fibronectin).

Some of the most important constituents of connective tissue, which is mainly composed of the extracellular matrix, are ground substance and fibroblasts. Ground substance is an integration complex between proteoglycans, glycosaminoglycans, and glycoproteins (mainly fibronectin and laminin). Fibroblasts secrete the matrix constituents in most connective tissues. However, in some specialized connective tissues, like bone and cartilage, matrix components are secreted by osteoblasts and chondroblasts.

In general, each cell needs to attach to the ECM (extracellular matrix) in order to multiply and grow. The extracellular matrix is mainly responsible for providing anchorage and support for the shape of cells, regulating and determining cell behavior and dynamics including cell adhesion, cell survival, cell polarity, cell migration, and cell proliferation. Moreover, the extracellular matrix is involved in the regenerative and growth mechanism, healing process, and it also provides mechanical support for tissues.

The bottom-line

In clinical applications, many different factors that trigger the growth and development of the extracellular matrix are being used to create a synthetic extracellular matrix.

In addition to being involved in wound healing, it is also possible to use scaffold by acellular nerve allografting, a chemical decellularization process, to maintain most of the extracellular components and eliminate antigens that may cause allograft rejection, which effectively guides and enhances nerve regeneration.

In tissue engineering, extracellular matrix replacement and development has been used as a scaffold to enhance direct axonal growth, especially on peripheral nerve injury, as is common in diabetic neuropathy.

Coconut Oil and Diabetes – Health Benefits!

Diabetes has become prevalent with rising obesity and sugar consumption. 8.3% of the entire population in the United States has diabetes. This is approximately 2.8 million adults and children. Moreover, the rate of Americans becoming diabetic doubles every 10 years. Therefore, pharmaceutical companies are capitalizing on this epidemic especially with drugs for type 2 diabetes. However, these drugs are not dealing with real underlying causes. Besides improving the regulation of blood sugar, coconut oil can also eliminate cravings and relieve neuropathy; improve circulation in order to get rid of numbness.

How does Coconut Oil Reverse the Effects and Symptoms of Diabetes?

Imagine being able to eliminate or reduce the amount of medications you are taking. There are various beneficial properties of coconut oil that make it very effective in reversing the effects and symptoms of type 2 diabetes.

Try using Coconut Oil for Diabetes Control!

It nourishes your body

The digestive system normally converts what we eat into glucose. The glucose is absorbed into the bloodstream hence triggering the production of insulin by the pancreas. Insulin hooks to the cells in order to help bring the glucose into the cells. The cells use glucose as energy. However, with diabetic people, either insulin is not produced or it can’t attach to cells. As a result, the cells can neither absorb nor use glucose.

However, coconut oil can be absorbed by the cells and used as energy even in the absence of insulin. Moreover, the body can use MCFA’s (Middle chain fatty acids) in the same way as glucose without necessarily depending on glucose in order to do so. This gives the pancreas time to heal. In some cases, the pancreas may rest and recover the ability to manufacture insulin.

Boost your Metabolism – Use Coconut Oil for Weight Loss

Due to the problems with the absorption and use of glucose, weight gain and lower energy levels are common problems with most type 2 diabetics. When your cells lack glucose to power them, the metabolic rate drops thus resulting in low energy levels. (We all know that feeling!) However, coconut oil counters this effect due to its structural composition and the way it is used by the body. Coconut oil boosts metabolism and as a result, the body burns fat at a faster rate. Moreover, it slows digestion allowing you to feel fuller and energetic for longer.

Coconut Oil for Diabetes Control – Helps Regulate Blood Sugar

In my daily diet, I use coconut oil for diabetes control, as I had to deal with many complications as a result of my body’s inability to regulate the blood sugar levels. These problems mainly include constant hunger, obesity, food cravings and hypoglycemia. However, I realized that my blood sugar level which was usually 80 to 90 points above normal reduced within half an hour after taking a teaspoon of coconut oil. This helped reduce my cravings and hunger. Moreover, it helped me avoid other life threatening complications such as severe hypoglycemia, diabetes shock and loss of consciousness.

Coconut oil has a very low GI (glycemic index) of about 35 which helps prevent fluctuations in blood sugar by balancing the amount of insulin produced with the amount of sugar in the bloodstream in order to improve glucose control and reverse insulin resistance.

Neuropathy and Blood Circulation

Good blood circulation is very important for diabetics. Many diabetics who experience numbness in their limbs get cuts or infections on the limbs without realizing it until it is too late. This can lead to serious complications. Coconut oil helps to get rid of numbness by improving blood circulation.

My feet and legs used to get numb constantly! However, feeling returned to my feet and legs within ten days of eating 2 teaspoons of coconut oil! Therefore, eating 2-3 teaspoons of coconut oil per day can help reduce or even eliminate tingling and diabetic neuropathy (nerve pain) that occurs in the limbs.

Improving brain function

This is vital especially for type 1 diabetics. The MCFA’s (Middle chain fatty acids) found in coconut oil improves brain function. The medium chain triglycerides help improve and preserve brain function under ideal hypoglycemic condition. However, using coconut oil for diabetes control, helps preserve the brain without causing the deadly hyperglycemia.