‘Diabetes doesn’t need to be a life sentence of ill health. With prompt diagnosis, simple lifestyle adjustments and, if necessary, medication, people with diabetes can expect to have a long and productive life.”—Lam Lye Ching in an article published by Reader’s Digest
All over the world, diabetes is fast becoming a threat to public health. Considered before as a “disease of affluence,” diabetes is now taking its place as one of the main threats to human health in the 21st century.
“Diabetes is going to be the biggest epidemic in human history,” warns Dr. Paul Zimmet, director of the International Diabetes Institute in Victoria, Australia.
In the Philippines for instance, diabetes is now the eighth leading cause of mortality, according to a handout circulated by The Diabetes Store.
In 2000 about 35.6 percent of Filipinos were diagnosed with diabetes. The number of Filipino diabetics is expected to double by 2030, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
The Philippine Center for Diabetes Education Foundation Inc.—also known as Diabetes Center—discloses that 50 percent of those suffering from diabetes do not know they have the disease.
As a result, “many patients die because it is already too late to remedy the situation,” to quote the words of Dr. Ricardo Fernando, director of Institute for Studies and Diabetes Foundation in the Philippines.
Diabetes, as defined by the Merck Manual of Medical Information is “a disorder in which blood sugar [glucose] levels are abnormally high because the body does not produce enough insulin.”
Insulin is the hormone released from the pancreas. “Insulin controls the amount of sugar in the blood,” the Merck manual notes. “When a person eats or drinks, food is broken down into materials, including sugar that the body needs to function.
“Sugar is absorbed into the bloodstream and stimulates the pancreas to produce insulin. Insulin allows sugar to move from the blood into the cells. Once inside the cells, sugar is converted to energy, which is either used immediately or stored until it is needed.”
The levels of sugar in our blood vary normally throughout the day. “They rise after a meal and return to normal within about two hours after eating,” the Merck manual informs. “Once the levels of sugar in the blood return to normal, insulin production decreases.”
“But with diabetes, something goes awry,” says The Doctors Book of Home Remedies. “The pancreas becomes irresponsible. It either stops producing the hormone completely or else produces too much, which leads to insulin resistance. Either way, concentration of sugar in the blood shoots sky-high.”
Actually, there are two types of diabetes. Type 1 (formerly called insulin-dependent diabetes or juvenile-onset diabetes) occurs in only 10 to 15 percent of all cases, and tends to occur in people under the age of 30. Onset is normally sudden and dramatic. More than 90 percent of the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas are permanently destroyed. The exact cause of unknown but it’s generally thought to be inherited.
Type 2 (called previously as non-insulin-dependent diabetes or adult-onset diabetes) is the most common form; it accounts for about 90 percent of all cases. In this type, the pancreas continues to produce insulin, sometimes even at higher-than-normal levels. But the body develops resistance to the effects of insulin, so there is not enough insulin to meet the body’s needs.
“About 95 percent of Filipino diabetics have Type 2 diabetes, mainly caused by lack of exercise and poor diet,” wrote Irene M. Villaseñor and Juane Marco B. Gonzales, authors of a paper published by the Department of Science and Technology.
Diabetes is a common disease among Filipinos. “Beyond its prevalence, its complications add to its complexity,” pointed out Dr. Jose V. Nevada, a medical doctor who is with the University of the Philippines at Los Baños. “From people having their foot amputated, to those who become blind; from patients undergoing dialysis to those who had heart attacks or stroke—these horror medical stories are real. The medical cost of diabetes is expensive; and the loss of lives, enormous.”
The United Nations health agency agrees. “Because of its chronic nature, the severity of its complications and the means required to control them, diabetes is a costly disease, not only for the affected individual and his or her family, but also for the health authorities,” the WHO says.
Direct costs to individuals and their families include medical care, drugs, insulin and other supplies. Patients may also have to bear other personal costs, such as increased payments for health, life and automobile insurance.
“With continued rise of diabetes incidence, there is an urgent need to develop more alternative, yet effective antidiabetic drugs for Filipinos especially those who do not make ends meet,” wrote Villaseñor and Gonzales.
When it comes to alternative medicine against diabetes, ampalaya comes to mind. Dr. William Torres, former director of Bureau of Food and Drugs, came up with this conclusion after reviewing several studies done on ampalaya: “Ampalaya fruits, leaves, seeds and other parts, when used as dry powders, extracts, decoctions, fresh or cooled, have clearly demonstrated hypoglycemic activity.”
Researchers have identified the key compounds present in ampalaya, notably polypeptide-P, a plant insulin found only in the ampalaya. Similar to animal insulin, polypeptide-P lowers elevated blood sugar levels. Torres maintains that ampalaya, when taken regularly, helps to increase glucose tolerance and “potentiate insulin.”
Even ampalaya leaves have some blood sugar lowering effect among diabetics, according to Dr. Eduardo G. Gonzales of the College of Medicine at De La Salle University. “This effect is noticeable regardless of how the leaves are prepared—boiled then eaten, or in the form of extract, tea, capsule or tablet.”
These days, Filipino researchers are also looking at malunggay. Recent studies have found malunggay extracts can significantly reduce blood sugar in mice. Because of this finding, Villaseñor and Gonzales were doing studies on the “super plant.”
“Our goal is to isolate an anti-diabetic compound from malunggay, and to formulate a less expensive, alternative drug against diabetes for the consumption of diabetic Filipinos,” the two researchers from the University of the Philippines in Diliman said.
The researchers and their team were able to do so. “With the help and support from the government and the hard-earned money of the taxpayers, our group managed to isolate an antidiabetic compound from malunggay leaves,” the two wrote in their paper.
The discovered compound, however, is still to subjected to further tests before it is released in the market for Filipino diabetics in need of less expensive, alternative maintenance drug.
“We still have a long way to go to develop such drug, but the important thing is, not only have we begun the journey; we have gone a long way,” the two researchers said.
Dr. Portia Mahal G. Sabido, also from UP Diliman, is conducting a study on peptide-based substances, which can block the breakdown of large sugar matter in the body and lower blood-sugar levels. These substances will be produced and developed as antidiabetic drugs.
Currently, there are four main classes of antidiabetic drugs available for blood sugar control: sensitizers, secretagogues, incretin analogs, and alpha-glucodasidase inhibitors. Sabido’s research will develop antidiabetic drugs of the alpha-glucosidse inhibitors class.
“Peptides are naturally occurring substances that can be described as short chains of amino acids,” Sabido explained. “They are smaller versions of proteins, since proteins are also biological substances considering of long chains of amino acids.”
In her project, “we will merge the natural with the artificial [peptides] in order to create a more potent antidiabetic drug,” she said. “We will produce chemically the natural peptides that have been reported to exhibit alpha-glucodasidase inhibition, attach them with the small molecules which are also reported to have alpha-glucodasidase activity, and determine to combination which has the most potential as a drug that can be used for the treatment of diabetes.”
Image credits: visulahunt.com, Henrylito D. Tacio
1 comment
Great drug. In July of 2016. it was discovered that I got type 2 diabetes, By the end of the July month. I was given a prescription for the Metformin, I stated with the ADA diet and followed it completely for several weeks but was unable to get my blood sugar below 140, Without results to how for my hard work. I really panicked and called my doctor. His response?? Deal with it yourself, I started to feel that something wasn’t right and do my own research, Then I found Lisa’s great blog (google ” How I helped myself from diabetes ” ) .. I read it from cover to cover and I started with the diet and by the next week. my blood sugar was 100, Since then. I get a fasting reading between the mid 70s and 80s, My doctor was very surprised at the results that. the next week. he took me off the Metformin drug, I lost 16 pounds in my first month and lost more than 3+ inches off my waist and I’m able to work out twice a day while still having lots of energy. The truth is that we can get off the drugs and help myself by trying natural methods..