Blood Sugar
Blood sugar problems are much, much more common today then is generally realized. High blood sugar can be relatively easily detected by a blood glucose test. Low blood sugar, however, can remain elusive and is often missed by modern testing methods. In order to detect low blood sugar, a test called a 6 hour post prandial test is prescribed. During this test, the person ingests a liquid rich with sugar and then the blood is taken and tested 30 minutes after and at least every hour for 6 hours afterward. The problem is, low blood sugar can be sporadic. You can have good days and bad days. So even this test can often miss low blood sugar.
Many of the symptoms of the two are similar. This is because with high blood sugar, the sugar cannot get into the cells (because of a lack of insulin hormone) so the sugar in the blood builds up. With low blood sugar, the cells do not get any sugar because there isn’t any there to use. In both cases, the cells are starving for sugar which is the food the cells use for energy. This can create a lot of symptoms.
Since the nervous system uses a lot of sugar to do its job, it is usually the first affected. This will cause tiredness, weakness and irritability. It can cause difficulty with concentration, moodiness, depression and many other “mental” conditions. Many children who suffer from this are irresponsibly labeled as Attention Deficit Disorder. Insomnia is one of the most common symptoms. With this type of insomnia, the person usually falls asleep fine but wakes up in the middle of the night and cannot fall back asleep.
Dry joints, thirst, frequent urination, muscle weakness and cramps are also common. The eyes may also get tired and the person may crave sugar or alcohol. High blood sugar can affect the capillaries of the arteries and the nerves directly and can lead to more severe eye and nerve problems.
The main areas of the body that regulate blood sugar are the pancreas, the adrenals, the thyroid, the hypothalamus, the pituitary gland and the liver. Unless the person is pregnant, the pancreas is the usual suspect with chronic blood sugar problems. The pancreas makes insulin, the hormone responsible for getting the sugar out of the blood and into the cells. It also makes glucagon which does the exact opposite. It is the balance between the two that generally regulates blood sugar. If too much of one or not enough of the other is produced, there will be a problem with blood sugar.
It is generally thought that most people who develop high blood sugar go through a period of sporadic low blood sugar before they develop chronic high blood sugar. The sporadic low blood sugar is an indication that the pancreas is not working well and is not regulating properly. It is actually “over shooting” the amount of insulin required for handling the sugar in the blood. Refined sugars make this worse. With refined sugars, the sugar goes into the blood all at once and the pancreas frantically secretes the insulin hormone in response to lower the blood sugar. Because it secretes too much insulin, the blood sugar then goes too low. This is the cause of the “crash” 20-30 minutes after eating sweets. Ironically, the person will crave sugar and sweets when the blood sugar is low. Because of this “crash” effect, sugar and sweets are not the best solution. It is best to head off this sugar craving by eating small amounts more often and by eating foods that allow the sugar to go into the blood at a slower rate, for example, proteins and complex carbohydrates. Once the cravings start, you have gone too long and eating even normal food does not put you back where you were before your blood sugar was low.
When I test people with chronic blood sugar problems, I usually find indications of an immune system challenge in the pancreas, usually undetectable by modern tests, chemical poisoning, or nerve damage of the nerves going to the pancreas. There may also be hormonal involvement, especially of the adrenal glands or thyroid or regulation problems involving the hypothalamus, internal brain or pituitary gland. It has always been said that once the pancreas cells have been destroyed (by whatever means) that the damage was permanent. It has recently come to light, however, that this is not necessarily the case. New research has shown that even pancreas cells may regenerate.
Blood sugar problems can greatly impact a person’s life. Lack of sleep, low energy, irritability, depression, thirst and achy joints, severe tiredness and weakness present an unpleasant scene for a person to be stuck in. I’m quite familiar with it. It’s what I had to handle for myself. If not for my own problems in this area, I may not be doing what I now do, for it was what sparked me to look into the muscle testing procedures that later became Cause Point Correlative Testing. If not for these procedures and the accompanying nutritional programs that I have followed, I have little doubt that I would be on insulin by now. So to those of you with blood sugar imbalances or those of you who suspect you might have blood sugar imbalances, there is hope and there is help. Call (260) 459-6160 (Ft. Wayne) or (773) 929-3964 (Chicago) for an appointment.
David A. Murdock, D.C.
