# What are some esoteric ways to manage type II diabetes **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 3, 2014, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759 "2014-01-03T00:55:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/1 "2014-01-03T00:55:23Z")
I’m not asking so much for the popular consensus treatments that everyone can usually name (lose weight, exercise, change diet, medications). I’m looking for more esoteric things (including esoteric forms of diet and exercise) that can help manage the condition for people who have it. I can think of things like the second meal effect (eat a smaller meal before the larger one, that reduces glucose). [http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/33/12/2552.full](http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/33/12/2552.full) Eating metamucil or a protein shake along with a meal can reduce glucose spike by 20-30% postprandial. That could be the difference between a PPD glucose of 300 and one of 210. I’ve heard at least one person say they had good luck with walking on a treadmill right when their postprandial would spike after a large meal. This seems like it would work best when you are eating most of your calories in 1 or 2 large meals a day. I don’t know if this method of exercise works better than exercising at random times of the day. On that subject interval training seems to work better than steady state aerobics. The amino acid arginine could be a treatment, but I’m not sure if that has been verified on humans or just mice right now. Plus even if it is, I don’t know if it is any better than existing drugs (although it seems to work via a different mechanism). Obesity surgery (esp the ones that divert the duodenum) seem to work pretty well for stopping diabetes. What others are there? I’m going to need this info in 10 years. ---
**Author:** ![Zulema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/db5fbb/32.png) [@Zulema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zulema)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/2 "2014-01-03T05:46:55Z")
Cinnamon: [http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/26/12/3215.long](http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/26/12/3215.long) To me those results are so amazing that I wonder why I have never heard a doctor recommend taking cinnamon. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/3 "2014-01-03T07:33:00Z")
> [@Zulema](#): > > Cinnamon: > [http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/26/12/3215.long](http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/26/12/3215.long) > > To me those results are so amazing that I wonder why I have never heard a doctor recommend taking cinnamon. It’s toxic, that’s why. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/4 "2014-01-03T08:10:33Z")
[Examine.com](http://examine.com/) which is good for unbiased opinion on all things nutritional says that [some varieties may be toxic](http://examine.com/supplements/Cinnamon/). It would appear that the problematic substance is actually cassia which, although related to cinnamon is not from the same plant. In some countries it is illegal to label cassia as cinnamon. This is not the case in the US. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/5 "2014-01-03T11:54:17Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > [Examine.com](http://examine.com/) which is good for unbiased opinion on all things nutritional says that [some varieties may be toxic](http://examine.com/supplements/Cinnamon/). It would appear that the problematic substance is actually cassia which, although related to cinnamon is not from the same plant. In some countries it is illegal to label cassia as cinnamon. This is not the case in the US. In that case I would buy it from a reputable dealer like Penzeys [which sells both cassia and cinnamon] and learn to recognize it by sight and smell [it is visibly and sniffably different] so that when you need to source it from elsewhere you can make sure it isn’t cassia. ---
**Author:** ![Zulema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/db5fbb/32.png) [@Zulema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zulema)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/6 "2014-01-03T14:36:01Z")
Scary!!! Why would they do a study with a dangerous substance? From reading around it looks like 1 gram per day might be OK for normal weight people but they used up to 6 grams per day in the study. I have been taking 2 grams per day off and on for years, I’m going to either cut down or switch. **aruvqan** : Thanks for the source of both kinds. I was wondering how to tell if the capsules contained what they are supposed to. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/7 "2014-01-03T15:01:40Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > I’m not asking so much for the popular consensus treatments that everyone can usually name (lose weight, exercise, change diet, medications). I’m looking for more esoteric things (including esoteric forms of diet and exercise) that can help manage the condition for people who have it… > What others are there? I’m going to need this info in 10 years. I trust you’re considering the non-esoteric treatments, as well. Especially if you _plan_ to have diabetes in 10 years, this might be a good time to work on your diet & exercise… ---
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/8 "2014-01-03T17:51:26Z")
Vitamin D3: > **[1758-5996-5-8.pdf](https://dmsjournal.biomedcentral.com/counter/pdf/10.1186/1758-5996-5-8.pdf)** > > 242.96 KB Marijuana: [http://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(13)00200-3/fulltext](http://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(13)00200-3/fulltext) Monounsaturated fats: [http://www.nel.gov/evidence.cfm?evidence\_summary\_id=250249](http://www.nel.gov/evidence.cfm?evidence_summary_id=250249) Red Wine: [http://www.bu.edu/alcohol-forum/critique-106-a-clinical-trial-shows-that-glucose-metabolism-is-improved-more-by-red-wine-than-by-gin-14-march-2013/](http://www.bu.edu/alcohol-forum/critique-106-a-clinical-trial-shows-that-glucose-metabolism-is-improved-more-by-red-wine-than-by-gin-14-march-2013/) Vitamin K2: [http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/34/9/e147.full](http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/34/9/e147.full) L-Carnitine: [http://pen.sagepub.com/content/34/3/295.abstract](http://pen.sagepub.com/content/34/3/295.abstract) Dairy products: > **[Consumption of low-fat dairy foods for 6 months improves insulin resistance...](https://nutritionj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1475-2891-12-56)** > > Background Given the highly debated role of dairy food consumption in modulating biomarkers of metabolic syndrome, this study was conducted to examine the influence of long-term (6 month) dairy consumption on metabolic parameters in healthy... Flaxseed: > **[Flaxseed supplementation improved insulin resistance in obese glucose...](https://nutritionj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1475-2891-10-44)** > > Background Obesity leads to an increase in inflammation and insulin resistance. This study determined antioxidant activity of flaxseed and its role in inflammation and insulin resistance in obese glucose intolerant people. Methods Using a randomized... ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/9 "2014-01-03T17:56:57Z")
The only thing that really worked for me was the Atkins diet. I lost a lot of weight, had more energy, and no longer had high glucose. But after a routine blood test, my endocrinologist advised me to see a nephrologist. Sure enough, I had stage 3 kidney disease, caused by eating too much protein. So my advice is to go on Atkins, and see a nephrologist regularly. ---
**Author:** ![Belowjob2.0](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Belowjob2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Belowjob2.0)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/10 "2014-01-03T20:05:08Z")
Chromium picolinate [http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/78/1/192.1.full](http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/78/1/192.1.full) [http://nccam.nih.gov/research/results/spotlight/020111.htm](http://nccam.nih.gov/research/results/spotlight/020111.htm) This is sort of a drive-by. I don’t really have time to present evidence pro and con, so I’m not advocating for or against. ---
**Author:** ![Belowjob2.0](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Belowjob2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Belowjob2.0)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/11 "2014-01-03T20:06:43Z")
Consider also weight lifting and other load bearing, anaerobic exercise: pushups, chinups, situps, cross fit type stuff. ---
**Author:** ![yorick73](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/b5a626/32.png) [@yorick73](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yorick73)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2014, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/12 "2014-01-03T22:40:15Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Sure enough, I had stage 3 kidney disease, caused by eating too much protein. So my advice is to go on Atkins, and see a nephrologist regularly. How can you be sure it was caused by eating too much protein as opposed to a kidney disease that is exacerbated by a high protein diet? I haven’t read that high protein diets can _cause_ kidney disease but I have read that it can make kidney disease worse. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2014, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/13 "2014-01-04T03:42:21Z")
> [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > I trust you’re considering the non-esoteric treatments, as well. Especially if you _plan_ to have diabetes in 10 years, this might be a good time to work on your diet & exercise… Yes. My blood sugars are still in the normal range. But with genetics it’ll get worse. I know a few people with T2DM who, despite using multiple classes of drugs simultaneously had their diabetes end up out of control until they had to go on insulin. I don’t want to do that. To be fair, the people in question do nothing for exercise or diet. All they use is drugs to manage the condition. I don’t want to end up like that so I’m looking for what to do if lifestyle and drugs are not enough someday. Ironically with all the time I spend thinking about getting diabetes in 20 years I’ll probably get some unexpected weird disease instead. ---
**Author:** ![Tully\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7ab992/32.png) [@Tully\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tully_Mars)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2014, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/14 "2014-01-04T15:07:18Z")
My esoteric treatment is a cold beer when I get home from work in the evening. It’s not working worth a damn, by the way. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2014, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/15 "2014-01-04T18:14:26Z")
A huge percentage, if not the outright majority, of T2DM patients “treat” their disease by smoking, eating candy by the pound, refusing to exercise, taking their meds while fasting, etc. and then expect everyone around them to deal with the resulting carnage. Really. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2014, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-esoteric-ways-to-manage-type-ii-diabetes/677759/16 "2014-01-04T18:22:20Z")
Alcohol can be helpful for some people with diabetes (who already drink, not contraindicated, alert to insulin-related hypoglycemia, yadda yadda). More water and fiber at a meal can drop blood sugar (not an excessive amount, which creates its own problems). Monounsaturated fats and protein can slow the absorption of the carbs. I find half an hour on the treadmill about half an hour after I eat drops my blood sugar by up to 50. Smaller dinner low in carbs reduces my AM blood sugar. So does a snack of a few almonds if I’m hungry in the night. Last I checked, ADA was saying that even higher glycemic fruit had benefits that outweighed the risks. However, grapes will still boost my blood sugar more than an apple.