Diabetics develop atherosclerosis early in life. They develop it even before the diagnosis of diabetes is entertained. Atherosclerosis, or the buildup of cholesterol and plaque inside of the blood vessels, is a disease created by excess caloric consumption. We can’t separate the discussion about diabetes and heart disease completely from weight loss. Heart disease and heart attacks were exceptionally rare occurrences in human history until the explosion of commercial food manufacturing and processed food exposure in the 1900s. The low-micronutrient diet people eat today contributes to atherosclerotic plaque deposition in two basic ways. First, low micronutrient consumption promotes excess calorie intake, and second, low micronutrient intake increases oxidative stress and inflammation in the body, which further promotes atherosclerosis.
It is well-established that atherosclerotic plaque development and the factors that contribute to the instability of plaque that promotes clot formation are linked to inflammation-prone tissue. From the initial phases of fatty streak formation to the evolution toward plaque instability and rupture, the SAD, which gets its majority of calories from low-micronutrient processed foods and animal products instead of vegetables, beans, fruits, seeds, and nuts is the cause of this disease process. Circulatory disease, the leading cause of death in the modern world, is a dietary-caused disease that is most effectively dealt with from a dietary standpoint.
The impact of low-micronutrient eating takes its toll, promoting an inflammatory cascade underlying most diseases that plague the modern world. It is this combination of excess calories, fat deposition, and inadequate phytonutrients that creates a nation of cardiovascular-diseased individuals. It is possible, but much less likely, for thin people to develop atherosclerotic heart disease when eating a disease-promoting diet, but even most of these people still have significant amounts of abdominal adiposity and visceral fat.
In addition to my twenty-plus years of experience in treating advanced cardiac patients and diabetics with aggressive nutrition, my main scientific contribution to this body of knowledge is the explanation that the same underlying buildup of free radicals, AGEs, and other toxic agents caused by inadequate micronutrient intake not only create disease and promote tissue damage and aging, but they also promote overeating behavior, food addiction, and food cravings. The underlying drive to overconsume calories is just too difficult to address while addictive symptoms drive overeating behavior. This physical need for more frequent and concentrated calories creates emotional and thought rationalizations that seek to justify bizarre and illogical eating behaviors, leading almost
everyone to overconsume calories. When a micronutrient-deficient diet is consumed, we desire an excessive amount of calories just to feel normal. There is no longer the connection between satisfying hunger and a normal body weight. So becoming overweight is due not just to easily obtainable calories and sedentary jobs but also to unhealthful eating that leads to addictive food- consuming behavior, resulting in overly frequent eating and overeating. The result is that the vast majority of Americans become overweight, atherosclerotic, and—now more and more—diabetic.
Using medical and surgical interventions while the underlying nutritional, biochemical, and lifestyle factors that caused the problems continue to percolate is doomed to failure. Medical care is expensive and futile compared to nutritional interventions which are remarkably effective for:
• Lowering cholesterol and lipid risk markers
• Improving vascular remodeling to facilitate oxygenation and to relieve and resolve angina
• Losing weight and glucose intolerance, reversing the diabetic process
• Reducing inflammatory and clot-promoting tendencies without incurring a risk of bleeding
• Reducing the tendency toward arrhythmia, sudden cardiac death, heart attack, and stroke
• Reducing all-cause mortality in all patients with all medical conditions
It can’t be reinforced enough that the goal is a low body-fat percentage, not a low dietary-fat percentage. The low body-fat percentage is best achieved by prescribed regular exercise and nutritional excellence, and bringing back the connection with true hunger so recreational eating and eating outside of the demands of true hunger can be reduced.
Keep in mind that lowering cholesterol and losing weight do not adequately explain this high-nutrient diet’s protective effects against cardiovascular disease.
This prescribed diet effectively lowers high-sensitive C-reactive protein. This protein found in the blood has been proven to increase the risk of heart disease.
In addition, this powerful diet offers vital anti-inflammatory protection and other beneficial biochemical effects. Even though drugs may lower cholesterol, they cannot be expected to offer the protection against cardiovascular events that superior nutrition can. The aggressive use of cholesterol-lowering drugs does not prevent most heart attacks or strokes and does not decrease the risk of fatal
strokes.9 In clinical trials, a significant percentage of patients who are taking the best possible statin therapy still experience cardiovascular events, such as heart attacks, sudden cardiac death, and strokes. Lowering cholesterol with nutritional excellence, however, can be expected to offer radically more protection and disease reversal than drug therapy can, without the risk or expense of prescription medication. I have seen the results in patients for more than twenty years, and now finally we are beginning to see the research results catch up and support my experience.
The reward for treating patients in this manner is to see improvements and disappearance not only of diabetes but so many other medical conditions as well.
Headaches resolve, asthma episodes often go away, fatigue and body aches improve, digestive issues resolve, and most importantly, atherosclerosis and chest pains resolve without invasive procedures or surgeries.