Mission (from an ex-diabetic engineer): To share knowledge and insight to put to death a disease (Type 2 diabetes) that has reached epidemic levels around the world. Based upon the top-selling book, Death to Diabetes.
There are 5 major "dead" foods that fuel the major diseases and health problems, including high blood pressure, obesity, chronic fatigue, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, cancer, arthritis, osteoporosis, and other systemic diseases.
When consumed in excess with a sedentary lifestyle, these "dead" foods turn the
body acidic, cause inflammation, and slowly damage or kill the body’s
cells and create biochemical, neurochemical and hormonal imbalances that trigger unhealthy food
cravings.
These chemical imbalances, in turn, devastate your health physically,
biochemically, hormonally, emotionally and spiritually. Over a period of
years, the body breaks down and becomes susceptible to the aforementioned major diseases and health problems.
You must avoid these foods if you want to live a healthier life with less financial woes.
If you're diabetic or overweight, you need to avoid most of these foods like the plague -- unless you like being diabetic, fat and taking a lot of drugs.
For those of you who are familiar with superior nutrition, there should be no surprises with the following list.
1: Refined flour, starches includes all foods made with refined flour or starch such as white bread, enriched bread, wheat bread, white pasta, white potatoes, white rice, macaroni, cereals, crackers, donuts, pancakes, pastries, biscuits, spaghetti, cakes, pies, and other processed flour-based starchy foods.
Warning: Avoid potatoes, corn, and soybeans, which are the most common genetically-modified (GMO) foods. Other common GMO-foods to avoid include canola oil, vegetable oils, margarine (cottonseed oil), cereals, sugar beets, farmed salmon, other farmed fish, cow's milk, baby formula, and artificial sweeteners (i.e. aspartame). Unfortunately, many processed foods and some restaurant foods are now GMOs, so be careful.
2: Refined sugar includes all foods made with high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, refined sugar, sucrose, maltose, dextrose, brown sugar, artificial sweeteners, and processed honey.
Some examples of sugar-based foods/beverages include soda, diet soda, bottled juice, soft drinks, candy, jams, jellies, cookies, cakes, pies, pastries, some cereals, and some condiments. Stay way from artificial sweeteners such as aspartame and Splenda!
3: Trans fats include all processed foods made with partially hydrogenated oil, such as stick margarines, French fries, bread, potato chips, pretzels, cookies, fried foods, donuts, crackers, store-bought baked goods, packaged foods, and fast foods.
The process of creating hydrogenated oil destroys the essential fatty acids in the oil and replaces them with deformed trans fatty acids.
4: Saturated fats, which are solid at room temperature, are found in animal meat, organ meats, processed meats, lunch meats, fried foods and some dairy products (cow’s milk,
cheese, butter, and ice cream).
Saturated fats are also found in coconut oil, palm oil and other tropical oils. Some of the Omega-6 poly-unsaturated fats in vegetable oils such as soybean, corn, sunflower and safflower can also be destructive to your health. In addition, canola oil is also unhealthy for you. Note: Not all saturated fats are unhealthy for you, i..e. extra virgin coconut oil, free-range chicken breast, venison, bison.
5: Drugs include alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, prescription drugs, and recreational drugs. Prescription drugs don't cure anything! They give you a false sense of security as the disease spreads causing more damage, and leading to even more drugs!
Author's Sidebar:
The terms "live" and "dead" may sound a little melodramatic, but I
believe that they get the point across without having to explain the
rationale of each term in detail. In addition, I found these terms to be
very effective in making specific points during my lectures and
workshops. Also, these terms tie nicely into the book’s title and the
photograph on the front cover of the book.
“Live” food (pronounced l i v e as in "I'm alive") helps the body to heal, fight disease and stay alive.
“Live” foods are primarily raw, unprocessed, lightly-cooked or
partially processed foods that contain most of the seven nutrient
factors. The term “live” does not necessarily mean that the food is alive, but it does contain the nutrients that keep the body alive.
Coincidentally, these foods are connected with the prevention and
reversal of many of the major systemic diseases and ailments.
“Dead” food inhibits the body from healing and leads to disease and early death.
“Dead” food is man-made, processed food that lacks most of the seven
nutrient factors. Coincidentally, these foods, along with a sedentary
lifestyle, are connected with the development of many of the major
systemic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer.
Author's Note: During my recovery, I had come up with a list of about 100 foods and
beverages that I had to avoid. Then, based on common attributes, I was
able to fit these foods into several categories that I eventually
reduced to the above 5 groups.
Note: There is a subset of these 5 "dead" foods that fuels diabetes and heart disease faster than other typical "dead" foods. I refer to these foods as "The Triple-Killers".
We all know that exercise is important, but, most of us usually try to find ways to get out of exercising.
Here
are some of the more common excuses for skipping exercise along with ways to combat
those excuses.
I don’t have time: This is by far one of the most
common excuses that people use. People that use this excuse are actually saying
that exercise is not enough of a priority to make it on their daily or weekly
to-do list. If you fall into this category, then it’s time to review your daily
priority list. Certainly there is something less important that you are doing
for 10-15 minutes every day that can be replaced with exercise.
After all, exercise is one of the
most important things you can do for yourself and your family to ensure that
you live a high quality life. Try to increase your daily physical activity and
integrate exercise into your daily life.
I’m too fat (or out-of-shape): Unless your doctor has forbidden
you to exercise, then it’s very unlikely that this excuse has any validity. If
you are extremely out-of-shape, then you simply need to start with baby steps.
Walking is always a great place to start. You may have to start with just five
minutes. That’s okay. You can gradually add more time each week.
If walking is not an option, then
you could try some pool exercises. There are many beneficial strength training
exercises you can do while sitting with a resistance band, flex bar, resistance
chair or a rowing machine.
I’m
too tired: This
is a common excuse, especially with diabetics, overweight people and people who
have insulin resistance – all because of poor nutrition. Without proper
nutrition (fuel), the body cannot produce the necessary energy for exercise,
leading to fatigue. This excuse also creates a vicious circle because the more
sedentary you are then the more tired you become; and, the more tired you are
then the less appealing exercise sounds. Exercise can actually make you feel
more revived then a nap because it stimulates your lymphatic, immune, and
cardiovascular systems – especially if you provide your body with the proper
nutrition. Regular physical activity increases your energy level. In addition,
consistent exercise helps you to fall asleep faster and sleep better, which
allows you to feel rested every day.
I
really don’t like to exercise: This is usually due to the boredom that you feel during
exercise or the fact that your body not only feels achy after exercising but
the fact that it aches for the next couple days.Many people still have
the old “no pain, no gain” mentality and think that in order for exercise to be
worthwhile you have to be miserable doing it. This just isn’t true. Some people
don’t like to exercise because they don’t like to sweat. Actually, you don’t
have to work up a big sweat every time you exercise – it’s all about just
getting the body moving. Consider things that you really like to do. If you
prefer competitive situations, then consider joining a recreational sports
team. If you are a social person, join an exercise group or take an exercise
class with your friends. If you enjoy spending time alone, then try yoga or
evening walks. And, don’t over do the exercise – that is part of the reason for
the sore muscles.
I’ve
tried and failed in the past: It’s true that it can be difficult to get motivated to
exercise after you’ve failed before, but isn’t your health worth another try?
If you’ve been unsuccessful in the past, then re-evaluate what went wrong. Did
you try to do too much, too quickly? It’s very common to be overzealous when
starting out and end up either burning out or getting injured early on. Did you
set unrealistic goals for yourself? Try to establish small goals that are truly
achievable, for example, that you will workout three times a week for the next
month.
The
inconsistent weather makes it difficult, or I don’t have any exercise equipment:
Nice try, but you
can exercise indoors and get your heart pumping without any fancy exercise
equipment. Don’t underestimate what you can do with things that are already in
your house. For example, if you have a flight of stairs then you have an awesome
way to get your heart rate up by walking or running the stairs. Grab a couple
of soup cans to emulate dumbbells for strength training exercises.
I
can’t afford a gym membership: You don’t have to spend a single dollar for a gym
membership in order to get fitter. Just walking outside is a great place to
start. Also, home fitness equipment has become very affordable and accessible.
For as little as $35 you can buy some great home equipment that will really
challenge your body. A resistance band, a couple of small hand weights and an
exercise ball allow you to work every muscle group and even obtain a good
cardiovascular workout.
I
don’t know what exercises to do: There are literally dozens of ways to learn what exercises
will help you. There are hundreds of books, websites, television shows and
videos that offer advice and tips. If you have the money, another way to ensure
your workouts are most effective is to hire a personal trainer or an online
personal trainer. They can guide you every step of the way so that you don’t
waste any time doing exercises the wrong way.
Or, just increase your daily physical activities,
i.e. take the stairs
(instead of the elevator); gardening; mowing the lawn; mall walking while
shopping, dancing, cleaning the house, park farther from the store and walk, exercise
on a stationary bike while on the phone or watching TV.
I
just can’t get motivated or I don’t want to change: Keep in mind that most of us are
resistant to change.So, find something that will motivate you to exercise.
For me, initially, it was the fear of dying. Later, it was the feeling I got
from a good exercise session. For you, it may be your spouse, your children,
your grandchildren, the quality of your life, or it may be financial (less
expenses for drugs, doctors and hospitals).
To
help you get started, set small, short-term goals. Start with a promise to just
take the stairs instead of the elevator, for example. Then you might move onto
scheduling 10 minutes of activity a couple of times per week. Also, make a list
of all the positive benefits exercising has on your life. Your list might
include giving you more energy, reducing your health ailments and more. The
list should be pretty long. Post it somewhere that you will see it regularly
and it can serve as a reminder to you as to why you need to workout.
Another
option is to take a yoga or T’ai Chi class. They are two great ways to get the
physical activity you need and learn the techniques of proper breathing and
relaxation. Yoga is a physical way of life emphasizing the harmony of the body
and mind, and a philosophical way of life that is based on Eastern metaphysical
beliefs. T’ai Chi is an ancient Chinese art of exercise and self-defense with
an emphasis on relaxation, both physical and mental, which leads to developing
internal strength. T’ai Chi is classified as a low impact aerobic exercise
comparable to walking that is used as a therapeutic exercise for people who are
recovering from illness or injury, or for those who are beginning an exercise program.
There are new muscle activation techniques that provide
maximum benefits in less time by utilizing a series of sequential movements
designed to put the body in proper functional alignment, establishing increased
strength and flexibility of the spine, better neuro-kinetic flow, lymphatic
function, and an increased metabolic rate. In addition, you can utilize these
muscle activation techniques while you are at work, shopping, walking, driving
or doing everyday household chores – consequently, reducing the amount of time
you need to spend exercising each day. Contact our wellness center for more
information.
We all know that exercise is important, but, it seems that we either do not have the desire or the time to exercise.
Other people who are exercising eventually stop
exercising after becoming bored, frustrated or discouraged due to the
lack of progress in their health, weight loss or other health goal.
Personally, I know that exercise is important. In fact, some experts call it the "Fountain of Youth"! But, even though I know this, I still don't really like to exercise!
There must be an easier way to deal with exercising, right? When I was younger, exercise wasn't a problem, because I got my exercise by trying to play basketball and tennis. Today, most of my friends now play golf, but, I could never get the hang of hitting that little white ball. Ugh! Plus, is that really exercise?
The following are some tips to get you started with exercise and keep you going for the long term.
Schedule
your exercise sessions on your calendar as if they were any other
important appointment. This way, you will be able to balance your
exercise program with family, work and social activities.
Again, you
will be more successful if you fit exercise into your current lifestyle.
A little is always better than none.
If
possible, try to build your exercise/physical activity into your daily
activities, e.g. walking/bicycling to work, shopping, walking in the mall, house chores, painting, gardening, mowing the lawn, walking up and down the stairs, etc.
Don’t
work out too hard or too fast at the beginning. If you do, you will end
up sore and uninspired. It’s better to work out 2-3 days a week for
life than to work out 6-7 days a week for a couple of weeks. Consistency
is the key.
When you feel like skipping a
workout, get yourself to do some form of exercise for at least 10 - 15
minutes. Most people struggle during that initial 5 minutes, but once
they get past that 5-minute mark, they are actually able to complete
their entire workout. (If you don’t, don’t worry about it – 10 minutes
is still better than nothing).
When you get
bored or unfocused, change your exercise routine a bit by adding a
yoga, aerobics, Pilates, swimming or dancing class. If you don’t care to
join a gym, there are many wonderful classes at the local recreational
centers. Try a new exercise video or machine, or, try an outdoor
activity such as bicycling or a beach walk.
Give
yourself a little leeway - if you miss a workout or even an entire
week, get back on track as soon as possible. Setbacks and challenges are
normal.
The sooner you get back on track, the sooner you will reach
your goals. Remember - fitness is not about being perfect, but about a
series of healthy choices that you make consistently. It is not an all
or nothing proposition.
If possible, work
out in the morning. You will feel more energized all day and will avoid
“life” getting in the way of achieving your exercise and health goals.
If
possible, get in the habit of taking a 5 - 10 minute walk after lunch
and/or dinner, especially if the weather is nice.
Walk with your partner
or a friend. You will be amazed how well you feel physically and
emotionally.
Keep a pedometer and a fitness journal to chart your progress and accomplishments, and provide motivation.
Try
to limit the number of times that you use the weight scale to once a
month or once a week at the most. As you get fit, lose fat and gain
muscle, you will actually drop inches and pants/dress sizes and not move
the scales that much.
Evaluate your
progress every 6 - 8 weeks and increase the duration, frequency or
intensity of your workouts to stay challenged and inspired.
If
you need help, ask a fitness professional or instructor for suggestions
and advice on how you can most effectively achieve your goals. There
are also a variety of other resources on health and fitness available on
the web.
Note: For more information about exercise and how to overcome the excuses, refer to the post about Exercise and Excuses.
Annual Schedule for Doctor Appointments As part of the Death to Diabetes Wellness Program, we recommend that you meet with your doctor(s) on a regular basis.
You
should ensure that you set up the necessary doctor appointments during the
calendar year as specified by your doctor (Primary Care Physician).
If
possible, try to schedule your appointments during the same time period each
year.
The following is a list of the key doctor visits that you should complete
during the year if you are diabetic.
Physical exam; Other tests: blood
pressure, cholesterol, kidneys, liver
Annual
Ophthalmologist
Eye tests for retinopathy, cataracts,
glaucoma
Every 6 months or annual
Health coach;
Dietitian/Nutritionist
Wellness planning;
Nutritional planning, etc.
As required
Dentist
Cleaning of teeth and gums, dental
examinations
Cleaning: every 3 mos.
Exams: annual
Podiatrist
Examination of feet for nerve damage
Every 3 to 6 months or as required
You
should visit your primary care physician and/or endocrinologist on a regular
basis to review your progress, your blood glucose readings, corrective actions,
and other notes – at least until you have your blood glucose level under
control. Depending on your health needs and your health goals, you should get a
complete physical and set of blood work every 6 to 12 months to identify any
trends that may be getting overlooked, especially if you’re not making any
significant improvements.
Depending
on your health needs and your health goals, other members of your diabetes care
team may include one or more of the following: cardiologist, neurologist,
nephrologist, physiotherapist, naturopathic doctor, or psychiatrist. Other
members may include a wellness coach, diabetes educator, pharmacist, community
health nurse, or social worker.
If you really want to get more out of your doctor appointments, read the following guidelines and tips for things that you can do before, during, and after your appointment.
Before Appointment
Research
any medical conditions or concerns you may have, by gathering information from
reputable websites. Generally, government health websites and those maintained
by medical associations, large nonprofit groups dedicated to a single medical
condition, and university medical centers have the most trustworthy, up-to-date
medical information.
Make notes and write down any questions. However, don’t
hand your doctor a huge sheaf of printouts and expect her to respond to them
during your visit. And don’t try to diagnose your symptoms or self prescribe your
remedies. It’s still up to your doctor to do that.
During Appointment
One
of the best ways to manage your diabetes is to develop an effective working
partnership with your doctor. Your doctor’s role in this partnership is to
provide medical advice, offer treatment options and recommend resources. Your
role is to monitor your symptoms and blood glucose readings, report them
accurately and do what you can to manage your disease on a day-to-day basis.
Doctor
appointments are very important, but most people come ill-prepared to take full
advantage of the time with their doctor. Then, they complain about the doctor
not taking enough time with them.
Or, they don’t ask the doctor any pertinent
questions; or, they don’t bother to take any notes and forget what the doctor
told them. The doctor could spend more time with them, but they must first take
full advantage of the time that they have with their doctor.
Then, they will be
pleasantly surprised how well their doctor responds when they take a more
active role in their health.
The
following is a set of guidelines to help improve the effectiveness of your
appointments and the relationship with your doctor. If you are unable to
establish a better partnership with your doctor, let him/her know your
concerns. If there is no improvement, or you have a concern with taking drugs,
consider talking with a doctor in the field of alternative medicine, e.g. a
naturopathic doctor (www.naturopathic.org);
or, work with a diabetes wellness coach who has a medical background.
General Planning
Take responsibility for your own
health. This may include making necessary lifestyle changes, eating healthy
foods, getting enough exercise, maintaining a healthy weight, stop smoking,
stop drinking alcohol, and stop using recreational drugs.
Ensure that you understand and
are completely comfortable with the doctor’s diagnosis of your health, your
diabetes, and any other disease/ailment that you may have at this time. A
proper diagnosis will enable you to focus on the proper actions that need to be
performed to improve your health. An improper diagnosis will lead to incorrect
actions, frustration, doubt, and eventually hopelessness. Ensure that you have
obtained all the necessary medical diagnostic tests that will provide a correct
diagnosis.
Key Point: Ensure that the treatment is being designed to repair your body,
specifically, the defective sick cells in your body – not just to treat the
symptoms of high blood glucose levels.
Post the phone numbers for your
primary care physician, endocrinologist and other healthcare professionals by
your telephone, along with a list of your current medications, other medical
conditions and allergies. Call the doctor right away if you experience a sudden
change or your symptoms get worse.
If possible, have doctor
appointments and the applicable tests performed at regular intervals to prevent
confusion and complications. If you have not had a specific test within the
recommended interval, ask your doctor about it.
You should bring your records to
the appointment. What if the electronic medical record is down? What if we
can’t find your chart? What if you see a doctor in a different system? Although
exceedingly rare, problems do occur.
Your family doctor will manage
most of your diabetes care, but you may be referred to other medical
specialists when necessary. For instance, you may be referred to an
ophthalmologist for a dilated eye exam or a podiatrist for foot care. You may
be referred to an endocrinologist if managing your diabetes is particularly
difficult. Your family doctor and other medical specialists work together as a
team. Don’t hesitate to ask for a referral if you think it is necessary.
Work with your doctor to set
reasonable goals for your blood glucose levels, A1C, blood pressure,
cholesterol, and homocysteine (if applicable).
If you need to find a new doctor
or you need information about your doctor or local hospital, go to one of the
following websites:
Contact information for your state’s board of medical
examiners (address, phone numbers, website): www.fsmb.org/members.htm
Information about the rating and performance of
doctors, hospitals, and nursing homes: www.healthgrades.com
Government and nonprofit health and human services
information, with links to 1,500 health-related organizations: www.healthfinder.gov
Doctor Appointments
The relationship between you and your doctor is a special one based
on trust and mutual respect. It is important to ask questions that concern you
— up front. It is normal to feel uncomfortable about discussing certain topics,
but, if you don’t tell your doctor, he/she can’t help you.
During the appointment, become an active participant in your health
planning. Communicate your health goals and concerns at all times. If you show
interest, your doctor will be more inclined to provide more help and
information. But, if you don’t show a vested interest, why should your doctor?
Be honest about whether you’re
following recommendations about diet, lifestyle and taking medications. Your
doctor can usually tell when you’re not telling the truth. Also, your doctor
can suggest strategies to help you get on track.
Start with your major concern
first. Waiting until the end of an appointment to discuss an important problem
may mean it won’t get proper attention.
Be specific about your symptoms
and pay attention to details. Things that don’t seem important to you may be
important to your doctor. The American Society of Internal Medicine has
concluded that 75 percent of correct diagnosis depends solely on what you tell
your doctor.
Speak up but be respectful. Make
sure from the outset that your doctor knows you have questions and concerns and
expect to be listened to. Don’t be afraid to be an active and assertive
patient. If you don’t understand a word, idea or direction, ask your doctor to
explain.
Ask specific
questions. You
can’t make good health-care decisions if you can’t understand the information
provided or aren’t given enough information. If a question is crucial, ask
politely but firmly for an answer before you leave. At a minimum, you should
ask your doctor the following questions:
What is my diagnosis or what is my current state of health based on my physical exam,
blood work and other health information?
Note!If
you have multiple diseases/ailments, ensure that your doctor has taken that
into account concerning your diagnosis. For example, a person with high blood
pressure and high triglycerides should be evaluated for root causes that are
common to both ailments instead of being given separate drugs for each ailment.
What are the root cause(s) of my current diseased health state? (It is very important to
understand what is causing your health problem!)
What specific corrective actions do I need to take to improve my health through natural
means (without drugs/medications)?
Note: If you decide to take drugs, ask your doctor how long
you have to take them and what are the long term effects of the drugs.
What is my prognosis? In other words, what is the doctor’s projection of your future
health state given his knowledge, expertise and the corrective actions you plan
to take or have been taking?
Request additional tests if your
doctor is puzzled with your health state. For example mineral tests, hormone
tests and hair analysis tests (although controversial) can be invaluable in
many cases involving fatigue, chronic pain, cognitive/memory, emotions,
hyperactivity, violent behavior, learning disabilities, attention deficit
disorder, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, arthritis,
neurological disorders, weakened immunity, hypoglycemia, diabetes, weak finger
nails, and unhealthy skin and hair.
Ask your doctor to be honest with
you about what you can expect to happen over the next few weeks, months and
years.
Ask your doctor to tell you the
three most important things you can do to manage your health condition.
Work with your doctor to develop an effective treatment plan. There
may be times when you just don’t think you can do what your doctor advises.
Don’t walk out in frustration and ignore it all. Work with your doctor to find
an alternative that is acceptable to both of you.
Bring all your medications including over-the-counter drugs, vitamins
and other supplements to your next appointment. To avoid drug interactions and
over-medication, make sure that your doctor knows about every drug, vitamin and
other supplement that you are taking.
Before you leave the office, know what you should do when you get
home. It’s difficult to recall everything a doctor tells you, especially if
you’re nervous or worried. Ask your doctor to write down the important points.
Know who to call, and when to call, if you run into any problems.
Ask for copies of your lab results at your visit. This way, you can keep
an accurate health history.
Understand how well you are progressing and what actions to take,
based on your doctor’s diagnosis.
Don’t forget to follow up with your doctor after the appointment,
especially, if there was something that you didn’t understand.
If this isn’t working to your satisfaction, don’t sit around and
complain about your doctor. In most cases it’s not your doctor’s fault, so make
sure that you are doing everything in your power to improve your health.
Discuss your concerns honestly with your doctor. If you are doing your part,
and the relationship with your doctor has not improved, or your health is not
improving, then, find a new doctor.
This is a part of a video where I was being introduced at a medical
conference by one of the doctors. This doctor was fascinated by the fact that it took an engineer to solve
one of medical science's more complex diseases. He was also amazed
that, during his radio call-in show, that I was able to answer the
questions from some of his listeners, while the two doctors on the radio
show couldn't answer most of the questions.
But, for those of you who know
engineers, then, you are already aware that some engineers represent some of the
smartest people on the planet. :-)
During
my recovery from the diabetic coma, it seemed like that almost every
week, something interesting would happen that I couldn't explain. But,
after a couple years, things settled down.
Then, one
day, I got a phone call from a doctor asking me if I'm the guy who
survived a diabetic coma and wrote a book about it. It turns out that he
wanted me on his call-in radio show with 2 doctors where I would play
the role of the diabetic patient. I agreed because it would be a great
opportunity to hear from other diabetics calling into the radio show.
During
the first part of the radio show, the radio show host/doctor introduced
the 2 doctors and myself; and, had each of us talk about ourselves for a
quick minute or so. Then, the radio show host/doctor asked some
questions about diabetes that each of us would answer from our
perspective.
Then, a couple people called in to the
show with their questions. But, the 2 doctors couldn't answer the
questions! They said something like: "That's an excellent question, but,
I'll have to get back to you on that." Or, they said something like:
"That's a good question, but, I don't have any information about your
medical history to answer that question."
After a few minutes of this, I said: "Excuse me, but, I think that I could answer the question from the last caller."
The radio show host/doctor said, "OK, sure, give it a shot." (I could hear the 2 doctors snickering in the background).
After I answered the question, there was dead silence.(I thought that I had said something wrong or inappropriate).
Then,
the radio show host/doctor said: "Wow, DeWayne, that's a very
interesting point of view, but, do you have any medical data or clinical
studies to back up what you just said?" (Again, the 2 doctors were
snickering in the background).
I said: "Yes, as a
matter of fact, there was a clinical study conducted in 1997 in Boston,
that was documented in the New England Journal of Medicine. And,
concerning the previous question, there were several studies done in
Germany and, I believe, one by the Mayo Clinic in 1990 or 1991, that
substantiates my earlier comment about Type 2 diabetes pathophysiology
at the cellular level. And, recently two medical doctors have admitted
that reversing Type 2 diabetes is feasible, measurable, and
quantifiable."
Within 30 seconds, the radio show's
phone lines were ringing like crazy. The 2 doctors were shocked and
flabbergasted and weren't prepared for the deluge. On the other hand, I
welcomed it. It reminded me of years ago when I was still just a rookie
engineer, I volunteered to work in the "War Room" and take phone calls
from technicians in the field who were having problems with the machines
in the customer's offices.
Originally, I was only
supposed to be on the radio show for the first 15-20 minutes. But, I
ended up staying on the show for the entire hour and answered most of
the questions.
A few days later, the radio show
host/doctor called me and said: "DeWayne, I've never got that kind of
response from my audience before, even when I had a celebrity doctor on
my show. You have GOT to come to our annual medical conference and speak
about your recovery, your diabetes program and how it's helped other
diabetics."
And, so, that's how I ended up at this medical conference ...
I was very fortunate the first time that I ended up
being interviewed on a local TV news show . I received a phone call around 4:30am from a local
news station asking me to come down to the station for a morning
interview because someone else got sick and couldn't make it. So, I
didn't have to get a haircut or anything plus I was still quite sleepy
and I remember it was raining. This was by far my worse interview --
but, it taught me to better prepared in the future.
But, for some reason the assistant TV producer loved the news story even
though I felt that I had done a poor job and looked a little disheveled. The
producer felt that more people needed to know about my story, so she tried to get the news story on the evening news and national news so that more people could see it, but, it
was turned down.
Later on, I found out that a senior executive had the
story squashed. By this time, I had talked to the producer's mother and
helped her with her diabetes. Now, the producer was even more adamant
about getting my story on the national airwaves. But, eventually someone
pulled her to the side and told her that it wouldn't be good business
for this story to reach the mass public. So, the story died there.
I was really disappointed that my news story never made it out of the Rochester, NY area. But, my daughter gave me the idea to put the story on YouTube. As a result, this news story has reached a few more thousand people, but, not enough people to really have any impact. More diabetics need to know that taking diabetic drugs should not be a life sentence.
During our diabetes workshops, lectures, and
training classes, someone always asks me how I survived a diabetic coma
and defeated my diabetes. I always say the same thing: "I'm alive today
for 3 reasons: (1) God, (2) my mother, and (3) my daughter.
My story of recovery from a diabetic coma, a 1337 blood glucose level, and 4 insulin shots a day was due to a series of accidents or coincidences that I still can't explain.
I spent more than 30 years in Corporate America working in various
fields of engineering, using software, electronics and the latest
technologies to design systems, UIs, and diagnostics and solve very
complex technical problems. But, despite all of my knowledge and
experience, I still can't explain these "accidents" (or "coincidences") without sounding a little bit like a nut case.
However, my mother
didn't believe in accidents or coincidences. She told me: "Son, you
need to stop calling these things accidents or coincidences. They're
not. They're "blessings" from God Almighty."
At the time, I didn't really believe my mother, but, I didn't tell her that because I didn't want to peel myself off the wall. So, I just nodded in agreement with her.
FYI: Here's a link to the web page about my father, my mother, my
mother's brothers (my uncles), my brothers and sisters, and how family
support helped me and shaped my life growing up: http://www.deathtodiabetes.com/Mother.html
The following is a summary of how my mother saw my life unfolding during those dark days of fear, anxiety, doubt, the coma, near amputation, disability, failing eyesight, shooting up with insulin 4-5 times a day, nightmares, cravings, etc. and the "blessings" that changed my life forever.
Note 1: If you don't want to read the following information, you
can watch a video or listen to an audio file of me talking about some of
these events. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ECUOu2rFto
First, I was very
fortunate (okay, blessed) to have survived a diabetic coma with a blood sugar level over
1300! I was taking several medications, including 4 insulin shots,
Coumadin (a blood thinner), and Lipitor (a cholesterol medication).
When the ambulance brought me to the hospital, the head nurse (who was supposed to be on vacation) eventually convinced the
doctors to change my insulin drip and electrolytes because she had seen
my condition before in another patient who died a few months earlier.
My mother called this Blessing No. 1: My mother said that God
guided this nurse to help spare my life. To the surprise of the doctors
and the other nurses, I came out of the coma -- a specific type of
diabetic coma known as a non-ketotic hyperglycemic hyperosmolar coma.
According to the doctors, this type of coma has a 90% mortality rate
when combined with my other health problems: 2 major blood clots, DVT,
pancreatitis, hypertriglyceridemia, and hyperinsulinemia.
Being in Intensive Care was very scary for me. I could hear the doctors
and nurses whispering all the time and coming in every couple hours to
take more blood. I had nightmares that made it difficult for me to
sleep, so I was tired all the time.
But, my mother told me that the nightmares were actually dreams -- that
God was speaking to me through my dreams. I didn't want to disagree with
my mother, but, if you were dreaming about cemeteries and graveyards,
would you call that a dream or a nightmare?
In addition, while in the hospital, I was really confused and afraid
about injecting myself with insulin -- I had a real fear of needles. One
of the nurses helped me overcome my fear; plus, she gave me a free
ticket to a national diabetes seminar about a month later where I met
hundreds of diabetics, doctors, nurses, diabetes educators, other
healthcare people and medical technologists involved in diabetes care.
What I learned at this seminar would have taken me at least 3-4 months
(if not longer) to acquire the same knowledge!
My mother called this Blessing No. 2: I was exposed to the
magnitude of this disease beyond my own personal health problems and
given an education about this disease that, normally, would have
required several months to acquire.
When I got home from the hospital, I was really down and very concerned because I was struggling
with my eyesight. My daughter had bought me a magnifying glass to help
with my reading. Plus, when I got home, I had to magnify my computer screen so that I
could read the text.
The hospital had a home nurse visit my house a couple times a week to
make sure I was injecting myself properly and taking the other
medications, and to answer any questions. These nurses I met during my
recovery were truly amazing (they were a true Godsend and they really
need to be paid a lot more for what they do!)
[Sidebar: I
wrote a letter to the hospital praising these nurses and especially the
head nurse who had postponed her vacation to save my life].
Trying to get around was a struggle. My daughter had to drive me around
because of the problems with my legs. Also, I was on disability
from work at Xerox. One of my managers told me not to worry, to focus on
getting healthy and not worry about work. That was a relief, but, I'm
not sure I ever thanked her for her managerial support.
But, my doctors felt that it wouldn't be too long before I
would be facing problems with my eyes, my kidneys, my legs, and my
heart. They were very concerned about the 2 major blood clots so they
had me take Coumadin, a blood thinner; and, to visit my family doctor at
least once a week.
My life had become a life of drugs, doctors, and more drugs. Plus, I was very tired all the time. All I wanted to do was sleep.
But, everything changed when my sister (Margo) and my mother
flew in (my mother had never been on a plane in her life!). So, I knew things
were serious if my mother got on a plane!
My mother called this Blessing No. 3: Family support -- without
the support of family, I would not be here today. My mother, my daughter
and my sister took care of everything: buying the right groceries,
preparing the meals, taking care of the house, etc.
Almost immediately, my
mother started cleaning out my refrigerator and
cupboards of all of my favorite foods and snacks and made me return to
these foods to the grocery store. My mother didn't care much for what I
was eating on the 1200-calorie diet that the dietitian had put me on.
So, she bought a lot of green foods, such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts,
spinach, cabbage, kale, collards, etc.
Within a matter of
several days, my blood glucose plummeted more than 250 points! -- from
the high 400s to the low 200s! And, as I continued to eat a lot of green
foods and drink some green juices and smoothies, I was able to reduce my insulin and my health just kept
getting better!
My mother called this Blessing No. 4: I learned the real power
of God's super foods. Again, at that time, I didn't really believe my
mother, but I was getting healthier!
Despite the lower blood glucose readings, my endocrinologist told me
that I should return to my original insulin dosage and return to the
dietitian's 1200-calorie diet. He believed that eating all those green
foods would cause a stroke or pulmonary embolism. In fact, he told me:
"DeWayne, you're a man of science -- do you really believe that God is talking to your mother? Your mother doesn't know what's she's doing -- she's going to kill you."
Now, I didn't want to upset my mother, so when I got home, I didn't tell
her what the doctor said. I was afraid she would want to go back and
talk to the doctor. That would have been bad for the doctor ...
Because I felt uneasy about going against the doctor, I decided to
increase my blood glucose testing from 3-4 times a day to 9-10 times a
day. Yeah, I know that was overkill, but, that's what we engineers do
when we're facing a dilemma, a complex problem, that we don't
understand. We increase our testing to collect more data so that we can
do a better analysis and draw some relevant conclusions.
My mother called this Blessing No. 5: My ability to understand numbers. My mother said: "You can thank your father for that blessing."
FYI: When we were growing up, my father would make me and my brother
next me (Fuzzy) do math problems in our head. My father would ask us to
convert a fraction into a decimal; or, convert a decimal into a
fraction; or, multiple two numbers; or, divide two numbers, etc. My
father drilled us every day! By the time I got into junior high school, I
was really good with numbers. My teachers told me that I had a high
math aptitude. That math aptitude helped me get a high score on the
college boards, which led to getting a full scholarship to Penn State,
which led to getting a great job in California in aerospace engineering.
Back to the story: The extra blood glucose testing helped me
tremendously. I was able to quickly correlate the data, the food, the
amount of insulin, etc. and put the information into a set of Excel
spreadsheets, bar charts, line graphs, etc. This gave me a lot of
confidence to begin weaning off the insulin 1-2 units at a time.
After 3.5 months of eating these super foods, I had gone from 60+ units,
4 shots of insulin a day to 0 shots, 0 insulin! I no longer required
any
insulin (or any other diabetic medication) to keep my blood glucose in
the normal range! My family doctor was happy for me. But, my
endocrinologist was
shocked and not happy. He told me that I was going through a "honeymoon"
period
and that eventually my blood glucose levels would return to the high
levels.
So, I waited and waited for the hammer
to fall. I increased my blood glucose testing waiting for my blood
glucose to start going back up. But, after 2 more months, my average
blood glucose was still around 87 mg/dl
and my A1c was around 4.9%. After 6 months, my average blood glucose was
84.3
mg/dl and my A1c was 4.4%.
My endocrinologist said to give it 3 more months.
But, my numbers were still in the normal range after 3 more months. During my next
appointment, my endocrinologist refused to see me. He told the physician
assistant who told me that I was in denial and that I needed to return
to taking insulin.
Luckily for me, my
family doctor was very supportive; and, he told me that as long as my
blood glucose and A1c levels stayed in the normal range that I wouldn't
need the insulin. (I'm not sure, but, I think he may have gotten into a
little bit of trouble with the endocrinologist and the American Medical
Association (AMA)).
My mother called this Blessing No. 6: My health improved dramatically.
Oh, by the way, ironically, because my family was taking care of
everything with the house, this gave me the time and the freedom to
spend on my computer doing research about diabetes. As a result, when I
returned to work and people started asking me a lot of questions about
diabetes, I felt comfortable answering their questions.
Most of my engineering co-workers were surprised that my health had
improved so much and so quickly. Two engineering colleagues who happened
to be diabetic decided to start eating what I had been eating. Within a
month, their blood glucose levels had plummeted to levels they had
never seen before!
My mother called this Blessing No. 7: The health of other people
improved. This was very important because I began to realize that it
wasn't just me! There were other diabetics who were improving their
diabetes! This gave me a lot of confidence because I realized that I
could actually help other diabetics!
One of the secretaries asked
me to share my story with a diabetic support group at a local hospital.
I agreed to do this and I'll never forget all of the excitement that the people in the group demonstrated
during my talk. Later on, I gave another talk to a much larger group of a
couple hundred people in the auditorium of the hospital.
Then,
a local Seventh Day Adventist church asked me to come and speak about
diabetes and my recovery. I was very nervous and wasn't sure what I was
going to say because I had left my speech and my notes on the kitchen
table. I still don't remember what I said, but, the speech must have
gone pretty well, because, afterwards, the congregation was very
emotional with their applause and screaming out a bunch of Amens and
Hallelujahs.
That church told other churches about me and it seems like almost every
week, I was walking into a new church to talk about diabetes and God's
super foods. Not being much of a public speaker, surprisingly, I felt
very comfortable walking into a new church every week to talk to a group
of strangers.
My mother told me that the reason why I felt so comfortable was because of Blessing No. 8:
God had prepared me for this moment in time -- by growing up in the
church, it felt like Home every time I walked into a new church. It got
to the point where I even welcomed the thought of standing up and
speaking to a new congregation every week.
These churches spread my story to even more churches who asked me to come speak either at Sunday services or
Wednesday's Bible Study.
Then, a journalist wrote a story about me and
the next thing I knew my story was in the local newspaper!
My mother called the newspaper story Blessing No. 9: My story had
gone public and spread beyond the immediate community to surrounding
communities. I was getting phone calls and emails from places I had
never heard of.
Then,
the director of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) asked me to
facilitate one of their diabetic support groups. The previous
facilitator had just left for new job. Coincidence? I met hundreds of
diabetics who shared their stories and educated me even more about
diabetes.
By this time, my daughter had been
telling me to write a book about my experience. My mother told me that
God told her that I should write a book. Several of my engineering
friends told me that I should write a book. Even my family doctor told me that I
should write a book! I didn't really want to write a book because it seemed like a
lot of work plus I didn't know how to even get started.
So, I put
together a 1-page folded "pamphlet" that contained my story and a list
of the 10 steps that explained how I recovered so quickly and reversed
my diabetes. I made over 3,000 copies of the pamphlet and handed them
out to anyone who asked for a copy. I sent a couple hundred to my
daughter, who handed them out to her friends and co-workers. I dropped
off copies at the local grocery store, the post office, the lobby of the
building where I worked. Plus, I handed out copies at various church
events, health fairs, etc. This was my way of avoiding having to do a
lot of research and writing the book.
Then,
something happened that changed everything. The ADA director was fired
and the new director didn't want me participating in any of the future
blood glucose screenings and health fairs. He called me into his office
and told me that I was fired. (Although how do you fire a volunteer?)
Anyhow,
I was angry about getting fired. I called my mother and my daughter and told them what
happened. My mother told me that God told her that it was time for me to
move beyond talking to one group -- that I needed to reach more people.
My daughter asked me: "So, dad, are you going to write the book now?" I
was so angry and I said: "Yes, daughter, I'm going to show that ADA
director that he was wrong to fire me."
Ironically,
I'm not sure if I would have ever wrote the book if I hadn't been fired
by the ADA. But, I was angry and frustrated that I couldn't help
people, that I used that anger to fuel me too do the in-depth research
and write the book.
My mother called this Blessing No. 10: Getting fired by the ADA fueled me to move outside of my comfort zone to keep my story on a local level.
Surprisingly, the writing
came easily to me, and within a year, I had written over 2,000 pages of
information about diabetes and other diseases and health conditions
connected to diabetes, like hypertension, high cholesterol, chronic
fatigue, obesity, heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer's. My daughter said:
"Dad, you were supposed to write a book, not a set of encyclopedias!"
My mother called this a Blessing that occurred long ago. She said
God knew the day I was born that He needed to get me trained to learn
how to write and do math when I was a child. And, teachers were brought
into my life to help me learn these things.
I
eventually listened to my daughter and extracted the key
diabetes-related information to end up with the first draft of my book
manuscript. I made about 50 copies of the 400-page manuscript and handed
it out to various people to get their feedback. After several updates of
the manuscript, I started looking for a publisher. But, no one was
interested in a health book written by an engineer.
Luckily
(my mother said there is no such thing as luck), a woman whose husband
was diabetic put me in touch with a small publisher, who published my
book for almost nothing! During that time, I met a graphics artist who designed my
book cover. Then, the small publisher was picked up by Amazon.com; and, the next thing I knew my book was being sold and checks were coming in the mail!
My mother called these events Blessing No. 12: (We lost Blessing No. 11 or somehow I miscounted -- yeah, I know the irony -- an engineer who can't count).
Anyhow, my book was published and would now be available to people all
over the world. Of course, at that time, I didn't see that coming. I
thought that maybe some of my friends and family members would buy the
book and that would be the end of it. I never dreamed in a million years
that total strangers would buy a book written by an engineer!
Then, several months later, someone at work came
into my office and told me that there were reviews about my book on the
Internet. Again, I couldn't believe this! Total strangers were taking
the time to actually write a review about my book and how it helped them
with their diabetes!
A
few months later, a local doctor interviewed me on the radio. Then,
another doctor from New York City and another one from Pittsburgh
interviewed me. And, one of the doctors invited me to speak at a medical
conference, which was videotaped. Then, a couple local news stations
interviewed me on TV.
The first time it happened, it was just plain dumb luck that I ended up
on a local TV news show. I received a phone call around 4:30am from a local
news station asking me to come down to the station for a morning
interview because someone else got sick and couldn't make it. So, I
didn't have to get a haircut or anything plus I was still quite sleepy
and I remember it was raining. This was by far my worse interview --
but, it taught me to better prepared in the future.
My mother called this Blessing No. 13: My story was now on the news!
For some reason the assistant TV producer loved the news story even
though I had done a poor job and looked unprofessional on the air (p.s.
Later, I found out that the producer's mother was diabetic). The
producer tried to get the news story on the national airwaves, but, it
was turned down. Later on, we found out that a senior executive had the
story squashed. By this time, I had talked to the producer's mother and
helped her with her diabetes. Now, the producer was even more adamant
about getting my story on the national airwaves. But, eventually someone
pulled her to the side and told her that it wouldn't be good business
for this story to reach the mass public. So, the story died there.
I was really disappointed, because even though I didn't provide a good
interview, I felt the story was more important than how I looked. I was
willing to deal with the embarrassment if it meant that millions of
people would benefit from the story.
Around that time, my daughter and someone at work told me about a new
website that was just like TV, but it was on the Internet. The website
was set up for people to videotape pranks and jokes that people played
on each other. I declined going on that website because I wanted to be
taken seriously. Somehow, my daughter convinced me that I would be taken
seriously, so I gave in to her and placed one of my videos on this new
website. This new website was
called YouTube. Who knew!
My mother called this Blessing No. 14: My
story was now on this thing called the Internet, which helped me to
"connect" with a lot of strangers. My mother didn't understand the
Internet or how TV could be on the Internet.
But she said: "Son, I don't understand how TV is now on your computer or
how people can write about you in some other town and it appear on the
computer. But, you seem to understand all of this stuff. You see, God
trained you as an engineer so that you would be able to understand these
things and use it to help people with diabetes. God gave you diabetes
at the perfect time in America's history -- when all of this Internet
stuff is coming about."
Quick Sidebar: Interestingly, when I was originally diagnosed with
diabetes back in 2002, there was no YouTube, no Facebook, and no Twitter
...
Back to the story: Again, at that time, I didn't really believe
my mother. You see, my mother made everything seem like God had
something to do with it. For example, I remember growing up, one day,
the newspaper boy forgot to deliver the newspaper to our house. This
made my father very mad, because he liked reading the newspaper before
dinner. My mother said "Melcan, it's not the newspaper boy's fault. God
doesn't want you to read the newspaper today." My father just rolled
his eyes and walked away muttering and cursing under his breath.
Anyhow, back to the story: Because of the
newspaper story, a lot of churches and community groups were asking me
to come speak at a health fair or some other event. I didn't care much
for public speaking -- in fact, I didn't like it at all. Even at work, I
would try to avoid doing presentations if I could. But, I was
comfortable speaking about diabetes in a church setting.
My mother reminded me that the reason why I was comfortable in these
churches was because we grew up in the church. We went to church at
least 3-4 times a week: Sundays 2-3 times (Sunday School, morning church
service, evening service), Wednesdays (Bible Study), and
Fridays/Saturdays (practicing if we were in a play for the holidays).
My mother also reminded me that she convinced the pastor to make me the
church announcer. I had to stand up every Sunday and read the weekly
church announcements and other church-related events to the
congregation. I never really liked doing it, but I felt it was easier to
do this than make my mother angry. (Yeah, you may think my mother was a
nice woman, but, trust me on this: You didn't want to make her angry.
The same goes for my father -- tenfold).
Because of all of these churches and community groups, I became
comfortable speaking publicly about diabetes. As a result, by the time, I
found myself speaking in front of a medical group, healthcare group or
some hostile group of pharmaceutical reps, I was able to handle their
ridicule, and personal attacks on my character.
During this time, my family doctor, who had been very supportive of me
and helping me to safely wean off the insulin, gave me a copy of my
medical report. I asked him why; and, he said: "DeWayne, if you're going
to continue to speak publicly about your recovery, you're going to
eventually need proof when someone in the audience decides to challenger
your story. Some people aren't going to believe that your blood glucose
was over 1300. "
Well, it turned out that my doctor was right! During a lecture at a
church, a doctor stood up during my talk and interrupted me: "Do you
really expect us to believe that your blood glucose was over 1300?
Really? Maybe it was over 300, or even over 600, but over 1300? And,
also, do you really expect us to believe that you no longer require any
insulin or any diabetic drug of any kind? That's preposterous and an
insult to this audience!
The audience was very quiet and on the edge of their seats because they
didn't know what I was going to do. It was very tense ...
But, I said: Sir, if I were you I wouldn't believe me either! In fact, I
lived through this and I don't believe it myself!" The audience
laughed, releasing the tension in the room.
I went to my briefcase and pulled out the copy of my medical report;
and, showed it to the doctor. He looked over the report and said: "Wow, I
apologize! You're telling the truth!" And, the audience applauded as he
sat down.
My mother said this was another Blessing: Having a family doctor who was so supportive of me in so many ways.
Oh, by the way, my family doctor was the first doctor who bought several
copies of my book! I couldn't believe it! -- a medical doctor buying my
book! That really gave me a lot of confidence! Also, he invited me to
his (Hindu) temple, where I met a lot of doctors and engineers. I
"connected" with them because of my formal education and background in
engineering and biochemistry.
Later on, another local doctor bought quite a few books from me (several
times); plus, he invited me to speak to his diabetic patients; and, he
even wrote a book review on Amazon.com for everyone to see!
Around that time, a medical doctor from Pittsburgh interviewed me on his
radio show. About a couple weeks later, here he is talking about me to
one of his listeners:
That same doctor received such a positive response from his listeners
about his interview with me, that he convinced his medical staff to
invite me to speak at a medical conference: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ECUOu2rFto
Here's a "fun" interview with a local radio show host, with me talking about my daughter:
There was a woman, who was the head of a health federation that found
about me from a wellness consultant who saw me speak at a local church
health fair. She asked me to speak to her health group at a local hotel.
I really didn't want to, but, somehow she convinced me ...
Well, as it turns out, my mother was right -- again. Everything
that she said would happen has happened or is happening -- except for
the part about getting on TV. That is going to be a tough one ...
Update!: Well, I finally got on TV! Here's one of the TV interviews on ABC:
During the past few years, I've been on the radio and TV several times! Now, if I can just get on national TV ...
p.s. This not a complete list of my 'blessings". There are other
"blessings" that occurred that I mention in other articles, blog posts and in some of
my audios, videos or lectures.
Why I Put My Program on My Website
After doing a lot of lectures for senior groups, I began meeting a lot of people who couldn't afford to buy my book. I
also met people who had been disappointed after buying several diabetes books
that didn't help them with their diabetes.
So, I decided to put my
diabetes program on my website so that people didn't have to buy my
book. The experts told me over and over that this was business
suicide.
But, I believed this was a great way to get the message out to
more people and get around the pharmaceutical companies who want
to keep us dependent on their drugs.
Here are
some of the web pages that describe my wellness program and how to reverse your
Type 2 diabetes, lose weight, get rid of the belly fat, lower your blood
pressure, lower your cholesterol, etc.
Note: Some of my videos on YouTube also explain my program and diet.
Next Major Challenge: Getting Around the Pharmaceutical Companies
Despite all my good fortune, I haven't been able to get my story beyond the local
news. It appeared that, for some reason, my story was being suppressed
and prevented from going national.
I found out a few years later that because
the pharmaceutical companies somehow "control" the networks, they
wouldn't allow my story to reach the national level. During some
research, I discovered that the pharmaceutical companies were dominating
the commercial airways such that today almost 1 out of every 3
commercials is a drug commercial!
And, the pharmaceutical companies
didn't want the mass public to find out that an engineer had figured out
you could safely wean off insulin and other drugs and not be dependent
on prescription drugs for the rest of your life.
So, this is where I'm going to need help from the mass public (if I can figure out how to reach them).
Since
I can't get my story onto the national news, my daughter gave me the
idea to consider using social media to get around the pharmaceutical
companies and reach the public via the Internet. [Thank you, Daughter! ]
But, I've been told by
experts that this isn't going to work because most people are apathetic
and aren't really really interested in helping the general public with health issues that the doctors are taking care of.
Hmm-mmm
... I heard the same thing when I wrote my book -- that most people
are apathetic and won't buy a book written by an engineer and they won't
change their eating habits because pills are more convenient. Well, if
the
so-called experts were wrong about my book, maybe they're wrong about
using social media to get around the pharmaceutical companies.
And, given how YouTube has helped so much, social medial may be the best
way for me to get around the pharmaceutical companies.
How to Help
So,
how can you help? By simply Liking my Fan Page and sharing some of my Facebook, Twitter and YouTube posts, photos,
comments and videos with your friends.
If just 33% of you share my posts
and videos with your friends and if just 20% of your friends share my
posts and videos within their friends and 10% of them to do the same,
that within a year I could reach close to a million people!
That
means that within a year, more than a million people would know that
Type 2 diabetes can be reversed and defeated. And, if that million
people told another million people, within a few short years, we could
have a serious anti-drug diabetes movement in this country.
Now,
I realize that this may be a little far-fetched and that the
pharmaceutical companies have the power and resources to stop this. But,
should we just give up and not do this just because it's going to be
difficult if not impossible?
If I had followed that same reasoning years ago, I would still be diabetic or, maybe, even dead ...
Would
some of you be willing to share this video with your friends? And, tell
them that the pharmaceutical companies don't want this story to reach
the mass public. But, if they share this video with their friends; and, if
their friends share the video with their friends, we could reach at least a million people within a year!
Each month, I will send out a post about one of my videos or a post
about diabetes, weight loss, nutrition, etc. that you can share with
your friends.
In the meantime, we'll set up
contests and giveaways so that you and your friends will benefit from
helping me get around the pharmaceutical companies and get my story out to more people.
And, please remember: You and your friends don't have to buy my book to
improve your health: Just follow the instructions on my website and
share these instructions with your family, friends and colleagues.
Acknowledgements (From Page iv of my Death to Diabetes book)
I am truly indebted to many people for their encouragement and support:
My mother, my sister Marguerite, and my daughter Cynthia who helped me through my recovery from near-Death (diabetic coma); my mother and my brother Gregory who went to the churches to ask them to pray for me while I was in the coma; my other brothers and sisters; Cynthia’s mother Carole, and her grandfather and grandmother (Mrs. & Mrs. M. Austin).
My doctor, the ambulance team, and the hospital nurses and doctors who never gave up despite my being so close to death.
People from my hometown church who helped us while we were growing up: Uncle Claude, Aunt Vonnie, Ms. Bloodsaw, Ms. Wiley, Ms. Dunnavant, Ms. Ragster, Ms. Malloy, Ms. James, Ms. Saunders, Ms. Brodie, Deacon Daniels, Deacon Ragster, Deacon Wilkins, Deacon Wiley, Pastor Collins . . .
My high school teachers and college professors: Ms. Batten, Ms. Davis, Ms. Jankovich, Mr. Husnick, Mr. Bohach, Mr. Phillips, Mr. John Houlihan . . .
Various friends/associates and people from work who provided their insights and continued to encourage me: Ed B., Larry P., John P., Ray, Marcella, Thomas, Jim, Pam, Daryl, Doug, Art, Joyce, Rick, Linda, Barb, Dave, Javier, John H., Russ, Terrie; Joe N., Bert, Helen, Keith, two of my Xerox managers Ted and Pat, Dr. R. Williams, Dr. Dawn, Ron, Barb F.
People involved with the heart/diabetes associations and the diabetic support groups that I facilitated: Alfreda, Beverly, Duncan, Tamiko, Michael, Helen, Marion, Pat, Christina, Margaret, Alvin, Mary, Rena, Audrey, Eric, Valerie, Ruby, May, Dorothy, Annie, Loretta, Dana.
People from churches, colleges, companies, wellness groups, community organizations, who provided contacts, references, encourage-ment, support, and the opportunity to speak publicly: Sally, Dr. Shirley, Sue S., Dr. Lynn, Sue, Cy, P.J., Juanita, Debbie, Rev. Mackey, Audrey, Bob, Rose; George, Professor Dan, Linda, Nelson, Carol, Elaine, James, Joe, Sarah, Bernard, Dianne, Dorothy, Phantom Chef, Dr. Rita, Dr. Raj, Dr. Samikkannu, Dr. DiPrima, Dr. Bayer, Dr. Kalidas, Nalita, Dr. Moore, Rev. J. Cherry.
People who have helped after the book/DVD were released: Sylvia & Joe Provenza, John & Barbara Smith, Dr. Courtney, Sue & Cy F., PJ E., Tasso S., Charlie Fox, Bill Norwood, Neil & Barb B., Rich S., Mike H.
There are 5 major "dead" foods that fuel the major diseases and health problems, including high blood pressure, obesity, chronic fatigue, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, cancer, arthritis, osteoporosis, and other systemic diseases.
