Living with feline diabetes - week two

It is 2 weeks now since Caesar stopped being given Purina One and Whiskas to eat.

He is drinking less water because he now gets his fluids from the food he is eating.

He is still urinating in his dirt tray a bit more than usual as he mostly stays indoors due to the winter weather, but I no longer have to empty his dirt tray every day.

I had a reply to my letter from Purina One during the week.  You may read it here.

I find it amusing that the letter says ‘In the wild cats would naturally ingest plant material contained in the stomachs of their prey’. 

So in the wild, do prey eat processed foods such as soybean meal, whole grain corn, corn gluten meal, brewers rice? 

Tomorrow I have an appointment with Lyn Thomson of Raw Essentials.  You can read about her philosphy here.

I am looking forward to discussing with Lyn how raw food may help to reverse cat diabetes.

From Helen Wenley at Cat Diabetes – How to prevent, reverse and care for your Diabetic Cat 

Experts Say Overprescription is Rampant

articles.mercola.com

Overprescription is going out of control in America as doctors rely on prescription drugs to treat symptoms rather than look for the root causes of...read more at Experts Say Overprescription is Rampant

Be sure to read the above article if you wish to be pro-active with your health.

[Dr Mercola says] One of the surest ways to avoid falling into the drug trap is to simply embrace the fundamentals of good health, such as:

·         Eliminating fructose and most grains

·         Eating unprocessed, high-quality foods, organic if possible, right for your nutritional type. If you haven't reviewed my comprehensive free program please do so when you have a moment.

·         Getting sufficient amounts of sun exposure to optimize your vitamin D levels

·         Consuming enough high quality animal based omega-3 fats

·         Exercising regularly

And I suggest that you also consider adding advanced quality nutritional supplements to the above list to ensure that you are getting all the nutrients that your body needs.

Get your free ebook – Five steps to choosing nutritional supplements

From Helen Wenley @ Healthy Aging Resources

Raw meat ONLY for cats

This article from Raw Essentials explains why cats should eat only raw meat.

Cats prefer their natural diet -

A two-year research project conducted at the Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition in Leicestershire, England indicates that healthy pet cats regulate their nutrient intake to mimic what they would eat in the wild.

http://jeb.biologists.org/cgi/content/full/214/6/1039

Research Proves It: Cats and Carbohydrates Don’t Mix!

Cats are obligate carnivores, meaning they have nutritional requirements that can only be met with a diet based on animal tissue. The macronutrient profile for cats is high in protein and fat, consistent with a meat and bone based diet.

According to study authors:

The carbohydrate ceiling explains many of the intake patterns seen in both dry and wet diet experiments and suggests that cats may only be able to process ingested carbohydrate up to a certain level.

The feline body is specifically designed for a very low carbohydrate diet.

They have no taste receptors for sweet flavours.

Low rates of glucose uptake in the intestine.

No salivary amylase to break down starches

And a reduced capacity of pancreatic amylase and intestinal disaccharidases

 In other words, cats don’t produce the enzymes required to digest carbohydrates. The only carbohydrates felines eat in the wild are pre-digested and are found in the stomachs of prey animals.

Read more here... Cats prefer their natural diet

Multivitamin Supplementation Can Have Positive Effects On Body Weight

New research suggests that obese individuals who use a multivitamin/mineral supplement may experience both a decrease in body weight and improved serum lipid profiles.

Obese individuals are more likely to have lower blood concentrations of most vitamins and minerals.  In a new research published in the International Journal of Obesity, scientists evaluated the effects of multivitamin/mineral supplementation on body fat, energy expenditure, and lipid profiles in obese Chinese women.

Ninety-six obese Chinese women between the ages of 18 and 55 participated in a 26-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled intervention study.  Subjects were divided into three groups, receiving either a multivitamin/mineral supplement (MMS), 162mg of calcium, or placebo daily.  Body weight, BMI, waist circumference, fat mass, lean tissue, resting energy expenditure, blood pressure, fasting plasma glucose and serum insulin, total cholesterol, LDL and HDL cholesterol, and triglycerides were measured at the beginning and end of the study period.

After 26 weeks, the multivitamin/mineral group had significantly lower body weight, BMI, fat mass, total and LDL cholesterol, significantly higher resting energy expenditure and HDL cholesterol than individuals in the placebo group.  They were also more likely to have a reduced waist circumference.  The calcium group also had significantly higher HDL cholesterol and lower LDL cholesterol levels compared with the placebo group.

The results suggest that multivitamin/mineral supplementation could reduce body weight and fatness and improve serum lipid profiles in obese women, possibly through increased energy expenditure and fat oxidation.

Source: 
Li Y et al. Effects of multivitamin and mineral supplementation on adiposity, energy expenditure and lipid profiles in obese Chinese women. 2010. Int J Obes (Lond) 34(6):1070-7.

To benefit your health, you may wish to consider taking advanced quality multi-vitamins, multi-minerals, omega-3 and Vitamin D3 as a base. 

Other options are to add in CoQ10 and grape-seed extract.

Get your free ebook – Five steps to choosing nutritional supplements

From Helen Wenley @ Healthy Aging Resources

Vitamin D Deficiency in Pregnant Women

High prevalence rates of suboptimal vitamin D levels have been observed in women who are not considered ‘at risk’.  A recent Australian study suggested that all pregnant women in Australia should take a daily vitamin D supplement.

Vitamin D deficiency is common in pregnant women and in breastfed infants, despite the widespread use of prenatal vitamins. Adverse health outcomes such as preeclampsia, low birthweight, neonatal hypocalcemia, poor postnatal growth, bone fragility, and increased incidence of autoimmune diseases have been linked to low vitamin D levels during pregnancy and infancy.

A cross-sectional study of pregnant women was performed to determine prevalence and predictive factors of suboptimal vitamin D levels in 2 antenatal clinics in Australia – Campbelltown, NSW and Canberra, ACT.

The researchers found behavioural factors, such as sun exposure, were not as predictive of suboptimal vitamin D levels as ethnicity, season and BMI among pregnant woman.  The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency was 35% in Canberra and 26% in Campbelltown.  Among the vitamin D-deficient women, 38% were Caucasian and all had a BMI of more than 30kg/m2. Vitamin D supplementation at 500 IU/day was inadequate to prevent insufficiency.

The study suggested routine supplementation for all pregnant women with a higher dose of vitamin D (1000 IU/day) regardless of their ethnicity or exposure to the sun.  Targeted screening of the women at highest risk of vitamin D deficiency should also be continued and supplemented if necessary.

Source:
Sumathy Perampalam et al. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology published online 18 May 2011

This is a message we need to give to the young women in our families!  They can help grow healthy adults.

I take 4000iu of Vitamin D daily.  I note that young people that I know do not spend enough time outside in the sun to benefit from getting Vitamin naturally.  Taking supplements is an important option to consider.

To benefit your health, you may wish to consider taking advanced quality multi-vitamins, multi-minerals, omega-3 and Vitamin D3 as a base.  Other options are to add in CoQ10 and grape-seed extract.

Get your free ebook – Five steps to choosing nutritional supplements

From Helen Wenley @ Healthy Aging Resources

A fish-rich diet of the Eskimos' benefits the Heart

Although 70% Alaskan Eskimos are overweight or obese, they did not show the same risk factors for heart disease as the US population.  They also had a lower prevalence of diabetes.  The latest study suggested that an Omega-3 rich diet may offer protection against some of the harmful effects of obesity.

It has been known that Omega-3 fatty acids are associated with favorable, and obesity with unfavorable, concentrations of chronic disease risk biomarkers.
 
In a cross-sectional study, the researchers analyzed data from 330 people living in the Yukon Kuskokwim Delta region of south-west Alaska, who typically consume around 20 times as much omega-3 fats from fish as the average American.  They have similar overweight and obesity levels to those in the US overall but their prevalence of type 2 diabetes is significantly lower, at 3.3% versus 7.7%. 

The researchers examined whether high eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) acid intakes, measured as percentages of total red blood cell (RBC) fatty acids, modify associations of obesity with chronic disease risk biomarkers.
  
The study found that those with the highest levels of the omega-3 fish oils docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid had the lowest triglyceride and C-reactive protein levels.  High RBC EPA and DHA were associated with attenuated dyslipidemia and low-grade systemic inflammation among overweight and obese persons. This may help inform recommendations for Omega-3 fatty acid intakes in the reduction of obesity-related disease risk.

Source:
Z Makhoul et al; European Journal of Clinical Nutrition; advance online publication 23 March 2011; doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2011.39

To further benefit your heart health, you may wish to consider taking advanced quality multi-vitamins, multi-minerals, omega-3 and Vitamin D3 as a base.  Other options are to add in CoQ10 and grape-seed extract.

Get your free ebook – Five steps to choosing nutritional supplements

From Helen Wenley @ Healthy Aging Resources

Living with feline diabetes - week one

Today marks the end of the first week since Caesar was diagnosed with cat diabetes.

So how is he?

Well I have noticed that he is drinking and urinating less.

He is still ravenous and gulps his food.

He is not crying so much (except yesterday evening his incessant meowing did get painful so I ended up shutting him away early).

He has a little more energy.

What is he eating?

Certainly not any dry food.

After extensive reading of numerous canned food labels, I found that Gourmet (Heinz Watties Limited) and Dine (Mars Petcare Australia) were two of the few that stacked up – they do not list any cereals in the ingredient list (which I hope I can trust!).

From Helen Wenley at Cat Diabetes – How to prevent, reverse and care for your Diabetic Cat

Antioxidants For Those Over 65?

Internationally renowned natural health physician and Mercola.com founder, Dr. Joseph Mercola, answers a question about which antioxidants are most...

"Must Have" Antioxidants For Those Over 65?

And if you can afford top quality supplements you may wish to consider taking advanced quality multi-vitamins, multi-minerals, omega-3 and Vitamin D3 as a base.  Other options are to add in CoQ10 and grape-seed extract.

Get your free ebook – Five steps to choosing nutritional supplements

From Helen Wenley @ Healthy Aging Resources

Slow down Bone disease

(Natural News) Decades of research have generated a better understanding of the bone remodelling process, and this improved understanding has paved the way for new mechanism based therapies. One such approach to slow bone degeneration is to prop up the anabolic... Optimize dietary protein to stave off osteoporosis

For bone health information, visit my blog to read Healthy Aging – Prevent and Care for Osteoporisis

Helen Wenley @ Healthy Aging Resources

Reduce the risk of skin cancer

(NaturalNews) Another study has verified the outstanding health benefits of taking vitamin D and calcium, this one showing that the supplements can reduce a womans risk of developing skin cancer by as much as 50 percent. "It looks like there is some...read more at Vitamin D and calcium slashes risk of skin cancer by 50 percent

For Vitamin D information, visit my blog to read Vitamin D does more than just prevent the flu

Helen Wenley @ Healthy Aging Resources

What food is my vet recommending for feline diabetes?

If your veterinarian is recommending that you feed your cat a dry kibble, diabetic diet, perhaps it is time to take matters into your own hands, inform your vet about the dangers of feeding this inappropriate food, and if you must, go your own way for the sake of your companion animal.

Diabetes in our feline population can be blamed almost exclusively on dry commercial pet foods. 

My vet recommended Hills Prescription Diet m/d dry and canned products.  Both products contain cereals. 

The products are ‘designed’ to promote weight-loss, but my cat is not over-weight, he has lost weight!

So why has the vet recommended them?  I really do not understand and will be asking him this at our next check-up.

The dry food  contains Corn Gluten Meal (2^nd ingredient in the list), powdered cellulose, brewers rice, whole grain corn.

The can contains corn starch, powdered cellulose, rice flour.

These ingredients are inappropriate. 

From now on my cat will not be given any food that contains high glycemic ingredients (carbs, cereals, plants) such as those listed above.

http://www.catdiabetes.wordpress.com

"

Pet Food ingredients that cause cat diabetes

Why do pet food manufacturers make processed cat food that contains ingredients that are unhealthy for cats?

“To find a good wet commercial food for any cat, be sure to read the label on the can or pouch.

If you see ingredients like corn flour, corn grits, corn gluten, rice or rice four, potato, sweet potato, carrots or any kind of fruit, don’t feed that food.

Cats do not need cereals, vegetables or fruit.

These ingredients are included because they appeal to the pet food purchaser.

They have nothing whatsoever to do with good feline nutrition.”  Read more: Protocol for Success in Managing Feline Diabetes

WARNING: Purina One and Whiskas may cause feline diabetes!

The products pictured contain high-glycemic cereals.  They are not healthy cat food. 

Always read the labels. 

If you want your cat to live a long and healthy life, do not buy processed cat food that contains cereal, brewers rice, corn gluten meal, soybean meal, whole grain corn, soybean hulls.

http://www.catdiabetes.wordpress.com

My diabetic cat is is starving!

Caesar is shut in the laundry.

He ate up his evening meals of fresh pork in a big hurry.  And then he started asking for more with his incessant crying.

So now he is in his room.

I hope his blood sugar levels are restored to normal very soon because it is very hard being cruel to be kind...

http://www.catdiabetes.wordpress.com

lack of vitamin D linked to muscle injuries | antiagingboomer.com

(NaturalNews) Over the past few years, researchers have come up with a mountain of evidence that vitamin D is extremely important to maintaining health and preventing and even treating a host of health problems. For example, studies have shown that too (read more... Vitamin D discoveries keep growing -- lack of vitamin D linked to muscle injuries and Alzheimer's disease)

Mike Adams recently interviewed the Executive Director of the Vitamin D Council, Dr. John Cannell, MD, in order to obtain more information about the nutrient which has been gaining ground as a proven necessity for cancer protection, good overall health, and a strong immune system.  Listen to Interview with Dr. John Cannell on benefits of vitamin D

I take 4000iu of Vitamin D3 daily plus spend time in the sun. This vitamin is an important addition to a good nutritional program that consists of high quality multi’s and omega-3.

Read more about Vitamin D3 - Vitamin D does more than just prevent the flu

Meditation supports brain health | antiagingboomer.com

(NaturalNews) Getting older means you will not be as mentally sharp and, in fact, your brain will shrink. It's just the way life is and there's nothing you can do about it, right? Wrong. Now it appears we can take control of brain changes and even make...Read more: Meditation halts age-related degeneration throughout entire brain

This a strong case that meditation ensures your brain stays healthy as you age, and if you are keen to do more than I suggest that you also eat a healthy diet with lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, get moderate exercise and take time out for fun. Meditation will help to decrease your stress levels which will place less strain on your heart and reduce your risk of cancer.

I also strongly suggest that advanced quality nutritional supplements are added to your list.  We do need to take good quality multi’s along with omega-3 and Vitamin D3 as a base.  Each person has different requirements. To find out more visit Healthy Aging Resources.

Grow your own food | antiagingboomer.com

One of the many ways to stay healthy is to eat fresh fruit and veggies. 

And to be sure they are really fresh, there is nothing like home-grown!

My husband is the vegetable gardener and we also make our own compost from food scraps.

Recently I was told about a new hungry bin - a fast and convenient way to compost your food scraps.

The  Hungry Bin is only available in New Zealand (at present).

Brought to you by Healthy Aging Resources

Healthy relationships for a healthy life | antiagingboomer.com

If you are looking to get more out of your own relationships, then I recommend the following book...

Building healthy relationships and healthy family relationships

www.reclaim-your-life.com

Discover the secrets of building healthy relationships so you can experience the freedom of a healthy relationship and have healthy family relationships.

how to keep blood pressure under control | antiagingboomer.com

[by KC Community News] Many Americans tend to develop high blood pressure as they get older, but this is not a part of healthy aging. Others at risk for developing high blood pressure are the overweight, those with a family history of high blood pressure, and those with ...read more here Learning about blood pressure and how to keep it under control

To learn about which nutritional supplements help to support healthy blood pressure, visit Healthy Aging – natural therapy for healthy blood pressure 

Vitamin E may reduce risk of motor neurone disease | antiagingboomer.com

Long-term use of vitamin E supplements may be associated with a reduced risk of the motor neurone disease ALS, according to new research.

Read more here... Vitamin E may reduce risk of motor neurone disease

www.nutraingredients.com

I take 400iu of broad spectrum of Vitamin E daily. 

Along with a healthy diet, exercise and advanced quality multi-vitamins and minerals, I believe that I am doing my best to protect my health.

Do you need help choosing supplements? I have written a free eBook – ‘Five Steps to Choosing Nutritional Supplements’ to help you decide what you need to take. 

 

Wishing you a long, healthy and fulfilling life. 

Helen Wenley 

Gene technique to stretch diseased arteries | antiagingboomer.com

The following  article in today’s NZ Herald (Gene technique to stretch diseased arteries gives hope for heart health), talks about people losing elastin  and the ‘stretchiness’ of their arteries as they age.

There is an easy way to prevent losing both – getting an optimal amount of Vitamin C from fruits, vegetables and to supplement with optimal amounts of Vitamin C,  and to take optimal amounts of omega-3 oils, along with advanced quality multi-vitamin and multi-mineral nutritional supplements.  Exercise is vital  to ‘clear the cobwebs’ and to keep the blood pumping around our body.

I have written a free eBook – ‘Five Steps to Choosing Nutritional Supplements’ to help you decide what you need to take. 

Wishing you a long, healthy and fulfilling life.

Helen Wenley

Do Statins Actually Harm Heart Function? | antiagingboomer.com

{articles.mercola.com}

New study found that statins or cholesterol-lowering drugs may negatively affect your myocardial or heart muscle function.

Read more... New Study Shows Using Statins Actually Harms Heart Function

Discover why eating sugar (and high glycemic foods/drinks) endangers your heart and overall health. This is an eye opening one hour presentation by Dr. David Diamond, Ph.D., of the University of South Florida College of Arts and Sciences titled: “How Bad Science and Big Business Created the Obesity Epidemic”  Dr Diamond was diagnosed with heart disease in 2005 – high cholesterol included.  Find out why he is still alive….How Bad Science and Big Business Created the Obesity Epidemic

My husband stopped taking statin drugs due the side-effects he was experiencing. 

We all need to do due diligence when our doctor tells us to take statins. 

Many of us are able to change our cholesterol levels by changing our diet,  doing more exercise and taking good quality nutritional supplements.

I have written a free eBook – ‘Five Steps to Choosing Nutritional Supplements’ to help you decide what you need to take. 

Wishing you a long, healthy and fulfilling life.

Helen Wenley

Olive oil consumption lowers stroke risk by 40% | antiagingboomer.com

[Natural news] Critical research released in the industry publication journal Neurology from the American Academy of Neurology provides evidence that regular consumption of olive oil can help lower the risk of stroke. The study examined individuals...Read more Regular olive oil consumption lowers stroke risk by forty percent

What is the cause of strokes?

According to Doctor Ray Strand: Inflammation in the arteries are brought about by excessive free radicals produced by high blood pressure, diabetes, cigarette smoke, hyperinsulinemia (elevated insulin levels in the blood), fatty meals, and possibly some infectious agents (usually bacteria from gum disease). All of these conditions can either be eliminated or significantly reduced through lifestyle changes and nutritional supplements. 

Homocysteine In a 1995 issue of JAMA, Boushey reviewed 27 previous clinical trials, which all showed even mildly elevated levels of homocysteine significantly increased the risk of vascular disease. He concluded that between 10 and 15% of every heart attack and stroke in this country was directly related to elevated homocysteine levels. In other words 150,000 to 225,000 heart attacks each and every year are solely related to elevated homocysteine levels. In order for homocysteine levels to remain in a safe range, you must have adequate levels of folic acid, vitamin B6, and vitamin B12. Elevated homocysteine levels in our blood are primarily the result of a nutritional deficiency of folic acid, vitamin B12, and vitamin B6. When these nutrients are given in supplementation for just pennies a day, our homocysteine levels will fall back into a safe range the majority of the time.

I have written a free eBook – ‘Five Steps to Choosing Nutritional Supplements’ to help you decide what you need to take. 

Wishing you a long, healthy and fulfilling life.

Helen Wenley

Vitamin D3 may protect against radiation | antiagingboomer.com

[Dr Mercola] If you're looking for strategies to help prevent damage caused by radioactive fallout from the recent nuclear disaster in Japan, researchers noted in the International Journal of Low Radiation that the most active molecular form of vitamin D -- D3 (also known as calcitriol) -- may offer protection against a variety of radiation-induced damages, including those caused by background radiation or a low-level nuclear incident, through the following mechanisms:

·         Cell cycle regulation and proliferation

·         Cellular differentiation and communication

·         Programmed Cell Death (PCD)

·         Anti-angiogenesis (a process that stops tumors from making new blood vessels, which means they stop growing)

The protective mechanisms are so strong that researchers suggested vitamin D3 should be considered among the prime (if not the primary) non-pharmacological agents to protect against sub-lethal low radiation damage and, particularly, radiation-induced cancer.

Researchers have found that daily intakes of vitamin D by adults in the range of 4,000-8,000 IU so your blood levels are in therapeutic range are needed to maintain blood levels of vitamin D metabolites in the range needed to reduce the risk of breast and colon cancers by about half. You can find out more about how to use vitamin D therapeutically to reduce radiation damage here.

Read more: Dairy farmers fight radiation with Boron

Further reading: Vitamin D for flu and disease prevention

Weight loss and exercise | antiagingboomer.com

Weight Loss and Exercise – what is the best exercise for weight loss?
Questions Answered by Dr. John Demartini

When we restrict calories on a weight loss regime, it is possible to become deficient in nutrients. 

Which is why it is even more important to take advanced quality nutritional supplements.

But how do we choose which supplements we need to take?

Find out – get your free e-book ‘5 steps to choosing nutritional supplements’

Heart attack alerts |antiagingboomer.com

What are the 5 Surprising Signs of an Unhealthy Heart?

What can you do protect your heart? Omega-3 protects the heart