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Hi. My name is Michael D'Amico. I am not a doctor. I was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in April of 2007. I was surprised I would have this problem since I am an occasional runner. Frustrated that I couldn't lose weight despite all my exercise, I decided reluctantly to give this a try. After leaving the doctor's office, I had 3 choices, take drugs, lose limbs and my precious eyesight, or lose weight . At the time it seemed almost impossible, but I decided to lose weight.
I grew up in an Italian household we all ate a lot of pasta. It was spaghetti every Sunday, a family tradition. We would have pepperoni and meatballs, but no Ragu or spaghetti sauce out of a can. Growing up, the evil food was considered hamburgers and not pasta and breads . My problem was not just the food that I ate. My doctor pointed out that I did spend a lot of time on the computer at work and at home. My sugar was 210. My doctor said It should be in a range from 100 to 110. He then gave me a One Touch monitor and I was told to test daily. I hated that I would have to prick my fingers everyday. I was shocked to see how much the test strips were. I also had a terrible time the first day acquiring enough blood on those test strips.
I am much better at pricking my fingers because the way to do it is to do the thumb at the top. Make a fist and passably push the thumb
skin at the top and than prick it. I decided to stop the non whole wheat pasta and breads .
No longer would I be able to enjoy ice cream and full plates of pasta at a restaurant. I resented restaurants that would give you free bread that I could not have. I than saw someone on TV who lost part of his legs due to diabetes. I was told diabetes could lead to stroke and could do harm to the arteries behind the eyes. There were others who ate worse than I. Why was I being singled out with this problem.
Worried about the future, I began to change my eating habits. I talked to Marion the owner of Natural Remi-Teas and she recommended the Chia Acai Energy Bar and Chia Seeds. The Chia Acai Energy Bar has 41 grams of carbohydrates. I asked a diabetic nutritionist and she said because there was 6 grams of protein, the protein would bring the effective carbohydrates down to 15 grams. If you are lacking energy, the general rule of thumb is to have 15 grams of carbohydrates. So this was okay for my diet and it would also be convenient for a quick breakfast or snack. Chia seeds are known for slowing down the metaboization of carbohydrates to sugar. Since I am a diabetic and I don't have the greatest pancreas this was necessary. Go to other websites and research them. People think I am nuts when I first mention chia. Than they do research on it, and I am not so crazy. Dr. Oz, Dr. Weil, Dr. Roizen of the Cleveland Clinic, and even Oprah have said good things about them.
Since I was serious about getting my sugar levels down and losing weight, I began to exercise 3-4 days a week. I also would have the Chia Acai Bar for breakfast. After 2 months, my sugar went down to 145.There was something that I did that would bring my sugar down much better than anything else. One day it dropped 10 points, another day it dropped 16 points. Before I tell you what I did, I realize everyone is different with different favorite diets and different exercise routines.
Chia seeds that can be mixed with any drink and poured on foods like birthday cake or yogurt that slows down the metabolization of carbohydrates to sugar. When I had a 5k or 5 mile race, I would take a couple ounces of chia seeds and I would be full at the end of the race. I would watch everyone else partake in the bagels, bananas after the race. I felt full, so I had no desire to eat even though I had not eaten any foods, prior to the race or athletic event .
Before a race, I would take 3 ounces of chia seeds. One day, I did an intense workout for about 1/2 hour . I ate a diabetic healthy breakfast and lunch. Dinner was 3 ounces of Chia seeds and a 1/2 hour workout brought my sugar down from 125 to 115. Doing the same routine, but a 1 hour workout brought my sugar down from 122 to 106.
Update - July 2009
On a typical day since I have an office job, I walk only .259 miles and my pedometer tells me I only burn 863 calories. I use chia seeds every day and exercise at least every other day and have been able to manage by diabetes naturally. It is very important for me to exercise after I eat because it takes 8-16 hours for food to exit the colon. My goal is to use up the calories by the time I get up in the morning to test.
Update - June 2010
I am glad that I decided to test my sugar levels. I have kept the weight off from 3 years ago and that is mostly due to testing my sugar on a regular basis. I recently ran the Cleveland Marathon in May and I learned my insurance company that it takes 24-48 hours to digest meat. I don't worry when I go see the doctor and I don't have abnormal eye problems because I took the glycoma eye test.
Michael D'Amico is a type 2 diabetic, diagnosed in 2007, who chooses to control his sugar naturally. He is also a runner and has used chia everyday for the last 8 years. He currently is an internet marketer for Natural Remi-Teas and is training for his first triathlon in July of 2010.
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