Fats May Damage Nerves
Triglycerides are a known enemy of the heart, but a study has found that these fats in the blood may spell trouble for the nerves, too.
Neuropathy, a complication that affects about 60 percent of people with diabetes, is nerve damage that can have no symptoms or be accompanied by pain, tingling, or loss of sensation. Most experts agree that good blood glucose control is an effective way to avoid neuropathy, but this study suggests that good lipid control could also help.
Researchers measured the density of nerve fibers in 427 people with mild to moderate diabetic neuropathy. These fibers become less dense as neuropathy progresses. After a year, people with the highest triglyceride levels saw the greatest loss of fiber density, according to the researchers. Their findings, reported online, will appear in the July issue of the journal Diabetes.
It is unclear how triglycerides might damage nerves, but regular exercise and a diet low in saturated fats will help get the blood fats down. For people with diabetes, the American Diabetes Association recommends triglyceride levels below 150 mg/dl.
Comments
Low Fat or Low Carbohydrate Diet for Elevated Triglycerides!
The causes of elevated blood triglycerides are many.
One of the most important is hyperinsulinism or resistance to insulin by the body's cells. This allows the familiar build up of glucose in the blood. Since this glucose cannot be utilized for energy because of the resistance to insulin, much of it is stored in the liver as fat, including triglycerides.
Also, the body reacts to insulin resistance by producing more insulin. High blood insulin levels lead to high levels of free fatty acids in the blood.
In addition, the abdominal fat around the middle, so characteristic of those with diabetes, a new term was coined to describe it, diabesity; also produces its own production of fatty acids.
These elevated levels of fatty acids from various sources can overwhelm the liver's ability to handle them and they are converted to triglycerides, no doubt damaging the nerves as you suggest.
My point is that a low carbohydrate diet, supplemented by cinnamon, Banaba leaves and other natural reducers of blood sugar would probably produce better results in lowering triglycerides than a low fat diet, augmented by exercise of course.
For more information, see http://diabetic-test-strips.blogspot.com/2009/05/standard-american-diet-...
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