In the 21st century, Type II diabetes has become a raging epidemic. And I place much of the blame on all the misguided dietary advice doled out by so-called government “experts.”
I mean, they told us for decades to cut out foods that SUPPORT healthy blood sugar control—like full-fat dairy, meats, and seafood—and replace them with ultra-processed, low-fat, high-carb foods that we now know CAUSE blood sugar problems!
Fortunately, there IS a way to fix this mess…even if you already have Type II diabetes!
All it takes is two simple steps: Ditch the misguided dietary advice. And consider adding one powerful, natural botanical to your regimen.
Of course, the first step is relatively simple. And as a reader of mine, you already know that I discuss it often.
As for the second—well, in a recent study, people with newly diagnosed Type II diabetes who took THIS botanical extract significantly improved their blood sugar control in just 12 weeks…
Natural remedies that work for one condition, often work for another
I told you about berberine about 10 years ago—during our first year of publishing the Daily Dispatch (and Insiders’ Cures, my monthly newsletter).
Back then, I suggested taking it to help ward off Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and dementia. Because, at that time, it already had a huge reputation in the scientific world as a brain health powerhouse. (I even included it in my Complete Alzheimer’s Fighting Protocol—an online learning tool that outlines a comprehensive plan to help protect and restore brain health and memory.)
Well—when a botanical remedy helps with one aspect of your health, it also tends to help with many other aspects as well.
Such is the case with berberine!
In fact, as I mentioned above, some very promising research shows this time-tested brain powerhouse can ALSO help balance blood sugar and manage Type II diabetes…
Berberine improves long-term blood sugar control in just 12 weeks!
For this new study, researchers recruited 400 people who were recently diagnosed with Type II diabetes and who had not yet been prescribed drug treatments.
They placed the participants into one of four study groups:
1.) Berberine + probiotics
2.) Berberine + placebo
3.) Probiotics + placebo
4.) All placebo
The participants in the berberine groups took 600 mg of it twice a day before meals. And the participants in the probiotic groups took 4,000 mg of them at bedtime.
The probiotic pill contained six strains of probiotics, including Lactobacillus, Lactococcus, and Bifidobacterium. (Of course, these are just a few of the probiotics you get by eating yogurt or other fermented foods.)
Well, it turns out, after 12 weeks, both berberine groups experienced a reduction in glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) of about 1 percent…bringing it down to 6.7 percent, on average.
(HbA1c is the long-term measure of blood sugar control. And the target HbA1c level for people with diabetes is usually less than 7 or 7.5 percent! Meaning these participants achieved this impressive level of blood sugar control…without ever using drugs! They also experienced reductions in fasting blood sugar and triglycerides [blood fats], too.)
Now, here’s where things really got interesting…
Berberine also affected the microbiome
After 12 weeks, the berberine groups also experienced changes in their gastrointestinal (GI) microbiome. And the changes were a lot like those that occur when a person with Type II diabetes takes the drug metformin.
Metformin is an older Type II diabetes drug derived from an ancient European folk remedy called French lilac. And it goes to work right in the GI tract, before sugar floods into your bloodstream. (This mechanism appears to explain why it’s so safe and effective compared to other drugs for diabetes. However, as I often report, it does interfere with your absorption of vitamin B.)
The study’s researchers noted that GI microbiome dysfunction may play a role in increasing the risk, progression, and severity of Type II diabetes. They also think it plays a role in chronic inflammation, insulin resistance, and obesity (all of which are interrelated). And, in my view, these conclusions make the positive effects of berberine on the GI microbiome even more exciting.
Lastly, before I go, let me touch on one more important part of the study…
Both berberine groups showed the same benefits to blood sugar and the microbiome—with or without a probiotic pill.
In other words, this study confirms my advice to skip the useless (and potentially dangerous) probiotic pills. Instead—just strive to follow a healthy, balanced Mediterranean diet.
In fact, the researchers themselves acknowledged that the Mediterranean diet supports the GI microbiome, balances blood sugar, and improves insulin resistance all on its own…without probiotics.
Of course, this traditional diet includes important probiotic and prebiotic foods—such as full-fat yogurts and cheeses—which naturally nourish your microbiome. But mainstream “experts” often neglect to tell you about this part of the diet, because it doesn’t fit with their anti-dairy, anti-fat dietary mythology.
In the end, as always, I encourage everyone to follow a healthy, balanced Mediterranean-type diet—which includes plenty of full-fat dairy, grass-fed and -finished meats, seafood and fish, nuts and seeds, and fresh produce. And if you have blood sugar problems, you may want to consider adding berberine to your regime, in consultation with your doctor. I often recommend 500 mg per day. Plus, new research shows berberine has even more amazing benefits, as I will address in an upcoming Daily Dispatch.
Source:
“Gut microbiome-related effects of berberine and probiotics on type 2 diabetes (the PREMOTE study).” Nat Commun 2020 Oct 6;11(1):5015. doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-18414-8.