The rumor has been that diabetes is all about controlling blood sugar. But what if this is where the information was only half right? What if there is something else to avoiding complications of diabetes? There is!

Aging is caused by cells being damaged gradually as we get older. However with diabetes (deficient glucose metabolism) the "gradual" damage becomes accelerated damage due to a deficiency in water-soluble vitamins B and C.

Diabetes is the aftermath of a vitamin deficiency that is the prerequisite to almost every diagnosis of diabetes. What happens when you have diabetes? You pee - A LOT! Why? Because you drink - A LOT! When you pee a lot - you're losing the water soluble vitamins (vitamin B and vitamin C) that the body is flushing fast.

The blood runs everything through the kidneys - like a ‘dishwasher'. The kidneys clean the blood and send it back to nourish the cells of the body. If you cleaned out the vitamin B and vitamin C - your body won't have vitamins handy to do their thing.
The things these vitamins DO are not DONE as well. Vitamin B is responsible for neurological function and glucose metabolism! Vitamin C is responsible for immune regulation. So it's pretty clear why Type 1 diabetes is a problem for kids. Immune dysfunction plus impaired glucose metabolism bake a fine dish of Type 1 diabetes. Type 2 is a bigger issue for older folks - but diabetes doesn't discriminate. It's an equal opportunity annoyance.

A recent study showed that the cost of diabetes drugs nearly doubled from $6 billion to $12.5 billion between the years of 2001 and 2007. An interesting fact behind this increase is that although blood sugar control improved - the complications from diabetes increased. What gives? I thought the old wives tale was if you control blood glucose - you will avoid complications. Perhaps it wasn't an old wives tale - just a tall tale.
Diabetes treatment is a conundrum. More expensive drugs give you a false sense of security and truly expensive medical costs. Here's the puzzling part - did you know that most diabetes complications are not caused by elevated blood sugar but by the toxic byproducts of glucose metabolism?

People with diabetes obviously need a little ‘push' to metabolize glucose. Whether you use insulin or pills - the byproducts of glucose metabolism are toxic and lead to diabetes complications. These toxic byproducts are called advanced glycation end products (AGEs).

Remember that excessive loss of water-soluble vitamins I mentioned before? People with diabetes lose more vitamin B and vitamin C because our kidneys filter them out faster than our bodies can use them. It shouldn't surprise you to learn that vitamin B is really, really important in protecting our cells from the damages caused by AGEs. Don't you feel cheated? I know I did when I learned about it. That's why I'm telling you now - before the stink hits the fan! Tell your doctor to check your plasma (blood) thiamine levels. If he/she gives you the ‘stink eye' - slap them! They're disarming your efforts to protect against diabetes complications if they're not watching your thiamine levels. You watch your blood sugar. You know how bad you'll feel if you don't. Let your doctor watch your blood thiamine levels. In concert - the two of you will harmoniously prevent diabetes complications.