What you don't know about blood sugar

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According to the current guidelines, a person is a diabetic if fasting blood

glucose levels exceed 126 mg/dL on two consecutive occasions. Fasting glucose

levels over 109 are flagged as potential prediabetic (glucose intolerant)

states. Life Extension has long argued that optimal glucose ranges are less than

100.

 

In a new hypothesis that shakes the pillars of conventional wisdom, it now

appears that optimal fasting blood glucose levels should probably be under 86

mg/dL. This means that those with high " normal " glucose (86-109) are at an

increased risk of premature death. While the medical establishment clearly

understands the lethal dangers of hyperglycemia (blood sugar over 126), they

have yet to recognize that even high normal glucose levels pose a serious threat

to one's health.

 

Conventional Medicine's Interpretation of Fasting Glucose Blood Tests

70-109 mg/dL . . . . . . . . .Normal glucose tolerance

110-125 mg/dL. . . . . . . . Impaired fasting glucose (prediabetes)

126+ mg/dL . . . . . . . . .Probable diabetes

 

Life Extension's

 

Fasting Glucose Guidelines

 

70-85 mg/dL . . . . . . . . . Optimal (no glucose intolerance)

86-99 mg/dL . . . . . . . . . Borderline impaired fasting glucose

100+ mg/dL . . . . . . . . . .Probable prediabetes

 

Why " Normal " Glucose Levels Are Dangerous

To support theirr hypothesis that higher " normal " ranges of blood glucose

represent a health risk, the researchers first investigated the multifaceted

toxic effects that sugar inflicts throughout the body. They found many studies

showing that sugar damages cells via multiple mechanisms and is a causative

factor in common diseases of aging. It thus appears desirable to maintain the

lowest level of blood glucose needed to sustain healthy metabolic function.

 

As people age, their fasting glucose levels normally increase as their health

declines. Standard laboratory reference ranges show an aging person having a

" normal " fasting glucose level of up to 109 mg/dL. Yet the most effective

anti-aging therapy-caloric restriction-lowers glucose levels to the low 70s

(mg/dL).

 

Many theories of aging focus on the deleterious effects of glucose itself. Only

a few studies have evaluated disease risk in people whose fasting blood glucose

levels are in normal ranges.

 

One study of nearly 2,000 men looked at fasting blood glucose levels over a

22-year period. Its startling results showed that men with fasting glucose

levels over 85 mg/dL had a 40% increased risk of death from cardiovascular

disease. The researchers concluded, " fasting blood glucose values in the upper

normal range (appear) to be an important independent predictor of cardiovascular

death in non-diabetic apparently healthy middle-aged men.

 

Where Your Pancreas Thinks Glucose Levels Should Be

The pancreas plays a major role in regulating blood glucose levels by secreting

insulin to transport sugar out of the blood and into cells for energy production

or storage.

 

Insulin also drives fat into cells, prevents fat from being released from cells,

and makes people hungry. High insulin levels contribute to obesity and the

disease states associated with being overweight, such as type II diabetes,

cardiovascular disease, kidney failure, and certain types of cancers.

 

In normal health, the pancreas stops secreting insulin when glucose levels drop

below 83 mg/dL.52-54 As I noted earlier, healthy aging people typically have

fasting glucose levels over 90 mg/dL, and even competent doctors wait until

fasting glucose is over 109 before suspecting a pre-diabetic

(glucose-intolerant) condition.

 

But insulin continues to be secreted when blood glucose levels are over 83

mg/dL, which indicates that the pancreas is striving to drive glucose levels

down to a range safer than what aging people typically are able to achieve.

 

New Glucose Guidelines

Under the new definition, the cut-off point for normal fasting blood glucose

levels was reduced from 109 to 100 mg/dL, meaning that a value of 100 mg/dL or

above would lead to a diagnosis of impaired fasting glucose (or prediabetes).

Studies show that many people who fall in the prediabetic range will develop

diabetes within 10 years.

 

A member of the Association's scientific committee stated that lowering the

fasting glucose threshold to 100 mg/dL should help doctors identify more people

at risk for developing type II diabetes. These people could then be prescribed

an intensive diabetes-prevention program, such as diet and exercise therapy.

 

Now that the American Diabetes Association has joined the Life Extension

Foundation in recommending optimal fasting glucose levels below 100 mg/dL, blood

testing laboratories may change their " standard reference range " to alert more

people who are in a prediabetic state.

 

The problem is that the Life Extension Foundation's new hypothesis indicates

that fasting glucose levels above 85 mg/dL are cause for concern. So even if

blood labs lower their upper limit range to 100 mg/dL, many people will not be

warned that their blood sugar levels are too high.

 

Ways to Lower Blood Glucose

The safest, most effective way to lower blood glucose levels is caloric

restriction. Few people, however, are able to consistently under-eat. Consuming

a lower glycemic index/load diet reduces blood glucose levels somewhat.64-69.

 

Chromium supplements have been shown to reduce blood glucose significantly.70-74

The dose used in human studies ranges from 200 to 1000 mcg of elemental chromium

a day, with best results occurring when 400 mcg or more of chromium is taken

daily.

 

Of interest is an animal study showing that chromium extended mean and maximum

life span.This study surprised gerontologists, as chromium had not been

considered a particularly promising antiaging nutrient. It may have been

chromium's effect in lowering glucose levels that resulted in the significant

prolonging of life span demonstrated in this study.

 

Magnesium, carnitine, alpha lipoic acid, and biotin also can help maintain

glycemic control.76-108 A prescription drug for diabetes called metformin

significantly lowers glucose levels in most people, but not everyone can take

this medication.

 

Nutrients That Have Been Shown to Reduce Fasting Blood

Glucose Levels (primarily in diabetic patients)

 

a.. Alpha Lipoic acid81-94

b.. Biotin98-108

c.. Carnitine95-6

d.. Chromium70-4

e.. Magnesium76-80

f.. Vanadium146-50

g.. Zinc138-45

Regrettably, many aging people will not be able to maintain optimal blood

glucose levels of less than 86 mg/dL. In this situation, protecting the body

from the toxic effects of glucose becomes paramount. Glycation is a pathological

process that occurs when glucose binds to protein molecules, resulting in the

formation of non-functioning structures in the body. Higher blood glucose levels

mean more-damaging glycation reactions.

 

Glycation advances slowly and accompanies every fundamental process of cellular

metabolism. Glycation accelerates aging and neurodegenerative disorders such as

Alzheimer's disease. Fortunately, a nutrient called carnosine confers

significant protection against glycation processes.120-121

 

Higher blood glucose also causes increased oxidative stress. Consumption of

antioxidants has shown beneficial results in type II diabetics.122-150 Based on

the hypothetical definition that blood sugar over 85 mg/dL is too high,

antioxidants may be more important to healthy people than previously thought.

 

A new fat-soluble form of vitamin B1 has demonstrated significant protection

against sugar toxicity at the cellular level. In Europe, this vitamin B1

derivative called benfotiamine is prescribed for those suffering from disorders

related to sugar toxicity, such as peripheral neuropathy. The good news is that

this nutrient has been added to popular supplements already being taken by most

Life Extension members. Consumers can thus help protect themselves against the

lethal dangers of excess sugar (glucose) without having to swallow more capsules

or spend more money.

 

Last Modified : May 12, 2004.

Compiled and edited by Editorial Team and approved by Expert Panel

of DiabetoValens.com