Diabetes and the kidneys

Anthropologists (scientists who study the origins of humans) tell us that humans were originally “hunters and gatherers”. Then came the ice age, in which vast regions of the earth were covered with ice and the remaining parts of the earth were much colder than normal. This Ice Age, obviously, was not conducive to farming and the availability of lots of plant food. So most of our ancestors, until about 25,000 years ago when the ice began receding to its current position, were meat eaters. Meanwhile, glucose, which only comes from plant food, is the most essential fuel in the human food. The brain, lens of the eye, lungs, and kidneys must have glucose to operate properly. The brain is so dependent on glucose that it does not even need insulin to get glucose into the cells, which is unusual, since nearly all other body cells require insulin and the Glucose Tolerance Factor (GTF) to enable glucose to slip in through the cell membrane.

Back to our ancient ancestors. They consumed very little carbohydrates, and what little they consumed had to be quickly shuttled to the cells for fuel, lest the glucose linger in the bloodstream and cause some damage. People who did not eat much plant food, such as those groups from the colder climates in northern Europe, developed an ability to make glucose from the proteins in our diet (called gluconeogenesis). Glucose is sort of a necessary evil for body cells. If just the right amount of glucose goes straight from the intestinal absorption to the body cells and is burned for fuel, then the person feels great and lives a long and healthy life. If too little glucose is available, then the person feels cranky, depressed, forgetful and listless in the condition called hypoglycemia (low sugar levels in the blood). If an excess of glucose starts accumulating outside of the cell, then “glucotoxicity” begins. Glucotoxicity is a slow but lethal process whereby too much glucose outside of the cells triggers a host of destructive pathways throughout the body.

Once farming began, around 8000 years ago in the Middle East, then our ancestors found the ability to settle down, start cities, and begin the processes of civilization. Then, around 1600 AD, came the refining of wheat in northern Europe. This new technique allowed the wheat miller to strip the outer bran and inner germ from the whole wheat kernel for a fine “Queen’s white” flour. Around 1700 AD, trade ships would run the triangle of taking Africans slaves of the Caribbean, where the ships would pick up cane sugar, molasses, and rum from the southern plantations and bring these products to Europe. Once refined cane sugar was brought to the masses, the health of millions began to deteriorate rapidly. Enter the dawning of the “diseases of civilization”, especially diabetes.

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Tags: diabetes, history