Introduction to
The Ayurveda Solution to Type 2 Diabetes: A Clinically Proven Program to Balance Blood Sugar in 12 Weeks by Jackie Christensen Ph.D. and Pat Crocker
Prameha was the Ayurvedic discovery of diabetes mellitus (T2D) thousands of years ago. Today the prevalence of T2D represents one of the most significant public-health challenges in the 21st century. Current treatment costs for T2D accounts for 7–14% of total healthcare spending across all regions of the globe regardless of income. And by the year 2035, this preventable healthcare burden is projected to affect 592 million people.
These predictions, however, are not predetermined. Identifying root causes for T2D is a priority for healthcare professionals across the world, and Ayurveda, the naturopathic health system founded in India, provides many solutions to the T2D riddle. Ayurveda provides an understanding of the various factors that cause T2D, as well as dietary guidelines, lifestyle choices, and other unique therapies that are highly effective in reducing the prevalence of T2D.
The Ayurvedic perspective on T2D is complex and multifaceted. It includes the disease process, strength of digestion, the presence of toxins, actions of the doshas (energetic forces — I'll explain more about this later), and the current state of the body. All of these factors play an essential role in the development of T2D. Ayurveda views T2D as a metabolic disorder — not one disease, but a syndrome with many interrelated imbalances and comorbidities. Allopathic medicine shares this perspective and has recognized that the multifaceted disease process is unique to each individual, deserving of a personalized approach to maintain and improve healthcare for those with T2D. This concept resonates with the patient-centered approach found in Ayurveda.
T2D is a lifestyle disease due to its strong links to harmful lifestyle practices found in modern society. Research has shown that 80–90% of all cases of T2D could be prevented through a healthy lifestyle, a clean diet, reducing sedentary time and increasing exercise (Ford 169) (Mozaffarian 169). Ayurveda shares this belief and offers a scientifically proven approach to minimize T2D.
The foods and herbs recommended in the Ayurveda diet for T2D work to balance blood glucose, optimize digestion, and reduce the buildup of toxic internal waste. By rediscovering traditional foods, we can reduce our dependency on overly hybridized, genetically modified, chemically-laden foods. And through the introduction of Ayurvedic foods into the Western diet, we can reduce the gap between food and herbal medicine. In addition to diet and lifestyle, Ayurveda includes detoxification— an in-depth purification program that plays a pivotal role in Ayurveda's preventive and curative power for T2D.
This 12-week program includes diet and lifestyle adjustments as well as home detoxification, so you can experience the depth of this nourishing science of life we call Ayurveda. Throughout this program, you will discover your true nature and transform your lifestyle to one that is beneficial and healing for your particular mind/body type.
Ayurveda: What it is and what it can do for you
Personalized medicine is a new concept for modern healthcare. Still, it has been well established in Ayurveda, the functional system of Indian medicine. Ayurveda recognizes that each person has a unique makeup. Just as we are all genetically unique, so are we within our Ayurvedic mind-body type.
Ayurveda describes three dynamic pathophysiological forces, or doshas, which initiate the functions of the mind and body. These three energetic forces are vata, pitta, and kapha. When they are in balance, we feel good. However, when they are out of balance, they disrupt the functions of the body.
Modern medicine emphasizes the structure of the body; Ayurveda, on the other hand, focuses on the energies behind that structure—the doshas. Doshas are the uniting energy among organs and internal parts of the body. They are the active forces that create physiological processes and connect us to our environment. Ayurveda believes that we are a microcosm within a macrocosm. What exists in the external world exists within each of us. Ayurveda conceptualizes that there are five elements within the universe: earth, water, fire, air, and ether. These elements form everything in nature, as well as within the human mind and body.
The Vata Dosha
The vata dosha contains the elements of air and ether. These are the lightest elements. Therefore they impart a light quality on vata. Vata moves like the wind, consistently changing and scattering things around. Vata is responsible for movement and communication, as it carries messages throughout the body. Vata is responsible for the downward flow of energy in the pelvis, responsible for elimination, urination, menstruation, and childbirth. When vata increases in the pelvis, it causes frequent urination— a classic symptom of T2D.
Vata is the current that carries blood and nervous impulses. When vata becomes disrupted in the nervous system, it can cause numbness in the legs and feet, as well as disturbances in blood flow and digestion. In more serious nervous system disorders, vata can create conditions such as diabetic neuropathy. Vata is the upward and outward action responsible for exhaling, coughing, and speaking. Vata controls the movement of food through the digestive system and the inhalation of the breath. Vata's airy and mobile qualities can make a person feel anxious and nervous. Lightness can cause a person to overeat to help ground themselves. Overindulgence is commonly found in T2D, indicating that it could be due to a vata imbalance. At the cellular level, vata regulates the action of molecules, nutrients, and wastes. When vata is in balance, we feel creative, energetic, and full of life. But when vata is out of balance, it can cause many of the classic T2D signs and symptoms.
The Pitta Dosha
The pitta dosha is the only dosha that contains the fire element. Therefore it is primarily associated with heat. The inflammatory side of T2D is a pitta imbalance. Decades ago, researchers identified higher levels of inflammation in people with T2D. Pitta creates these inflammatory chemicals, which are often higher in people with T2D as compared to people without T2D.
Pitta's fire is responsible for breaking down and metabolizing food. Pitta is engaged in hormone production, metabolism, and glucose uptake. Insulin is a pitta hormone. Insulin has many actions, but mainly it controls how the body uses carbohydrates, which are found in most grains, flours, sugar, and starchy vegetables. Grains are broken down by the body to produce a type of sugar called glucose, the primary source of energy used by the body. Insulin acts as a helper for glucose and escorts glucose into muscle cells for energy. Insulin also brings glucose into the liver, where it is stored and used during times of fatigue. Without insulin, cells are unable to use glucose from carbohydrates. Therefore, if pitta is not functioning correctly, insulin will not be able to do its job, and blood glucose levels remain high.
The liver is a pitta organ, and it has a particular job when it comes to glucose. When blood glucose levels are high, the liver responds to the hormone insulin and absorbs glucose. The liver is like a warehouse for excess glucose and releases stored glucose when the body needs it. When the liver is healthy, it can make glucose. Glucose storage is a critical function that keeps people alive when food is scarce. In people with T2D, however, pitta may cause dysfunction, causing the liver to abnormally process and produce glucose. This malfunction contributes to blood glucose issues.
Pitta is responsible for the metabolic conversions in the liver and digestive system, which our bodies use to create energy from carbohydrates. Pitta is also responsible for emotional digestion and helps us process thoughts. When pitta is in balance, it provides power, creates luster in the skin, and maintains body temperature. However, when pitta is out of balance, it can produce inflammation, liver function, insulin production, and digestion of carbohydrates.
The Kapha Dosha
The kapha dosha contains the earth and water elements. The earth element makes kapha the heaviest of the doshas, and the water element provides dampness and lubrication. Kapha is responsible for growth, stability, structure, cohesion, and protection. The kapha dosha forms and maintains body mass, shape, and flexibility in the joints. At the cellular level, kapha engages in the process of converting food into body mass (Sharma 495). Most experts perceive kapha as the primary dosha responsible for T2D. When there is excess kapha in the body, it contributes to body mass. Kapha governs the physical structure of our body and can show up as weight gain, lethargy, and resistance to change. Ayurveda identifies many kapha behaviors and foods as causative factors in the development of T2D. Once the kapha dosha is out of balance, it can affect vata and pitta.
Fat is a kapha tissue but produces the pitta hormones that contribute to the inflammation associated with T2D. As you can see, we need all the doshas to maintain healthy physiological functions. If vata, pitta or kapha are out of balance, it can create a complicated web of symptoms at any point in the disease process.
T2D is complex and multifaceted – unique to every individual and involving many different body systems and organs. The doshas are the underlying energy that causes the body to disfunction. Therefore, it is imperative to address the doshas to correct the imbalance. According to Ayurveda, there are certain lifestyle behaviors and foods that cause the doshas to malfunction and initiate the disease process. Through the Ayurvedic lens, we can investigate our daily routine and dietary habits to discover the root causes of our health problems. A balance among the doshas is essential for every person and the focus within the Ayurvedic tradition to maintain a harmonic constitutional balance. When vata, pitta or kapha become deficient or accumulated, Ayurveda recognizes specific lifestyle, nutritional, and herbal guidelines to assist us in equalizing our constitution. What makes us unique is that we all embrace distinct proportions and particular qualities of the vata, pitta, and kapha combination.
One's mind-body type or constitution is a unique combination of the doshas at conception. A person's constitution determines her individuality and is akin to one's genotype. Experimental analysis of the constitution concept reveals statistically significant connections between an individual's constitution and the expression of specific genes and biochemical attributes (Prasher 48). A person's constitution may include any combination of the doshas, resulting in the unique qualities and defining characteristics we all embrace.
The ratio of doshas varies within each individual, and Ayurveda acknowledges that each person is a unique combination that accounts for our diversity. Most individuals have a dual-type constitution and multiple dominant dosha characteristics. Under certain conditions, one dosha will dominate, and in other circumstances the other dosha prevails. The dosha (or doshas) that are out of balance will determine the type of T2D a person is experiencing. A balance among these life forces is essential for every constitution. The focus within the Ayurvedic tradition is to reestablish the dosha balance and bring a person back to her true nature.
One's constitution is constant, meaning, we have the same constitution for our entire life. However, one's doshas are in dynamic fluctuation. Age, diet, lifestyle, seasons, and circadian rhythms can all cause the doshas to increase and decrease, resulting in a present state that has deviated from our true nature or the constitution with which we were born. The optimal functioning of each dosha is essential for good health. Imbalances or disturbances between doshas constitute a significant amount of diseases. We base Ayurvedic diagnosis and therapeutics on the actions of the doshas. Ayurvedic doctors look for clinical signs and symptoms to determine what dosha is out of balance, then make a diagnosis and provide a treatment plan. Two individuals with the same disease may receive very different therapeutic approaches. The constitution, imbalance, and nuances of disease development in each individual are specific to that person and deserve a treatment plan that is exclusive to that person.
While it is essential to know one's constitution, it is equally important, if not more important, to know one's current state or when we are out of balance. Life is a balancing act. The sooner we can detect when we are out of balance, the easier it will be to bring yourself back into balance. Life is dynamic, always changing. That is why it is essential to check in with yourself periodically, so that you can bring yourself back into equilibrium. Each meal and every day bring a new opportunity to either follow your body's natural cues towards well-being – or ignore the signs and symptoms and fall further out of balance.
When a person is out of balance, the dosha will determine the type and nature of the disease. For example, nervous disorders are an imbalance of vata dosha. Inflammation and conditions associated with heat in the body are an imbalance of pitta dosha (Svoboda 67). Obesity and disorders related to overindulgence are an imbalance of the kapha dosha (Sharma 495). A specific illness manifests when the dosha(s) are out of balance and cause harm to the tissues in the body. Conversely, external factors can also trigger the abnormality of the doshas and weaken the body.
