5 Diet Keys For Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency
Gas, bloating, and stomach pain are among the common complaints of people with exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, a breakdown in pancreatic function resulting in a lack of the digestive enzymes needed to properly digest food. As with many other digestive problems, your diet can either help or hurt you. Although there’s no one-size-fits-all diet for pancreatic insufficiency — you may need to make up for specific vitamin deficiencies, for instance — there are basic diet tips that can help ease the discomfort. Keys to a Pancreatic Insufficiency Diet Christine Gerbstadt, MD, RD, a spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and author of Doctor’s Detox Diet: The Ultimate Weight Loss Prescription,says that a diet tailored to your specific needs is the best way to manage symptoms and ensure you’re getting proper nutrition. As a result, it’s important to talk to your doctor about the best pancreatic insufficiency diet for you. Diet recommendations may be different depending on what’s causing your condition or if you’re severely malnourished. But generally, these five strategies can help ease the symptoms and pain of exocrine pancreatic insufficiency in most people: 1. Get plenty of fluids. Proper hydration is an important dietary key, Dr. Gerbstadt says. She explains that dehydration puts severe stress on the body and can contribute to symptoms of pancreatic insufficiency. “Hydration is best for prevention and treatment and usually considered the first step before all others,” she says. An easy rule to remember is to drink eight 8-ounce glasses of fluid a day, which can include water, tea, coffee, and even soup broth, because all liquids count toward the daily total. Check with your doctor for more details. 2. Try a low-fat diet. Eating less fat Continue reading >>
14 Natural Ways To Improve Your Insulin Sensitivity
Insulin is an essential hormone that controls your blood sugar levels. It's made in your pancreas and helps move sugar from your blood into your cells for storage. When cells are insulin resistant, they can't use insulin effectively, leaving your blood sugar high. When your pancreas senses high blood sugar, it makes more insulin to overcome the resistance and reduce your blood sugar. Over time, this can deplete the pancreas of insulin-producing cells, which is common in type 2 diabetes. Also, prolonged high blood sugar can damage nerves and organs. You're most at risk of insulin resistance if you have prediabetes or a family history of type 2 diabetes, as well as if you are overweight or obese. Insulin sensitivity refers to how responsive your cells are to insulin. Improving it can help you reduce insulin resistance and the risk of many diseases, including diabetes. Here are 14 natural, science-backed ways to boost your insulin sensitivity. A good night's sleep is important for your health. In contrast, a lack of sleep can be harmful and increase your risk of infections, heart disease and type 2 diabetes (1, 2). Several studies have also linked poor sleep to reduced insulin sensitivity (3, 4). For example, one study in nine healthy volunteers found that getting just four hours of sleep in one night reduced insulin sensitivity and the ability to regulate blood sugar, compared to getting eight and a half hours of sleep (4). Fortunately, catching up on lost sleep can reverse the effects of poor sleep on insulin resistance (5). A lack of sleep can harm your health and may increase insulin resistance. Making up for lost sleep may help reverse its effects. Regular exercise is one of the best ways to increase insulin sensitivity. It helps move sugar into the muscles for storag Continue reading >>
How To Strengthen Your Pancreas, Improve Digestion And Lower Blood Sugar All By Yourself
How To Strengthen Your Pancreas, Improve Digestion and Lower Blood Sugar All By Yourself Why strengthen your pancreas? Because it produces hormones vital to your ability to digest food and assimilate carbs and fats. Moreover, about 74% of us have problems with digestion and gut health, and nearly 40% experience damaging elevated blood sugar. How about you? ABOUT A month ago I wrote about one of the most important organs in our endocrine system, the adrenals. In that article , I showed readers how they can heal their adrenals. According to Adrenal experts Dr. Michael Lam and Dr. Josh Axe , 50 to 80% of the U.S. population have adrenal issues, which is precisely why I wrote about it adrenal fatigue affects a lot of people and there are specific things you can do to heal them. Today, its time to take a look at another very important endocrine organ, the pancreas. If your pancreas is not healthy, you could be experiencing a host of unsavory health issues that may be categorized into two buckets: digestion and blood sugar, both of which become compromised as we age. What the pancreas does and why its so important; How the pancreas affects digestion and gut health; How the pancreas affects insulin and blood sugar; What are the symptoms of a compromised pancreas; and What tests to take, food to eat and supplements to use. Lets first describe the pancreas, then get into the pancreas role in digestion, and finally turn to how it doles out insulin to handle blood sugar that our carbohydrate-dominate diets amp up to unsustainable and unhealthy levels. Your pancreas is a flat, oblong organ about six inches long thats located deep in the upper left-center region of the abdomen, surrounded by the stomach, liver, spleen, gallbladder and small intestine. As an Exocrine, it produces an Continue reading >>
Help For Symptoms Of Pancreas Problems And Promoting Pancreas Health
Select a Topic What is the Pancreas? The pancreas is a large organ approximately six inches long and is a key part of the digestive and endocrine systems. It is located deep within the upper abdomen, surrounded by the stomach, small intestine, liver and spleen. This organ is shaped like a pear, broad at one end and narrow at the other end. It is divided in three sections – the broad end of the pancreas is called the head, the midsection is called the body and the narrow end is called the tail. If pancreas health is compromised a number of serious disorders can occur within the body. Functions of the Pancreas The first function belongs to the exocrine pancreas. The pancreas produces digestive juices and enzymes to help digest fats and proteins. When food has been partially digested by the stomach, it is pushed into the duodenum (the first part of the small intestine). Secreting its enzymes into the duodenum helps to prevent the protein-digesting enzyme known as trypsin from eating the protein-based pancreas or its duct. Pancreatic digestive juices and enzymes are released through a small duct attached to the duodenum to mix with the food. The exocrine pancreas also produces enzymes that break down carbohydrates (amylase) and fats (lipase) as well as sodium bicarbonate which helps to neutralize the stomach acids in food. The second function belongs to the endocrine pancreas. The pancreas produces the hormone insulin together with a variety of other hormones. Insulin helps to control the body’s blood sugar (glucose) levels. It is produced by small groups of pancreatic cells called the Islets of Langerhans, which are also known as the "islet cells" Insulin is secreted when your blood sugar is raised and it causes the muscles and other bodily tissues to take up glucose f Continue reading >>
Pancreas, Signs Of Poor Function, And Treatments
Source: Patient information: Chronic Pancreatitis Symptoms of Poor Pancreatic Function Symptoms of poor pancreatic function (pancreatic insufficiency) do not occur until about 90% of pancreatic function has been lost. The pancreas normally contributes to the digestion of different types of food, the absorption of food breakdown products from the digestive tract, and the metabolism of blood glucose (blood sugar). Symptoms of poor pancreatic function may include symptoms associated with fat malabsorption; significant fat malabsorption results in steatorrhea, (the presence of excess fat in the stools, usually caused by a disease of the pancreas or intestine, and characterized by chronic diarrhea and weight loss), resulting in loose, greasy, foul-smelling stools that are difficult to flush. Symptoms of poor pancreatic function may also include glucose intolerance (high blood glucose after consuming sugar and carbohydrates) and diabetes. If pancreatic function is severely affected, a person may also experience symptoms of vitamin and nutrient deficiencies, including weight loss. Carbs Are The Primary Cause of High Triglycerides Source Note: Extremely high triglycerides may result in side effects like pancreatitis. Triglycerides are the chemical form of fat found in foods and in your body. [That doesn’t mean your body makes triglycerides from dietary fats or fatty foods.] When you eat a meal, any unused calories are converted to triglycerides and stored in your fat cells (some triglycerides are also present in your blood stream). Later, they will be released to meet the energy needs of your body. You’ve likely heard of triglycerides before, as there has been intense research over the past 40 years that confirmed that elevated blood levels of triglycerides, known as hypert Continue reading >>
8 Foods That Your Pancreas Will Surely Love
If you have never experienced pancreatic pain, you may not even know exactly what the organ is or its importance in your body. The pancreas is part of the digestive system and lies in the abdominal cavity behind the stomach. Your pancreas is responsible for producing many important hormones like insulin, polypeptides, somatostatin, and glucagon. The pancreas is spongy and produces the enzymes that break down food–different ones for different foods. Pancreatitis is inflammation of the pancreas that results in severe pain, fever, and diarrhea. Health of this organ is vital for overall health. There are many foods that can help protect your pancreas–eight of the most popular follow. 1. Garlic Garlic is an allium species vegetable; other members of this family include leeks, shallots, onions, chives, and fenugreek. These foods contain sulfur, arginine, selenium, oligosaccharides, and flavonoids that have been shown to prevent pancreatic cancer.[1] 2. Spinach Spinach is an excellent choice for a healthy pancreas. A study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute showed a diet that includes spinach and other vegetables provides protective agents against pancreatic cancer.[2] 3. Probiotic Yogurt According to the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, probiotics can be beneficial in maintaining a healthy balance of good bacteria in the body.[3] Yogurt contains active cultures that can help ease digestion, protect the digestive system, and may help reduce the risk of certain health issues. 4. Cherries Cherries are a naturally rich source of antioxidants and perillyl alcohol, which is a compound proven to help prevent pancreatic cancer. When purchasing cherries, you should go organic when possible, in order to avoid being exposed to pest Continue reading >>
Breaking News – Your Pancreas Can Regenerate Itself!
Diabetes is beatable. But don’t wait around for doctors to tell you how. The bottom line is that current medical treatments for diabetes do not reverse or control the disease. To do that, you have to approach it naturally. In diabetes, it’s the beta cells of the pancreas that are in low numbers. The beta cells are important because they make insulin. Degeneration of the beta cells is the main cause of type I diabetes. Exclusive Bonus: Download the 3-point checklist which shows you EXACTLY how to regenerate your beta cells naturally using this scientifically-proven method. Over 2000 medical studies have reported on the topic of pancreas regeneration. Yet you probably haven’t heard about them on television or radio. This may be for several reasons. But the main reason could be that pancreas regeneration is most effectively achieved by herbs, not medical procedures. Much stem cell research has focused on the transplantation of mesenchymal stem cells to diabetic animals to see what happens. These studies all show the same thing: a significant reduction in blood glucose level, plus regeneration of the pancreas cells. The regeneration is determined by seeing an increase in the total number of islet cells and insulin-producing cells of the pancreas. That’s all well and good. But finding donors of pancreas cells is still quite difficult. Everyone needs their pancreas for their own health and no one wants to donate it. Embryonic stem cells, a potential source of new pancreatic cells, are big in the news right now with the latest Planned Parenthood scam of selling aborted baby parts for research. So their source is quite ethically questionable. Delta-cells in the Pancreas Researchers at the University of Geneva in Switzerland revealed a mechanism by which other cells in t Continue reading >>
Vitamin D May Improve Pancreas Function
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Vitamin D supplements reduced risk factors for type 2 diabetes by improving the function of insulin-producing cells in pre-diabetic volunteers, a new study has found. The results...suggest that vitamin D supplementation may help to improve the main defect in type 2 diabetes, co-author Dr. Anastassios Pittas, an endocrinologist at Tufts University Medical Center in Boston, told Reuters Health in an email. Type 2 diabetes, the most common form of the disease, affects millions of Americans. The condition is characterized by high blood-sugar levels resulting from the bodys poor response to insulin, a chemical that removes sugar from the bloodstream and stores it in the liver and muscles. Insulin is made by beta cells in the pancreas. To see whether taking vitamin D would improve peoples ability to handle blood sugar, researchers gave 92 pre-diabetic adults either vitamin D3 supplements, calcium supplements, both, or placebos. After four months, the participants blood was tested for several known diabetes risk factors. The measures included hemoglobin A1C, an indicator of blood-sugar levels over time, and beta-cell function, as reflected by how much insulin is being released and how well the body responds to it. At the outset, participants were considered pre-diabetic if they were overweight and had blood-sugar levels that were above normal but not high enough to be classified as diabetic. The researchers found that vitamin D significantly increased the beta-cell function of pre-diabetic adults, according to results published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The vitamin D group also had slightly more favorable hemoglobin A1C levels. Calcium had no effect on beta-cell function, either alone or in combination with vitamin D. The resul Continue reading >>
Best 12 Foods And Herbs For A Healthy Pancreas
Home > Health News > Best 12 Foods and Herbs for a Healthy Pancreas Best 12 Foods and Herbs for a Healthy Pancreas Your pancreas, a small organ rarely thought of until it causes problems, is vital for your digestive system as well as the endocrine process. Your pancreas has two basic functions: make insulin for controlling blood sugar levels, and make enzymes for the digestion of fat and protein. Your pancreas sits behind, and just below, your stomach. It has what is thought of as a head, a body, and a tail. Each part has its own job when it comes to producing specialized chemicals and enzymes. It also produces hormones and vital enzymes which are important to the digestion of food after it leaves your stomach. The fluid that your pancreas produces is alkaline in its makeup so it neutralizes the acids that come from the stomach, creating the perfect environment for digestive enzymes to do their work. Should your pancreas become unable to function, or only partially function, nutrients from your food are no longer available to your body. The top three problems that arise from a weak pancreas are: 1. Diabetes This is the most common disorder of the pancreas. Diabetes occurs when your pancreas does not produce enough insulin. 2. Acute or Chronic Pancreatitis This causes tissue damaging inflammation levels in and around the pancreas. 3. Cancer Pancreatic cancer is the 5th leading cause of death in the US and has a 100 percent mortality rate. Although the cause of pancreas malfunctions are not well understood, it is known that diet and lifestyle can help rejuvenate the pancreas. There have limited studies on some herbs regarding their effectiveness, but the following list of herbs and foods may help to strengthen and protect your pancreas from the disorders listed above. As Continue reading >>
The Enzyme Break Down: Raw Foods Improve Your Pancreatic Health
The Enzyme Break Down: Raw Foods Improve Your Pancreatic Health Most of us have a very basic understanding of how enzymes work and what they actually do in our bodies. However, understanding the role of enzymes and how we eat, in a manner that supports enzyme efficiency, can improve your pancreatic health. Enzymes do that hard work that keeps cells in our bodies working correctly. There are three basic forms of enzymes metabolic, food and digestive. Metabolic enzymes flow throughout the blood stream and help cells metabolize glucose and other chemicals for maximum energy and function. These enzymes can be found in some raw foods. However, most metabolic enzymes are created in the pancreas. Food enzymes are contained in foods we eat. If you eat raw organic foods, you get the highest level of food enzymes possible. Cooking foods removes many enzymes, making them more difficult to digest. Digestive enzymes are released as soon as you begin to eat foods. Saliva begins the process by releasing digestive enzymes in the chewing process. They continue to be released as food travels into the stomach. However, when foods contain little natural enzymes, are cooked or are not well chewed, the pancreas has to work overtime to create enough enzymes to process nutrients from foods when they are consumed. An overworked pancreas results in inflammation in this vital organ. Additionally, if your pancreas is not working correctly, it does not release enough enzymes to remove waste products and break down inflammatory residue from your body. As a result, your body begins to work less efficiently fighting off the effects of aging and opening the door to disease. To prevent your pancreas from becoming overburdened, eat whole uncooked organic foods whenever possible. Red meat is one of the m Continue reading >>
How To Cleanse Your Pancreas
You should do a natural pancreatic cleanse one in a while.Today we are fond of junk food; we are consuming excessive sugars. Due to the unhealthy food habits, digestion problem arises, and this results in pancreatic disorder. The pancreatic disorder may result in severe diseases may be jaundice, cancer, diarrhea. So, you should always adopt a diet that can clean your pancreas. A diet that is colorful, here colorful means a variety of things to be eaten that are of different colors like a variety of different fruits should be included in your diet. You should eat plenty of vegetables may be raw or steamed and drink lots of water and consume fresh juices. We have a lot more for you in this article that will help you get rid of the disorder. Remedies To Cleanse Your Pancreas What is the pancreas? The pancreas is a pear-shaped organ that is surrounded by the stomach, small intestine, liver, and spleen. The pancreas is essential for digesting carbohydrates and fats. It is responsible for producing enzymes. The pancreas produces digestive juices that help break the micronutrients and regulates levels of blood sugar. The Pancreas has two important functions The exocrine role of the pancreas produces digestive juice and enzymes that help to digest the proteins and fats.It also produces sodium bicarbonate that neutralizes the stomach acids. The pancreas has exocrine glands that produce enzymes which are essential for digestion. These enzymes are trypsin and chymotrypsin, these digests proteins available in the food; amylase helps in the digestion of carbohydrates, and lipase enzyme breaks down the fats. The pancreatic juices and bile that are released into the duodenum, which is the upper part of the small intestine, helps the body to digest fats, carbohydrates, and proteins. Th Continue reading >>
Enzyme Replacement Therapy For Pancreatic Insufficiency: Present And Future
Enzyme replacement therapy for pancreatic insufficiency: present and future 2INSERM, U476 Nutrition Humaine et Lipides, Marseille, F-13385 France; Univ Mditerrane Aix-Marseille 2, Facult de Mdecine, IPHM-IFR 125, Marseille, F-13385 France 1Division of Digestive Diseases, University of Oklahoma, OKC, OK, USA; 2INSERM, U476 Nutrition Humaine et Lipides, Marseille, F-13385 France; Univ Mditerrane Aix-Marseille 2, Facult de Mdecine, IPHM-IFR 125, Marseille, F-13385 France Correspondence: Martine Armand, INSERM, U476 Nutrition Humaine et Lipides, Marseille, F-13385 France; Univ Mditerrane Aix-Marseille 2, Facult de Mdecine, IPHM-IFR 125, Marseille, F-13385 France, Tel +33 4 91 78 21 01, Fax +33 4 91 29 40 93, Email [email protected] Copyright 2011 Fieker et al, publisher and licensee Dove Medical Press Ltd. This is an Open Access article which permits unrestricted noncommercial use, provided the original work is properly cited. This article has been cited by other articles in PMC. Pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy is currently the mainstay of treatment for nutrient malabsorption secondary to pancreatic insufficiency. This treatment is safe and has few side effects. Data demonstrate efficacy in reducing steatorrhea and fat malabsorption. Effective therapy has been limited by the ability to replicate the physiologic process of enzyme delivery to the appropriate site, in general the duodenum, at the appropriate time. The challenges include enzyme destruction in the stomach, lack of adequate mixing with the chyme in the duodenum, and failing to deliver and activate at the appropriate time. Treatment is begun when clinically significant malabsorption occurs resulting in steatorrhea and weight loss. Treatment failure is addressed in a sequential fashion. Current resea Continue reading >>
Digestive Process - Blood Sugar Control
Where is it located? The pancreas is located in the abdomen, tucked behind the stomach. It is shaped somewhat like a tadpole - fat at one end and slender at the other - and is around 25cm in length. What does it do? The pancreas has dual roles. 1. it is an organ of the digestive system and of the endocrine (hormonal) system. Once food has been mulched and partially digested by the stomach, it is pushed into the duodenum (first part of the small intestine). The pancreas adds its own digestive juices and enzymes to the food, via a small duct attached to the duodenum. This process is said to belong to the 'exocrine pancreas'. 2. The pancreas also produces the hormone insulin, which helps to control the amount of sugar in the blood. This is the role of the 'endocrine pancreas'. Symptoms of a diseased pancreas The symptoms of a diseased pancreas depend on the underlying cause, but may include: Pain in the upper abdomen Loss of appetite Yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice) Back pain Bloating Nausea Vomiting Digestive upsets Passing foul-smelling and fatty feces. Pancreas Remedies Before you spend any money or hold a pity-party to advertise the sad condition of your horse-whipped pancreas, do yourself a favor by going outside and taking a long walk, especially after each meal. This will help lower your blood sugar and elevate “good mood” hormones. We are not making fun of the problem. Research has shown that moderate exercise can benefit diabetics, and walking is a wonderful basic exercise. Besides, walking is an excellent way to help release the mental/emotional pain which may be affecting your nerves, circulation and digestive organs. From an emotional point of view, problems with your pancreas indicate that something is wrong with the “sugar” in your life. So, Continue reading >>
How To Increase Insulin Production In Body Naturally ?
If you are a type 1 / type-2 diabetic whose morning starts with where shall I inject insulin today and you are one amongst many type 1 /type-2 diabetics who struggles to manage insulin levels and are frustrated of the costs and the pain of injecting insulin everyday then you must know there are methods to produce insulin in your body naturally by making great food choices, exercise regularly and taking right vitamin supplements, Lets explore !! Even if you can reduce one shot of insulin it feels great ,,, Insulin is a hormone that is mainly responsible for glucose regulation. It is produced by the beta cells of pancreas, an organ that is located in the abdomen. Insulin allows the glucose uptake by body cells so that it can be utilized as fuel by the body tissues.Our body needs an optimum level of insulin to maintain the normal glucose balance. Either reduction or an increase in insulin will have deleterious effects on body. In cases where insulin starts falling, the body fails to consume sugar as body fuel. Hence, it is crucial to have a recommended insulin level for healthy body functions. A decrease in insulin results in type 1 diabetes. Eating Right Food can Boost Insulin Production Diet is the main factor that has a major effect on pancreas and insulin levels. Whatever we eat, directly affects the insulin secretion, production and health of pancreas. Pancreas is an important organ that performs both functions of insulin production and foods’ digestion. If someone keeps on taking ‘anti-pancreas’ foods, it will badly hurt the functioning of pancreas. In addition to insulin friendly foods, it is also wise to decrease the use of insulin decreasing diets. Following text explains the simple, natural and effective ways to boost insulin production by activating pancre Continue reading >>
How To Strengthen The Pancreas
The pancreas produces insulin to regulate blood sugar and enzymes to promote digestion. The two major diseases of the pancreas are pancreatitis and cancer. Your pancreas may also be compromised when hyperglycemia due to insulin resistance causes it to overwork to compensate for elevated blood sugar, according to a 2006 article in the "Journal of Clinical Investigation." Dietary and lifestyle changes can support the pancreas and help prevent or ameliorate these conditions. Always consult your doctor before making changes in your diet, exercise or supplementation program. Video of the Day Exercise more. Activity increases your use of blood sugar, allowing your pancreas to produce less insulin and giving it a rest. Work out five times a week for 30 minutes to help strengthen your pancreas. Lose 5 to 10 percent of your body weight. "When you lose weight it actually recharges your pancreas a bit and helps it work better," states Linda Delahanty, M.S., R.D. Eat a low-fat diet which has lots of fruits and vegetables and minimizes processed foods. Not only will this help with weight loss, but it may help reduce high triglyceride levels, which the University of Maryland Medical Center, or UMMC, says are a risk factor for pancreatitis. Drink green tea. The UMMC describes population studies showing that people who drink more green tea are significantly less likely to suffer from pancreatic cancer than those who drink less. The UMMC also reports that green tea is a good source of antioxidants thought to help prevent pancreatitis. Consult your doctor before trying a new herbal remedy. Strengthening your pancreas may require significant lifestyle changes. For best results, be patient and make gradual changes consistent with your medical condition. Certain medications such as beta-blo Continue reading >>
