Monday, November 30, 2009

THE WHITE KILLER




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Sugar is a class of edible crystalline substances, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose. Human taste buds interpret its flavor as sweet. Sugar as a basic food carbohydrate primarily comes from sugar cane and from sugar beet, but also appears in fruit, honey, sorghum, sugar maple (in maple syrup), and in many other sources. It forms the main ingredient in candy. Excessive consumption of sugar has been associated with increased incidences of type 2 diabetes, obesity and tooth decay.[1] Sugar consumption varies by country depending on the cultural traditions. Brazil has the highest per capita consumption and India has the highest per-country consumption and Thailand is not far behind.

Well I never thought it would happen to me , BUT , on my last visit to the Dr. for my yearly check-up and for them to run ever kind of test they can, all my numbers came back normal EXCEPT my sugar count and it was 178 which the Dr. said put me in the class 2 diabetes level, and said that as we get older we need to keep a closer watch on the amount of food that we eat that contains sugar and also our carbohydrate intake which turns to sugar and adds to our problems. He prescribed a pill for me to take daily to lower my sugar and also put me on a almost sugarless diet and a lot less carbs. and of course along with all that , I need to loose 10 lbs. and start a little exercise program(which I was doing but stopped during the rainy season) of at least 30 min a day and get out and walk more .Does that sound like fun, I should say NOT , but you know Ciejay is always trying to help me cut back on my sweets and rice and bread and I always say to her "don't worry about me ,I know what I'm doing when it comes to my health " Well, I confess before you all that I was wrong, and if we can't control our selves ,we do need help from others, to incourage us to take care, what and how much we eat.I am going to beat this thing and not go from bad to worse which can happen if I'm not careful and ignore all the warnings from my Dr. and family. The Dr. said that if I really work at it I can have this sugar count back down to 100 where it needs to be in a couple months , and believe you me ,I am going to do my best.I want to live a LONGGGGGG ,and healthy life, in my GOLDEN YEARS.
If you are getting up there in age and weight , may I encourage you to have your sugar #'s checked often and cut back on the sugar . You know that here in Thailand the Dr. told me it is the #1 cause of death and I have read and heard that , it is true all over the world . This visit to the Dr. put a little fear in me and for good reason.
I hope all you are taking care of your health and not like me, letting these old age things sneak up on me . Pray for me that I will take better of myself and I'll do the same for you . Malcolm

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

I use honey to sweeten my drinks.

"BEE-loved" the bottle says, and a verse. 55

Anonymous said...

Be well Sir M.

Anonymous said...

Hey, You know what a sweet tooth I have. Thanks for the warning. SO far Ii have checked out fine but there is always next year!! Glad to hear all is well with both of you. SO much news to tell youabout but cannot take tie right now. Will sit down later this week and write! Hugs for now!

Mike said...

Malcolm I am glad you found out even though it means a slight change in diet.

In the UK we often refer to refined sugar as white death.

Thais generally use way too much which is why I tend to avoid local sweetmeats!

I use honey in my morning porridge to add a little sweetness to my life-hope MTF doesn't read that!!

Sevenwinds said...

Malcolm,
The food industry is really bad in this regard here in the States. They use high-frutose corn sweeteners for lots of products like soft drinks. etc. I was like you a few years back as my mother had Type II diabetes and I was getting early signs of it too. With a regular exercise program (and lots of golf) and avoiding the white stuff, I am pretty close to being normal in my sugar level.

I also started using resveratrol regularly and that seems to help me as well.

Take care and keep at it!

Jon said...

Dear Malcolm,

you cam do this, you started before now you just have to keep with it. Walk every day and eat all the good stuff CJay wants you to eat, don't eat any bad stuff and you'll be just fine and you'll feel great too.

Hope to hear how great you're feeling in a month or so. Love your blog and your outlook on Thailand and your life in general.

Jon

Camille said...

Hi Malcolm,

Good that you got an early warning. I could do with some more exercise as well but too many excuses for not doing it!

Take care!

Martin in Bulgaria said...

This is quite an eye opener Malcolm. It will certainly make me think twice using sugar as liberally as I do right now. Honey it too expensive a substitute here in Bulgaria for most.

MJ Klein said...

Malcolm, chromium can help a great deal because it regulates the insulin receptors. we all have to face the eventuality that you are right now. i know you can do it!

Malcolm and Ciejay Burgess said...

Thanks everyone for the encouragement and the great suggestions , I'm trying real hard and thanks to Ciejay and her persistiance and NAGGING I thank I'm doing pretty good , this is one battle that I was not prepared for and am having to get my weapons together for this battle. I feel strong and am sure that with help from the Lord and encourage from friends like you I'll win this minor battle , Thanks again Malcolm

Martyn said...

Malcolm I can see why Thailand's sugar count is so high, all those sugar daddies knocking about.

Diabetes is a very very common ailment nowadays and is successfully controlled by millions the world over so with a little planning and effort you should see the big 100 in years as well as sugar level.

The big bonus for you is having the best nurse in the world looking after you and that of course is Ciejay. I think you'll be saddling up your horse for a few years yet but hey Cowboy, leave those Milky Bars alone. Sweet dreams or perhaps sour ones would be more appropriate.

Apologies for commenting late but I've been working a bit much lately and have had to finish a post of my own. I've now got 3 days off work and that really is a sweet tasting feeling.

SiamRick said...

Malcolm, I'm sure I don't have to remind you that so much of Thai food is sweetened that that makes it hard to keep sugar intake under control.

I was diagnosed with the same thing in 2007. I got everything under control with exercise and restraint here at home. Then I spent 6 months in Thailand in 2008-09. I got home and found my blood sugar was outside the normal range again. Not too badly but it was still not good. I don't have the answer at the moment, but when I return in a week's time, I'm going to search for some way to avoid sweetened stuff, but it won't be easy. I was kind of bad during my 6-month stay, eating those packaged 7-11 sweet buns etc. Those will definitely be off the menu. That should help. Beer, however, will be consumed.