If you are among the 350,000 or so people in the UK with type 1 diabetes, you will be encouraged to know that a cure could be getting closer. And, if successful, it won't mean taking a new and potentially dangerous drug, just getting an annual vaccination. A research team at Massachusetts General Hospital in the US has been given approval for a five-year trial to see whether the BCG vaccine can reverse the condition, even in advanced cases.
This is not just a shot in the dark. Type 1 diabetes is caused by a defective type of T-cell, a white blood cell that is part of the immune system. These 'insulin autoreactive' T-cells attack the insulin-secreting cells in the pancreas (called beta cells), severely reducing their ability to produce insulin. Two decades of autoimmune disease research in animals has shown that tumour necrosis factor (TNF), an inflammatory chemical produced by the immune system, selectively kills the defective T-cells while leaving normal T-cells unharmed. And a safe way of stimulating TNF production is the BCG vaccine.
Dr Denise Faustman, who heads the Massachusetts research team, first carried out animal studies in 2001 that showed the potential of this approach. In 2012, her team published the results of their first human clinical trial involving just six people with type 1 diabetes, three of whom received BCG vaccinations while three got a placebo jab.1 The results were encouraging enough to justify a longer, large-scale clinical trial. Needless to say, because any patents on the BCG vaccine expired decades ago, Big Pharma was not interested in this trial (making money is their priority, not curing disease), so it is being funded by donations. You can find out more about Dr Faustman's work here.
The new, double-blind trial is enrolling 150 adults with long-term type 1 diabetes, who will receive two injections four weeks apart of either BCG vaccine or placebo. They will then be given a single injection annually for the next four years. Patients will be closely monitored over the whole five-year trial period. The researchers will be checking several outcome measures, including insulin levels and HbA1c blood test results, which give an indication of long term blood sugar control. While I'm not generally a big fan of vaccines, some of which can cause serious side effects, the BCG vaccine has been in continuous use for almost a century and is regarded as one of the safest.
What you can do right now to get your pancreas producing insulin again
It is of course disappointing for people with type 1 diabetes that the results of Dr Faustman's new trial won't be in for another five years and, if they show BCG to be effective, it could take as long again before it is officially approved as a treatment in the UK. But in the meantime there may be other steps they can take. Most type 1 diabetics retain some beta cell function and still produce small amounts of insulin. And a number of safe, drug-free supplements could help to prevent further damage to the beta cells and even encourage them to regenerate and produce more insulin.
GABA is a natural body chemical that animal research has shown to encourage the proliferation of beta-cells. You can boost your GABA levels by taking supplements of L-glutamine, vitamin B6, taurine and zinc (see here for details)
The amino-acid arginine has also been found to protect and regenerate pancreatic beta-cells, leading to improved insulin production (see here). Arginine supplements are available from health food stores
Several tropical herbs have shown regenerative effects on beta cells, including Moringa oleifera, Pterocarpus marsupium and Gymnema sylvestre, all of which are available as supplements in the UK. You can read more about these here and here
If you have type 1 diabetes (or in some cases type 2), you may have been prescribed the long-acting insulin analogue, insulin degludec, also known by its trade name Tresiba. But, despite what your doctor may have told you, it probably isn't doing much good. A damning report from the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care has revealed that, in children and adolescents at least, Tresiba has no added benefit and can cause serious side effects in young girls. More on this in my next blog post.
...And in other health news
It's shocking to say the least. According to the Centers For Disease Control (CDC)… and the Diabetes Association... one in every 388 people suffering with diabetes dies every hour from diabetes-related complications...
Diabetes appears to be Modern Medicine's biggest failure. It has been spreading like wildfire for more than three decades. Yet, doctors have still been unable to 'crack the diabetes code' with their pharmaceutical drugs and often misguided dietary advice.
Worse still, doctors and the money hungry pharmaceutical industry don't tell diabetes patients (and hope they never discover) that there are ways to combat this disease NATURALLY and WITHOUT drugs.
This brand new and ground-breaking publication from Agora Health Ltd, DIABETES DEFEATED: 97 Most Powerful Secrets For Controlling Blood Sugar Levels Naturally, is a must-read if you currently suffer from diabetes or if you have classic risk factors for diabetes...
...Risk factors like being more than 20% overweight, lack of exercise, having a relative with diabetes (parents or siblings)... impaired fasting glucose (IFG) or impaired glucose tolerance, high triglycerides (blood fats) and a history of high blood pressure.
You won't get this information from your doctor... information that may very well save your life.
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