April 01, 2008

Tai Chi could help diabetics control their blood sugar. Tai Chi is a slow, relaxing form of exercise that even the very old can start learning. (via reddit)

Tai Chi (youtube video) is a very low impact skill; notice how it flexes hip and knee joints to limber them up.

posted by Alnedra 16 years ago
  • I'm assuming they're talking about type 2 diabetes, which pretty much any exercise program will help. But hey, if slowly kicking someone's butt will make my pancreas start producing insulin again, I'm willing to give it a go.
  • Ah, I see in the sidebar you specified type 2. Mea culpa. As you were.
  • I got momentarily excited, too, TenaciousPettle. Mr meredithea is a type I diabetic, and we're just starting to see some effects. I don't suppose you have good resources on neuropathy pain management? He's having a bear of a time with diabetic neuropathy pain in his feet, and we're both a little scared of Lyrica. Anyway, I don't want to hijack the thread... email's in the profile if you have any advice to offer.
  • Luckily for me, I'm not suffering any neuropathy. I guess I still have that to look forward to. :(
  • My doc tells me that I'll eventually need Neurontin, but nothing yet.
  • Not necessarily. Everyone reacts differently, and you just hope for the best :)
  • Mr. meredithea tried neurontin, and it didn't really work, but I've heard that it worked really well for other people.
  • meredithea, found this article on Medline that says C-peptide helps with neuropathy for people with type 1 diabetes.
  • With mint frosting! As usual, I can't say enough good about neurontin, but mine isn't for diabetic neuropathy.
  • A cousin of mine is way into Tai Chi (much more than he is into law school). He sort of scared us when he spent last summer planting trees at a large Toronto Tai Chi place (for some master). His continuous praise of Tai Chi actually make it less likely that I ever start taking part, because he's the sort of guy who goes on and on and on about whatever he's into, even when it's not that great (see: the velvet underground), which kind of turns you off these things.
  • Hi Richer
  • TUM, is your doctor just assuming that you'll need Neurontin some day b/c he's resigned to you having neuropathy, or is there some concrete sign that you might need it other than just being diabetic? I ask b/c I hear that doctors used to work on the assumption that if you were diabetic it was a matter of course that someday you'd go blind, lose a foot, and extrude your kidneys, no matter what they did. It's an old-fashioned point of view, and unfortunately a self-fulfilling prophecy--after all, why be aggressive with your patient's treatment if in the end you're just forestalling the inevitable? Some GPs, especially older ones, still seem to feel this way. With better control and less fatalism, though, it's entirely possibly that complications can be kept minor or even avoided altogether. At least that's what I hear. Maybe they're just trying to make me feel better. Still, nearly 20 years before the mast and no signs of systemic failure yet, knock wood.
  • It wasn't my regular endocrinologist, but a guy I went to for something unrelated. I think he just assumed based on his experience with other diabetic patients.
  • Yeah, about the same number of yearss for me, TP. I did have some PDR, but it's been stable for about 12 years now.