Man needs help coping with diabetes

Published 9:00 pm Saturday, August 4, 2007

The Tuesday front page article about Mr. Deming tugs at one’s heart. One disturbing part is this:

Deming said money is tight. He subsists on a gallon of milk a day mixed with strawberry Quik and protein powder.

“That’s what keeps me alive,” he said. “That and fruit bars for my fruit.” He wears three pairs of socks to cushion his painful calluses.

He struggles with diabetes.

Research shows dairy milk is a causative factor in Type I diabetes in infants and worsens both type I and II diabetes in later life. How unfortunate Mr. Deming contributes to his struggle with diabetes with that gallon of milk each day. How can we help him get nutritional information? Without the milk the struggle would be less and with a more healthy diet perhaps the struggles would disappear completely. Such are diabetes prevention/reversal guidelines from the Physician’s Committee for Responsible Medicine showing reversal of diabetes through proper eating.

The PCRM advises, in agreement with most modern research: “The first step is to avoid animal-derived products. Needless to say, this eliminates all animal fats. It does something else, too: It eliminates animal protein. While we need protein, we do not need animal-derived protein. Animal proteins accelerate kidney damage in people who have already lost some kidney function. They also increase the loss of calcium from the body (through the kidneys and into the urine), potentially increasing the risk of osteoporosis. Plant sources of protein do not present these problems … “

Perhaps Mr. Deming’s neighbors or a responsible agency might discuss with him how to replace the milk with less costly vegetables, fruits, and grains from nearby local farms.

Norm Kosky

Camano Island