So, I've seen this thing a couple of times here in NYC—it’s like this device where you dip your feet into a tub, and they claim it uses an electric current or whatever to pull toxins, like heavy metals and stuff, right out of your skin and into the water.
I mean, does that actually work? Does anyone here know anything about it? Has anyone actually tried it, or maybe found some proof—like an article or something—that shows it's just a total scam?
Where can you even find one of these in the city? And how much is it going to cost me?
placidfox55 said:I don't want to stir the pot here... but there's this idea now that diabetes actually served a PROTECTIVE role through evolution. Basically, for people who didn't have constant access to food, it prevented the sugar in their blood from being immediately dumped into their cells. That way, those folks who only ate once every couple of days—maybe they caught a quail or stumbled upon some nutrient-rich root—could feast and then store that energy for later...
When you take someone with that kind of genetic makeup and drop them into an environment overflowing with bags of chips and cans of Coca-Cola, you get a total system failure... 😬
I don't get it.. How can you say it had a protective function during evolution? Shouldn't excess glucose just be converted into glycogen? If it supposedly had a protective role historically, what does that even mean? Like, if a guy overindulged once, would all that extra sugar just stay stuck in his system... as sugar deposits in his arteries? 😉 Assuming he wouldn't just die from hyperglycemia first.
rustymoose54 said:1. People who HAVE the genes for type 2 diabetes will definitely develop it if they overeat.
2. People who DON'T have the genes for type 2 diabetes WON'T develop it EVEN IF they overeat.
3. Maintaining a normal weight is the best way to prevent type 2 diabetes (since we don't know if we carry the genes or not).
So, please just accept this simple fact: you can't get type 2 diabetes unless you carry certain genes, no matter how unhealthy you live or eat. That doesn't make the "sin" of those who actually got sick any less—it's just a lucky break for the others who gorge themselves but stay fine. In other words, you can keep going on your crusade against fat people; most of them caused their own illness. Plus, they just didn't get lucky with their genetics, whatever. 😉
Look... I don't know if you're actually an expert on diabetes stuff... but I watched this guy on TV who was... and he was saying something else entirely... and that other thing was wrong...
Alright, seriously, can someone please explain how dust allergies even work? Like, how does it make sense for 50% of the population to be allergic to something? It sounds ridiculous.
And when it comes to diabetes, I bet they'll just come up with all sorts of new nonsense later on.😉
Yeah... What about things like pigs, ticks, and stuff like that? They've been living right alongside us forever...
As for ragweed, I have no clue where it actually came from... I asked some old-timers about it and they just told me it’s always been around...
Besides that, I'm talking about how half the population is going to be allergic to everything, when back in the day, allergies weren't even a known thing. Why is that?
Regarding diabetes, I remember watching this segment on "60 Minutes" where they had a specialist on. He claimed obesity was the main culprit because it increases the actual number of cells in your body, so the insulin has to produce more and more until it just burns out...
Well, I've read enough to know that when you gain fat, the number of cells doesn't actually increase; they just "swell up." So, his whole theory is kind of bunk... I mean, I'm no expert, but when some supposedly "distinguished" specialist says something wrong on national TV, who's the crazy one then?
We all carry recessive genes for all sorts of diseases, that's no secret... It'll be real interesting when the big pharma companies start rolling out gene therapies that cost like $100,000 or more per treatment... man, that's a hell of a lot of money...
Look... Regarding the whole "it's all genetically predetermined" thing—I am never buying that. And anyone out there trying to sell you on that idea? I’ll always wonder exactly how much they're being paid to spout those lies.
The thing is, if diabetes were truly a genetic predisposition, just think about what that would mean for natural selection in the human race over the last few hundred thousand years. Just imagine how many people back before we even had writing would have died from hyperglycemia whenever they ate a little too much? Would those people have just died off, leaving room for everyone else with healthy genes? If this whole theory were actually true, there wouldn't simply be people walking around today with genes for pancreatic disease...
They would have gone extinct.
Secondly... doctors—and look, I’m being blunt here—in most cases, they’re just plain wrong. They honestly don't have a clue, even though I suppose I should congratulate them on spending x years in med school. But they get paid big time to peddle misinformation. By 2050 at the latest, it’s predicted that 50% of the population in Europe will have some kind of allergy to something... And then, oh sure, they'll "discover" a genetic therapy for it (followed by the side effects, then drugs for the side effects...)
And why is that happening? Because we eat processed junk, live in concrete jungles, and stuff like that.
See... My family is from the countryside... And ragweed grows like crazy out there... yet nobody ever sneezed or anything because of it. Now, here we are, acting like it's killing us... If that were really the case, those people would have gone extinct long ago. In x instances throughout history, while hunting mammoths or hiding from a saber-toothed tiger or a bear, someone would have started sneezing because they ducked into a bush full of ragweed... and then they would've been eaten alive.
Anyway, you can go to the pharmacy and buy "Silicon Valley" supplements, and they cost a fortune... And what is it? It's just the silicon we all ate plenty of as kids when we were playing in the sandbox... Or those "Pectin" tablets... what is that? Just dried apple peel that people swallow because they think it's good for them...
Basically... there wouldn't be any diabetes or anything like it if we just lived normally and ate normally... and for the record, I don't work for anyone, and I'm not out here selling anybody's products...
So look... I’d be willing to guess—and yeah, I’m definitely no expert here—that since we know the issue crops up when fat cells start leaking fat (because they're basically porous), maybe the whole thing isn't even about how much weight you carry. It might just be about how those fat cells actually function...
Again... (just my amateur theory)... Since cortisol receptors (that stress hormone everyone talks about) are most concentrated right in the abdominal area—which is probably why people tend to pack on the gut whenever they get stressed out—we could assume that stress messes with the way those cells operate, making them leaky...
Losing weight doesn't actually lower their count... you're just shrinking the volume...
And look, they found out those cells are kind of 'leaky' when it comes to the fat they're holding onto, so that probably plays a huge role... it’s not about the number of cells...
Fat cells can actually swell up to xx times their original size...
That's basically how they store all that fat...
But if you think that's not how it works, then maybe explain this to me: how does someone stop gaining weight once you've cleared out 90% of the fat cells from their abdominal cavity?
So here's the thing... From what I understand, we actually have a set number of fat cells in our bodies. They don't just multiply or anything...
If that weren't true, heavy-duty liposuction wouldn't even be worth the effort... because we'd just keep gaining weight indefinitely...
But... those fat cells can release lipids into the bloodstream, which ends up messing with insulin (okay, that last part is probably a pretty clunky way to put it)
Look, I’m no expert, but from what I’ve gathered, those insulin-producing cells actually have a chance to regenerate. The real problem is that those occasional—but still totally present—spikes in blood sugar levels. They just... destroy them...
I mean, there was a time when things like bananas or oranges were basically just pictures in a book, and apples were pretty much the only fruit you could actually get your hands on... Back then, people were dropping dead from trichinosis, the flu, or all these weird diseases they didn't even have names for yet...
I guess I’m going to end up looking like the doctor here since I’m the one answering everything... which I'm clearly not... just because I know a few things from hands-on experience, I suppose. Seriously though, can you moderators please actually do your jobs?
Go get some blood work done... maybe you're just dealing with an iron deficiency...
If there's a chance of infection, you can actually get a dose of that antiretroviral cocktail—you know, those 3 or 4-drug combo therapies—within 24 hours....
I mean, nobody has officially proven exactly how much these injections actually help prevent a potential infection, but they still administer them (especially to medical workers, I think)...
I guess that's provided through something like Blue Cross Blue Shield...
Maybe try switching to green tea... It actually wakes me up gently, whereas coffee just kind of jolts my system... I think this way is better...
Drinking coffee late at night 🤔 😕 well, obviously you aren't going to be able to sleep.
There’s caffeine in tea... though technically it’s theanine... but I think that's mostly just in yerba mate... and people hardly ever drink that stuff...
I guess you shouldn't exercise after 8 PM, or stare at a computer screen or whatever... just start winding down for bed... but still, you should probably do something...
As for that whole thing about "not trying to force sleep," it'll just happen naturally once you learn how.🙂
You can't just force yourself to fall asleep... it either happens on its own or it doesn't happen at all... I mean, I’ve learned that the hard way. As soon as my head hits the pillow, my brain just starts racing... zzz... zzz... and I’m still stuck in that loop come morning.😉
And don't go burying yourself under too many blankets, either. Even though, I guess, being too hot is usually what wakes you up in the middle of the night.
As for stress, man, that stuff tends to stick with you for a while... maybe try hitting the gym? But stick to cardio—like a StairMaster or something—and do it every single day. Just don't expect to see any actual results for at least two weeks...
- Is there enough airflow in there? (Maybe try cracking an open window) - Did you switch up where you sleep lately? - Are you constantly "trying" to fall asleep? (Which, honestly, is kind of the whole problem) - Been dealing with a ton of stress lately?
Let me think... I’m an old-timer when it comes to insomnia, but I finally managed to beat it once and for all. 🙂