Ronald Yance, MHCN, is one of the most knowledgeable practicing herbalists in the country. Donny has researched and written about nutrition and herbal medicine for nearly 20 years. He maintains a busy practice, writes articles and lectures frequently to doctors and other health professionals. Donny uses life style, exercise, nutrition and herbs to support a wide range of conditions and promote optimal health. Donny does not prescribe, treat or diagnose illness. He works with doctors to let natural healing complement modern medicine.

Robert: Donny, which case are we going to talk about in this issue?

Donny: This is a gentleman named Bill. He was 54 when he came to see me. He had Type II diabetes and also hypertension, which I think was worsened by his untreated diabetes. Bill basically came to me because he wanted to treat these conditions naturally. He was on four medications but this did not control his diabetes well. A friend of his died of a heart attack and he felt he needed to pay better attention to his health. He was a mild-tempered person but he had a lot of personal stress.

Robert: Which was probably worsening both his diabetes and high blood pressure.

Donny: Yes. Bill is the kind of guy who keeps his stress under cover. The way he vents his stress is to ignore his health. People like Bill need to find other ways to vent their stress than to destroy their body. He is a talented musician and he needs to play more. He should get out of the management end of the business which is giving him too much stress. He needs to express himself more. This would help him to process the stress more efficiently and probably get his blood sugar and blood pressure under control.

Robert: Did he exercise at all?

Donny: No. He was very sedentary. He was depressed and was having family problems. He started to walk a little bit. He had a typical diabetic body—a large stomach, with most of his weight around his middle, and pencil thin legs. He was able to lose 10-15 pounds on his own by cutting out junk like soda and cookies. His blood pressure went down a little bit because of that but he was still on four medications and was a long way from being healthy.

Robert: But he had yet to go on insulin.

Donny: Right. His doctor said that taking insulin was on the horizon if he did not get his blood sugar under better control. You know, giving people insulin may help control the blood sugar, but it does not stop the progression of the disease.

Robert: And diabetics need a lot of education. Regarding his blood pressure, Donny, what do you think was causing his pressure to go up?

Donny: One of the things that can cause high blood pressure is a build up of plaque along the artery walls. This increases the pressure in the arteries and therefore increases blood pressure. People need to keep their arteries or their “pipes” clean. The drugs used to treat it weaken the heart and cause more problems. They do not address the underlying cause, but just seek to lower blood pressure by weakening the heart’s pumping action. This is hardly getting to the cause of the problem. These drugs can often lead to impotence in men because they decrease peripheral circulation. This in turn leads to depression, which then leads to more medications.

Robert: But, of course, people should not stop their medications, especially the blood pressure lowering medications, without their physician’s supervision and approval.

Donny: Absolutely. Ideally, it is best to work with a nutritionist who works closely with the physician as I do.

Robert: So what did you do with him?

Donny: We started by looking at his diet, which he tried to improve on his own. It was still filled with too much refined food-white toast, cereal, juice for breakfast as well. He was eating a deli sandwich for lunch and dinner was meat and vegetables with a typical refined salad dressing.

Robert: What about stress reduction?

Donny: Yes, very important. He found that stress made his diabetes much worse. When he was having family problems the blood sugar was very much out of control. The stress made him more aware of his illness and that he needed to do something about it.

Robert: So where did you start with dietary changes?

Donny: I told him to stay away from aspartame and had him use the natural herbal sweetener stevia which is found in health food stores. Stevia can actually help diabetes and help regulate blood sugar. I recommended that he avoid wheat and use amaranth flakes and higher protein grains like quinoa. I had him eat eggs for breakfast, and whole fruits, not juices. Berries and apples are best, and he should avoid super sweet fruits like bananas and dried fruits.

Robert: What about lunch?

Donny: For lunch he was to eat more varied greens, eat a salad dressing with flaxseed, olive oil and protein. The essential fats found in oils like flaxseed oil are great for diabetics for energy, hormone regulation and help the body deal better with stress.

Robert: They are so important for overall health.

Donny: I also recommended cooked greens, such as dandelion, and to sauté them with garlic and olive oil.

Robert: Garlic—great for diabetes and for lowering blood pressure.

Donny: Yes. I also had him eat Jerusalem artichokes, which greatly assist blood sugar regulation. I had him take milk thistle seeds and toast them and eat them.

Robert: What about exercise?

Donny: I recommended that he walk more and see if he could do some strength training.

Robert: What about supplements?

Donny: I put him on 300 mg of lipoic acid per day and told him to take 100 mg with each meal. I also put him on a special multi that contained B6, manganese, magnesium, vitamin C, chromium and zinc. These are all important nutrients for diabetics. Zinc is important for wound healing in diabetics. Zinc is also very important for a healthy appetite in diabetics. Biotin and potassium as well were in the multi, important nutrients for diabetics and those with high blood pressure.

Robert: Any other supplements?

Donny: CoQ10, 100 mg per day, and B12 and folic acid, 2 mg of each.

Robert: What was in the herbal tonic that you gave him?

Donny: The most important plant was devil’s claw, which is in the ginseng family. It is wonderful for blood sugar regulation and helps weight loss somewhat. Also American ginseng, which is great for blood sugar regulation and for stress management. I included dandelion, a mixture of leaf, flower and root. Dandelion leaf is an excellent diuretic and replaces all the nutrients that can be washed out. Dandelion root supports the liver and helps regulate blood sugar. Gymnema sylvestre was also in there. It has been found to help the beta cells in the pancreas make insulin. Jambul seeds, another classic blood sugar regulating plant, was also in his tonic. Reishi was in there to help him manage stress and heal the nervous system and also to regulate blood sugar. Cinnamon was included. I also had him put fenugreek in his breakfast. This is an excellent plant for blood sugar regulation as well.

Robert: Any other herbal supplements?

Donny: I gave him a garlic supplement. Garlic, as you have said, helps both blood sugar and blood pressure. Garlic also seems to help weight loss a little bit.

Robert: Well, this sounds like an excellent program. When did he start to see results?

Donny: He started getting much better results in his blood sugar within two weeks. He lost a lot of water weight initially. Over the course of four months he lost about 20 pounds. He could still stand to lose another 10 pounds or so.

Robert: What about his blood pressure?

Donny: His blood pressure is now back to normal. He feels fantastic. Pretty soon he will be off all medication. My philosophy is to go slowly. He has been on medication for four years, so it will take time to get off of it. He exercises and his diet allows him to have some fun. He has come through the main part of the stress.

Robert: Donny, thank you so much for another excellent case history and for being such a wonderful healng force in the world. I look forward to our next example here in totalhealth.

Donny: So do I, Robert. My pleasure.