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People with advanced diabetes often develop neuropathy (nerve damage) in their feet, due to impaired blood supply to the nerves. The symptoms of diabetic neuropathy can include burning pain, tingling, and numbness. Neuropathiy in the feet can also interfere with one’s sense of balance, as the nerves in the feet are one of the three major balance control systems (the other two coming from the eyes / sense of vision and from the vestibular system in the inner ears).
Diabetic neuropathy can be dfficult to treat. Although symptom reduction can sometimes be achieved with drugs like neurontin, this is not always effective and not every patient is able to take such medications for any number of reasons (intolerable side-effects, interactions with other medications, etc.). Because of this, there has been considerable interest in natural treatments to ease the symptoms of diabetic neuropathy. A couple of the more effective natural treatments appear to not only help symptoms, but may actually improve blood supply to the nerves and help prevent the progression of the neuropathy, and in some cases even partially reverse the damage to the nerves.
The natural treatments for neuropathy fall into two main categories. The first category is supplements or “neutraceuticals” (nutritional products with specific therapeutic effects). Of this group, alpha-lipoic acid (sometimes called thioctic acid) has shown the greatest effects.Â
The following studies on alpha-lipoic acid attest to its effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and safety:
Journal Of Diabetes Complications, April 2008
Diabetes Journal, September 1997
The recommended oral dosage of alpha-lipoic acid is 600 to 800 mg per day.
 The second category of natural treatments for diabetic neuropathy is energetic stimulation of the nerves. This can be accomplished with magnet therapy, laser stimulation, and/or microcurrent (a specific type of electrical stimulation). Of these, magnet therapy is the simplest to use for self-treatment, since magnetic shoe inserts are easily accesible from a number of sources without the need for a prescription (as is required for a microcurrent stimulator).Â
Although none of the energetic stimulation techniques has been studied in-depth at present, the following study documents the effectiveness of magnet therapy for diabetic neuropathy:
Archives Of Physical Medicine And Rehabilitation, May 2003
The best magnetic insoles I have found are the “Neo-Flex” available through:
Therion professional magnetic therapy product solutions
Stay tuned to my natural remedies blog for more on natural diabetes treatment.
Tags: Diabetes, Foot And Ankle Problems, alpha lipoic acid, diabetes, diabetic neuropathy, magneic therapy, magnetic insoles, type II diabetes
