Tag Archives: diabetes

Homemade Stevia Extract

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“Stevia leaves and stevioside are virtually calorie-free, beneficial in the prevention of cavities and do not trigger a rise in blood sugar. They are not only safe for diabetics and hypoglycemics, but in some countries stevia leaves are even prescribed as a medicinal substance for these conditions because they normalize pancreatic function and thus aid in the metabolism of sugar.”
Weston A Price Foundation: Sugar-Free Blues: Everything You Wanted to Know About Artificial Sweeteners

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It has taken me a long time to discover a way to make a stevia extract that is sweet but without the unpleasant aftertaste.

“The whole stevia leaves contain a number of beneficial compounds, including ascorbic acid, calcium, beta-carotene, chromium, cobalt, iron, magnesium, manganese, niacin, phosphorus, potassium, riboflavin, selenium, silicon, sodium, thiamin, tin and zinc.”

Stevia is an excellent sweetener for people with metabolic syndrome or diabetes. It tastes incredibly sweet but some people dislike the aftertaste. I’m one of those people so I’m not a fan of stevia. Nevertheless, I have family and friends with blood sugar issues. It has taken me a long time to discover a way to make a stevia extract that is sweet but without the unpleasant aftertaste.

Normally, when making plant extracts infusions take 4-6 weeks. This does not work with stevia. The trick to making a nice stevia extract is to only infuse for less than 24 hours. During the infusion process, taste the extract every few hours. If the extract starts getting a foul taste, note the time and stop the infusion process. This method will produce a very sweet extract without the nasty aftertaste. I have also found that using homemade vanilla extract as the alcohol base improves the flavor greatly.

1tsp organic stevia powder
1/4c Homemade Vanilla Extract or organic vodka

Add the stevia powder to the homemade vanilla extract and let the stevia infuse for no more than 24 hours. Longer infusions will bring out the unpleasant aftertaste. I don’t normally filter extracts but with stevia filtering is needed to avoid pieces of plant material staying in the extract and fouling the taste. So, filter the extract to remove any stevia powder. A coffee filter or cheese cloth will work well. Decant the stevia extract into a bottle with a dropper for convenient use. Add some more straight vanilla extract if you find the stevia extract too sickly sweet.

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Use a coffee filter or damp cheese cloth to filter out the stevia. Filter a second time, if necessary. I’m still not a fan of stevia but this extract with vanilla is pretty good.

“When applied topically, the stevia leaves also fight acne and speed wound healing while also reducing the formation of scar tissue.”

You can grow stevia at home. If you are looking to purchase, there is a local farm that grows stevia. They attend the Kamloops Farmer’s Market:

Suede Hills Organic Farm
Phil and Cindy Levington
6049 Thompson River Dr, PO Box 513, Savona, BC, V0K 2J0
T: 250.373.0191, C: 250.682.1188
www.suedehills.com
www.steviasweetsuccess.com
44km
certified organic STOPA farm no.166: organic stevia powder, alfalfa powder, pet supplements, worm castings

Coconut Coffee Creamer

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Here is a good non-dairy coffee creamer. If you can tolerate butter, the creamer tastes even better!

This recipe is for people that cannot tolerate dairy or for people having trouble finding raw milk.

Basic Date Coffee Creamer
This tasty, non-dairy coffee creamer recipe was given to me by Charlene Vandean. Here is her original recipe:

1/2c dates
1/2c water
2T vanilla extract
1 coconut milk, canned
Soften the dates in hot water and blend until very smooth. Add the vanilla extract and coconut milk and blend again. Store the paste in the fridge. Stir into coffee and enjoy.

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The coconut coffee creamer stores well in the fridge. The dates seem to emulsify the fats and water into a smooth paste.

Fatty Coconut Coffee Creamer
This recipe will be safe for someone on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, GAPS or a modified paleo diet.

The additives in canned coconut milk can be a problem for some people on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet so I have made a second recipe to avoid the additives in canned coconut milk. For someone with blood sugar issues, the extra fats will help slow down the sugars found in the dates. If someone is diabetic or pre-diabetic, remove the dates completely and just enjoy a fatty coffee!

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A Vitamix Blender will foam the coffee and creamer like a cappuchino.

8 organic medjool dates (optional)
3-4c boiling water
2T organic vanilla extract or crushed whole vanilla bean
1/4c organic pastured butter
1/4c organic coconut oil
1/4c organic coconut cream
In a small bowl soak the dates in hot water until very soft. Remove the pits and ends. In a Vitamix blender, puree the dates and some hot water until very smooth. Add the vanilla, butter, coconut oil and coconut cream and puree until very smooth. Add hot water slowly to get a smooth consistency. Store the paste in the fridge. I find the Vitamix Blender does a wonderful job of foaming up the coffee like a cappuccino.

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Adding butter to the coconut creamer gives a very dairy-like flavor to the coffee.

Ketogenic Coffee
I have been following the research on ketogenic diets for many years. My interest in the diet was its traditional use for seizure disorders. Before the development of anti-convulsive medication, the ketogenic diet was the first choice for treatment of epilepsy.

Now, the ketogenic diet is being used for diabetes and incurable cancers. Here is more information about ketogenic diets and ketogenic fasting. This recipe will help with ketogenic fasting.

3-4c boiling water
1/3c organic coconut cream
1/3c organic coconut oil
1/3c organic pastured butter
In a Vitamix blender puree the coconut cream, coconut oil and butter. Slowly add the boiling water and blend to a creamy froth. The butter gives the coconut milk a very dairy-like flavor. Store in the fridge and gently re-warm before adding to coffee. Add more butter to each cup of coffee, if desired.

Diabetes: A Modern Epidemic

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This book is required reading for anyone newly diagnosed with Diabetes.

I became very interested in diabetes a few years ago as I started realizing it was an emerging epidemic. Something is very wrong with the diabetic’s metabolism. It is a strange disease that ages the sufferers at an increased rate. Whatever the diabetic is doing wrong, it’s something we as a population are doing wrong.

Diabetes is a modern epidermic. Once a disease of old age, it is now an emerging disease of children. This is a serious situation. According to the Center for Disease Control, a child born after 2000 will have a shorter life expectancy than their parents. All because we as a population are doing something new that is making us all sick very slowly.

So, what is it? I have researched this question for about two years. There is a lot of controversy out there about the causes of diabetes. There seems to be very little interest in really curing diabetes. The focus is on the management of symptoms and making sure the patient can be just like everyone else. If you want to be just like everyone else, please go to the Canadian Diabetes Association website and they will fix you up with a nice normal diet and some insulin and medication.

For those of you who are willing to make some big changes in your life, I might have a lead on a cure. I found a wonderful little book called Life Without Bread: How a Low-carbohydrate Diet Can Save Your Life by Christian Allen and Wolfgang Lutz. It is an easy book to read when you are scared out of your mind, having just learned you have diabetes. It is available in the Kamloops Public Library.

The diet limits the diabetic’s daily carbohydrate load to under 72gm. This will cure diabetes in over 90% of patients. If you have cancer, reading this book and following the program, may avoid a re-occurrence. Of course, use all the WAPF methods of food preparation.

I have personally seen what this program can do. It has had excellent results in the people who can follow the program. If you decide to go for the cure, update me with your progress and any problems. If more people know about this program, at least people have the choice between palliative care or cure.

A good essay on diabetes is called Treating Diabetes: Practical Advice for Combating a Modern Epidemic by Dr Tom Cowan. Here is a WAPF book review for Life Without Bread.

Updated March 14, 2010: This is a link to an audio presentation with Dr Joseph Mercola and Dr Richard Johnson. Dr Johnson has been researching the mechanism of how uric acid is a major component of obesity, high blood pressure and kidney disease. He found fructose will increase uric acid formation and quickly cause insulin resistance in human pilot studies. I have said before that fructose is one of the worst food additives. This is another good reason to stop eating all processed industrial foods.