By Jacob Teitelbaum, MD, and Terry Lemerond
Did you know you can stop diabetes without medications? High blood sugar, Type 2 diabetes, and metabolic syndrome are not inevitable. A diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes is not a life sentence.
Whatever the statistics may tell you (and your doctor), you can stabilize, reverse, and normalize your blood sugar levels with diet and lifestyle changes, along with the help of a potent herbal extract.
Clinical research has now confirmed what the indigenous people of Mexico have known for centuries: Hintonia latiflora is effective for mild to moderate Type 2 diabetes.
Found in marketplaces in Mexico and Central America, this medicinal botanical is an extract of the bark of a shrubby tree that grows in the Sonoran Desert. Its medicinal power comes from the extreme climate changes the tree experiences in its desert home.
The desert’s scorching heat and torrential rainfalls stress the Hintonia latiflora tree and provide the keys to a powerful defense mechanism inherent in the plant and an essential part of its medicinal value. The natural environmental stressors enhance the tree’s ability to survive and thrive in such a harsh environment and are key to Hintonia’s traditional use to treat Type 2 diabetes and gastrointestinal problems.
Importantly, hintonia is much more than a folk remedy. It’s been studied in detail for its ability to reverse high blood sugar for over 60 years.
How Does Hintonia Work?
First, it is a rich source of flavonoids—nutritional compounds found in colorful fruits and vegetables. Extensive research shows that flavonoids reduce insulin resistance and inflammation.
Research shows that not only can Hintonia help control blood sugar and overcome insulin resistance (reducing your need for pharmaceuticals), it can also enhance the effectiveness of diabetes medications.
According to a study published in the German journal Naturopathic Practice with Natural Medicine, the dry concentrated bark extract of Hintonia latiflora—combined with additional nutrients—significantly lowered HbA1C values (average levels of blood sugar), fasting glucose levels (blood sugar before a meal), and postprandial blood sugar levels.
Fasting and after-meal blood-glucose numbers, along with HbA1C levels, are important because they show how much sugar circulates through your system and how your body deals with it after meals. What the research found was fascinating: fasting and post-meal blood sugars improved by an impressive 23 percent and 24 percent, respectively, with Hintonia. Additionally, glycosylated hemoglobin decreased by a remarkable average of 0.8 points (approximately 11 percent). This means many people went from being diabetic to non-diabetic.
Impressively, by the end of the study, 39 percent of those using anti-diabetes drugs could reduce their medication dosage. Some were able to stop their diabetes medications entirely.
There is more good news: Hintonia not only could lower blood sugar and reverse diabetes, but often eliminate many of the symptoms of diabetes.
One study factored in a mix of major diabetic symptoms. The scores improved an impressive 73 percent, from an average 4.8 points to 1.3 points by the end of the study. This is a massive change that can dramatically improve quality of life and well-being. Study participants also saw improvements in blood pressure, lipids, and liver values.
Other notable studies on Hintonia show that compounds from its leaves may stop gastrointestinal damage and gastric ulcers. Considering the gastrointestinal discomfort caused by some drugs used for Type 2 diabetes, this is yet another reason to consider adding Hintonia latiflora to a diabetes-fighting regimen.
Stop the Blood Sugar Rollercoaster
People with diabetes struggle with blood sugars that spike and plummet during the day and night. As this occurs, your energy, pain, and mental clarity may end up on a roller coaster as well.
One of Hintonia’s greatest benefits is that it helps keep those sugars steady throughout the day and night, making life easier and contributing to better long-term glucose controls.
Mexican researchers were finally able to isolate the unique way that it works: the plant is an inhibitor of alpha-glucosidase—an enzyme that releases sugar from foods, particularly carbohydrates. Many know that carbohydrates, especially simple carbohydrates such as sugar and foods prepared with white flour, are problematic for people with Type 2 diabetes, so this news alone is a huge boon for people living with the disease.
Coutareagenin—a polyphenol nutrient found in the bark extracts unique to Hintonia—appears to be responsible for many of its other blood-sugar-controlling benefits. For this reason, consider Hintonia supplement standardized to contain at least 20 mg of coutareagenin polyphenols.
The president of the International Diabetes Foundation was the lead author on another study that strongly recommended the use of this unique herb in treating and preventing Type 2 diabetes. The reason for that is not only because of Hintonia’s role in improving blood sugar control, but also because of its effectiveness in lowering cholesterol and other elements of metabolic syndrome that can lead to Type 2 diabetes.
Finally, in another clinical study, adult participants with Type 2 diabetes were provided with an extract of Hintonia latiflora combined with trace nutrients (vitamins B1, B6, B12, folic acid, chromium, zinc, and vitamins C and E) for six months. These ingredients also help protect against oxidative damage to blood vessels, stop nerve damage, and keep metabolism functioning optimally.
Where Does Hintonia Come From?
Hintonia is grown and harvested wild and also in specific fields where a technique called vegetative reproduction is used. Once one plant is harvested, parts of its root are taken and planted somewhere else, resulting in a new bush with the same properties and content of polyphenols.
The bark containing the valuable polyphenols is peeled off, but to protect the plant, only the upper layers are normally removed, while the bark layers below remain. This way, the Hintonia bush stays alive and healthy, and the bark—the lifeline where the nutrients and water are transported between the roots and crown—remains intact. This careful and labor-intensive way of harvesting is essential to protect these precious bushes and prevent overharvesting.
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Jacob Tetelbaum, MD, is among the most frequently quoted integrative medical authorities in the world. He is the author of bestselling books, including Real Cause Real Cure, The Fatigue and Fibromyalgia Solution, The Complete Guide to Beating Sugar Addiction, and the popular free smartphone app Cures A-Z.
Terry Lemerond is a natural health expert with over 50 years of experience helping people live healthier, happier lives. Terry shares his nutrition and health knowledge through his newsletters, podcasts, webinars, radio program, and his website TerryTalksNutrition.com
Well Being Journal adapted this passage by permission from Diabetes is Optional, copyright 2020 by TTN Publishing, LLC.
