REPRINTED FROM BEYOND HEALTH® News

Caffeine Causing Diabetes?

by Raymond Francis

Diabetes is a disease condition distinguished by an inability to control blood-sugar levels, due to

insufficient production of or heightened resistance to the hormone insulin. Interestingly, diabetes

researchers induce diabetes in laboratory animals by feeding them small doses of a chemical called

alloxan. Alloxan poisons insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, killing those cells and thus creating the

conditions of diabetes. Knowing this, imagine the surprise of Dr. Alfred Nickel, an oral surgeon with

degrees in biochemistry and pharmacology, who discovered in the scientific literature that alloxan is

produced in the body from caffeine. Dr. Nickel theorized that caffeine could be a significant cause of

diabetes in humans. People who consume a lot of caffeine will produce a lot of alloxan; this could cause

diabetes or make existing diabetes worse.

Dr. Nickel was a heavy coffee drinker himself and had also developed adult diabetes. His diabetes got

worse over time, and he was taking insulin to manage his disease. He decided to experiment—first on

himself. He went off of all caffeine; after two weeks he was able to go off of insulin, and has remained

off ever since! This had a profound effect on Dr. Nickel's health in general. His eyesight returned to

where it had been fifteen years prior and his energy levels soared. He then passed this information on to

his patients, and 40 out of 45 diabetics were able to reverse their disease by removing caffeine from their

diet. Dr. Nickel witnessed patients, who were so sick with diabetes they were unable to climb up stairs,

suddenly able to throw away their crutches away and run! He observed blood glucose levels return to

normal after only a few weeks on a caffeine-free diet.

Caffeine consumption in the US is now at pharmacological (medically significant) levels. The dose of

caffeine that will produce noticeable biological effects is roughly 200 mg. The average per capita

consumption is now 206 mg/day, however, someone consuming 6 to 8 cups of coffee per day can be

getting as much as 4000 mg/day. Due to biochemical individuality, some people are more or less tolerant

to specific toxins than others. Those who are less tolerant to caffeine-produced alloxan, will likely get

sick.

Alloxan is a free radical generator. Free radicals are known to damage the body, causing it to age and

develop disease, including cancer. Since alloxan damages the pancreas, it may specifically be a

contributor to pancreatic cancer. In fact, while Dr. Nickel and I were discussing this topic on my radio

show, a woman called in and told us about her husband who died of pancreatic cancer after consuming

as many as 16 cups of coffee a day for many years.

Many caffeinated products are popular with kids, and diabetes is rapidly growing in that age group.

Medical experts have expressed alarm at the increasing rates of adult diabetes found in children.

Meanwhile, caffeine has blossomed into a multi-billion dollar industry, largely aimed at teens and college

students. Manufacturers are putting it into just about everything they can think of. Wrigley has a chewing

gum in which one stick contains the caffeine equivalent of a cup of coffee. Pepsi and Coke have always

contained substantial amounts of caffeine, and these companies have other products (Mountain Dew and

Surge) with even higher quantities. Jolt Cola, a soda aimed at the 15-21 year-old market, contains 50

percent more caffeine than other sodas and continues to increase in its popularity. Jolt Cola even has a

candy called Jolt, which is advertised as, "America's most powerful candy." Even orange juice and bottled

water are now available in caffeinated versions. A few years ago, Celestial Seasonings introduced a highly

caffeinated "Fast Lane Tea." Caffeine is a prolific toxin in our diet, and consumption keeps going up!

While there is rarely a single cause of disease, it appears that caffeine is a major contributor to disease.

Caffeine is a significant contributor to our epidemic of diabetes, depression, and perhaps pancreatic

cancer as well as other diseases. Interestingly, it is well known that caffeine can produce a "high," but

less known that it can also cause depression. So why consume all this caffeine? Because we need it to

get through the day. The U.S. population is not healthy, and we lack the boundless energy of traditionally

healthy populations. Instead, we look to stimulants like caffeine to rev up the system. This is like

constantly whipping a tired horse-eventually that horse will collapse.

Anyone with diabetes should absolutely avoid all caffeine from any source. Those wishing to prevent

diabetes should sharply limit caffeine intake from coffee, soft drinks, tea, chocolate, or any other source.

The damage done to the pancreas by alloxan from caffeine is cumulative; the longer it goes on, and the

more caffeine one ingests, the more irreparable damage is done. Even decaffeinated products should be

avoided, because the decaffinating process removes only the unbound, soluble caffeine. These products

still contain a bound form of caffeine that is capable of producing alloxan.

Raymond Francis is an M.I.T.-trained scientist, a registered nutrition consultant, author of Never Be Sick

Again and Never Be Fat Again, host of the Beyond Health Show, Chairman of the The Project to End

Disease and an internationally recognized leader in the field of optimal health maintenance.

Reprinted with permission from:

Beyond Health® News

Subscriptions: Call 800-250-3063

website: http://www.beyondhealth.com

email: mail@beyondhealth.com

Copyright 2000, Raymond Francis