Years ago, my older brother had type 2 diabetes which he managed with insulin injections. Eventually his kidneys failed, and after five years of dialysis and multiple secondary complications, he passed.

When my brother first told me he had diabetes, it scared me. I knew how it could end and that I was also at risk. My family is genetically prone to obesity, metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular and lung diseases, thus I made it a priority to ‘never go there’ and started asking a lot of questions.

Here is a simplified version of the process I went through:

What causes diabetes? Chronically elevated blood sugar levels.
What causes elevated blood sugar levels? The type and quantity of food eaten (sugar in), the level of activity or exercise (sugar burned) and of course, insulin sensitivity.
What should I eat? More vegetables, while cutting out sugar and desserts.
What type of exercise is good for me? For me, a mini trampoline and weights.
How can I be sure I’ll follow through with my plan? I found support from others who also wanted to lose weight.

I asked questions, found answers, changed my diet, exercised, lost 80 pounds and avoided diabetes and other conditions considered hereditary. I discovered there’s more to health than just genetic tendencies.

New possibilities begin with questions. If you’re not getting the results you want… ask questions. If you don’t know what to ask, research, “what questions should I ask to help me (insert your desire or intention)?” Open-ended questions such as the following invite new possibilities:

What is the root cause of my condition? How can I change that?
If it’s due to inflammation (standardly an “–itis”), what can I do to help tissues that aren’t healing and reduce inflammation?
How can I naturally rebalance or strengthen my (immune, hormonal, endocrine, cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive) system?
What behaviors can I change to improve gene expression? (i.e., diet, sleep, exercise, supplements, stress reduction, etc.)
Who can support my journey and help me find the questions and answers I need?

Use the power of questions to help lead the way to new healing possibilities.

Marty Gronewald is a certified functional medicine health coach. Marty works at AcQPoint Wellness Center in Palm Desert and can be reached at (760) 238.0082 or [email protected].