The Gila monster is one of two venomous lizards in existence, ranging from 1-2 feet long and weighing no more than 5 pounds, whose natural habitat is being endangered. Its saliva is also the primary source for Byetta (exenatide), the first of a new class of drugs approved last Friday by the FDA to "help" type 2 diabetes control their blood sugar.

Byetta, produced by Eli Lilly and Amylin Pharmaceuticals, works like a type of drugs called sulfonylureas that spur the body to produce more insulin. Also, Byetta is referred to as a incretin mimetic, a "first-of-its-kind" drug that mimics action of the GLP-1 hormone that's secreted by the gut to spur insulin production after a meal, but only when blood sugar is high. That's an important difference, according to the FDA, separating Byetta from other drugs that generate insulin secretion regardless if a patient's blood sugar is low or not.

For now, the plan is for doctors to prescribe Byetta, a synthetic version of a protein found in the saliva of the Gila monster that works like GLP-1, with older diabetic drugs via twice-a-day injections.

See anything wrong with this picture? And, more to the point, would you want to take any kind of drug derived from the spit of a Gila monster?

One important fact to remember about drugs, particularly ones considered to be of the "miracle" variety: These branded products hardly ever get to the root cause of a patient's problem any more effectively than snake oil. And there's no reason to take them when there are other safer, healthier and much more affordable options available to you.

• Eliminate grains and sugars from your diet until you normalize your blood sugar.
• Fine-tune your diet by eating foods that are appropriate for your body's unique nutritional type.
• Use exercise to increase the sensitivity of your insulin receptors so the insulin you are already making works that much more effectively.
• Get a healthy amount of sleep every night.

Yahoo News April 30, 2005