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page to your friends and colleagues. This article was originally
published in Diabetes Health in October, 2007. Gastroparesis
doesn't sound good, and it isn't. Literally "stomach paralysis,"
it is a form of diabetic neuropathy, or nerve damage, that is a
common complication of diabetes. The damaged nerve in question
is the vagus nerve, named for its vagabond-like wandering
nature. The vagus nerve meanders all the way from the brainstem
to the colon, controlling heart rate, sweating, gastrointestinal
contractions, and various other involuntary, automatic functions
on its way. In the case of gastroparesis, it's the vagus nerve's
control of stomach contractions that's damaged. The stomach is
basically a hollow ball made of muscle that serves as a storage
container an