January 15, 2010

When Weight Won't Come Off - Insulin Resistance Could Be Key

It's estimated that between 65 and 70 million people in
the US have what's called "Syndrome X."

Sounds mysterious, but what it means is insulin
resistance.  It's the underlying factor for a whole lot of
health problems and extra thickness in our love handles.

Here's the scoop:

Insulin resistance is a condition where your body produces
insulin but doesn't use it properly.  Insulin (a hormone
secreted by the pancreas) helps your body use glucose for
energy. 

When you're healthy, your digestive system breaks your
food down into glucose, which is then absorbed into the
bloodstream and travels throughout your body.  As your
blood glucose level rises after eating, the pancreas
releases insulin to help your cells take in and use the
glucose.

So far so good...

But when someone is insulin resistant, their muscle, fat,
and liver cells don't respond like they should to insulin--
they "lock the door" and won't let the glucose in.  As a
result, their body needs MORE insulin to help glucose enter
their cells.

The pancreas gets stressed, desperately trying to keep up
with this increased demand for insulin, but eventually it
fails.  Then excess glucose builds up in your bloodstream,
and you become a prime candidate for diabetes.

People with Syndrome X (insulin resistance) are at a
greater risk for developing these medical problems as well
(I'll explain why down below):

* High blood pressure
* Elevated LDL (bad cholesterol) and triglycerides
* Coronary artery disease
* Heart attack
* Obesity


Insulin resistance is largely due to eating a diet loaded
with refined carbohydrates (sugars, white flour, white rice
and all products made with them).  Your body eventually
can't handle the daily onslaught of such high glycemic
foods. 

There is evidence that it can be genetic as well.

And insulin resistance can also be caused by a deficiency
in Omega-3 fatty acids. 

Here's why:

Omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) are found at every level
of your body.  They are a MAJOR structural component of
your cell membranes where they help control cell signaling,
immune responses, inflammation and other metabolic
functions (including the production and release of insulin).

As such, EPA and DHA are fundamental building blocks of
virtually every organ and organ system, and play a crucial
role in healthy physiological function.

So to be low in such an important nutrient can have
drastic consequences from head to toe.  That's why insulin
resistant people are also candidates for the other
conditions I mentioned above--every single bodily process
can be affected by an Omega-3 deficiency. 

Plus, your body depends on having a delicate balance of
Omega-6 to Omega-3 fatty acids (experts say between 3:1 and
5:1 is best).  Having too much of one or the other leads to
inflammation, sickness and disease. 

Because our typical diet of processed foods and lots of
meat is heavy in Omega-6 fatty acids, an estimated 6 out of
10 Americans have way too much Omega-6 and are seriously
low in Omega-3.

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