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diet syndrome x, nutrients metabolic syndrome, nutrients insulin resistance, glycemic balance, glycemic load, carbohydrates and fats in syndrome x, essential fatty acids and insulin resistance, alpha lipoic acid and blood sugar, chromium and blood sugar, african american syndrome x magnesium, natural help insulin resistance obesity, natural help syndrome x, vitamin lady writes about insulin resistanceTHE
ROLE OF INSULIN:
INSULIN
RESISTANCE
Syndrome X
by Lynn Hinderliter CN, LDN |
Insulin is a hormone, a messenger in our body, released by
the pancreas to help cope with high levels of sugar in our
bloodstream. Insulin's role is to stimulate the cells to
capture this sugar, and either burn it for energy as needed then
and there, or convert it to a storage form of carbohydrates for
reserve energy called glycogen.
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When
the body is continually assaulted by foods containing
high levels of simple sugars, the cells
become resistant to insulin.
Insulin left free in the bloodstream cannot perform its
function of
lowering sugar levels.
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The pancreas is therefore stimulated by
sugar's continued presence to produce more insulin, and a
vicious cycle is in place. High Insulin levels lead to
more fat cells (inefficient burners of glucose) and fewer lean
muscle cells; more fat cells mean more weight, less
ability or desire to exercise, ergo less glucose burned .
Consider these figures:
In 1978, one quarter of
Americans were overweight, as defined by a body mass
index (BMI) of 25-30 kg/m2, and in 1990,
one third were overweight -- a 33% increase. The
latest figures from the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention show that 60% are now overweight.
Similarly, the prevalence of obesity (defined as a
BMI of >30 kg/m2) increased from 12%
in 1991 to 19% in 1999.[1]
It has been estimated that 300,000 deaths per year
are attributable to obesity, and that it accounts
for nearly 10% of national health costs. (Mokdad
AH, Serdula MK, Dietz WH, et al. The continuing
epidemic of obesity in the United States. JAMA.
2000; 284:1650-1651.)
In 2002,
rates continue to increase, rising to nearly 65% of
adults from 56%, while rates of extreme
obesity increased to nearly 5% from 3%. |
Health experts now believe that they have
identified insulin resistance as the common factor
explaining the increase of chronic disease in the United States.
A huge 2004 study of over 39,000 in 40 countries people
made an incontrovertible connection between high blood sugar and
cardiovascular disease. About half of the subjects were
men, averaging 63 years of age, and the researchers determined
that only one man in three had normal glucose and insulin
levels. I in 5 had diabetes that had gone undetected, and
over 1 in 4 had pre-diabetic readings. This emphasizes the
importance of controlling blood sugar.
Insulin Resistance accounts for the
otherwise inexplicably higher number of overweight people
in this country, which is occurring at the same time a Health
Club a day opens, and people are watching their diets with
almost religious fervor. Some call it "insulin
resistance ", some metabolic syndrome, or syndrome X, but
all of these names describe the reaction in our body which prevents
insulin from docking with its receptor sites in our cells.
The problem at its most basic is that the sugar not removed from
the blood has to have an end goal, and that is either to be
stored as fat, or to be converted into triglycerides: and as we
all know, obesity and high triglycerides present us with many
undesirable bills, which eventually have to be paid. Out of
control blood sugar is also a definition of diabetes.
Consider the following:
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Diabetes
epidemic in the USA 2000–2050
Original
article:
Projection of diabetes burden
through 2050. Impact of changing
demography and disease prevalence in
the U.S. Boyle JP, Honeycutt AA,
Venkat Narayan KM, Hoerger TJ, Geiss
LS, Chen H, Thompson TJ. Diabetes
Care 2001; 24: 1936–40.
Summary and Comment
The authors of this article have
predicted that the number of
individuals with diagnosed diabetes
in the USA will increase by 165%
in the next 50 years, rising
from 11 million in 2000 to 29
million in 2050. The biggest
percentage increases are projected
to be among those aged 75 years and
over (336%) and among Afro-Americans
(275%).
These predictions are consistent
with the trend seen in virtually
every developed nation [1], where,
in addition, diabetes ranks as one
of the top two causes of blindness,
renal failure and lower limb
amputation. Through its effects on
the cardiovascular system (nearly
80% of people with diabetes die of
cardiovascular disease), it is also
now one of the leading causes of
death. Similar patterns are emerging
in most developing nations [1, 2].
Recent estimates by the
International Diabetes Institute and
WHO suggest that the global number
of persons with diabetes will rise
from 151 million in the year 2000 to
221 million by the year 2010, and to
300 million by 2025 [1]. This rise
is predicted to occur in virtually
every country throughout the world,
with the greatest increases expected
in developing countries,
particularly in Asia.
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If you are "apple-shaped"
(see RESOURCES), your health is at greater risk.
One cause of this imbalance is that when
Americans cut out fat, as they have been encouraged to do in
recent years, they all too often substitute with
fat-free products that are very high in carbohydrates, and
in fact imbalance, or load, their diet with carbohydrates.
For many years, athletes believed that this is the route to
better performance, but new studies dispute that theory. What we
are finding now is that a ratio in our diet of approximately 30%
protein to 30% fat to 40% carbohydrates more closely
approximates the ideal - not empty carbs, however, but carbs
from complex sources, such as whole grains, fruits and veggies
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My
own husband, finally convinced that he has a metabolic
problem, watched in awe as the fat almost melted off him
with this approach.
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He had allowed himself to reach a weight
of 220 lbs, almost 40 lbs more than he needed, and even though
he was running every day and eating a healthy diet (after all,
he does eat at my house!) he still could not lose weight.
He began to limit his carbohydrates to 40
grams per day, and his calories to app. 1000. He used Ketostix
to confirm that his body was in what Dr. Atkins calls
"Benign Dietary Ketosis". And in the first week, he
lost nineteen pounds. Nine weeks later, he was at his target
weight, and sensible eating and exercise have kept him there
ever since. He is not the only person I have seen benefit from
this plan, by any means: but there is no doubt it is not for
everyone. I, personally, suffered through the diet for 2 weeks,
and lost not a pound! Barry Sears book called Enter
the Zone, gives a very detailed account of this approach and
some extremely impressive results in many intractable health
problems. I do not agree with all that he writes, but the diet
he recommends is excellent.
Five or six small meals a day, balanced
to the figures suggested above, and relying on lean
proteins, whole grains **, fruits and vegetables, unsaturated
oils from good sources and eliminating caffeine, excessive
alcohol and soft drinks will bring about a very positive
change in insulin balance, and therefore weight and health.
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What
can be done to control Insulin Resistance?
- First and most
important, limit your intake of
simple carbohydrates.
- Choose complex carbohydrates
with low glycemic indeces and a low glycemic
load (see
RESOURCES)
- Second, if carbs are to
be eaten, make sure they are accompanied by
FIBER
and
FRIENDLY
FATS. This will slow their absorption
into the blood stream, and also slow the rate at
which the body demands insulin.
- Third - Exercise. Not
just aerobic, but weight lifting.
Controlling body fat is more important than
actual pounds! Remember, too, that muscle is
more metabolically active than fat: just sitting
doing nothing, muscle burns more calories than
fat, so any increase in lean muscle will make
your body a more efficient fat-burning machine.
- Fourth, supplement
-
* With Omega 3 fatty acids
to make sure your cells have what they need to
support fluidity.
*One supplement that seems to
particularly help with the problem of insulin
resistance is an Ayurvedic herb called Garcinia
Cambogia. It comes from India, where it
has been traditionally used as an appetite
control, and as an aid in processing food. It is a
source of hydroxy-citric acid, or HCA, which
appears to work by blocking a key cellular pathway
that converts glucose to fat. Certainly animals
fed an HCA supplemented diet have shown reduced
food intake, a decline in body fat and lowered
triglyceride levels, all highly desirable
results in the fight against Syndrome X.
*Consider Alpha Lipoic Acid.
Sid Shastri, CCN of Jarrow Formulas, says: the
first line of defense in the war against NIDDM
(Non Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus) must be
Alpha Lipoic Acid (actually, my personal opinion
is that ALA is one of the most important nutrients
to promote optimal health generally). There is a
great deal of evidence proving that ALA is the
closest consumers can get to a bullet-proof vest
against diabetes; consider the following:
* NIDDM
humans given a 1000 mg ALA experienced
50% improvement in insulin-stimulated
glucose disposal (Arzneimittel-Forschung
1995; 45:872-4)
* In animal studies, ALA supplementation
prevented diabetes in 70% of the
diabetes-induced animals (Int J
Immunopharmac 1994;16:61-6)
* In Germany, the first line of defense
against diabetic neuropathies (i.e.
polyneuropathy, retinopathy) for over 20
years has been ALA,.
* ALA reduces plasma oxidation, whole
body oxidation (as measured by urinary
isoprostanes) and LDL-oxidation. |
*Mr. Shastri also recommends Chromium,
saying it is (rightfully) a popular mineral
supplement (largest selling mineral supplement
after calcium, to the tune of 10 million US
consumers) that has widespread applications,
including NIDDM. Originally, interest in chromium
developed through observations that animals feed
chromium-free diets had impaired glucose
tolerance. Although there are differences in the
forms of chromium available, it is more important
to consume the chromium. A recent article in the
journal Nutrition Reviews concluded "The
metabolic effects of this cheap, natural, and
probably safe agent in this large study of type II
diabetics were comparable to oral hypoglycemic
agents or insulin". Chromium is essential for
optimal insulin action, as has been documented in
studies done on NIDDM subjects. Dosages used in
this study on type II diabetics are 200 to 1000
mcg/day.
Phaseolomin - this is a
new generation starch
blocker protein, which
has the capability of attaching to a
carbohydrate molecula and preventing it from being
split into sugars. This enables the body to
rid itself of carbohydrates without absorbing
them, reducing both blood sugar levels and insulin
requirements.
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Remember, fats are often replaced in
fat-free foods by carbohydrates, causing the pancreas to
produce high amounts of insulin to cope with the high
sugar levels. When the fats we need, the poly-unsaturated
fats, are not available to our cells, or even worse, are
replaced by trans fats, the fluidity of the cell membrane is
adversely affected. Insulin cannot bind to the receptor sites on
the surface of the cell.
As insulin levels rise and insulin resistance
in the body increases. the situation develops its own momentum:
the activity of the delta desaturase enzymes which break down
essential fatty acids declines, increased amounts of saturated
fats become part of our cell membranes, and insulin
sensitivity becomes more extreme. The enzyme pathways shut
down through which Arachidonic acid is converted to the
friendly GLA. This in turn means the messengers (eicosanoids)
which promote insulin sensitivity in the cells are not sent to
do their jobs, more insulin is produced to take care of the
added carbs, and the stage is set leading potentially
through inflammation to diabetes, cardiovascular problems
and cancer. Metabolic Syndrome (Syndrome X) or Insulin
Resistance, is set in motion.
Link
between Inflammation and Cancer - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?holding=npg&cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12490959&dopt=Abstract
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These
pathways are needed lead to control inflammation,
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of particular importance when
one looks at the research implicating inflammation
generally in poor heart health: Dr.
Giles & colleagues (published in Am J Respir Crit Care
Med 2000;162:1348-1354) examined a study conducted from 1976
to 1992 on 8900 adults, and stated "What we found was that
people with an elevated white count were 40% more likely to die
from coronary heart disease after taking into account a number
of traditional risk factors". Link
between Inflammation and Disease - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?holding=npg&cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12490959&dopt=Abstract
The study showed that patients with a white
blood count over 7.6 were at much higher risk of dying from
Coronary Heart Disease, even after adjusting for other risk
factors. The new findings support a role for inflammation as a
causal factor in the pathogenesis of CHD, the authors say.
"We really don't know whether reducing white count will
lower the risk," Dr. Giles added in an interview.
"That's where we need more studies."
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Fatty
acid balance determines one's degree of inflammation: if
the delta5 desaturase enzymes are turned off by insulin
activity, inflammatory cell messengers will be produced,
and anti-inflammatory ones in the Omega 3 pathway
inhibited.
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. An added benefit for heart health is that
while the Arachidonic acid obtained from animal fats is highly
pro-aggregatory (the Linoleic acid contained in such fats
is a precursor only for Arachidonic acid and subsequently
inflammatory PGE2) the good Omega 3 fatty acids such as Fish
Oils produce PGE1 (Prostaglandin E1), a potent inhibitor of
platelet aggregation.
Studies on Borage Oil's (high in GLA)
use in cases of high cholesterol show an effective dose to be in
the 1 to 4 gram range, with improvement in LDL and HDL levels
being noted after 2 months. With cardiovascular disease, doses
of 4 to 5 grams were shown to reduce blood pressure, and suggest
that it may also inhibit some of the processes which lead to
plaque forming in blood vessels. A study published in the Journal
of Hypertension in 1996 showed that 1 gram of GLA taken
for four weeks lowered blood pressure during stress
exposure tests, where a placebo control group evidenced an
increase in blood pressure.
Lowering cholesterol is only part of the
answer, however. High cholesterol as a cause of heart
disease is not convincing to me: more interesting is
research suggesting that not HDL alone, but high HDL2 versus
HDL3, is protective against heart problems. Insulin
resistance may play a part in suppressing HDL2
(interestingly, beta blockers and thiazide diuretics do too),
and HDL3 is converted to HDL2 by exercise, but also by certain
supplements, notably Resveratrol and Red Wine
Extracts.
If you are African American, you will be
interested in another meta-analysis done by Dr. Chester Fox,
associate Professor of clinical family medicine at Buffalo using
more than 100 studies. He determined that diets lacking
in magnesium among young black men and women contribute not
only to high blood pressure, but to insulin resistance.
He also pointed out that serum magnesium tests are not
necessarily reliable as a guide to magnesium levels, since much
may be circulating, but little may be stored. He suggests
adding good sources of magnesium such as avocados, leafy
green vegetables and fruits to the diet, but to be careful
about supplementation if you have kidney problems.
Insulin Resistance is a
dangerous, very dangerous, threat to the balance of health, and
needs to be addressed vigorously with diet and exercise.
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The
metabolic syndrome, affects more than 20% of the US
population, according to a report in the February 24th
Archives of Internal Medicine.
The
metabolic syndrome includes high blood pressure, low HDL
cholesterol level, high triglyceride level, high plasma
glucose concentration, and obesity, the authors explain;
the syndrome is defined by three or more of those
conditions. Its prevalence in the US was previously
uncertain.
Dr.
Steven Heymsfield from the Obesity Research Center of
Columbia University in New York and colleagues used data
from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination
Survey (NHANES III) to estimate the prevalence of
metabolic syndrome in 3305 black, 3477 Mexican American,
and 5581 white men and women aged 20 years and older.
Overall,
the authors report, 22.8% of men and 22.6% of women
satisfied the Third Report of the National Cholesterol
Education Program Adult Treatment Panel (ATP III)
guidelines for the diagnosis of metabolic syndrome.
The
prevalence was higher in Mexican American (20.8%) and
white (24.3%) men than in black men (13.9%), the report
indicates, and higher in Mexican American women (27.2%)
than in black (20.9%) and white (22.9%) women.
The
prevalence of metabolic syndrome increased significantly
with advancing age, the researchers note.
According
to multiple regression models, additional independent
risk factors for metabolic syndrome included current
smoking, high carbohydrate intake, and physical
inactivity in men, as well as current and previous
smoking, non-drinking, low household income, and
postmenopausal status in women.
"Metabolic syndrome
is extremely common, particular in some age, weight, and
minority groups," increasing physical activity
"is the most potent lifestyle treatment for
metabolic syndrome," said Dr. Heymsfield.
"Metabolic syndrome is most sensitive to treatment
in the 'overweight' range, so even if you are few pounds
overweight you may have great health benefits from small
weight loss."
Arch Intern Med 2003;163:427-736,395-397.
**
For some unfortunates, even whole grains are
contra-indicated because of their effect on blood sugar
levels.
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| Keywords:
diet syndrome x, nutrients metabolic syndrome, nutrients
insulin resistance, glycemic balance, glycemic load,
carbohydrates and fats in syndrome x, essential fatty
acids and insulin resistance, alpha lipoic acid and
blood sugar, chromium and blood sugar, african american
syndrome x magnesium, natural help insulin resistance
obesity, natural help syndrome x, the vitamin lady
writes about insulin resistance |
Insulin
Resistance in more detail - http://www.woundcare.org/newsvol1n3/ar1.htm
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Link
between Obesity, Syndrome X/Insulin Resistance and Alzheimer's/Dementia?
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=retrieve&db=pubmed&list_uids=9366728&dopt=Abstract
|
Link
between Insulin Resistance and Cancer - http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/2c5a2.htm
Inflammation
and Cancer - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?holding=npg&cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12490959&dopt=Abstract
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Jack
Challem: Insulin Resistance - the
Disease you may already have. - http://www.nutritionreporter.com/insulin_resistance.html
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