You’ve probably read the statistics from the World Health Organization. The world is in the grip of an epidemic of obesity. Globally, there are more than 1 billion overweight people. At least 300 million of them are obese. Overweight and obesity are typically attributed to lack of physical activity and overeating. Unfortunately, this explanation neglects the physiological causes of overeating.
Insulin Resistance
One of the challenges in getting started on a weight-loss program is that people who are overweight are commonly also insulin resistant. The cause of insulin resistance is unclear. Some medical professionals believe that obesity causes it. Others believe that in fact, insulin resistance precedes the development of obesity.
Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas. In healthy people, insulin is released into the bloodstream when the concentration of glucose (“blood sugar”) rises above the optimum level. This happens because elevated blood glucose is toxic to virtually every organ in the body. The cause of rising blood sugar is eating carbohydrates.
Both starches and sugars in the diet break down into glucose during digestion. Insulin corrects elevated blood sugar in several ways. First, it transports glucose from the bloodstream into body cells for use as fuel. Second, insulin converts some glucose to a starch called glycogen, to be stored in the liver and muscle tissue.
The third action of insulin is to convert excess glucose into triglyceride which is then stored in fat cells. Because of this rapid conversion and storage of glucose, people who eat a lot of dietary carbohydrate typically feel hungry and fatigued not long after eating.
Eating foods high in carbohydrate causes insulin concentrations in the bloodstream to spike. When surging insulin levels occur too often, body cells respond by decreasing the sensitivity of receptors in the cell surface. As a result, glucose is not transported into cells but remains in the bloodstream, causing blood sugar levels to stay high.
The result is that cells are starved for energy, at the same time that increased amounts of glucose are converted to fat and stored. At the very moment you should be exercising to help reduce blood sugar and preserve insulin sensitivity, your body is being starved of fuel!
The more often that insulin levels spike, the more insensitive to its effects the body cells become. This leads to a vicious feedback loop of weight gain and increasing insulin resistance. When left unchecked, insulin resistance can develop into full-blown Type II diabetes.
Insulin Blocks Energy
People who are obese typically display chronically high insulin levels. There is evidence that elevated insulin in the bloodstream can block hormones that trigger lipolysis. Lipolysis is the process in which triglycerides stored in fat cells are broken into constituent glycerol and fatty acids.
Fatty acids are a form of energy that can be used by body and brain cells. Thus, high levels of insulin in the bloodstream interfere with the burning of stored fat to provide energy. It’s no wonder that people struggle to lose weight. Insulin makes people too tired to exercise to begin with, stores unused glucose as fat, and then interferes with burning the stored fat even when they do exercise!
Reversing the Process
Luckily, it is surprisingly simple to reverse the process of fat storage and accompanying energy depletion caused by elevated insulin levels. By reducing the amount of dietary carbohydrate you consume, you can normalize your blood sugars. Insulin will no longer be released to rob your body of usable energy, to store fat or to interfere with fat burning.
Disclaimer: This information is for educational purposes only and should not be considered as medical advice. It does not replace the advice of the physician who cares for you. All medical advice and information is incomplete without a physical exam, which is not possible without a visit to your doctor.
