Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

GreenScribe — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 17:33:40 GMT

There is not something that applies to EVERYONE, and when I see an article like this, I know it might be helping some people, but leaving out many others. WOMEN going through perimenopause start having changes: Like developing a belly - despite not changing their diet and exercise regime. That is exactly what happened to me. I exercise vigorously 5 times per week - and did before and after my hormones started changing. I went to the doctor as this change started happening, and no one could explain why or what to do about it - other than eating even less & exercising more (I was already on a 1,200 calorie diet). My body shape has changed entirely - I used to have a "Scarlet O'Hara" tiny waist - and now I have a big belly, and cannot budge ANY of it off - no dieting, no exercise has made 1/2 inch change.

It's very frustrating to read articles that claim to have the cure - I've checked all over the internet, and MANY women going through menopause are reporting the same thing. How about addressing that issue?

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

RAF tartan — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 19:33:48 GMT

On a previous I indicated that after fourteen years of taking insulin I managed to completely stop two years ago with diet and exercise. At this point mt weight loss stopped and my HBa1C readings varied between 6.6 and 6.1.The doctor had told me that my insulin resistance problem had gone. I decided not to take this advice and introduced alpha lipoic acid every day now my blood sugar averages 5.8 and have made significant weight loss.

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

Dorle — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 17:23:39 GMT

There must be more involved than diet and exercise because I cannot get rid of my belly fat in spite of regular circuit training, 3 times/week [Curves] for almost three years. My type 2 diabetes is somewhat controlled with medications and attention to diet, very difficult, since I've recently been diagnosed with 50% kidney function. That means restriction on potassium, so that I cannot eat things like nuts and beans for example, that are recommended for diabetics though. My father was type 1, died at age 65, my sister has also type 1. Both of them battled overweight for many years; I "joined" them more recently.

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

RAF tartan — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 09:43:58 GMT

I have managed to reverse my diabetes after fouteen years of injecting insulin with change of diet and exercise resulting in significant weight loss.Does this insulin resistance correlate with elevated cholesterol?

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

curious7 — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 23:57:10 GMT

This too is "Junk Science." Poor diets full of processed foods, abcent of nutrition continues to deatroy the health of many people, and what is at stake, is 40 billions dollars a day. That is what the diabetes industry earns worldwide each day. Please understand, please pass on this information.

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

stedgar — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 18:14:35 GMT

Everything I've read in the last 10 year indicates that excess belly fat (Male Pattern Obesity) is a SYMPTOM of Insulin Resistance.

Why is this being touted as 'News'?

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

larrybou — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 17:42:10 GMT

Since there's a fat buildup around the liver and other organs, I wonder if fasting along with liver detox might not be the best short term course of action to have the body start working on those fat deposits straight away. Exercize programs should of course be started but take time to ramp up, stick with etc. Any ideas?

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

bagarino — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 17:08:47 GMT

My father died from the complications of type II diabetes late last year at the age of 76 having been diagnosed as a sufferer almost 30 years previously when he was overweight. He immediately set about improving his diet (see below) and lost the belly but his diabetes did not improve an iota. Having been a keen sportsman for many years he'd become extremely sedentary and loathed getting out of breath in spite of us telling him it would do him good. As for the diet, he was convinced (as David indicated in his post) that the diabetic nurse's recommendation of "low fat, no saturated fat, whole grain, 'some sugar' " was healthy and would pile his plate with MOUNTAINS of fruit. ("Must get my five fruit and veg".) His favourite? Grapes!! Talk about stimulating insulin! Even in the hospital at the end the doctors brayed on about him eating carbohydrate even as they pumped him full of insulin to reduce his blood sugar.

I'm very interested in the metabolic pathway problems in Metabolic Syndrome, especially the difficulty in getting glucose into the cells to form glycogen (and laying down fat instead). All bodybuilders know that the insulin spike after a training session will drive glucose and amino acids into their muscle cells to aid repairs. We can learn a lot from them about nutrition and it's important not to 'throw the baby out with the bathwater' and condemn them all for using anabolics. Many of the 50 and 60 year old BB's I know are some of the fittest looking old fellows I've ever seen for their ages. One is 72! Hasn't missed more than four gym sessions since 1950. No wonder insulin resistance causes such havoc if the basic fuel and repair supplies can't get into the cells and get laid down as fat instead.

To sum up... a really low GI diet (mind the fruit) and plenty of resistance-based physical activity would probably have got him another ten years of life.

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

Dr. Toulon — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 17:04:20 GMT

Excellent information, but if we look at the simple things that cause insulin resistance it will help shape the intervention. So what causes insulin resistance? Stress response, joint dysfunction/movement deficiencies, poor diet.

Stress response: When the body perceives a threat (mental, emotional, chemical, or physical) it responds via neural pathways that alter our resting/homeostatic physiology to our adaptive/survival physiology. This response over a long (chronic) period down regulates insulin receptors.

Joint Dysfunction/Movement deficiencies: We know that after one hour of non-movement we already begin to down regulate insulin receptor, even in elite athletes we see this response after only one day of non-activity. Joint dysfunction, especially spinal joints, create the very same stress response as stated above as well as non-activity at that level. A decrease in mechanoreception from the dysfunctional joints develops an increase in nociception and initiates the stress response. This is how chiropractic care can have a huge impact on health restoration, helping the body return to resting/homeostatic physiology.

Diet: Eating foods that were designed by our creator for healthy physiology is the only way to help the body restore healthy physiology. Eating processed foods, GMO, foods developed by modern means that are either deplete of nutients or riddled with toxins...or worse, Both! Proper education and coaching by a qualified natural health practitioner can go a long way to helping restore normal homeostatic physiology.

It is not the disease we should be focused on, rather why is the body, designed to move towards homeostasis as best as it can as often as it can, stuck in an adaptive/survival physiology? And... how can we assist the body in moving towards its natural resting place...homeostasis! Learn to eat for your health, move for your health, and manage your thoughts and emotions in a way that restores health :) Because you are worth it!!

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

Artsy — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 11:59:56 GMT

Does anyone know what the best exercise is to get rid of that spare tire around the middle? My husband does not have excessive weight anywhere except around the belly. He bikes, and walks about 5-6 days a week, but continues to keep the extra weight in that area. He also follows a low glycemic diet. Does anyone have any other suggestions? Thanks for the help!

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

igotstudies — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 11:36:25 GMT

I know one hospital dietitian that told my friend who suffered a heart attack that says artificial sweetner is good for you! lol.

About metabolic disorder: Insulin problems, can definitely comes from metabolic damage brought on improper eating, especially by taking too little calories (under absolute BMR) for one.

Insulin Resistance is caused by being overweight (above your normal BMI) for average person (non-athletic or with a low degree of muscle to fat ratio). Most people think they are insulin resistance, but really it's just a symptom that can be cured by a proper nutrition and exercise strategy. This is my opinion and I'm not applying this to people that have type 1 diabetes.

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

david — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 21:38:47 GMT

Many people who have a logical understanding of basic body biochemistry, will have known this for some time.
The question is....
WHY...
here in the UK at least, do dieticians ...
hospital nutritionists.... Diabetes UK.... the vast majority of health advisors/professionals...
.and of course, the food industry ('we're in control') ;).... advocate Low fat, no saturated fat, whole grain, 'some sugar', eating regimes!!??

Small wonder we have such health problems eh?!

David.

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

mimi2seven — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 18:11:59 GMT

All I could think when I read this was "Well, duh!" I mean, I figured this out for myself just by reading about how the body is supposed to work as opposed to how the bodies of Type 2 diabetics and people with metabolic syndrome work. I've been saying it for years - the fat doesn't cause diabetes, the diabetes causes the fat. The problem just isn't being identified until the poor victim has already become obese and unhealthy on the grain-heavy American diet.

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

BigEdd — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 02:03:06 GMT

Dr. Mercola,

In your article of 7/12/2007- Triglycerides Explained, I posted the following comment:

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"Dr. Mercola,

You state that, "When your body has more triglycerides than it can use, the excess triglycerides end up being transported to fat cells (rather than being used by your body for energy)."

Why is it assumed that only "excess triglycerides" are the ones that are transported to fat cells? (This is part of my "new idea". Let me know if you are ready for the rest of it.).

In my unpublished manuscript, I call the triglycerides "thorns" and indicate that they are stored in fat cells for the body's protection. These bad boys are not necessarily "excess"."

Now, in this article, "They found that insulin sensitive individuals processed the carbohydrates in their meals into glycogen in both liver and muscle tissue, whereas insulin resistant subjects turned it into liver triglycerides (the storage form of fat).

What do you think of my logic and "dangerous conclusions" now?

You said earlier that insulin was the problem. How

re: Insulin Resistance -- Not Belly Fat -- to Blame for Metabolic Syndrome

Jen333 — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 04:40:13 GMT

very interesting!