Insulin "Friend' or "Foe" Part II

In the previous article I talked about to many carbs in a sitting (either simple or complex) can be bad because of insulin production. Your body needs carbohydrates for energy so you just have to learn to regulate how much insulin your body will produce and there are 2 ways to do it:

1) Eat mostly complex carbs from vegetables and simple carbs from fruits to slow insulin production and keep insulin at low levels in your body.

2) Eat good fat and dense protein source to slow the absorption of carbohydrates into the blood stream. By slowing the absorption of carbs you slow the production of insulin.

INSULIN ACTS LIKE A STORAGE HORMONE. If you balance insulin (from carbohydrate intake), glucagon (from protein intake), and eicosanoids (from fat intake) your body will use the carbohydrates as fuel. If insulin production gets too high then your body will store a lot of the food you just ate instead of using it as fuel.

Message:

-Stick to complex carbs from vegetables and simple carbs from fruits

-Eat protein and fat with every meal/snack to help with:

• Slowing how quickly carbohydrates are digested and broken down into glucose
• Slowing the breakdown of carbohydrates slows the production of insulin
• Keeping insulin levels low and keeping insulin, glucagon, and eicosanoids in balance
• Keeping the levels of these hormones balanced keeps your body in energy usage mode instead of being in energy storage mode

-For more information check out "Enter the Zone" [no I do not get paid commission:)] for more information on what I talk about in the blog.

-Next article: "Balanced recipe: Stir Fry"