Insulin Insensitivity

Insulin is a hormone made by your pancreas. Insulin transports sugar into the cells and allows them to use sugar for energy. Insulin resistance is a condition where the cells don’t use insulin effectively. This means the cells have trouble absorbing glucose, which causes a buildup of sugar in their blood. 80% of the body’s cells become permeable to glucose when insulin binds to receptors on the cell membranes. Excess sugar is converted to triglycerides and then to fat. In the presence of large amounts of insulin, we don’t burn fat, we deposit fat.

Insulin is what is known as an anabolic hormone. That means that it promotes the uptake of amino acids and the subsequent formation of proteins. In other words, it increases protein production and slows the breakdown (called catabolism) of protein.  

Symptoms of Insulin Resistance

  • Fatigue
  • Fatigue after eating
  • Weight gain and difficult weight loss
  • Brain Fog, inability to focus
  • Carbohydrate craving
  • Periods of hypoglycemia after high carbohydrate meals – despite high levels of glucose and insulin.
  • Moody and/or depressed

Eating a lot of sugar or refined carbohydrate can contribute to insulin insensitivity. Sugar consumption and insulin resistance go beyond the obvious problems of obesity, diabetes and high cholesterol. Sugar is also linked to fatigue, high blood pressure, fatty liver, atherosclerosis, yeast overgrowth, magnesium loss, acidic pH, calcium/phosphorus imbalance, polycystic ovary disease, endocrine problems, a systemic inflammatory state, impaired fibrinolysis and pro coagulation, and an environment that favors neoplastic (cancer) growth.

The average American consumes nearly 200 pounds of refined sugar each year, and we get half of our calories from refined carbohydrates. This creates vitamin deficiency and insulin insensitivity. Other factors that contribute to the metabolic syndrome include stress, poor sleep habits, lack of exercise, and exposure to toxins. Eating too much sugar causes the body to produce too much insulin. Over time, the body becomes insensitive to the insulin. Many of your health problems are due to excess insulin and to insulin insensitivity. Insulin insensitivity is responsible for obesity—and all of its associated health problems. Type 2 diabetes is due to insulin insensitivity. Unlike type 1 diabetes, which is a state where the body cannot produce insulin, type 2 diabetics produce insulin, but the body simply does not respond.

Insulin insensitivity can lead to serious health problems. It encompasses three conditions: metabolic syndrome (sometimes called syndrome X), adult onset (type2)  diabetes and people who are insulin insensitive, but have not developed these conditions yet. Insulin has a lot to do with weight gain and so many other common health problems you see in your office. Sugar and insulin are involved with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, high triglycerides, type 2 diabetes, menstrual problems, heart disease, pain, inflammation, depression and even polycystic ovaries. With simple lifestyle changes and some good nutritional products you can help people to easily lose weight and help them with a lot of other health problems. This is easy and it works. Fortunately, it responds very well to nutritional therapy.

 

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