The FastDay Forum

[carorees]

I came across this useful series of blogs discussing the role of insulin (and other hormones) in weight gain, insulin resistance and chronic disease:
http://www.tuitnutrition.com/2015/09/it ... lin-1.html
http://www.tuitnutrition.com/2015/09/it ... lin-2.html
http://www.tuitnutrition.com/2015/10/it ... lin-3.html
http://www.tuitnutrition.com/2015/10/it ... lin-4.html
Definitely worth reading if you can spare the time!

I started reading it...she has many good points, and sure has done her homework! However...it really starts feeling like another push toward low carb/high fat/paleo eating--sorry, not interested. Not to be too blunt here, but there are worse things than death, and eating that way for the rest of my life is one of them. That's how I ended up here; I am not interested in vilifying entire food groups (carbs--though I'm comfortable doing it to diet soda, ick! ); I have eaten healthier than most people I know for years. The few naughty things I still eat--beer, pastries, bread--I ain't giving up! And I refuse to feel bad about that. If that means I'll never be "skinny," so be it. I do what I can to "avoid" illness (exercise, try to sleep enough--oh menopause, please let me sleep!), but I'm getting fed up with all the fear-mongering (I boycott pink ribbon products for that very reason) in the name of "health." At nearly 60, the ONLY drugs I take are alcohol, caffeine, and an occasional acetaminophen, but my house looks like a natural-remedy store. I hope this doesn't come off as being negative toward anyone, I just wanted to express that no one way works for everyone. I can't help being terribly skeptical, I've tried more than my share of crazy diets that promised amazing results that didn't deliver; or were so hard to stay on, the results were moot. To each their own. (I hope that IF helps insulin resistance; does anyone have any evidence of that?)

@Carorees @Ferretgal thank you very much. I shall read on Sat morning and share my thoughts.

Have you tread Stephan Guyenet's blog series on the research debunking many of the claims about insulin and weight gain? Whole Health Source is the blog. He has some interesting insights, and though I don't always agree with him, I think he is one of the more thoughtful and scientifically credible writers on diet topics.

Since I am extremely insulin sensitive with low insulin production, and still struggle mightily with weight issues and have all my life, I think the insulin hypothesis is overstated. I pack on subcutaneous fat, not visceral fat, but relatives have packed on 100+ pounds of subcutaneous fat which is nothing you'd wish on your worst enemy.

[carorees]

I think that there is a difference between blaming insulin per se for weight gain as opposed to blaming insulin resistance which develops for different reasons not only from a diet too high in carbs. However, once you have insulin resistance, any excessive carb intake should be the first area to be addressed as high carbs can only make things worse by raising insulin and glucose levels. You can lower insulin resistance by fasting and exercise too, luckily, so a super low carb diet is not necessarily the only option. As protein intake, fructose intake , cortisol secretion, gut microbiota changes among others all appear to contribute to insulin resistance as well as carb/sugar intake, those are the next things to examine. I'm sure that we'll soon know a lot more about how the gut microbiota affects insulin resistance and metabolism and how to manipulate it to our advantage. In the meantime, we need to keep carbs moderate, use fasting, keep moving in the day, get enough sleep at night, address stress levels, eat a rainbow of vegetables, get enough daylight (and by that, vitamin D).

Well said as usual

Technically, you can lower what is sometimes called "secondary insulin resistance" which is acquired, usually on response to higher than normal blood sugar levels and sometimes perhaps by obesity itself. But your base level of IR is genetic and not subject to change. Young, thin, fit relatives of people with Type 2 diabetes turn out to have higher IR than normal.

The main difference is that people who are genetically insulin sensitive pack on weight in rolls of subcutaneous fat even when eating very low carb. People who are IR put on visceral fat.

I know people who have eaten very low carb diets for decades for blood sugar control who are still very insulin resistant, based on insulin doses needed, though normal weight and people who are obese but insulin sensitive.

I agree that low carb diets can be very helpful for weight control, but that is because so many people with weight problems are experiencing post meal blood sugars that are actually near diabetic, but not diagnosed. Blood sugars over 10 mmol/L will cause that secondary IR. If your blood sugars are flat, weight control is really all about calories.

Fasting is helpful mainly because it lowers blood sugar dramatically several days a week. Do check out Guyenet's series. He reviews a lot of research studies, rather than cherry pick a few, which is what most medical authors pitching weight loss approaches do. I don't agree with him on many issues, but I admire his willingness to examine the data and be led by it. My own understanding of the physiology of low carb dieting has changed dramatically over the years in response to studying the literature .