Why Refined Carbohydrates Make You Fat
By Linda Tremer
Do you know why eating too many refined carbohydrates can make you fat? It’s all about insulin. Let me explain the role of insulin and fat. Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas. Insulin’s role in the body is to regulate blood sugar (glucose levels). Insulin helps the glucose molecules enter the cells to provide energy. If the cells are sensitive to insulin the glucose is sent into the cell without any trouble and all is well.
Now here’s where the trouble begins. The more carbohydrates you eat, the more glucose you will produce. Blood sugar levels will rise rapidly when you eat refined carbohydrates. The body produces large amounts of insulin to deal with the excess glucose. That increase in insulin in the blood stream from eating refined carbohydrates or too many calories causes the cells to lose their ability to respond to insulin. This is called insulin insensitivity or insulin resistance.
And there’s more bad news. The body can’t burn all the glucose. And if all of the storage areas are full, insulin will tell the body to manufacture more fat cells.
These extra fat cells will signal the brain that they need to be filled up. Thus the brain tells you, you are hungry and you eat. It’s a never ending cycle. Obesity leads to insulin sensitivity. Insulin sensitivity leads to obesity. Insulin triggers the body to manufacture more fat cells. Fat cells actually tell the brain to eat to fill them up. And on and on it goes.
The worst part is as your cells become insulin resistant the body makes more insulin to get rid of the glucose and stores it as fat rather than using it for energy. The higher the blood sugar levels the more insulin the body produces and the fatter you become. Besides becoming fatter you become more tired since the body cannot process insulin effectively and it coverts the glucose to fat rather than energy.
Excess insulin also keeps the fat that is already in the cells from being released for use as energy. Thus we cannot lose weight.
If you keep eating refined carbohydrates and too many calories you health will deteriorate. Insulin resistance leads to a variety of life threatening diseases. The prolonged effects will be hypoglycemia, diabetes, pancreas exhaustion. Excess insulin is also associated with inflammation, damaged nerves, obesity, and high blood pressure. High insulin levels lead to premature aging.
The good news is that you can do something to reduce insulin levels and to increase the sensitivity of your cells to insulin. Calorie restriction will reduce insulin levels and stop the vicious cycle. Exercise will cause the excess glucose in the blood stream to be used for energy and not stored as fat. Eliminating all refined carbohydrates and most processed foods will bring insulin levels under control.
Take action now before it is too late. Life-style changes are the most effective and least expensive way to keep diabetes and other insulin related diseases at bay.
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Linda Tremer has studied nutrition, weight loss and fitness for over 30 years. She is the owner of the website The Center For Weight Loss. Her site is dedicated to helping you lose weight. Many weight loss programs and healthy diet plans are reviewed on her site. |
