After taking my training to be a Nutrition Network Practitioner with The Noakes Foundation, the leading international research organization on a low-carbohydrate/ketogenic way of eating, I learned that Meghan Trainor was right. It IS all about the bass…oops…I mean insulin! (*Clears throat*) It’s all about that insulin!
Why do I say this? Early in my keto journey, I read the life-changing book by Dr. Jason Fung (my personal hero!), The Obesity Code. With this book and with Dr. Fung’s continued research on insulin, I learned that timing of our food consumption is just as important as what we are eating (which is hopefully a low-carbohydrate, low-glycemic whole foods diet – a.k.a. a ketogenic diet). And, later, when I continued my education as a Nutrition Network Practitioner, I learned that the average eating episodes a day in America is 10.5 (Fung, 2019)! That means that we essentially are eating once every hour we are awake – never giving our body a chance to rest from a constant flood insulin, which is something our bodies are not designed to withstand and which create a dysfunctional experience caused “insulin resistance“. It is this problem that created part of my issue with severe reactive hypoglycemia.
The Evidence
When I first read about the number of eating episodes a day, I couldn’t believe that it could be that high. But, once I started to pay attention, I totally believe it!
I recently attended an all-day professional training (a hazard of the job of being a psychotherapist) where this was clearly demonstrated. Although I was fasting until lunch, I simply took note of people’s eating habits around me. What did they eat? A family sized bag of M&Ms. Multiple sodas. A bag of pretzels. A granola bar. A cookie. When did they eat? Ummm… ALL THE TIME! From the beginning of the training in the morning until the end of the training, the 100-something people attending the training were eating so constantly that I actually felt awkward not eating (a huge and well-loved change coming from how often I used to have to eat when I was actively hypoglycemic!).
The sad part? I likely did not even see all of their eating episodes throughout the day. They probably ate on the way to the training and had yet to have dinner. And, it was not uncommon for me to see people just mindlessly repeatedly reaching into a bottom-less bag of chocolate candies throughout the training. It wasn’t mindful eating. It was just eating. Repeated eating. Even when I pay attention during shared meals with loved ones, I am amazed at how soon (and constantly) a snack is initiated!
The Risks of Insulin
You may be asking “So, what’s the big deal?” Insulin serves an important function of eliminating excess sugar from our blood stream. We have around two gallons of blood on our bodies but only have around one teaspoon of blood sugar in our blood stream. So, when we consume something with calories and our blood sugar naturally spikes, insulin swoops in to save the day. But, too much of a good thing is NOT a good thing.
Aspects of metabolic dysfunction (i.e. blood sugar and insulin levels) have been linked to inflammation, an increase in cell damage related to free-radicals (which damage DNA), and actually correlate with death rates (Kajee, 2019; Wellington, 2019; much more on this information can be found in the resources section of my website, especially from books by Dr. Nasha Winters and Dr. Joseph Mercola). So, the higher the metabolic dysfunction (i.e. measured by things like Body Mass Index, waist circumference, and insulin levels), the greater the health risk, regardless of if there is a formal diagnosis of Diabetes or not.
My Challenge to You
Here is my challenge to you: Don’t change anything about your eating patterns but keep track of how often you eat. How many times are you eating during the day? How much time is in between when you consume something that has calories, whether it’s a soda, five lonely jelly beans, a meal, or a bag of chips? Is it 10.5 times a day? More? Less?
It is only once we become aware of our eating patterns that we can address them. And, since it’s all about insulin, remember when we eat matters just as much as what we eat. So, see if you can eat mindfully and ask your self “Am I really physically hungry right now?” Or, because there is no medical reason that we need to snack (Cywes, 2019), is it time to give your insulin a break and let your body rest naturally until you are physically, and not emotionally, hungry again?
References:
Cywes, Robert. 2019. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Obesity, Diabetes and Metabolic Disease [Powerpoint slides]. Retrieved from Nutrition Network Training, “Module 3: LCHF for Practical Medical Applications”.
Fung, Jason. 2019. Intermittent Fasting [Powerpoint slides]. Retrieved from Nutrition Network Training, “Module 1: Scientific and Evolutionary Evidence”.
Kajee, Hassina. 2019. Metabolic Syndrome in the HCU [Powerpoint slides]. Retrieved from Nutrition Network Training, “Module 1: Scientific and Evolutionary Evidence”.
Wellington, Neville. 2019. Treating T2D with Nutrition instead of Medicine. A Consultation [Powerpoint slides]. Retrieved from Nutrition Network Training, “Module 1: Scientific and Evolutionary Evidence”.
