Fat is our safest, most natural, most fundamental aerobic energy
source. We always pay a price for the use of glucose as an energy source,
even in low amounts. Our red blood cells do need a certain amount of
glucose-it is unavoidable-but the less of it we use or depend on, the
better. Note that dietary protein in significant excess of what is needed
for essential maintenance and repair will convert to glucose and can
slow or stop the process of ketosis.
...
Ketosis (simply put) is essentially the state in which the body is
burning fat for energy instead of carbohydrates. This is the state we
all want to be in. Many ancient hunter-gatherers would have lived in a
functionally ketogenic state most of the time. There is no evidence that
it is a harmful state for normal, healthy individuals to be in at all. To
the contrary, the newest longevity and leptin research readily concludes
that the more you use ketones for energy in your lifetime as opposed to
glucose, the longer and healthier you will live-by far.
For people who are especially overweight and undertaking a more
ketogenic diet, the initial excretion of ketones will be greater. During
the initial stages of weight loss in an individual who is insulin resistant,
the body can be used to using glucose as a more primary and inefficient
energy source and may not yet be adept at using ketones or burning fat
efficiently. Ketones may initially be excreted as more of a waste product.
It takes time for the body to adapt to this change, as little as three
weeks in younger individuals and longer in older individuals, but about
a month to six weeks for most, on average. Certain individuals who have
candida yeast overgrowth, are extremely addicted to carbohydrates, or
have undiagnosed or unmanaged food sensitivities may take longer and
may need additional supplementation and special attention to help facilitate
the necessary metabolic changes.
...
Eventually, when dietary consistency is
maintained, the body adapts to the primary use of fat for fuel, and not
sugar. People often report that this is the day they feel truly liberated
from their need for frequent meals and finally free from uncontrollable
cravings. ...
Supplementing the diet with high doses of L-carnitine (2-5 g per
day) can also help minimize any discomfort, maximize energy levels during
the initial stages of weight loss, and facilitate the transition to using
fat as a primary source of fuel. L-carnitine, which is not an amino acid
but a quaternary ammonium compound that is a derivative of amino
acid metabolism, assists in transporting fat into the mitochondria, where
it can be burned for energy.
All non fibrous forms of carbohydrates (from grains, rice, potatoes,
and other starch-based foods) in addition to refined sugar and natural
and industrial sweeteners (such as high fructose corn syrup) are sugar
once they are metabolized by the body. The dietary carbohydrate load
in the human diet has grown unnaturally, exponentially, and grotesquely
from what our Paleolithic ancestors once knew. This includes starchy or
complex forms, with the exception of indigestible forms such as fiber, as
well as simple carbohydrates found in fruit. Wild fruit was a very different
food from the modern cultivated varieties (often more tart than
sweet, usually much smaller, lower in sugar, and very fibrous) and was
only seasonally available, at best.
All nonfibrous carbohydrates stimulate the secretion of insulin,
which is the fat storage hormone, or damage the body and brain via a
process known as glycation (in which sugars in the bloodstream react
with proteins and fats and cause them to deteriorate). Among examples
of carbohydrate foods in this context are bread, pasta, cereal, rice, potatoes,
granola, dried fruit, juices, candy, chocolate, desserts, alcoholic
beverages, and even most fresh fruit (an exception being something like
avocados).
Fructose, the simple sugar in fruit, may not impact insulin much
(except when it's in high fructose corn syrup), but it is extremely glycating
and damaging. It is also more likely to raise uric acid levels (such as with
metabolic syndrome and gout). In this context, the carbohydrates we are
talking about here don't include fibrous vegetables and greens, which are
very beneficial and have negligible sugar or starch content.
The body is obsessed with maintaining glucose levels within a minimally
necessary range, which can differ from person to person in relative
terms, varying on how dependent they have become on glucose for energy
and how insulin resistant they are.
There are actually several hormones designed to raise glucose levels
and only one that actually lowers them. This is because carbohydrates
tended to be an extremely limited commodity in primitive diets, and as
such, our ancestors very rarely had an "emergency" need to lower blood
glucose levels, as is so common today. The ability to hormonally raise
blood glucose levels in an emergency situation, however, is essential to
survival.
It is fairly optimal for healthy, insulin- and leptin-sensitive humans
to have a blood glucose value of no more than roughly 70 to 85 mg/dL at
any given time (without any symptoms of hypoglycemia). The available
scientific evidence from studies of human longevity and caloric restric-
tion points to this range as optimal. Some current functionally healthy
ranges are established as being more typically between 85 and 100 mg/dL,
which is considered more the norm, though lower ranges are by far more
desirable for people who normally maintain low insulin levels, even if the
higher range is more common in many individuals. Fasting blood sugar,
from a functional standpoint, in excess of 100 mg/dL, is already reflective
of dysregulation. The most current human longevity studies indicate
that the ability to maintain a fasting blood glucose level between 70 and
85 mg/dL-without accompanying symptoms of hypoglycemia-and not
allowing glucose to spike higher than 40 mg/dL over your fasting value
following meals has a favorable effect in activating sirtuins (our longevity
genes).
Those people who are more optimally healthy should maintain a range
between 70 and 85 mg/dL or lower; this is equivalent to no more than 1
teaspoon of sugar, or about 5 g or 20 kcal, total. Keep in mind that the
body is adamant about maintaining the minimal necessary levels of glucose
at any given time because glucose is inherently damaging to vessels,
organs, and tissues in the body. The less glucose that is absolutely neces~
sary. the better.
Two slices of bread or a single small bagel contain about 6 teaspoons
of glucose-six times the amount normally allowed in the bloodstream!
Dietary carbohydrates, with the exception of fiber, are all absorbed by the
liver and converted to the simple monosaccharide glucose, which is then
released into the bloodstream. Cereals and potatoes can raise blood sugar
levels even faster than a candy bar!
Glucose (and other sugars) in the bloodstream auto-oxidizes, which,
in excess, produces potent free-radical activity that damages arterial walls
and forms cross-links with proteins called advanced glycosylation (also
known as glycation) end products (AGEs). AGEs are known to accelerate
the age-associated declines in the functioning of cells and tissues and
to cause mutations in DNA. Also, AGEs bind with certain receptors in
the bloodstream, appropriately called RAGEs, and induce widespread
inflammation, leading to more advanced cardiovascular disease. A simple,
inexpensive blood test that can measure up to a three-month window of
glycation of red blood cells is called a hemoglobin-Alc test, and it can
be used to more accurately monitor these glycation tendencies over time.
Fasting blood sugar as a marker is not sufficiently accurate for this.
Glucose is what ages (or AGEs) us. It is an irony that a thing we all
need to stay alive, to feed our red blood cells, and to fuel anaerobic processes
is what science has discovered is ultimately what degenerates and
kills us. We have to have some sugar to fuel our red blood cells, but not so
much for our brains, as many people think. Remember, our brain can run
beautifully-in fact, better-with mostly ketones, which are the energy
units of fat.
Ketones are a much more steady, reliable, and abundant source of
fuel for our brain and organs to depend on. Our red blood cells, however,
need to burn sugar (glucose) for fuel anaerobically to preserve their
precious cargo, which is oxygen, so they burn sugar instead of fats.
Unfortunately, in the end, we pay a price for what is somewhat inevitable.
Aging is now being understood by people researching longevity
as essentially a gradual process of glycation of all tissues, including the
brain. Chronic diseases associated with aging and certain forms of mental
decline may be directly associated with these processes. The lower we
maintain our blood sugar levels, the slower this process occurs and the
longer and healthier we live-and the more gracefully we age.
...
What is clear and
irrefutable from the current understanding of antiaging medicine and how
degenerative processes and DNA mutation (leading to cancer) develop is
that the lower the levels of blood sugar we are able to maintain and the less
insulin we produce, the longer and healthier we live and the "kinder" and
slower the aging process will be. (Note: Glycation and its damage is ultimately
a cumulative process, so every bit of sugar or starch we eat eventually
counts. Every piece of candy, cookie, bread, or potaro, every spoonful
of honey, and every drop of soda effectively shortens your life-something
to think about. Though some glycation and its effects can be reversed,
some cannot. It's all a matter of what you choose to prioritize.)
...
We need to understand a certain rather major point: our ancient
ancestors never really had an emergency need to lower their blood
sugar levels. It's critical you understand this. And here's a news flash:
Something even many doctors do not understand is that insulin's actual
biological function and purpose is not, in fact, to regulate blood sugar.
We have several other hormones actually designed for blood-sugar regulation:
glucagon, epinephrine, norepinephrine, cortisone, and growth hormone.
The regulation of blood sugar by these hormones is designed to
increase blood glucose when we need it.
Insulin, by default, does lower blood sugar (very crudely), but insulin's
primary purposes are actually to simply store away excess nutrients in case
of a famine and to regulate the coordination of energy stores with life span
and reproduction (Rosedale 1999). Blood sugar lowering is a trivial sideline
for insulin, a key hormone that has much bigger fish to fry. This is
hugely important to understand and a key factor in new understandings
by scientists in the quest for advancing human longevity, which we'll discuss
later.
...
Back in 1994, a discovery was made that shook medical science down
to its core. Scientists discovered a major hormone they didn't previously
know existed. Moreover, it wasn't just a major hormone; it was the major
hormone that ultimately influences all other hormones and controls virtually
all the functions of the hypothalamus, in the brain. They found it
in the last place they would have expected to: in our fat cells.
The name of the hormone is leptin.
A primary purpose of leptin is to coordinate the metabolic, endocrine,
and behavioral responses to starvation, which, of course, is as
fundamental to basic survival-our number one priority-as it gets.
As such, it powerfully impacts our emotions, cravings, and behavior.
Everything is secondary to survival. It turns out, in fact, that leptin
isn't the only hormone secreted by adipocytes (fat cells) and that dozens
of other hormones are produced there as well. Many of them are proinflammatory
in nature. In fact, leptin itself is an inflammatory cytokine
and has a major role to play in the body's inflammatory processes as
well It additionally mediates the production of other inflammatory
compounds in your adipose tissue throughout your body. It's also one
reason why overweight and obese people are so much more prone to
inflammatory issues.
If you haven't heard of leptin, even if your doctor hasn't heard of it, don't
be surprised. Drug companies have yet to create any drug that can positively
influence leptin function. Diet is the only thing that can effectively
do this. (So much for fat pharmaceutical profits there.) Therefore, little
about this important hormone is taught in medical schools or discussed
in the media, despite its extreme importance. In all likelihood, you have
either never heard about it or have only heard very little.
Understanding leptin is tantamount to
understanding how to regulate the rest of your endocrine system, conquer
your emotions, dramatically improve your health, and even prolong
your life. In many ways, it's the single most important hormone in the
body.
No other hormonal imbalance in the body, in fact, can ultimately be
restored to healthy balance without leptin functioning normally. Keeping
leptin levels healthfully moderated can prevent most diseases of aging and
greatly extend the normal, healthy life span. Chronically excessive levels
of leptin have been associated with most known degenerative diseases and
inflammation as well as obesity and a short life span. The more you can
increase your brain and receptor sensitivity to this critical hormone, by far
the healthier you will be.
Leptin essentially controls mammalian metabolism. Most people
think that is the job of the thyroid, but leptin actually controls the thyroid,
which regulates the rate of metabolism. Leptin oversees all energy
stores. Leptin decides whether to make us hungry and store more fat
or to burn fat. Leptin orchestrates our inflammatory response and can
even control sympathetic versus parasympathetic arousal in the nervous
system. If any part of your endocrine system is awry, including the
adrenals or sex hormones, you will never have a prayer of truly resolving
those issues until you have brought your leptin levels under control.
...
Restoring healthy leptin functioning is the first major step toward
ultimately restoring healthy endocrine balance, at any age, assuming your
endocrine organs are intact and have not been destroyed, attacked by
autoimmune processes, or removed.
Just what dysregulates leptin and upsets your entire endocrine
applecart?
It turns out that leptin and insulin are birds of a feather. The same
things that tend ro disrupt insulin also powerfully impact leptin. The
worst offenders by far are dietary carbohydrates that are composed of
either starch or sugar and the blood sugar surges they produce; this
includes bread, cereal, potatoes and other starchy vegetables, pasta, rice,
and alcohol (yes, unfortunately, even wine and beer). "Natural" sugars,
like honey, lo·han syrup, agave (even more concentrated in damaging
fructose than high fructose corn syrup), and maple syrup, as well as the
refined versions, can all be similarly problematic. High fructose corn
syrup, manufactured using a plethora of nasty synthetic chemicals com·
bined with GMO·engineered corn, is deadly. Medications of all kinds
also contribute ro leptin and insulin signaling problems. Caffeine and
other stimulants similarly cause blood sugar levels to surge. The con·
sumption of these substances, in turn, causes leptin levels to surge,
which overwhelms cellular receptors in a way that (not unlike insulin
resistance), over time, causes them to stop hearing leptin's messages.
The next casualties in line are the adrenals and what is called the
hypothalamic.pituitary·adrenal axis, which becomes dysregulated and
may even additionally suppress thyroid function, effectively turning
down the idle in an effort to preserve your overheated engine. The
adrenals, constantly bombarded with the unnatural task of chroni·
cally regulating blood sugar extremes, become overburdened and may
additionally tune down the thyroid to prevent total burnout during
states of chronic stress.
That's where things start to unravel. The combination of leptin
dysregulation, glycation, excess insulin, adrenal exhaustion, and glucose
oxidation is a superhighway to chronic fatigue, degeneration, and disease.
It's very simple and very cut-and-dried. Your ice age primal body
and mind are ruled by leptin. Adequate, not excessive, dietary fat-in
the absence of dietary carbohydrates-is the optimal key to unlocking
its power and potential for controlling your health, your well-being, and
your life span. Remember: To our primal physiology, sufficient dietary fot
means survival.
Any, but not necessarily all, of the following symptoms (borrowed from
The Rosedale Diet, by Ron Rosedale and Carol Coleman) can indicate
that you are leptin resistant:
• being overweight
• fatigue after meals
• the presence of" love handles"
• high blood pressure
• constantly craving "comfort foods"
• feeling consistently anxious or stressed out
• feeling hungry all the time or at odd hours of the night
• having osteoporosis
• being unable to lose weight or keep weight off
• regularly craving sugar or stimulants (like caffeine)
• having high fasting triglycerides, over 100 mg/dL-particularly
when equal to or exceeding cholesterol levels
• having a tendency to snack after meals
• having problems falling or staying asleep
• no change in how your body looks, no matter how much you exercise
(Rosedale and Coleman 2004).
