True confession time. Now in our late 40s, Jeff and I have slowed down a bit, and we'd been noticing some middle age "spread." Last winter, after much holiday cheer and the resultant tight pants, Jeff started reading Dr. Amen's book, Change your Brain, Change your Body, and got excited about helping his brain health by losing weight. He actually went out and bought a new scale (gee, thanks, honey) and some cookbooks. He became more involved in food prep and disciplined about moving daily and eating well. His enthusiasm was contagious.
It's been about six months of caloric restriction and consistant exercise, and Jeff has lost 20 pounds (he's reached his goal) and I've lost about 8 (I haven't) He's much better at dealing with being hungry...probably from coping with neuropathic MS pain. I'm a bigger baby and don't like being uncomfortable. I'm sharing this story first, before the science, because I am NOT giving this info to make any one feel badly. It's hard enough having MS, being compromised in your ability to exercise, or shop or cook healthy meals. No guilt here for extra pounds. Also, there are many skinny people with MS, and the following information won't help them...because it's all about burning excess body fat.
There's been some exciting news recently. Researchers in the UK were able to REVERSE type 2 diabetes with a restrictive diet alone. Patients showed no sign of diabetes after two months on the diet. Here's the research:
http://www.ncl.ac.uk/magres/assets/documents/Diabetes-Reversaloftype2study.pdf
The researchers explain that diabetes is reversed when BODY FAT is burned for energy, rather than calories from food.
It is a simple fact that the fat stored in the wrong parts of the body (inside the liver and pancreas) is used up first when the body has to rely upon its own stores of fat to burn. Any pattern of eating which brings about substantial weight loss over a period of time will be effective.
Why does this happen and why is this good for us? When we burn off calories from junk food, say a tasty and glucose-rich Snickers Bar, harmful oxidants are released into our bloodstream. BUT when we burn our own body fat for energy, a wonderful hormone is released into our blood. This hormone, called adiponectin (from adipose meaning "fat"), affects the lining of our blood vessels, the endothelium, and creates vasodilation and open and flowing blood vessels.
We conclude that adiponectin has novel vascular actions to directly stimulate production of NO in endothelial cells using phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-dependent pathways involving phosphorylation of eNOS at Ser1179 by AMPK. Thus, the effects of adiponectin to augment metabolic actions of insulin in vivo may be due, in part, to vasodilator actions of adiponectin.
http://www.jbc.org/content/278/45/45021.abstract
So, I'm going to remind myself of the healthy release of adiponectin into my blood stream, the next time my tummy growls at night and I find myself heading to the pantry for chips. I'll remind myself that being a bit hungry is a GOOD thing, and maybe get a drink of lemon water instead.
Join me?
Joan
