Low carbing and insulin… what the?
So what’s the deal with all the low carb diets? Low carb diets were popularised by Dr Atkins, who is still seen as a rebel by many, touting advice that some experts assert can ultimately lead to severe health problems such as heart disease. Be that as it may, the principle of low carb diets is based to a large degree on controlling the body’s natural insulin response.
Says nutrim.net about the insulin response: “Insulin spikes are partly responsible for the sleepiness that people feel after a large meal, especially when the meal is full of refined carbohydrates. After the insulin spike, insulin levels crash, making you feel hungry again soon after you eat. ” Haven’t I ever experienced that after a Big Mac!
Simply be restricting the carbohydrate intake, the insulin response to food is greatly reduced. This means, you won’t get sleepy and you won’t feel hungry right after you eat. In fact, a low carb diet will positively suppress your appetite (and not only because the low carb food tastes so bad!). By now there are new diets out there that combine the insights gained from research low carb diets with the proven benefits of eating a healthy amount of vegetables and fiber, such as the South Beach Diet (that’s South Beach, not South Park).
Low carb diets typically have a higher protein fraction than other diets. This helps in reducing the amount of loss of lean body mass. It’s also good for the immune system and of course extra helpful if you exercise as part of your weight loss regime. Why? It’s simple… the more muscle tissue you have, the more you can burn!
July 23rd, 2005 at 4:21 am
Hello Mr Tubby!
Thanks for creating such a great and useful site for us fellow weight-controllers. About a year ago I went on a lo-carb diet and the results were amazing. In just three months I lost 13.5 kilograms without even exercising! A little over a kilo of that came straight back in fluid retention as soon as I came off the diet, but even so, that’s over a kilo per week of effortless weight-loss! Interestingly enough, twelve months later, without dieting or even exercising, I still haven’t put any of the lost weight back on. I’m not sure how this is even possible and all I can say that I’ve done differently since is be somewhat conscientious about what I eat and avoid sugars. That’s it!
Anyhow, I have a lot of vegetarian friends who have seen the results of the diet I was on who have been asking me if there’s a similar diet available for vegetarians. I would be grateful if you would let me know if there is.