BY DR. BAYNE FRENCH MD DC

In the last edition I talked about a nutritional shift that I feel needs to take place to propagate our species.  I’m not talking about the latest misguided governmental nutritional policy, a pyramid or a plate, or the latest diet some expert is pontificating about.  I mean habitual food procurement, prep and consumption that humans were designed by and for.  

Anyone can lose weight by a host of means.  As the Biggest Loser study showed, the vast majority will regain and even surpass their baseline weight, and possibly with a damaged resting metabolic rate. Yep, if it’s not done right, you run the risk of being damaged goods.  Mitigating the weight regain is brutal.  “Set point” is loosely defined as the last highest weight that an individual spent any time at. The brain, specifically the hypothalamus has an uncanny ability of protecting that weight. There are deep neurohormonal influences on our metabolism to return to set-point weight after loss. The only individuals I’ve ever seen that lost a large amount of weight while enjoying the process, and kept it off indefinitely did so by completely changing their relationship with food…by upgrading to mindful consumption of human food:  Meat and other animal product, large amounts of vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds, eggs, and mushrooms.

I believe there is very little neutrality to food.  It is either fostering vitality, leanness, mental clarity, reducing inflammation and promoting a metabolism that excels at disease avoidance, or it’s contributing to a slow and insidious weakening of function causing susceptibility to disease.  

Why are we so sensitive to the metabolic actions of carbohydrate? Imagine our genetically identical early humans who happened upon a bush of Salmonberries. This was a metabolic boon for them and those that were efficient at converting that fructose to fat survived, and less “carb sensitive” ancestors who could not make that conversion as readily did not. Carb is not prevalent in nature, so when we found it, we HAD to make the most of it.  Now of course, carb is ubiquitous, cheap, subsidized, and strongly recommended by people and entities we trust.  

Did you realize that carb eating begets carb eating?  The appetite-inducing hormone Ghrelin rebounds greatly after a high carb meal, driving hunger, preoccupation with food, and activating potent parts of our brain involving cravings and spatial learning.  We commonly justify how we eat because we’re active and will just “burn it off.” When we’re younger, the brain will efficiently defend “set point” weight, both against gain and loss. With age, however, set point asymmetry becomes apparent, with a far more vehement defense against loss. A slow accumulation of adipose accumulates, insulin directing it to the midsection. Center of mass. 

Insulin must be the enemy. Bad insulin, naughty! Sure, it’s anabolic. We grow bigger with higher insulin levels, which sure helped our ancestors. When functioning properly, insulin doesn’t just open the cell to allow glucose in but acts on the brain to increase energy expenditure and reduce appetite. This sounds favorable to me and is a reason for symmetry of set point when we’re younger. The problem is the cumulative effect of high insulin levels over time resulting in down-regulation of insulin receptors in the brain and in peripheral tissues like the liver and skeletal muscle. The result is the American epidemic of insulin resistance. 

What’s the problem with a little extra insulation in the solar plexus region? How much time do you have? If I could bestow two healthful attributes on each patient it would be to never smoke and to remain lean in the midsection. Visceral or abdominal fat is not like subcutaneous fat (under our skin). We’ve all transiently glared at these cute little globules after a mishap with a paring knife, before it filled with blood and we hit the floor. Visceral fat is biologically active. Adipokines are hormones secreted by fat tissue, and belly fat releases over 600! Of course, I have the name and function of all 600 memorized but for the sake of time…they are not favorable. These myriad metabolic products hit our bloodstream and increase inflammation, insulin resistance, blood sugar, distort our lipid profile, and dramatically increase heart disease and cancer risk. Beer anyone? Many studies over several years show increased risk for men with abdominal girth >40 inches, or a waist to hip ratio over >0.95. For women, >35 inches and waist/hip ratio >0.85. There are different cutoffs for different ethnicities. 

The details and vigilance required for health is inconvenient and expensive.  But disease is far worse. Resist that which is complicated.  Do not allow yourself to be mired in confusing and conflicting dietary recommendations.  As a member of Homo sapiens, you’ve been dealt a specific genetic profile, forged over hundreds of thousands of years.  You dictate largely if that genetic potential is realized.