Friday, February 13, 2015

Wheat Belly

In my opinion, Wheat Belly is a fascinating book. I recently read it and am in the process of reading it a second time. I was drawn to the book after years of frustration with eating a morsel and gaining a pound. I have also been looking at the correlation between weight gain and, obesity and depression.

I learned over the years that many clinical studies have shown obesity and depression tend to be co-morbid. That means they tend to occur together without necessarily having a cause-and-effect relationship. Scientists naturally want to explore how they are connected when conditions tend to occur together. Does obesity cause depression? Does depression cause obesity? Could there be a third factor that is driving both conditions? These are essential questions because we can better direct our research and treatment efforts once we know the answers.

I happen to believe that both obesity and depression are often driven by a third factor—our modern Western diet. It is now clear that excessive fructose, mainly from sugar and high fructose corn syrup, is the driving force behind insulin resistance and central obesity. When you have insulin resistance, it takes more insulin to drive glucose into your cells, and high insulin levels tend to trap fat inside of cells that can't be used for energy. Recent evidence suggests excessive fructose can alter gut bacteria flora, contributing to metabolic syndrome and obesity.

When you have insulin resistance and consume rapidly absorbed carbohydrates, especially from grains, you have unstable glucose levels and magnified glucose spikes. Over time, these glucose spikes can cause damage to your nerve cells because, unlike most cells in your body, neurons don't have an insulin gate. That's why diabetics tend to lose their nerve function and develop neuropathy long before other organs in their body are damaged.

Over time, these toxic glucose spikes can trigger a form of diffuse brain dysfunction, causing your brain to no longer function as intended. The first symptom you experience when this happens is a craving for sweet and starchy food, pushing you to consume more food and frying your brain. You can also develop mild brain dysfunction symptoms like I have experienced for a few years now.  This is fatigue, anxiety, mood swings, and poor sleep. At this stage of brain dysfunction, you don't yet have a disease because the symptoms are mild and variable. 

I have learned there are really two types of obesity. The most common type is associated with insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, and type II diabetes. The second type (MINE) of obesity is when a person has excessive body fat without these adverse metabolic markers. This type of obesity is seen when a person or lab animal is over-fed healthy food. If you give enough nutritious food to any animal, they will eventually develop this type of obesity.

The type of obesity associated with sugar, HFCS, and grain-based carbohydrates is not dependent on calories or over-feeding. People with this form of obesity, like me, have excessive body fat, especially in the abdominal region.

After reading Wheat Belly, I looked at the correlation between both types of obesity and depression. I wanted to know about the connection between depression and people with "metabolic obesity" and those who were obese but metabolically healthy. As it turns out, people with metabolic issues were at an increased risk of later developing depression. In contrast, those who were obese without metabolic matters were not at an increased risk of developing depression.

How does this information apply to me? I would rather not be obese or depressed. If insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome are the gateway to most cases of obesity and many instances of depression, the best strategy would be to prevent metabolic problems or treat them. The best way to limit my intake of insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome dietary triggers is by using sugar, HFCS, and high glycemic carbohydrates, especially from grains.

Of course, this describes most processed foods that form the core of the modern American diet. I am trying hard to learn to eat real food, including meat, fowl, fish, seafood, vegetables, and fruit. I'm not a big fan of milk because of its sugar content, but a reasonable amount of cheese is acceptable. I also limit my intake of legumes because of their anti-nutrient content. Some would recognize this as a Paleo-style diet. I simply call it a healthy diet.

If I learn to eat this way, I should go a long way toward preventing the metabolic problems that seem to lead to my obesity and depression.

I know Wheat is also attributed to ADHD, PTSD, Anxiety disorders, Autism, Fibromyalgia, and Irritable bowel syndrome.  I think that it's exciting, and I believe there is a connection between food and these common disorders. Think about it. Would I rather take handfuls of pills for the rest of my life, living in a daze, or simply change my diet?

This important study clearly shows the relationship between consuming certain foods and depression. In the years ahead, we will see more studies looking at the impact of diet on common chronic diseases. My next read will be Gary Taube's "Good Calories, Bad Calories" and "Why We Get Fat."

I need to get a hold of this life, as the past year has been far from enjoyable.




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