Insulin Resistance

weight loss

Tums, The Weight Loss Wonder Pill

Are you stuck in the seemingly endless cycle of weight loss? Weight loss can feel tricky, especially if you always feel hungry. But here’s something to consider: in the course of one year, for every 100-calorie difference in your diet, your weight will go up or down approximately 10 pounds. If you think about it, …

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heartburn

Heartburn, Acid Build-Up and Low Blood Sugar

Whether you have heartburn (GERD), bloating with meals, or symptoms commonly attributed to hypoglycemia, one of the most common causes for all of these conditions is a gastrointestinal disorder known as gastroparesis. Gastroparesis is a Latin term for ‘paralyzed stomach’ and is used to describe various symptoms attributable to slow emptying of the stomach.  Gastroparesis …

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Common Link Suggested Between Autism and Diabetes

 A review of the genetic and biochemical abnormalities associated with autism reveals a possible link between the widely diagnosed neurological disorder and Type 2 diabetes, another medical disorder on the rise in recent decades……. Click here to read entire article. From:  Rice University. “Common link suggested between autism and diabetes: Study implicates hyperinsulinemia in increased …

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Bad Reporting, Mediocre Science and the Dangers of Foods

A recent study is being loudly quoted in the press with headlines such as “Processed Red Meat Intake Linked to Type 2 Diabetes Risk”.   Most non-scientists will read the headline and come away with the impression that red meat is somehow bad for them. If people read the true title of the article, “Red meat consumption and …

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Carbs, Sport Drinks and Exercise

Many people drink sports drinks before or after exercising.  These often contain a lot of carbohydrates (Gatorade = 30 grams, Powerade = 25 grams) which are being shown is scientific studies to work against your exercise efforts.  Here is an interesting paper that reviews the benefits of ketogenic diet.  Its an interesting read with some great historical perspective.   Here is the low down. …

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Don’t Feed Your Kids McDonald’s Strawberry Lemonade

With summer coming on, a cold frosty lemonade from McDonald’s may sound refreshing and evoke some pleasant childhood memories but let me warn you, this is not your Mom’s lemonade. McDonald’s Strawberry Lemonade is just another common example of how the food industry is poisoning our kids with sugar.  Just check out the carb numbers. 24 grams …

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Mummies and Atherosclerosis

A Brief Overview of Atherosclerosis Atherosclerosis is a process of chronic inflammation of the cells lining the arterial walls.  Overtime, scar-like tissue builds up with some deposition of calcium and small dense cholesterol molecules in the tissue.  Ultimately, the inflamed atherosclerotic lesion can rupture, a blood clot suddenly forms and an individual will experience a heart …

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30% of All Americans Have Fatty Liver. Do You?

What is Fatty Liver? Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is a disorder of fat metabolism within the liver and affects approximately 1/3 of all Americans.  The term “non-alcoholic” is used to clearly separate the liver damage that can occur from NAFLD from somewhat similar damage done by Alcoholic Hepatitis. NAFLD begins with the accumulation of …

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Obesity Does Not Cause Heart Disease

The Problem According to the American Heart Association, more than 910,000 Americans still die of heart disease annually.  And more than 70 million Americans live every day with some form of heart disease which can include high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, stroke, angina (chest pain), heart attack and congenital heart defects. The Myth “Being overweight or …

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Children Are Developing Adult Onset Diabetes

Children Are Developing Adult Onset Diabetes When diabetes strikes during childhood, it historically has been type 1 diabetes (also known as juvenile-onset diabetes). However, the number of cases of children and adolescents with type 2 diabetes (formerly known as adult-onset diabetes) has been increasing in frequency over the last 20 years. Children and adolescents diagnosed with type 2 diabetes are generally between …

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It’s Time to Worry If Your Child Has Heartburn

Are You Poisoning Your Children? Believe it or not, if your child has heartburn it’s because they are slowly being poisoned by the excessive amounts of carbohydrates in their diet. Their excessive carbohydrate intake is toxic to their nervous system and is directly responsible for increasing incidence of heartburn, fatigue, headaches, abdominal pain and frequent urination. Heartburn, the Most Obvious …

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Monitoring Triglycerides is Important in HIV Disease

The Importance of Elevated Triglycerides Insulin resistance is the cause of type II diabetes, heart disease, chronic kidney disease and most cases of high blood pressure.  These conditions are dangerous and occur much more frequently in patients with HIV Disease than in the general population.  The main reason for this is insulin resistance. Triglyceride elevation …

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‘Low Carb’ is More Effective than ‘Low Glycemic’ for Diabetes

Brown Rice is Not as Healthy as You Think Many patients will ask me if it’s OK for them to eat more carbs than I recommend (less than 100 grams per day) to control their diabetes as long as they are eating low-glycemic carbs (think whole wheat bread or pasta, brown rice, vegetables and fruit). The answer is no. …

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Treat Hypertension With Low Carb Diet

A reduction in carbohydrate consumption has been shown to be more effective in lowering blood pressure than eating a low fat diet. The study compared low carbohydrate diet with a low fat diet that was combined with a weight loss drug. The low carbohydrate diet group was much more effective than the low fat diet plus …

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Why Starting The Atkins Diet Causes You To Feel Tired

Why Starting The Atkins Diet Causes You To Feel Tired Patients who go on the Atkins low carbohydrate diet often experience headaches, ‘brain fog’, lightheadedness or fatigue the first few weeks after reducing their carbohydrate intake. These symptoms will improve after a few weeks but for some individuals they can be quit severe and will …

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Reduce Carbs to Lower Triglycerides

Excess Carbohydrates Cause Elevated Triglycerides Overweight patients commonly have elevations of their small LDL cholesterol and triglycerides as well as decreases of their HDL cholesterol; all of these changes  correlate with an increased risk of heart attacks.   This pattern is collectively known as atherogenic dyslipidemia and is associated with the narrowing of arteries called atherosclerosis. …

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What to Do About a Family History of Diabetes, High Blood Pressure or Heart Attacks

What Does A Family History of Diabetes, High Blood Pressure or Heart Attacks Really Mean? I’ve spoken with many patients who worry about their health and that of their children because there seems to be a strong family history of type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure or even heart attacks.   Their concerns are obvious but …

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Does Your Abdomen Stick Out Too Far?

If it does, don’t think you’re alone.  Many Americans are dealing with the same thing.  Patients complain about it to me all the time.  What you may be experiencing is an accumulation of fat within the abdominal cavity (called intra abdominal fat).  And your body may be abnormally storing fat there because the carbohydrates (sugar and starches) in your …

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Soda is as Dangerous as Cigarettes

Soda is Dangerous In a recently published study  in the November 2010 issue of Diabetes Care, Dr Vasanti S Malik (Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA)  reported that consumption of just one or two sugar-sweetened beverages per day is associated with a 26% greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes and a 20% increased risk …

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Low Carbohydrate Treats For Halloween

Poisoning Our Children’s Future The diabetes epidemic is growing so rapidly that presently 1 of every 10 adults in the U.S. has diabetes.  That number is anticipated to grow to 1 of every 3 adults by 2050.  That means that 1/3 of all those beautiful little kids in your child’s classroom, 1/3 of their soccer teammates and …

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No Health Benefits From Eating 5 Times A Day

 The Myth Almost everyday a patient tells me they believe eating 5 times a day is important. They remember hearing that eating multiple times a day helps keep their blood sugar up. To make matters worse, patients believe they are suppose to specifically eat carbohydrates throughout the day. I understand why they believe this. I hear and …

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Carbohydrate Reduction and Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common hormone disorder among women of reproductive age.  PCOS affects approximately 5-14% of women (depending on the definition used).  here is no significant difference between white and black women with regard to incidence of PCOS when controlling for BMI and age. PCOS is often associated …

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Headaches and Lightheadedness

Headaches, A Common Malady A common problem many people experience from time-to-time is a headache. We can still function through the day with a mild headache but they can sometime become so severe as to incapacitate a person.  There are many known causes of headaches but there are only a few that occur quite commonly …

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Excess Carbohydrates Equals Lightheadedness and Fatigue

Introduction Many people are familiar with the occasionally sensation of feeling light-headed when getting up out of bed or after bending over to pick up an item or tie their shoes. This lightheadedness can sometimes be accompanied by visual changes such as seeing black spots, burred vision or transient vertigo. On occasion, the lightheadedness can …

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Carbohydrates and Urination Problems

Introduction Many patients commonly experience symptoms of urinary frequency, urgency or incontinence.  They may wake 2-4 times at night to urinate, have a sensation of needing to urinate but produce only a small amount of urine, have frequent or even the surprisingly urgent need to urinate during the daytime. Does this sound familiar?  Many of …

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High Cholesterol Is A Problem for Kids Too!

A federal health report says 20% of U.S. children and teens have abnormal lipid levels, an indication of too much bad cholesterol, too little good cholesterol or high triglycerides.  These abnormal levels can raise the risk for heart disease which is the leading cause of death in the United States. Reseachers have found that children and …

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How to Start Your Low Carb Diet

The approach taken on this blog is not the Adkin’s diet.  Completely eliminating carbohydrates is not the intention, but more a reduction.  Reducing the amount of carbohydrates eaten in a day and increasing protein in the diet is one of the best steps toward weight loss. Besides the benefits of weight reduction, reducing carbohydrates in …

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When Deciding What to Eat, Be Sure To Make It ‘Carb Worthy’

I recently had the pleasure to travel to the beautiful city of Chicago to visit friends, dine at a few nice restaurants and escape the generally maddening pace of running my medical practice. During our visit we decided to go to Gino’s East to enjoy some of their famous deep dish pizza.  Now, many of …

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Myth: You Need to Eat Carbohydrates To Fuel Your Body

Do you need to eat carbohydrates to fuel your body?  No. Carbohydrates (sugars and starches) are digested in the intestinal tract and transformed into a molecule known as glucose; this is the substance commonly referred to as blood sugar. Glucose is utilized as a energy source primarily for the brain and a small amount for …

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Do You Have Autonomic Dysfunction?