Insulin resistance is common in America even among people without diabetes. Potentially as much as 88% of Americans have insulin resistance to some degree. Insulin resistance plays a role in nearly all chronic conditions including heart disease, diabetes, infertility, and Alzheimer’s. Therefore, it is beneficial to understand what insulin resistance is and how we can protect ourselves from its devastating effects. Diet and lifestyle are key players in insulin resistance, but stress, inflammation, and chronically elevated insulin play a role as well.
So, what is insulin and what is insulin resistance?
Insulin is a hormone that stimulates cells to take sugar from the bloodstream into the cells to be used for energy or to be stored. It also gives other information to different types of cells in the body.
What happens in insulin resistance? This occurs when the cells stop responding to insulin. Think about insulin knocking on the cell door to deliver a message. Insulin is like the key that unlocks the door to let glucose into the cells. In insulin resistance, the cells ignore the knock, and the key can’t unlock the door. The cells stop listening to insulin’s instructions to take the glucose into the cell which leaves the glucose floating around in our bloodstream. More insulin is then released to bombard the cells with the message to take in glucose from the bloodstream. Essentially, the body needs more insulin to do the same work. As cells in the muscle or liver become insulin resistant, glucose levels rise (the muscles consume less glucose; the liver releases more glucose into the blood). In turn, this elevated glucose elicits a higher insulin level, which further drives insulin resistance.
How do we normalize glucose levels so that insulin doesn’t continue to be excreted? There are multiple ways to do this. One of the most important ways is to eat foods that don’t spike your glucose or insulin. Foods high in sugar such as actual sugar, fruit, fruit juice, sodas, sweets, and simple carbohydrates will all raise glucose levels. Focus on moderate protein intake, healthy fat intake, and low-starch vegetables. Also, the time of day you eat can play a role. Insulin spikes more in the evening than it does early in the day. So, eat your biggest meal at breakfast, a medium meal at lunch, and a small meal for an early dinner. Artificial sweeteners will also cause a release of insulin. Avoid these. Remember, high levels of insulin can cause weight gain.