We often eat too many carbs and usually they are absorbed too quickly. This spike in blood sugar level causes a surge in insulin output and can cause fat to be laid down just where you don't want it. Continual use of too many carbs can be very detrimental to weight loss. However it is possible to slow down the absorption of sugar by using fiber in your diet. Numerous studies confirm this connection between fiber and slower uptake of sugar and health benefits. Beta-glucan is a fiber that markedly slows carbohydrate absorption and also gives you a feeling of fullness as it swells in your stomach. Taking 5 grams of beta-glucan fiber before each meal will level out the spikes in blood sugar and therefore keep insulin levels lower. Another fiber to consider is glucomannan, which if taken before each meal can also blunt the glucose-insulin spikes that occur with too many carbs in your meal.
Then there are ways to reduce carbohydrate breakdown and absorption in your gut. Simple carbohydrate sugars are broken down using an enzyme called alpha-glucosidase. This can be blocked by a drug called acarbose taken before each meal. Complex carbohydrates such as starches are broken down with an enzyme called alpha-amylase. This enzyme is found in an extract of white kidney bean.
It is very important to know how many carbs you eat so I often have patients record their carb foods and calculate the total grams of carbs they eat each day. The numbers can be much higher than you would think. Excess carb intake will increase your fat. Last year a major study compared low carb dieting with calorie restriction with the Mediterranean diet for effective weight loss. Do I have to tell you which diet won hands-down? Finally the late Dr. Atkins was vindicated.
Both beta-glucan and white bean extract are in the new product for weight control that I am leading up to announcing in this series. Stay tuned.....
drBob
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