TRYING TO LOSE WEIGHT? : HORMONAL EFFECTS OF FOOD

Hello Steemit friends,

From today I will start writing more posts on food and nutrition.
In this first post I want to talk about food and its effects on our hormones when it comes to weight loss and maintenance of an ideal body weight. They always say that to lose weight one has to eat less and exercise more. However, this all depends on the amount and proportion of macro nutrients that are consumed . Macro-nutrients constitute proteins, carbohydrates and fats.

Numerous studies over the past years have shown that proportions of macro nutrients (fat,protein and carbohydrates)- will determine whether you store fat or burn it. With the right mix of macro nutrients you can become a fat burning machine. The unsuspected key to successful fat burning is the hormone insulin. Insulin levels are controlled by the amount of carbs in the diet. When you consume carbs,the pancreas secretes insulin , which makes it possible for glucose (blood sugar made from the sugar in carbs) to enter the cells and be converted into energy. Insulin prevents blood sugar from rising too high after a meal. It is a storage hormone; which is responsible for the storage of excess blood sugar in the liver (as glycogen) and in the muscles. Glycogen storage capacity is limited. Once it is exhausted, the body will convert excess carbs into fat and store it under the direction of insulin.

Insulin is one of two hormones that is critically important in blood sugar control. The other is glucagon, which is released when protein is consumed .Glucagon's action is opposite of that of insulin.They are inversely paired hormones. When one is high,the other is low. Glucagon is a mobilization hormone. When the blood sugar level drops (and with it, energy level), glucagon is secreted by the pancreas causing gylcogen (stored sugar) to be released from the liver to replenish the sugar supply in the blood. Glucagon release also raises energy levels by increasing the release of fat from fat cells. Therefore, insulin lowers blood sugar and stores fat, while glucagon raises blood sugar and mobilizes fat from storage.

In conclusion ...INSULIN : lowers blood sugar,stores fat and is triggered by carbs
GLUCAGON: raises blood sugar, mobilizes fat from storage and triggered by proteins

In the next post I will discuss fats and the effect they have on our bodies. There are different types of fats with different structures. I will be discussing all these. You need to know that fat consumption affects a group of little known hormones called eicosanoids. Eicosanoids are fat burning when the right kinds are released, I will discuss them at length and let you know the right oils and fats to consume. See you in the next one.

DISCLAIMER...All pics are from GOOGLE.

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