They sound tempting, Don’t they?
Eating what YOU want and still losing weight, Really?
Are you tired of fad diets?
Did you know that your appetite is increased by a poor diet?
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Don’t be a victim of misleading marketing.
I received a question about starch blockers yesterday.
Here is my view and some good recommendations.
Starch Blockers have gained some popularity and may offer short term benefits. BUT, they are not the long term solution.
The pharmaceutical industry has a few medications that promise to “SLOW” the absorption of starches and carbohydrates.
Precose is one of a family of drugs which include Glyset and Glucobay. It does something very close to what the “starch blockers” claim to do.
To quote the prescribing information for Precose, “Acarbose is a man-made oligosaccharide designed to slow down the actions of alpha-amylase and alpha-glucosidase enzymes thereby slowing the appearance of sugar in the blood after a meal.”
By slowing down the digestion of starches and complex sugars it prevents the generation of the high blood sugars that are believed to cause diabetic complications.
Some side effect info….
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From Rx List – The Internet Drug index
Excerpt:
What are the possible side effects of acarbose (Precose)?
Get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.
Call your doctor at once if you have any of these liver symptoms: low fever; nausea, stomach pain, loss of appetite; dark urine, clay-colored stools; or jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes).
Less serious side effects may include: mild stomach pain, gas, bloating; diarrhea or mild skin rash or itching.
This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Tell your doctor about any unusual or bothersome side effect. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.
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You can expect similar symptoms with OTC starch blockers.
Gimmicky, expensive and probably not the way to go.
All of this assumes that starches are ok – more on this a minute.
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I prefer using sensible dieting along with dietary supplementation of “essential nutrients”.
Inappropriate hunger has at least 3 causes.
1) Lack of minerals – see PICA
Chromium reduces sugar cravings and it stabilizes insulin levels.
Insulin is one of the most powerful stimulators of the appetite!
Many minerals , when lacking, will increase your appetite.
2) Lack of good fats – eat butter, eat eggs and cheese.
Consider a coconut oil supplement for energy.
Avoid vegetable oil [rich in omega 6]
Use Olive oil [Omega 9 oils do not worsen the 6:3 ratio]
Use flax and fish oil [possibly Krill] for omega 3’s
Take some Borage oil [rich in GLA]
The Omega 6:3 ratio is important – learn about it.
Don’t be avoid of fat – use good judgment though – In the past I’ve gained a few pounds eating clam dip to excess [sour cream base]
3) Lack of protein in the diet.
Try to get 20-30 grams per meal – [see my posts about dieting.]
l-Glutamine, @ 2-5 grams per dose, will reduce sugar cravings [and alcohol cravings] in short order. [Aka – “sweet tooth”]
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Some background…..
We are designed to get our nutrition from food – not rocks or dirt.
Plants live and grow in dirt or more accurately, the soil [with contains moisture, bacteria and other critters].
Plants, with their chlorophyll, use sunlight to make carbohydrates, amino acids [and proteins], fats [oils] as well as a wide array of vitamins.
Plants CANNOT make minerals.
As I’ve said before.
Our soil is depleted, that is, our farmland has been stripped of minerals. [We need around 60 minerals]
We have used a “fertilizer” for over 100 years, NPK or nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.
We have also utilized levees for around 100 years as well.
With 5-7 years of using the same soil without flooding [no new minerals] the minerals are depleted.
[If your checking account is all withdrawals/no deposits = trouble.]
Evidence of this is seen in animals’ failure to thrive, birth defects and a long list of illnesses. [When the don’t have dietary supplementation of minerals, etc]
Plants and animals both need minerals to live and thrive. [Plants are more susceptible to disease, too]
Plants take metallic or rock-like minerals into their system and turn them into colloidal minerals [98% absorbable].
Minerals from plants have a 98% absorption rate.
Plants CAN make Vitamins, Amino acids/protein and Oils/Fats.
Plants can NOT make Minerals.
Minerals must be in the soil or they will not be in plants.
Animals, by design, acquire their minerals through eating plants or by eating other animals [who have eaten plants and other vegetation like algae or seaweed].
Animals are not designed or suited to eat rocks for their mineral needs [neither are we].
“Rock like” or Metallic minerals are 3% absorbed.
Until we repair our soil and farmland we MUST supplement our diets to ensure complete mineral nutrition.
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Now, one of the arguments for “getting everything you need from the four food groups” is based on the assumption that the soil has adequate minerals.
This is a veritably faulty assumption.
Our soil is depleted of minerals.
Ideally, with a full complement of minerals in the soil, foods like rice, bread, potatoes and pasta would provide us with minerals.
The minerals are missing.
Even with perfect soil, excessive starch intake causes us to lose minerals or simply “use them up”.
Sugars and starches accelerate urinary losses of chromium.
Final thought along these lines – starches and sugars cause/stimulate the production of insulin.
Excess insulin makes us fat and hungry, no joke.
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Take Home Message……….
We cannot get “Full Spectrum Nutrition” from foods alone.
We MUST to supplement our diets to get “Full Spectrum Nutrition”.
To achieve Optimal Health we need “Full Spectrum Nutrition”.
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And as I always say….
To achieve optimal health we need Full Spectrum Nutrition.
Around 90 nutrients are considered ESSENTIAL.
These nutrients can be divided into 4 groups:
Vitamins, Minerals, Amino Acids [Protein] and Fats/Oils.
If Optimal Health is the goal, it is virtually impossible to get “everything you need” from foods alone.
To get full spectrum nutrition we ALL need to supplement our diets.
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Supplements to consider:
1) Get a good multiple vitamin/mineral product. Versions with “Chelated” minerals are best.
2) Take a quality Calcium product. Look for MCHA as the calcium source and one that includes Magnesium, vitamin D and some assorted trace minerals.
3) Take Omega 3 oils. Flax oil is the best to start. Adding Krill or fish oil later
4) Find a good Colloidal mineral product for trace minerals. Make sure it’s from Humic shale and NOT ionic minerals. Humic shale is the “fossilized” remains of the dinosaur days. Plant based colloidal minerals are 98% absorbed.
5) Vitamin E is difficult to get in sufficient amounts from foods. I advise people to supplement with at least 400 IU per day. Natural versions are best, look for “d-tocopherol” but avoid “d-l-tocopherol”- it’s the man-made version and is only 25% usable.
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