Hi {!firstname_fix}
Please feel free to pass this week's newsletter on to your friends and family. Each week we are trying some new ideas, let me know what you think. Be sure to check out the seminars I will be doing.
Warmly,
Kathleen
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January 26, 2004
** Quote From Kathleen **
So you want to know whether you are going too slowly, eh?
I think the key about whether you are procrastinating and stuck or have
a style that takes small steps is whether you are moving forward. If
you look at the progress over the past 6 months you will be able to
tell.
If you have moved forward, yep, it is working. If you are doing the
same ole, same ole, it probably means that you are caught in your
addiction and are not miserable enough to commit. Change does not
happen until commitment comes.
You have asked why some folks did it all at once and were ok. Mostly
because they were so miserable that when they heard the content of the
program they KNEW they would do whatever it takes to get well.
Doing the program is hard. You cannot dabble in it and expect it to
work. The
folks who succeed are the ones who commit. If you want what we have, do
what we do. (smile)
Warmly,
Kathleen
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** Testimonial for the Week**
I first read Potatoes Not Prozac while on the Atkins diet in June, 1999. It made perfect sense, I gave it mental assent, and put it in my self-help library for future reference. By July, 2000 I had gained back all that I lost with Atkins plus 10 pounds and read the book again. Still made sense, but I wasn't ready. In July, 2001 I was one year into a remarriage and bouncing off the walls with mood swings and depression. I was facing bankruptcy on every front - moral, spiritual, financial - and rethinking my commitment to this man every day. It was a crazy time.
That's when I found Radiant Recovery online and began eating breakfast and checking in with the groups daily. Mostly listening - that's my style. I joined YLD and within 3 months, my moods began to stabilize.
I began working through the steps - sometimes too quickly like when I tried to give up white things too soon - and I'd have to begin again. I gained the freshman 15 during the early steps, but was assured it would come off as I continued in the program. It was comforting to know I could just do breakfast and everything else would fall into place.
I took to heart the advice "do each step until you love it." It took me a while to love journaling, and I didn't think I'd ever love living without chocolate. But in January, 2003, I actually WANTED to detox...and did! Since then, I have lost 35 pounds and most of my "drama queen" tendencies. I have learned so, SO much about my biochemistry and what it does to my body - not just head knowledge, but experientially. I no longer take antidepressants and am able to get what my psyche needs through doing the food and telling (myself and others) the truth about me. My life is my own again, even though I choose to share the journey with my mate. Best of all, I can think again instead of letting my head run (that may only make sense to fellow addicts...I call it the Committee.) Life is good and getting better on a daily basis. Thank you, Kathleen!
--Kim
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** Your Last Diet: More Than What You Think**
I know that many of you wonder what we do at YLD chats. Here is a transcript from last week. I was in Minnesota doing some consulting and our team led this one. Whew, was it fun!!
YLD Chat Transcript - 01/14/04
We post the transcripts to YLD every week. So even if you can't make it to chat in person you have access to them, and often they are the
place where I bring new and exciting cutting edge material not presented to the rest of the community.
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** Featured Product: Radiant Recovery Seminars **
I will be doing three seminars this spring. Click on the city name to see details.
The first one will be held in New York on Sunday, February 29.
The second will be in Denver on Saturday, April 3.
And the third will be our annual four-day ranch held in Albuquerque May 19-22.
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** Recipe of the Week **
Easy Egg and Oat One-Pan Dish
Here is a breakfast recipe (for one) that is quick and tastes great! Some folks like it with plain yogurt on top. This is another one of those that we all "play" with to add, subtract and change to suit our tastes.
Ingredients:
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk or yogurt
1 cup oats
1 small apple, diced
Cinnamon and nutmeg to taste
Directions:
Beat the eggs, stir in milk or yogurt. Add oats, apple, nutmeg and cinnamon. Cook like a pancake or scramble in oiled skillet.
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This and more can be found in our
cookbook.
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** Featured Topic**
Insulin Resistance
Part Three of a Four Part Series
Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D.
Fat Intake Affects Insulin Resistance as Well
In some people, the body compensates for the down regulation by producing more and more insulin. This increased level manages to get the message through. It is not as effective, but it does help the person hold steady. However, if the person is eating high levels of fat as well, the story changes. After seven weeks of a high fat diet, insulin sensitivity is reduced by 57%.(Kaiyala, 1999) This is a striking finding!
Now, you may be starting to get the gist here. So, we who are fatter have fewer places with receptors and if we are eating a lot of foods that evoke insulin, we will create down regulation and have fewer receptors. As you might guess, our opportunity to burn up the glucose is getting smaller and smaller. Our chance of getting fatter is getting bigger and bigger, so to speak.
If we are sugar sensitive, the deck is stacked even more. We are carbohydrate sensitive. Our bodies produce more insulin in response to carbohydrates than a normal body. If we are overweight and sugar sensitive, this is even more true. Gerald Reaven, is a scientist at Stanford University is considered the “Father” of Insulin Resistance. As long ago as 1983, he noted that the degree of obesity is correlated with insulin resistance. (1983)
Reaven is the one who coined the term “Syndrome X” to describe the health effects of high insulin. (1994) These include diabetes, increased triglycerrides, decreased HDL cholesterol (the good kind) and hypertension. Many people who are overweight have increased triglycerrides, imbalanced cholesterol ratios and hypertension (high blood pressure). They may not have been diagnosed with diabetes but the “worry” is there. But their primary focus remains on being fat. I believe it is critical to hold the bigger picture when dealing with insulin resistance.
And so you are more and more miserable about being fat, you keep eating sugar stuff and white things as comfort and things get worse and worse. No wonder we are desperate and miserable. It feels overwhelming and unsolvable . No wonder so many people try so many diets.
Many of the popular diet programs are designed to address the problem of insulin resistance. “Cut the carbs, increase the protein and don't worry so much about fat,” they say. And this will decrease the amount of insulin. Decreasing the amount of insulin will reduce your insulin resistance and you will start losing weight. This is true. This is why these programs have so much appeal. They have a dramatic effect for a little while.
But the story is bigger and more complex . Increasing fat contributes to insulin resistance as well. So you may initially lose weight on the high protein/low carb diets by reducing your carbohydrates. But the increased fat levels are wreaking havoc with your insulin resistance. This won't show up for a while. While you are rejoicing over your weight loss, your body will be setting the stage for trouble down the line.
There is more. Your body needs carbohydrates to function. Carbohydrates provide fuel. They give you energy. Your muscles need them in order to ignite the burn process. Your muscles use fat as their primary fuel, but the glucose that comes from the carbohydrate serves as the lighter fuel to ignite the longer burning fat.
Protecting Serotonin Levels
And most important to you as a sugar sensitive person, you need to guard your serotonin levels. If you are working rigorously to reduce the carbs without understanding the whole picture, you are going to get into trouble. If you have low serotonin, you need a controlled insulin response to make sure the tryptophan you get from protein can cross over into your brain and make serotonin. If you work REALLY hard to minimize anything which produces an insulin response, you will end up shortchanging your serotonin. And the serotonin is what gives you impulse control. This is part of the reason why after six weeks on Atkins or Hellers you feel cranky, depressed and raging for something sweet. Your ability to “just say no” goes out the window.
We need to reduce the insulin reactions, but we want to take care of serotonin as well . Here is where the potato comes in. Yes, it is glycemic, and yes, it causes a release of insulin. This is exactly what we want. One, carefully timed, strategic insulin “hit” for serotonin. Keep your mood up, enhance your impulse control, stave away depression. Ole spud works.
But just cutting down on carbs won't fix all the insulin resistance. We will talk more about that story next week. Work on understanding the problem. Really work on making sense of it so when I talk to you about the solution, you can follow step by step what you want to do to heal your insulin resistance. AND protect your sugar sensitive brain.
Copyright © Kathleen DesMaisons, 2004. All Rights Reserved.