Connection between Insulin Resistance and Obesity
Insulin resistance and obesity are both increasing at a rapid pace, in large part because of their connection. Today, we're discussing how these two conditions feed on each other and the strategies you can use to reverse both simultaneously.
Insulin resistance and obesity are intimately linked health conditions, and both are becoming increasingly more common. Research has shown that only about 6% of adults fit all criteria for optimal metabolic health. The facts are that insulin resistance promotes weight gain and negatively impacts metabolism, which increases the risk of developing other metabolic disorders, like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, high cholesterol, high triglycerides, and fatty liver disease from non-alcoholic sources.
Fully addressing insulin resistance and weight gain requires a comprehensive look at overall lifestyle factors including nutrition, physical activity, sleep, stress management, medications, toxin exposures, supplements, and sometimes even genetics. Understanding the close relationships between insulin resistance and weight gain allows us to focus on the factors that simultaneously help both conditions with a personalized approach.
Causes of Insulin Resistance
Nutrition and Lifestyle Factors:
- Diets high in processed foods, including refined carbohydrates, added sugars, and processed meats, vegetable/seed oils, can cause increased insulin release from the pancreas. This creates a proinflammatory state which also damages cell membranes and increases the risk of insulin resistance.
- Lack of physical activity is a risk factor for developing insulin resistance. Working muscles can readily soak up glucose without insulin - so the more muscle you have and the more active you are, the more energy you can burn, the more sugar you can store without insulin!
- Insulin resistance and obesity fuel each other - with insulin resistance contributing to weight gain and obesity contributing to insulin resistance.
Genetic Factors:
Let’s be clear right up front on this…genetic factors ONLY tell you predispositions, not guarantees or destinies. You can have every genetic predisposition and never develop insulin resistance and you can have no genetic predisposition and still develop insulin resistance. Variations in genes coding for insulin signaling, lipid metabolism, mitochondrial activity, and inflammatory mediators are genetic factors that can increase the risk of insulin resistance. So knowing this information about yourself can tell you where to prioritize things.
Hormonal Imbalances:
Imbalances of any hormone can contribute to IR. Hormones don’t just refer to estrogen, testosterone, and progesterone, but also glucagon, GLP-1, GIP, ghrelin, leptin, peptide YY, thyroid, and others can affect insulin release from the pancreas. Hormone imbalances in conditions like polycystic ovarian syndrome can also alter insulin levels and insulin function increasing the risk of weight gain and obesity.
Stress of all kinds:
Lack of sleep, disrupted sleep schedules, high emotional stress, past unresolved traumas, toxins, underlying infections, nutrient deficiencies, certain medications, other health conditions…all aspects of health and life can contribute to the development of insulin resistance, inflammation and weight gain or the inability to lose weight. Sleep is when a lot of our repair, detoxification, and insulin reduction occurs. We’re not eating, not digesting, and we’re not worrying about things when we’re sleeping. Emotional stress (current or past trauma) increases stress hormones which function to increase blood sugar - even without eating. This can therefore also trigger an insulin release to handle the sugar in the blood. This increase in insulin can contribute to both IR and fat gain. Toxins, underlying infections, and medications can contribute to IR by altering cell signaling, damaging cell membranes or mitochondria. They can contribute to obesity through IR and as a protective mechanism surrounding toxins that can’t be detoxified with fat. So that fat can literally be protecting you from toxins.
Research Insights
Current research evidence indicates that insulin resistance disrupts normal metabolism and contributes to weight gain. Insulin is a storage hormone. It tells the cells what to do with the incoming fuel - namely to store it as glycogen, then fat when glycogen stores are full. Insulin also blocks the ability to break down stored fuels for energy, so you are stuck in gain or maintain modes. Studies also show that insulin resistance also tends to increase hunger and cravings for high-carbohydrate foods. This further contributes to weight gain and increased body fat. Insulin resistance and obesity promote inflammation which can worsen both weight gain and insulin resistance.
Tips For Managing and Preventing Weight Gain
Dietary Strategies
Diet is one of the most significant drivers of insulin sensitivity. We want to focus on not driving the development of IR, but rather the reversal of IR or creating insulin sensitivity. This includes reducing simple and refined carbs, lowering overall carbohydrate intake (focusing on non-starchy vegetables as the primary carb source), prioritizing quality proteins and healthy fats.
It’s also important to have good eating habits - sit down, undistracted, eat slowly, chew thoroughly for proper digestion.
Eating meals and skipping frequent snacking is another strategy for reducing the number of insulin spikes throughout the day. This gives your digestion a break and helps improve elimination of waste products. Adding intermittent fasting can be beneficial as well.
Physical Activity Strategies
Regular physical activity is vital in improving insulin sensitivity. Exercise can help with maintaining an optimal weight, but isn’t the best weight loss strategy. Exercise, like fast walking, weight lifting, and HIIT, enhances insulin sensitivity by increasing glucose uptake and utilization in skeletal muscles. This reduces blood glucose levels and improves insulin resistance. Once glucose is inside the muscle cell, it cannot go back into the blood. Remember the working muscle doesn’t require insulin to uptake and burn sugar.
Strength training, including both weight lifting, bodyweight exercise, or any activity building muscle increases glucose uptake capacity. Strength training is valuable for helping to preserve lean body mass, supporting long-term weight management by increasing resting energy expenditure. This not only helps with body composition, but also longevity, physical capabilities, and overall vitality.
Sleep
Prioritizing adequate amounts of quality sleep, at appropriate hours is vital to optimizing metabolic health. This regulates your circadian rhythm, decreases inflammation, helps to regulate appetite, improves detox pathways, and can help you manage cravings and emotional desires to eat.
Stress Management
Utilizing stress-reduction techniques like mindfulness, yoga, deep-breathing exercises, prayer, meditation, journaling, therapy, and time with family and friends has been shown to reduce inflammation and improve overall metabolic health. Do things you love to do every day.
Helpful Labs/Testing
A comprehensive blood chemistry panel is the best place to start. Episode 112 discussed the labs I recommend. Sadly, most doctors and insurance companies won’t order a panel that includes the markers you really need. I run this with all of my clients because it’s so vital to fully addressing the underlying problems.
Other labs that can be helpful for specific needs are stool testing, organic acids testing, toxin panels, or even genomics testing. These are unique to each client, based on overall health, symptoms, and goals.
You can also test your blood sugar with a glucometer, continuous glucose monitor, or glucose-ketone meter. This doesn’t directly tell you what your insulin levels are, as you can have normal glucose levels being handled by a normal or high level of insulin. Problems arise with high levels of insulin needed to manage blood sugars.
Personalized Management Plans
A personalized plan is really where it’s at. Personalized nutrition plans based on individual health factors should take into account personal preferences, lifestyle factors, family dynamics and social parameters, matter when creating a personalized nutrition plan. Specific individualized recommendations should outline the best ratio of macronutrients, timing and composition of meals, and recommended weight goals.
If you’re interested in taking a deeper dive into your metabolic health, apply to work with me. We can discuss your personal situation and create a plan of action.
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