A warning on carbs

Some of these articles will be thought provoking and hopefully open your eyes to most of the myths that are being preached by so called fitness and nutrition experts.

The articles will be short and hopefully to the point but if you would like them to be more in depth then contact me at [email protected] and I’ll try and get longer articles printed.

This week we will look at carbs and cell damage.

New research shows that older men and women, particularly those who eat more carbohydrates, may have a harder time regulating their appetite.

We all know that eating results in “stress” to the body and that carbs initiate or exacerbate hormonal processes that other nutrients don’t. Turns out they also prey upon the very parts that tell us to put the fork down.

Dr Zane Andrews, a neuroendocrinologist from Monash University, found that free radicals organize an assault on appetite-regulating POMC neurons (POMCs tell our body when we’re full). But the kicker is this: the more carbs in the meal, the more damage to the POMCs.

Over a lifetime of carb-“rich” meals, these poor POMCs become increasingly damaged and dysfunctional.

Given our society’s focus on carbohydrates, Andrews explains, we’re setting ourselves up for “premature cell deterioration”. Andrews also says those of us between ages 25-50 are most “at risk”. Our efforts in these years to avoid excessive carbs can encourage the longevity of these neurons and our hunger-regulating cellular balance.

A diet full of carbs encourages weight gain and simultaneously knocks out the neurons responsible for hunger suppression, making it harder to lose weight once a person’s realized it’s time to shed the extra poundage. They’re a menacing catalyst that sets in motion all kinds of degenerative havoc. The high-carb diet, it seems, is the gift that keeps on giving.

Dr Andrews’ study underscores the importance of a lot of things, big and small, short and long-term. Starting a healthy, low-carb diet as soon as possible can help you maximize overall benefits. At the same time, every meal counts (whether you’re 25 or 55).

The small effort you make today is unequivocally doing you good. The lifetime commitment you make can offer extraordinary advantages.