The skinny on weight loss: Part III

How to obtain rapid weight loss safely and not create nutrition deficiencies.

In my previous editorials on weight loss, Part I and Part II, I discussed the following:

1. Weight loss is not natural; our physiology favors fat storage, not fat loss. The mere act of losing weight, skipping meals, decreasing our food intake and hyperinsulinemia (too much insulin) all either signal our bodies that we are in famine, or cause the enzymes that control fat burning or fat storage to favor fat storage.

2. Losing weight most often is really losing lean tissues such as muscle, organ tissues and hormones, as well as fat, which slows our metabolism and sets us up for fat storage as well as is dangerous. This is one reason why 95 percent of those who lose weight will gain it back.

I also discussed how ultimately it is a dysfunctional pancreas that causes too much insulin released in our bodies, leading to insulin resistance (type II diabetes), high cholesterol, high blood pressure and central obesity (abdominal girth greater than 40 inches in males and 35 inches in females). These are known as the "deadly quartet", metabolic syndrome, or Syndrome X which has skyrocketed in the past 30 years. Even though my waist was a size 34, my abdominal girth measured 39.5 inches just prior to Thanksgiving and I am sure it exceeded that following the Holidays. I believe in walking the walk if I I talk the talk so I went on the Ideal Protein diet last Dec. 27 and lost 25 pounds within 6 weeks.

So what is it that causes a dysfunctional pancreas? It is the typical North American diet, grossly disproportional in its share of saturated fats and sugars such as in breads, cereals, muffins, cakes, pastries, pasta, rice, corn, fast foods and surprisingly diet soda, that has caused this cascade of physiologic events and a host of other related conditions including several types of cancers, sleep apnea, arthritis, gout, stroke, heart disease, etc.. And once on the medications prescribed for these conditions we are told that we will be on them for life. We are told that we must lose weight to prevent or maybe reverse these conditions. If we are even told how to lose weight we are usually led to these 3 ways:

1. Eat less

2. Eat a balanced (healthy) diet

3. Exercise

While these suggestions sound logical, I will explain why they are impractical for serious weight loss and in fact can be dangerous in my next article.

So what's the answer? How can one safely and effectively lose weight rapidly without causing nutritional deficiencies and not gain the weight back? While no diet is a vaccine against weight gain potentially long term, rapid and safe weight loss is obtainable. Here's how.

1. You need to determine your beginning lean muscle mass and monitor it to ensure that you are not losing it by dieting. We use the BC-1 bioimpedence device by Stay Healthy because of it's extreme accuracy. It is very important not to lose lean tissue - fat loss is the goal.

2. You need to cut calories - calories in vs. calories burned decides if you will go into your "savings account" and burn fat vs your "checking account" and burn glucose (blood sugar and glycogen). Only by eliminating most carbohydrates can you reset the dysfunctional pancreas. Some carbohydrate intake is necessary for brain and nerve tissue function.

3. You need to spare your lean tissues. This is accomplished by consuming a minimum of 1/2 gram of protein per pound of lean muscle per day. Be careful not to eat a hyperprotein diet (160 grams or more per day). This could acidify you and cause stones or gout.

This is the strategy of the Ideal Protein Diet/Treatment that we are excited to be using in our office. To attend a free class taught by Dr. Grandstaff on the Ideal Protein Diet/Treatment and the Stay Healthy monitoring tools or a free consultation call 772-6015. Next; Why eating less, eating a balanced (healthy) diet and exercise don't really work for safe, long term or rapid weight loss.