By far one of the most common questions that I get is if I
can help with weight loss. It seems to
be something that most people want to do at some point in their lives, but also
something that people want to see happen quickly and without a great deal of
effort. Perhaps that is just human
nature. But what I see going on out
there is that people will tend to start down some particular path, usually
involving a gym membership or a fancy piece of equipment, only to lose faith in
their program after a month or so with very little to show for it in the end! It can be very frustrating and bad for moral
in general to fail time after time with something so important as one’s health
and/or positive self image. So what gives?
Why is it so tough sometimes to lose the weight and keep it off? Well besides the fact that being an American
already predisposes us to be overweight, I want to point out one potentially
significant obstacle here that many of you have probably never heard of before.
When considering weight loss there are many opinions
floating around out there. And not just
opinions, but well known medical concepts.
First, you have your calorie counters. They have been around a long time
and take themselves very seriously. They
know the calorie counts for every food imaginable and even have iPhone apps to
help them along the way. I don’t tend
like this mindset because there is just too much going on besides calorie in
calorie out to warrant such strict counting.
And I am sad to say that eating just one cookie which contains a few
hundred calories would require quite a lengthy jog to burn off. And that was just one cookie! It just does not seem like a realistic model
to me. But you also have the low fat
people, and the exercise people, and the oatmeal and grapefruit people, and the
pre-made meals in boxes people, and the who knows what else people. And then on the medical side you could be
doing everything right, but have a low thyroid condition or an undiagnosed
blood sugar condition. All of these
things can be something to consider as individual factors in weight loss
although in my opinion there are usually many of these spinning at the same
time. Focusing on one and losing sight
of the complicated web of disharmony associated with weight problems will lead
to failure every time. Just increasing
your physical activity and eating well may not work in some people who have some
of these underlying mechanisms that need fixing first.
But aside from all of those factors, there is one concept
that trumps all of them. This one thing will always precede these factors and
will in time lead to weight gain and many other serious health concerns. Simply put I am talking about
inflammation. And by inflammation I am
not talking about a sore ankle. Yes,
that is inflammation too, but systemic inflammation is a different beast
entirely. Basically what we are talking about here are little chemicals that
the immune system creates that are released into the blood and float around the
body wreaking havoc! There are many
different types of these little inflammatory chemicals (called cytokines) but
there are two that I want to detail for you here which have a role in weight
gain but also work to promote many terrible diseases.
There are two inflammatory cytokines called Interlukin 1
(IL-1) and Necrosis Factor Kappa Beta (NF-kB) which will actually promote the
production of each other. So once they
are activated they then feed forward and activate the other and so on and so
forth creating a viscous cycle that is very difficult to turn off. These cycles are started very often through
inflamed and irritated intestines found as a result of the very same foods that
get us fat in the first place! The
Standard American Diet (SAD) is extremely inflammatory to the stomach and
intestines and has the potential to lead to full blown systemic inflammation.
This is one reason we Americans suffer many of the highest rates of deadly
diseases on the planet, yet spend much more on healthcare than any other
country. It’s the food people! And yet people are yelling in the streets
about losing the precious Twinkie!
So what do IL-1 and NF-kB have to do with weight gain? I find this part to be quite
interesting… Both of these cytokines
have the ability to weaken the body’s Insulin Receptors (eventually leading to Insulin
Resistance and/or Type II Diabetes).
This in turn will make the body product more Triglycerides which is the
stored form of fat found in the fat cells.
When the body can’t use the sugars it has eaten either by this Insulin
Resistance concept, or simply by eating too much junk, it stores it as fat in
the form of Triglycerides. (These can
cheaply and easily be screened for on a basic blood test. They should be below
100 on a fasting blood test.) So here
you have an inflammatory influence telling the body to store fat which is
totally aside from diet and lifestyle! But
that is just the beginning. Here comes
the insult. These very same cytokines
also turn down the activity of an enzyme called Hormone Sensitive Lipase whose
job it is to break down stored Triglycerides from within the fat cells into
usable energy. So we have a scenario
where we are telling our bodies to store fat at the very same time as we are
stopping ourselves from burning it! You
can see the problem. And to make matters
worse… The more fat the more
inflammation!
So now you have an inflamed person (the average American by
the way) who has these viscous cycles going on and decides to exercise every
day to lose weight. In fact they plan to
run a 10K. They are 30 pounds overweight
and the running hurts to say the least!
This can lead to physical stress to the body causing more inflammation
and not only a continuation of the problem but oftentimes a stop to the
activity as well. Add to this the
possibility that they may have gluten or dairy sensitivities which are also
independently able to stimulate IL-1/NF-kB activity and are directly associated
with weight gain in many people. How
much weight can this person realistically lose under these circumstances? I don’t care what Jenny Craig puts in a
pre-packaged, frozen, calorie precise meal.
They are doing nothing to fix the underlying inflammation problem! Am I
saying to forget healthy diet and exercise?
Absolutely not. But I am saying
that without considering a few things first you may be doing it in the wrong
order and walking (or jogging) yourself into another failed attempt at weight
loss. That I am stating absolutely.
So there is no quick fix.
Weight loss isn’t easy. And it
should take a long time to accomplish!
Any program or miracle pill that produces quick results I am personally
afraid of. In fact losing weight too
quickly creates harmful, toxic and inflammatory consequences. So be careful! The first step in ANY weight loss program should
be finding and fixing the inflammatory roadblocks. Doing this will not only allow these
physiological mechanisms to correct themselves, but will give you more energy,
clarity of mind and efficiency in the long run to carry out your particular
program. Not to mention fat will be lost
more quickly and with less effort. How
is it done? Well there are only two
compounds currently known that have the ability to effectively shut down the
IL-1/NF-kB loop. These compounds are Curcumin, found in the spice Turmeric, and
Resveratrol commonly know as the beneficial compound in red wine. When used
together there is a powerful synergistic effect. But these must be taken in high dose. And at the same time other inflammatory
considerations must also be moderated such as a potential gluten sensitivity or
a blood sugar condition for example. So
that is where a good blood chemistry analysis can do wonders. And I would love to start helping find some
of these things for you. Just pick up
the phone and call and we can get started!
I have the products you should consider and the knowledge to work up a
blood chemistry report for you in wellness based terms. I will help you not only lose weight, but
begin a lifestyle of health and wellness which is the real answer to these
concerns. If we focus on the underlying
health the weight should naturally fall away.
But if we focus squarely on the symptom of weight gain and try to act on
it directly, failure is unfortunately often the result. Think holistically, wellness based, slow but
steady, and positive minded and allow me to be your guide.
If you have any questions or would like to schedule a consultation (you can be anywhere in the country), please email me, Jim Chialtas, at
jchialtas@gmail.com. Thank you!
