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The Atkins diet principles lay the foundation for a healthy, more balanced way of eating than the standard American diet. Its emphasis is on using good carbohydrates in balance with adequate protein. This is in stark contrast to what most Americans eat on a daily basis. The average American eats lots of processed foods that have hidden sugars and highly processed carbohydrates. This has put most Americans on the road to diabetes and pre-diabetic conditions. What is sad is that diabetes has a predictable set of stages and that they can be easily recognized.
To begin with, Type II diabetes is a disease that is a direct result of insulin resistance. This means that the body can no longer produce sufficient insulin to lower blood sugar levels. In youth, our bodies were able to digest and metabolize food more efficiently. A then-healthy pancreas worked to produce and release adequate amounts of insulin, no matter how many carbohydrates or sugar we ate. Of course, there may have been other consequences of unhealthy eating habits such as weight gain or mood swings but it didn’t matter that much at the time.
However, as adults, the more sugar and carbohydrates we consume, the harder our pancreas has to work. Foods high in refined sugar and processed carbohydrates create a surge of glucose in our blood stream. The pancreas releases large amounts of insulin in response to the surge. Our bodies react by releasing adrenaline to correct the imbalance. Thus a pattern of sugar-insulin spikes and valleys is created. The longer our bodies continue in this pattern, the more likely we are to develop pre-diabetes and full blown Type II.
Many people who are overweight are also insulin resistant. Insulin resistance means that the insulin is not doing its job in removing glucose from the blood stream. The pancreas gets over worked and it releases massive amounts of insulin, sometimes 20 times more than the body actually needs. This results in the blood sugar dropping to extremely low levels. This sets off a chain reaction in the body that leads to a release of adrenaline to correct the blood sugar problem.
In addition, as we age insulin resistance becomes more pronounced and aggravated. Long term damage can occur to the heart and circulatory systems even in the pre-diabetes stage. There are warning signs and tests that can be performed by a family doctor to determine if you are at risk for Type 2 diabetes. In most cases, gaining control of your blood sugar levels is the first step in effectively preventing or delaying the onset. Studies show that low-carb diets such as the Atkins can help an individual achieve stable blood-sugar levels by decreasing the spike and valley pattern.
After years of using a high-carbohydrate diet, you will finally become fully diabetic. Insulin is the body’s primary fat creator and extra pounds usually accompany late onset diabetes. Pre-diabetic conditions, if not treated effectively, will lead to diabetes indefinitely.
However, there are easily identifiable warning signs to diabetes that appear early. Your family doctor can perform insulin level tests that will let you know if you are at risk for pre-diabetic conditions, and studies show that low-carb diets like Atkins can help. Controlling your blood sugar is one of the most effective methods to controlling pre-diabetic conditions.
Your body will work the way it was designed to. Who wouldn’t want that?
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