Metabolic syndrome is a serious health condition associated with coronary heart attacks, diabetes, and even early death. You have it if you've got at least three of these five traits: excess abdominal fat, high blood triglycerides, low HDL (which is the good cholesterol), high blood pressure, and impaired glucose tolerance.
Various strategies have been proposed to prevent the development of metabolic syndrome. These include:
Lose weight- Shedding even 3 kilogrammes can significantly slash your risk. Even extremely overweight people are 70% less likely to develop diabetes when they lost just 5% of their weight even if they didn`t exercise. The Body Renewal Medical Weight loss program is offered at Body Renewal. If the program is strictly adhered to patients lose between 8 and 12 kilogrammes of fat a month, generally find it quite easy to follow the program and feel good with increased levels energy.
Eat healthily 80% of the time and eat what you want 20% of the time, basically on the weekends. This can be done with intermittent fasting. Try to eat only 100% organic food which does not overtax your hypothalamus again. Obesity and weight gain are caused by the man-made ingredients, chemicals, hormones and food processing techniques in the growing, producing and manufacturing of every day, food.
Turn off your Fat Switch by limiting your fructose intake. Limit your total fructose intake to less than 25g per day (which is equivalent to 2 low fructose fruits). Fructose can increase your hunger and lead to overeating by triggering changes in your brain. Fructose -containing sugars cause obesity by turning on your fat switch. Effective treatment of obesity requires turning off your fat switch (limiting fructose) and improving the function of your cells' mitochondria. Limit fructose from fruit to 15g a day. For example, 1 cup berries contain between 3g-4g of fructose, an orange 6.1g, a banana 7.1g, an apple 9.5g, 1 cup grapes 12.4 g & ½ mango 16.2g. Fructose is also metabolised to fat in your body far more rapidly than any other sugar. The metabolism of fructose by your liver creates a long list of waste products and toxins, including a large amount of uric acid, which drives up blood pressure and can cause gout.
High fructose diets will lead to obesity, insulin resistance, fatty liver, and high triglycerides, signs of inflammation, vascular disease, and high blood pressure. Fruit juices are high in fructose, so strict avoidance is recommended. Likewise, honey is very high in fructose.
Fructose can also raise your uric acid levels as it generates uric acid within minutes of ingestion. This can elevate your blood pressure, increase insulin and affect kidney function. The link between fructose and uric acid is so strong that you can actually use your uric acid levels as a marker for fructose toxicity. According to the latest research in this area, the safest range of uric acid appears to be between 3 and 5.5 milligrammes per deciliter (mg/dl). There appears to be a steady relationship between uric acid levels and blood pressure and cardiovascular risk, even down to the range of 3 to 4 mg/dl.
Replace sweetened drinks- whether they`re sweetened with sugar, HFCS (high corn fructose sugar) or artificial sweeteners, with plenty of pure, clean water. Fructose/ fruit juice turn your fat switch on as indicated in point 3 above. A far safer alternative to fructose or sugar is to use pure glucose (dextrose) or Stevia or xylitol.
Get your uric acid level checked to find out how sensitive you are to fructose. Research advocated an ideal uric acid level is probably around 4mg/dl for men and 3.5mg/dl for women. If you feel you are healthy and do not have signs of insulin resistance, and would like to consume more fruit then it is possible to have your doctor check your uric acid levels. This is a more powerful risk factor for heart disease than total cholesterol. If your level is over 5 then more than likely you would benefit from lowering your fructose intake as fructose tends to increase uric acid levels.
Consume healthy fats, such as real butter, eggs, avocados and nuts (especially macadamia nuts) which are higher in fat and lower in protein. Unheated oils such as 1 T coconut oil, palm oil and olive oil are beneficial to the body.
Eat plenty of raw food. Avoid all genetically engineered foods and processed foods. Avoid any product containing aspartame, which is derived from a genetically engineered organism.
Optimize your gut flora with fermented food such as fermented vegetables (which contain Vit K 2), which you can easily and inexpensively make at home. Alternatively take 1 x Vit K 2 supplement available from Health Renewal. Vitamin K2 is an important fat-soluble vitamin that plays critical roles in protecting your heart and brain, and building strong bones. It also plays an important role in cancer protection. The biological role of Vitamin K2 is to help move calcium into the proper areas in your body, such as your bones and teeth. It also helps remove calcium from areas where it shouldn`t be, such as in your arteries and soft tissues. Vitamin K2 is really critical for keeping your bones strong and your arteries clear. Its other main role is to activate proteins that control cell growth. That means K2 has a very important role to play in cancer protection.
Eat the correct foods, phytochemicals and nutrients, to reduce Inflammation, oxidative stress and metabolic disorders resulting from obesity and metabolic syndrome.
Aside from the more commonly known side effects such as heart disease and diabetes, risk factors lurking at a cellular level may also be negatively affecting the obese. Inflammation, oxidative stress and metabolic disorders may be present in an obese individual, taking their toll from the inside out. Certain phytochemicals and nutrients, such as nicotinamide riboside, lycopene, b-carotene, cyanidin-3-glucoside and pterostilbene have been shown to address these core dysfunctions. These can be found in milk, gac fruit, black rice and blueberries, respectively. This white paper presents some of the research surrounding these risk factors and why ingesting these nutrients should be considered to alleviate the ill-effects surrounding obesity.
Unwind every day. Chronic stress can send blood sugar levels soaring. When you`re stressed, your body is primed to take action. This gearing up causes your heart to beat faster, your breath to quicken and your stomach to knot. It also triggers your blood sugar levels to skyrocket. Under stress, your body goes into fight-or-flight mode, raising blood sugar levels to prepare you for action. If your cells are insulin resistant, the sugar builds up in your blood, with nowhere to go – leading to chronically high levels.
The good news is, simple relaxation exercises and other stress management movements can help you gain control over blood sugar levels, try these proven relaxers:
- Start your day with yoga, meditation, or a walk.
- Take three deep, slow breaths before answering the phone, starting the car, serving the kids lunch, or any other activity
- Reclaim your Sundays as a day of rest or fun with your family, relaxing, worship, etc. Try to avoid spending the whole day on obligatory errands such as mowing the lawn, grocery shopping, or catching up on work.
- Get a perfect night`s sleep of between 6 to 8 hours. When you sleep, too little – or too long because of sleep apnea – your nervous system stays on alert. This interferes with hormones that regulate blood sugar. Get plenty of sleep due to its effect on your metabolism and weight, as lack of sleep has been shown to affect levels of leptin and ghrelin – two of the hormones linked with appetite and eating behaviour. When you are sleep deprived, your body decreases the production of leptin, the hormone that tells your brain there is no need for more food, while increasing levels of ghrelin, a hormone that triggers hunger. For a good night`s rest, avoid caffeine after noon, leave work at the office, and skip late-night TV.
- Do a blood test. Many diabetes and hypertensive symptoms are silent. A simple blood test can reveal whether sugar levels put you at risk for the condition. People with prediabetes,(slightly elevated blood sugar levels), often develop a full-blown case within 10 years. Knowing that your blood sugar levels are a little high can put you on a track to steadying them with simple diet and exercise changes before diabetes sets in and medications may be necessary. Everyone 45 years and older should have their blood sugar levels tested. Younger people who have risk factors such as being overweight, a family history, and high cholesterol and blood pressure should ask a doctor about getting tested sooner. If results are normal, get tested again within 3 years. If you have prediabetes, blood sugar should be tested again in 1 to 2 years.
- Exercise regularly. Make sure to incorporate high-intensity interval training at least once or twice a week. Walk as much as you can every day- you`ll be healthier even if you don`t lose any weight. Why is walking so wonderful? Studies show that exercise helps your body utilise the hormone insulin more efficiently by increasing the number of insulin receptors on your cells. Insulin helps blood sugar move into cells, where it needs to go to provide energy and nutrition. Otherwise, it just moves around in your bloodstream, gumming up blood vessel walls and eventually causing serious health problems.