Welcome to the fifth edition of Viewpoints, our monthly e-newsletter.

One of our major goals at Insulite Laboratories is to provide you with the key to well being through cutting edge research that impacts not only your weight loss regimen but, above all, your health. Now more than ever, it is apparent that losing weight and being well are inevitably linked.

In this issue, we focus on stress – an element in all of our lives – and a major contributor to Insulin Resistance, increasingly seen as the cause of many serious health risks including Metabolic Syndrome (Syndrome X), PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) Pre-Diabetes and excess weight gain.

Stressful situations often find us reaching for a hi-carb snack, a seemingly “comforting” fix. But here the link takes a negative turn. Recent research raises concerns about the relationship between hi-carb intake and breast cancer in women. Scientists suggest that carbs may increase cancer risk by quickly raising sugar in the blood and triggering surging insulin. This results in cell division leading to higher estrogen levels in the blood which can encourage cancer.

While most stress is unavoidable, we urge you to take steps to manage it as you would any other aspect of your life, like healthy eating. At Insulite Laboratories, your health is our greatest concern.

 

We are all aware of the increased stress in our lives and evidence shows it is harmful to the body as well as the mind.

Stress comes in two forms: acute and chronic. Acute stress is a response to imminent danger. The chronic variety is caused by constant emotional or physiological pressure that one may or may not be able to control or change.

Stress is first perceived in the brain, which goes on high alert, sending nerve impulses to the rest of the body to prepare for fight or flight. Then the adrenal glands release adrenalin (epinephrine) which makes the heart pump faster and the lungs work harder to flood the body with oxygen.

The adrenal glands also produce extra cortisol and other glucocorticoids which help convert the body’s sugars into energy. When the perceived threat passes, levels of adrenalin and cortisol drop.

If this perceived danger comes too often, the cortisol can damage the arteries, weaken the immune system and increase the loss of bone mass, suppress the reproductive system and even affect memory.

Stress is one of the major contributors to Insulin Resistance, the condition that prevents the cell absorbing glucose and insulin properly. It forces glucose to be stored in the bloodstream as fat, which can lead to weight gain and serious disorders like PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), Metabolic Syndrome (Syndrome X), Pre-Diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

By increasing cortisol levels, the liver produces more glucose and puts it into circulation. This may have been happening for many years - perhaps even decades - for people suffering from Insulin Resistance. Increased glucose in the blood, accompanied by an elevated consumption of carbohydrates, causes a compensatory rise in the production of insulin.

This extra insulin causes a lowering of the number of receptor sites on each individual cell, making it much harder for insulin to allow glucose to pass through and be converted to energy. The unused glucose is then stored as fat, which can result in obesity.

The way to break this vicious cycle is to minimize stress, correct your nutrient depletions with pure, natural supplements and increase your exercise regime.

To begin reducing your stress:

1. Simplify your life. Start by saying “no” to obligations that are not vital to your work or family.
2. Take 10-20 minutes a day to be alone and focus just on breathing.
3. Begin to recognize those things over which you have direct control and things you cannot change.

Q. Is there anything in the Insulite System that will increase blood pressure?

A. No. In fact, one additional long-term benefit of using the Insulite System is that, by lowering circulating fasting insulin levels, you will actually reduce high blood pressure.

Elevated levels of insulin will actually damage the interior lining of vessels contributing to high blood pressure or hypertension.

A study, published this week by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, reveals that 1 in 3 Americans has high blood pressure, an increase that puts millions of more people at risk of heart disease and stroke.

• Aim to sit at your desk for no longer than 50 minutes at a time before getting up and taking a brief walk or doing some side bends and arm or ankle circles.
  
• Take short brisk walks each day if you have a spare ten minutes in your lunch hour.
  
• Instead of emailing a message to a colleague down the hall or on another floor, print it out and deliver it by walking to him or her.
  
• Suggest a “walk and talk” meeting with workmates.
  
• Choose the stairs rather using the elevator.
  
• Gentle stretching is a good idea because muscles get tight when hunched, particularly those of the wrist, back, hips, shoulder, chest and hamstrings. To stretch your neck, sit tall in your chair. Relax your neck and gently tilt the head to each side, then front and back, holding each position for a count of 10.