Science Horizons

The glycemic index list can have a MAJOR impact on our lives. More so than you may have imagined.

Ever felt weak, gotten the shakes or felt an overall tiredness? These symptoms are the result of a “blood sugar” crash. Most all of us have them from time to time – many of us have them every day or even several times a day. Do you understand what is going on inside your body?

Our bodies need the sugar (glucose) in our bloodstream for energy and we perform at our best if the supply is steady and constant. Using the glycemic index list, we can easily choose foods that will provide a slow constant release throughout the day and avoid the (unhealthy) roller coaster highs and lows.

Proteins and fats are digested more slowly and tend to release their glucose into the bloodstream more slowly… without the spikes caused by carbohydrates. Because of this, they aren’t ranked on the glycemic index list. Carbohydrates are ranked according to the amount of affect they have on the blood glucose levels.

The glycemic index list measures how much a 50 – gram portion of various carbohydrates will raise your blood glucose levels as compared to a control. (Either bread or pure sugar.)

The temporary spiking affect is called the glycemic response. All carbs cause it but, it can vary by the amount eaten, the degree of processing, the type of carbohydrate and how it is prepared.

Foods are ranked from 1 to 100. The high is pure glucose at 100. A low ranking food is anything from 1 to 55. Medium comes in at 56 to 69 – and high goes from 70 +.

Like pretzels? they come in at a whopping – fat inducing 81.

Instead, reach for some broccoli (15) or a fruit cocktail at 55.

Glucose must be accompanied by insulin to work. Spikes in glucose mean spikes in insulin – which is bad for our health in ways too numerous and far reaching for this article. That’s why glucose spikes are a matter of concern. it’s better for us to have slower and more consistent insulin releases in our bloodstream.

True our bodies need glucose…but the extra caused by spikes has to be dealt with in some manner – so we store it as FAT! You can have the pounds effortlessly falling off of you by simply substituting foods high on the glycemic index list for foods that are lower on the glycemic index list. As a bonus, slower digestion means we feel full longer and will tend to eat less.

The glycemic index list measures quality, not quantity. It’s a constant 50 grams and the score is not affected by the amount you eat.

To control your weight and to avoid blood sugar spikes, you will still need to exercise a little portion control.

With regular workouts and keeping an eye on portion sizes the glycemic index list can be the best weight loss system you’ve ever tried.

For a LOT more information about the Glycemic Index List and other weight loss programs, techniques and methods…visit my website right away! You can also get a copy of my “Fast Weight Loss Tips!” mini-course while it is still free.

Dan Beckwith Weight Loss diet, dieting, diets, Fitness, food, glycemic foods, glycemic index, Health, health and fitness, lose weight, metabolism, speed up metabolism, Weight Loss, weight;loss

For the last several years, the biggest diet buzzwords have all been, low-carb dieting. While it’s true that many of the high carbohydrate foods that we eat are not good high metabolism foods, our body does need carbohydrates for energy. It is not a good idea to totally eliminate carbohydrates from your diet. Here’s why:

If you follow a low-carb diet for a long time, you run the risk of creating health problems. If you DO put yourself on a low carbohydrate diet, make sure it’s only for a short period of time. Some of the health risks you face with long term low-carb dieting are truly frightening.

Diets which are high in protein – like animal protein from meat – tend to build up acids in our blood. These acids are the result of digesting large amounts of protein. To neutralize these acids our bodies take calcium from our bones. This can create osteoporosis and is a particularly dangerous problem for women.

According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, low carbohydrate diets which are low in fruit, vegetables and whole grains (all excellent metabolism foods) while at the same time being high in animal proteins increase the risk of acquiring certain types of cancer.

There’s another problem with low carbohydrate diets, which is that they increase the amount of fats we eat. In fact, studies have shown that countries that consume vast amounts of fats also have the highest rates of breast cancer. Therefore, particularly if you are a woman, make sure you get a large amount of high-fiber metabolism foods in your diet to reduce your risk of breast cancer.

Further, too much saturated fat in the diet risks raising LDL cholesterol (the bad cholesterol), and can increase the risk of heart attack, cardiovascular disease and stroke.

To effectively lose weight, we need to include carbohydrates, proteins and fats in our diets. Our body needs them all – in the right proportions. There are many alternative high metabolism foods in each of the three categories that are healthier than others, but we need all three.

The only sure way to lose weight effectively and keep it off is to increase your metabolic rate with the best metabolism foods for your body. It’s healthy to do this, too, as long as you do so safely. It’s also a pretty simple thing to do and it’s never going to mean you’ll starve yourself. In fact, if you’re hungry, you’re not doing it right.

To learn more about metabolism foods and the best ones for your metabolism – and how you can give it a boost, take a look at my website. While you’re there, why not enroll for a free copy of my “Fast Weight Loss Tips!” mini-course?

Dan Beckwith Weight Loss boost metabolism, diet, dieting, diets, Fitness, Health, health and fitness, increase metabolism, lose weight, metabolism, speed up metabolism, Weight Loss, weight;loss

I know, I know…We’ve all heard the mantra “low-carb diet,” and perhaps some among us have even tried doing it. And it is undeniable that a lot of the high carbohydrate foods we eat are not good as high metabolism foods, but we do need carbohydrates. They provide our bodies with energy. In other words, you should never totally eliminate carbohydrates from your diet. Why? Simple:

Low-carb diets can have long-term health risks. If you do get yourself involved in a low carbohydrate diet, make sure that you keep it short term. Some of these health risks are actually quite alarming.

One of the problems with low carbohydrate diets is that they’re high in animal proteins. (Which is actually the whole point of the diet.) An unfortunate byproduct of digesting large amounts of animal protein is that they tend to build up acids in the blood. Our bodies have to neutralize these acids, and they take calcium from the bones to do so. This can lead to osteoporosis, which is inordinately dangerous for women.

According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, low carbohydrate diets which are low in fruit, vegetables and whole grains (all excellent metabolism foods) while at the same time being high in animal proteins increase the risk of acquiring certain types of cancer.

Another unintended consequence of low-carb diets is that it increases the proportion of fats that we eat. Studies have shown that countries with high rates of fat consumption are directly correlated with higher rates of breast cancer. To help overcome the risk of breast cancer, be sure your diet includes a lot of high fiber metabolism foods.

It’s even more alarming to see that overly consuming saturated fat can increase the risk factors for raising so-called “bad” or LDL cholesterol, as well as increasing your risk of stroke and heart disease.

Many of us need to lose weight, and if this is going to happen, we need to include carbohydrates, proteins, and good fats in our diets. Yes, we need everything, including protein and fat, but we need them in the right proportion and we need the right kinds. There are quite a few high metabolism foods in each of the categories.

Increasing your metabolic rate with high metabolism foods is the only sure path to losing weight and keeping it off. Plus, it’s healthy. Safely increasing your metabolism, is really quite simple and will never deprive you of food. In fact, if you ARE ever hungry, you’re doing it wrong.

If you want to learn more about increasing your metabolism and metabolism foods, go to my website and get a free copy of my, “Fast Weight Loss Tips!” mini-course.

Dan Beckwith Weight Loss boost metabolism, diet, dieting, diets, Fitness, Health, health and fitness, increase metabolism, lose weight, metabolism, speed up metabolism, Weight Loss, weight;loss

One of the most lifelong and frustrating endeavors you can undertake is to lose weight.

There can be a whole minefield of mood swings and diets and failures and successes. But there is often little attention paid to one of the most important factors in losing weight, your metabolism. Probably because there’s no money to be made selling products to help you speed your metabolism.

Speeding up your metabolism is important, so lets see what metabolism is and why it can be very useful to your dieting endeavors to speed it up.

What is metabolism? It isn’t a part of the body. It is actually a bodily process, really in fact a series of processes. It’s a process that your body uses to turn food into energy.

That’s right. Food goes in and the body converts that food into energy to fuel the running of the body. It’s a constant process that goes on without you knowing it.

Your body needs all sorts of things to happen and energy allows this. All sorts of physical processes are run all the time and calories that come from the food you eat is the fuel. But if your body has too much energy it stores this as fat.

If you increase the speed of your metabolism your body spends more time breaking fat cells down and this reduces the fat laid down when your metabolism was slower.

Faster metabolism, more energy cells broken down.

There are ways to speed your metabolism and this aids in your weight loss program. It’s not an answer all on it’s own but it greatly helps your chances of success. But it does take a little effort.

Now the bad news is that speeding up metabolism isn’t something that you undertake one evening and have accomplished by next morning. It takes some effort and time, but for the person who is prepared to put in the effort it is one of the most important things you can ever do in the fight against fat.

If you speed up your metabolism you’ve got your body working for you rather than against you.

Metabolism is something that is ignored in most of what you read about losing weight. Why? There’s no money in it. There’s no premade meals to buy, no expensive courses to undertake. No profit. Just a simple solution to losing weight faster.

But even though you may not hear a lot about it speeding up your metabolism is one of the best things you can do for your weight loss program.

I’ve written a book about how to speed up your metabolism which you can get at my website.

Peter Dawson Health dieting, Health, health and fitness, how to increase metabolism, how to speed metabolism, increase metabolism, metabolism, speed up metabolism, weight, Weight Loss