JUICING and Weight Gain
Did you know that 100% orange juice contains as much sugar as a Coke?
An 8 ounce glass = 6 tsp! Yes, it is ‘natural’ sugar, but drinking only the juice from an orange, you lose the fiber to slow the blood sugar from increasing too much. You also lose a lot of vitamin C when you juice an orange, which is why orange juice is ‘fortified’ with vitamin C, while if you EAT a real orange you get natural occurring vitamin c. To get the 6 tsp of sugar from a small glass of juice, you need to eat about 3 oranges.
Juicing is a great way to gain weight and cause insulin resistance!
Sally Fallon NOURISHING TRADITIONS: “There is as much sugar in a small glass of orange juice as there is in a candy bar – and most of it fructose, which is more harmful than the sucrose of sugar. Consumption of apple juice has been linked to failure to thrive in infants. Excessive consumption of fruit juice upsets the acid-alkaline balance of the body. Even consumption of veggie juice can cause this imbalance. Even over consumption of fruit can cause severe mineral deficiencies.”
Did you ever wonder why it is easier to gain weight as compared to keeping it off? The key to this is in the fat cells where a powerful hormone is produced called leptin. Leptin signals the brain to regulate the metabolism in order to store or to burn fat.
85% of people who lost weight, end up regaining weight because the “metabolic thermostat” of the body, leptin, is reset upward automatically. When people lose weight, leptin production decreases, which causes people to regain the lost weight. This protein hormone is derived from fat cells so when you lose fat, leptin levels drop. When you gain fat, leptin levels rise. Once leptin is secreted by your fat cells, it travels to the hypothalamus; which controls eating behavior. Once it’s there, leptin activates anorectic nerve cells, which decreases your appetite. At the same time, leptin stops cells from stimulating your appetite. To put it simply, when leptin levels drop, you get hungry. When they go up, you feel full. Leptin communicates directly to your brain, telling the brain how much fat is in storage. It controls appetite, energy, and metabolic rate. Leptin problems are the primary reason for food cravings, overeating, slow metabolism, food obsession, and heart disease.
You’d think that having extra fat stores create more leptin, but that is where an interesting mystery comes into play. 98% of those who are significantly overweight are leptin-resistant. Most defects in leptin signaling may lead to obesity, overeating and less energy expenditure. Leptin-resistance is similar to insulin-resistance in that it occurs after being overexposed to high levels of the hormone. At this point, the body no longer responds to the hormone. Much like high blood sugar levels result in surges in insulin, sugar metabolized in fat cells causes the fat to release surges in leptin. Over time, leptin-resistance may develop.
The best way to reduce your chances of diabetes is to avoid surges in leptin; which is the leading cause of leptin-resistance. Eating the typical American diet, full of refined sugars and other processed foods, is a guaranteed way to cause undesired surges. Focusing your diet on simple, unprocessed real foods is the best way to prevent leptin-resistance.
One food to help with leptin is protein. Protein improves leptin sensitivity, which lowers calorie intake by helping you feel full faster. Increasing your protein to at least 30 grams for breakfast and at least another 60 throughout the day. Choose quality proteins like salmon, grass fed meat, and free-range eggs!
One thing to steer clear of for lowering leptin resistance is liquid calories such as juices. I’m not one to drink my calories. I prefer to chew my calories. Liquid calories do not register the proper hormones to tell you to stop eating.
One tip I always do, is I keep my caffeine free tea bags in my purse so I can enjoy a tasty “hot chocolate” at a restaurant. Click HERE to find the teas I LOVE!
