Insulin
INFO
This section has information about the hormone Insulin and the role it plays in a keto diet.
When you eat a carbohydrates or a meal, the presence of glucose, amino acids or fatty acids in the intestine stimulates the pancreas to secrete a hormone called insulin.
Insulin acts on many cells in your body, especially those in the liver, muscle and fat tissue. Insulin tells the cells to do the following:
- Absorb glucose, fatty acids and amino acids
- Stop breaking down glucose, fatty acids and amino acids; glycogen into glucose; fats into fatty acids and glycerol; and proteins into amino acids
- Start building glycogen from glucose; fats (triglycerides) from glycerol and fatty acids; and proteins from amino acids
One way in which the keto diet works its magic is by controlling insulin levels. Insulin is a hormone produced in your pancreas, and it regulates the amount of glucose in your blood. This hormone often gets a bad rap, but it is actually crucial for your survival. The reason is that insulin prevents blood sugar levels from getting too high (hyperglycemia) or too low (hypoglycemia), both of which can be dangerous or even fatal.
The problem is that the typical modern diet has you loading up on carbs. In response to such high carb intake, your body secretes a lot of insulin to regulate blood sugar levels, which, in turn, can have negative consequences. Chronically elevated insulin levels can cause insulin resistance, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and other terrible conditions.
Besides, elevated insulin levels make it near impossible to lose fat. There are two reasons for that. First, insulin suppresses the release of fat from fat cells. Second, it stimulates the storage of free fatty acids found in the bloodstream into body fat cells. You can see why insulin is called “The Fat Storage Hormone”.
Now for the good news, low carb and keto diets reduce insulin levels and increase insulin sensitivity.
This not only benefits your health and well-being but also boosts fat loss. Your body will use more fat for fuel while storing less as body fat. As a result, you will be much more successful in obtaining and maintaining a figure that makes you proud. Case in point: ever since I started a keto diet, my body has melted excess fat like butter in a frying pan, and I have never regained the pounds lost!