To think too few people understand the role of insulin with regards to weight loss?

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So I am an advocate of low carb but I know plenty of people who have used slimming world, or weight watchers or any other diet to lose weight. I have seen though people being really negative regards low carb diets and I don't get it.

When you understand how your body deals with different nutrients it because clear that all diets need to lower insulin. How you do this is up to you but ultimately all weight loss diets do it.

When insulin is elevated then you can't burn much fat and instead rely on mostly burning sugar from your diet. If you want to burn mostly fat from your fat cells your insulin needs to be lowered.

People say eat less move more without understanding that for someone who is insulin resistant this is really hard. The body cells stop responding to insulin so stop taking up sugar from the blood. This effectively means the cells feel like they are 'starving' as they can't get enough sugar and this drives hunger signals. It also makes the person feel lethargic and lacking in energy, so exercise is harder.

You can reduce insulin levels by fasting, reducing carbs in the diet, reducing consumption of refined carbohydrates, cutting calories etc but the key is your insulin.

Just to re-emphasise what a couple of posters have already said:
'Carbs' are not just one thing, not all carbs are equal.
Carbs are either 'sugars' or 'starches'. The body eventually breaks down starches into sugars, but it takes time to digest so doesn't cause the insulin spike.

Cut out 'sugars', including fructose in fruit juice. (i.e. don't drink fruit juice - either eat whole fruit or take a vit-c tablet). Also read labels - sugar is sneaked into all sorts of processed things like ready-made lasagne or tomato soup.

Don't cut out complex carbs, otherwise known as starches. These include brown rice, brown pasta, potatoes, wholegrain bread, etc. I say brown as you get more roughage and again it takes longer to digest.

Protein and fat sit in the stomach for longer so make you feel fuller, so you eat less overall.

Ah, now you get it, because you've just looked it up on a kids' website. 😂But your previous comment that your cells remove sugar from the blood was plain wrong. Insulin removes the glucose and converts it into energy for your cells. The cells aren't stripping it out themselves, which is what you were saying.

If you're going to be so preachy about something that is medically related, get your facts right!

What a load of bollocks! 😂

Low carb warriors have no interest in science. There is no point in arguing and presenting facts. If it is on Youtube , it must true for them.
That was fun for a while.

When bbc bitesize enters discussion it's the end😂

I love the way any talk of 'carbs' ends up in a carby bun fight! Why are people so weird about it?! I guess we are all desperate to kind 'the magic key' to maintaining a healthy weight.

I am just wondering about the black-n-white nature of that claim. Is there ... literally no example ever where people lost weight on a diet but had no change in their insulin levels? This seems like an example where there was lots of weight loss by people who maintained higher blood glucose & insulin levels

has anyone ever measured insulin levels in response to diet?

I’ve had a quick look but all the insulin theories seem to depend on measuring blood glucose, and inferring insulin from that.

I thought this was about your level to be honest.

Could i ask about sourdough? I've heard this before but how can it be low carb, when it's made of flour?

Yeh I’m not getting the sneering from just pp before you

Why get so bent out of shape by it. Odd

Miaow! I suppose a playground insult is to be expected from someone who uses BBC Bitesize to back up their argument. I'm a nurse, actually. What's your medical qualification?

Pretty much any diet (or any worth following) would stop you eating that crap, though. The best diets are the ones that include non-processed foods such as fruit, veg, meat, milk, rice etc and then lightly processed like pasta, cheese etc. Food with artificial ingredients is not what our bodies evolved to deal with.

I'm all for low GI but low carb is soul destroying and expensive.

It's hard to measure insulin. Probably why we focus on sugar. But we know that people don't go from being non-diabetic to type 2 diabetes overnight. It's a process where over time the pancreas has to secrete more and more insulin. Probably lots of people are pre-diabetic without knowing it. Their blood sugar is controlled but compared to someone without diabetes their insulin is elevated.

YANBU, however, weight loss and diets are about so much more than what we eat. I've tried every diet out there. I lose a stone or two and then put it back on because the battle is mental/emotional rather than what I actually eat. Low carb does work but when I've had a stressful day, my brain shouts 'Dominoes and wine' not 'low carb omelette and sparkling water'. I often listen to my brain.

I understand the principles on insulin resistance and low carb eating. It's just that weight loss for some is incredibly more complex than that.

Baaaaaa Proper sourdough only contains flour water and salt, no commercial yeast.
its a fermented food, I have some on the go now that I started yesterday it is a 24-36 hour process.
It’s a fermentation process so the carbs in the flour are broken down, this makes it low GI and easier to digest and break down in the gut.
No bread is ideal but as a weekend treat it’s worth making.
We don’t bloat either after SD bread.

Erm what.

Are you coming in with "eating sweets will give you diabetes"?

Exactly. There may be other hormonal imbalances too that have a casual effect, such as hypothyroidism, excess cortisol.

Also people with diabetes do not have elevated insulin.

Are you taking a piss or am I massively misreading ehat you are saying?

Argh, mean causal, not casual! Damn auto correct.

I think she's muddling Type 1 with Type 2.

I agree Op. Insulin makes you fat. The purpose of insulin is to convert blood sugar to fat (energy for future use). When your blood sugar rises, it triggers insulin to be produced (unless you have T1 Diabetes). Insulin resistance e.g. T2 Diabetes means your body converts less blood sugar to energy, so you are more tired and hungrier, and more blood glucose remains unused, which insulin then converts to fat. (Unfortunately, it is harder to convert fat back into energy.) The only way around this is to have less blood sugar. The only way to have less blood sugar is to eat fewer carbs, especially refined carbs. which create blood sugar faster.

The only reason SW and WW work is that they reduce the number of refined carbs you eat along with reducing overall calories.

The purpose of insulin is to convert blood sugar to fat (energy for future use)

that is not the only, or even the main purpose of insulin.

the rest of your post isn’t accurate either.

I agree re carbs. Never had a problem until I got into my mid 40s. I wasn't eating much, calorie wise but I was eating too many carbs.

Cutting bread, rice, potatoes and pasta meant I lost my hunger. It's not boring. even as a veggie. The weight dropped off me and I've maintained.

I do find it harder in the colder months and my carbs go up but I recognise the cravings for what they are now.

I actually exponentially put on weight from SW/WW type diet. It was perplexing as have never been so simultaneously fat and starving. It was impressive! Was going up a dress size every 4-6 weeks.

Through no fault of my own I may add. Was staying with the MIL for a year and ate the tiny terrible meals out of politeness. Dropped straight off when we moved out.