copyright 2004 Andrew Cavanagh, all rights reserved.

Insulin is a "fat storage" hormone. Insulin helps your body store fat and prevents your body from burning stored body fat for energy. So how does insulin have such a profound affect on fat storage?

Insulin stimulates an enzyme called lipoprotein lipase. Lipoprotein lipase is responsible for transporting fatty acids into your fat cells and keeping them there which is wonderful if you want to gain fat but disastrous if you want to lose it.

To make matters worse insulin inhibits another enzyme called hormone-sensitive lipase. Hormone sensitive lipase releases fat from the fat cells into the blood so they can burned for energy. Less hormone-sensitive lipase due to excess insulin means less fat burning.

So how do you control insulin and stop this fat storage cycle?

Your body releases insulin to help blood sugar or blood glucose move from your bloodstream into your cells. So insulin is released primarily when you eat foods that convert to blood sugar and especially when you eat carbohydrates.

So choosing carbohydrates that convert into blood glucose more slowly is essential to control insulin. I suggest you eat mainly carbohydrates low on the glycemic index. The glycemic index is a list of foods given a rating based on how quickly they convert to blood glucose in the body. A food that has a low rating on the glycemic index will convert more slowly to blood glucose in your body. The slower blood glucose is released into your body the less insulin will be released. And lower levels of insulin should mean better health, less fat storage and more fat burning.

The other essential factor in controlling insulin is releasing insulin's opposing hormone glucagon. Glucagon has the opposite functions in the body as insulin, inhibiting the fat storage enzyme lipoprotein lipase and stimulating the fat burning enzyme hormone-sensitive lipase. Glucagon is released when you eat protein so having protein with every meal can help to control insulin and burn fat. For health reasons it's best to choose low fat sources of protein like fish, turkey breast, chicken breast, tofu or crossflow microfiltered whey protein isolate.

You should have about twice the volume of fruit and vegetables as protein. Getting the protein/carbohydrate ratio in your diet right is probably the most important weight loss skill you could learn because this is the key to keeping insulin under control. Remember insulin is the fat storage hormone, so keeping insulin under control is crucial to your weight loss program.

The correct ration of protein to carbohydrate for insulin control is probably around twice the volume of carbohydrate to protein. So if you have, say, chicken breast around the size and thickness of the palm of your hand for protein you should have fruit and vegetables around twice that volume or around the volume of your clenched fist.

So to control insulin, eat low fat protein with every meal and eat fruit and vegetables low on the glycemic index as your main source of carbohydrates. And eat around twice the volume of carbohydrates as protein.

Andrew Cavanagh is a professional health writer and speaker and a member of the Australasian Medical Writer's Association. He is the author of One hour to glorious health and permanent weight loss and the groundbreaking From depression to glorious health. Both books can be downloaded free at www.geocities.com/glorioushealth

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