Kill sugar & carb cravings and remain alkaline over the holidays
Not surprisingly, sugar consumption is continuing to prove to be nasty for our health, particularly refined sucrose and high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), both so readily available this time of year.
Not only do these forms of sugar directly contribute to:
- increased appetite, body fat & obesity (inflammatory)
- insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, type II diabetes, (very inflammatory)
- non-alchoholic Fatty Liver Disease (extremely inflammatory)
- AGES and RAGES - Advanced Glycosylation End Products and Reactive Advanced Glycosylation End Products (ultimately inflammatory)
- leaky gut and allergic reactions (supremely inflammatory!)...
but they also:
- impair cognitive function and memory
- impair Immunity (so critical at the moment...the hospital's the last place you want to be right now!)
- feed candida yeast and dysbiosis i.e. unfavourable gut bacteria balance
- dramatically reduce your energy production by inhibiting mitochondrial function. (This is ironic considering how often people eat sugar thinking that it will give them energy when it actually does the opposite.)
Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
Note: This applies to these added forms of sugars, not to fruit which has many offsetting health benefits. [9]
These added forms of sugar are actually a double-whammy for your energy production
In addition to directly blocking mitochondrial enzymes, the inflammation itself also knocks the mitochondria off balance, (ie, REDOX imbalance.) As we have reviewed for decades, this interferes with your ability to use oxygen, and promotes anaerobic metabolism, which doesn't use oxygen but produces lactic acid (and makes you sore!)
Hence, Inflammation > Less energy > More Acidity > Pain > More Inflammation, Even Lower Energy, Still Higher Acidity, More Pain ...and on it goes in a feed-forward vicious cycle.
Like any cycle it can be interrupted at the control points.
For example, you can reduce inflammation, support your mitochondrial function, or you can take steps to adjust your pH making it more alkaline.
In my experience, alkalinizing your pH is one of the most overlooked and important factors for reducing pain, and it can also be one of the fastest acting. Remember, you can shift your pH in minutes through the lungs, and in hours to days through the kidneys. For this I find Opti-Alkaline most helpful, and many also rely on concentrated greens mixtures.
Yet, first things first: How do you control your carb & sugar cravings?
So if added sugars are inflammatory, reduce your energy production and increase acidity, how do you deal with the seemingly irresistible urges?
For this, one of Optimum Health's most overlooked and under-rated supplements is Opti-Slim Garcinia. It consists of Garcinia cambogia (50% HCA), Spirulina, and Green Tea. Like so many of our formulations, we already knew this combination worked because we combined the individual ingredients so many times before-hand!
The HCA in the Garcinia blocks an enzyme (ATP-citrate lyase) that normally converts blood sugar into fat.
Instead the body reroutes the energy, and stores it as glycogen, which is our most readily available form of accessible energy stores to keep our blood sugar level. In addition, this raises serotonin levels, which helps us feel content and directly impacts our carbohydrate cravings. [11] [12]
We added the Spirulina (blue-green algae) because we had seen it be balancing for so many customers' blood sugar, and the Green Tea for an enhanced thermogenic, fat-burning effect, and for additional appetite reduction.
The Approved Health Canada claim for Opti-Slim Garcinia is 'Helps to temporarily increase satiety/ feelings of fullness.'
But, in addition to reducing appetite and food-seeking behaviour...(you know, that insatiable pit that must be filled, but never quite gets there), I have always found it most effective for reducing carbohydrate and sugar cravings.
As long as your stomach is empty, and you remember to take it 20 minutes before meals (or when the urge presents itself), my experience is that it has been extremely effective for killing carb cravings.
However, all of us know how tempting Christmas treats can be!
Most of us know the less added sugar and carbs we eat, the better. Yet, if you do give in, remember that Alpha-Lipoic Acid (ALA) is highly protective against the deleterious effects. [13] ALA is one of the ingredients found in our Cell Fuel formula, designed to support your mitochondria and energy production. (Also see our previous blog article: Can You Regain Sense Of Smell With Alpha-Lipoic Acid?)
Beyond that you can use:
-Opti A.I. Extra to reduce inflammation,
-Optimum Immunity and probiotics to maintain your immunity and offset the negative effects on your gut,
Or, as mentioned Opti-Alkaline and/or greens to offset the acidity that ensues.[12]
And if you have already eaten the sugar and are feeling unwell, I find the Optimum Immunity works like a charm for food reactions.
Hope your holiday season is great!
Be well!
John
References/Sources:
1. The Bitter Side of Sugar Consumption: A Mitochondrial Perspective on Diabetes Development. Diabetology 2022, 3(4), 583-595. https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4540/3/4/44
2. Dietary Sugars Alter Hepatic Fatty Acid Oxidation via Transcriptional and Post-translational Modifications of Mitochondrial Proteins. Cell Metab. 2019 Oct 1; 30(4): 735-753.e4. https://www.ncbi.nim.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7816129/
3. Effects of high-fructose diets on central appetite signalling and cognitive function. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25988134/
4. Consuming fructose-sweetened, not glucose-sweetened, beverages increases visceral adiposity and lipids and decreases insulin sensitivity in overweight/obese humans. Clin Invest. 2009 May;119(5):1322-34. doi: 10.1172/JCI37385. Epub 2009 Apr 20. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19381015/
5. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/avoid-the-hidden-dangers-of-high-fructose-corn-syrup-video/
6. Clin Exp Immunol. 2019 Aug; 197(2): 237–249. Published online 2019 Apr 15 High fructose-induced metabolic changes enhance inflammation in human dendritic cells
7. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/high-fructose-diets-may-harm-the-immune-system
8. Nature Communications. Fructose reprogrammes glutamine-dependent oxidative metabolism to support LPS-induced inflammation. Published: 22 February 2021 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-21461-4
9. Paradoxical Effects of Fruit on Obesity Nutrients. 2016 Oct; 8(10): 633.Published online 2016 Oct 14. doi: 10.3390/nu8100633 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5084020/
10. A comprehensive scientific overview of Garcinia cambogia https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0367326X15000544 [12]
11. Updates on Antiobesity Effect of Garcinia Origin ( - )-HCA Evid Based Complement and Alternat Med. 2013; 751658 Published online 2013 Aug 6
12. Effect of high-fructose corn syrup on the acidogenicity, adherence and biofilm formations on Streptococcus mutans https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/adj.12074
13. Fructose-induced inflammation, insulin resistance and oxidative stress: A liver pathological triad effectively disrupted by lipoic acid https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26188590/