When we first heard about metabolic balance® we thought, “oh here we go, another diet plan to add to the list.”
Wrong! metabolic balance® is not a standardized weight loss diet. The program is a holistic approach to “resetting” your body’s metabolism into a healthy balance and reaching your ideal weight, whether you need to lose weight or gain weight.
With a balanced metabolism, each individual is able to select foods containing the nutrients the body needs through inner signals, which in turn, will allow our metabolic pathways to function at an optimal level. Most of us have lost this ability and eat until there is no food left on the plate or eat very minimal amounts. Nutritional balance provides the basis for energy, health and is the corner stone for all bodily functions.
The North American society is consuming more light and low fat diet foods than ever before, but getting progressively heavier as the years go by because we eat too little of what our glands really need.
25 — 30% of the Canadian population has Metabolic Syndrome; this figure is even higher is the USA. Metabolic Syndrome includes, but is not limited to, obesity, hypertension, fat metabolism disorders, Gallstones, type 2 diabetes, gout, erectile dis-function, polycystic ovarian syndrome and cardiovascular disease These conditions all involve inflammation. metabolic balance® is a great healer of inflammation!
Metabolic Balance® goes beyond mere nutrition; it addresses the body’s wisdom that lies within all of us to vastly improve our quality of life.
So what is metabolism all about?
1. The chemical processes occurring within a living cell or organism that are necessary for the maintenance of life. In metabolism some substances are broken down to yield energy for vital processes, while other substances necessary for life, are synthesized.
2. The processing of a specific substance within the living body i.e. water metabolism; iodine metabolism, insulin metabolism to name a few.
Metabolism is about the proper functioning of the heart, circulation, respiration, liver, kidneys, digestion, bone structure, glands and hormone production and regulation.
Every human body can produce all of the hormones and enzymes it needs for healthy metabolism if it has the right nutrients. The metabolic balance® program is designed to reactivate your body’s ability to produce the hormones to perform bodily functions.
Below are some examples of the hormones that are brought into balance with the metabolic balance® program.
Insulin: Insulin is a natural pancreatic hormone which controls the level of the glucose in the blood. Insulin “opens the doors” and enables the body to take glucose from the bloodstream to the cells. The cells might use glucose for production of energy if required or insulin converts the excess glucose into glycogen, removes it from the blood stream and stores it in the liver and muscles. Once the need has been met within the cells, the door closes. The excess blood sugar that cannot be stored as glycogen will be converted to new fat and stored in the adipose tissue (butt, hips, abdomen and back). Insulin commands the body to save food energy stored in fat cells for a time when no food is available. However, in more sedentary North America, this is a very rare occurrence.
Insulin resistance is the pathway to diabetes brought on by the constant demand for and continual release of insulin via the excessive consumption of carbohydrates. Increases in insulin concentration lead to high levels of cholesterol and triglycerides, higher levels of stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol. Insulin increases the building up of fat (lipogenesis) and increases blood clotting (strokes). High insulin levels make us permanently hungry, stop the burning of fat and increase the storage of fat.
Our cells protect themselves from taking up too much carbohydrate by:
- Reducing the number of Insulin Receptors and the glucose transporting proteins.
- Insulin Resistance: Normal insulin levels can’t get the glucose into the cell therefore you need 3 – 4x more insulin to achieve the normal blood glucose level. This will eventually exhaust the pancreas and lead to diabetes.
Most diets involve eating many times a day so insulin levels stay elevated, these diets don’t have long term success.
Leptin is a very powerful and influential hormone normally produced in fat cells. If your Leptin signaling is working properly, when your fat stores are “full,” there will be a surge in your Leptin level. This surge signals your brain to stop feeling hungry, to stop eating, to stop storing fat and to start burning some extra fat off. The only way to eat less in the long-term is to not be hungry and the only way to do this is to control the hormones that regulate hunger, the primary one being Leptin.
It turns out that overweight people, especially children, produce large amounts of Leptin naturally, but the body has developed unresponsiveness or resistance to it, the same way they became resistant to insulin. Due to this resistance, satiation is not induced. The only known way to re-establish proper Leptin and Insulin signaling is to prevent those surges.
Ghrelin is another hormone which regulates hunger. It is produced mainly by the stomach to stimulate appetite when the stomach is empty and the walls are not stretched. Your body’s level of Ghrelin can be influenced by many factors, including your lifestyle habits. For instance, chronic lack of sleep increases Ghrelin, making you feel hungry when you don’t really need to eat. This is likely one reason why a lack of sleep can make you gain weight. Insulin is known to increase levels of Leptin, the hormone that tells your brain you are full, but when you eat certain foods that have no effect on Ghrelin and interfere with Leptin communication, this important cycle does not occur.
Melatonin, the hormone that manages sleep and wake cycles, is fat soluble and is stored in fat cells. When we decrease fat cells the melatonin is released into circulation and is now available for our use, so we sleep better. To burn fat you need higher amounts of oxygen. If we have low insulin levels when we are sleeping we have more spare oxygen that will burn more fatty tissues. Metabolic Balance helps you lose weight while you sleep better. Hey wake me up in the spring!
Most of us have tried many methods for losing weight only to find it has made everything worse in the long run. On low protein diets you might lose a lot of weight fast, but this is mostly the body’s own protein stores from muscle and organs. The body has protein memory so when the diet is over you will be hungry and keep eating until the protein levels have returned to original levels which usually means fat levels will have doubled. With low-carb and low calorie diets you may eat more protein, but the brain, hormone producers and blood cells depend on glucose and cannot burn fat. If the brain does not get enough glucose, the body will create its own glucose from protein. The result is that we will lose a great deal of our own protein (muscle and organ mass) because we aren’t getting the carbohydrates that we need.
How is metabolic balance® different?
metabolic balance® takes the work out of your hands: a personalized nutritional plan is drawn up for every client. There is no question “Is this plan right for me”?
The metabolic balance® program generates an individualized nutrition roadmap based on your personal:
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- Medical history
- 36 laboratory blood values
- Body measurements
- Food likes and dislikes
- Known allergies
- Your ideal weight goal
Protein, fats and carbohydrates are calculated in appropriate amounts for you, preventing the yo-yo effect and the loss of your own body proteins.
The relationship between carbohydrates, fats and proteins, as well as their influence on the endocrine system, is of utmost importance. This is what will balance your metabolic systems.
The selection of foods is not based on their caloric content but on their essential components such as vitamins minerals and trace elements.
Individualized amounts of pure drinking water depending on a person’s initial weight and current metabolic load.
Whole foods-no shakes, pills, injections, calorie counting or special food purchases.
A selection of optimal foods to balance your metabolism
metabolic balance® takes you from where you are right now, directly to your desired destination with measurable improvements in your laboratory parameters, weight regulation and general well-being.
metabolic balance® Asks You to Eat What Makes Sense!
- balance your hormones and metabolism
- optimize your health and increase energy
- enjoy a new rewarding and vitalized lifestyle
- be fit and healthy at any age!
By Marlene Marshall ROHP, RNT
