Re: How I maintain my weight

"Please be patient with me and this question. On insulin 50 years now
and recently have lost a lot of weight due to an illness not connected
to diabetes. There is one thing that I just don't understand after all
these years and for that I apologise. What actually puts weight on
more quickly. Is it an increase in carbs or and increase in calories.
Or should I take an increase in carbs that include higher calories.
Sorry guys, this old head can't get around this at all."

First, there is nothing about which to be sorry.  Diabetics is somewhat
a special case but in general we can more weight by eating more food
then we need to maintain our current weight at a given activity level.
We measure the energy content of a food by calories.

All the food that is in excess of needs is stored as fat regardless of
if it is protein, carbs or fat.  Fat is the bodies storage method.  In
times past when food was not so easily to hand and could be uncertain on
a regular basis we used the stored energy in fat.  In these days we lose
fat by mimicking less food times by eating less so the stored energy is
used.

When one is ill it is often usual to eat less so there would be a loss
of stored fat for that reason.  Some illnesses can also contribute to
weight loss by other methods.

Protein is used for many purposes other then as an energy source, in
building and maintaining some tissues such as muscle for example.  If
during the time we eat less the same amount of protein is not maintained
then the body also uses such sources as muscles to have protein for
other important tissue reasons.  So total weight loss can be the
combination of both of these stored cells.

A diabetic has to control carbs in the blood as you well know.  Insulin
is the substance which causes carbs as glucose to enter cells and when
there is more carbs then we need for basic energy needs the excess is
stored as fat as already discussed.

In short if your doctor wants you to gain weight just eat more quality
foods of your choice keeping in mind that an increase in carbs means an
increase in insulin in your case.  If your current weight is within
normal ranges then consider not adding weight, which also means less
insulin to serve less body tissue and from not eating some carbs to stay
where you are.

I hope the short outline helps you understand more about weight loss and
gain.  Please feel free to ask any question.
[ Auf dieses Posting antworten ]