Much attention is put on weight loss at the sacrifice to all other health markers. Most weight loss protocols lower metabolism and leave the dieter with long term health problems. Weight loss protocols often focus on the number on the scale and not how much actual fat mass is lost. Weight loss on these diets often occurs mostly from the loss of lean tissue, water and glycogen in the short term which gives the impression that these diets are beneficial. This breakdown of tissue and glycogen lowers metabolism and releases stress hormones. The stress hormones such as ACTH, PTH, cortisol, adrenalin etc. are protective in the short term but when they are relied on too heavily which is common in dieting they often lead to degenerative diseases.
Minimizing the stress induced breakdown of tissue that accompanies weight loss can help to prevent these problems. Calcium inhibits bone loss accompanied by weight loss(1), dairy has an even greater effect due to the protein.(2) Increasing 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D in response to low-calcium diets stimulates adipocyte Ca2+ influx and, as a consequence, stimulates lipogenesis, suppresses lipolysis, and increases lipid accumulation, whereas increasing dietary calcium inhibits these effects and markedly accelerates fat loss in mice subjected to caloric restriction.(3) Calcium lowers PTH, high PTH is associated with insulin resistance, diabetes and weight gain.(4) Sucrose lowers ACTH the main pituatry stress hormone but glucose has no effect.(5) Low sodium diet raises plasma and tissue catecholamine levels.(6)
Factors that raise metabolism and thermogenesis can help preserve metabolism during calorie deficits and can promote fat loss in calorie stable diets. Substitution of calcium-rich foods(dairy) in isocaloric diets reduced adiposity and improved metabolic profiles in obese African Americans without energy restriction or weight loss.(7) Increasing dietary calcium significantly augmented weight and fat loss secondary to caloric restriction and increased the percentage of fat lost from the trunk region, whereas dairy products exerted a substantially greater effect.(8) 800 calorie Sucrose diet prevented the fall in both resting metabolic rate and triiodothyronine(T3) concentrations as compared with values during an isocaloric carbohydrate-free diet.(9) Rats given a sucrose solution ad libitum increase energy consumption by 15% compared to water.(10) Salt increases thermogenesis by increasing active brown adipose tissue.(11) Animals on low salt diet have higher weight gain and lower thyroid hormone levels than animals on high salt diet.(12)
Many low carbohydrate proponents claim it is the carbohydrates that stimulate fat storage but numerous studies have shown this to be false.
A review of the literature by Eric Jequier(13) found normal glycogen stores are between 250 - 500g, on the order of magnitude of "normal" carb consumption of 250-300g/day and Chronic overeating of carbs results in an increase of glycogen stores by about 500g before DNL becomes significant. Only with chronic overfeeding and saturated glycogen stores does conversion of carbs to fat become significant. Excessive carbohydrate ingestion is accommodated for by increasing carbohydrate oxidation and glycogen synthesis. Minor lipids formed by DNL are subsequently oxidized. So even during overfeeding conditions it is nearly impossible to induce fat gain from pure carbohydrate diets due to carbohydrates ability to promote its own oxidation through increased metabolism and thermogenesis.
Fat on the other hand suffers a much different fate, Most dietary fat transported in chylomicrons is taken up by fat tissue. Dietary fat does not induce marked increases in lipid oxidation rates in an acute manner. So if you overfeed on fat you just get fat, no increase in metabolism. Insulin does suppress non-esterfied fatty acid release, but never entirely. Running on fatty acids as is recommended by low carb proponents is correlated with reductions in insulin-mediated glucose oxidation and elevated free fatty acids(which accompanies low carb/low calorie diets) plays a role in the development of insulin resistance.
Based on all these factors a moderate plan for weight loss would be a diet of mostly low fat milk/dairy products free of allergens(such as vitamins, enzymes, cultures, vegetable/microbial rennet and gums), ripe fruits such as fresh squeezed strained OJ, grapes, cherries, melons, tropical fruits and nutrient dense foods such as liver, shellfish, eggs, cocoa. If you have no sources of clean dairy or do not tolerate it you could use bony cuts or muscle meat+gelatin from ruminant animals and potatoes. Egg shell or oyster shell can be used as a supplement to get the needed calcium. Sodium can also replace calcium to a certain degree and a high sodium diet will help keep stress hormones low and metabolism high. Unripe fruits such as bananas, apples, peaches etc. can be cooked to be made more tolerable, other wise they should be avoided.
Eating frequent small meals that always contain some sugar and protein will keep stress hormones low and metabolism high. Using temperature is a useful tool, it should rise after breakfast and if it falls through out the day you know you need to eat more sugar/protein. Measuring every couple hours to monitor temp changes can be of benefit at first and using bodily cues such as cold feet and cold hands can help signal when to eat more. You can use temperature stats to determine how much you can safely restrict without lowering metabolism and associated health declines. During the first week or 2 temperature may go lower after a meal which means stress hormones were high, once your body adapts to the increase in sugar and protein temperature should normalize.
Strength training a couple times a week can help build lean mass which will increase metabolism and rate of fat burning. Supplements such as a daily aspirin with minimal ingredients and baking soda can be used along with diet to get your metabolism working in the right direction.
1. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1359/jbmr.2001.16.1.141/full
2. http://jn.nutrition.org/content/134/3/568.short
3. http://www.nature.com/oby/journal/v12/n4/abs/oby200467a.html
4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14592784
5. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19709691
6. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6509785
7. http://www.nature.com/oby/journal/v13/n7/abs/oby2005144a.html
8. http://www.nature.com/oby/journal/v12/n4/abs/oby200467a.html
9. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3740086
10. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1262363607701842
11. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6086543
12. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6086543
13. journals.cambridge.org/action/displayFulltext?type=1&fid=789552&jid=PNS&volumeId=54&issueId=01&aid=789544
Cliff, what do you think a good amount per day of salt would be?
ReplyDeleteBasically as much as taste good. You probably want to get at least a couple grams. In the study where sodium can preserve calcium the animals were drinking salty water vs plain water.
DeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteWhat's your opinion on lipoic acid and weight loss? I heard that lipoic acid could make you lose visceral fat. Another resource concluded that part of this reason is that lipoic acid chelates iron so it could prevent iron from causing oxidative stress and activating NF-kappaB.
Haven't really looked into it.
DeleteHere's a quote from ray
"Therapeutically, even powerful toxins that block the glycolytic enzymes can improve functions in a variety of organic disturbances “associated with” (caused by) excessive production of lactic acid. Unfortunately, the toxin that has become standard treatment for lactic acidosis–dichloroacetic acid–is a carcinogen, and eventually produces liver damage and acidosis. But several nontoxic therapies can do the same things: Palmitate (formed from sugar under the influence of thyroid hormone, and found in coconut oil), vitamin B1, biotin, lipoic acid, carbon dioxide, thyroid, naloxone, acetazolamide, for example."
I'd be weary of any pill shaped supplement.
Thanks for the fast response. Didn't know Peat mentioned it.
ReplyDeleteHey Cliff,
ReplyDeleteDo you have a comprehensive list of fruits which are OK and which aren't? I eat Peat-style which is mostly citrus but eating bananas, mangos, papayas too.
Thanks,
Greg
Most fruits are ok if very ripe and if not very ripe they can often be cooked to be made more tolerable. If you buy commercial fruits they tend to be stressed so they can cause allergy symptoms. Whatever you tolerate is usually fine. Grapefruit is probably the only fruit you want to avoid because it inhibits cytochrome P-450 metabolism.
DeleteWhen you say "tolerate" - how would one know if a fruit is not ideal for them? As in... bananas taste good, but if they are actually no good for me (even when slightly brown on outside), I would happily abstain and replace with ones that were.
ReplyDeleteAwesome post btw! Would love to read more on this topic.
P.S. Do you have a link to your RSS feed?
If you don't experience digestive issues or allergies. I put a link so you can follow my feed under the blog archive.
DeleteShould a person control his/her caloric intake as well?
ReplyDeleteYes without having drops in temperature.
DeleteDoesn't aspirin shut down ATP production and cause increased intestinal permeability?
ReplyDeleteNo. Aspirin protects against intestinal permeability and increases ATP production.
Delete"Acute (6 h) stress exposure in rats caused brain expression of iNOS, an increase in plasma glutamate and brain TNF-α, induction of oxidative indicators in brain and a fall in brain ATP levels. Prior administration of aspirin (10 mg/kg i.p.) inhibited all these effects caused by stress, suggesting possible therapeutic implications of this drug in this condition."
http://stroke.ahajournals.org/content/33/1/261.short
http://journals.lww.com/neuroreport/Abstract/2002/02110/Aspirin_inhibits_stress_induced_increase_in_plasma.9.aspx
"ASA did not provoke any damage, despite inhibiting (prostaglandin) PG production, and prevented the occurrence of intestinal lesions induced by indomethacin, in a dose-related manner." "Failure of ASA to induce intestinal damage may be explained, at least partly, by a protective action of SA, the metabolite of ASA." http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11595418
Hey Cliff,
ReplyDeleteDo you assign a special status to Coconut Oil when considering weight loss?
From Peat, I've been under the impression that it is almost in a separate category--a fat that causes weight loss (well, he often refers to the effects upon livestock when fed coconut oil instead of PUFAs: they become leaner & healthier. I guess this may not equate to weight loss....)
-David
You can probably get away with more coconut oil versus other fats.
DeleteSo if carbs are kept in range, what do you feel is a good amount of fat for either maintenance or weight loss.
ReplyDeleteMost of my dietary fat is saturated from dairy and eggs.
Depends on many factors, around 30% is probably good
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ReplyDeleteIf muscle meat is not so good and should be eaten with gelatin, why not just eat gelatin without the muscle meat? How about a diet consisting of fruit and gelatin?
ReplyDeleteYou could do that but the meat gives you some nutrients that refined gelatin or broth wouldn't. Also if your trying to build muscle a little bit of the amino acids in meat is good.
ReplyDeleteI hope you still check these comments. Im a bodybuilder and am learning many new things. I am using Intermittent Fasting (16hrs) to help cut. So far the weight is the same but my fat tissue as reduced very nice. I dont want to hurt my health so I started to eat more salt, sugar and coconut oil. These additions should improve my health. I also reduced my fluids. I dont have access to clean dairy so I will avoid it, I dont get any allergies that I am aware of from the dairy I do consume, but if its recommended I can avoid it. Its nice to hear that meat and potatoes are still a staple. I was a victim of low-carb movement. Im working my way back to a healthy carb consumption. What are your suggestions in terms of rapid fat loss in preparation for a contest? I define rapid as in 12 weeks. Thanks a lot.
ReplyDeleteI think pretty much any milk or cheese is better than none. I think orange juice or other fruit is a lot better than sugar. Or adding sugar to a nutrient dense diet is fine too. I'm not sure how to lose weight for a show maybe cut your fat extremely low. Anything you do is gonna be at the expense of health.
Delete