Insulin Resistance Diet – Insulin Resistance Syndrome

The idea of an insulin resistance diet has gained in popularity over those with diabetes or pre-diabetes. The reason is that many people with diabetes don’t like the idea of having to take prescribed artificial medicines. As a result, they look for natural ways of reversing insulin resistance such as going on an insulin resistance diet.

Insulin resistance is a condition where the body has a decreased response to insulin. This is known as insulin sensitivity and usually, it is a precursor to someone getting type 2 diabetes.

The goal of an insulin resistance diet is to help to get the body’s digestion apparatus back into balance so that it is able to again process foods foods efficiently. It is estimated that  1 out of every 4 adult Americans that are able to process glucose normally, nevertheless have what is known as insulin resistance syndrome or metabolic syndrome.

Creating Your Diet To Combat Insulin Resistance

Through the years, natural health practitioners have come across a few natural foods that are effective, to a certain extent, in reversing your body’s insulin resistance. The key is to begin to recognize and include in your diet more of the foods that naturally tend to balance your blood sugar. If you do this, you will find that you need less medication. And, in some cases, depending on your doctor’s recommendation, you may be able to stop taking medication altogether.

Rye – studies on both humans and animals show that rye bran and fiber have positive effects on the metabolism of those with diabetes. When diabetics replace their normal breads – white, wheat, etc. – with rye bread (or bran), it has been found that the insulin doses can be decreased – often significantly.

Researchers are not exactly sure of why rye is more effective than other types of bran or fiber. The theory, however, is that the effect may be to the particular phytic acids and other bioactive compounds that are active in rye. Whatever the cause, however, eating rye reverses insulin resistance and lowers the blood glucose levels. In an added benefit, adding rye bread to the diet, also seems to result in slower weight gain.

Black beans – beans are another food group that helps in reversing insulin resistance – especially black beans. One of the reasons that they are so good at regulating blood glucose is that they are high in soluble fiber. Soluble fiber helps to slow down the speed at which glucose enters the bloodstream. In other words, beans act as a glucose regulator. A side benefit of beans is that because of their slowness in introducing nutrients and sugar into the bloodstream, they are great for dieters. And, unless you smother them with butter and fats, they are low in calories as well. You can go for longer periods of time without feeling hunger pangs.

General Rules For Implementing Diet For Insulin Resistance

In general, decrease the amount of starchy foods in your diets. This include foods such as potatoes, breads, pasta, rice, and so on. This applies to starchy vegetables as well such as carrots, beets, peas, and the like.

For snacks, stay away from junk foods with hydrogenated oils and stay away from bread fried foods because of the high carbohydrate content. Good snack foods to eat include things such as nuts, seeds, lean protein foods, and non-starchy vegetables.