We are sharing some diet tips with you this week.
Eric Berg, DC, author of The 7 Principles of Fat Burning, has found in his practice that weight loss is all about fine-tuning the endocrine glands so that they produce fat burning hormones.
The fat-burning hormones need to be activated by proper diet and exercise. These are growth hormone, insulin-like growth factor, glucagon, adrenalin, thyroid hormones T3 and T4, and testosterone. No matter how low in calories your diet is, if you don’t trigger the fat-burning hormones, you won’t lose weight. (This is why some people complain that they are eating almost nothing, but still don’t lose weight!)
The fat-storing hormones need to be under control for weight loss: estrogen, cortisol, and insulin. You can sabotage your weight loss regime by just a few bites of sugar if your body releases insulin as a result. Or if you are eating foods loaded with endocrine disruptors which mimic estrogen, you can store more fat than you otherwise would. In America, farmers give animals estrogen to make them fatter, and this estrogen makes people fat when they eat those animals. (This is one reason why Europeans are slimmerthan Americans: such meat is banned in Europe.)
We have already seen how critical it is to detox if you want to reach your ideal weight, and the crucial role the liver plays in that. The liver is critical not only for detoxing, but also because every fat-burning hormone works through it. 80% of the thyroid function occurs through the liver. (A person with thyroid symptoms could have normal thyroid hormones but a damaged liver.)
A good way to support the adrenals is with the Chinese herbal remedy schizandra. This is always included in adrenal dietary supplements. During particularly stressful times you could also take the hormone DHEA, although this is controversial and you may wish to do some research before experimenting with it. Avoid all stimulants including caffeine.
Boost your thyroid’s effects on metabolism by taking in plenty of sea vegetables such as kelp, dulse, nori, and wakame. These are rich in iodine, which your thyroid needs. Most people depend on table salt which has iodine added. But on a weight loss diet (or any diet for health) you should avoid the toxic, water-retaining table salt. Use sea vegetables instead, with their salty The thyroid also needs omega 3s, selenium zinc, vitamin A and vitaminD (best source is 30 minutes daily of sunshine).
Why Drugs are Fattening!
Have you ever known someone who was of normal, healthy weight until they went on meds? I know plenty of such people. Decades ago, I gained 40 pounds within two months of taking Prozac! Of course, recreational drugs and medications are not thought of as food and most contain no calories for fuel. Yet the effect they have on the body is fattening!
Dr. Berg explains, “Psychiatric drugs deplete hormones and also make it hard to lose weight. Hormone-replacement hormones and birth control pills both contain estrogen, which is a fattening hormone. Prednisone is an antiinflammatory steroid (adrenal hormone), which is also fattening. Insulin is a fat-making hormone. Anticholesterol and blood pressure medications have side effects on the liver as well. Diuretics deplete minerals, which can affect the adrenal glands. Antibiotics kill your friendly bacteria, putting stress on your liver because of stress on digestion . . .
However, I am not suggesting you come off your medication without the advice of a competent medical doctor.
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