Diabetes Trigger HIDDEN in Popular Foods
Dear Living Well Daily Reader,
It’s no surprise that what you eat affects your health.
And you don’t need ME to explain that a steady diet of junk foods, like candy bars or potato chips, can raise your risks for various illnesses.
But researchers recently uncovered something downright disturbing about foods that countless folks eat daily.
It turns out a lot of processed or prepared foods contain a food additive that scientists say could GIVE you diabetes.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Propionate is a naturally-occurring, short-chain fatty acid. It serves some important roles in the body, such as regulating appetite, lowering serum cholesterol, and reducing cancer risks.
But it turns out this natural compound can take a dramatic turn towards the dark side.
You see, propionate is approved by the FDA to be used in food manufacturing as a mold inhibitor. So it’s produced in a super-concentrated form and dumped into our food.
And recent research reveals how that practice poses a BIG problem.
In the study published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, Harvard researchers reported what happened when mice were fed this fatty acid.
The propionate…
- sent blood sugar soaring
- led to insulin resistance
- resulted in weight gain
The trouble is, like MOST food additives, the health effects of propionate have never been adequately studied. Well, until now, that is. Because the researchers ALSO explored the impact the compound has on HUMANS.
A group of 14 healthy volunteers was split into two.
Half of the participants ate meals containing 1 gram of propionate, and the other half didn’t. Blood samples were taken from all the volunteers both before and after eating.
In the end, the researchers found that just like the mice in the earlier experiment, the folks who ate the propionate-laced meals had MAJOR blood sugar spikes.
The fatty acid causes the jump in glucose because it increases your levels of three blood-sugar-producing hormones:
- glucagon
- norepinephrine
- FABP4
Combined with the high carb content you find in most processed foods, that spells DOUBLE TROUBLE for your blood sugar levels (and your risk for developing diabetes).
Your best bet is to dump as many prepared foods from your diet as possible. The fewer you eat, the less you’ll be exposed to propionate.
Instead, make homemade meals from scratch with fresh ingredients, including organic produce, wild-caught seafood, and grass-fed meats.
P.S. Need even MORE help dodging diabetes? These tips could slash your risk by up to 70 percent!
SOURCE:
“The short-chain fatty acid propionate increases glucagon and FABP4 production, impairing insulin action in mice and humans.” Science Translational Medicine, 2019 DOI: 10.1126/scisignal.aav5938
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scisignal.aav5938
Written By Dr. Scott Olson, ND
Nearly 25 years ago, failed mainstream medical treatments left Dr. Olson in constant pain – and his health in ruins. And that’s when he did something REVOLUTIONARY. He began his career in medicine – and dedicated his life to uncovering the true, underlying causes of disease.
Through his innovative medical practices in Tennessee and Colorado, Dr. Olson has helped cure countless seniors from across America of arthritis… heart disease… diabetes… and even cancer. All without risky prescription drugs or painful surgeries.
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