Reset Button! Getting your body in check!

Most of you know I am not a carby person. I always skip the bread, pasta, rice, and cereal. After all my schooling and research and personal experience, I feel that those foods are just fillers. That's exactly what they do... fill you up. So, if we were in a famine and needed food that could be brought out of storage to fill us up, then okay. But the fresh food that the Earth naturally produces for our consumption should take first priority.


To truly be "healthy" and as nutritious as possible one needs to get their body back to it's intended state. The state where all the sensors and triggers and survival mechanisms work properly. Our bodies are miracles and were designed to take on a mountain of circumstances. By eating overly processed foods in large quantities, we (usually) gain weight, increase our risk for Metabolic Syndrome (basically a precursor to multiple health problems) and all of those sensors are dulled and sometimes stop working all together.


If we can increase the amount WHOLE food we eat and get our blood sugar and cholesterol under control, those sensors will work again and we can stop stressing about diets and cravings and deprivation. Once we "reset" our bodies we can just listen to them. We can react to hunger pangs and feel full at the appropriate times. Cravings for processed, sugary foods will lessen, because our bodies will now know what food makes it feel good and what food makes it feel bad.

SO HERE IS A CHALLENGE.

For 2 weeks try to eat more of the foods below and say NO to anything that went through an extensive process to be produced. Comment and tell me how you feel.

THE FOODS ARE INCLUDED IN THIS GREAT ARTICLE ABOUT BLOOD SUGAR AND THE GL.

It's not only those who suffer with diabetes that need to keep their blood sugar levels in check. More and more research is finding that the benefits of controlled blood sugar apply even to those who do not have diabetes and are otherwise healthy individuals. According to Dr. Mabel Blades, author of The Glycemic Load Counter, benefits of a low-GL diet include:

•Stable blood sugar levels

•Easier weight management and weight loss

•Increased energy

•Decreased risk of insulin resistance

•Improved memory

•Improved digestion

•Lowered cholesteroL

•Reduced risk of developing Metabolic Syndrome

Fruits

Even though many fruits have a moderate to high GL count due to their high sugar content, it's unlikely that one would eat enough to spike blood sugar levels the way even small amounts of processed carbs will. There are many fruits that are very low in GL and have little impact on blood sugar. A low-GL value is considered 10 or less, and one 4-ounce serving of the following fruits all have a GL value of less than 10.


•Fresh apricots
•Avocado
•Blackberries
•Cantaloupe
•Fresh cherries
•Grapefruit
•Grapes
•Honeydew
•Kiwi
•Lemon
•Mandarins
•Nectarines
•Oranges
•Raspberries
•Fresh watermelon


Vegetables


Vegetables are a little less tricky than fruit when it comes to GL, so very few vegetables will send blood sugar levels soaring, except potatoes and foods made from potatoes such as chips and french fries. The following vegetables are ranked as having a GL value of 0:


•Alfalfa
•Artichoke
•Asparagus
•Broccoli
•Brussels sprouts
•Cabbage
•Cauliflower
•Celery
•Cucumber
•Green beans
•Lettuce
•Onions
•Peppers
•Radishes
•Sauerkraut
•Spinach
•Squash


Read more at Suite101: Low Glycemic Load Fruits and Vegetables: Nutrient Rich Foods with a Low-GL Value http://food-facts.suite101.com/article.cfm/low_glycemic_load_fruits_and_vegetables#ixzz0qlkr8zvz