Important Help for Blood Sugar Balance
ecent new evidence suggests that Omega-3 fatty acids like those found in flaxseed oil can positively influence insulin sensitivity, and thus support blood sugar balance.
Insulin Resistance: A Growing concern
In simple terms, the main job of insulin is to regulate blood glucose, also called “blood sugar.” This function is critical. If blood glucose rises too high, you become at risk for dehydration, coma and possibly death. Similarly, if blood glucose falls too low, you may experience epilepsy-like seizures, coma, and brain damage.
Insulin works in tandem with another hormone called glucagon. After a meal, when the body’s blood sugar rises, the pancreas is prompted to release insulin into the bloodstream, which causes muscle cells to take up the excess sugar and either use it or store it in a slightly altered form called glycogen. When the body runs out of fuel after the last meal, blood sugar levels fall and the pancreas produces glucagon which prompts the body to covert the glycogen back into glucose or to form more glycogen from protein.
In a perfect world, this balance between the two hormones, insulin and glucagon, enables the body to maintain blood sugar at optimal levels. Unfortunately, an estimated 70-80 million Americans – or one in three adults – do not respond adequately to insulin, which results in a build-up of sugar in the blood. People with insulin resistance commonly have high levels of inflammation, imbalanced blood fats, high blood pressure, and excess fat around the belly.
Evidence Supports Role for Omega-3 Fatty Acids
In the modern American diet, antiinflammatory Omega-3 fatty acids found in seafood and flaxseed oil are commonly displaced by an emphasis on pro-inflammatory Omega-6 fatty acids prevalent in vegetable oils such as corn, safflower, cottonseed and sunflower oils and saturated fat, found in beef, dairy and fried foods.
A report from the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences shows that experimental diets high in Omega-6 fatty acids produce insulin resistance. However, supplementing with Omega-3 fatty acids such as those found in flax oil and cold-water fatty fish, restores insulin sensitivity, even if the diet remains high in other fats. A second study shows diets rich in Omega-6 fatty acids from soybean oil, safflower oil, or saturated fat induce far greater weight gain than diets which emphasize Omega-3 fatty acids.
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Profound Human Consequences
In Australia, researcher Leonard A. Storlien discovered that people whose muscle cells were low in Omega-3 fatty acids and high in Omega-6 fatty acids were most likely to be both insulin resistant and overweight. As the imbalance became more magnified, so did their weight and metabolic problems.
Israeli Jews are more likely to be overweight
and insulin-resistant than Americans, even though they consume fewer calories and less fat, explains Dr. Simopoulos, author of The Omega Diet. This phenomenon, called “the Jewish Paradox”, is thought to result from a high consumption of oils rich in Omega-6 fatty acids. Indeed, Israeli Jews consume more linoleic acid (one of the Omega-6 fatty acids) than any other population group in the world.
There is hope that dietary changes can enhance the body’s insulin sensitivity. In 1997, 55 persons diagnosed with metabolic problems were assigned to a diet high in Omega-3 fatty acids. After one year, their insulin sensitivity had improved; they also lost weight, and their blood pressure and triglyceride levels were healthy.
A second study of 48 people assigned to a low-calorie, high carbohydrate diet or a diet rich in Omega-3 fatty acids found dramatic health differences between the two groups. After one year, people consuming low-fat, high carbohydrate diets had reduced insulin sensitivity; while those consuming the Omega-3 fatty acid-rich diet had enhanced insulin sensitivity. As Dr. Simopoulos notes, “When your diet contains a healthy ratio of fatty acids, you have a more normal metabolism.”
There may not be a single nutritional supplement today that can offer the same level of health protection as flaxseed oil.
- Hainault, I.M., et al. “Fish oil in a high lard diet prevents obesity, hyperlipidemia, and adipocyte insulin resistance in rats.” Annals of New York Academy of Sciences: 98-101.
- Ikemoto, S., et al. “High-fat diet-induced hyperglycemia and obesity in mice: Differential effects of dietary oils.” Metabolism, 1996; 45(12): 1539-1546.
- footnote* Storlien, L.H. “Skeletal muscle membrane lipids and insulin resistance.” Lipids 1996; 31 (Supplement): S-261-265.
- Yam, D., et al. “Diet and disease, the Israeli paradox; possible dangers of a high omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid diet.” Isr J Med Sci, 1996; 32: 1134-1143.
- Torjesen, P.A., et al. “Lifestyle changes may reverse development of the insulin resistance syndrome.” Diabetes Care, 1997; 30: 26-31.
- Fanaian, M., et al. “The effect of modified fat diet on insulin resistance and metabolic parameter sin type Il diabetes.” Diabetologia, 1996; 39(1): A7.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent disease.
Enhance Insulin Sensitivity
The key to enhancing insulin sensitivity is to consume a diet low in simple, refined carbohydrates (such as those found in sweets, desserts, baked, and prepared foods) and rich in Omega-3 fatty acids from flaxseed oil and seafood. You’ll want to emphasize seafood, green leafy vegetables, legumes, whole grains, walnuts and flaxseed oil. The evidence shows clearly that such a diet positively affects blood sugar, cholesterol, and blood pressure, while enhancing insulin sensitivity.
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