Zone Living Articles
Why We Get Fat (In All the Wrong Places) As We Age
Of all the questions about aging, inquiries about putting on weight as you get older is one of the most commonly asked. A typical answer from medical experts is that "it’s complex" – shorthand for "I don’t know.” And if they don’t know, then how can they help their patients? Well, let me simplify the answer for you, because aging doesn't mean you need to put on extra weight. Fat cells are necessary: They keep you warm First, let’s start with some background on fat cells. Fat cells have one primary purpose, which is to store fat and then release it for future energy production. Most of that energy simply keeps the body warm at 98.6 degrees. Prior to birth, the mother is doing most of the work to keep the fetus warm. After delivery, the newborn child has to keep themselves warm. This is why the number of fat cells tends to triple in the first six years of life, and then stabilize until the child reaches adolescence. Once you reach adolescence, your hormones start changing the game. In females, an increase in estrogen causes the formation of new fat cells, as well as filling up existing fat cells with more fat on the hips, buttocks and breasts. This extra fat represents a potential energy reserve for lactation in case of pregnancy. Once adolescence is over for females, the formation of new fat cells and their increased filling virtually stops. This is why at age 25, females will have about twice the percent body fat and more fat cells than males. The increase in testosterone in males will not increase new fat cell formation. After adolescence, the number of fat cells in both males and females remains about the same. Although the number of fat cells remains relatively constant for the rest of your life, the amount of fat that each one contains can be highly variable. This variability is a result of either aging, resulting in the decrease of estrogen or testosterone, or increasing levels of insulin resistance caused by increased inflammation. In either case, those unfilled fat cells start filling up. It may not be the carbs, but inflammation that's the culprit The real reason for increased fat gain after age 25 is increased insulin resistance. This condition is caused by increased inflammation in your insulin-sensitive cells, making it difficult for insulin to communicate its metabolic message to the interior of its target organs in the liver, muscles, and adipose tissues. This increasing insulin resistance forces the pancreas to produce even more insulin to try to get into the target tissues to respond. As a result, insulin levels rise in the blood and stay constantly elevated. In the case of fat cells in the adipose tissue, these constantly elevated insulin levels drive circulating fat into your existing fat cells as well as block the release of stored fat. In essence, excess insulin caused by insulin resistance not only makes you fat, but also keeps you fat. Contrary to popular thinking, carbohydrates don’t per se increase insulin, because insulin levels will rise and fall naturally when you eat carbohydrates as long as you don’t have insulin resistance. However if you have insulin resistance, then the levels of insulin in the blood will remain constantly elevated. The result is you will have increased fat deposition into your existing fat cells. What causes insulin resistance is not carbohydrates, but increased inflammation. Even if you aren't gaining weight, you're still probably getting fatter Why do we gain more fat as we age? The hypothalamus in the brain controls your energy-balance system which normally keeps your weight constant. This is known as your "genetic set point." Consider the hypothalamus as a weight control thermostat. However, the same inflammation that causes insulin resistance can also disturb that weight control thermostat in your brain. If it does, then any excess calories that you eat will be accumulated as extra body fat. Typically, you gain about 1% of your body weight as additional fat each year after age 25. It only takes a 0.5% change in the weight control thermostat in the hypothalamus to cause that fat gain. That doesn’t seem like much, but if you weigh 180 pounds, that means you may be adding potentially 36 pounds of extra fat in 20 years unless you watch your calorie intake like a hawk and maintain an active exercise program. Virtually no one does after age 25 because life gets in the way. Yet, although your body fat may be increasing, your weight might not change over the years because you are also losing muscle mass. Thus, your weight on the scale remains the same. This is when you'll begin to notice a change in your body composition by the fit of your clothes. This is why measurements like BMI that are based on weight are relatively poor markers of obesity, while my Body Fat Calculator will give you a more true measurement on your muscle vs. fat composition. Once you reach 25% body fat as a male or 35% body fat, as a female you can consider yourself obese regardless of your BMI. News flash: Being obese is not necessary unhealthy You heard it right. Simply being obese is not necessary unhealthy – as long as much of the extra body fat is subcutaneous fat under the skin, as opposed to visceral fat (i.e. belly fat). While there is a significant biological benefit of subcutaneous fat for females for pregnancy, it has little adverse effect on your metabolic health. This is why about 15% of obese individuals fall into the category of “metabolically healthy obese.” In contrast, while it may taste good getting there, having a beer belly is not healthy. When you start seeing fat accumulate in your abdomen, you have visceral fat also commonly referred to as a "beer belly." Visceral fat, unlike subcutaneous fat, has nothing but adverse health effects. In particular, the higher the level of visceral fat, the more likely you will be to develop future chronic diseases such as metabolic syndrome (pre-diabetes), fatty liver, diabetes, and heart disease. So what causes you to accumulate visceral fat instead of subcutaneous fat as you age? If you guessed a combination of hormones and inflammation, you would be correct. Hey Guys: Boosting testosterone doesn't need to weigh you down We've known for more than 25 years that visceral fat in males is correlated with decreased levels of testosterone and increased insulin resistance. Reducing insulin resistance is hard because you have to reduce inflammation and that requires following an anti-inflammatory diet for a lifetime. On the other hand, increasing testosterone is easy if you are using a drug. This helps explain why prescription sales of testosterone supplements increased more than 500% from 1993 to 2000. Today, testosterone supplement sales are greater than $2 billion dollars per year in the United States, and are estimated to reach $5 billion dollars per year by 2020. There are three reasons why men take testosterone supplements: To get stronger To lose visceral fat To have more sexual vitality But do testosterone supplements actually work? Science can answer that question. In experiments where a condition of low testosterone levels (aka “low T”) was created in healthy young men with normal testosterone levels, and then their testosterone and estrogen levels were modified separately, increased testosterone levels increased muscle mass and strength. However, fat gain is actually due to deficiency in estrogen production, not lack of testosterone. As for sexual vitality, you need a combination of both testosterone and estrogen. So what's a guy to do? All of this illustrates that controlling body fat in males is a little more complicated than just supplementing with testosterone. In men older than 65 and with “low T,” in experiments where their testosterone levels were elevated to those of 30 year-old men, there were significant benefits in sexual function. However, existing erectile dysfunction drugs did a better job than testosterone supplementation. Increased testosterone did minimal benefits in mood and depression, and no benefit in leg strength (measured by distance they could walk in 6 minutes), nor on their vitality. Not very encouraging results. I am sure these relative pathetic results will not negatively affect testosterone sales. Why? This is just another case on how drug marketing hype trumps real science. Hey Ladies: Estrogen may make you look younger, but there's a price What about estrogen for women to reduce visceral fat? Visceral fat is not associated with estrogen deficiency, but with an excess of free testosterone. Most of the testosterone and estrogen in both men and women is bound by sex hormone binding globlins (SHBG) that control the levels of the free hormone that can interact with its receptors. Therefore, as levels of SHBG decrease, there is an increase in free testosterone in women. This helps explain why oral estrogen supplementation made women look younger, because the oral estrogens increased SHBG levels and that caused a decrease in free testosterone. As the free testosterone levels in women taking oral estrogens dropped, so did their levels of visceral fat. The end result, they looked younger. Of course, taking prescription oral estrogens increase your likelihood of cancer, but many consider that a small price to pay for looking thinner and younger. Forget hormone supplements and focus on reducing insulin resistance If taking prescription estrogen is not the answer to reducing visceral fat in females, then what about going back to reducing insulin resistance by the diet? That approach works. The elevated insulin coming from insulin resistance causes a decrease in SHBG levels in females. Bottom line: if you reduce your insulin levels, you lose fat. This is true for both males and females. The only way to reverse insulin resistance is to follow an anti-inflammatory diet. We hear a lot about insulin resistance, but very little on how to reverse it. Yet, you can improve your insulin resistance in just a few days of significant calorie restriction (about 1,100 calories per day). The only problem is that you have to do this for lifetime without hunger or fatigue, and reducing calories by that much forever will make you starve to death, right? The best way to reduce insulin resistance remains an anti-inflammatory diet like the Zone Diet. This means a calorie-restricted diet that is protein-adequate, moderate in carbohydrate, and low in fat especially pro-inflammatory fats such as omega-6 fatty acids and saturated fats like palmitic acid. Using Zone Pasta as your primary protein source for your Zone meals makes it easy to follow for a lifetime, and our recent clinical trials strongly supports that statement. And guess what? You'll never be hungry. Say goodbye to beer bellies and cellulite Other benefits of reducing insulin resistance include a decreased likelihood of diabetes, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s. Yet, most men remain more concerned by their beer bellies, while women remain concerned by their cellulite – because this weight can be seen in the mirror right now. Cellulite appears when fat cells in the subcutaneous area like the buttocks expand and push through the dermis giving a puckering effect to skin. You see this protrusion because the skin that surrounds the buttocks is thinner than the skin that surrounds the abdominal area. This is why males and females with a beer belly don’t have cellulite in the abdominal region, but with a little effort (like packing on more pounds), men also can develop cellulite. The solution to both cellulite and beer belly is the same: The Zone Diet.{{cta('cd305230-6e34-42f6-9e2c-c2beda556f50')}}References: Sears B and Perry M. “The role of fatty acids in insulin resistance.” Lipids Health Disease 14:121 (2015). Finkelstein JS et al. “Gonadal steroids and body composition, strength, and sexual function in men.” N Engl J Med 369: 1011-1022 (2013). Synder PJ et al. “Effects of testosterone treatment in older men.” N Engl J Med 374611-621 (2016). Sears B. The Anti-Aging Zone. Regan Books. New York, NY (1999). Janssen I et al. “Testosterone and visceral fat in midlife women.” Obesity 18:604-610 (2010). Serin IS et al. “Long-term effects of continuous oral and transdermal estrogen replacement therapy on sex hormone binding globlin and free testosterone levels.” Eur J Obstet Reprod Biol 99:222-225 (2001). Onat A et al. “Serum sex hormone-binding globulin, a determinant of cardiometabolic disorders independent of abdominal obesity and insulin resistance in elderly men and women.” Metabolism 56:1356-1362 (2007). Akin F et al. “SHBG levels correlate with insulin resistance in postmenopausal women.” Eur J Intern Med 20:162-167 (2009). Winters SJ et al. “Sex hormone-binding globulin gene expression and insulin resistance.” J Clin Endocrinol Metab 99:E2780-2788 (2014). Markovic TP et al. “The determinants of glycemic responses to diet restriction and weight loss in obesity and NIDDM.” Diabetes Care 21:687-694 (1998).
Evolution of the Zone: Making Diet Work for a Lifetime
The word diet often has negative connotations. It is often thought of as a period of constant hunger and fatigue to get into a swimsuit. People often also regain all the lost weight and more after stopping the diet. A recent article reinforces this idea in Obesity that demonstrates the contestants in the Biggest Loser television series had virtually regained all their lost weight in a six-year period. This was followed by an article in the New York Times entitled, “Why You Can’t Lose Weight on a Diet.” What Does the Word Diet Really Mean? The word diet comes from the Greek root, which means “way of life.” This means that a diet should be followed for your lifetime, depending on your goal. The American Heart Association diet, the American Cancer Association diet, and the American Diabetes Association diet were all designed to prevent or treat a particular condition and should be followed for life. The Mediterranean diet is to be followed for a healthy life. And of course, the Zone Diet is to be followed for a lifetime to maintain inflammation in a manageable range consistent with optimal wellness. The Secret to Making Your Diet Work The secret to maintaining any diet, whatever the goal, is that you can’t be hungry or fatigued. But hunger and fatigue don’t just mysteriously appear; they are symptoms that indicate that your diet is not working. Hunger and fatigue are the consequence of increased inflammation in your gut, your organs, and your brain. There are many causes of inflammation that you will never see on social media or in academic journals because it is overwhelming. Here are just a few: Excess dietary omega-6 fatty acids increases the production of pro-inflammatory eicosanoids. Excess dietary palmitic acid increases inflammation in the hypothalamus, causing hunger. Increased gut permeability caused by lack of dietary fermentable fiber that leads to increased bacterial fragments entering the blood, causing metabolic endotoxemia (the release of toxins into the blood from gut bacteria). Excess dietary fat that increases the transport of bacterial fragments into the blood cause even more metabolic endotoxemia. Excess consumption of dietary calories causing inflammation in the hypothalamus, increasing hunger. Lack of adequate levels of dietary polyphenols to control the microbial composition of the gut and reduce oxidative stress in the body. Lack of adequate levels of dietary omega-3 fatty acids to reduce inflammation and increase resolution in the gut, blood, and the brain. You can see the word dietary appearing over and over in these various causes of inflammation. This indicates that most of our woes in our health care system are a consequence of the diet. Unless you address each of these diet-induced causes of inflammation, you are going to have hard time maintaining optimal wellness. This is the challenge I took on when developing the Zone Diet. The Zone Diet is Even Easier Now First and foremost, the Zone Diet is based on calorie restriction, but without hunger and fatigue. The first generation of the Zone Diet required a person to constantly pay attention to balancing protein, carbohydrate, and fat at every meal. In addition, I took out the three things (pasta, pizza, and pastries) in the diet people really like to eat. I guess my tough love was a little too much for busy people who needed easy short fixes resulting in long-term solutions. I could just say, “too bad,” or I could try to solve the problem with the evolution of the Zone Diet. I choose the latter approach. This choice led to the development a new series of protein-based foods that could take the place of non-sustainable animal protein. Furthermore, these new foods were in a format that would be more convenient and more desirable than the foods people were already eating. After all, that is the only way to encourage people to make dietary changes. The resulting diet would have to create far greater appetite suppression with even greater energy compared to the first generation of the Zone ̶ a formidable challenge to undertake, but not an impossible one to achieve. What made it possible was the patented technology to create Zone PastaRx®. Zone PastaRx looks and tastes like the foods that in the past always made you put on body fat, but now they make you leaner. Why? Because PastaRx is able to suppress appetite and stabilize blood sugar levels with improved hormonal control. This evolution of the Zone Diet changes the hormones in three areas of the body (gut, blood, and the brain), whereas the original Zone Diet could only change the hormones in the blood. In effect, this evolution of the Zone has three times the hormonal benefits using the foods you like to eat as a novel protein source. What if you ate a diet consisting of Zone PastaRx with some non-starchy vegetables (for the fermentable fiber) for lifetime with the result of never being hungry or fatigued? Furthermore, what if dozens of recipes were already tested and posted online so you don’t have to even think about variety? I am taking a wild guess that most people could follow such a diet for a lifetime. By following this next generation of the Zone Diet, you will reduce diet-induced inflammation that is the underlying cause of the development of chronic disease, as well as the acceleration of the aging process. If you add high-doses of purified omega-3 fatty acids (OmegaRx®) and purified polyphenol extracts, you simply take those inflammation control benefits from the next generation of the Zone Diet to new higher level. Studies Have Shown that PastaRx Reduces Insulin Resistance The motto of Zone Labs is Evidence-based Wellness®. This simply means, “show me the data.” In two clinical experiments using Zone PastaRx, we observed dramatic reductions in the level of insulin resistance in obese subjects using meals consisting of Zone PastaRx when compared to control groups using gluten-free pasta. Inflammation is what causes insulin resistance. In fact, the reduction in insulin resistance in the subjects consuming Zone PastaRx was equal to that of giving insulin injections for newly diagnosed type 2 diabetic patients according to a study. I think you can see why I believe the future for the evolution of the Zone Diet is extremely bright; because Zone Pasta makes diets work.{{cta('cd305230-6e34-42f6-9e2c-c2beda556f50')}} References: Fothergill E et al. “Persistent metabolic adaption 6 years after ‘The Biggest Loser’ competition.” Obesity 24: doi: 10.1002/oby.21538 (2016). Aamodt S. “Why you can’t lose weight on a diet”. New York Times. May 6, 2016. Sears B and Perry M. “The role of fatty acids in insulin resistance.” Lipids Health Dis 14:121 (2015). Wang D et al. “Effects of intensive insulin therapy upon pancreatic β cell function in patients newly diagnosed with type II diabetes”. Int J Clin Exp Med 8:1391–1395 (2015).
Runners: To Carb Load or Not to Carb Load
Eating a giant bowl of spaghetti, three bagels and a couple of baked potatoes right before a big event is actually hurting your athletic performance. According to Dr. Sears, the idea that you should load up on carbohydrates the night before a race is a myth. Eating a giant bowl of spaghetti, three bagels and a couple of baked potatoes right before a big event is actually hurting your athletic performance. According to Dr. Sears, the idea that you should load up on carbohydrates the night before a race is a myth. Mary Perry talks about what inspired her to train for three marathons and conveys training nutrition best practices, while sharing Dr. Sears' expertise on the concept of carb loading for athletes. My first job in Boston was located at about the 24-mile mark on the Boston Marathon route, not far from the Citgo sign at Fenway. In April, during the big race, my coworkers and I would take some time to go and stand on the sidelines looking for names on t-shirts, or something to identify individuals, so we could cheer them on as they went on to complete the last 2.2 miles. Watching all of these runners with various levels of athleticism, spanning the ages of 20-70+, running either for charity or because they had qualifying times was absolutely inspiring. I saw that with the appropriate training, fueling, and determination that they didn’t have to be born runners to do this. This became my motivation to train and complete three marathons myself. What I learned about performance nutrition during my training It can be an individual journey involving a lot of trial and error to figure out what your body needs, when it needs it, and how to stay adequately hydrated, especially when Mother Nature is involved. I remember during my first marathon I was shocked to see that my weight was creeping up during my training instead of going down despite my activity level. Looking back, it was a combination of not being as active on the days I trained due to soreness and fatigue, relying heavily on carbohydrates, and thinking I needed more calories than I actually did for all this activity. I began training for my second marathon shortly after starting my job at Zone Labs. Although at that point, I didn’t know what I know today, that even simple changes like decreasing carbohydrates and bumping up protein helped me to train smarter. Despite having an injury and having to spend the last two months doing non-running activities, I was able to get through my second marathon without gaining weight and optimizing how I fueled. Although I’ll never see a qualifying time for the Boston Marathon, I was able to shave 27 minutes off my first marathon, which was my personal best. With more and more individuals taking part in endurance events, whether they participate in marathons, triathlons, or the Ironman, there is a lot of advice out there from coaches, the internet, and apps on how people should train and fuel their bodies in order to successfully complete these races. Yet, an internet search may not be the best way to learn about good training nutrition. Carbs are good, but must be balanced According to Dr. Barry Sears, carbohydrates play an important role in athletic performance, but their over-consumption limits our body’s ability to use fat as an energy source. Fat should be considered “high-octane” fuel as you can generate far more energy (i.e. ATP production) from a gram of fat compared to a gram of carbohydrate. To maximize energy production, you want the enzymes in the mitochondria (the site in the cell that produces ATP) to have the maximum ability to burn both fat and carbohydrates. Being able to switch between carbohydrates and fats as an energy source is called “metabolic flexibility.” You can increase or decrease your metabolic flexibility with the composition of your diet. Depending on the balance of carbohydrates and fat in the diet, the mitochondria will adapt their enzyme composition to maximize energy production based on which fuel it is able to access. If you are eating a high-carbohydrate diet, the mitochondria adapt by making more of the carbohydrate-metabolizing enzymes and less of the fat-metabolizing enzymes. The end result is that you are stuck using glucose, which is, for an athlete, the equivalent of putting low octane fuel into a Maserati. The results are much better using fat or high-octane fuel. So if you want the greatest metabolic flexibility your diet should consist of relatively equal intakes of both carbohydrates and fat. Balancing your hormones play a role in sports nutrition Dr. Sears further believes the balance of the hormones insulin and glucagon play a role in good sports nutrition. If you are eating a high-carbohydrate, low-protein diet, your blood sugar levels will constantly rise and fall. Carbohydrates stimulate insulin secretion which drives down blood sugar levels, whereas protein stimulates glucagon secretion which increases your blood sugar levels. You need a balance of the two so that blood sugar levels remain stable. This is why as an endurance athlete you have to work to balance your blood sugar levels at each and every meal as well as maintain metabolic flexibility. It may sound difficult, but it’s pretty easy. How to get into the performance Zone To maximize performance, a good diet leading up to race day is one that contains about equal levels of carbohydrate, protein, and fat on a caloric basis. The ideal diet is the Zone Diet™ because it is based upon your protein requirements, and from that knowledge you can automatically generate the amount of carbohydrate and fat you need for metabolic flexibility as well as maintain stable blood glucose levels. Your diet should be comprised of colorful vegetables and fruits, adequate amounts of lean protein to maintain muscle mass, and enough good fats like those found in olive oil, nuts and seeds to displace omega-6 and saturated fats known to cause inflammation. Eating like this will give your body the metabolic flexibility it needs to convert whatever fuel you use on race day into the energy you need to compete at your highest level. By following The Zone Diet, and including Zone PastaRx in your diet instead of your old carb loading, you will develop a powerful advantage over your competitors.{{cta('daffa570-1055-4766-af51-e09d66a17e47')}}
Olive Oil: The Good, the Bad & the Ugly
Olive oil can be considered the first nutrition supplement since its first use more than 6,000 years ago. We now know the reason: the polyphenols. The Good – Olives Contain Unique Anti-Inflammatory Properties Olives are a fruit, not a seed. As a result, it contains unique types of polyphenols not found in other fruits and vegetables. Tyrosol, hydroxytryrosol, oleocanthal and oleuropein each provide unique anti-inflammatory properties. This is why olive oil was so prized in the ancient world and remains an integral component of the Mediterranean diet. That’s the good. The Bad – The Impact of Pesticides Polyphenols are the reason that olive oil has health benefits for humans, but they have even greater health benefits to the olive fruit itself. It is polyphenols that protect plants from microbial attack. Once you start using pesticides to increase production, the plants generally decrease the product of polyphenols since it requires a lot of energy to produce them. This effect is more profound in fruits than vegetables. However, not all conventionally grown fruits and vegetables have high levels of chemical residues. It really depends on how they are farmed. The following table outlines these varying levels of chemical residues in conventional fruits and vegetables. Most Commonly Contaminated Moderate Commonly Contamination Least Commonly Contaminated Apples Celery Strawberries Peaches Spinach Nectarines Grapes-Foreign Sweet Bell Peppers Potatoes Blueberries Lettuce Kale/Collard Greens Green Beans Summer Squash Peppers Cucumbers Raspberries Grapes - Domestic Plums Oranges Cauliflower Tangerines Bananas Winter Squash Cranberries Onions Sweet Corn Pineapples Avocado Asparagus Sweet Peas Eggplant Cantaloupe Kiwi Cabbage Sweet Potato Grapefruit Mushrooms What about olives? Although many olive growers don’t use herbicides or pesticides, you never really know those who do. Finding certified organic extra-virgin olive oil is always your best bet for maximum polyphenol content. More importantly, the taste of organic olive oil is always significantly better than conventional olive oils. The Really Ugly – Your Olive Oil May Be Faking It Since olive oil is valuable, it is likely to be adulterated by adding other inferior substances. This was a problem in even ancient Roman times where containers were stamped with official seals to make it difficult to adulterate the oil. Today, the problem is far more widespread with nearly 70% of extra-virgin oil olive being sold in the U.S. having been adulterated. Harvesting Perfect Olives What's a consumer to do in a world of pesticides and adulterated olive oil? It has to taste great (which it does) and be rich in polyphenols (that we analyze in every lot, because like Fox Mulder of the X-Files says: “we trust no one”). I searched out the few organic cooperatives in Italy making high quality extra-virgin olive oil. Then, we harvested in late fall, followed by processing over the winter. Then the various processed lots were tested for polyphenol content. Those lots that met our polyphenol requirements were bottled and brought to the U.S. under the Zone brand. We purchased the entire year’s production that met our quality standards. It wasn’t much, but those olives made about 190 cases worth of Dr. Sears’ Zone Extra Virgin Olive Oil. And we have it all. Branding is crucial. With my Zone Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, you can have the ideal anti-inflammatory condiment for every meal – at least while it lasts. As of today, we have less than 100 cases of Dr. Sears’ Zone Extra Virgin Olive Oil remaining in stock. Order yours today.{{cta('daffa570-1055-4766-af51-e09d66a17e47')}} References: Faller ALK and Fialho E. “Polyphenol content and anti-oxidant capacity in organic and conventional plant foods.” J Food Composition and Analysis 23: 561-568 (2010). Muller T. Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil. W.W. Norton. New York, NY (2013). Blechman N. “Extra virgin suicide: The adulteration of Italian Olive Oil.”