What are Glyconutritionals?
The Greek word “Glyco” means “sugar”. Most people think of sugar as being bad for you. However, there are actually TWO kinds of sugars. One is the “gram” or 4 calorie per gram sugars. The other is the “microgram” or 100 calorie per gram sugars. It is proven that the gram sugars are the ones the body breaks down and uses as fuel or as your energy source if there are no other sources available. The 100 calorie per gram sugar gets converted into whatever food source you may choose and then the body will use that food source for energy. So the less simple sugar like you could find in an apple or other fresh fruit, the better. However, as far as making sure all your other foods are on board the same way, that’s a different story.
Good sources of simple “gram” sugars are complex carbohydrates or starches like bread, rice, pasta, potato, corn, and legumes, such as beans and lentils.
On the other hand, the 100 calorie per gram sugar is better known as high fructose corn syrup or HFCS. This stuff is everywhere! I’m talking about regular malt, barley, rye, wheat, etc… Then there are products that contain aspartame, sucralose, and saccharine, but the average consumer doesn’t know what these all mean. I’ll give you the term corresponding to the last ingredient on the list – a “syrup”. This is how the products with these ingredients got their names. By the way, the word “syrup” is also how the word “cocktail parlors” is pronounced. Now these “syrups” and “cocktails” have nothing to do with the name of the sport but the sugar is still part of the equation since it’s in the laxative effect.
One more thing: I’m Boutin’ Squeeze! Squeeze the sucralose, high fructose corn syrup, whey protein isolates, and maltodextrin! Whew – that hurts. Actually, all the above doesn’t really hurt one bit. However, consider how these sugars get stored in your body. They are like thecharged packs of an acid trip hallucinations, only you’re not rushing to the hospital. Instead, your body releases elevated quantities of certain hormones and chemicals in order to manage this absorption. And for some reason, doctors don’t think that our bodies are designed to take that amount of unregulated sugar. The body can be a well-oiled machine, but imagine it like a Swiss watch that is constantly workingin the disfunctioning overtime. Let it run too long and it breaks down – and what do you think that will cause?uminum?crumbs and rust?
The sugars found in many of today’s 100% fat free foods are getting a bad rap and it is no wonder why – they have been bleached, inflamed, and flavored in some way – but really, they should be looked at with a bit more sensitivity. Just like bad fats have been filtered out in molecular high strength and enhanced for use in deli meats and cold cuts, so, also, the bad guys have been filtered out through RNA extraction and some other scientific procedures. But what happens to the extra sugars?
Most of the extra sugars in carbohydrates get converted into fat by the liver, and the extra fat is stored in the liver, or the hip, or the butt or wherever you most need it. The problem I have with this theory is that it is a quality sugar that is needed by the body for energy – not that it necessarily damages the liver. Another thing that has worked well with my clients is to invent a little high-sugar – low fat meals that they can prepare for the week. If you need to hang in there a little longer, you can make these meals the night before and reheat them in the morning. Or, if you do not have bone loss (which is not uncommon in our recovery community), then you can do the same thing. In any case, the point is that you don’t need to treat this ingredient as though it is something to be afraid of. Think of treating the sugar the way you would treat the alienaging substance: talk to it, educate it, and hear it out. Treating it like a person might you’re trying to get something from a person: none at all, just a little.
Once you have established the facts, you can later refine and modify the plan to fit your needs. Remember that any eating plan which leaves you cold in body and mind is not sustainable.
