In a message dated 5/6/01 1:49:53 PM Pacific Daylight Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:

<< If you feel tired after eating "carbs", I suspect:
 * food allergies/sensitivities (i.e., its important to determine which carbs
 cause this affect)
 * hyperinsulinemia/insulin resistance (muscle, liver and brain cells become
 increasingly resistant to insulin (which carries glucose into these cells).
 Thus, while blood sugar levels may be high, glucose in the cells may be
 temporarily low; until the pancreas cranks up another whopping load of
 insulin to *force* the insulin-glucose pair into the cells of the body, in
 this order: muscle, liver, fat cells.  If you have abdominal weight gain,
 you have hyperinsulinemia/insulin resistance)
  >>
You know, I wonder about all this. I know this is the conventional
explanation, but the fact is I do not detect any effect after consuming fat
and protein, while there is a very marked effect of bloat and lethargy after
consuming carbohydrate. And I certainly did notice a feeling of faintness
after consuming an unaccustomed large wheat flour tortilla recently.

All this production of insulin must consume energy -- you don't get anything
for nothing. And when you eat nothing at all, i.e., fast, you have more
energy, not less. So this leads me to suppose that there is a considerably
price to pay to digest food in terms of energy consumption, and the effect on
me seems to be greatest with carbohydrates. There is simply a lot of bulk
with carbo, and it must take energy to break this down.

I am extremely fit, and I am sure that I do not have any food allergies or
any kind of insulin resistance. This is purely the result of the digestion
process. There seems to be an underlying assumption that eating food gives
you energy. This is clearly false -- eating food consumes energy, obviously.

I think that if you live on a high protein diet, so that you do not get the
blood sugar swings associated with carbo consumption, you would never feel
lethargic, and always have high energy levels. This is why the slowing effect
of carbo is so noticeable -- because you normally are at a high level, and
any reduction is easily detectable. This is different to the "sugar high,"
which is a feeling of intoxication after consuming something like
confectioner's sugar.

I think this is an interesting topic, and it is something I do not see
mentioned in the literature. I feel that most people are barking up the wrong
tree (weight loss, etc.), when the real goal is high and sustained energy
levels, Everything else falls into place behind that. In my experience it is
the fasting which gives the lie to this. It is quite obvious that fasting (or
low food consumption) creates a much higher and sustained energy level than
anything else you can do.

If this seems a paradox, it's because you haven't tried it. When you do it,
you will see immediately that it works, and of course I got the idea from
studying native h-g societies, where they practice fasting frequently, and
always before some major physical activity, like a long expedition or war
party. What do they know that we don't? Try it, and you'll see!

Charles
San Diego, CA