On Wed, 12 Aug 1998, Aaron D. Wieland wrote:

> Todd wrote:
> >According to the Eades, the insulin
> >response to protein is about 40% of the response to carbs.
>
> What about people (like me) for whom even moderate carb consumption triggers
> hyperinsulinism?  Would the insulin response to protein versus carb ratio be
> much lower for hypoglycemics?  Based on personal experience, I would say
> yes, but I have no data to back up my claim, and doubt that this problem has
> been studied much.

Maybe the problem is with the insulin receptors, rather than
insulin production.  If for some reason insulin clearance is
slowed, the end result would be the same: hyperinsulinism.  I'm
just guessing, of course, but it's a possibility.  The phenomenon
of insulin resistance has begun to be studied quite a lot in
recent years.

Identifying the cause of IR is something else again.  Some argue
that it is a genetic adaptation: the "thrifty gene" hypothesis.
I suppose people who have this adaptation are best off emulating
Ice Age peoples.  There seems to be quite a lot of variation
among individuals with respect to IR.  Maybe it will be
recognized as a congenital condition...

Todd Moody
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