On Mon, 4 Dec 2000 21:31:23 -0500, R Bartlett <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:

>>>Hmm. I've also read that carbs in the evening can be problematic for
>dieters.>>
>
><<Is there any scientific basis for this claim? Or is this one of those
>"sounds right" myths, like the one about "cleaning out the things in your
>colon that get stuck there"?>>
>
>There is a scientific basis for making this claim! [has everybody forgot the
>lessons outlined in Protein Power?  We may need a quiz...]
>
>Don't eat anything for three hours before going to sleep and you'll maximize
>your body's ability to release and utilize *growth hormone*.
>
>When we eat, insulin levels rise, and insulin suppresses growth hormone.
>Growth hormone is primarily released in pulses during the early hours of
>sleep and quickly converted in the liver to Insulin-like Growth Factor-1
>(IGF-1). IGF-1 significantly
>enhances our bodies' ability to use glucose as cellular fuel - fuel for
>cellular maintenance and repair, building muscle, and burning fat.
>
>As we age, our bodies become much less effective at producing and utilizing
>growth
>hormone. The results? Wrinkles, gray hair, decreased energy and sexual
>function, increased body fat, cardiovascular disease, cancer, osteoporosis.
>So, skip the late-night snack.
>
>Enjoy a cup of your favorite herb tea and dream of all the good things your
>growth hormone is doing for you while you sleep.

This is an interesting point, but what I have read is that the optimal strategy
for optimizing growth hormone is to certainly avoid an insulin surge at night,
but also to avoid a mild hypoglycemic response during the night by having a
small snack at bedtime, ie at most an ounce of low-carb food.

And, also, this is tangential to the original poster's comment about carbs at
night being problematic for dieters...


--
Cheers,

Ken
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