Appetite And Metabolism And Obesity
Central Control of Appetite. Coordination of energy use and food intake is necessary for regulation of body weight. Today's world-wide obesity epidemic reflects a mismatch in these factors. Our current energy requirements are little more than that required for basal metabolism and are very easily exceeded. For a simplified discussion of this, click here. Appetite control is a function of the brain, more specifically, the hypothalamus. This is a small area lying between the thalamus and pituitary, controlling the anterior segment of the pituitary and the many of the body's organs through vagus nerve stimulation. The hypothalamus contains several clusters of neurons, commonly designated as nuclei. Current research indicates that one of these, the arcuate nucleus, houses the appetite center. Here we find sensors that monitor lipid and sugar levels in the circulation and others which respond to specific hormones. Not only does the arcuate nucleus measure metabolites and hormone levels, it also coordinates metabolism through adjustment of the activities of the liver, kidneys, intestine and adipose tissue. The hypothalamus controls appetite and coordinates this with energy utilization. It is, therefore, responsible for maintenance of body weight, carefully adjusting food intake to physical activity. Loss of sensitivity to hormones and metabolites in the arcuate nucleus can lead to unbalanced energy intake and use, resulting in overweight and obesity. The appetite center in the arcuate nucleus appears to be composed of at least two classes of neurons: primary neurons that sense metabolite levels and regulating hormones, and secondary neurons that synchronize information from primary neurons and which coordinate bodily functions through vagal signaling. The primary neurons can Continue reading >>
How Insulin In The Brain May Suppress The Subjective Feeling Of Hunger
Follow all of ScienceDaily's latest research news and top science headlines ! How insulin in the brain may suppress the subjective feeling of hunger Deutsches Zentrum fuer Diabetesforschung DZD Insulin in the brain may help regulate the hunger sensation and improve functional connectivity in certain cognitive brain regions (default-mode network, DMN *) as well as in the hippocampus and hypothalamus. Intranasal insulin enhances functional connectivity in specific cognitive brain regions (default-mode network, DMN) as well as in the hippocampus and the hypothalamus. I Intranasal insulin enhances functional connectivity in specific cognitive brain regions (default-mode network, DMN) as well as in the hippocampus and the hypothalamus. I Insulin in the brain may help regulate the hunger sensation and improve functional connectivity in certain cognitive brain regions (default-mode network, DMN *) as well as in the hippocampus and hypothalamus. This is the finding of a new study by researchers at the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD) in Tbingen. Eating behavior and the subjective feeling of hunger are regulated by a variety of hormones. Here a key role is played by the hormone insulin because it is not only active in the body, but also in the brain. It was previously known that insulin acts on the homeostatic region (hypothalamus**). Now, however, scientists have found that the hormone is also active in other brain regions. Researchers at the Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases of Helmholtz Zentrum Mnchen at the University of Tbingen, a partner of the DZD, have further deciphered the function of insulin in the brain as well as its influence on the subjective feeling of hunger and have published their findings in Scientific Reports, a Nature research Continue reading >>
Insulin Levels, Hunger, And Food Intake: An Example Of Feedback Loops In Body Weight Regulation.
Abstract The paper reviews studies considering whether hyperinsulinemia, and its resultant effects on adipose tissue mass, can alter perceived hunger, taste, and food consumption. It also describes work addressing the reciprocal question of whether cues associated with food can affect insulin response. Specifically, four general categories of studies are presented. First, studies considering the causes and physiological consequences of chronic hyperinsulinemia are reviewed. Second, work investigating environmental and cognitive influences on insulin secretion are described. These show that high acute levels of insulin can be produced by simply seeing and thinking about food and that individuals showing this response show a greater tendency toward weight gain in a food-abundant environment. Third, studies are covered in which direct manipulations of insulin level, controlling for blood glucose, are performed. These experiments show that elevations in insulin produce increased hunger, heightened perceived pleasantness of sweet taste, and increased food intake. Finally, a study is described that considers how different insulin levels, produced by the type of food ingested, may affect subsequent food intake. Together, these studies show that "overeating" is caused by a complex feedback system of environmental, behavioral, and biological factors. Continue reading >>
Loss Of Appetite Dangerous For Diabetics
Q: Dear Donovan, I enjoy your column and see where you give advice to people who want to lose weight, and some of the advice is given to people with lifestyle diseases such as diabetes. However, my issue is a bit different. What if you're a diabetic who is losing too much weight and whose appetite is waning? How can this be treated? A: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease which interferes with the body's ability to control the blood glucose level. Diabetes can cause a number of symptoms including a loss of appetite, which can last for a few days. In your specific situation I wish you had given me more information. For example, are you currently on medication for diabetes? How did your loss of appetite occur: gradually or sudden? What do you eat on a daily basis? Also, are you exercising? Furthermore, are you having any stomach pain, vomiting or feeling nauseous? Overall, it is very important to find out the underlying cause of your lack of appetite. I would strongly suggest that you consult with your doctor. Until your appetite returns to normal you are at great risk of malnutrition and other health problems. In diabetes mellitus, the body does not produce enough insulin or functional insulin. The cells are therefore unable to properly use glucose to produce energy. As a result, the body will break down fat for energy. This further results in the production of ketones, which can make the body acidic as well as reduce the appetite. However, it should be noted that some diabetics do experience an increase in appetite. Therefore, it is very important that you consult with your doctor. In a nutshell, if your appetite is low, this can lead to weight loss. Hence, in order for you to regain your weight you will have to get the appetite back up and increase your intake of cal Continue reading >>
Do Insulin Levels Often Cause Hunger?
No, insulin probably isn’t the cause of constant hunger, according to Dr. Stephan Guyenet. Dr. G gives 11 points of evidence in support of his conclusion. Read them for yourself. Here are a few: multiple brain-based mechanisms (including non-insulin hormones and neurotransmitters) probably have more influence on hunger than do the pure effect of insulin weight loss reduces insulin levels, yet it gets harder to lose excess weight the more you lose at least one clinical study (in 1996) in young healthy people found that foods with higher insulin responses were linked to greater satiety, not greater hunger billions of people around the world eat high-carb diets yet remain thin An oft-cited explanation for the success of low-carbohydrate diets involves insulin, specifically the lower insulin levels and reduced insulin resistance seen in low-carb dieters. They often report less trouble with hunger than other dieters. Here’s the theory. When we eat carbohydrates, the pancreas releases insulin into the bloodstream to keep blood sugar levels from rising too high as we digest the carbohydrates. Insulin drives the bloodstream sugar (glucose) into cells to be used as energy or stored as fat or glycogen. High doses of refined sugars and starches over-stimulate the production of insulin, so blood sugar falls too much, over-shootinging the mark, leading to hypoglycemia, an undeniably strong appetite stimulant. So you go back for more carbohydrate to relieve the hunger induced by low blood sugar. That leads to overeating and weight gain. Read Dr. Guyenet’s post for reasons why he thinks this explanation of constant or recurring bothersome hunger is wrong or too simplistic. I tend to agree with him on this. The insulin-hypoglycemia-hunger theory may indeed be at play in a few fol Continue reading >>
Insulin: Appetite Suppressant? Researchers Say Maybe
Insulin: Appetite Suppressant? Researchers Say Maybe First study of insulin's direct effect on behavior By Elizabeth Armstrong Moore , Newser Staff Posted Jul 21, 2017 8:44 AM CDT FILE - In this April 18, 2017 file photo, Soila Solano prepares to inject herself with insulin at her home in Las Vegas. Solano was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes six years ago. (AP Photo/John Locher, File) (Newser) Even people who don't have diabetes may some day take insulin if the findings from a small new study hold. Researchers report in the journal Nature Communications that, in what may be the first study to look at how insulin impacts behavior, the hormone may suppress one's appetite. The team studied 28 volunteers with insulin sensitivity (that's most people), and 20 who are resistant to insulin (this is more common as we age). Using fMRI, scientists watched the participants' brains after they fasted for 10 hours overnight on two occasions and then inhaled either a nasal spray or placebo. Researchers found that those with normal insulin sensitivity enjoyed images of food 5% (and sometimes 27%) less after inhaling insulin than after taking a placebo. Their brain activity confirmed these results. Normally, when we see tasty food, our brain's reward pathways are triggered and dopamine is released, which motivates us to find food. Insulin, the neuroscientists hypothesize, could be weakening this reaction, reports Popular Science . Extra insulin in the brain could disrupt communication, meaning dopamine might have a harder time getting cells to transport it. The therapy didn't work on people with insulin resistance, and in a few instances resulted in people in this group craving food more. Popular Science's headline reads, "Sniffing insulin might help people eat less," and it explains why Continue reading >>
Insulin And Appetite
Many of you may recall a kerfuffle raised by a controversial article claiming that we’ve got it all wrong about insulin. Far from being a driver of weight gain, according to the article, insulin is actually an acute appetite suppressant. It makes us less hungry, by gosh, not more. That article seems to show up on diet-related social media sites on a regular basis. A few weeks ago, some born-to-be-lean jock who joined the Fat Head Facebook group for the sole purpose of being an annoying jackass posted a link to it. I responded, which started a back-and-forth debate. If insulin is such a fabulous appetite suppressant, I asked, then explain this: type 2 diabetics produce high levels of insulin. They’re also far more likely than other people to be overweight or obese. So why isn’t the acute appetite suppressant causing them to eat less and lose weight? The response (I’m paraphrasing here): Well, ya see, ya big dummy, type 2 diabetics are insulin resistant by definition. So they don’t experience the effects of the acute appetite suppressant. Hmmm. Okay, then, explain this one: People will start eating foods that provoke a high insulin response — a big tub of popcorn, or a big bag of chips — swearing to high heaven they’re only going to eat, say, half. Then they eat the whole thing. Then after cursing at themselves for not having any discipline, they go get more. Why isn’t the acute appetite suppressant kicking in and stopping them from eating way more than they intended? The response (I’m paraphrasing again here): Well, ya see, ya big dummy, the food-reward properties of the popcorn or chips override the appetite-suppressant effect of the insulin. Ahh, I see. So there’s really no need to adopt a diet that reduces your insulin levels, because insulin is Continue reading >>
- Relative effectiveness of insulin pump treatment over multiple daily injections and structured education during flexible intensive insulin treatment for type 1 diabetes: cluster randomised trial (REPOSE)
- Insulin, glucagon and somatostatin stores in the pancreas of subjects with type-2 diabetes and their lean and obese non-diabetic controls
- Only 2 Ingredients and You Can Say Goodbye to Diabetes Forever! No More Medications and Insulin!!!
Diabetes: Loss Of Appetite
Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease that interferes with the body’s ability to control the level of glucose in the blood. No matter what type of diabetes you have, symptoms develop as a result of high blood glucose levels, according to MayoClinic.com. Complications can cause a loss of appetite that lasts for more than a couple of days. Video of the Day When trying to determine the cause for your loss of appetite, your health care provider may ask whether you feel nauseous, have stomach pain or vomiting or are currently taking any medications. Your doctor may also ask if your loss of appetite came on gradually or suddenly and if you've recently lost weight. Mention how long it has been since you first noticed changes in your appetite. Tell your doctor if there is a family history of diabetes. Until your appetite returns to normal, you are at risk for malnutrition and other health problems; therefore, you need to find out the underlying cause for your decrease in appetite. Complications can occur when diabetes goes undiagnosed for an extended length of time. Suffering a loss of appetite for a few weeks or more can lead to malnutrition, a condition where your body does not get the nutrients it needs. Aside from possible malnutrition, if left untreated, diabetes can damage the eyes, kidneys and nerves. Undiagnosed diabetes can also cause circulation problems, heart attack and stroke. Although there is no cure for the disease, you can prevent complications from occurring by maintaining a healthy weight and controlling blood glucose levels. Monitoring blood pressure and cholesterol levels, eating a balanced diet, being physically active and seeing your doctor regularly are additional steps you can take to help manage your diabetes. If hyperglycemia goes untreated, diabet Continue reading >>
Why Did I Gain Weight When I Started Taking Insulin?
There are several factors at work to lead you to believe that insulin is "to blame" for your weight gain. People who have poorly controlled diabetes also sometimes experience weight loss because their bodies are unable to properly convert food into energy. This is because they either are not producing enough insulin or their bodies are unable to use the insulin they produce properly. This food winds up as excess glucose circulating in the blood (resulting in high blood glucose!). Ultimately the body can't use all that extra glucose circulating in the blood and so it is eliminated in the urine. When your blood glucose runs high, you can become dehydrated as your body works to clear itself of all that excess glucose — which makes you think you've lost weight, but you've only lost water. Then, when you start taking insulin and get your blood glucose under better control, you start over-retaining fluids initially to make up for your dehydration, which makes you think you've rapidly gained a lot of weight. You associate it with taking insulin, but really what is happening is taking your insulin properly is just enabling your body to better use food and maintain a proper water balance. Also, once you start taking insulin injections and start getting your blood glucose under control, you now have enough insulin circulating in your blood to help the glucose get into the body's cells where it can be used as energy. So the glucose produced by the food you eat is no longer spending time in your bloodstream and being excreted out as urine. You gain weight. Your high blood glucose may have also made you feel more hungry because not all the food you were eating was able to get into the cells as energy to nourish the cells. Then, you started taking insulin — and continued to eat t Continue reading >>
Appetite Control: Understanding Your Hunger Hormones
Imagine you are out to dinner with a friend and the bread arrives at your table. You are not very hungry, but you think, “l’ll just have one little piece.” A few minutes later, you realize you have eaten three slices before your meal even arrives. What’s going on here? Even though you are not physically hungry, your body gave you the signal to eat. That’s the work of three hormones in your body that control hunger — insulin, ghrelin and leptin. They are important because the way these balance can impact your weight and health. Insulin Insulin is made in the pancreas and allows cells to take sugar or glucose from the blood stream to use as energy. Approximately one-third of the population inherits a resistance to respond properly to insulin, which prompts the pancreas to secrete more insulin if you eat a meal high in refined or “simple” carbohydrates such as white pasta or white bread. When the insulin does not respond normally — allowing sugars to enter the cells of the body — you can experience insulin resistant hunger. Rather than being physically hungry, you might experience it as a “gnawing” desire to eat. If you consume meals high in refined carbohydrates on a regular basis, that are not balanced with respect to protein and good fat, you may continually crave carbohydrates. “Just One...” Think back to the restaurant example with the bread, or perhaps a recent party where you have helped yourself to a few chips, only to find that you ate a good portion of the bowl. Again, even though you were not physically hungry, your body gave you the signal to eat. In these situations, you know what you are “supposed” to be eating, but your body continues to give you the signal to eat more carbohydrates. Running on Empty The more refined carbohydr Continue reading >>
“do Carbs Make You Hungry?” By James Barnum
(Click here to jump to a summary of this article.) We hear from a lot of people who believe that when blood insulin levels go up in response to a carbohydrate-dense meal, you wind up hungrier than you were before you ate. The idea is then, that eating carbohydrates can make you hungry, which will promote overeating, which leads to weight gain. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Insulin does not cause hunger. Ghrelin, “the hunger hormone,” is produced during periods of low blood sugar, when growth hormone levels are elevated and insulin levels are at their lowest (4). The hormone leptin inhibits the action of ghrelin and tells your brain that you’re full, and glucose metabolism is the primary determinant of leptin secretion in humans (3). Furthermore, a recent study by Wellhoener et al., has shown that the administration of insulin after feeding curbs appetite. However, it did not have any effect on satiety during fasting when blood sugar was low (2). These data support the idea that insulin can help control hunger. In short, carbohydrate metabolism makes you feel happy and full (5). While insulin may play a small role in keeping you from overeating, its job is to open up a channel to transport nutrients into cells. The video below by Dr. Bryan Walsh explains what insulin is, and how it works, better than anything else on the internet, so you should definitely give it a watch: [youtube=So Why the Confusion? A major problem with this whole scenario is that it only works like that when your body is functioning properly and you’re making the right lifestyle decisions. Leptin resistance will confound issues with hunger and make it difficult to lose body fat. Even when you eat an abundance of carbs, your brain won’t get the signal that you don’t need to ea Continue reading >>
The Effects Of Insulin On The Central Nervous System - Focus On Appetite Regulation
Appetite and satiety are subject to complex regulation, with ne- uroendocrine mechanisms playing an important role. The central nervous system is attracting increasing attention as a target tis- sue for many hormones such as leptin, PYY3-36, ghrelin, gluc- agon-like-peptide 1 and many others. Among its many well- known functions, insulin is also a potent anorexigenic hormone, and insulin receptors are widely distributed throughout the cen- tral nervous system. One way to advance our understanding of central nervous regulation of hunger and satiety in humans is to develop suitable neuroimaging techniques for use in various clinical and experimental conditions. Several studies have been performed using functional magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography to identify areas of the brain that are differentially activated by alteration of the feeding state. These preliminary data are taking shape as a complex neuronal network involving the hypothalamus, thalamus, limbic and paralimbic areas including the insular cortex and the anterior cingulate gyrus and the orbitofrontal cortex. Continuous efforts to understand hormonal effects on these pathways may advance Insulin central nervous system appetite and satiety Insulin is the main glucose regulatory hormone; however, with the insulin receptor being expressed in virtually all tissues, insulin can contribute to the regulation of many processes unre- lated to glucose metabolism. The target tissues most immedi- ately related to plasma glucose are muscle, liver and adipose tissue (Table 1). In the brain, on the other hand, glucose metab- olism is not thought to be regulated by insulin. In humans, for example, positron emission tomography (PET) studies have re- peatedly failed to reveal any effects of hyperinsulin Continue reading >>
Appetite Suppressants
Diabetes Forum The Global Diabetes Community Find support, ask questions and share your experiences. Join the community Does anyone know if there is anything that can be prescribed by a GP that will suppress my appetite, I'm hungry all the time but still stick to just 3 meals a day without snacking. I'm fairly certain that there is nothing that your GP can prescribe to supress your appetite, unfortunately one of the drawbacks of insulin is the increase in appetite, I don't know if this occurs in type 1's or not. I am loathe to mention your diet because you have said that you will not make any changes but I honestly think that and the insulin may be causing you problems. I seem to remember you posted a typical days diet which consisted of practically all carbohydrate and nothing else, a high level of carbs do have the effect of causing hunger more quickly especially as you don't eat vegetables or salad at all. (this info courtesy of my daughter's Endocrinologist consultant). Do your HCP's not ask about your diet? Would you mind me asking what your HBA1C is Sarah? Reason being, nurses and docs have a tendency to say "oh that's fine" when it is actually pretty high. That HbA1C translates as your bg levels over a period of time and if that is high, it means you are running high levels of bg almost constantly..that would also make you feel hungry. I am not a judge and jury and nor would I want to be. Thing is if you eat a diet that is almost totally carby then it will without a doubt have an adverse effect..and no, I'm not a low carber. I hate having to give up some of the things I love and accepting the fact that if I want to be well, I HAVE to make changes. With the greatest respect, while you continue to eat the diet you are on, this is going to affect your health, your Continue reading >>
How Diabetes Medications Affect Your Appetite
Many of my patients with type 2 diabetes are overweight or obese. For them, losing weight is an important way to gain better control over their diabetes and improve their health in general. But losing weight by diet and exercise alone can be very difficult. In fact, the latest science about obesity suggests the hormones controlling appetite in an obese body are dysregulated. To put it very simply, that means obese patients’ brains may tell them they’re hungry when they’re actually full. It shows us we may need pharmacological assistance to rebalance leptin, ghrelin, and other appetite hormones to get the body functioning correctly. On top of tracking your diet and blood sugar, regular exercise is a key part of managing your diabetes. And while any exercise is better than none, certain activities have specific benefits for people with diabetes. 2017 Healthgrades Operating Company, Inc. All rights reserved. May not be reproduced or reprinted without permission from Healthgrades Operating Company, Inc. Use of this information is governed by the Healthgrades User Agreement. While researchers are still learning more about appetite hormones, many of my patients wonder about the effect of their diabetes medications on their appetite. While the more standard diabetes treatments don’t suppress appetite or cause weight loss, newer therapies have come to the market in recent years that do offer these benefits. However, they’re so new that they lack long-term data on safety. Until we get more information, I tend to stick with the standards for most of my patients. Still, there are niches these drugs can fill. The classic treatment prescribed for diabetes, insulin, has the potential to cause weight gain, and doesn’t suppress appetite–which can be a huge drawback to ins Continue reading >>
How Is My Brain Affected By Insulin?
It was used to be thought that the brain was not affected by insulin. This belief was based upon a false assumption that there were no insulin receptors in the brain. However, insulin receptors have now been discovered in nearly every region of the brain, especially those regions in charge of controlling appetite. In insulin-sensitive people, a rise of insulin after meals results in a promotion of satiety through its action in the brain. However, in those with insulin resistance, even the excessive insulin levels experienced after meals no longer result in a significant sense of satiety. In normal individuals, it has been shown that regions of the brain responsible for appetite regulation respond to after-meal elevations in insulin by significantly increasing their intake of glucose and, subsequently, increasing the metabolic activity in these regions. In particular, the brain regions most responsible for appetite, such as the hypothalamus, readily respond to insulin. This reaction to insulin results in a decrease in appetite and a sense of satiety. In contrast, those with insulin resistance have been shown to lack this increase in metabolic activity in these important brain regions following a significant rise in insulin levels. We at the Hunger Free Forever program now know that the brain becomes insulin resistant along with the rest of the body, and that this insulin resistance plays an important role in the loss of after-meal satiety that accompanies weight gain. Think of the appetite control center having an "off" button for appetite that will only respond to insulin. With insulin resistance, the appetite never really gets shut down. Hunger Free Forever: The New Science of Appetite Control From two leading authorities on appetite control, obesity, natural medicine, Continue reading >>
