Maddy

Whenever I'm researching stuff for my diet for PCOS I have a neverending list of foods you *shouldn't* eat and sometimes it seems like it's about taking away from you and what you have to sacrifice or go without.

So I thought it might be nice (plus I can refer to it later for diet info) to start a thread about the foods that are good to include for PCOS or weightloss.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

I've just been reading some interesting information on whey protein.

Whey’s effects on bodyfat insulin sensitivity, and fat burning…. So we have some studies suggesting whey may have some unique effects on hormones involved in satiety and or may reduce energy (calorie) intake of subsequent meals, but do we have studies showing direct effects of whey vs. other proteins on weight loss? In animals at least, whey has looked like a promising supplement for weight loss. Although higher protein diets have been found to improve insulin sensitivity, and may be superior for weight loss (with some debate!) then higher carbohydrate lower protein diets, it’s unclear if all proteins have the same effects. One study compared whey to beef (Damien P. Belobrajdic,, Graeme H. McIntosh, and Julie A. Owens. A High-Whey-Protein Diet Reduces Body Weight Gain and Alters Insulin Sensitivity Relative to Red Meat in Wistar Rats. J. Nutr. 134:1454-1458, June 2004) and found whey reduced body weight and tissue lipid levels and increased insulin sensitivity compared to red meat. Rats were fed a high-fat diet for nine weeks, then switched to a diet containing either whey or beef for an additional six weeks. As has generally been found in other studies, the move to a high dietary protein reduced energy intake (due to the known satiating effects of protein compared to carbs or fat), as well as reductions in visceral and subcutaneous bodyfat. However, the rats getting the whey, there was a 40% reduction in plasma insulin concentrations and increased insulin sensitivity compared to the red meat. Not surprisingly, the researchers concluded “These findings support the conclusions that a high-protein diet reduces energy intake and adiposity and that whey protein is more effective than red meat in reducing body weight gain and increasing insulin sensitivity.” Other studies suggest taking whey before a workout is superior for preserving/gaining lean body mass (LBM) and maintaining fat burning (beta oxidation) during exercise over other foods taken prior to a workout. The study called “A preexercise lactalbumin-enriched whey protein meal preserves lipid oxidation and decreases adiposity in rats” (Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 283: E565–E572, 2002.) came to some very interesting conclusions. One thing we have known a long time is the composition of the pre-exercise meal will affect substrate utilization during exercise and thus might affect long-term changes in body weight and composition. That is, depending on what you eat before you workout can dictate what you use for energy (i.e. carbs, fats, and or proteins) which alters what you burn (oxidize) for energy. The researchers took groups of rats and made the poor buggers exercise two hours daily for over five weeks (talk about over training!), either in the fasted state or one hour after they ingested a meal enriched with a simple sugar (glucose), whole milk protein or whey protein. The results were quite telling. Compared with fasting (no food), the glucose meal increased glucose oxidation and decreased lipid oxidation during and after exercise. Translated, they burned sugar over body fat for their energy source. In contrast, the whole milk protein and whey meals preserved lipid oxidation and increased protein oxidation. Translated, fat burning was maintained and they also used protein as a fuel source. Not surprisingly, the whey meal increased protein oxidation more than the whole milk protein meal, most likely due to the fact that whey is considered a “fast” protein that is absorbed rapidly due to it’s high solubility. As one would expect, by the end of the five weeks, body weight was greater in the glucose, whole milk protein and whey fed rats than in the fasted ones. No shock there. Here is where it gets interesting: In the group getting the glucose or the whole milk protein, the increase in weight was from bodyfat, but in the whey fed group, the increase in weight was from an increase in muscle mass and a decrease in bodyfat! Only the rats getting the whey before their workout increased muscle mass and decreased their bodyfat. The researchers theorized this was due to whey’s ability to rapidly deliver amino acids during exercise. Is this the next big find in sports nutrition or those simply looking to preserve muscle mass loss due to aging? Hard to say at this time being it was done in rats, but if it turns out to be true in humans (and there is no reason people can’t try it now) it would indeed be a breakthrough in the quest to add muscle and lose fat.

__________________


To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.