KTK-Nutrition

At the gym this week a friend shared that their A1c was 8.7 and that he was now reading food labels and was cutting back on sugar.    So many Americans are finding their fasting blood glucose levels are higher than normal and their A1c level is high.    Many Americans have either prediabetes or type 2 diabetes.   How many Americans have prediabetes or type 2 diabetes?  Prediabetes  is becoming increasingly common with 97.6 million Americans (38%) with prediabetes meaning they have blood sugar levels above normal but not high enough to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.  Those with higher levels have type 2 diabetes.  According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) an estimated 34.2 million Americans (10.5%) have type 2 diabetes as of 2020.  Can prediabetes be reversed?  Prediabetes can be thought of as a warning sign for type 2 diabetes.  The good news is that prediabetes can be reversed with ...

Have you noticed the ingredients on some packaging?    In place of sugar some manufacturers are using high fructose corn syrup to sweeten foods.    So much so that now you can find packages with bold letters stating, No High Fructose Corn Syrup.     What is high fructose corn syrup and how does this sweetener affect your health? What is high fructose corn syrup?  High fructose corn syrup  is made from corn starch.  After processing it is a liquid composed of 55% fructose and 45% glucose.  How is high fructose corn syrup used in  foods ? One doesn’t go to the store to buy high fructose corn syrup, rather manufacturers use high fructose corn syrup in place of sugar to sweeten foods as high fructose corn syrup is cheaper.  High fructose corn syrup not only adds sweetness to foods, it also is used for other reason such as surface browning, giving “moisture, structure, and texture” to foods.  In foods like bread,...

So much confusion and misunderstanding about carbs.    This week my dentist said he had a patient trying to eat 3,000 calories of protein a day and skipping the carbs. My dentist told him his kidneys wouldn’t like all that protein.    I just heard a commentator on TV say they are eating a lot of protein and skipping the bread.    What is the truth about  carbs ?    Do carbs really make you gain weight, make you fat?   Should you go on a low carb diet to lose weight?  In 2017  researchers  reviewed 32 clinical trials of patients eating the same calories and protein but on high or low carb diets.  Those on a low carb diet lost the same amount of weight as those on a high carb diet.  Other researchers looked at weight loss differences in those on a high protein diet or a high-carbohydrate diet.  Surprise, surprise, there was no difference in pounds lost.  Marilyn Holmes, a registered...