How to Fight The Deadly Trio
04 Apr 2015
What kills more North Americans than anything else? It’s the deadly trio of obesity, diabetes and heart attack. Each is a huge problem by itself. But when lumped together they constitute three raging epidemics completely out of control with catastrophic consequences for patients and our health care system. But there are ways for smart medical consumers to avoid becoming victims of the deadly trio.
Consider what’s happened in the last 60 years. When I was a medical student 5 percent of Type 2 diabetes, better labeled as lifestyle diabetes, was due to obesity. Now, numbers have reached a shocking 95 percent.
The deadly trio kills by atherosclerosis (narrowing of arteries). The resulting decreased blood supply sends patients on their way to the medical hell of blindness, leg amputation, kidney failure and coronary attack. It’s the Gifford-Jones Law of one problem leading to another and another.
The obvious answer to avoid these disastrous complications is to lose weight. But that’s easier said than done. We know that 95 percent of diets fail. Few people have the will power to say no to desserts or to count calories. And from my experience, to get smaller plates or less food in a restaurant, you have to threaten the waiter.
Why is it that so many attempts to lose weight fail? I believe there’s a simple answer. People get hungry. Unless guarded 24 hours a day, the refrigerator door gets opened too frequently.
Drs. Michael R. Lyon and Michael Murray, in their book, “Hunger Free Forever”, claim the logical solution is to tame the hunger, forever. The only safe, natural way to do this is to fool the stomach’s hunger reflex by what researchers call “filling volume”.
For instance, soft drinks have practically no filling volume. But a fiber rich apple satisfies the reflex because it fills the stomach and stops the desire for more food.
Lyon and Murray report, “a newly discovered remarkable soluble fiber complex called PGX (polyGlycoplex) helps re-train an overweight body so that hunger is reduced and eating is again under the patient’s control”.
PGX contains virtually no calories and has now been reported in several international journals. Gram for gram it provides more punch that any other fiber products. One to two soft gels are swallowed one hour before meals with a glass of water. They then expand because of their ability to absorb many times their weight in water.
This creates the same result as three bowels of oatmeal! Its distinct message tells the brain the stomach is full and has no desire for second helpings. The dose can be increased over several days or decreased if there’s bloating or loose stools.
PGX also prevents the complications of the deadly trio in other ways. For instance, today’s sugar-loaded diet produces highs and lows in blood sugar. This yo-yo effect is often the prelude to type 2 diabetes. PGX decreases this risk by slowing the digestion of food thus normalizing blood sugar levels.
By stabilizing blood sugar, PGX also decreases the risk of insulin resistance. In this condition the body’s cells are less able to absorb glucose and more insulin is needed. Eventually the pancreas, which produces insulin, falters and blood sugar increases, resulting in diabetes and all its complications.
PGX similarly combats the nation’s number one killer, heart attack. Studies show that PGX reduces total and bad cholesterol in those suffering from pre-diabetes and diabetes. Moreover, maintaining a healthy weight decreases the risk of blocked arteries due to atherosclerosis.
So what’s new about what I’ve told you today? In the past I’ve stressed that North Americans need 35 grams of fiber daily, but few reach this amount. It’s because whatever way you look at fiber, it’s simply not as appetizing as other foods and will always be a hard sell. PGX gels offer an easier sell and fortunately a natural one.
My advice? Become a smart consumer to escape the deadly trio of obesity, diabetes and heart attack. Remember, history shows you can’t beat obesity when you’re always hungry. Without PGX, the refrigerator door always wins.
