Insulin Resistance

I know that many people find themselves doing an online search for insulin resistance because it’s a complicated-sounding condition that doctors have a hard time explaining (or they have no time during your appointment to explain it). I think conventional medical doctors need to gain a strong understanding of this common condition because it’s estimated that 40 percent of the population has insulin resistance. But even medical training doesn’t teach a critical part of the insulin resistance picture: it’s caused by magnesium deficiency.

What Dr. Google or an MD might say about insulin resistance:

According to Dr. Google, insulin resistance is a condition where the cells in your liver, fat and muscles don’t respond well to insulin, the hormone that your pancreas creates to manage and maintain your blood sugar. Insulin is supposed to open up cells to allow glucose to enter. If left untreated, insulin resistance can develop into diabetes as elevated blood glucose levels continue to rise as the cells are starved of glucose.

A search online will let you know that insulin resistance has a number of contributing factors:

• Obesity and excess weight around the organs
• Sedentary lifestyle with little physical activity
• Smoking
• A processed food diet, high in sugar and saturated fats
• Genetics

Also, insulin resistance is often seen in people with the following conditions:

• High blood pressure
• Low HDL cholesterol and high triglycerides
• High stress
• Sleep apnea

Nowhere did I see that insulin resistance was associated with magnesium deficiency.

Symptoms associated with insulin resistance

Insulin resistance has many and varied signs and symptoms but not everyone with this condition exhibits symptoms.

• Weight gain, especially around abdomen
• Increased hunger, and sweet, carb cravings
• Increased urination frequency
• Dark patches on the skin, in groin, neck and armpit area
• Skin tags, often in same areas as the dark patches
• Tingling sensations, numbness or pain in feet and hands
• More frequent infections
• Slower wound healing

Dr. Google recommends seeking medical advice if you exhibit any of these symptoms. I simply recommend that you quit eating sugar and take picometer, stabilized-ionic, non-laxative magnesium.

Dr. Google might suggest medical testing

If you or your doctor suspect insulin resistance, you’ll likely have a physical exam where you’ll be weighed and measured and checked for skin tags and other skin changes. You’ll be questioned about your family medical history for the incidence of diabetes and related conditions. Blood tests will check glucose and insulin levels.

If insulin resistance is suspected, ideally your doctor will recommend lifestyle changes to your diet and exercise. Remember that doctors have limited time with their patients and will not spend the time they do have giving you details about diet, exercise and lifestyle changes to make to address insulin resistance. The amount of time they spend on this topic does not reflect how crucial diet and exercise are. Instead, they’ll spend time considering prescription medication.

Dr. Google might … I mean, Will, suggest drugs

Drug companies are pretty proud of themselves these days for coming up with an array of new drugs said to control blood sugar. While these are meant for people who’ve been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and not approved by the FDA for weight loss they’re increasingly being used as weight loss drugs with the rationale that losing weight will help alleviate insulin resistance and therefore avoid diabetes.

These drugs, like Ozempic and Mounjaro are complex concoctions that interfere with the natural, hormonal process of blood sugar maintenance. Without getting into details that you can research for yourself, they are said to mimic the hormone in the gut that stimulates the release of insulin and / or decrease the release of glucagon which raises blood sugar. They slow the movement of food through the system, so you feel full longer and trick the brain into thinking you’re full.

Of particular interest to people is the claim that these drugs essentially turn off food cravings or “food noise”. The food noise returns when the drugs are stopped, or the dose is too low, so this can become another lifelong drug to treat a condition like insulin resistance that’s actually a sign of magnesium deficiency.

Countless people on these drugs have shared that they’re caught in the loop of upping their dose when food cravings surface, especially when faced with stressful circumstances and triggers. When they find themselves wanting to soothe themselves with food, instead of addressing the emotion they’re feeling, they increase their drug dose.

What I say about insulin resistance:

First off, the major cause of insulin resistance is magnesium deficiency. This condition is a high risk for people who are overweight or obese and have the contributing lifestyle habits of a diet that’s high in sugar and processed foods, and low on exercise and movement.

Furthermore, insulin resistance is the gateway to conditions like high blood sugar, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease and ultimately diabetes.

Why insulin is resisted

The cells in the body are fueled and nourished by glucose. In order for the cells to take in and utilize glucose, they need insulin to open up the cells’ receptor sites so that the glucose can get in and do its job. When this mechanism is working correctly, the pancreas makes just enough insulin and knows when to stop making it.

When the mechanism is not working properly, usually because too much sugar available and pushing to get into the cells but the cells aren’t letting in glucose as requested by the insulin. So, when the insulin comes knocking, the cellular receptor sites are blocking! That “unreceived” glucose builds up in the bloodstream, but the pancreas keeps producing insulin to deal with all that sugar.

Can you guess one of the major factors preventing cell receptor sites from opening to allow glucose? Magnesium deficiency. As I say in The Magnesium Miracle, “The higher the levels of magnesium in the body, the greater the sensitivity of the cells to insulin and the possibility of reversing the problem”.

Insulin and Vitamin C

While recently updating my sugar book I realized that everyone is missing the fact that glucose and vitamin C, which are similar molecules, compete for transport on insulin molecules. So, the more glucose trying to jam into cells – the less vitamin C will be allowed in those cells to make collagen and to act as an antioxidant. Then, if cells are constantly slammed with insulin trying to push glucose into the cells, then you get insulin resistance and neither vitamin C nor glucose gets to do their jobs.

What to do if you suspect you have a problem with insulin resistance

Stop eating sugar and processed food, cut the carbs and take picometer, stabilized-ionic, non-laxative magnesium. PERIOD. At any time, there are only 2 teaspoons of sugar in the bloodstream so consuming any more than that over an extended period is putting you at risk for insulin resistance

My advice is to finish the magnesium you are currently taking and then reach for my picometer stabilized magnesium ion formula for full absorption and full benefits.

The best way to proceed is to call our wonderful Customer Experience Team to help build a healthy protocol that you can depend on.

Carolyn Dean MD ND
The Doctor of the Future