Doing everything right, yet packing on the pounds with every passing year? Last month we learned about the “root cause” of Fat After 40 – less cellular energy. What else plays a role?
Genetic Programming drives Fat After 40!
The longer we are here (the older we get) the more toxins we accumulate. Let’s face it, we can’t live in a bubble! We all know that the air, our food and the water just isn’t what it used to be, so our bodies collect toxins over time, which can lead to inflammation. Toxins and inflammation tell our genetic code, or our “DNA” to make and store fat, to protect us from those toxins and that inflammation. It’s that simple.
What happens to our DNA?
Our genetic code, or our DNA, actually tells our cells how to behave. We used to believe that we were born with a code, and that the code was set in stone. Along those lines, we felt like our fate was sealed when it came to health, or the expression of disease.
Over the last 20+ years, medical research has shown us that this code can be powerfully influenced by good or bad exposures, such as nutrients or toxins, and of course… the inflammation that toxins can cause in our bodies.
The good news is, we really do have a say in how this is going to go for us. The code isn’t set in stone… it is influenced by what surrounds it. We can change that influence.
Why do we care?
Because the more toxins and inflammation we carry, the more our DNA or genetic code sends a message to make and store fat, primarily in the middle! (Does that sound familiar?!) Why would our bodies do that to us? It’s not mean spirited, actually… it is a powerful protective mechanism, designed to help us. The fat “wraps up” the toxins and inflammatory by products, protecting the rest of our body from them. It stores them in the middle, because activities of daily living don’t threaten to burn fat in the middle, like they might in our arms and legs, for example.
How can we influence that process?
Reduce the toxic and inflammatory burden!
First, we clean up the cart! I tell them “even if you aren’t a nutritional expert, there is one choice you can make at the grocery store that removes several different hidden saboteurs in modern day food.” Simply purchase organic items, whenever possible. Organic choices abound at regular grocery stores for almost every category of food. Every time you go to replace an item, see if there is an organic choice nearby. Chances are… there is. Choose it. It’s worth the investment in a lower toxic burden.
Additionally, my patients are using targeted nutritional supplements, often built into a deeply therapeutic meal replacement shake, designed to support the body’s natural detoxification and anti-inflammatory pathways. Why are they built into a shake? Because studies show that people losing weight with the use of meal replacement shakes, are more successful than those that pursue weight balancing, without them. We thought “why not just build the support into the shake?” That way, they don’t have to swallow so many pills.
Over time, reducing toxins in, while supporting the body’s natural ability to release toxins and reduce inflammation becomes a part of a powerful and sustainable weight-balancing effect. Leaning toward lean, by reducing the toxic burden, while resetting the metabolism, allows my patients to reset the way their bodies work in a lasting way. They are taking back their bodies, for good.
This isn’t just about losing weight, it is about achieving a sustainable balance with weight.
The Science, the Tools and the Plan
My patients are “thinking women”. They like to understand why time on this planet, environmental and food-based toxicity and inflammation can frustrate their efforts to drive weight balancing and keep it balanced. Information is the power to change course. In our relationship, understanding what, why and how is just as important as the plan they follow. If you like to learn, too… there is so much more on my website. Sign up for the free video series “When the Fat is Not Your Fault”, watch the science come to life, and learn more about exactly what me and my patients are doing, every day. www.DrDaenell.com
My name is Carrie Louise Daenell, ND. As a licensed Naturopathic Doctor with a raw-materials and formulation expertise in the nutraceutical industry, I can build just-right protocols out of the targeted nutritional supplements that actually work for weight, hormones, heart, bone and digestion. You may have seen me on PBS or local/regional TV talk shows or News Programs. You can learn so much more at www.DrDaenell.com