Biochemistry answers for common weight loss questions: Sodium. (warning, long and nerdy)
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Aaron_K123 wrote: »Oh boy that gets pretty complex. I think I'd want to keep it more narrowly focused. I mean there are entire textbooks dedicated to trying to explain that. I don't remember a lot of it so if I even attempted to try to summarize I'd probably have to go re-read those textbooks first.
I remember the gist of it so I'd give the gist but I doubt I'd drill down into that level of detail. I'd probably just talk about molecularly what a "carb" a "fat" and a "protein" are and how they are metabolized and how much energy they produce and where their atoms end up in terms of waste or your body.
Haha, understood! Enjoy following this thread and reading about whatever topics are covered.1 -
NoxeemaJackson wrote: »How do we actually lose weight? - I mean at the molecular level. The actual process of how your fat cells shrink and like where does that stuff GO? I just think that's really interesting too
With visuals. Not to take away from Aaron, but it is interesting since it contains people getting quizzed on it.
https://youtu.be/vuIlsN32WaE 5 -
NoxeemaJackson wrote: »How do we actually lose weight? - I mean at the molecular level. The actual process of how your fat cells shrink and like where does that stuff GO? I just think that's really interesting too
With visuals. Not to take away from Aaron, but it is interesting since it contains people getting quizzed on it.https://youtu.be/vuIlsN32WaE
I was trying to wrack my brain remembering this video so I could go find it. T'is very good.1 -
NoxeemaJackson wrote: »How do we actually lose weight? - I mean at the molecular level. The actual process of how your fat cells shrink and like where does that stuff GO? I just think that's really interesting too
With visuals. Not to take away from Aaron, but it is interesting since it contains people getting quizzed on it.https://youtu.be/vuIlsN32WaE
Yeah that pretty much covers the gist of it.0 -
This is one of the most interesting threads on this board, I think. Thanks for this!0
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stanmann571 wrote: »
Just remember... Alcohol is not a solution.
Beer on the other hand... is a solution.
A Martini is also a solution.
Most alcohol is a solution, though. Except maybe Everclear. Pretty sure that's as close to pure alcohol as you're getting.2 -
stanmann571 wrote: »
Just remember... Alcohol is not a solution.
Beer on the other hand... is a solution.
A Martini is also a solution.
Most alcohol is a solution, though. Except maybe Everclear. Pretty sure that's as close to pure alcohol as you're getting.
PEDANT!3 -
[/quote]
Where does your weight go when you lose weight? (short answer: you breath it out)
[/quote]
I have been wondering why I always seem to 'find' the lost weight of those around me. Now I know. I'm breathing it IN.
All joking aside, I found your write up on sodium fascinating. I have never worried much about sodium and have never had any medical reason to, but this is great info to have. I work in an office of 'next big thing' dieters who feel free to share their 'knowledge' of every fad diet, every so-called good/bad food or substance, any of Dr. Oz's latest and greatest proclamations, etc. It's just one more reason to feel less inclined to simply smile politely when kindly told what it and isn't healthy for ME.
Your other topics would be interesting as well.
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stanmann571 wrote: »stanmann571 wrote: »
Just remember... Alcohol is not a solution.
Beer on the other hand... is a solution.
A Martini is also a solution.
Most alcohol is a solution, though. Except maybe Everclear. Pretty sure that's as close to pure alcohol as you're getting.
PEDANT!
I don't know, I think most academics some days end up considering alcohol to be a viable solution.2 -
newheavensearth wrote: »I remember when my parents went on a low sodium diet for hypertension. They cut out huge types of processed foods and of course lost weight (less food). So they chalked up their weight problems to sodium. When they discovered low or no sodium substitutes they added the foods back in and gained most, if not all of the weight back. But they still believe that sodium causes obesity and refuse to believe excess food intake has anything to do with it. Their doctor only told them to watch the salt, nothing else.
My wife's grandmother's doctor told her the same, watch the salt- so she pretty much cut it out completely. Put herself in the hospital a few weeks later hooked up to IV electrolytes... too little salt intake and she was confused, dazes, lethargic and cognitively impaired.
As with all things, it is about balance and moderation.0 -
jasondjulian wrote: »newheavensearth wrote: »I remember when my parents went on a low sodium diet for hypertension. They cut out huge types of processed foods and of course lost weight (less food). So they chalked up their weight problems to sodium. When they discovered low or no sodium substitutes they added the foods back in and gained most, if not all of the weight back. But they still believe that sodium causes obesity and refuse to believe excess food intake has anything to do with it. Their doctor only told them to watch the salt, nothing else.
My wife's grandmother's doctor told her the same, watch the salt- so she pretty much cut it out completely. Put herself in the hospital a few weeks later hooked up to IV electrolytes... too little salt intake and she was confused, dazes, lethargic and cognitively impaired.
As with all things, it is about balance and moderation.
I fear that the health establishment dumbs down advice to the point where people can draw mistaken conclusions from what they are being told like in your example. Doctor notices a persons blood pressure is through the roof, measures sodium levels and finds them to be very high. Doctor can either spend 30 minutes explaining to patient the effects of sodium on the body or they could just spend 30 seconds telling the patient to avoid sodium because for the immediate future that would benefit them. Practically speaking they are going to go with option 2. I get it with Doctors but what annoys me is if you try to look up information on sodium on websites that should be credible like the american heart association they end up just telling you to avoid sodium and they don't really elaborate either. There I don't think they are saving time I think they are just dumbing it down because they figure the general public won't get it or will ignore it if they complicate it with information so they just hash tag it into a tweetable "avoid sodium" and call it a day.2 -
I think they are also going with normal response to advice given - semi-followed. If that much.
So by saying cut it out - they are expecting vast majority to just watch it a little - like eating only half that bag of chips watching TV, or small fries with hamburger.
They probably rarely expect anyone to really get serious about it and lower it that much.
But that's a failure knowing your patient then - so bigger issue highlighted I think.
Which wouldn't surprise me either, if you give a range, that now means needing to log things, and that is successful for how long?
And even if you do a few days to get an idea, the mere act of logging changes decisions during that time, which may change when logging stops.1 -
I think they are also going with normal response to advice given - semi-followed. If that much.
So by saying cut it out - they are expecting vast majority to just watch it a little - like eating only half that bag of chips watching TV, or small fries with hamburger.
They probably rarely expect anyone to really get serious about it and lower it that much.
But that's a failure knowing your patient then - so bigger issue highlighted I think.
Which wouldn't surprise me either, if you give a range, that now means needing to log things, and that is successful for how long?
And even if you do a few days to get an idea, the mere act of logging changes decisions during that time, which may change when logging stops.
Well its always a balance between getting the message out to the widest amount of people to do the most good versus the damage it might cause a few people who take the advice blindly even though it doesn't apply to them and may do them more harm than good.
I just feel like the actual information should be more easily accessed by those who wish to seek it out.0 -
Bumping this because it deserves to be seen
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rabbit trail warning! Tuberculosis!
I work in records myself and sometimes I end up diving deep in to history. I once had to arrange for the disposal of abandoned documents from a tuberculosis sanatorium. Which led me to read up about the history of this disease. Which led me to understand the whole dynamics of contagion, quarantine, and the absolute terror the old diseases had over society.
From what I read the best "treatment" for tuberculosis before antibiotics was a 3,000 calorie a day diet. Forget the ice baths and fresh air. What worked best was to feed the patient enough calories to allow the body to naturally fight off the disease. They engendered a few cures that way. A few.
Modern medicine; what a miracle.
cause i love rabbit trails! I was watching an old Audrey Hepburn movie the other week (Nun's Story) and she ends up in the Congo as a nurse and develops Tb...the treatment the doctor gives her is basically 6-12 months rest, with lots of good food in a loft type room where she can see the sun/trees1 -
deannalfisher wrote: »rabbit trail warning! Tuberculosis!
I work in records myself and sometimes I end up diving deep in to history. I once had to arrange for the disposal of abandoned documents from a tuberculosis sanatorium. Which led me to read up about the history of this disease. Which led me to understand the whole dynamics of contagion, quarantine, and the absolute terror the old diseases had over society.
From what I read the best "treatment" for tuberculosis before antibiotics was a 3,000 calorie a day diet. Forget the ice baths and fresh air. What worked best was to feed the patient enough calories to allow the body to naturally fight off the disease. They engendered a few cures that way. A few.
Modern medicine; what a miracle.
cause i love rabbit trails! I was watching an old Audrey Hepburn movie the other week (Nun's Story) and she ends up in the Congo as a nurse and develops Tb...the treatment the doctor gives her is basically 6-12 months rest, with lots of good food in a loft type room where she can see the sun/trees
Yeah before the development of anti-mycobacterial antibiotics the "treatment" for TB was rest and plenty of food and sun. Basically because there wasn't an actual treatment and your immune system, if healthy, can often contain the disease (although you will never be rid of it that way). There were massive treatment facilities called sanitariums dedicated to this purpose.
With the development of antibiotics that is no longer the treatment, but the current antibiotic regime for TB sucks and there is a problem with resistance as well. Current treatment for drug sensitive TB is 4 drugs daily for 3 months followed by 2 of those 4 drugs daily for an additional 3 months. Some of those drugs are a bit toxic and can give you issues such as nausea. Not surprisingly it is difficult to get patients to stick with a 6 month antibiotic course especially when those antibiotics make them feel fatigue and illness in and of themselves. So there has been a rise in MDR (multidrug resistant) and XDR (extremely drug resistant) TB that requires 1-2 years of treatment with a larger cocktail daily including injectables. Treatment cost for XDR TB is something like $500k and outcomes aren't great.
Need new drugs and an effective vaccine for treatment pretty desperately. People in the developed world seem to view TB as a disease from a bygone era but the truth is TB kills more people than any other infectious disease to this day with millions of deaths a year and it has a huge base of infection with about 2 billion people infected worldwide.
....and this has nothing to do with sodium 5 -
Really interesting and informative thread. Thank you! 0
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Superb thread! More please!0
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