Hello Reader,

Happy Sunday!

I'm coming to your inbox today with a deeper dive into a hot and yet not well-understood subject of insulin resistance.

When we’re struggling to release excess weight, the fatigue is through the root and we feel like our brain is operating at half capacity it’s easy to blame it on the thyroid.

At the end of the day, these are hallmark thyroid symptoms. But what if I told you that there’s another hormonal imbalance that might be hiding behind your symptoms?

A condition that is an epidemic of our modern times, yet it’s not often talked about.

It leads to stubborn weight gain (particularly in the middle), brain fog, high cortisol, hormonal imbalances and high blood sugar. It can negatively affect your thyroid hormones and contribute to body-wide inflammation.

Let’s talk about Insulin Resistance.

What is insulin resistance and how does it affect your body?

Insulin resistance is a condition where the cells in your body don't respond well to insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas. Insulin's main job is to help regulate your blood sugar levels by allowing sugar (glucose) from the bloodstream to enter your cells, where it's used for energy.

In insulin resistance, your cells become less sensitive to insulin signals, so they don't take up glucose from the blood as efficiently as they should. This means that even though your pancreas may produce more insulin to try to compensate, the sugar levels in your blood remain higher than normal leading to increased fat storage, particularly around the abdomen (visceral fat).

In addition to that, insulin resistance can disrupt the balance of hunger-regulating hormones such as leptin and ghrelin, leading to increased appetite and cravings, particularly for high-carbohydrate and sugary foods. This vicious cycle of insulin resistance, weight gain, and dysregulated hunger hormones further exacerbates the condition, making weight management challenging.

But it’s not just about the weight. Unmanaged insulin resistance can have some very serious consequences, and as a key part of the metabolic syndrome can lead to type two diabetes and heart disease.

How does insulin resistance develop?

There are many factors that contribute to impaired insulin sensitivity: genetic predisposition, obesity, inactive lifestyle, high carbohydrate consumption, poor diet, poor sleep quality, chronic inflammation (also autoimmune inflammation, hormonal imbalances and yes, you guessed it, your thyroid condition also plays a role!

Insulin resistance is very common amongst hypothyroid patients (also subclinical!!) and there’s a good reason for that. Thyroid hormones T3 and T4 maintain a fine balance of glucose homeostasis by acting as insulin agonistic and antagonistic. Hypothyroidism can break this equilibrium and alter glucose metabolism, which can lead to insulin resistance.

Insulin sensitivity affects thyroid hormones

Elevated insulin levels, a hallmark of insulin resistance, can inhibit the conversion of thyroxine (T4) to its active form, triiodothyronine (T3), impairing thyroid hormone activity. This disruption can lead to hypothyroidism symptoms such as fatigue, weight gain, and sluggish metabolism.

Insulin resistance often co-exists with autoimmune thyroid disorders such as Hashimoto's thyroiditis (behind 90% of thyroid conditions). Chronic inflammation resulting from insulin resistance can exacerbate autoimmune thyroid conditions, contributing to thyroid dysfunction and exacerbating symptoms.

Connection with other hormones

High insulin has a close relationship with cortisol (the main stress hormone produced by our adrenals), with cortisol spikes leading to an increase in insulin. this in turn can lead to an increase of androgen hormones, making insulin resistance worse. High insulin/ cortisol has been associated with polycystic ovary syndrome and androgenic hair loss.

What can you do to address it?

The most common advice I see is to lose weight but I don’t think that’s very helpful as one of the key symptoms of insulin resistance is the inability to lose weight despite the efforts. To address insulin resistance, lose weight and see improvements in other symptoms we should focus on the three main areas: blood sugar regulation and preventing glucose spikes, achieving metabolic flexibility so our body can use either glucose or fat for fuel and nervous system regulation to optimise our cortisol levels and get out of the fight or flight.

Here’s how you can begin this process:

1. Switch to a low-carb diet, with an increased intake of quality protein and healthy fats. It's important to do it in accordance with your cycle (I will be teaching smart macros optimisation inside of UNDIET)!
2. Consider introducing strategic fasting - this is an amazing tool for improving your metabolic flexibility but please make sure you do it safely, ideally with professional guidance (this will be one of the areas we will focus on in UNDIET)
3. Introduce a movement routine that supports your metabolic health. Walking can be one of the most effective daily habits to support your glucose uptake, followed by strength training (start with bodyweight exercises like squats, sit-ups a couple of times a week and build on that) and a restorative form of yoga or other somatic practice to further support your nervous system and a balanced cortisol production.

These are great starting points, but it's important to recognise that optimising your insulin AND your weight requires a little more holistic approach, regulating your nervous system (high cortisol), balancing your hormones (leptin, thyroid, oestrogen) and working on your relationship with food.

And if you're reading this thinking, it all makes sense Aggie, but how do I fix it ALL?

Well, I have a solution for you that will not only help you balance your hormones for sustainable weight loss but also guide you to restore a healthy, loving relationship with food and body.

It's time to UNDIET with me Reader.

UNDIET is my brand new 7-week LIVE course, in which I will teach you all I know about sustainable weight optimisation, resetting your metabolism and ultimately finding your own food freedom.

​CLICK HERE to be added to the waiting list (you will be added automatically when you click on the link and receive a confirmation email). The waiting list PRESALE (50% OFF) opens on Wednesday next week!

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Chat soon!

Aggie x

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Aggie McCabe

Your Thyroid Nutritionist & Mind-Body Coach

www.aggiemccabe.com

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