Kimism #2All Sugars Are NOT Created “Equal”

The “Excitotoxicating” Facts You Didn’t Know

Kimberli Zecchin, BSN, MSN, CRNA

Prior to 1940 there Was No such thing as a

Cardiologist

By 1950 there were 500, today there are 35,000

Angina was first reported in 1929

What Has Driven the Eruption of Cardiovascular Disease…?

History of Sugar Consumption

In 1700, Sugar was very expensive and reserved for the Wealthy, the Average person Consumed about 4 pds of

Sugar/yr

By 1800 we consumed about 18 pds/yr as Sugar Plantations began to emerge

In 1900, individual consumption had risen to 90 pds of Sugar/yr

And by 2009, more than 50% of all Americans consume ½ Pound of Sugar PER DAY~that equals to a WHOPPING

180 Pounds of Sugar per Year!!

56 Gallons Annually

The Number 1 source of Calories in America is …

In 1948, Proctor & Gamble,

Paid the American Heart Association1.7 million dollars

To say that Vegetable based fats were safer thanAnimal fats

The Sugar Revolution~Changes in our

Cardiovascular Health

In the 1970’s, Dietary Fats were blamed for Heart Disease,

Giving rise to the “Low Fat Craze”

1982, the AHA, the AMA and the USDA reduced FatsFrom 40% to 30%

People complied thinking they wereLowering their risk of both Obesity and Heart Disease

So the Fat came out, and the Sugar went in….

…And the rates of Heart Disease, Obesity and Diabetes Skyrocketed…

Today, 55% of Sweeteners used in the food and beverage manufacturing are made from

10,673%This has been a Multi-Billion Boon for the Corn Industry

All Sugars Are Not Created

“Equal”Dextrose, Fructose, and Glucose are all

Monosaccharide's, known as Simple Sugars

The Primary Difference in them is HOW they are Metabolized

The Simple Sugars can combine into more Complex Sugars, like the Disaccharide Sucrose-which is 1/2

Glucose and 1/2 Fructose (Table Sugar)

All Sugars Are NOT Created

“Equal”

Glucose is the form of energy you were designed to run on

Every cell in your body, Every bacterium, and in fact, Every living thing on earth uses Glucose for energy

Fructose is NOT the same molecule as Glucose

A century ago we received our Fructose from Fruits and

Vegetables, about 15 grams/day

Today we consume about 73 grams, but mostly from sweetened drinks and processed foods

HFCS contains the Same two sugars as Sucrose but is More Metabolically risky to you, d/t its Chemical Form

The Fructose and the Glucose are Not Bound TogetherIn HFCS, as they are in Table Sugar, so your body doesn’t

have to break it down

Therefore, the Fructose is absorbed Immediately, going straight to your Liver

Lets closer at these Sugars…..

Glucose (Dextrose)

MetabolismWhen you consume Glucose, 80% is used Immediately, as

Energy, by all the organs and cells of your body

The remaining 20% goes to your liver to be metabolized & stored in the form of Glycogen, the short term energy

storage

A Small amount of Pyruvate is produced in the process which is converted to ATP

An even Smaller amount of Citrate is produced which is converted into VLDLs

Insulin is released from your Pancreas in response to the rise in blood sugar and moves glucose into your

cells

~

*So, When you consume 120 calories of Glucose, less than 1 Calorie contributes to

Adverse Metabolic Outcomes*

Glucose (Dextrose) Metabolism

Fructose Metabolism

100% of Fructose goes to your Liver to be Metabolized

“Hepatotoxin” ~ It overloads the liver

Fructose is immediately converted to fructose-1-phosphate (F1P), which depletes your liver of

phosphates

The waste products then produce Uric Acid

Uric acid Blocks an enzyme that makes NITRIC OXIDE…

This leads to Inflammation and Hypertension

Gout and Kidney Disease,

Preeclampsia and Fibromyalgia

Fructose of the ONLY SUGAR that Raises Uric Acid Levels…

…And its does so within MINUTES of Ingestion

Almost ALL of the F1P is turned into Pyruvate, then Citrate. This results in Increased Production of

FFAs, VLDLs and Triglycerides“Hyperlipidemia”

Fructose is THE carbohydrate that is MOST EFFICIENTLY converted into g-3-p which is needed

to convert FFAs into Triglycerides,

Hyperlipidemiaand Deposit Fat in Fat cells- Obesity

FFAs are exported from the liver and taken up in skeletal muscle causing Skeletal Muscle Insulin

Resistance

Some of the FFAs stay in the liver leading to Hepatic Insulin Resistance and Nonalcoholic Fatty

Liver

Insulin Resistance stresses the pancreas which pumps out more Insulin in response to rising BS, this leads to

Type II Diabetes

Classic Metabolic SyndromeHypertensionLipogenesisDyslipidemia

ObesityInflammation

Insulin ResistanceCentral Nervous System Leptin Resistance

Consuming 120 calories of Fructose results in 40 Calories being stored as FAT

So, consuming Fructose IS Consuming FAT

A HFCS diet is REALLY a HIGH FAT DIET

Although Dietary Fat raises your Large, Buoyant LDLs-the Harmless Ones

Dietary Sugar Raises you Small, Dense LDLs, VLDLs and Triglycerides ~ the ones that Correlate with

Heart Disease

FYI

Ethanol Metabolizes in the Exact Same Way

As Fructose

“Eat Less, Exercise More”

Debunked“Eat Pasta, DON’T Run Fasta”

You DON’T get Fat because you eat Too Many Calories and Don’t

Exercise enough, you Get Fat because you Eat the Wrong Calories

The Same Amount of Calories from Fructose will have A different effect than the same amount of calories from

Glucose, Fat or Protein

So, Fructose Causes Obesity Not by Calories but by turning on the Fat Switch and producing Lipids

The list of Sugar’s Effects is Long

At least 76 different health effects have been noted

Too numerous to be listed today…

Inside All cells is a processing center for Sugar

Hexokinase Receptors-XK2

Cancer cells have Far More of these receptors than normal cells

Eating Sugar is like feeding the Hungry Dog~when Sugar spikes the Hungry Dog steals ALL the Sugar from

the Not so Hungry Dog

Sugar, Cancer & the Immune System

The body also wants to get the sugar Out of the blood So it Increases the number of receptors on the cell walls

Cancer cells have 15-16X the number of Insulin receptors as a

Regular cell

And for the first time we are seeing that Sugar is an Oncogene-it actually CREATES cancer cells

So, Sugar is NOT just a substance that Feeds Cancer,But it can actually CAUSE Cancer

Sugar affects the Immune System in this way:

Vitamin C and Sugar vie for the Same Receptors onThe WBC

Unfortunately, these receptors, even on the WBC, have a

Greater affinity for Sugar than they do for Vitamin CThereby leaving the WBC unable to get enough

Vitamin C to be able to do their job

We can measure how well a WBC can kill…Phagocytic Index

A BS of 120 actually reduces your Phagocytic Index by 75%

Eat a bowl of cereal in the morning and your BS remainsAbove 120 for 3-4 hours…then add lunch…dinner…

Most people end up spending at least 16 hours of their dayWith an Impaired Immune System

Sugar and Free Radicals

Sugars are a Major Source ofFree Radical production

This can lead to Cardiovascular Disease,Insulin Resistance

and Alzheimer's DementiaTo name a few

Neurochemistry of Gluttony

Eating is a result of the activation of the Hedonic (Reward) Pathway in your brain

The pathway responds to chemical messengers not only in food but to Nicotine, Morphine, Ethanol, Sex and

Exercise

Leptin and Insulin are modulators of these reward responses,

Decreasing this centers activity and telling you to STOP Eating

However, Fructose Does Not stimulate Leptin rise ~ Satiety Signals Drop~Eat More

Ghrelin (the hormone that makes you want More food), is

Suppressed by Glucose, but NOT by FRUCTOSE ~ Satiety Signals Drop~Eat More

By raising triglycerides, Fructose Reduces the amount of Leptin crossing the BBB

~ Satiety Signals Drop~and Even More

~ Pleasure Centers Are NOT Extinguished ~

NET RESULT of FRUCTOSE ~ HUNGER, GLUTTONY,

OVER CONSUMPTION OF FOOD

Is There Such Thing As Sugar

Addiction?

Sugar stimulates Dopamine, which drives Reward

Dopamine rapidly down-regulates its receptors so the next time around you need More sugar to generate More dopamineTo generate Less reward…you want More and More of your fix

but Never achieve the same ”High" you once had. And so, cravings grow stronger…

…AND Fructose is about 20% Sweeter than conventional table sugar…CONTINUE TO CRAVE

EVEN MORE SUGAR

Your brain becomes Addicted to Stimulating the release of its own Opioids, as it would to Morphine or Heroin

Oreo Cookies appear to be just as Addictive As Cocaine or Morphine,

Activating More Neurons in the Brain’s Pleasure Center than Illicit Drugs

4 Grams = 16 Calories =

Just for the Record…

Lets Compare…

One Donut =

10 grams of Sugar

6 Doughnuts (64 gms of Sugar-16 tsp)

Starbucks Caramel Frappuccino

4.5 Doughnuts (45 gms of Sugar-11 tsp)

California Pizza Kitchen Thai Chicken Salad

3 Doughnuts (28 gms of Sugar-7 tsp)

Stonyfield Fat Free Blackberry Blend Yogurt

2 Doughnuts (21 gms of Sugar-5.25 tsp)

Nutella Spread, 2 TBLS

A Word About Other Sugars

Agave Nectar-falsely advertised as “Natural”, it is Highly processed and is usually about 80% Fructose-

AVOID

Honey-Natural, But is also 53% Fructose

Stevia-a Natural sweet herb from the leaf of the South African Stevia plant, and the best substitute for

sugarHowever, AVOID TRUVIA as it is a Chemically processedForm of Stevia… and We Know about processed foods

It’s Sucrose Too!!

1/2 Glucose and 1/2 Fructose

Cane Sugar

Thank Goodness for Artificial Sweeteners…

…Or Is IT!!!

The Brain

This 3lb organ Consumes 20% of the Body’s Oxygen,

25% of the Body’s Glucose for Energy, ~ makes up only 2% of the Body’s Weight

The Majority of this Energy is spent Supporting ImpulseGeneration and Transmission

The Brain

Neurotransmitters are made up of Amino Acids, and can be either

Excitatory or Inhibitory

Glutamate and Aspartate are two of the Most CommonNeurotransmitters in the brain. Their role is Excitatory,

And causes the brain to be Stimulated in much the same wayThat Cocaine does

In the Brain, Glutamate receptors are found mostly on the N-Methyl-D-Aspartate (NMDA) Receptors

The Transmitter Binds to the receptor and causes the pores to Open and Calcium to Pour In to the cell, Eliciting a Response

Proper Mg+ levels are necessary to help shut the Ca+ channel.Then Large Amounts of ATP are needed to help pump the Ca+

Back Out of the cell

Since even Small Fluctuations of the concentrationsOf Critical Nutrients Can result in

Dramatic Disruptions of brain function, it is equipped with a Blood Brain Barrier (BBB)

However, the BBB is NOT perfect-it often is Malfunctioning in

some partsOf the brain, or Absent all together

Are Neurotransmitters that when their levels are NOT

Regulated Properly can Excite the Nerves to DeathCause an imbalance in the inflow of Calcium, which leads to

Activation of a complex Inflammatory Cascade, release ofInflammatory Mediators (Cytokines, Massive

Production of Free Radicals and Lipid Peroxidation) and ultimately the Death of the Neuron

“Excitotoxins”

But, as the cellular energy stores (ATP) fall, the Greater the

Excitotoxin Damage

High Intracellular Ca+ leads to Damage ofThe Mitochondria where ATP is produced And Cell

Death

ATP production is reliant on Glucose, but Excitotoxins bind to Insulin Receptors in the Pancreas, causing

Hypoglycemia and Less ATP production. This Prevents the Removal of excess

Excitotoxins from the synapse resulting in Even More Over Excitability, Neurotoxicity and Cell Death

MSG, Glutamic Acid, Glutamine

Aspartate, Aspartame, NutraSweet

OMG, What Are These Glutamate “Excitotoxins”?

Glutamate is the Most Abundant Neurotransmitter in theBrain yet it is Extremely NeuroToxic

The damage occurs when the toxin is Outside the Cell

The Normal ratio of Glutamate Inside : Outside 1,000 : 1

Brain disorders such as Stroke, Trauma, Neurodegenerative Diseases

(Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, MS), Infection,Inflammation, AGE

and Heavy Metal Poisoning result in a Loss of ATP

-these people risk damage to the brain from even Small Exposure to Dietary Excitotoxins

Glutamate and Aspartame also enter the brain when theBBB is broken down due to Constant Every Day

Consumption of these Excitotoxins

Small children who consume Glutamate productsRapidly reach blood levels that are 50x Normal

Learning and Language Difficulties,Behavioral Problems, Depression, Impulsiveness

Violence and Risk Taking

Is made up of Aspartic Acid, Methanol, and Phenylalanine

(gives it the Sweet taste)

In Fruits and Veggies Methanol is bound to PectinWhich allows its elimination,

But In Humans, unbound Methanol is converted to…

Formaldehyde!!!

The Metabolism of Aspartame

Excitotoxins and the Liver

When the Liver is exposed to High Concentrations of Glutamate and Aspartate

It significantly Raises Inflammation, causing MassiveProduction of Free Radicals and Lipid Peroxidation

Systemically

Which only Increases the Damage from Other Toxins such asTrans Fats, Polyunsaturated Fats, and HFCS

Excitotoxic damage to the Liver can lead to Fatty Liver Disease,Metabolic Syndrome, Type 2 Diabetes, Obesity (esp. in kids)

It worsens other disorders such as Hepatitis and AlcoholLiver damage

Glutamate receptors in the Endothelial cells of Arteries cause the production of High Levels of

Free Radicals and Inflammatory Cytokines that persist for long periods of time

This Significantly Raises a persons risk of developingAggressive Atherosclerosis, leading to

Heart Attack or…Inflammation of

The Brain’s blood vessels opens up the BBB…Stroke

Massive influx of theseExcitotoxins after Each Meal

*Cascading Effect of Vascular Disease*

Glutamate/Aspartame is a Cancer

Fertilizer

Receptors for Glutamate and Aspartate are found in Virtually Every Life Form, and Every Tissue and Organ

Oh Yes….Glutamate receptors have been discovered on many typesOf Cancer, including Breast, Prostate, Pancreatic, Colon,

Brain, Squamous Cell and Lung Cancers

Other Effects of Aspartame

Decreases or Worsens Insulin Sensitivity-WORSENS DIABETES

Are implicated in Low T-Cell counts

Increases the Inflammatory Mediators-TNF

Increases the risk of Fibromyalgia, IBS and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

YUP, You Guessed It!!!!

Learning Disorders, Emotional Illness, or other Major Psychological diseases later in life

Autism, Schizophrenia, Seizures and Cerebral Palsy

Remember, Aspartame breaks down to Formaldehyde!!!!

What About the Baby?Excitotoxins and the Developing Brain

Foods and Additives that Increase

InflammationAlso Worsen Excitotoxicity

Omega-6 Oils (PUFA”s-Vegetable Oils)

Trans Fats

Sugars (especially HFCS)

Fluoroaluminum (Drinking Water)

Excess Caffeine

Chlorinated Water

This Damage is Especially Damaging in People With:

Multiple SclerosisStrokes

Head InjuriesAutoimmune Diseases

ADHD and Autism Spectrum DisordersAge-related Memory Loss

Parkinson’sAlzheimer’s

Brain Tumors

Headaches/MigrainesMuscle SpasmsDizziness

SeizuresNausea

NumbnessIrritability Heart PalpitationsTinnitus

VertigoBreathing DifficultiesTachycardiaAnxiety

Panic AttacksMemory LossSlurred SpeechJoint PainsInsomniaVision ProblemsDepressionNon-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Leukemia

Common Side Effects of Aspartame

Glutamate and Aspartame burn out the nucleus in the

brain where Leptin works, Leptin levels start to rise and leads to INFLAMMATION AND WEIGHT GAIN

The Phenylalanine derivative of the Aspartame metabolism stimulates hypoglycemia-leads to

HUNGER**Aspartame Actually shows a Greater

Weight Gain when compared to Sucrose**

Aspartame and Weight Gain

Sucralose is 300-1000x Sweeter than Sugar

Three Chlorine atoms are added to Sucrose with a covalent bond not found in nature-what does Chlorine

do? It Kills Microorganisms

It decreases your normal gut flora by 50%, elevates the pH of your colon, decreases RBC, enlarges kidneys,

causes spontaneous abortions

Headaches, Seizures, DNA damage, Elevated Blood Sugar, Migraines, Cancer, and…

WEIGHT GAIN!!!

Splenda Anyone???

Recommendations

AVOID Sugar, ESPECIALLY High Fructose Corn Syrup

Stevia is a good alternative, as is Dextrose

Fruit in Moderation

AVOID All Processed Foods

AVOID ASPERTAME, GLUTAMATESAnd other artificial Sweeteners

Read Your Labels*Stick to Natural, Raw Foods the way God Originally Intended*

Problems with Modern

Medicine

“I often tell friends that Modern Medicine is like an Idiot Savant, demonstrating Incredible diagnostic Creativity and Technical skill, alongside Severe Limitations of Intelligence-Mainly in the area of Nutritional Support”

~Russell L. Blaylock, MD, Neurosurgeon

ADDITIVES That ALWAYS Contain MSGMonosodium Glutamate

Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein/Hydrolyzed Plant Protein/Hydrolyzed ProteinPlant Protein ExtractSodium CaseinateCalcium Caseinate

Yeast ExtractTextured ProteinAutolyzed Yeast

Hydrolyzed Oat Flour

ADDITIVES That FREQUENTLY Contain MSGMalt Extract

Malt FlavoringBouillon

BrothStock

FlavoringNatural Flavoring

Natural Beef or Chicken FlavoringSeasoning

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