SHOW, DON'T TELL

Chemistry class, for me, was a chore. The periodic table resembled an overcrowded eye chart and had even less relevance to my every day life. Memorizing letters and numbers was torture. With a "show, don't tell" learning style, I needed to see what I was expected to learn. The chemistry labs saved me. Foaming test tubes with amber bubbles did more for my understanding of chemistry because I could see - sometimes even feel - what was occurring.

Body chemistry is no different. In fact, it's a "show, don't tell" lesson every day in every human body. And as students of our bodies, we can choose to learn by what we see and feel - or we can wait for the letters and numbers lecture from our doctor. Our choice.

If you observe how you feel at any moment of the day - energetic, tired, irritable - you are actually looking at your body's chemistry. That chemistry dictates how you feel, how you think, how you perform. And, at the core of that chemistry is an ongoing process called blood sugar control.

For me, visualizing blood sugar control helps me understand how my actions affect this process, and thus how I feel. Beginning with my bowl of oatmeal in the morning, my body starts converting those oats into glucose - or sugar - for energy. My cells, including my brain cells, are waiting anxiously for this delivery of energy so they can function. Insulin, a hormone secreted by the pancreas, does the chauffeuring of the glucose. Resembling a city bus, insulin delivers the glucose passengers to their offices - the cells - to begin their work day. If the bus gets overcrowded, the office doors begin to close because the offices are now full. No more cell space. The insulin bus roams the city streets for a bit, but eventually it must deliver the glucose passengers to the unemployment office. These passengers are surplus. Pretty soon, the unemployment office waiting room is full, too. And it stays full. This is the body's version of fat storage. Surplus glucose is stored as body fat.

Oh my. Don't tell me. I see and feel it. I'm tired, my belly is a puffy pillow, and my patience threshold is in the negative numbers. What caused my glucose passengers to proliferate and my cell offices to resist the extra help? It's complicated. And it's simple, too. No, don't point the accusing finger at carbohydrates. Without them, you couldn't lift your finger to point it. You couldn't even think the thought. Carbohydrates, once broken down into glucose, fuel our body like gas fuels a car. Without carbs, we drag, we moan and groan, and our stomachs crave the wallpaper on our walls. We are not happy at all.

So how much is too much? It's complicated. It's chemistry, after all. But it's also simple if you look, listen, and feel. It's about balance, really. When your body is ingesting too many over-processed grains or feeding on sweets, it will show you loud and clear that you aren't listening. Fast and convenient food choices correlate to fast and furious blood sugar spikes and drops. Instead, try less processed carbohydrates like a slice of whole wheat bread, and then combine it with a protein/unsaturated fat like natural peanut butter. Now look, listen, and feel. Better?

Volumes have been written about blood sugar management, all of which are valuable. Distilled, this same information espouses BALANCE. Learn how carbohydrates, proteins, and fats as a team can work wonders for your blood sugar. Together, they can be miracle workers instead of surplus workers that are stored as fat.

Body chemistry is a class that never ends. The final exam comes at the end - literally. But the lessons are the "show, don't tell" type. Every day of your life. Pay attention, and the learning will begin. The lesson isn't on a wall-sized chart; it's in the lab - your body. Now look, listen, and feel. The show is going on right now.