Insulin is a hormone of utmost importance. It is the key that opens the gate to glucose to be used as fuel inside your cells, so you need it to live. It might be compared to the water that keeps the meadows alive and green: in its absence, the grass perishes, but
a gentle rain does not have the same effect as a downpour
Chronic hyperinsulinemia (a sustained high concentration of insulin in the blood) contributes to your cells gradually losing their ability to respond to such key (as well as to exhausing your pancreas, the organ responsible for its synthesis). It is the so-called insulin resistance, the Pandora’s box of chronic diseases, an extremely prevalent but under-diagnosed condition and the gateway to full blown diabetes.
In addition, insulin also acts as a biochemical messenger that carries a message of cell growth and division. So whether your intention is to lose weight or to keep a cancer at bay, you should certainly avoid flooding your blood with insulin tsunamis every 3 hours. And that bowl of cereal at 8:00, that sandwich at 11:00, that lasagna at 14:00, those fries at 17:00 and those pints of beer before the pizza at 20:00 are not helping.
The good news is that (unless you have type 1 diabetes) controlling your insulin levels (and avoiding a possible diagnosis of type 2 diabetes in the future) is entirely up to you. The main causes of your pancreas having to work overtime are high glycemic load diets (i.e. those rich in rapidly absorbed carbohydrates, especially sugar and refined flours) and ubiquitous stress. So in order to make sure that your own rain is nourishing instead of devastating, you need to relegate that tempting doughnut to very unique occasions and learn to cope with stress.
Your pancreas will thank you. And your cheerful ‘future you’, I would dare to say, will too.
