What Causes Insulin Resistance?

Insulin resistance can be genetic. However, there are also acquired causes of insulin resistance. Let's learn more about them: 

1: Excess body fat
Research shows that obesity, particularly excess fat around your waist and organs, is also known as visceral fat. 

Visceral fat increases inflammation in your body, which can contribute to insulin resistance. 

2: Physical inactivity
Physical activity increases your insulin sensitivity and helps you build lean muscle mass, which helps absorb glucose from your blood and keep your blood sugar levels in check.

However, a lack of physical activity can have the opposite effect. Leading a sedentary lifestyle with no to little physical activity can lead to obesity, which can increase insulin resistance. 

3: Diet
Highly processed diets that have a high amount of simple high glycemic carbohydrates and saturated fats get digested very quickly by your body and spike your blood sugar levels. If this eating pattern continues on a extended period of time the increased blood sugar levels have the potential to increase insulin resistance.

The glycemic index (GI) is a standardized scale that ranks foods from 0 to 100 based on how quickly they are digested and absorbed by the body and how they impact blood sugar levels. Foods with a high GI (70 or more) are digested and absorbed quickly, causing blood sugar to spike. Foods with a low GI (55 or less) are digested more slowly, causing a more gradual rise in blood sugar

4: Poor Gut Health- Increased Intestinal Permeability (aka: Leaky Gut)-It is postulated that endotoxin-induced inflammation which results from gut-permeability also contributes to the development of insulin resistance

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