For someone whose research career briefly hit the doldrums after emergent DNA science failed to answer her burning questions, Jessie Inchauspé's enthusiasm bounced back on a surprisingly simple concept: eat your veges first.
The advice that everyone's great-grandmother might have doled out is hardly the holy grail the young biochemist had set out to find to elucidate the human condition. But her research on the effect of eating patterns has brought promising new insights into how to manage a range of deadly conditions, notably obesity and diabetes, from their ground zero: blood sugar, or glucose.
Inspired by her own experience using a personal blood sugar monitor, she has aggregated recent clinical trials into strategies for controlling blood glucose spikes - known to be one of the golden keys to controlling obesity, diabetes, and other metabolic disorders. Her book, Glucose Revolution, posits a three-step order-of-eating system: in simple terms, vegetables first, then proteins, and carbohydrates last.
Inchauspé had been working for a medico-science research company in Silicon Valley when, as an incidental staff benefit, her employers decided to test a then-novel bit of kit: a digital monitor that tracked glucose via a tiny filament inserted in the arm. Having spiralled through the customary range of eating styles typical of her then twentysomething age group - from strict vegan to keto to what-the-hell junk food - she became fascinated by how different foods affected her blood sugar.
She noticed her better energy and mood levels coincided with prolonged periods of stable glucose. Then she twigged that the order in which she ate certain food groups could have a dramatic effect on that glucose stability.
Denne historien er fra June 11 - 17, 2022-utgaven av New Zealand Listener.
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Denne historien er fra June 11 - 17, 2022-utgaven av New Zealand Listener.
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First-world problem
Harrowing tales of migrants attempting to enter the US highlight the political failure to fully tackle the problem.
Applying intelligence to AI
I call it the 'Terminator Effect', based on the premise that thinking machines took over the world.
Nazism rears its head
Smirky Höcke, with his penchant for waving with a suspiciously straight elbow and an open palm, won't get to be boss of either state.
Staying ahead of the game
Will the brave new world of bipartisanship that seems to be on offer with an Infrastructure Commission come to fruition?
Grasping the nettle
Broccoli is horrible. It smells, when being cooked, like cat pee.
Hangry? Eat breakfast
People who don't break their fast first thing in the morning report the least life satisfaction.
Chemical reaction
Nitrates in processed meats are well known to cause harm, but consumed from plant sources, their effect is quite different.
Me and my guitar
Australian guitarist Karin Schaupp sticks to the familiar for her Dunedin concerts.
Time is on my side
Age does not weary some of our much-loved musicians but what keeps them on the road?
The kids are not alright
Nuanced account details how China's blessed generation has been replaced by one consumed by fear and hopelessness.