Week 4

Question 1

What is the main problem with the paleo diet?

Answer 1

Basically none of the foods we used to eat are the same now - a lot of food now is overly processed

Question 2

When we say food is “processed”, what is the main problem with that?

Answer 2

They have removed a lot of the fiber

Question 3

What is insoluble fiber and what does it do?

Answer 3

The bulk of your stool - promotes motility of the gut

Question 4

What does soluble fiber do?

Answer 4

Slows the passing of your food through the GI

Question 5

How does soluble fiber affect blood sugar?

Answer 5

Because food is passing through the GI more slowly when soluble fiber is high, sugar is taken out of food and into the blood slower, so it lowers the overall glycemic load of your meal and your tissues are not overloaded with sugar

Question 6

Insoluble fiber is found largely in…

Answer 6

Whole grains

Question 7

Why are refined carbohydrates associated with chronic disease?

Answer 7

They have low fiber and high glycemic load

Question 8

Why is sucrose a “dangerous” sugar for the body?

Answer 8

Glucose homeostasis is regulated by insulin, but fructose is not = can overload the body with sugars

Question 9

What organ converts fructose to glucose?

Answer 9

The liver (giving it yet another job to do!)

Question 10

If fruit is high in fructose, why isn’t it as bad for you?

Answer 10

It is paired with dietary fiber, so your body has time to process the sugars without overloading the tissues

Question 11

Unsaturated fats are (healthy/unhealthy)

Answer 11

Healthy

Question 12

Which kind of fat is most heavily associated with chronic disease?

Answer 12

Trans fats

Question 13

Trans fats are transported by…

Answer 13

LDL and VLDL

Question 14

Of two groups of Hadza in Tanzania, which were healthier: the kids who foraged or the kids who foraged sometimes and ate agricultural foods? Why?

Answer 14

The agricultural group was healthier because they had access to more consistent calories

Question 15

How does exercise reduce chronic disease risk?

Answer 15

Reduces oxidative stress and maintains insulin homeostasis: when you exercise you take more sugar out of your blood (helps insulin homeostasis, fewer ROS produced)

Question 16

When your muscles don’t contract much, what happens to your blood?

Answer 16

Buildup of fatty acids and glucose

Question 17

How does history of physical activity impact adult health?

Answer 17

People who were more physically active in their youth were less prone to heart attacks even if they were sedentary in their adult life (their tissues are less damaged at the same age as someone their age and sedentary who has always been sedentary)

Question 18

Physical activity reduces diabetes risk by (%age)

Answer 18

50%

Question 19

Exercise causes this response in tissues even after exercise is over…

Answer 19

Tissues become more responsive to insulin

Question 20

Sleep deprivation disrupts the body’s ability to…

Answer 20

Clear glucose from the blood

Question 21

Smoking alters concentrations of (2) in the blood

Answer 21

Cholesterol and triglycerides

Question 22

Why is visceral fat more dangerous than subcutaneous fat?

Answer 22

Visceral fat secretes cytokines (inflammatory proteins) and can also dump fat into the portal system blood vessels

Question 23

The “perfect recipe” for chronic disease in adulthood is…

Answer 23

Early exposure to poverty and affluence in adulthood

Question 24

Who is responsible for the theory of DOHaD?

Answer 24

David Barker

Question 25

DOHaD briefly describes…

Answer 25

Insufficient energy availability (poverty) shifts your physiology which makes you more at risk for chronic disease in early life

Question 26

If a baby is born small, what are 2 possible explanations for this?

Answer 26

Either the mother’s energy stores were depleted in pregnancy, or there was some issue in the placenta where the energy was not getting translated properly to the baby

Question 27

If energy is limited, will the energy go to the baby or the placenta?

Answer 27

Often, the energy will go to the placenta, which has to make amino acids and other nutrients for the baby

Question 28

What are 3 possible factors which affect the placenta’s ability to do its job?

Answer 28

SA of the placenta
Implantation
# of lobes (1 is typical, but can have 2)

Question 29

If a placenta is big, this is an indication of this kind of growth

Answer 29

Compensatory growth: nutrients are not necessarily getting to the baby, so the placenta grows big to try to make up for this. Often results in low birth weight

Question 30

During the dutch hunger winter in WW2, which groups of babies were most affected? Why?

Answer 30

Babies who experienced the hunger in mid to late pregnancy

Mothers are able to buffer famines, but kids in later pregnancy were not able to be buffered because the mom ran out of stores at the end of her pregnancy