Popular Science Book "Eat Less Oil, Eat Better Oil" (Wang Xingguo) Article Selection 4

4 Sugar Burning Mode and Fat Burning Mode

Generally speaking, the order of energy nutrient consumption in the human body is carbohydrates-fat-protein. Protein is generally rarely used for energy, and the body is mainly powered by carbohydrates and fats, so there is a distinction between "sugar burning mode" and "fat burning mode".

The staple foods we usually eat, such as rice, bread, steamed buns, and dumplings, are mainly composed of carbohydrates, which provide our bodies with most of the energy they need for daily life. The human body first consumes carbohydrates as energy. The starch in the food is broken down and converted into glucose that can be absorbed and utilized by the human body, which is absorbed into the blood by the epithelial cells of the small intestine, that is, blood sugar. With the help of insulin, blood sugar enters the cells and is used to maintain the energy needs of cell tissues. If there is a surplus, it will be stored in the liver and muscle cells in the form of glycogen. If there is still a surplus, it will be converted into fat and stored in fat cells. When consuming more sweets and starchy staple foods, the oil eaten almost does not participate in energy supply, that is, it is consumed very little, and most of it will be stored in the body in the form of fat. This way of relying basically on carbohydrates for energy supply is the "sugar burning mode". In this mode, the excess fat accumulated in the body mainly comes from carbohydrates and dietary fat that is not used for energy supply. On the contrary, when starchy staple foods are not consumed enough, blood sugar and insulin levels decrease, and the ability to store glycogen and synthesize sugar into fat is inhibited. If the blood sugar reserve is not enough to complete the normal blood sugar supply, the body will turn to fat for energy, which is the fat burning mode. Therefore, we cannot judge whether to eat or not, eat more or less based solely on the calories contained in food. Under the same calories, changing the ratio between sugar and fat will have a great impact on human function and health.