#27 Ketones Raise Insulin ?!? - Optimising Nutrition with Marty Kendall

Marty Kendall (0:00)

If you're not getting protein, amino acids from your food, you'll just keep on eating and eating and eating. I think that's why a lot of people are a lot bigger than they want to be, because especially when it's hyperpalatable, and it's flavored and sugared and engineered to taste like nutrient-dense food, but it really contains no nutrients. The magic happens when you trigger endogenous ketones from your own body and burn your own body fat, and you feel even better. Your exogenous ketones is just another energy source. It's just another source of energy coming into your body that will raise insulin.

Siim Land (0:34)

Welcome to the Body Mind Empowerment Podcast. I'm your host Siim Land, and that's exactly what we're talking about in today's episode.

Our guest is Marty Kendall from Brisbane, Australia. He's a nutritional engineer, and he runs the blog optimisingnutrition.com.

Marty Kendall (0:51)

The keto calories can do no wrong, but...

Siim Land (0:54)

But other than that, let's delve into the world of optimal nutrition, Body Mind Empowerment. Get stronger, faster, smarter, quicker, friendlier, more helpful, more driven. Everything the body needs. Control your mind.

So Marty, welcome to the show.

Marty Kendall (1:15)

A fantastic, real pleasure to be chatting to you from Australia to Estonia.

Siim Land (1:19)

Yeah, the world's a small place thanks to the internet.

Marty Kendall (1:24)

It's amazing.

Siim Land (1:25)

So what led you to starting your blog, Optimising Nutrition?

Marty Kendall (1:30)

Yeah, I'm an engineer by day.

Married my wife Monica who has type 1 diabetes. She's had that since she was 10 So I suppose the last 18 years or so, I've been living with the day to day realities of diabetes and understanding firsthand the influence of insulin and food and the different things that affect her blood sugars and what requires insulin. I suppose a passion from there to understand that better. And also my own personal family history and my own struggles with obesity and just trying to be fit and healthy and not die early like yourself. I mean, what you're doing is amazing and it's fascinating to see such a young age just getting out there and smashing it and learning a whole lot and sharing it. So similar journey to you is real enthusiastic to learn and then what I learned to share online. It's just been an amazing journey over the last three years from there to start and share that.

Siim Land (2:35)

So what lifestyle changes did you make to treat your wise diabetes?

Marty Kendall (2:39)

Yeah, I suppose we came across low carb probably about four years ago and initially, I suppose pregnancy was the thing that really blew us away and going well, how do I...

If we want to get pregnant and have kids, how do we control her insulin and manage her blood sugars because, you know, it's a big deal, complications of diabetic pregnancy, etc. etc. So there was a real motivation to learn through that and then going on from that, we found low carb and then eventually stumbled across the food insulin index, which really helped more accurately predict the types of foods that require insulin and how much insulin. And yeah, did some calculations and shared that online. And it was that three years ago. Just continue to share on the blog and learn from other people and continue to share that learning journey.

Siim Land (3:31)

Yeah, so like your main emphasis on your blog is insulin and ketosis and such. Why is insulin so important?

Marty Kendall (3:39)

Yeah, definitely. Well, especially for someone with type 1 diabetes and so many people today are on that spectrum of somewhere on the spectrum of metabolic disease and insulin resistance.

And for those people that becoming more insulin resistant and the foods that are so prevalent today are full of refined carbohydrates that blow their insulin levels and their blood sugars through the roof. And that then generates basically their roller coaster ride of energy and sugar crashes. And then for someone with diabetes, they need to eat to get out of that low. And it's controlling their appetite. Then it's quite difficult.

And then they make poor food choices that are quite nutrient poor. And then that just spirals on. They end up having a poor quality diet.

Siim Land (4:26)

Like everything you put into your mouth, it kind of affects your whole body's biochemicals.

Marty Kendall (4:30)

Mmm. As I have a sip of coffee.

Siim Land (4:38)

But how do different foods affect insulin?

Marty Kendall (4:42)

Yeah, I mean, that's the crux of the blog. And I came across this food insulin index that have been done probably about, what is that, in the 80s. They did some initial research looking at the insulin response of different foods.