Carbohydrates and the Isagenix System: What You Need To Know!

It’s no secret that many Americans are overconsuming carbohydrates — chiefly in the form of simple sugars — but studies have shown that Isagenix products can help control carbohydrate and sugar intake leading to weight loss.

Generally, Americans consume a significant number of calories as outlined in the figure below. Not surprisingly, this is the main reason that obesity is alarmingly prevalent in the United States population.

In fact, data from the Centers of Disease Control show that two-thirds of all adults and nearly one-third of all children and youth in the United States are either overweight or obese (1). While much of the overconsumption of calories is driven by dietary fat, Americans are also eating a large portion of carbohydrates.

Although carbohydrates aren’t necessarily bad, consuming too much can be problematic. This is especially true for sugar, a simple carbohydrate.

We consume sugar mostly in the form of ultra-processed foods and beverages such as sodas, pastries, and candy. According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), sugar intake in adult males and females is approximately 110 grams per day (2). On average, adults in the United States consume 14.6 percent of energy from added sugars (3).

Carb Intake Decreases With Isagenix

In a clinical study, principal investigator Paul Arciero, Ph.D., found that both men and women on an Isagenix System cut their carbohydrate by at least half.

Arciero sought to evaluate weight loss in both overweight men and women from an Isagenix System over 12 weeks (4). At baseline, the participants were consuming, on average, approximately 2,700 calories of which 309 grams came from carbohydrate. Of this carbohydrate amount, 114 grams came from sugar — close to the national average.

Over the course of the four months, the participants performed six Shake Days and one Cleanse Day per week. Specifically, on Shake Days, subjects replaced two meals per day with an IsaLean® Shake, had a 150-calorie snack (men only), one IsaLean Bar, and ate a whole-food dinner between 450 and 600 calories. As part of Cleanse Days, subjects drank the botanical drink Cleanse for Life® along with plenty of water throughout the day, had up to six Isagenix Snacks wafers, and consumed up to one other 100- or 200-calorie snack.

After following the intervention and as compared to their initial diet intake, participants reduced their carbohydrate and sugar intake by half (see figure below)!

In addition to this dietary change, participants lost an average of 10% of their total body weight, nearly 20% body fat, and 33% of their visceral fat. They also increased their proportion of lean body mass (9%) and had significantly improved cardiovascular health with improvements in arterial flexibility (11%).

In summary, when used as part of a system combining Shake Days and Cleanse Days, Isagenix products drastically reduce carbohydrate and sugar intake as compared to the standard American diet.

References

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Adult Obesity Facts. https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html. Updated August 13, 2018. Accessed May 21, 2019.
2. United States Department of Agriculture. Food Surveys Research Group; WWEIA Data Tables. https://www.ars.usda.gov/northeast-area/beltsville-md-bhnrc/beltsville-human-nutrition-research-center/food-surveys-research-group/docs/wweia-data-tables/. Updated July 31, 2018. Accessed May 16, 2019.
3. Fitch C, Keim KS; Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: use of nutritive and nonnutritive sweeteners. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2012 May;112(5):739-58.
4. Arciero PJ, Edmonds R, He F, et al. Protein-Pacing Caloric-Restriction Enhances Body Composition Similarly in Obese Men and Women during Weight Loss and Sustains Efficacy during Long-Term Weight Maintenance. Nutrients. 2016 Jul 30;8(8). pii: E476.

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