A persistent high intake of processed carbohydrate-dense foods (high glycemic load) resulting in repeatedly high release of insulin and leptin seems to readily make cells less responsive to both of these crucial hormones (perhaps especially in combination with high intake of saturated fat/trans fatty acids and sedentary living).
This type of negative feedback is ubiquitous in any biological system, all of which depend on appropriate hormonal regulation for survival and proper function. However, certain cell types appear to more readily become resistant to the effects of certain hormones (e.g. insulin, leptin) than others; certain fat cells (e.g. abdominal subcutaneous fat) may respond well to the fat-storing signal of insulin while other cells fail to properly receive/transduce the signal meant to induce important cellular and systemic effects.
Why certain cells develop resistance to certain signalling molecules remains unclear, but it seems plausible that hormone resistance serves to protect cells from excess circulating amounts of the given hormone. Anologous to the way modern man-made pollution may potentially overwhelm the environment's ability to maintain homeostasis, the recent explosive introduction of high Glycemic Index- and processed foods into the human diet may potentially overwhelm the body's ability to maintain homeostasis and health (as evidenced by, for example, the obesity epidemic).
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