I’ve been working on getting my blood sugar levels down. With mixed results. So I figured that I would look into what my body needs to make insulin. That’s where I found out about leucine and arginine.
Working on the idea that leucine and arginine are the two food things that are well-known stimulators of insulin release, I figured I’d try to eat more foods high in them. I found a paper that suggested that leucine was the hero of the two. I found a random post (a sure sign of quality) that suggested that both may result in higher energy levels during high-intensity training.
From my uneducated reading of stuff, it seems leucine is not made by the body, whereas arginine is. Arginine is, I am told, made by your body from citrulline. In turn, citrulline comes from melons, squashes, cucumbers, and pumpkins.
I had Chat GPT start a table of foods high in leucine and arginine, which I have added to because it missed some. I’m fairly sure this table is accurate but no experts were consulted in its construction.
| Food | Leucine (g) | Arginine (g) | Combined (g) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whey protein (as loved by body builders) | 8.6 to 12 | 18 or 2.1, depending on who you ask | 10.7 to 30 |
| Pumpkin / squash seeds (roasted) | 2.5 | 6.0 | 8.5 |
| Peanuts (roasted) | 2.2 | 3.7 | 5.9 |
| Parmesan cheese | 3.4 | 2.5 | 5.9 |
| Beef (lean cuts) | 2.6 | 2.0 | 4.6 |
| Chicken breast | 2.5 | 1.8 | 4.3 |
| Turkey breast | 2.0 | 2.0 | 4.0 |
| Tuna (lean fish) | 2.0 | 1.5 | 3.5 |
| Pork loin | 2.0 | 1.4 | 3.4 |
| Eggs (whole) | 1.1 | 2.0 | 3.1 |
| Firm tofu (soy) | 1.5 | 2.3 | 3.0 |
| Soybeans (roasted) | 2.1 | 0.9 | 3.0 |
| Spirulina (dried algae) | 1.2 | 1.6 | 2.8 |
| Cottage cheese (low-fat) | 1.3 | 1.0 | 2.3 |
| Lentils (cooked) | 1.1 | 1.0 | 2.1 |
| Chickpeas (cooked) | 1.1 | 0.9 | 2.0 |
| Broad beans (fava, cooked) | 1.0 | 0.9 | 1.9 |
| Almonds | 1.5 | 0.4 | 1.9 |
| Cashews | 1.3 | 0.5 | 1.8 |
| Milk (whole) | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.4 |
| Rice (white, cooked) | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.5 |
My takeaway from this is – eat more salads with meat and dairy. Keep the cucumber in there because it tastes okay and might help.
I will report back when I have some data on how that worked out for me.
