DO YOU SUFFER FROM LOW BLOOD SUGAR?

Many of us can feel unwell if we don’t eat at very specific intervals.

Our blood sugar dips and we might feel hunger, cravings, shakiness, light-headedness or tingling in the hands and feet. This is a common and reversible condition called reactive hypoglycaemia.

If you’re prone to crashes, doctors might suggest you snack every few hours to ensure your glucose doesn’t drop too low. Snacking on highly processed and sweet foods can cause your glucose levels to shoot back up again, triggering the release of insulin. However, this can actually make the problem worse as it can then precipitate another crash.

Usually, when insulin ushers glucose out of the blood after a spike, it does so gradually, bringing glucose levels steadily to a fasting level. But sometimes the pancreas releases too much insulin, which means more glucose is stashed away, and blood sugar levels can crash below normal for a while.

WHY AVOIDING SPIKES MATTERS

Numerous studies show repeated glucose spikes can affect everything from our mood, our sleep, our weight and our skin to the health of our immune system and the risk of heart disease.

Short term, you might notice hunger, cravings, fatigue, more extreme menopause symptoms, migraine, poor sleep and brain fog. In the long-term, see-sawing glucose levels contribute to signs of ageing and to the development of conditions such as acne, eczema, psoriasis, arthritis, Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes and fatty liver disease.

BENEFITS OF CHANGING EATING HABITS TO FLATTEN THE CURVE

Changing the way we eat can avoid spikes and flatten our glucose curve. With smaller spikes, you’ll release less insulin and suffer smaller dips. The body will also learn to not expect starchy and sweet snacks every few hours and, with less insulin around, will start burning fat reserves for fuel.

Glucose spikes lead to hormonal imbalances that can wreak havoc on libido. Add that to the fact that glucose highs and lows also trigger a lack of energy, poor sleep and depressive moods, and you can see why steadying your glucose levels and avoiding the spikes can greatly improve your sex life.

Other factors impact the glucose curves, too. Any one food can create a completely different blood glucose response in different people. This is because the speed at which you convert that food into glucose, and your body’s response to rising glucose levels, might depend on the amount of baseline insulin you have naturally.

This can be affected by your muscle mass (the more muscles you have to draw glucose out of your blood) and also populations of gut microbes (some guts break down food or release chemical messengers more effectively).

It also depends on whether you are well hydrated or dehydrated, how tired or stressed you are (both can trigger the release of stress hormones that affect metabolism), or if you were active.

Studies have even found that if you think you’re about to eat something sugary, your body helpfully sets off various chemical cascades in anticipation, which can trigger a bigger spike than if you weren’t expecting to be offered a biscuit.

If you do give in to a sweet treat, particularly if eating it on an empty stomach, there are ways to reduce the impact on your glucose levels.

Eat a hard-boiled egg, a handful of nuts, a few spoonfuls of 5 per cent fat Greek yoghurt or a head of broccoli before the cake or biscuit. Or use your muscles and move within the next hour. Go for a walk or do some squats.

Your muscles will happily take up excess glucose as it arrives in your bloodstream, and you’ll lessen the glucose spike, reduce the likelihood of weight gain, and avoid an energy slump.

WHAT TO HAVE FOR BREAKFAST

If your breakfast is sweet, then you will be heading towards the biggest spike of the day, followed by a huge surge of insulin which will trigger an energy slump and cravings.

Studies show the effect is worst first thing in the morning, when we have been ‘fasting’ all night and our body is at its most sensitive to glucose. Our stomach is empty, so anything that lands in it will be digested extremely quickly.

Sugary breakfasts – croissants, granola, pastries, sweetened porridge, ‘breakfast’ biscuits, fruit juice, Pop-Tarts, fruit smoothies, acai bowls or banana bread — composed mostly of sugar and starch and contain a lot of glucose – deregulate your glucose levels. Big glucose spikes can impair memory and cognitive function.

The higher the spike, the more intense the crash will be. With a big spike, you will set off a chain reaction of cravings, hunger and lagging energy right through until the evening. That sugary breakfast so badly deregulates your glucose levels that lunch and dinner are also likely to create big spikes.

An ideal breakfast for steady glucose levels contains a good amount of protein, fibre, fat and optional starch and fruit (which would be eaten last).

Choose your breakfast well, and you will feel better throughout the day — with more energy, curbed cravings, a better mood and clearer skin.