Do You Have The Sugar Blues?

Insulin:  The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Insulin is such a necessary evil.  Without this hormone our bodies would not be able to harvest energy from the food we eat.  Following the ingestion of carbohydrates and subsequent breakdown to glucose, insulin is secreted from the pancreas, acting as a signal to remove this sugar from the blood and transport it to cells where it can be used to make energy.  Glucose that is not used immediately for energy can be stored in the liver in the form of glycogen.  However, there is a limit to the amount of glucose that can be stored in the liver.  This limit is about 2,000 calories (500g).  Any glucose above this amount is converted to fat and unlike liver cells, fat cells have an infinite storage capacity.  On the other hand, if glucose has been depleted from the blood the pancreas will secrete a different hormone called glucagon that tells the liver to release glucose from glycogen. If your glycogen stores are completely tapped your body can make glucose through a process called gluconeogenesis.

This whole process of depleting glucose from the blood and then replenishing it is exhausting!  Typically, instead of waiting for the body to restore glucose on its own we demand instant gratification by simply eating more food.  The foods that we crave during moments of fatigue tend to be those with a high glycemic index which are carbohydrate-rich foods that rapidly increase blood glucose and subsequent insulin levels. Eating carbohydrates will provide us with the energy we seek but we also pay a metabolic penalty for being impatient.  By not allowing insulin levels to dissipate completely before the next meal we will continue to store fat. 

This particular habit of never allowing insulin levels to drop is a primary contributor to the many symptoms of metabolic disease:  obesity, elevated blood sugar, elevated lipids, cardiovascular disease, etc.  Eventually, we lose our ability to use insulin properly.  The pancreas secretes insulin but it fails to drive energy production.  Instead, insulin becomes a signal for fat storage and ensuing diabetes because the glucose is not removed from the blood as it should be. 

In order to manage our blood sugar levels and body weight we need to give ourselves breaks between meals.  This allows insulin levels to dissipate which, in turn, promotes fat burning.  To do this we must be more attentive to total calorie and carbohydrate consumption.  A healthy diet should emphasize consumption of whole, unprocessed carbohydrates with a low glycemic index.  We should also consume healthy fats and proteins at every meal to promote satiety and to delay gastric emptying so that we stay full for a longer period of time.  This will prevent you from overindulging between meals.  More information on managing blood sugar through diet and nutrition can be found on the Joselin Diabetes center website: https://www.joslin.org/jstore/staying_healthy_with_diabetes_nutrition_and_meal_planning.html