Balancing Blood Sugars
Balancing blood sugar levels is critical to optimum brain function.
Neurons (brain cells) cannot store glucose so they depend on the bloodstream to deliver a constant supply of this critical fuel. This is the energy source that powers the brain, it cannot function without it.
Too much sugar in the form of refined carbohydrates (a sugary snack or soft drink) can quickly raise blood sugar levels, which causes the pancreas to secret insulin. Insulin triggers cells throughout the body to pull the excess glucose out of your bloodstream and store it for later use. Brain cells cannot do this. Brain cells soon become depleted of this precious fuel source, body cells have taken the energy away from your brain cells. This can affect your ability to focus and think, leading to you feeling weak confused and possibly nervous. This ‘spike’ in sugar levels then leads to you needing another ‘fix’ of sugar, a continuous cycle! This repeated cycling of feast and famine can reduce your body’s ability to respond to insulin and could lead to type 2 diabetes.
Tests have shown that low blood sugar levels can lead to deterioration in attention abilities. Frequent blood sugar swings of this nature causes stress to the mind, body and emotions, this stress in turn can raise insulin levels again creating a vicious circle.
The brain needs a constant (even) source of glucose.
Guidelines for carbohydrate intake
The general rules were;
Complex carbohydrates (which tend to be found in natural foods such as fruit, grains and vegetables) are good. They have long chains of sugar molecules that take the liver longer to break down. Their cell walls are made of cellulose fibre that resist digestion this slows down digestion; and subsequent release of sugars into the bloodstream.
Simple carbohydrates (which tend to be found in most processed or refined foods) can be found in some natural foods such as fruit juices and honey have short-chained sugar molecules which break apart quickly. They are not good because they release sugars very rapidly into the bloodstream like a direct injection.
These rules were the main guidelines but some foods cannot be this easily classified.
The only way to effectively control blood sugar levels is by watching your carbohydrate intake and by using ‘fuel sources’ (good carbohydrates) that will release sugars slowly into your bloodstream.
This can be achieved by considering the glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL) of these carbohydrate sources.
GI is a measure of their effect on blood glucose levels, how rapidly they release sugar into the bloodstream.
GL gives a much fuller picture because it considers how rapidly the particular carbohydrate turns into sugar and relatively how much is contained in each serving.
For example a watermelon has a high GI but because there isn’t a lot of it the GL is low, so watermelon can be considered a good source of carbohydrates.
Foods with a GL of less than 10 are good; they release glucose slowly into the bloodstream. These carbohydrate sources should form part of your staple diet.
Foods with a GL from 11 –19 should be eaten in moderation.
Foods with a GL of 20+ should be avoided, these will release sugar very rapidly into the bloodstream and start the ‘cycling’ by causing sugar spikes.
Follow this link to download a basic table that will guide you towards specific food groups or types. Please note many of these figures are averages and they could differ between manufacturers brands or even country of origin. Even so this information is a good guide for basic diet decisions that will assist in the balancing of blood sugars, Click here.
It is also useful to combine protein and fibre in meals because these can slow the passage of carbohydrate into the bloodstream.
For example:
Combine chicken, salmon or tofu with brown basmati rice
Combine wholemeal pasta with kidney beans and pasta sauce
Combine a fruit snack with nuts or seeds
The basics of switching to a diet with a lower glycemic index:
Eating a low GI diet is simply a case of "swapping" i.e. switching from high GI carbohydrates to for low GI carbohydrates. You don't need to count numbers just try to eat the right food types to make sure you are eating a healthy, low GI diet.
For example:
- Use breakfast cereals based on oats, barley and bran
- Use breads with wholegrains, stone-ground flour, sour dough
- Reduce the amount of potatoes you eat
- Enjoy all other types of fruit and vegetables
- Use Basmati, Doongara or Japanese koshihikari rice
- Enjoy pasta, noodles, quinoa
- Eat plenty of salad vegetables with a vinaigrette dressing
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