While you may associate insulin and blood sugar monitoring with people who have diabetes, about 80 percent of non-diabetics experience high glucose spikes which can cause issues like accelerated aging, hormonal imbalances, and cravings.
Managing your blood sugar is a great way to keep your hormones in check, especially if you’re just starting out. It can help prevent overeating or feeling a crash after big holiday dinners. These are great tools to use every day but can be especially useful this time of year when our social gatherings start to focus on sweet treats and more decadent meals. Here are some helpful tricks to keeping your blood sugar balanced.
Exercise Regularly
When we exercise our muscles absorb stored carbohydrates and sugar, lowering our glucose levels. Sticking to a regular workout routine or even just taking a walk before or after your meals can do wonders for hormone balance.
Stay Hydrated
Less water means your blood sugar is more concentrated. We suggest drinking half of your body weight in ounces as your daily hydration goal.
Add Vinegar
Consuming vinegar before meals has been shown to have a glucose-lowering effect. It slows the speed at which simple sugars are absorbed and stimulates the uptake of glucose into muscle tissue, which helps keep sugars out of the bloodstream. Taking pure vinegar can be rough on the digestive system so mix one tablespoon of vinegar with water or start with a salad tossed with a vinegar based dressing.
Don’t Forget Fiber
Fiber won’t cause a spike in your blood sugar because the body doesn’t absorb it the same way as other carbohydrates. It also makes you feel full so it slows down the consumption of excess calories, which can also cause a glucose spike.
Don’t Eat Sugar on an Empty Stomach
When we eat sugar on an empty stomach it can max our glucose levels. Biochemist and author Jessie Inchauspé discusses the importance of glucose optimization in her book “Glucose Revolution.” She suggests eating meals in this order: vegetables, fats and proteins, then starches and sugars. The fiber from the vegetables reduces our glucose absorption. Fats and proteins slow down the digestive process. This sets the body up to consume the most glucose dense part of the meal with less of a spike.
Take Probiotics
Studies have shown taking a probiotic can lower fasting glucose levels. Blu Spore can be incorporated into your probiotic rotation to promote a healthy and balanced microbiome.
Try Magnesium
Magnesium plays an important role in converting food to energy to fuel for our cells. It helps reduce fasting blood glucose and insulin resistance which makes magnesium extremely useful in managing your post-meal blood sugar levels. Blu Mag is an excellent supplement to have on hand and may be an extra helpful team player for your holiday supplement routine.
Get Quality Sleep
The quality of our sleep has an effect on our cortisol levels, insulin resistance, and inflammation which all contribute to our glucose levels. Getting a good night’s rest can set you up for success. If you need a little extra help, our Deep Blu Sleep is our favorite supplement for sweet dreams. This natural blend contains L-theanine, lemon balm, and passion flower extract along with a small amount of melatonin to help you fall asleep and stay asleep. Better sleep helps to curb carb cravings as well.
