High Blood Sugar Levels: The Right Amount Of Glucose
In the quest for better health, understanding the relationship between carbohydrate foods and high blood sugar levels is paramount. From fruits and vegetables to whole grains and sugary treats, all these foods eventually break down into simple sugars in the bloodstream. However, what sets them apart is the rate at which this process occurs. We need just the right amount of glucose. The presence of fiber in whole foods plays a vital role in slowing down the absorption of sugar into the bloodstream, ensuring that blood glucose levels remain manageable.
The average American consumes a staggering 140 pounds of refined white sugar each year, with white bread being one of the most commonly eaten foods in the country. This excess sugar intake has become a concerning trend, essentially injecting sugars directly into our bloodstream. As a result, the nation faces an epidemic of diabetes, reaching unprecedented proportions. However, amidst this concern, there is hope. By making conscious dietary choices, is it possible to achieve normal blood sugar levels and safeguard our well-being?
Dietary Modifications Can be Powerful in Managing High Blood Sugar Levels
We need to understand the impact of carbohydrate foods on blood sugar levels and explore the significance of fiber-rich whole foods in regulating glucose absorption. Discover how dietary modifications can be a powerful tool in managing blood sugar levels, and learn valuable insights into maintaining a healthier lifestyle. Join us on this journey of understanding and empowerment, as we uncover practical strategies to promote better health outcomes and combat the diabetes epidemic.
For thousands of years, our ancestors ate foods that slowly released their calories in the process of digestion, to be eventually absorbed into the bloodstream and easily handled by a meager supply of insulin and provided them with a healthier life. However, the modern world has ignored this biological adaptation of our bodies and we consume huge amounts of refined carbohydrates to bring about a rush of easily absorbed sugars into the bloodstream.
The Secret: Manage High Blood Sugar Levels with ‘Time Release’ Foods
30 million Americans are diabetic and another 60 million are prediabetic. Diabetes is one of the more prevalent, lethal, expensive, and easily reversed conditions in America. The vast majority of diabetes is caused by ignoring the basic laws of Nature. Humans need “time release” foods that slowly allow small amounts of carbohydrates to be absorbed into the bloodstream. We are built for activity and get sick when we overeat or develop obesity. 95% of all sugar in the blood is supposed to be burned by the muscles, yet sedentary Americans end up having that sugar linger in the blood until the insulin supply can force the sugar either into storage as glycogen or storage as fat.
We have a nutritional need for a wide assortment of nutrients involved in burning sugar in our cell furnaces, not unlike needing spark plugs in your car to burn the gasoline in your engine. These “spark plugs” that are deficient in our Standard American Diet (SAD) include magnesium, chromium, vanadium, and omega-3 fats from fish and flax oils.
Hunter Gatherer Ancestor Diet
The Hunter-Gatherer Ancestor Diet, also known as the Paleolithic or Paleo diet, is a nutritional approach based on the presumed eating patterns of our ancient ancestors during the Paleolithic era. The idea behind this diet is to mimic the dietary habits of early hunter-gatherer societies before the advent of agriculture and modern food processing.
Most of our hunter-gatherer ancestors ate a diet consisting of about 1/3 lean animal tissue with the remaining 2/3 of the diet unprocessed plant food; mostly vegetables, some grains, some fruit, nuts, seeds and legumes. If the creature runs, flies, or swims, then it may be about 4% body fat, with obvious exceptions including duck and salmon.
A Journey to Improved Health and Well-Being
The primary rationale behind the Hunter-Gatherer Ancestor Diet is the belief that our genetic makeup is better suited to the foods available during the Paleolithic era. Advocates of this diet argue that it can lead to weight loss, improved energy levels, and better overall health by avoiding processed foods and focusing on nutrient-dense whole foods.
Improve your blood sugars naturally
Cows, the staple meat of America, do not run, swim, or fly and are about 30-40% body fat after they have been fattened at the feedlot with hormones, corn meal and the inability to move. The basic diet of our ancestors that will help you control your diabetes is lean and clean protein foods along with complex carbohydrates in their natural state.
Keep in mind that you may have to “fine tune” this paleolithic diet to suit your ethnic background. The macrobiotic diet was developed by a Japanese physician who cured himself of cancer in the 19th century. The macrobiotic diet tends to encourage anything Oriental, even soy sauce and pickles, and discourage anything Western, including chicken, turkey, fish and fruit.
Macrobiotics may be ideally suited for many Orientals, and has helped some Caucasians because it is such a vast improvement over the nutritional quality of the typical American diet. I encourage people to determine the diet of their ancestors 1000 years ago and use that food pattern as a starting point.
Glucose: The Vital Fuel for Your Body’s Energy
Anthropologists (scientists who study the origins of humans) tell us that humans were originally “hunters and gatherers”. Then came the Ice Age, in which vast regions of the earth were covered with ice and the remaining parts of the earth were much colder than normal. This Ice Age, obviously, was not conducive to farming and the availability of lots of plant food. So most of our ancestors, until about 25,000 years ago when the ice began receding to its current position, were meat eaters.
Meanwhile, glucose, which only comes from plant food, is the most essential fuel in the human body. The brain, lens of the eye, lungs, and kidneys must have glucose to operate properly. The brain is so dependent on glucose that it does not even need insulin to get glucose into the cells, which is unusual, since nearly all other body cells require insulin and the Glucose Tolerance Factor (GTF) to enable glucose to slip in through the cell membrane.
Striking the Balance: The Importance of the Right Amount of Glucose
Back to our ancient ancestors. They consumed less carbohydrates and no refined carbs, and what little they consumed had to be quickly shuttled to the cells for fuel, lest the glucose linger in the bloodstream and cause some damage. People who did not eat much plant food, such as those groups from the colder climates in northern Europe, developed an ability to make glucose from the proteins in our diet (called gluconeogenesis).
Glucose is sort of a necessary evil for body cells. If just the right amount of glucose goes straight from the intestinal absorption to the body cells and is burned for fuel, then the person feels great and lives a long and healthy life. If too little glucose is available, then the person feels cranky, depressed, forgetful and listless in the condition called hypoglycemia (low sugar levels in the blood). If an excess of glucose starts accumulating outside of the cell, then “glucotoxicity” begins. Glucotoxicity is a slow but lethal process whereby too much glucose outside of the cells triggers a host of destructive pathways throughout the body.
Navigating High Blood Sugar Levels: The Impact of Technology on Your Health
Once farming began, around 8000 years ago in the Middle East, then our ancestors found the ability to settle down, start cities, and begin the processes of civilization. Then, around 1600 AD, came the refining of wheat in northern Europe. This new technique allowed the wheat miller to strip the outer bran and inner germ from the whole wheat kernel for a fine “Queen’s white” flour.
Around 1700 AD, trade ships would run the triangle of taking African slaves to the Carribean, where the ships would pick up cane sugar, molasses, and rum from the southern plantations and bring these products to Europe. Once refined cane sugar was brought to the masses, the health of millions began to deteriorate rapidly. Enter the dawning of the “diseases of civilization”, especially diabetes.
Blood Sugar Concerns: Prevalence and Impact on Health
Based upon hundreds of scientific studies, Type 2 diabetes is well recognized as a disease that is a consequence of our modern lifestyle:
- obesity
- eat too often, hence fasting becomes essential for us
- too much refined carbohydrates with too little fiber to slow down the absorption of the sugar
- sedentary lifestyle
- too little minerals (like chromium, magnesium, and vanadium) in our diet due to the negligence of agribusiness
- too much fat and the wrong kind of fat in our diet which leads to changes in cell membranes that no longer recognize the role of insulin.
You will learn more about all of these lifestyle factors later. Basically, the bad news is that diabetes is at epidemic proportions and getting worse. The good news is that diabetes is lifestyle induced and lifestyle controlled. How much diabetes will influence your quality and quantity of life will largely depend on you. You are to be congratulated for purchasing this book. You will reap a thousand fold benefits when you begin to implement these recommendations in your daily living.
Addressing the Underlying Cause: Can We Alter Blood Sugar Problems?
As in most areas of life, there are many shades of gray in between optimal health and the end stage brittle diabetic at risk for losing a limb. Diabetes usually creeps up on people, not unlike heart disease and cancer, and can take years or decades to mushroom into a serious problem. That is why it is important to change the underlying causes of the disease while it is still in its early stages.
In the beginning, “Fred” or “Sarah” start out as reasonably healthy teenagers. They get married, start a career, and have children. Life gets complicated and hectic. There is less time for exercise, like the tennis and golf they used to play together; and more reasons to sit on the couch and snack while watching TV—“vegging out”, as we call our American past time.
Sarah and Fred start adding a few pounds to the waistline each year. Overweight gradually turns into obesity, which gradually fades into syndrome X (insulin resistance), which eventually turns into diabetes, which can erode into many health problems.
By age 60, both Fred and Sarah are battling a variety of health problems, including kidney failure, heart disease, Fred’s erectile dysfunction, Sarah’s poor wound healing, and failing vision. Energy and zest for living are a thing of the past.
They are not alone, there are 23 million more Americans like them. As long as you have a pulse, there is hope for reversing diabetes. The sooner you start and the earlier the stage of your disease, the more likely you are to get dramatic results.
Common Causes of High Blood Sugar Levels
High blood sugar levels, also known as hyperglycemia, can occur due to various factors that affect the body’s ability to regulate blood glucose levels effectively. The primary causes of high blood sugars include:
Diabetes
The most common cause of hyperglycemia is diabetes, a chronic condition characterized by high levels of sugar in the blood. In type 1 diabetes, the body does not produce enough insulin, while in type 2 diabetes, the body’s cells become resistant to insulin’s effects, leading to elevated blood sugar levels.
Unhealthy Diet
Consuming a diet high in sugary and refined carbohydrate foods can cause rapid spikes in blood sugar levels. Regular intake of sugary beverages, processed snacks, and high-calorie desserts can contribute to chronic hyperglycemia.
Sedentary Lifestyle
Lack of physical activity can impair the body’s ability to use insulin efficiently, leading to higher blood sugar levels over time.
Stress
During periods of stress, the body releases hormones that can elevate blood sugar levels as part of the “fight or flight” response.
Certain Medications
Some medications, such as steroids and certain antipsychotic drugs, can cause temporary increases in blood sugar levels.
Illness or Infection
When the body is fighting an infection or illness, hormones released in response to the condition can raise blood sugar levels.
Hormonal Imbalances
Certain hormonal disorders, such as Cushing’s syndrome or polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), can contribute to hyperglycemia.
Insulin Resistance
In individuals with insulin resistance, the body’s cells do not respond properly to insulin, leading to increased blood sugar levels.
Lack of Sleep
Chronic sleep deprivation can affect insulin sensitivity and contribute to higher blood sugar levels.
It’s essential to monitor blood sugar levels regularly, especially for individuals with diabetes, and to adopt a balanced diet, engage in regular physical activity, manage stress, and seek medical advice to address any underlying health conditions that may contribute to high blood sugar levels. Early detection and proactive management are vital to preventing complications associated with hyperglycemia.
Patient Profile
D.M. was a colleague of mine at work who had developed fatigue, frequency of urination, and thirst all of which just didn’t seem right. At age 44 and overweight, her doctor diagnosed diabetes. D.M. has just joined the 23 million Americans with diabetes, a disease that has been relatively rare until this century. She ignored her diabetes for a year before she came to me for help. She started a diet, with particular emphasis on the superfoods. She began taking nutrition supplements, including chromium, vanadium, and the herb Gymnema. Within 2 months on this program, she called me one Saturday morning to tell me how much more alive she felt and how her cuts and scratches were healing much quicker.
