Food Pairing vs. Glycemic Index

💥 How to use food pairing for blood sugar balance ⬇️⬇️

Food pairing is a way to combine 2 or more foods in a single meal or snack to support a healthy blood sugar response—rather than a quick sugar spike.

If you’ve heard of the glycemic index, the idea is similar but more practical.

Whereas the glycemic index gives an idea of how much a specific food will raise blood glucose levels, some perfectly healthy foods (like grapes and pineapple) have a high glycemic index.

With food pairing, it’s possible to still eat foods with a high glycemic index as long as they are paired with foods that slow their digestion and absorption.

Cool?

Studies show that the blood sugar response to carbohydrate-rich foods can be lowered by combining them with…

⭐ Protein, fat, fiber, or vinegar ⭐

Like this:

🍇 Grapes & Cheese

🥕 Carrots & Hummus

🍏 Apples & Almond Butter

🍅 Tomatoes & Olive Oil & Vinegar

Just remember: when it comes to blood sugar regulation, each person is unique. It’s always best to test and to work with a practitioner on a diet and plan that is specific to you!

🌱 Get started at our practice through the link in our bio!

Reference

Murillo S, Mallol A, Adot A, et al. Culinary strategies to manage glycemic response in people with type 2 diabetes: A narrative review. Front Nutr. 2022;9:1025993. [link]

Breakfast: The Triple Threat?

3 things that impact blood sugar in the morning ⬇️⬇️

If you’re being proactive to maintain healthy blood sugar levels, here’s what you need to know about that morning meal:

1️⃣ Cortisol

The natural circadian rhythm will cause an elevation of cortisol first thing in the morning to help you feel awake and alert. Cortisol is a stress hormone that also increases blood sugar levels. That means your morning meal may result in a higher blood sugar response than meals later in the day.

2️⃣ Carbs

When your stomach is empty, there is nothing to slow the digestion and absorption of carbs. That’s why it’s even more important at this time of day to not eat carbs alone.

3️⃣ Caffeine

Even though black coffee has no sugar, the caffeine triggers the release of the stress chemical, adrenaline. One effect of adrenaline is to trigger the release of glucose from liver cells into the bloodstream, effectively elevating blood sugar levels.

Did any of these surprise you?

Comment with your biggest takeaway ⤵️

Reference

Reis CEG, Dórea JG, da Costa THM. Effects of coffee consumption on glucose metabolism: A systematic review of clinical trials. J Tradit Complement Med. 2018;9(3):184-191. [link]

Sugar Crash—Explained 😮

👀 Pause the scroll and spend a minute with me…

Ready for a crash course in exactly what happens at the cellular level when you eat too much sugar at once?

(let’s say—a big gulp slushie 🥤)

When the sugar hits your digestive tract, it’s absorbed into your bloodstream as glucose (aka blood sugar)...

…which signals beta cells in your pancreas to release insulin (a hormone) into the blood as well.

⚠️ Remember this: because we’re dealing with a slushie here, a large spike in blood sugar triggers a large spike in insulin.

Insulin facilitates the movement of glucose into cells so it can be used as energy 👏👏

Sounds great EXCEPT…

Because of the sudden nature and magnitude of the sugar spike and insulin spike, glucose is quickly moved into cells and blood sugar drops dramatically (the CRASH 🫨)

Cue hunger, cravings, shakiness, brain fog, anxiety, you-name-it.

👉 The point is that our bodies were not made to deal with excessive sugar intake.

If repeated day in and day out, eating high amounts of sugar or refined carbs without healthy fats, fiber, and protein…

…is the main cause of insulin resistance.

If you’re still with me, like ❤️this post and follow 🚶‍♀️for my upcoming posts on how to keep a healthy blood sugar balance.