For anyone wanting better blood sugar regulation ➡️
While foods have a big effect on blood sugar, so do other lifestyle choices! Here are 5 non-food-related ways to support healthy blood sugar balance:
✅ Daily Movement 🤸♀️
✅ Walks After Meals 🚶♀️
✅ 7+ Hours of Sleep 😴
✅ Plenty of Water 💧
✅ Stress Management 🧘♀️
Nothing happens in isolation.
That’s why we always take a whole-body, whole-person, and whole-life approach to healing.
📲Tag a friend in the comments who might want to hear this!
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 ⤵️
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]
Which comes first?
When you’re stressed, your body produces cortisol and adrenaline. These increase glucose in the blood as a source of energy for your cells to respond to the perceived threat (fight or flight!) 😱
BUT…when you aren’t actually running from a saber-toothed tiger, that spike in blood sugar is kinda…EXTRA.
✖️ That’s how stress can be a driving force behind insulin resistance and blood sugar problems over time.
Now let’s look at the other way around 🔁
When you eat an excess of sugar or refined carbs, you get a sugar spike followed by a crash—which your body perceives as a stress and releases cortisol and adrenaline.
✖️ That’s how sugar causes stress.
So, which do you think comes first for you?
Is it the sugar or the stress?
My holistic approach to heart health ❤️
Here's a sneak peek into my whole-body approach to cardiovascular health (hint: it goes a bit beyond managing blood pressure & cholesterol!)
Here are some things I consider when it comes to heart health:
1️⃣ Functional Medicine Testing can identify risk factors that are overlooked by routine screenings (things like a more specific breakdown of cholesterol, markers of inflammation, and levels of omega-3 fatty acids).
2️⃣ Stress is a massive contributor to high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease. We have a toolbox full of strategies to help your body better manage stress for heart health.
3️⃣ Poor metabolic health and elevated blood sugar can lead to cardiovascular disease if they are not recognized and managed early. We take prevention seriously.
4️⃣ Nutrition & supplements can be used proactively to support heart health before any medications or interventions are needed.
5️⃣ We look at the whole person—from gut health to inflammation to sleep and mood. Body systems do not function separately but very much depend upon and influence each other. If we want to optimize heart health, we need to optimize the whole body, physically, mentally, and emotionally.
If you are concerned about heart health because of a family or personal history, we can help.
💻 Visit our website to schedule an appointment with Dr. Cantrell!
🔎https://www.elementsnatmed.com/naturopathic-visits