Blood sugar and the brain

When blood sugar drops, the brain doesn’t get enough of it’s main fuel source – glucose. This is why people sometimes feel spacey,  lightheaded or irritable when they haven’t eaten; their brains aren’t getting the fuel they need. Then when they do eat, they often reach for a quick pick-me-up like a high carbohydrate food. Because those foods are broken down and digested into glucose so fast, they cause a quick spike in blood sugar which then plummets again just as quickly when large quantities of insulin are released. This is called reactive hypoglycemia and is a pattern we want to avoid.

Stable blood sugar is foundational for preventing brain degeneration, as too many blood sugar drops and spikes feed into an inflammatory cascade that damages the brain over time. This inflammation stresses the immune system as well, so if you are dealing with autoimmunity, blood sugar regulation can be a foundational step to healing.

Blood sugar and your adrenals

If you need to eat frequenly to keep your blood sugar up during the day, you can imagine that it might be a challenge for your body to maintain levels for the duration of a long night’s sleep. If you ever awake at 3 or 4  in the morning with anxiety for no apparent reason, consider a drop in blood sugar being the culprit. When blood sugar drops below a certain point, the body has to employ its stress hormones from the adrenal glands to prevent hypoglycemia. These fight or flight hormones wake you up. A sweet snack before bed makes this situation worse, by spiking and then dropping glucose faster. Over time, your adrenal glands become overtaxed and your HPA axis is disrupted. So if you are dealing with problems with cortisol or adrenal fatigue, think blood sugar regulation first. 

How do I Know if My Blood Sugar is Stable?

You can start by noticing how you feel after you eat. Ideally, after eating we feel the same as we did before eating… only not hungry. But do you also notice a change in your energy? If you feel energized  and your previously lagging brain function is restored, you are likely dealing with low blood sugar.  

The creep toward a low blood sugar pattern happens easily with our busy lifestyles, where we skip meals, rely on coffee and opt for sugary snacks.

It’s worth noting that while it’s not normal to feel refreshed after eating, it’s also not normal to be tired and want to take a nap. This  is a sign of high blood sugar. You can read more about this in my post on hyperglycemia here.

Signs and symptoms of low blood sugar:

• Increased energy after meals
• Craving for sweets between meals
• Irritability if meals are missed
• Dependency on coffee and sugar for energy
• Becoming light headed if meals are missed
• Eating to relieve fatigue
• Feeling shaky or jittery
• Feeling agitated and nervous
• Become upset easily (hangry)
• Poor memory, forgetfulness
• Blurred vision

Fixing Low Blood Sugar Issues

Try the following to keep blood sugar stable:

These are all simple things you can try on your own. You may notice that some of them are the same as my high blood sugar strategies, and this is because blood sugar swings are what we want to avoid.

Notice how you feel after implementing each strategy.

• alEat a breakfast of high quality protein and fats. When you wake up in the morning, you have gone a long time without eating. Chances are your adrenals have had to kick in with some fight or flight hormones. Calm your system down with some fuel in the form of protein and fat, eaten within an hour of waking. This creates a stable base for blood sugar on which to build your day. Conversly, a high carbohydrate breakfast like oatmeal or toast sets you up for blood sugar swings throughout the day. Nauseous in the morning with no appetite? This is another effect of the adrenal hormones, and you initially need to push through it and eat even a small amount of protein anyway until your body regulates and your appetite returns. Coffee alone would just feed into this problem, and you would also not likely be a good candidate for intermittent fasting.
• Eat a small amount of protein and/ or healthy fat every two to three hours if you have hypoglycemia, or just before you would typically notice symptoms. Slowly stretch this out as your blood sugar stabilizes, but avoid being reactive and instead be proactive with blood sugar, eating (even just a few bites) before the crash. Frequently going too long without eating when you have this picture is not just uncomfortable, but it is detrimental to your adrenals and your brain.
• Find your individual carbohydrate tolerance. A high carbohydrate diet is at the root of most blood sugar issues, whether hyper or hypo. Everyone has a different amount of carbohydrates they can tolerate without causing this disruption. Find your threshold through experimenting with diet or the use of a glucose monitor and stick to it. Grains (including corn) and sweets are the most problematic sources of carbohydrates, though you should also consider starchy vegetables and legumes.
• Never eat high-carb foods without some fiber, fat, or protein. These will slow down the rate at which the glucose is absorbed into the bloodstream and help prevent too much insulin being in your blood, pushing you back into hypoglycemia.
• Avoid sweets or starchy foods before bed. As mentioned above, this is one of the worst things that you can do, inducing a crash in the middle of the night that wakes you up.
• Avoid juices and other sweet drinks. These are just as sweet as soda in many cases.
• Limit caffeine. Caffeine and energy drinks are adrenal stimulants, taxing an already stressed system.
• Eat a well-balanced diet consisting mostly of vegetables, and quality meats and fats. This will naturally lead you to stable blood sugar.
• Eliminate food intolerances and allergens. Surprisingly, eating foods that trigger your immune system can also affect blood sugar, so consider testing or an elimination diet if you suspect this.

Nutrients to help manage Hypoglycemia

While diet, stress and food timing are the most important pieces of the hypoglycemia puzzle, there are some nutrients that can be a therapeutic addition. However, you want to get clear on the nuance of your individual pattern and should seek support of a health professional before implementing a supplement regimine.

Examples of these are:

• Chromium
• Adrenal support
• Choline bitartrate
• Glandular supplements
• Inositol
• L-carnitine
• CoQ10

Still not sure if you fit the pattern for  low blood sugar? It’s just one pattern, and many people actually have high blood sugar or swing back and forth between between the two. Any of the above can be inflammatory and damaging for your brain and immune system, so don’t overlook this foundational piece when beginning to address or prevent health issues.