Many people experience energy ups and downs as their blood sugar dips and surges. When blood sugar levels become too low, you can expect your energy to start to go down too.
A healthy human functions best when their blood sugar levels stay within a narrow range, enough to supply current energy requirements, but not too much to be toxic to nerves and organs. Our body releases specific hormones in attempt to keep blood glucose at these optimum levels.
The body detests having low levels of blood sugar. It needs energy to survive and perform all its functions.
If the level of blood sugar dips, the person will experience several symptoms such as a rapid heartbeat, fatigue, sudden mood shifts, difficulty focusing and headaches. They will also experience hunger, usually a craving for sweet, quickly-digested simple carbs.
What’s unfortunate is many people experience these symptoms on a daily basis, simply because they don’t know they have a problem. It is simply accepted as their normal.
If you think this sounds like you, then there are plenty of things you can do to stop your blood sugar levels from fluctuating.
Eat a Good Breakfast
Most people are busy and need a quick go-fast hit in the morning. Unfortunately, white bread and other fast-burning carbs, such as cereals, won’t provide wither the nutrient value or the sustained energy you need. You are probably better off having no breakfast at all!
What you need to start you day is a hit of protein. Instead of jam and honey on that bread, cook up a piece of bacon and egg. If you can do without the toast, even better.
Eating breads and cereals for breakfast causes you to experience the mid-morning slump, and it’s probably at this time that you then feel like morning tea, which might consist of a biscuit or two or a cake. These are more bad ‘slump’ foods, which maintains the bad cycle.
Other people find they wake up feeling grumpy and irritable and don’t even know why. It’s just in their nature, isn’t it? Or is it? What they don’t realize is that it’s very possibly a drop in their blood sugar levels. If they ate a good breakfast they soon wouldn’t feel this way. Their body would be getting what it needs, a steady supply of energy.
Whatever it is that you eat for breakfast always have your blood sugar health in mind. This will help you make better food choices, every meal, that will keep your insulin and blood sugar levels on an even keel throughout the day, starting at breakfast time.
Avoid Getting Too Hungry – Don’t Wait to Eat
It’s ok to feel hungry if you have the mindfulness to wait until the next scheduled meal. If you refuse to have snacks in between meals because you can wait until your next healthy meal, that’s fine.
However, if feeling hungry means you will indulge in a “health-food bar” (really, it’s a sugar stick) to get you through to the next meal, don’t let yourself get that hungry.
If you must snack, an orange, or an apple, a handful of nuts or a few slices of cheese can be good choices for a quick ‘get out of hunger zone’ fix.
Also, if feeling hungry means you will have a sugar-loaded eating binge at your next meal time, don’t let yourself get that hungry.
The Bottom Line
The biggest single factor that will affect blood glucose levels, that you have the most control over, is the food choices you make. If you eat sugary, sweet, simple carbs, you will have sugar rushes and crashes.
If you eat mostly protein, fats and complex carbs your blood sugar will be balanced and in the range it should be. Your moods, energy levels and long-term health will all improve.
