Blood sugar stability and your mood and where to start

Just so you know, HANGER is real!

When your blood sugar gets low, appetite is not necessarily the first signal we get to tell us to eat. Your brain does NOT like when your blood sugar is low, and sometimes might trigger symptoms of nausea, fatigue, agitation, headaches, anxiety or irritability. 

A blood sugar yo-yo can set you up for significant symptoms in the day, and managing that yo-yo is one of the things that I see providing the fastest results in terms of mood, energy, cravings, and hormones.

So how do we do this? 

1. Adequate protein intake is one of the pillars. When we have protein in our meals it takes longer for our body to break it down, so blood sugar rises more slowly and then falls more slowly. This keeps us full and keeps our energy more stable throughout the day. 

When we have a meal with just simple carbohydrates - think a muffin, our blood sugar level goes up really quickly which triggers a lot of insulin production leading to a quick blood sugar drop. And then when the blood sugar is low your brain knows the fastest thing that will bring it up is another simple sugar. 

2. The most important place to start to improve this is with breakfast. We want to start the day with a slow and steady rise in our blood sugar, and slow and steady fall to keep energy and mood more stable. 

So what does that look like? 

My recommendation is to always start with at LEAST 20g of protein for breakfast. 

That’s either: 

- 3 eggs

- 1 cup of greek yoghurt

or

- 2 hearty slices of bread with peanut butter and hemp hearts on top. 

Ideally this is paired with some fiber as well such as colourful fruits/vegetables and/or whole grain.

With this change many will find that they feel full for longer, have less cravings, and typically less late-night snacking. And it supports metabolism - because protein is a building block for building muscle,  it can snowball into supporting your sleep, your mood, and your hormones as well!

If you want help building a nutrition plan that works for you, book a visit with me today!