If you’ve ever eaten dessert on an empty stomach, there’s a good chance you’ve experienced what’s called a blood sugar “crash.” The cells in your body don’t get enough energy, so you often end up feeling tired, irritable, dizzy, hungry, and you may even experience tremors or dizziness.
This happens because your body responds to the sudden influx of sugar into your system by releasing too much of the hormone insulin, causing your blood sugar, also known as glucose, to drop below normal levels. While this event usually isn’t too concerning if it doesn’t happen often, it’s a good reminder that what we eat affects how we feel.
Who needs to lower blood sugar?
Some people need to monitor their blood sugar levels much more than others. People with diabetes, for example, need to constantly check their blood sugar levels and pay special attention to what they eat. “People with type 2 diabetes have insulin resistance, meaning their tissues don’t respond well to insulin,” says Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, a cardiologist and professor of nutrition and medicine at the Tufts University. For this reason, he says, “blood glucose levels can rise very high while tissues starve from lack of energy.”
People without diabetes may also want to avoid having their blood sugar rise too often. “Occasional spikes in glucose are not harmful in the long term, especially when the body is young and resilient,” says David Sinclair, professor of genetics and longevity researcher at Harvard Medical School. “However, consistent consumption of foods with excess sugar can cause brain fog and hunger pains when sugar levels drop.”
Along with these short-term effects, a regular poor diet and not giving the body enough time to absorb glucose between meals can lead to “additional problems accumulating over time,” says Mozaffarian. These can include cardiovascular and kidney problems.
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What should your blood sugar be 2 hours after eating?
Since the foods we eat are broken down into sugar in the blood, it’s normal to experience a rise in blood sugar, sometimes called a spike, for a while after a meal. This is a sign that food is being transformed into energy and the pancreas is doing its job. Blood sugar will rise temporarily before starting to fall again. Before a meal, blood sugar levels typically range between 80 and 130 milligrams (mg) per deciliter (dL), but the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes that there is nothing wrong with what this increase linked to digestion causes blood loss. sugar can reach 180 mg/dL about two hours after a meal.
After this time, your blood sugar should drop because the insulin in your body helps glucose to be absorbed. However, if your blood sugar doesn’t drop, you could have diabetes or prediabetes.
Important:How to test your blood sugar and why it’s essential for some people
How to reduce blood sugar
People with diabetes or prediabetes have to work especially hard to manage their blood sugar levels. They do this primarily by injecting themselves with insulin and watching what they eat.
People without diabetes can also watch what they eat and do other things to avoid the effects of too much sugar in their blood. Healthy weight management and regular physical activity have been proven to maximize insulin sensitivity and keep blood sugar levels within a normal range.
It is also important to minimize the consumption of ultra-processed foods, refined carbohydrates like pasta, white rice and white bread and to avoid foods with too many added sugars. In addition to avoiding bad foods, it’s essential to also eat foods known to contribute to healthy blood sugar management. “Eat more fiber-rich foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds,” advises Mozaffarian. It also recommends “eating more healthy fats, proteins, and carbohydrates from foods like vegetable oils, fish, and yogurt.”
News Source : www.usatoday.com
Gn Health
