EUGENIZATION.

A client of mine asked me about his blood sugar yesterday and it occurred to me that writing an overview of blood sugar is in order (since I rant so about keeping insulin levels low, avoiding concentrated sources of carbohydrates, etc.).

First, what’s normal blood sugar?

The normal range for a fasted state is between 80 to 120 mL/dl. After eating, blood sugar generally jumps a little higher but not much, although if you load yourself up with sugar it can and will skyrocket (as much as 200 mL/dl). If you’re normal (i.e., non-insulin resistant), your blood sugar level is probably less than 100 mL/dl and will not rise past 140 mL/dl after a meal.

100 mL/dl is the “standard” that most general practitioners use, but diabetes specialists will ring alarms if your fasting blood sugar values exceed 83 mL/dl.

Why does blood sugar matter?

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you already know the answer to this question. Having high fasting blood sugar levels shows insulin resistance, and insulin resistance is the first step down a road you definitely don’t want to take.

A recap:

All (not just the bad ones, but all) of the carbohydrate you consume gets broken down into glucose - the building block of carbs. When all goes well, glucose is absorbed from your bloodstream into your cells to be burned as energy. Insulin is the hormone that makes this absorption possible - it literally “opens the door” to your cells, allowing glucose in.

When all is not well (i.e., when you overconsume carbohydrates, particularly refined carbs), you end up with large amounts of glucose in your bloodstream. Normally, the body deals with glucose by secreting (more than) enough insulin to pull all of that sugar out of your bloodstream and into your cells to be used as energy or to be stored as glycogen. When you run out of glycogen storage space, your body simply repackages that glucose as triglycerides and socks it away in your fat cells.

Fat gain may be inconvenient, but it’s not the main issue here. The problem is insulin resistance - when cells grow immune to insulin’s effects and insulin can no longer ferry glucose into the cells. Chronic hyperinsulimia - high levels of insulin in the blood - is the root cause.

In short:

High blood sugar -> High Insulin -> Insulin Resistance -> Diabetes (and other diseases of civilization)

Sounds terrible. What can I do to prevent these insulin spikes?

The simplest way is to curb your dietary intake of carbohydrates. In other words, minimize consumption of grains, sugars, and starches.

If you do choose to consume carbohydrates, eat the “best” kinds: High in fiber and least refined (e.g., whole wheat pasta, brown rice, etc.).  As always, “real foods” are best.

Get the majority of your calories from meats, non-starchy (aka leafy) vegetables, low-sugar fruit, nuts, and seeds. Beans and legumes are ok; they’re high in fiber and relatively high in nutrients, but they also contain phytic acid, which can block absorption of nutrients.

Exercise helps by making your cells more insulin sensitive - in other words, exercise improves the ability of insulin to pull glucose into the cells.  So do it.

The $1000000 question: So if I eat mostly carbohydrates, I’ll get fat and die prematurely?

Ah, I knew you were going to ask me that eventually.  The answer is, it depends.  If you’re like my friend Andrius and the carbohydrates you eat are leafy greens, fruit, legumes, and low-GI starches and grains (e.g., sweet potato, quinoa, etc.), then probably not.  But if you’re like the average American or Australian and the carbs you prefer are soda, white bread, fried potatoes, or anything that comes in a box, then the answer is “likely.”

If you like short and easy to remember admonitions, here’s what this post boils down to:

Avoid refined starches, grains, and sugars.