How Sugar Sabotages Immunity and Promotes Inflammation: Here Are 7 Ways to Stop It
As we move further into the challenges of this pandemic, my heart goes out to you!
Whether you’re working from home, are now unemployed or are on the frontlines battling this virus, we all need help lowering the inflammation that impairs our immune response.
We’ve known for decades that the intake of simple carbs (think colas, bagels, chips) reduces phagocytosis, the process by which white blood cells engulf and destroy bacteria, just like little Pac Men!
But how can downing a sugary “energy” drink, snarfing a bowl of cereal or a bag of cookies mess with our immunity and cause inflammation? And what can we do about it?
This is a story about sugar, fat, insulin and cytokines, the pro-inflammatory chemical messengers our body generates when under attack.
When we eat, our pancreas secretes enzymes that digest carbs into sugars, protein into amino acids and fat into fatty acids. Once digested, they’re absorbed into the bloodstream.
Insulin is the pancreatic hormone that escorts sugar from the bloodstream into the cell.
Insulin lowers blood sugar levels by binding to “insulin receptors” on every cell membrane. When insulin attaches to the insulin receptor (like a key in a lock) it opens the “door” and carries sugar across the membrane and into the cell where it is used to produce energy.
We know that the regular intake of sugar promotes inflammation and dulls those insulin receptors, effectively turning them off and causing the condition known as “insulin resistance”.
When insulin can’t get the sugar into the cell, it leads to the elevated blood sugar levels (hyperglycemia) seen in pre-diabetes and Type 2 or “age-related” diabetes. High blood sugar is common in critical illness and is associated with poor outcomes across the disease spectrum. (And the sad truth is that teens are now developing diabetes at an alarming rate!)
Insulin resistance keeps blood sugar high and forces any sugar that isn’t taken into the cells to be stored as fat. We used to think that fat cells just stored and released energy, but we now know that fatty tissue is a reservoir for a range of pro-inflammatory cytokines.
So when our body comes under attack (from a viral or bacterial illness), fat cells release a flood of pro-inflammatory cytokines into the bloodstream, contributing to the “cytokine storm” seen in the worst cases of COVID-19.
This is one of the reasons that those with obesity, diabetes and heart disease are vulnerable to the most severe effects of the virus.
Unfortunately, millions of Americans are stuck in this vicious cycle of excess sugar intake, which I call the “blood sugar roller coaster”. You know that “sugar rush” when you get it: eating sugar causes the release of neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin, leading to that satisfied and “rewarded” feeling. It is one of the reasons that refined sugar is considered as addictive as cocaine.
So while a sweet pastry or stack of pancakes might feel blissful for an hour when blood sugar is on the rise, the resulting fall in blood sugar (hypoglycemia) from eating those “empty calories” can lead to brain fog, lightheadedness, sweating and irritability. Sounds a lot like that “hangry” feeling, right?
This rapid fall in blood sugar triggers a stress response causing the adrenal glands to save the day by secreting adrenaline, prompting the liver to release stored sugar to keep you from fainting on the street! Not so sweet!
And the statistics about the health of our fellow Americans aren’t so sweet either!
According to a new report from the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 122 million adults are now living with diabetes or prediabetes (that’s about half of the adult population)!
As of 2020, 34.2 million Americans have diabetes and another 88 million have pre-diabetes, which, if not addressed, usually leads to diabetes within 5 years. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/library/features/diabetes-stat-report.html
When our sugar-rich diet meets our sedentary lifestyle, the result is the level of inflammation that is driving an impaired immune response, diabetes, heart disease, dementia, cancer and more.
So here are 7 steps to balance blood sugar, curb cravings, support your immune response and reduce a suite of inflammation-related diseases. Now that’s sweet!
Eat a balance of protein, fat and complex carbohydrates at each meal. Breakfast is the perfect place to start. Check out my post on protein-powered breakfasts for more. Providing your body the essential amino acids, fatty acids and fiber helps manage blood sugar metabolism.
Eat 7-11 servings of fresh, organic complex carbs (fiber and color-rich veggies and fruit, nuts and seeds, whole grains and beans) every day. Think of fiber like a sponge, allowing a slow release of sugar and nutrients into the bloodstream, which stabilizes blood sugar, strengthens our immune response and tamps down inflammation.
Practice intermittent fasting: Eat your last meal of the day at least 3 hours before bedtime and take a 12-16 hour “fast” before you break your fast…at breakfast! This isn’t that hard to do…eat a satisfying dinner at 6 PM and a protein-powered breakfast between 8:00-10:00 AM. That’ll keep your metabolism firing all morning long!
Stay active: daily aerobic exercise awakens dulled insulin receptors, helping to reverse insulin resistance. Exercise actually turns the insulin receptors back on, helps build muscle mass, burn fat, reduce cravings and increase BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor) to support healthy synapses and neurons.
Sleep is essential for rebuilding our body and creating metabolic balance. Science has discovered “clock genes” that regulate the function of organs like the pancreas. Did you know that the pancreas reduces its production of insulin and enzymes in the early evening (roughly 8 PM, making it difficult to maintain blood sugar balance and digest food late at night? So skip the late-night munchies and head to bed before the munchies hit.
Manage stress: our lives are filled with one challenge after another, so it pays off to develop other strategies for dealing with stress than a pint of ice cream. Meditation, prayer, deep breathing, yoga, tai chi and qigong are just a few ways to manage stress. Practice them and chill.
Drink water instead of sugar and limit excess caffeine. While we may crave the rush of energy and productivity from energy drinks and caffeine, at the end of the day most of us feel dehydrated, tired and stressed. Drinking too much of these stimulants revs up the sympathetic nervous system, placing a strain on several organ systems, eventually taxing our health. So skip the sodas, energy drinks and excessive alcohol and drink 64-96 ounces of pure water instead.
Now, this doesn’t mean you don’t get to enjoy the “Dolce Vida” or “Sweet Life”. Sweet is one of the “5 tastes” in Traditional Chinese Medicine and health is said to result from having a balance of each of the flavors.
Fruit is nature’s candy; enjoy it in limited quantities (3 pieces per day). Dark cherries are full of phytonutrients and antioxidants. Dark chocolate is teeming with antioxidants and phytonutrients. Almonds contain a blend of fat, protein and starch. Together, these form my Dark Chocolate Cherry Almond Love Balls…a perfect keto-style dessert: full of flavor but free of sugar, gluten, grains and dairy. Share them with those you love!
My mission is to feed you healthy recipes and tasty bites of power-packed information.
Please let me know what your biggest health questions are during this challenging time. I’ll do my best to respond to each of your questions!
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A santé! (To health)!
Since I wrote this article, so much has changed and it hasn't been good news. So, I want you to take control by boosting your health and immunity with a few simple switches that include nutrient-dense recipes and better immune-supporting food choices. Join me now for my new online, self-paced course, The Good Food Way to Power Up Your Immune System that includes videos of my best healing recipes, step-by-step cooking classes, strategies, and lifestyle changes all designed to help you thrive during these unprecedented times.
The added bonus is that this energizing and educational course also MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE to a healthy digestion, better sleep, and overall mental health.
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