Candy Corn, Colds, and COVID, …OH MY!!! 

If you don’t have time to read all the gory details about what sugar is doing to your body, jump down to the HOW TO GET OFF THE BLOOD SUGAR ROLLER COASTER section of this article… trust me on this: you really need to dump the sugar.

This Halloween through the holiday excesses, it’s time to rethink the way we treat ourselves because the scary facts are that we are severely compromising our metabolism and immunity.

Before the 1960s, dessert was a special treat, prepared with love and fresh, natural ingredients. It was almost exclusively enjoyed on the weekends and special occasions.

Fast-forward to today, and the isles of our grocery stores are filled floor to ceiling with soda, cookies, ice cream, and an endless cornucopia of temptations. Now you can consume a morning coffee drink that floods your system with half of your total, daily caloric intake in the form of sugar and fat!

The impact of this modern lifestyle has been disastrous to our health.

With the advent of ultra-processed foods these past few decades, our diet has deteriorated to the point that only 12% of Americans are metabolically healthy (1) .

And according to the CDC, more than 37 million people in the U.S. have diabetes and I in 5 don’t know it (2). That’s 96 million U.S. adults – over a third – that have prediabetes and 80% don’t know it! Let that sink in.

The challenge is that most of this processed food has been intentionally engineered to be tempting…to be addicting. The more you eat, the more you crave. That’s sick!

No holiday has been engineered to promote the consumption of sugar more than Halloween!

You know that “sugar rush” when you get it: sugar causes the release of neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin, leading to that satisfied, “rewarded” feeling. It is one of the reasons that refined sugar is considered as addictive as cocaine.

So, listen up: while a bite of candy, a pastry or stack of pancakes might feel blissful for an hour while 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. Feels a lot like that “hangry” feeling, doesn’t it? 

This rapid fall in blood sugar also triggers a stress response causing the adrenal glands to save the day by secreting cortisol and adrenaline and prompting the liver to release stored sugar to keep you from fainting on the street! Not so sweet!

Now we have a viral pandemic on top of a chronic disease epidemic, both revolving around the “sugar and processed food industry”.

BUT HOW CAN DOWNING AN “ENERGY” DRINK, SNARFING A BOWL OF CEREAL OR A BAG OF COOKIES MESS WITH OUR IMMUNITY AND CAUSE INFLAMMATION? 

We’ve known for decades that sugar reduces “phagocytosis”, the process by which white blood cells engulf and destroy microbes like little Pac Men! But it goes much deeper…

When we eat, our pancreas secretes enzymes to 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 helps usher sugar from the circulation into the cell. It lowers blood sugar by binding to the “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.

But consistently high insulin promotes inflammation and dulls those insulin receptors, effectively turning them off and causing the condition known as “insulin resistance”. 

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 fat, but now we know that fatty tissue is a reservoir of inflammation, a home for a range of pro-inflammatory cytokines. 

THE IMMUNE RESPONSE TO SUGAR OVERLOAD

When our body comes under attack (from a viral or bacterial infection), 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, heart disease, and metabolic syndrome are vulnerable to the most severe effects of this virus. 

Unfortunately, millions of Americans are stuck in this vicious cycle of excess sugar intake, which I call the “blood sugar roller coaster”. 

HOW TO GET OFF OF THE “BLOOD SUGAR ROLLER COASTER”

It’s unrealistic to think that we will never eat another cookie or Halloween treat again. (Though the more you know about its adverse effects, the less appealing those sugar bombs are). 

To break our national addiction, we can start by being kind to ourselves and treating ourselves to real, whole food. Doing so can change the trajectory of our lives towards the path of vitality instead of disease. Trust me, it’s a lot less scary and a lot more fun!

Here are 7 shifts to balance your blood sugar and immune response:

1. Eat a green salad or handful of raw nuts before you indulge in sweets. These fiber rich foods create a fibrous matrix in your intestine, slowing the rise and fall in blood sugar. By using this simple trick, chances are you’ll change your mind about eating that sugary-treat, or at least you’ll indulge in less.

2. Eat a balance of protein, fat, and complex carbohydrates at each meal. A protein powered breakfast or brunch is the perfect place to start, providing your body the essential amino acids, fatty acids, and fiber to slash sugar cravings later in the day.

3. Eat at least 7 servings of fresh, organic complex carbs every day, like fiber-rich veggies and berries, nuts and seeds, gluten-free whole grains, and beans. Think of fiber like a sponge, allowing the slow release of sugar and nutrients into the bloodstream, which stabilizes blood sugar, strengthens our immune response, and tamps down inflammation.

4. Instead of buying a bag of candy, make a cup of flavorful chai tea to minimize your cravings and wean yourself off of the blood sugar rollercoaster. 

5. 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, burns fat, reduces cravings, and increases BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor) to clear brain fog.

6. Practice intermittent fasting: Eat your last meal of the day at least 3 hours before bedtime and take a 12-16 hour overnight fast before you break your fast…at breakfast! This isn’t hard to do…eat a satisfying dinner by 7 PM and a protein-powered breakfast between 8:00-11:00 AM. That’ll keep your metabolism humming all day long!

7. Support blood sugar with the right nutrients like chromium, alpha-lipoic acid, berberine, cinnamon and glutamine, which are featured in my Blood Sugar Balance Bundle here.

Alpha-Lipoic acid (ALA) is an antioxidant that is naturally present in the body and in certain foods. It appears to enhance glucose uptake, reduce oxidative damage to the beta cells of the pancreas that produce insulin, and help relieve the pain of neuropathy associated with diabetes.

ALA works through multiple mechanisms to reduce free radical damage (3) , regenerate other antioxidants (like vitamins C, E, and glutathione), and it plays an essential role in mitochondrial energy production. Small amounts are present in food such as spinach, broccoli, yams, Brussels sprouts, and red meat, especially organ meats. ALA is also available as a supplement to support blood sugar metabolism.

Chromium is a trace mineral that enhances the metabolic action of insulin and lowers some risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diabetes. It is present in brewer’s yeast, beef, chicken, turkey, grapes, apples, tomatoes, whole grains, and beans. Numerous studies (4) have demonstrated a significant reduction in fasting plasma glucose, insulin, and insulin resistance after chromium supplementation. The best form to supplement is chromium picolinate.

Berberine is a phytonutrient found in a variety of plants of the Berberis genus. I learned about its blood sugar lowering and antimicrobial effects in naturopathic medical school and acupuncture school in the early 1980s. Since then, a multitude of studies (5) have elucidated its mechanism of action in regulating blood sugar, and lipids and helping to fight obesity. Its ability to lower blood sugar is similar to metformin in lowering blood sugar, triglycerides, HbA1c and insulin resistance. (6)

L-Glutamine is an amino acid, a building block of protein, that is critical for blood sugar regulation. This systematic literature review found that glutamine supplementation leads to lower fasting blood glucose, triglyceride levels, and an increase in insulin production. Glutamine can quickly convert to glucose, making it an agent that has been used to control sugar cravings and reverse induced acute hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). (7)

Cinnamon has a long history of use in Traditional Chinese and Western botanical medicine. Many studies suggest it lowers blood sugar and cholesterol (8). Only small amounts are needed, so integrate it into your diet (chai tea, anyone?) or find it in nutritional supplements.

You can grab all these blood sugar balancing supplements in my online store and get a 15% discount off of your first sugar bundle order when you use the code: SUGAR15 at checkout.

My mission is to feed you tasty bites of power-packed information and mouth-watering recipes. Please let me know what your biggest health questions are and I’ll do my best to respond to address them! 

If you enjoyed this article and recipe, please SHARE, like, or comment below. And if you have friends or family who need this information, please subscribe to receive my weekly post, and share them widely!

A votre santé! (To your health)!

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The products mentioned in this article are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. The information in this article is not intended to replace any recommendations or relationship with your physician. Discuss the use of any of these supplements with your physician, especially if you are also using insulin or any medications to treat diabetes, as they may lower your blood sugar. Please review references sited in this article for scientific support of any claims made.

1 https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/met.2018.0105

2 https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/quick-facts.html

3 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3221300/

4 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32730903/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15208835/

5 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2410097/

6 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18537696/

7 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7517657/

8 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3767714/