Are You Riding the Blood Sugar Rollercoaster?
by Vin Miller
Blood sugar is vital to human function and must be consistently kept at a steady level to maintain good health. The failure to do so is a primary cause of many modern health complaints and diseases.
Blood sugar is the glucose that circulates in the blood stream and provides cells with much of the energy they need to function. It’s most commonly obtained through the digestion of food and is especially important to the brain and nervous system. Because of the many critical functions that depend on it, and because it’s toxic in excessive concentrations, blood sugar levels that are too low or too high can be extremely dangerous and are dealt with by the body in an urgent manner.
The Dangers of Blood Sugar Fluctuation
A low level of blood sugar, referred to as hypoglycemia, results in an inadequate supply of glucose to the brain and leads to a considerable amount of malfunction. Hypoglycemia can cause a number unpleasant symptoms including fatigue, weakness, dizziness, inability to concentrate, poor memory, anxiety, depression, irritability, heart palpitations and excessive sweating. It can even cause comas and seizures.
On the other end of the spectrum, a high level of blood sugar is referred to as hyperglycemia and is one of the key symptoms of diabetes. Hyperglycemia can cause similar symptoms to hypoglycemia such as fatigue, inability to concentrate, anxiety and depression. However, it can also cause shortness of breath, nausea, dry mouth, and in severe cases, can even cause comas, nerve damage and blindness.
Blood sugar fluctuation puts a significant demand on the glands responsible for regulating it and this burden is one of the major reasons why fluctuating blood sugar is such a serious health concern. It’s widely recognized as the cause of type 2 diabetes and is also associated with high blood pressure and heart disease.
How the Body Responds to Blood Sugar Fluctuation
High levels of blood sugar trigger the pancreas to respond in emergency like fashion by quickly releasing a large amount of insulin. By facilitating the transport of blood glucose into cells and the conversion of excess blood glucose into body fat, the presence of insulin causes blood sugar to drop. However, the large amount of insulin often causes too much glucose to be removed from the blood and results in a state of hypoglycemia.
The excessive drop in blood sugar creates another state of emergency and stimulates the adrenal glands to release cortisol. This increases blood sugar to a desirable level by facilitating the creation of glucose from body fat and muscle tissue, and also by stimulating the liver to create glucose from it’s storage of glycogen.
While the mechanisms involved in blood sugar regulation provide us with an invaluable source of protection, they also put a significant physiological burden on the body. The continuous demand put on the pancreas to produce excessive amounts of insulin is what eventually leads to type 2 diabetes. In similar fashion, the recurring need for the adrenal glands to produce cortisol can compromise their capacity as well and result in adrenal fatigue.
Although adrenal fatigue is not as widely recognized as diabetes, it can be equally problematic and result in susceptibility to significant health problems. Furthermore, any type of adrenal stimulation, including low blood sugar, invokes the universal stress response that is so frequently associated with poor health.
The Causes of Blood Sugar Fluctuation
The primary and preferred source of blood glucose is digested food. As such, skipping a meal or eating too infrequently will result in an inadequate supply of glucose and will eventually cause blood sugar to drop. In contrast, the consumption of sugar and refined carbohydrates can easily cause blood sugar to rise because of how quickly they’re digested into a large amount of glucose.
Caffeinated beverages, such as coffee, soda and energy drinks, provide their energy boost by forcefully stimulating the adrenal glands. Because the adrenal glands are responsible for raising low levels of blood sugar, this direct stimulation will typically cause an increase in blood sugar regardless of how much glucose is currently in circulation. Furthermore, caffeinated beverages are typically high in sugar which significantly increases their potential to cause a dramatic increase in blood sugar.
Alcohol is a significant source of blood sugar fluctuation as well. Because it prevents the liver from producing glucose, it contributes to hypoglycemia by inhibiting the body’s ability to raise blood sugar. This problem is made worse by the large amounts of sugar that most alcoholic beverages contain. The sugar causes blood glucose to rise, but when the insulin response brings it too far down, the alcohol inhibits production of the glucose that is needed to lift blood sugar to an adequate level.
The Blood Sugar Rollercoaster
Eating foods that contain a considerable amount of sugar or refined carbohydrates, which is unfortunately quite common in the modern diet, will cause blood sugar to increase rapidly and provide a short lived burst of energy and happiness. The surge of insulin that this provokes will quickly cause blood sugar to drop too low, may cause one or more of the many symptoms associated with hypoglycemia, will stimulate adrenal activity to lift blood sugar back up, and will result in an increased appetite for more sugary food.
Encouraged by the lethargy and moodiness resulting from low blood sugar, many people will intentionally consume sugar to regain their energy or improve their mood without realizing or caring that it will ultimately lead them right back to where they started. They end up spending much of their day fluctuating from peaks of high energy and excitement to valleys of fatigue and unhappiness, and during this variation, their blood sugar levels are out of control and are causing serious physiological burden.
Alcoholic and caffeinated beverages are nearly as popular as processed foods, and the people who consume them on a regular basis are adding to the fluctuation of their blood sugar and the problems that it causes. Sugar, alcohol and caffeine all have addictive properties that make blood sugar fluctuation a never ending cycle that can be very difficult to end.
Many people become mentally and physically exhausted after years of riding the blood sugar rollercoaster. When they do, they often develop an even stronger reliance on sugar and caffeine to get them through the day. This last ditch effort may keep them pushing along, but will burden the adrenal glands even further, continue to wear their body down, and ultimately bring them one giant step closer to disease.
Tips for Regulating Blood Sugar
One of the best things you can do for your health is to keep your blood sugar at a relatively consistent level. The following tips will help to spare your body from the significant burden of blood sugar fluctuation and will help you maintain a steady mood and energy level.
- Eliminate sugar and refined carbohydrates from your diet, or keep them to an absolute minimum. If you have any excess body fat, this will help you lose weight in addition to keeping your blood sugar stabilized.
- Minimize your intake of caffeine. I know this is a difficult one, but if you rely on them extensively, you’re digging yourself into a hole that will be difficult to get out of.
- Limit your consumption of alcohol and always consume fat and protein prior to drinking it.
- Follow a consistent eating schedule and try not to go more than 4 hours without a meal.
- Follow the Metabolic Typing Diet. We each have unique nutritional needs and not adhering to them can have a significant impact on blood sugar.
- If you feel that you’re vulnerable to low blood sugar, increase the amount of protein and fat in your diet and snack in between meals.
- Eat the protein and fat portions of your meal first to prevent the carbohydrates from being digested too quickly.
- Some fruits and vegetables can cause blood sugar fluctuation just as easily as processed foods. Use the glycemic index and glycemic load to identify them. Despite the limitations of these two tools, they will give you a good idea of which foods are most likely to cause an elevation of your blood sugar.
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Fantastic article! Stumbled. You have described me to a tee in this article. I have historically had fairly low blood sugar and that leads to the symptoms you described. This caused me to crave sugar and then go on the roller coaster. I now follow virtually every suggestion on your list and it has made an enormous difference in how I feel. I think most people are not aware of the fact that when they eat a piece of white bread, they might as well be eating pure table sugar. It converts into blood glucose just as fast.
Thanks Stephen! It’s good to hear that you’ve learned to stabilize your blood sugar. I’ve had similar experiences and know that hypoglycemia is not much fun.
According to my Metabolic Type, I need to eat more protein and fat. I also tend to react unfavorably to anything more than a moderate amount of carbohydrates, especially if they contain sugar.
Hypoglycemia is actually what started my quest for better health. My doctor had me take a glucose tolerance test after I complained about being weak and shaky. I failed the test miserably, and looking back, my blood sugar must have been all over the place for many years. If I didn’t make some changes, I’m sure I’d be a likely candidate for diabetes.
Thank you very much for this very useful article. Will try to keep in mind your suggestions.
Vin, I’m really liking your easy-to-read informative articles. Too much of the good information on the internet is basically unreadable (or incomprehensible with all the jargon!). Just a question, carbohydrates seem to affect me more than straight out sugar (not that sugar is a regular part of my diet). Do you think this could be that the body finds it easy to deal with straight out sugar, rather than dealing with the process of converting carbs to sugar and then dealing with the high blood sugar levels?
Also, out of interest, do you condone the occasional splash out, bowl of ice cream, or pizza?
Hi Elliot, thanks for the compliment!
It’s hard to say what’s bothering you without knowing more about your situation and what you’re eating. The first two things that come to mind are the potential of a food sensitivity or the possibility that you’re eating too much carbohydrate for your Metabolic Type. If you’d like, send me an email through the contact form with more information and I’ll see if I can give you some better information.
Yes, I think it’s a good idea for people to enjoy an occasional treat within the limits of their health. However, I still think it’s important to choose wisely and to make your treat meals as healthy as possible. I think the 80/20 rule is a good guideline for moderation, but I tend to reduce the 20% down to 5% or 10% for myself and recommend the same for anyone wanting to maximize their health and well being. People who are suffering from poor health have much less leeway, especially if they don’t want to slow down their progress, but people who are generally healthy can usually tolerate a few unhealthy meals or activities on occasion with out too much of an impact.
Hi Vin,
A little late to his post – I followed one of your Tweets to the blog and then followed more links to this article! I recently started getting lightheaded fairly regularly, so my doctor similarly did a fasting blood test and diagnosed me as hypoglycemic. She had no theory as to why it bothered me all of a sudden, and her only advice was that I should drink fruit juice whenever I got lightheaded! I have since done my own research and am starting to change out all the “officially” healthy foods for all the real, natural food that really is healthy. I had thought I was doing the right thing by eating whole wheat bread, cereal, and pasta all the time. Thank goodness there is great info available to everyone if they just get motivated and look for it!
Hi Kim, thanks for your comment! Your story sounds similar to my experience. It’s a shame that doctors are giving out advice like that. I once had a nurse practitioner tell me to drink soda to stay hydrated.
I’m glad you’ve taken the initiative to educate yourself and have realized that grain based foods, even if whole, can cause hypoglycemia as well. Keep up the good work!
Mr. Miller,
I am up right now in the middle of the night with blood sugar around 101 and racing heart and burning in the back of the neck. the level has been a lot lower before, however i’ve come to learn that is not so much how low, but how fast the drop. I eat lean chicken and a half glass of 1% milk and a couple of guclose tablets when I have these spells. My dr. has diagnosed me as hypoglycemic. I have made several trips to the emergency room (once by ambulance) not knowing at the time what my problem was. They had me on heart monitors, did echo cardiogram, EKG, etc. It took my dr a long time to realize the real problem. I now keep it under control by eliminating all caffine. I eat lean meats, lettuce salads, sugar free jello for snack, almonds, and usually a grilled chicken wrap for dinner. I do have turkey and cheese sandwich almost every day on sugar free 7 whole grain bread. I eat half and then the other half a couple hours later with baked chips, etc. But tonight I got some upsetting news before bedtime. I woke up three hours later with this drop in sugar. Can stress also lead to a sudden drop in blood sugar? I do appreciate this article I stumbled across while waiting for the sugar to raise back up. Sincerely, Jolene Sublett
I might add, I start my day with a very small glass of orange juice. Then a small bowl of bran cereal with splenda on it and fresh blue berries. I also eat an apple every day. Not just the sugar free jello. Occasionally i will eat one egg and cheddar cheese on an english muffin. So far that does not bother me. Thanks again, Jolene Sublett
Hi Jolene, I’m sorry to hear about your troubles.
Assuming 101 is in milligrams, this is actually a pretty normal level for blood sugar. Have you given any thought to your racing heart and burning neck being caused by something else?
Be judicious with the glucose tablets as they can temporarily increase your sugar level, but cause it to drop again later on.
It sounds like you’ve done a pretty good job of adjusting your diet for hypoglycemia, but if you want to be safe, I suggest completely avoiding bread, orange juice, and cereal, at least for a while, because they are all high in sugar and/or refined carbohydrates. It would even be a good idea to be judicious about the amount of fruit that you eat.
Splenda is unnatural and potentially dangerous. It has caused problems for many people and would avoid it.
In regard to regulating blood sugar, protein and fat are your friend. They can both be sources of energy, and they slow down the absorption of sugars. Since you seem to be intentionally avoiding fat, here are a few articles that might help you realize that it doesn’t deserve it’s bad reputation.
Hey Fat Head, You’ve Been Fed a Load of Bologna (this is a great documentary)
12 Reasons Why Saturated Fat is Good For You
To answer your last question, stress is more likely to raise blood sugar than decrease it. Stress promotes the release of the hormone cortisol which elevates your blood pressure and blood sugar to help your body deal with whatever caused it. This is basically the fight or flight response.
I hope that helps!
I appreciate your response. Now when you say “for a while” does that mean this will get better to where I can have some things. Its funny about this blood sugar thing. Like this morning…I’ve been beep bopping around the house doing chores and all of a sudden I started getting that weak feeling and my feet started tingling. I took my blood check and it registered a 94. For some reason when it gets down there I start feeling those familiar signs. So I sat down and ate an apple. within 20 minutes I felt normal again and my sugar level registered a 125. I feel great now. So are you saying the apple was a bad thing? My doctor says to carry around crackers and peanut butter…is this something you agree with? Now mind you…when my blood level gets below 70 that’s when I start seeing spots and thnk I’m going to die…Its emergency room stuff. But since I have found out that hypoglycemia is what I have I haven’t allowed it to get that low. I recognize those early signs of a drop in sugar. I can’t think of anything else it could be.
Oh and another question. Do you not recommend thngs like sugar free jelly, or syrup? Just curious. Thanks again, Jolene
Hi Jolene,
By a while, I mean long enough to see if it makes a difference and establish a baseline. A month would be a good start.
Like you, I am highly susceptible to hypoglycemia. During my glucose tolerance test, my blood sugar rapidly dropped to the mid 50s. There are a variety of factors that can contribute to hypoglycemia such as adrenal fatigue, but in general, some people are simply more sensitive to sugar than others and will stay that way. I’ve completely eliminated things like bread, pasta, bagels, juice, etc. from my diet because I know what they’ll do to my blood sugar. Even people who are less sensitive to sugar will still experience unhealthy blood sugar fluctuations from these foods, but not to the same extent. Regardless of hypoglycemia, these foods are not part of a truly healthy diet for anyone. Both your health and your blood sugar would be much better off if you primarily ate natural whole foods such as meat, fish, fruit, and vegetables.
Most people who have issues with blood sugar tend to do well on a high protein and high fat diet which has also been the case for me. My results with Metabolic Typing correlated with this as well and I wouldn’t be surprised if the same would be true for you.
Eating an apple by itself was probably not the greatest thing. As you saw, your blood sugar jumped up to 125 which is close to being high, and in many cases, and this can easily provoke an excessive insulin response that will cause your blood sugar to drop again. This is why I call it the “blood sugar rollercoaster.” When you consume carbohydrates to elevate your blood sugar, it temporarily raises it, but ultimately causes it to drop and creates a vicious cycle.
Based on this, crackers aren’t a good idea either. Peanut butter isn’t bad, but in general, I think raw organic nuts such as walnuts, almonds, pecans, or macadamias are a healthier choice. Just make sure to soak them first.
The key to avoiding hypoglycemia is not only about keeping your blood pressure above a certain level, but more importantly, also keeping it steady. This will only happen if you eat the right foods and focusing on whole foods such as meat, fish, fruit (in moderation), and low starch vegetables is the easiest and healthiest way to do it.
I absolutely do not recommend sugar free condiments because they usually contain artificial sweeteners like aspartame (Nutrasweet and Equal) or Splenda. As I mentioned in my previous comment, these sweeteners can be dangerous and have been known to cause symptoms that are similar to yours such as a racing heartbeat and burning skin sensations.
In addition, most artificial sweeteners actually contain a large percentage of sugar. Per serving, it’s a small enough amount to justify the “sugar free” labeling. However, if you use enough of the sweetener, it can accumulate to a large enough amount to cause blood sugar to rise too much.
The only exception I would recommend is products that are sweetened with stevia, and I still suggest only using them in moderation.
I hope that helps!
Thank you so much Vin. My husband and I have both been reading this. He is just as concerned about this as I am. I am finding most doctors who may be good at other things are near worthless with hypoglycemia. My dr. kept saying it must be stress bringing on these attacks…until my last big episode I told her i drank some mcdonalds sweet tea that a friend of mine had said was good. Well, as a rule I don’t like sweet things so why I bought it I’ll never know. But because I bought a large fry with it, I did drink it as a wash down factor. Well, about 30 min later I got extremely sleepy and drifted off…when I woke up we coudn’t even count my pulse and I was seeing spots and in a real panic. David ( my husband) had heard that people who are hypoglycemic have spells like this and he thought maybe is was a sugar drop….so he went to our neighbor’s who is diabetic and borrowed her blood tester. It was around 60 and he gave me some honey and very quickly the burning in the back of my neck went away and my heart started slowing down. when I told my dr the next day she said, “You must be Hypoglycemic” and she went from there and the rest is history. Also when my heart starts racing like that my feet start itching and feel weak. I know that sounds wierd, but that’s what happens.
We both are going this week to visit health food stores. I eat almonds at home and at work for snacks. The natural kind…but I bought them at Walmart. I will start soaking them but also try and change what I’m eating all together with meat, non starch vegetables, and fruits. Wow, you are so right about the glucose tablets. They make you feel great and the pain in the stomach goes away as well, but as soon as I get back to bed and start to drift off I am wakened with the heart racing and the blood sugar dropping again. Thats when I eat the non breaded chicken strips. (The kind used in salads, casadias, etc.) And that usually stabalizes it and allows me to sleep through the night. I read on line somewhere that I should start my day with a half glass of orange juice. There are just so many contradictions. I have been so confused I could pull my hair out. But maybe this is the info I’ve been needing. Thank you so very much.
Hi Jolene, You’re quite welcome! I’m happy to help.
I can appreciate your frustration because I’ve been through it myself. Hypoglycemia was just the tip of the iceberg for me.
American doctors are the best in the world at keeping us alive and dealing with traumatic and acute health issues, but in my opinion, are awful at helping us maintain basic health. It’s not totally their fault, it’s just how our system works and how they’re trained.
If you really want to see some unfortunate aspects of our medical system, check this out:
Big Pharma: Marketing Disease and Pushing Drugs
This is why I try to encourage everyone to take responsibility for their health and educate themselves as much as possible so that they can make informed decisions.
There’s no doubt that there’s a lot of conflicting information out there. In such cases, I like to rely on nature as my guide. You can read what I wrote about the work of Weston A. Price to get a better idea of what I mean. He studied isolated cultures that didn’t have access to the modern processed foods that we eat today and found that they enjoyed much better health. These people lived according to the laws of nature and enjoyed vibrant health as a result. Price saw this change dramatically right before his eyes when some of these cultures began eating modern foods.
It can be helpful for people who are prone to hypoglycemia to eat a snack high in protein and/or fat prior to bed and first thing in the morning. I think that would be much better than orange juice which contains a lot of sugar. One of the very first books I read about hypoglycemia, The Low Blood Sugar Handbook, recommends keeping a small amount of plain yogurt by your bedside to have as soon as you wake up. I tried this and found it helpful, but as I learned more about improving my health, I found that I don’t need to do anything like this while following a truly healthy diet. I don’t need to eat every couple of hours either which is an other common piece of advice given to people who suffer from hypoglycemia.
My friend has an insulin pencil instead of syringes. He dials in the amount of insulin he wants to take. His BS bounces up and down like a yoo yoo. When his BS is too high, he takes extra insulin. When it’s too low he compensates by eating something high in sugar. Consequently, his BS soars to above 200. When it’s low, it’s like 47-60. This happens almost everyday. Also, when it’s real low, he’s just exhausted and sleeps for 2-3 hours. He’s 71 years old and has other health problems. Won’t this boucing up and down do permanent damage? What’s the solution. His doctor hasn’t done anything about it so far.
Hi Gerri, I’m sorry to hear about your friend’s difficulties. In most cases, blood sugar fluctuation like this is caused by a diet that is too high in carbohydrates, especially refined carbohydrates and sugar. Obvious examples are candy, soda, and dessert, but some less obvious and more common examples are bread, bagels, cereal, pasta, and fruit juice. Unfortunately, most people make these foods the foundation of their diet.
When people run into trouble with their blood sugar, usually in the form of insulin resistance or diabetes, they rely on insulin and other medications to regulate their blood sugar as they unfortunately continue to eat the same foods that originally caused their problem.
The best way to regulate blood sugar is to keep it steady by eating foods that are much less likely to make it rise excessively. This is primarily natural whole foods such as meat, fish, fruit, and vegetables. Even fruits and high starch vegetables can be a problem if eaten in excess. In addition, increasing the amount of protein and fat in a meal will help to keep blood sugar stable.
It’s also possible that your friend isn’t using the right amount of insulin. Too much will cause blood sugar to drop too low and not enough will allow it to get high.