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You are here: Home / Diet + Detox / Blood Sugar / How to Balance Blood Sugar: Become a Blood Sugar Detective

How to Balance Blood Sugar: Become a Blood Sugar Detective

by John Douillard on September 3, 2019 | 11 Comments

In This Article:
Healthy Fat, Replaced by Sugar
Blood Sugar History
Catch Blood Sugar Issues Early
How to Balance Blood Sugar
10 Experiments to Solve the Blood Sugar Mystery

blood sugar detective man with magnifying glass fat

What is blood sugar? How do I balance my blood sugar naturally? In this article, we dive into the history of rising blood sugar levels and what you can do about it.

Healthy Fat, Replaced by Sugar

We all have two sources of fuel: fat and sugar (carbs). Fat is stable, long-lasting fuel, while sugar and carbs burn quickly. In 1961, America was told fats were bad for our health, and so food manufacturers replaced fat fuel (cholesterol) with government-subsidized starchy and sugar-laden, highly processed corn and wheat products.

Without good fats, America became hungry for more carbs and sugar. Highly processed grain products deliver only short bursts of energy (sugar), so America started to overeat in order to feel satiated. Researchers found that older Americans are eating significantly more calories from carbohydrates and less from fats than they were only 40 years ago!6

Eating too much causes excess sugar to linger in the bloodstream. Even a small rise in blood sugar has been linked to premature death, accelerated aging, and chronic and degenerative health concerns. The key to optimal health is early detection!

Today, according to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 1/3 of America is prediabetic.8-10 Not only that, but blood sugar levels still within the accepted normal range are now linked to epidemic levels of cognitive decline in our elderly, as well as premature aging and cardiovascular risk.4,5,7

Blood Sugar History

The following is a short summary of facts that show how we got into this mess of heightened blood sugar concerns. It is up to us to dig ourselves out!

FACT: In 1961, the American Heart Association (AHA) declared cholesterol a public health concern.1

FACT: Consumption of fats declined.6 Heart-healthy consumption of eggs decreased by 30%.1

FACT: In 1980, the federal government subsidized farmers to grow wheat and corn. In 2005, $7.3 billion was subsidized to farmers to grow grain for feed.2

FACT: Good fats were out and corn and wheat (sugar) were in. Not only that, corn and wheat (sugar) were used by food manufacturers for pennies on the dollar.1,2

FACT: Heart disease has skyrocketed in the USA over the past 30 years.4

FACT: Dairy products from grain- and corn-fed cows have 500% less heart-healthy fats, such as conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) compared to grass-fed cows.3

FACT: According to the CDC, an estimated 1/3 of American adults are prediabetic and 90% don’t know it!5

lifespa-image-cravings-young-girl-sneaking-cookie-kitchen-counter

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Catch Blood Sugar Issues Early

Take responsibility for your health, wellbeing, and longevity by monitoring your blood sugar. Today, the normal range for fasting blood sugar is too high, according to an overwhelming amount of science.4,5,7

Start by monitoring your fasting blood sugar levels in the morning, and make lifestyle and dietary adjustments until you see fasting morning blood sugar start falling into the 70-90mg/dL range—no higher.

To learn more about the most common causes of blood sugar concerns, download and read my free eBook Blood Sugar Secrets for Health and Longevity.

We Recommend

Blood Sugar Secrets for Health and Longevity eBook

How to Balance Blood Sugar

There are many things we should all do to protect ourselves from blood sugar concerns. Here are some of what you will learn in my eBook:

  • How to reduce or avoid added sweeteners
  • How to reduce or avoid processed foods + cooked oils
  • How to eat balanced meals with proteins, veggies, starches + good fats
  • How to exercise daily to balance blood sugar

While these blood sugar rules will help tremendously, sometimes it requires a little detective work to understand our blood sugar levels. Often there are hidden causes of heightened blood sugar that are not so easily detected. This is why I am a fan of self-monitoring blood sugar at home with a glucometer.

10 Experiments to Solve the Blood Sugar Mystery

Let’s say you’ve cut out sugar and processed foods, and have followed all of the eBook recommendations and you still have blood sugar numbers higher than you would like. Get creative!

Start taking certain foods out of your diet or make some specific lifestyle changes for a week at a time and check your numbers first thing in the morning during that week to measure changes. These can be done in any order:

  1. Stop wheat for a week.
  2. Stop dairy for a week.
  3. Stop wheat and dairy for a week.
  4. Cut out alcohol for a week.
  5. Go to bed before 10pm for a week.
  6. Don’t eat carbs at night for a week.
  7. Stop eating after 6pm for a week.
  8. Fast on water or green vegetable juice one day a week for a month.
  9. Eat light (only 600 calories a day) two days a week (and normal the other five days) for a month.
  10. Try my Ayurvedic intermittent fasting plan in my free Ayurvedic Weight Balancing eBook for a month.

Be aware that glucometers are inexpensive and not precise instruments. Look for trends rather than exact numbers with each reading.

Sometimes being a blood sugar detective requires some extra sleuthing, so be patient while you learn about which unique lifestyle factors work best for you in supporting healthy blood sugar levels—it’s well worth it!

Have you tried any of the above experiments? How did they go?

Dr. John Douillard, DC, CAP is the author of seven health books (including bestselling Eat Wheat and The 3-Season Diet), seven online courses (including new Yoga Journal course Ayurveda 201 on Ayurvedic Psychology), and numerous free eBooks. He is a former NBA nutritionist and creator of LifeSpa.com—with thousands of free articles, resources, and videos. LifeSpa is a leading wellness resource, with nine million+ YouTube views and over 130k newsletter subscribers.

References

  1. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/02/10/feds-poised-to-withdraw-longstanding-warnings-about-dietary-cholesterol/
  2. Rosenthal, J. Integrative Nutrition. Greenleaf Books. 2007. 20.
  3. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10531600
  4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10333902
  5. http://www.cdc.gov/media/dpk/2014/dpk-diabetes-report.html
  6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4007308/
  7. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23924004
  8. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23515058
  9. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4116271/
  10. http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/images/prediabetes-inforgraphic.jpg

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Categories: Aging + Longevity, Blood Sugar, Wheat & Gluten Issues Tagged: Aging, blood glucose test, blood sugar, cardio, cholesterol, fat, glucose, heart health, sugar, weight balancing

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  4. Samia says

    July 17, 2018 at 6:26 pm

    It looks to me as if your recommendations are more suitable for persons with outright Type 2 diabetes, borderline diabetes, or pre-diabetes. They are not right for a person who is not in any one of those categories. Except for poorly managed blood sugar lowering type of diabetes, hypoglycemia basically a liver issue.

    Reply
  5. Joanie says

    September 25, 2015 at 12:09 pm

    My son has very complicated problems; his health problems are like a puzzle and we keep finding pieces. He is 24 and has been sick most of his life. His story is too long to go into here, but he has struggled with seizures much of his life & in the last couple of yrs we came to realize he had hypoglycemia and then, about 8 mos ago, reactive hypoglycemia. They cause the seizures. He has had a high pulse that barely responded to maximum doses of Propranol, but when we started the reactive hypoglycemia diet his pulse came down except for when he is unbalanced. The diet is 5 to 6 meals with 22 g of starch and about 15 g of protein & we came to this ratio after trying many other amounts of each While it helped a lot, it seems like the core sickness is getting worse and this blood sugar beast won’t be tamed. He has spent years struggling with irrational meltdowns ( dangerous at times), mental changes, inability to exercise and on and on. If his blood sugar becomes imbalanced his eyes dilate and he becomes silly or angry and then bam,, he has a seizure. He will produce strong perspiration. These are not normal seizures and we have to get some carb and protein down him while he is having this odd status ( big jerks of arms and snoring like noises) or it won’t stop. There is much more to tell, but I can’t do that here. I just started using a glucose meter recently and his blood sugar does not rise much after a meal most of the time. It might make it to 117 ( this meter or strips run higher than normal, we know). We can see it trying to rise 30 to 50 minutes after a meal, then it drops, sometimes over 20 points within a 15 minute period. It will try to rise again and the same thing occurs. Wouldn’t insulin be bringing it down? I have been looking at hyperinsulinemia information and causes, but I wondered if the frequent meals could have exacerbated the situation – causing insulin to stay too high? Do you believe people with reactive hypoglycemia can eat less often?

    Reply
    • John Douillard says

      October 2, 2015 at 12:08 pm

      Hi Joanie,
      Thanks for writing. Meals vs. snacks is one way to lower insulin production. For hypoglycemia sometimes we have go to 4 meals a day, but even for hypoglycemia we need to work towards eating less frequently.
      That said, your son’s situation sounds unique and quite complex and to safely get appropriate advice I would recommend we set up a consultation (https://lifespa.com/about-lifespa/clinic/ayurvedic-consultations/#johndouillard).
      Be well,
      Dr. John

      Reply
  6. Lauren says

    September 3, 2015 at 10:17 am

    Can a person with Type 2 diabetes do the Colorado Cleanse safely?

    Reply
  7. Kim says

    August 23, 2015 at 8:02 pm

    I recently had blood work done as a follow up to my May blood work. In May my A1C was 117 or 5.7 and now it has risen to 126 or 6.0, however my fasting blood in the morning is and has been 84. What is the difference in the A1C and the glucometer number? I do think (for the most part) I am a healthy eater.
    Thank you!
    Kim

    Reply
    • John Douillard says

      August 24, 2015 at 10:33 am

      Hi Kim,
      The A1C is a 3 month average of the sugar and relates to all possible reasons why the sugar could be high. Fasting numbers are more related to liver function. Two hours after meal numbers relate to more pancreatic function. I would suggest reading my free Blood Sugar E-book and some of my recent blood sugar articles.
      Be well.
      https://lifespa.com/blood-sugar-secrets-health-longevity/
      https://lifespa.com/?s=blood+sugar

      Reply
  8. Nadine Feldman says

    August 11, 2015 at 3:17 pm

    These are super ideas! My fasting blood sugar level was in the upper 90s during my last medical visit, which floored me since I eat well, am at a healthy weight, do my cleanses, and am very active. I bought a glucose meter but really didn’t know how to proceed. These ideas give me a much-needed path forward. I will download the book and look forward to learning more.

    Reply
    • John Douillard says

      August 12, 2015 at 11:24 am

      Keep us posted on your progress, Nadine. Glad you found these suggestions helpful.

      Reply

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