Ten Ways to Naturally Regulate Your Blood Sugar
With sugar infiltrating most foods it is now necessary to monitor and regulate our blood sugar for optimal health. Sugar has been linked with diabetes and heart disease— and now many other diseases! Excess sugar in the body creates insulin resistance over time— which causes inflammation in the body. Inflammation is the root cause of over 80 diseases in the body. Here are some ways you can help shed some pounds, get the thumbs up from your doc and feel better
1) Look at the ingredients in your food. Foods such as peanut butter and bread generally aren’t considered to be foods where you would find sugar, but I have found it listed as the second ingredient! In Jif peanut butter, it is listed as the first ingredient along with peanuts!
2) Stay away from processed foods. Many processed foods contain high fructose corn syrup and other sugars. Processed foods are considered dead foods. Choose live foods and you will likely find yourself feeling less tired, less depressed, more energetic, and lighter.
3) Beware of low-fat foods. Foods labeled low fat often contain added sugar to make up for the lack of taste. Compare brands when you are in the grocery store. If the same brand of cottage cheese has the same amount of calories in both the low-fat and the regular, it has been infused with sugar. Also, remember that the fat will help in slowing the absorption of naturally occurring sugars.
4) Count your carbohydrates. It seems obvious to watch your intake of sugars, but most people don’t realize carbohydrates turn into sugars in the body. Limiting the number of carbs you consume per meal to roughly 15 grams (7 grams per snack), helps to keep your blood sugar from spiking and making you feel hungry shortly after eating.
5) Calculate the amount of added sugar in your food. Most women should not have more than 100 calories (150 for men) from added sugar a day, which translates to roughly 6.5 tsp of sugar (9.5 tsp for men). To get the amount of sugar or calories in your food, multiply the grams of sugar by 4 to get the calories from sugar, or divide the grams of sugar by 4 to get teaspoons of sugar.
6) Drink Aloe Vera juice and gel. You only need a few ounces a day to help regulate your blood sugar. As a bonus, you will also boost your immune system and reduce your risk of colon cancer.
7) Get 6+ hours of sleep. People who sleep 6 hours or less have an increased risk of developing diabetes. People who sleep less generally consume more calories during the day because they have higher levels of the appetite-stimulating hormone ghrelin and lower levels of the appetite inhibitor leptin in their blood.
8) Get moving! Working out will help burn excess calories and fat, but it will also help you get a deeper sleep which will help keep your ghrelin and leptin hormones at optimal levels lowering your risk of diabetes and heart disease.
9) Supplement your diet with Cinnamon, Manganese, and Chromium. Cinnamon is a popular Chinese Medicine herb used to treat blood sugar. Manganese and Chromium are crucial for blood sugar regulation because manganese is involved in the metabolism of glucose (sugar) and chromium is necessary for carbohydrate and fat metabolism. Health food stores often have suggestions for blood sugar-regulating brands. I like Glucose Optimizer by Jarrow Formulas. I noticed a significant difference in how hungry I felt between meals.
10) Try taking 150 mg of African Mango fruit extract twice a day. Not only does this supplement curb your hunger by telling your brain you are full, it also helps regulate blood sugar!
*Please note I am not a doctor, nor am I a nutritionist. I read the information that is available to us all. This is my informed opinion.