Is Blood Sugar Management Just Another Trend?

We know you're seeing reels about the dangers of sugar spikes coming up in your feed, Amazon is trying to sell you a continuous glucose monitor but you're not diabetic, and Aunt Karen is refusing to eat a banana because "it's bad for her blood sugar" while you're with the family getting frappucinos at Starbucks.

What is this all about? How much do you need to care about your blood sugar? Will you spontaneously combust if you eat a piece of bread?

Let's get to the bottom of it:

The Basics- What is Blood Sugar?

Sugars are simple carbohydrates, with the simple here referring to their chemical

structure. Sugar can refer to single molecules such as glucose, fructose, and galactose, or combinations of these molecules e.g. sucrose (glucose + fructose) and lactose (glucose + lactose).

When talking about blood sugar, the molecule we measure specifically and care the most about is glucose. Glucose is the body's primary and preferred source of energy. We are dependent on glucose for proper brain function and for efficient function of our muscles and organs.

When we eat, food is broken down to it's molecular components in our digestive system then absorbed into the blood stream. Proteins break into amino acids, fats into lipids, and in the case of carbs, they are broken down to into glucose, fructose, or galactose. Once in the blood stream, these molecules are then absorbed by our cells to be used for energy.

Don't start telling me that Aunt Karen went on a Keto diet, completely eliminating glucose, and she's never felt better on it. Our bodies are so dependent on glucose that even in it's absence, they will create it from proteins in a process called gluconeogenesis. This process is slower than regular carbohydrate metabolism. While the liver can create ketones from fats to use for energy instead, and there can be therapeutic implications of this, they are not the body's and, especially not the brain's, preferred fuel source.

What is a Blood Sugar Spike?

It is normal and necessary for our blood glucose to increase after we eat. The body then releases insulin to allow our cells to take in that glucose, and our levels normalize.

However, tall spikes and steep drops are what can cause pathology.

When we eat certain kinds of foods, we can see a sharper and taller increase in blood glucose levels. (Even in people without diabetes, research shows these spikes can reach levels previously thought to occur only in diabetic ranges after certain meals.)

This is most likely to occur when we eat foods that are high in simple carbs/sugars. Think foods like candy, or foods made with refined flours such as breads, pastas, and pastries. These are able to be broken down and digested very quickly and therefore lead to that quick rise in blood sugar. We can even see spikes from foods such as fruit or high carb vegetables, especially if they are relatively low in fibre.

In turn, the body will release a large amount of insulin to pull glucose into your cells. This large amount of insulin can then cause a steep drop in blood glucose levels. Even when glucose doesn’t drop below clinical hypoglycemia levels, the rate of decline itself is enough to trigger symptoms.

Why the Body Treats a Drop Like an Emergency

Your brain is glucose-dependent. It doesn’t store much fuel. So when blood glucose drops quickly, your body activates a counter-regulatory response:

1. Stress Hormones Are Released

• Glucagon to raise blood sugar

• Epinephrine (adrenaline) to increases alertness

• Cortisol to mobilize stored energy

This is essentially a mini stress response. Your body is thinking: “We’re running out of fuel. Fix it now.”

2. Hunger Signals Ramp Up & Energy Availability Drops

The brain (especially the hypothalamus) responds to falling glucose by increasing hunger hormones. When insulin is high and glucose falls, circulating fuel (glucose + fatty acids) is temporarily low. The brain perceives this as low energy availability. This aligns with research showing post-meal metabolic states can reduce circulating energy and drive subsequent intake seen in controlled feeding studies. This is why sugar crashes lead to intense cravings, especially for foods containing simple or quick carbs, and/or urgency around food (not casual hunger).

Why Glucose Swings Affect Mood and Cognition

Ever been "Hangry"? This is often dismissed as something subjective, but there are real mechanisms creating this feeling.

1. The Brain Needs Stable Glucose

Your brain consumes ~20% of your energy, primarily in the form of glucose. Fluctuations can impair: attention, memory, and cognitive speed.

2. Neurotransmitter Effects

Glucose availability influences both dopamine (involved in motivation and reward), and serotonin (involved in mood regulation). Swings in glucose availability leads to inconsistent signaling which can then lead to mood variability.

3. Stress Response Activation

Remember those stress hormones? Adrenaline + cortisol spikes can feel like anxiety, irritability, and restlessness.

Inflammation: What It Actually Means (Not Just a Buzzword)

You know we're never going to shut up about inflammation, and this blog is no exception. Frequent glucose spikes contribute to chronic inflammation, which can contribute to increased risk of a whole host of pathologies.

How Glucose Spikes Trigger Inflammation

Post-meal inflammation is now recognized as a real phenomenon tied to metabolic disease.

Repeated spikes and drops can lead to:

1. Oxidative stress i.e. excess reactive oxygen species

2. Activation of inflammatory pathways, (msg me if you want to get real nerdy about this)

3. Increased cytokines, i.e. inflammatory signaling molecules

Insulin Resistance

We now understand that when there is an increase in blood sugar, the body releases insulin to bring it into the cells. If there is a sharp increase in blood sugar, the body will release a relatively large amount of insulin. Over time, our cells get used to the presence of insulin, and stop responding to it, therefore more insulin is needed to achieve the same effect.

Here's why this matters:

1. Insulin Promotes Fat Storage

Insulin drives glucose into fat cells and inhibits fat breakdown (lipolysis). So when insulin is chronically elevated you are biased toward storing, not burning fat. Visceral (abdominal) fat is shown to take up glucose and fatty acids more readily and to expand quickly under high-insulin conditions. We know that visceral fat is a risk factor for cardiovascular and metabolic disease, and is in itself highly inflammatory.

2.Hormonal Effects

Insulin resistance also affects:

• Ovarian function via increased androgen production. This can be a factor in PCOS development

• Leptin signaling. This is the hormone that tells the brain we're full and we can stop eating. Impaired leptin signally can impaired satiety cues leading to over eating.

So, spikes and drops in blood sugar negatively effect the body in a variety of ways, including fat storage, hormonal health, and mental health.

Stay Tuned: What Do We Do About It? Let's Talk Blood Sugar Management

Despite all of these negative effects, this isn’t a “never eat carbs again” situation. Far from it!

In the next post, we’re going to break down simple, realistic ways for blood sugar management—without extremes, restriction, or turning every meal into a science experiment.

We'll go over: How to build meals that keep you full and energized, small tweaks that make a big difference, and strategies that actually fit into real life (not just Instagram). Understanding the problem is step one—learning how to work with your body is where things actually change.

Questions? Comment below!