What Is Blood Sugar?
Have you ever heard a doctor, nurse, nutritionist, or other healthcare worker say the word “glucose”? No, it’s not some secret codeword. In truth, glucose is the actual sugar molecule found in our blood and it is the main fuel that drives the processes in our bodies. Yes, like a car, we need fuel to “go”, and like a car, without our fuel (glucose) we would be stuck in the driveway. But what is glucose, scientifically? Glucose is considered a monosaccharide which is just a long word for “simple sugar” which means glucose is so simple it can’t be made into anything more simple.
How Do We Get Glucose and What Happens to It?
We get glucose from what we eat: fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and dairy foods. These foods contain naturally-occurring sugars. Once we eat food, it goes down into our stomach and then into the small intestines where it is further digested and broken down into smaller and smaller pieces. Glucose, along with many other nutrients, is absorbed through the small intestine and moved into the blood. When the amount of glucose in our blood increases, the pancreas releases a hormone called insulin. Insulin is an important hormone and it signals to our organs and skeletal muscles to pull in the glucose using specialized transporters. Without insulin, the body would not be able to utilize glucose. It’s like having a full tank of gas but not the key to start the engine.
Even after our organs and muscles have pulled in all they need, our muscles and liver can pull in extra glucose and store it for future use. When glucose is stored, it gets a new name and is called glycogen. However our muscles and liver can only store so much glucose, so when the body reaches its storage capacity, the leftover glucose is transformed into fatty acids which get stored as fat. Fatty acids can be converted back into glucose but the process takes much longer (meaning you may not have energy when you need it if you’re only relying on fats for energy) and is not nearly as efficient as utilizing glucose from dietary sources.
How Can We Tell If Our Blood Sugar Is High or Low?
When we eat food containing glucose, the glucose fuels the body for 1-2 hours after eating depending on what and how much we ate. That doesn’t mean you need a full meal every 1-2 hours. That’s why snacks are so useful. Typically, though, when we begin to feel hungry again that can indicate our blood sugar (glucose) is low and that we should consider having a snack. When we feel full, that means our blood has a higher amount of glucose than normal. That’s why we can feel sluggish when our blood sugar is either too low or too high. There’s a sweet spot that is unique for every person where they feel neither full nor hungry. That spot generally tells us that our blood sugar is in its normal range.*
When Mismanaged Blood Sugar Progresses to Diabetes
So far we have discussed how glucose gets into the blood, how it then gets pulled into the cells of our organs and muscles, and finally what happens to the extra glucose under normal circumstances. However, those with a diabetes diagnosis have a few other considerations to take into account. There are two main types of diabetes: Type I and Type II. People with Type I diabetes have a pancreas that is unable to make the insulin needed to tell the organs and muscles to pull in the glucose. The body essentially has lost its key to start the engine and this is a big deal because a lack of insulin is life threatening. The best remedy we have for this problem is a synthetic form of insulin that Type I diabetics are able to self-administer so that glucose in their blood gets to the places it needs to be. Type II is the most common of the two and people with a Type II diagnosis have a pancreas that works by making some insulin, but not as much as it should. Other times, their cells are not as sensitive to insulin as they should be making it much harder for insulin to do its job properly. Sometimes Type II diabetics might need a synthetic insulin, but often they can manage their insulin and blood sugar levels through diet and physical activity modifications, which helps their body respond better to the insulin that the pancreas produces.
Managing Blood Sugar in Healthy Ways
Never fear, there are some simple, yet healthy, ways for you to manage your blood sugar. The first is to listen to our hunger cues-those little messages our bodies send us when we are feeling hungry or full. Have you ever heard of the term, “hangry”? It’s simply a combination of the words “hungry” and “angry”. Oftentimes, low blood sugar manifests in feelings of irritation, anger, or annoyance. Those feelings are important pieces of information, as they are telling us we need to eat! We also have cues that tell us we are full, that may feel like… There’s a certain level of fullness where the body will indicate that our hunger has gone away and we no longer need to eat. If you think you have reached this level, ask yourself if you are still hungry. If the answer is “no” then that’s a great place to stop. Often, when we have eaten past our normal level of fullness, we can become drowsy and sluggish due to all the extra food the body needs to digest. Other fullness cues might include a tight feeling around the belly, stomach pain, a lack of enjoyment eating the food, hunger no longer present, and the food may no longer taste good to us in that moment of being full.
The Power of Whole Foods
Another way to manage our blood sugar is to choose foods that will give us energy for a longer period. When we eat processed foods, we will typically get a short burst of energy and then crash. What we want, though, is sustained energy for longer periods of time, and the best way for that to happen is by eating a balanced diet with a plant focus. Remember that glucose is derived mainly from plants and also dairy. Plant foods, due to their high fiber content, give us periods of sustained energy, which will cut down on blood sugar spikes from processed foods. Managing blood sugar is important for our bodies to function, and can be fairly simple if we tune into our hunger and fullness cues and choose foods that provide us long lasting sources of glucose.
Ready to explore more meaningful ways to change your food and health habits? Reach out to us to schedule an appointment today.
Written by Andy Mathias, Metabolic Reset Program Intern and MSN-DPD student at Bastyr University
*For more precise data on your blood sugars, and for managing low and high blood sugar, using a blood glucose monitor to test a droplet of your blood is the best option.