Natural Guide To Control Blood-sugar Levels

Sugar is the primary culprit in the development of hypoglycemia
and diabetes. While sugar does provide a temporary boost of
energy, eating it too frequently puts tremendous stress on the
organs and glands that regulate blood-sugar levels.If you don't
have hypoglycemia or diabetes or if you rarely indulge in sugar,
your pancreas can handle occasional sugary treats. But if you
frequently eat sugar, your pancreas can become hypersensitive to
sugar and overreact, flooding your body with insulin, which
causes blood-sugar levels to plummet. This triggers your adrenal
glands into action, and they notify your liver to release the
glucose that it has stored as emergency fuel, which once again
floods your bloodstream with sugar. If this happens too many
times, your pancreas can finally give up and stop producing
insulin or your cells may become resistant to insulin, and
hypoglycemia can slip into diabetes.

Most American women eat about 80 pounds of sugar per year, as
well as large amounts of refined carbohydrates such as white
flour, which is easily converted into glucose in the body. Even
if you don't add sugar to foods, you can still take in
tremendous amounts if your diet contains a lot of prepared
foods. Obviously, desserts and sweets are loaded with sugar, but
other foods such as salad dressings, pasta sauces, and dry
cereals also typically contain large amounts of sugar. Sugar is
hidden in foods in many forms and is often used in more than one
form in processed foods. To help restore healthy blood-sugar
levels, avoid all forms of sugar, including sucrose, glucose,
maltose, corn syrup, honey, maple syrup, barley malt, and
molasses. Learn to enjoy the unprocessed sweetness of fresh
fruits (in moderation) and sweet vegetables such as yams,
carrots, and winter squash. Although giving up concentrated
sweeteners may be difficult initially, you will find that your
cravings for sugar will diminish within a few weeks.

Other foods that interfere with healthy blood-sugar levels
include refined carbohydrates such as breads and pastas made
from white flour and white rice, all of which are rapidly broken
down into simple sugars in the body. Stimulants such as caffeine
offer a temporary burst of energy, but stress the adrenal glands
and further impair their ability to normalize blood-sugar
levels. Alcohol also interferes with blood-sugar stability
because it hinders the body's ability to use glucose and
stimulates the release of insulin, which causes blood sugar take
a nosedive.

To help maintain steady blood-sugar levels, eat a diet high in
fiber, especially soluble fiber, which slows down the digestion
and absorption of carbohydrates and prevents rapid increases in
blood sugar levels. Soluble fiber keeps the pancreas from
secreting too much insulin by enhancing cell sensitivity to
insulin and improves the use of glucose by the liver, which
prevents blood-sugar levels from remaining too high. Strive for
at least 35 grams and preferably 50 grams of fiber each day.
Legumes, whole grains, nuts, seeds, vegetables, and fruits are
good sources of fiber, and especially good sources of soluble
fiber include legumes, oat bran, most vegetables, apples, and
pears. Eat carbohydrates in as close to their natural state as
possible, because the fiber content helps to slow the absorption
of natural sugars that carbohydrates contain-for example, eat an
apple instead of drinking apple juice. Psyllium-seed husks, guar
gum, and pectin are excellent sources of supplemental soluble
fiber. To help balance blood-sugar levels, take one to three
teaspoons of a fiber supplement stirred into a glass of water
twice daily before meals.

Protein is essential for the proper functioning of the adrenal
glands, pancreas, and liver and prevents cravings for
high-carbohydrate foods. Because protein does not stimulate the
release of insulin as do carbohydrates, it helps to stabilize
blood-sugar levels. For maximum blood-sugar stability, eat three
to four ounces of protein at lunch and at dinner. Moderate
amounts of healthful fats are also essential for helping to
maintain healthy blood-sugar levels and for providing a feeling
of satiety, which helps to reduce cravings for carbohydrates.
Raw nuts and seeds, avocados, olive oil, and flaxseed oil are
all good sources of health-enhancing fats.

Eating frequent small meals is a helpful strategy for
stabilizing blood-sugar levels. Avoid skipping meals, or going
for more than two to three hours without eating. Get into the
habit of eating meals at regular times, because your body
functions best on a regular schedule. Plan for three meals a
day, plus midmorning, midafternoon, and evening snacks. Include
a small amount of protein or fat in your snack to help keep
blood sugar stable-for example, have an apple with a few
almonds, crackers with tofu spread, or carrot sticks with a few
walnuts.

Supplements that are especially helpful for balancing blood
sugar include chromium, a trace mineral that is essential for
the proper functioning of insulin. Take 200 to 600 micrograms of
chromium picolinate daily. To help strengthen the adrenal
glands, take 2,000 milligrams of vitamin C daily in divided
doses and a high potency multivitamin and mineral that provides
50 to 100 milligrams of the B-complex vitamins.

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John V
John C. Vincent/CEO/The Opt-In Magic System
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