7 Tips to Dampen the Blood Sugar Flame Over the Holidaze!
The holidays make us too busy, too stressed and therefore too tired. And because we’re tired but need to keep going, we reach for the easiest and fastest thing that seems to help us do that and that’s not a salad–it’s sugar! If you understand the metabolic mechanics of the holidays then you’ll know how to beat the fatigue, depression and out of control cravings that come from this wonderful but chaotic time of year!
- FRUIT: Forget about fruit juices and keep your fruit servings down to 2 low glycemic fruits per day. No dried fruit. Fruit cake, banana bread or persimmon pudding does not count as a fruit serving and just because a fruit is in the name doesn’t make it
healthy! - SWEETENERS: Turbinado, demirara, brown sugar, maple syrup, agave, honey, fructose, palm sugar, evaporated cane juice, dried palm sugar, rice syrup, barley malt……….need I go on? These are all high glycemic and need to be limited. Don’t sweeten your hot beverages and absolutely DO NOT substitute with artificial sweeteners……unless you’d like to gain weight and add toxins to your brain.
- FAT FREE: Yeah right, less fat but guess what there is usually more of? Yep, sugar.
Remember to read the label for the GRAMS OF SUGARS in the food item particularly if it says it is reduced fat or fat free! - BREAKFAST: Have it! No, not a coffee and a bran muffin. That might sound healthy
but it’s just a cupcake for grown ups and hence, a high glycemic load! Be especially aware about having a protein dominant breakfast during the holiday season, not a carb laden bakery item. - ALCOHOL: Ok, here is where you can really pack it in! The triple whammy for glycemic load, calories and food intolerance is the traditional egg nog–let alone spiked egg nog! Run to the other side of the room if this is being served. Those seemingly cozy hot toddies are carbohydrate bombs. Remember that alcohol is expert at moving through mucus membranes and will start effecting your blood sugar even before you swallow it! If you are going to enjoy ONE glass of wine, do so with your meal!
- BALANCE: This doesn’t mean to figure out how to hold your wine glass and hors d’oeuvres plate in the same hand so you can grab more from the buffet table with the other. It means to make sure you are having lean protein servings, healthy fat choices and many low glycemic vegetable servings with a modest 1/2 cup healthy carb on your plate. Balance means that you know you are going to a Holiday party where you will likely have a dessert (1 small serving), so you don’t eat ANY sweets the rest of the week.
- EXERCISE: No matter what–move!!! You MUST use your muscles during the holiday season in order for them to burn stored carb and fat! I know it’s cold and rainy out–go to the gym, just get there. No gym membership but you have a 2 story house or an uphill driveway? Then burst up those stairs or driveway with an easy walk down and repeat and repeat and repeat! Get that book on tape and go for a walk, in fact, as one of my clients does, she allows herself another chapter–but onlyif exercising!
If you are super vigilante about your carb and sugar intake through out the holiday season, a small indulgence at your favorite holiday get together won’t turn into days and days of continual carb loading, elevated insulin levels and a source of next year’s resistance to weight loss!
3 HIDDEN FACTS ABOUT HEALING YOUR FATIGUE!
You can listen to the article here.
I don’t know anyone nowadays who doesn’t answer affirmatively to dealing with some kind of stress. The question really is for how long? For some people it’s been low to moderate stress for quite a long time and for others it’s been high stress in repetitive episodes. No matter what kind of stress you have experienced, at some point your adrenal glands will suffer.
The underlying stress induced biochemical changes that are occurring in your body that not only lead to fatigue that you may or may not recognize are the same chemical changes that can be at the core of your resistance to losing fat (especially your belly fat) even though you eat well, your erratic energy patterns that might make you get a second productivity wind at night or food cravings that just seem like they’ve got you by the tail!
All of these issues can be coming from some stage of adrenal dysfunction which has to be found and fixed before you can really attend to resolving the other related health conditions!
What’s in between Addison’s Disease and Cushing’s Syndrome?
Both Addison’s and Cushing’s are medical diagnoses of adrenal pathology, Addison’s being not enough adrenal output and Cushing’s being too much output. Your doctor can diagnose these for you but what about the large grey zone of suboptimal adrenal function that lies between these diagnoses that can be present for long periods of time without ever being found? I call it the grey zone of suboptimal function because traditional medical practitioners don’t know to look for it, there isn’t a formal diagnostic name or medical code for it and yet these less than optimal adrenal levels can contribute to serious shifts in your chemistry that can account for growing abdominal fat, out of control inflammation, insomnia, depression……..the list goes on!
How do I know if I am in the grey zone of dysfunction?
The primary adrenal hormone that is assessed is cortisol and that can be done with a fasting morning blood draw, a 24 hour urine collection or multiple salivary samples. Although the 24 hour urine test tells you about your total cortisol output for the day which is much more information than just an early morning blood cortisol will give you, it still doesn’t give the circadian rhythm of cortisol output which is so important to see when it comes to assessing the brain’s communication with the adrenals or the adrenal’s normal high to low shift of daily cortisol output. The salivary sampling test gives you all of this information which allows you to know the stage of adrenal fatigue that you are in within the grey zone of dysfunction. Normalizing the different stages of dysfunction requires different regimens.
A Breakfast of organic fruit and yogurt is always better than salty sausage and eggs, right?
Not if you are in Stage 3 of adrenal decompensation! A few of the hallmarks of stage 3 adrenal dysfunction are low morning cortisol felt as fatigue no matter how many hours of sleep you’ve had, difficult to control blood sugar, cravings for salt, sugar and/or spices, irritability, low mood, low blood pressure and a host of other symptoms. Low adrenal hormone output defines this stage and that often results in low sodium levels in the blood. You might actually crave salt and will feel much better with a bit of salt in the morning. A protein breakfast is critical in this stage to get blood sugars to rise slowly and to begin stabilizing you for the day, you won’t snack so much through out the day because of constantly dipping brain energy.
These are just a few facts among many about identifying and healing adrenal gland dysfunction. Among the primary pillars that make up optimal health, balanced hormones are among them and the adrenal hormones are as crucial to creating vibrant health as are the androgens and estrogens that we usually think of first when it comes to hormone balance.
I am passionate about helping people sleuth out the reason for their persistent health issues and finally fix them which is why I am including a section on this topic of adrenal health within my upcoming class: Manage Your Energy, Master Your Health!™ on May 7th, Corte Madera, CA.
DOES AUTUMN AGGRAVATE YOUR HEALTH?
Have you ever noticed a pattern that certain nagging health issues reappear or increase during the Autumn season? If you have, then you’ve tuned in to the energy of the Fall season aggravating your health, let me explain how this happens. We’ve just come from Summer which has the qualities of being hot, intense, sweaty and oily. Now we make a 180º shift into a cold and dry Autumn. All of the aspects of Autumn energy are easy to see by observing the leaves on the trees at this time of year. Moisture is being drawn out of the leaves and they eventually fall to the ground where they are light, crunchy and easily moved by the slightest breath of wind. These are the qualities of Autumn: cold, dry, light, crunchy and moving (like the wind).
We share the same environment as the trees of course and so we are subject to the same moisture depleting, cold and moving energy that occurs in the Fall. When we already possess those qualities either as our birth constitution or as an influence from our lifestyle, and then add more of the same when Autumn arrives, that’s when we notice certain aggravations with our health. Particular complaints that show up at this time of year include chap lips, dry skin and hair, even crusty spots in the ears and cracked fingers and heels. Constipation or sluggish bowel elimination is very common during this season. Muscle stiffness and joint irritations that can include crunching and popping and inflammations like tendonitis and bursitis can all appear due to the dryness of the tissues or joint. For the same reasons, nerve irritations like sciatica are common now as well. Insomnia and feelings of agitation or irritability can be heightened because the mind is impacted by Autumn’s moving energy and therefore more difficult to calm. Some of my clients actually say, “I hate the wind, I feel crazy if I am in it for too long, it disturbs me!”
We can prepare ourselves for this seasonal change and even remedy current symptoms by choosing the correct foods and actions that balance the aggravated aspects of Autumn energy. When it comes to choosing foods that are health balancing at this time of year, simply choose those foods that are the opposite qualities of Autumn.
In other words, balancing food choices would be warm, softer, moisture rich and somewhat heavier. Examples of this would be hot cereal vs. cold cereal. Soup vs. cold salads. Steamed, roasted or sautéed vegetables with olive oil and not just raw veggies. Cold foods like ice cream and dry crunchy snack foods are aggravating at this time and should be avoided. It ‘s a great time to reconstitute dried fruits making warm fruit compotes and not eating dried fruit as is! Sipping hot tea and even just hot water is actually strengthening to the digestive and immune system this time of year.
Balancing lifestyle actions in Autumn are not only about hydrating but also about lubricating the body which is why taking warm baths with calming oils or rubbing warming sesame oil on your feet at night are great to do at this time. Steam rooms are great versus dry saunas and if you are prone to sinus problems, start nasal breathing over a simmering kettle of water now! Dry sinus membranes cannot expel bacteria and toxins. It’s definitely the time to get more rest as your body and brain shift their circadian rhythm to shorter days and more darkness. Your exercise should include calmer and more centering activity like yoga, stretching, tai chi, chi gong or even walking in nature. And my favorite tip, especially if you are traveling, is to remember to fill the bath tub with hot water before going to bed and you’ll have an instant moisture rich vaporizer in your hotel room!
I have a fabulous tip for sensitive teeth which can be annoying at any time especially with high stress but Autumn is a specific time that can worsen this condition so stay tuned for that tip coming up soon!
Getting Real about Gluten Free (GF)
Many of you have discovered, or are in the process of discovering, whether or not you and gluten are compatible. To make the initial phase of eliminating your favorite gluten-containing foods easier, we almost always suggest GF substitutes.
It is important to understand that these substitutes are usually highly processed carbohydrates, often filled with sugar, cornstarch or other unhealthy additives. They are, in fact, detrimental to balancing blood sugar. So, in reality, we don’t promote eating these kinds of foods (GF or not) on a regular basis.
We do know that they can be helpful initially, and satisfying during special occasions and holidays. GF goodies are particularly great for kids who must eat gluten free, but don’t want to feel deprived, left out, or “different” from their friends. The nourishing way to eating gluten free is to eat your GF carbohydrates in their whole food form. For example, steamed brown rice vs. rice pasta, or fresh corn vs. cornbread.
One of Sheila’s favorite GF carbohydrate is quinoa, both yellow and red. Quinoa (keen-wha) is the king! Quinoa is an ancient food, cultivated in the South American Andes since at least 3,000 B.C. The Incas called quinoa the “mother grain,” as it is high in protein, calcium and iron. This mother grain really isn’t a grain at all. It’s a seed, which might be why it’s so compatible for people who are grain-sensitive.
In Marin, we primarily see yellow quinoa sold in bulk in many stores. However, red quinoa can be found at Good Earth Market in Fairfax. Sheila loves red quinoa because she finds it to have a toastie flavor, and hearty texture. Whichever quinoa you buy, make sure to rinse it several times to help remove the natural saponins that grow on the plant and give it a bitter taste. As an added bonus, quinoa has all of the essential amino acids making it the only GF carbohydrate that contains complete protein.
