How To Avoid The Blood Sugar Roller Coaster Without Giving Up Carbs

You might be familiar with the unforgiving blood sugar rollercoaster…

You indulge in a sweet. You feel happy as can be for about 60-90 minutes. Then you experience the classic blood sugar crash, leaving you exhausted, irritable, and hangry.

So…. you reach for another sugary treat, and the cycle continues. 

Carbs get a bad rap for spiking blood sugar, but that doesn’t mean you should avoid them completely. You don’t have to munch on fibrous veggies all day! You can enjoy healthy carbs that won’t make your blood sugar go haywire.

The key to stabilizing blood sugar? Stick to "cellular" carbs. 

Essentially, "cellular" just means whole. Whole carbs have sugar and starch wrapped around their fiber cells. This means that the whole carb isn’t broken down into a refined product.

Whole brown rice is a cellular carb. Rice flour is an acellular carb because it's been pulverized out of its fiber cell. The kicker here is to balance (and perhaps eat more cellular carbs than acellular carbs). How does this translate to real life and real food? Instead of reaching for cauliflower crackers, opt for the raw cauliflower instead—you’ll get your fill of satisfying carbs without embarking on the blood sugar roller coaster ride. Rather than reaching for lentil pasta, whip up a pot of whole lentils. Instead of chickpea flour, open up a can of chickpeas.

And before you mention how cauliflower doesn’t give you the same satisfaction as the cracker, think again: When you eat cellular carbs, your body has to digest through that fiber cell to release the sugar and starch. You're slowing the digestion of that food and supporting a natural blood sugar curve without that major spike of insulin. Essentially, that whole snack will satisfy you for way longer.

How to mindfully eat refined carbs. 

OK, we know it’s a bit unrealistic to stick to whole carbs all the time. Alternative pastas are totally fine, but just don’t think of them as veggies. Indulge in acellular carbs mindfully, understanding that they have a different effect on your body's glycemic response.

How to do this?

First, look at the ingredients and make sure there are no emulsifiers, gums, or added oils. Then look at the balance between the protein, fat, and net carb content on the label. That’s how you determine what the food mostly contains, so you can have an understanding of what's going to happen to your blood sugar.

Of course, lower the amount of acellular carbs in your diet in general if you want to stay off the blood sugar rollercoaster. The key here is balance—you want just as much (if not more) whole, cellular carbs than refined acellular carbs in your diet. That way, you can get away with a bite of birthday cake, and your body is able to suck it up. No brain fog or insatiable cravings to follow.

10 Simple Ways To Stop Craving Carbs All The Time

To maintain a healthy weight, it’s a wise idea to significantly cut down the intake of sugar and refined carbohydrates.

I say "refined carbs" because unrefined carbs like beans, fruits, and whole grains are carbs, per se, but unlike bread that is bleached and heavily processed into flour, natural carbohydrates are metabolized slowly and won't send your blood sugar on a high-speed train ride up. Spikes in blood sugar are a ticket to cravings, hunger, and lethargy.

That being said, cutting out carbs and sugar is way easier said than done. The blood sugar rollercoaster is no joke, and the changes in our gut bacteria that come with perpetual sugar and carb consumption make us crave those very foods like nobody's business. Luckily, you can use these 10 great tips to help get yourself off the carb-sugar train:

1. Drink more water (or low-calorie drinks!).

Probably more times than you realize, you are confusing hunger with thirst. So sipping on water, sparkling water, low-sugar kombucha, or iced herbal tea throughout the day is a great way to make sure you're not dehydrated. It's also a great way to keep yourself busy, so you don't turn to mindless snacking.

2. Let vegetables do their magic.

Eating veggies—especially those high in cellulose, like dark leafy greens (especially the stems) and cruciferous vegetables—results in increased intestinal bulk. Their high water content also increases satiety. They also promote hormonal balance, help repopulate the gut, and give you phytonutrients not available elsewhere. On top of all that, they are also the most nutrient-dense foods out there. Need I say more?

3. Fill up on high-fiber foods.

High soluble-fiber foods—like properly soaked beans, legumes, vegetables, and fruit—will stretch your stomach and empty it slowly, which means you'll feel fuller and more satisfied for longer. Fiber also slows the release of sugar into the blood, stabilizing blood sugar, curbing hunger, and cutting down on cravings. Lastly, fiber is the mainstay for gut and hormone health. Good gut bacteria need prebiotic fiber to function well. Consuming more fiber can transform your health, especially your cravings for sugar and carbs.

4. Sit down and eat without distraction.

I know it is tempting to eat in front of a screen, but taking time to eat sitting down, relaxed, and focused on each bite aids digestion. Not only will you chew more, but when your brain can register each bite, you feel fuller faster. We also know that emotions can bring on disordered eating. All in all, it's best to eat when you are away from stress or learn how to separate your emotions from food.

5. Chew your calories (slowly) and don't drink them.

Like sitting down without distraction, chewing alerts the hunger hormone, ghrelin, that food is coming in. If you eat too fast or down a smoothie in 90 seconds, it doesn't register as completely and your brain will prompt hunger. Rushing also creates an insulin spike, which will cause you to become hungry again as soon as it goes away.

6. Prioritize 8-9 hours of sleep.

Sleep is a big factor in how much ghrelin you produce. The less sleep you get, the more ghrelin is produced and the hungrier you are. Not to mention, sleep aids stress relief, and stress is a fast train to emotional eating and weight gain. Getting eight to nine hours of uninterrupted sleep is one of the best things you can do for your waistline and overall health. If you need a little help winding down or suffer from insomnia, try using 1 milligram of melatonin every evening.

7. Use your caffeine wisely.

Caffeine can be an appetite suppressant, but it also dehydrates you and can lead to a crash. So drink your coffee in the a.m. and then don't overdo it in the afternoon. One cup of coffee and/or one to two cups of green tea works well for most.

8. Fully immerse yourself in your work and activities.

Boredom is one of the largest contributors to mindless snacking, and lack of purpose and isolation can lead to emotional eating. What's the solution? Move! Do things you love with people you love, preferably outdoors. You'll feel great, and when you feel great, you don't crave comfort food.

9. Consider natural carb craving aids like L-glutamine, cinnamon, and chromium.

I don't recommend these as everyday things (except cinnamon; I definitely recommend cinnamon every day!). But if and when those insatiable hunger and carb cravings strike, the amino acid L-glutamine and the mineral chromium can be terrific tools, decreasing carb cravings in as quickly as 20 minutes.

10. Make room for the occasional treat.

Feeling deprived is no good for long-term health. If you say, "I'll never eat ice cream or crusty bread again!" you will likely obsess or eventually overindulge. Find healthful alternatives daily (like two squares dark chocolate), or have the real stuff on birthdays and special nights. If you're straying from your healthy diet one meal a week, you're doing just fine!

These 10 tips will help free you from carb cravings so that you can go back to your life and worry about more important things, like your work, your family, your hobbies, and time spent with friends.

Jessica Kishpaugh is a Certified Holistic Nutritionist & Mindfulness Life Coach and owner of LoYo Wellness in Bergen County NJ (www.loyowellness.com).  Jessica specializes in healthy weight loss, intuitive eating, recovering from emotional eating, stress reduction and mindfulness. Book your FREE Breakthrough Call HERE.