A cornerstone of dietary strategies is to improve proper blood sugar control. Low blood sugar symptoms include irritability, brain fog, poor concentration, aggression, weakness, sugar cravings, poor stress tolerance, anxiety and depression. A breakfast of corn flakes or rice-crispies is guaranteed to give you a blood sugar dip later in the day.
Proper blood sugar control can be achieved by:
- Eating regularly – never skip a meal and always have a mid-morning and mid-afternoon snack.
- Following a low-glycaemic load diet (low-GL diet) – choose foods that release their glucose slowly. For example, choose brown basmati rice over white rice, oat cakes over rice cakes, whole-grain rye bread rather over ordinary brown bread, strawberries and blueberries over banana.
- Having a proper high-protein, low-GL breakfast – oatcakes with a poached egg or oats with raw apple and raw, unsalted nuts.
- Always combining protein and carbohydrates – lean chicken with brown basmati rice and steamed vegetables will stabilise blood sugar levels whereas pasta with white sauce will result in a blood sugar dip.
- Avoiding all refined foods such as sugars (even honey), soft drinks, white bread, white pasta, sweets and crisps.
- Avoiding stimulants such as coffee, cigarettes and some teas, as these play havoc with the body's blood sugar control mechanisms.
- Eating high-quality proteins. Get your protein from eggs and oily fish such as salmon, sardines, trout, etc. These are good sources of omega-3 essential fats.
Useful tips:
- When going out, always take along raw, unsalted nuts. Almonds, walnuts and raw pumpkin seeds make excellent low-GL snacks and can be a real life-saver should you become edgy due to low blood sugar. Many people avoid almonds because of their calorie and fat content. This is wrong. The focus must be on the GL score of foods.
- Do not go for an evening out on an empty stomach. Fill up beforehand with low-GL foods.
- It may take months to change your diet. Significant changes may be introduced one at a time. (For example, switching from white rice to brown basmati rice).
- The GL score of a meal can be lowered by adding ground seeds (linseeds, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds) to foods such as muesli, smoothies, yoghurt, soups, etc.
The low-GL plate:
The typical low-GL plate should be filled as follow: divide the plate into four parts. Protein (such as lean free-range chicken) makes up one fourth, a low-GL carbohydrate such as quinoa or brown basmati rice makes up another fourth. The balance of the plate is made up of low-GL vegetables or salads such as spinach, tomato, cucumber, etc.
Example of a low-GL menu:
- Breakfast: Egg on rye toast (choose a heavy bread).
- Mid-morning snack: 150 g unsweetened yoghurt with blueberries.
- Lunch: Grilled fish with baby potatoes in the skin and salad.
- Mid-afternoon snack: A few oatcakes with hummus.
- Supper: Grilled chicken with brown basmati rice or quinoa and stir-fried vegetables.
The ‘Big Five’ of Foods to Avoid:
The 5 unhealthy foods listed below are some of the worst you can eat. Awareness and education is the first step to cutting these unhealthy foods out of your diet. That’s why we’ve described in detail why these foods are so bad for you and what the impact of eating them is to your body. However, cutting out these 5 foods is just the first step to healthy nutrition. It’s important that you then replace those unhealthy foods with healthy alternatives. Therefore, we’ve included basic healthy food alternatives for you under each of the 5 unhealthy foods below.
1. Fizzy drinks
- 30-55mg of caffeine per fizzy drink flush out good b-complex vitamins, vitamin C, potassium and other electrolytes
- 10 teaspoons of sugar in one regular fizzy drink may produce Type II diabetes over time and can cause sugar addiction
- Aspartame/sucralose in diet soda is just as bad for you as sugar due to its effect on the brain
- Phosphoric acid in soda decreases calcium absorption, decreases bone density and causes digestive disorders
Alternatives:
- Water (10 glasses per day or more is ideal)
- Sparkling mineral water with a splash of juice
- Sparkling mineral water with fresh squeezed Lemon juice & stevia or xylitol
2. Donuts
- Typically contain 40% trans fats which is the worst fat you can eat, comparable to eating plastic
- Contain high amounts of sugar which can cause addiction and may produce Type II diabetes
- Made with white enriched/processed flour which has no nutritional value; combination of sugar and flour increases blood sugar faster than each on its own
Alternatives:
- Whole, fresh fruit
- Organic protein bar
- Small, high fibre muffin
3. French fries
- Increase insulin production or create a spike in blood sugar
- Contain starch that is deep fried which creates acryl amide, a cancer-producing substance
- 40% of French fries contain trans fats (again, the worst fat you can eat)
- Cause aging, inflammation, clotting, heart disease, etc.
- Over-used oils in restaurants produce a very damaged fat; since it is too expensive and time consuming for restaurants to change out their oil frequently, some restaurants won’t change theirs for months
Alternatives:
- Raw vegetable sticks
- Tossed salad or coleslaw
- Fresh fruit
4. Chips
- Most are high in trans fats (30-40%); all fats are not created equal, and baked is better than fried
- If you see “partially hydrogenated” on the package, it is more damaging than chips that don’t have any hydrogenation
- Trans fats make Type II diabetes more likely and decrease the immune system’s abilities by lowering the fighting cells in the body
Alternatives:
- Raw nuts such as almonds or cashews
- Apple slices with raw organic peanut butter or almond butter
5. Bacon/Fatty Processed Meats
- Contain harmful chemicals such as nitrites, sulfates, etc. that the body doesn’t know how to handle
- Processed meats may create liver toxicity
- Better to buy fresh from the deli than pre-packaged processed meats
Alternatives:
- Organic nitrite-free bacon
- Fresh sliced turkey or roast beef
- Nitrite-free chicken sausage
Once you have cut these 5 unhealthy foods out of your diet, it is important to fill the void that is left with healthy foods such as the ones we’ve suggested above. To do this, you will need to form new shopping and eating habits. A basic rule to follow when shopping for healthy foods and avoiding these 5 unhealthy foods is: the longer the ingredient list, the more you want to avoid the food!
As you can see from the details listed below each food above, there are plenty of reasons to steer clear of them and choose healthier options. By doing so, you stop taking risks with your health simply by paying closer attention to your basic nutrition.
An important fact to keep in mind is that never before have our human bodies had to deal with so many external and internal toxins coming from medications, processed food, fast food, high intakes of sugar, caffeine, alcohol, etc. The ability of the body to be able to detoxify itself and keep it alkaline has become an issue. The kidneys get overworked and the normal processes of the body to rid itself of toxins can become strained.
Here’s what you do:
Start by changing your diet to include more alkaline foods. Avoid processed food and fast food. Drink more pure water – period! Dehydration itself prevents the body from being able to detoxify naturally. A diet high in white flour or grains as a whole can be too much for the body. Too much bread, pasta, and cereal in the diet are often another factor in making the body too acidic. The body likes a lot of greens, fresh fruit, lean proteins, and healthy fats as its staples. Knowing your body type can really help you keep your body alkaline. Decrease or avoid caffeine and alcohol. Find ways to decrease stress levels or cope with high stress. Stress is a major factor in creating acidic bodies.
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YES I have read the list of ingredients and I am aware of the contraindications and possible side-effects associated with taking slimming aids.
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