Perhaps it was a friend documenting their experience using the Zoe app and regaling you with tales of those blue biscuits. It might be that you follow the Glucose Goddess or have been served a flurry of new recipes to keep blood sugar levels balanced and cravings at bay.
Whatever it is, our collective fascination with ‘glucose’ has spiked, now with trackers and CGM monitoring our blood sugar levels on the daily, and our social media algorithms seemingly more preoccupied with the term than ever before.
But for all the videos, clicks and content we’ve gobbled up, how much do we really know about tracking our blood sugar levels? And for those of us who don't need to monitor ours, is this really a fast track to better health - or are we fuelling an unhealthy obsession with all things sugar?
Blood sugar levels, put simply, are a measurement that show how much sugar or glucose is in your blood. Of course, for some people, tracking their blood sugar levels isn’t a choice - those with diabetes need to monitor their levels closely as their bodies don’t produce sufficient insulin; the hormone that aids cells in absorbing sugar from the bloodstream.
For years, the majority of those sitting outside of the wellness periphery haven’t paid close attention to their blood sugar levels. But given that it's closely tied to every organ in the body, and plays a significant role in our longevity and health, understanding the way glucose works is important for us all. 'To understand blood sugar and its impact on your health, it's important to understand how it's regulated. Insulin is an essential regulatory hormone that is secreted mainly in response to carbohydrates and in smaller amounts, protein and is required to get glucose (sugar) into cells to use as energy,’ says Rhian Stephenson, a nutritionist and founder of ARTAH. 'When we’ve maxed out our capacity to use glucose as energy, we need to store it somewhere to get it out of the bloodstream, so insulin is also a part of the control mechanism that prevents our blood sugar from getting too high.'
FIND OUT MORE ON ELLE COLLECTIVE
‘Think of it as the director of energy – it will dictate whether glucose is used, stored in muscles and the liver as glycogen for easy access, or put away into fat cells to save for later,’ she says. Given that we can only process so much at once, the aim is to have a gradual rise and fall in blood sugar and for our insulin to ensure everything runs as smoothly as possible. 'When we take in more glucose than we can process, our body responds by pumping up insulin secretion to clear it from the blood more quickly.'
More sugar equals a rise in insulin. Stephenson says that instead of a rolling curve of blood sugar, you’ll see a drastic spike and subsequent drop which spells disaster both short-term and long-term. ‘If our blood sugar levels are erratic from the first meal of the day, we set ourselves up for a day of hunger, energy crashes, and moodiness,’ she says. In the long-term, there are more severe risks at play. ‘Good blood sugar control is essential for virtually every aspect of health, and it's one of the things that strongly dictates not only how we feel each day but our long-term health, impacting focus, cognitive function, mood, immunity, energy, body composition, levels of inflammation and even reproductive health.'
Though nutritionists and experts have been extolling its importance long before the dawn of social media, there's no denying the term has suddenly been thrust into the spotlight. What was an essential medical necessity for some has suddenly become a mainstream wellness term for others. Its omnipresence online could, sadly, be attributed to the rise of Ozempic, the weight loss drug which is said to work with your own glucose levels. But Stephenson believes it boils down to a few other factors: 'the global crisis in metabolic health, the rise in health tech and wearables, and the move to commercialise the use of CGMs (continuous glucose monitoring) in people without diabetes have contributed to this booming trend'.
Personally, I've watched in disbelief at the graphs that reveal the sudden spike from eating toast with jam for breakfast (a personal favourite of mine), and have found myself consuming daily content from influencers sharing the perils of having a sweet tooth but without really understanding the full story. I've asked myself: should I be demonising sugar from now on? And is all glucose created equal? And what's the mechanism behind these major spikes?
Stephenson agrees that there is a huge amount of misinformation and confusion sweeping social media right now. ‘Whilst I am a big proponent of eating for healthy blood sugar levels, a lot of influencers are pathologising normal glucose tolerance,’ warns Stephenson. ‘There's a lot of scaremongering and for those who don't have a CGM, this is adding to health confusion and the avoidance of health foods,’ she says. She cites a viral video on social media about how one user had a 'shocking spike' caused after eating an apple.
TikTok is also guilty of having turned glucose into a dirty word, a term that now has over 100 million views. ‘On TikTok, I also see a lot of people showing followers how to eat incredibly unhealthy UPF (ultra processed foods) foods by "hacking" their CGM data with exercise or other tips to reduce a spike. Whilst it's true that there are a lot of ways you can reduce a spike, it doesn't mean that these foods suddenly become good for us. There is robust data about the negative impact that UPFs have on virtually every aspect of our health, so hacking a spike may have some benefits, but it doesn't override the fundamental issue,’ she warns.
Much like those viral skincare trends you've seen, social media sometimes doesn’t share the whole picture. Case in point: a glucose spike isn’t always a bad thing. ‘A rise in blood glucose after meals is a normal physiological response,’ explains Professor Tim Spector, co-founder of ZOE. ‘It’s excessive and repeated blood sugar spikes and elevated blood fat levels that result in sustained inflammatory responses, which can lead to negative health outcomes over time. This chronic low-grade inflammation increases our risk of many chronic diseases, including heart disease and type 2 diabetes,’ he shares.
What's more, our reactions to different foods can be completely personal, which is where trackers have come to the fore. There’s been a huge uptick in glucose monitor apps like ZOE and Nutrisense which cater to those who want to know how their bodies process foods. Personalised nutrition company ZOE has become so mainstream that spotting colleagues walking around with their monitors on their arms in the office is as ordinary as seeing them sporting the latest mesh ballet pump iteration.
There's also no shortage of content from influencers showing their data and sugar spikes online. But as Professor Tim Spector, co-founder of ZOE, puts it, 'the goal of monitoring your blood sugar levels is not to see spikes and dips but rather to understand how your body responds to different foods.' Obsessing over dips, highs, lows and spikes is not the goal here.
Stephenson says that interpreting the data can also prove difficult and add to the confusion. ‘For example, some users conclude that they can't "tolerate" a certain food because one intake caused a spike, without fully understanding the other factors that may have contributed to the spike,' she says. For instance, stress, exercise, and sleep are equally important factors to consider. As she puts it, tailoring your life for an optimal CGM data - not to mention an impressive score - doesn’t equate to optimal health. ‘It's really important for people to understand that a CGM is not essential for good health. For non-diabetics, CGMs can lead to information overload, a spike in food or health anxiety, and can even trigger disordered eating,’ warns Stephenson.
Though Stephenson advocates for these trackers if used in the right way and for the right reasons, glucose shouldn't be the singular preoccupation when it comes to health. 'A sole focus on glucose can often mean that individuals become overly obsessed with one marker,’ she says.
That said, if you're armed with the right information and take a 360-degree approach, being mindful of your blood sugar levels can prove beneficial both in the short-term (fewer sugar cravings; better mood) and in the long-term.
And so, how to adopt a healthy routine to keep blood sugar levels balanced? Your first port of call should be to include a variety of plants into your diet for a healthy gut microbiome, says Stephenson. ‘Most of us are not eating enough fibre in our diet. Focussing on wholefoods and reducing ultra-processed foods (UPFs) will up your fibre intake too,' she notes. Then, try and remove the obvious sources of sugar from your daily diet, plus those sneaky hidden sugars found in sauces, honey and white bread. Then, it's important to focus on adequate protein and fibre. 'For protein, you want to aim for 1.2g per kg of body weight. For fibre, it's 30g per day; the average adult in the UK gets 18g of fibre, which an important role in satiety, appetite, and overall microbiome health. Breakfast is an important time for protein, regardless of what time you have it,' she adds.
Be mindful of your food order, too. 'You want to front-load your meal with plants, then protein, and then carbs,' she says. ‘Opting for a breakfast that's high in protein can lead to better blood sugar control throughout the day and into the evening; studies have shown that this can lead to better appetite control and less unhealthy snacking throughout the day,’ says Stephenson. That could be as simple as omitting honey from your steel cut porridge oats in the morning or opting for a savoury, protein-rich breakfast.
There's no denying the crucial importance our blood sugar levels play when it comes to our overall health. As for all of the chatter taking place on social media right now? Look to the qualified experts and find a routine that works for you.
ELLE Collective is a new community of fashion, beauty and culture lovers. For access to exclusive content, events, inspiring advice from our Editors and industry experts, as well the opportunity to meet designers, thought-leaders and stylists, become a member today HERE.
