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Walking After Meals can Lower Blood Sugar Levels

Walking is a great exercise for many reasons. First, it is low impact compared to running and cycling. Second, you don’t need fancy equipment or even a treadmill, just a pair of good walking shoes. Third, if the weather is horrible outside, you can walk indoors, even at a mall. Finally, one of the greatest benefits of walking is that if you do it after meals, it can lower blood sugar levels. And you don’t even have to walk for a long time. Studies show that even a few minutes are beneficial.

Benefits of Walking after Meals

After eating a meal, your blood sugar will spike temporarily, which is known as a postprandial spike. This normally occurs within 1–1½ hours after eating. Walking may prevent the spikes by increasing insulin sensitivity, meaning the body will use glucose more effectively.

What the Studies Reveal

A study showed that walking for ten minutes after meals is best. However, other research shows that even 2 minutes will help.

A study from the University of Otago in New Zealand showed that a 10-minute walk after a meal resulted in lower blood sugar levels than a daily 30-minute walk. The study with 41 adults found that type 2 diabetics who took frequent walks after meals had 12% lower blood sugar than those who walked for 30 minutes every day. Improvements were 22% greater after dinner when carb intake was highest.

You can read about the study here: https://www.nicswell.co.uk/health-news/a-10-minute-walk-after-a-meal-good-for-diabetes.

Even the ADA states that if you have trouble walking 30 minutes at a time, walk throughout the day, 10 minutes in the morning, afternoon, and evening (https://diabetes.org/healthy-living/fitness/diabetes-walking-plan#:~:text=Benefits%20of%20Walking,the%20lower%20your%20diabetes%20risk).

Don’t have 10 minutes? Well, even 2 minutes may be enough. Walking as little as two minutes after a meal can help, according to a 2022 study in the journal Sports Medicine.

The study showed that both standing and walking lowered postprandial glucose levels compared to sitting. But, according to Aidan Buffey, an author of the paper, “standing did have a small benefit,” adding, “light-intensity walking was a superior intervention.” Light walking also improves insulin levels after a meal.

Read about the study here: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/04/well/move/walking-after-eating-blood-sugar.html

Learn how standing can help improve blood sugar and insulin resistance in my previous post:

https://backtonaturediabetic.com/sitting-increases-diabetes-risk-and-makes-diabetes-worse/.

But I’m too full to Walk

You may think you are too full to walk after a meal, but walking can actually aid in digestion. Walking after a meal stimulates the stomach and intestines, which promotes faster digestion.

However, if you experience stomach issues while walking after eating, take a 10-15 minute break and then walk slowly.

Other Benefits of Walking

Besides lowering blood sugar levels after meals, walking can also help you with:

High blood pressure
Heart disease
Bad cholesterol
Better balance
Weight loss/maintenance
Elevating mood
Reducing stress
Strengthening bones and muscles
Improving sleep
Socializing by encouraging others to walk and talk with you
Saving money by not having to join a gym

Walk to Benefit Yourself and Diabetes

An excellent way to walk to reduce blood sugar levels and increase diabetes awareness and research is to take part in ADA Step Out and JDRF walks. Check out their monthly walks here: https://backtonaturediabetic.com/events-and-conferences.html

Conclusion

Do you want to lower blood sugar spikes after meals? You can by taking a short walk. Strolling can prevent spikes and even aid in digestion. And a few minutes is all it takes.

Quotes

“Each small thing you do will have benefits, even if it is a small step.” — Dr. Kershaw Patel, a cardiologist at Houston Methodist Hospital.

“Walking is a man’s best medicine.” — Hippocrates

“An early morning walk is a blessing for the whole day.” — Henry David Thoreau

“All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking.” — Friedrich Nietzsche

“If you are seeking creative ideas, go out walking. Angels whisper to a man when he goes for a walk.”

— Raymond Inmon

How to Use the Glycemic Index to Manage Your Blood Sugar

Quick quiz, which will raise your blood sugar faster, a Snickers bar or instant oatmeal? The answer is instant oatmeal. Shocked? To clarify, it’s because of the glycemic index (GI). I will go over what the glycemic index is and how it can help diabetics manage blood sugar levels.

What is the Glycemic Index (GI)?

Glycemic Index (GI), also called Glycemic Load, measures how quickly a food raises blood glucose after you eat it. Low-glycemic foods have a minimal impact on blood-sugar levels, while medium to high GI will have a large impact, causing blood sugar levels to rise.

Low, Medium, and High GI Levels

Food with an index of 55 or less is low glycemic. Most non-starchy fruit and vegetables such as leafy greens and berries have a low GI. Meanwhile, food with an index of 56-69 is a medium such as bananas and pineapples. Finally, a GI of 70 or more is high. Processed food, such as pretzels and cereal, will have a higher GI. In addition, food containing sugar and flour also has a high GI.

What About Carb Grams?

Many diabetics count carbs when managing meals. Because carbs will raise your blood sugars many diabetics follow a low-carb diet. While this is useful, you should also consider a food’s GI. To illustrate, in my post, Can Diabetics Eat Fruit? I mention I can’t eat some low-carb fruits such as watermelon without my blood sugar rising. Even though watermelon is low carb, it has a high GI which will increase blood sugar levels quickly. Therefore, it’s useful to consider both the carb grams and GI of a food.

How to Reduce the GI of a Food

But what if you can’t live without mangos like me? No one wants to limit food in their diet, especially if it’s a popular or comfort food. As I mentioned in the blog, no fruit should be forbidden fruit. So, how can you reduce the GI of medium and high food? Here are some tips.

First, pair food with protein, for example, eat an apple with peanut butter or cheese. Protein and fat can delay carbohydrate metabolism and, therefore, delay blood sugar from rising. In the example above, a Snickers bar has a low GI because it contains fat which takes longer to digest.

Second, use acidic foods such as adding vinegar to a salad, or drinking lemon water with a meal. A French trial confirms that lemons have beneficial anti-diabetic properties. In a randomized trial, volunteers consumed bread with lemon juice. As a result, the lemon juice lowered peak blood glucose concentration and delayed that peak by over 35 minutes. The study concluded that eating something acidic like lemons with starches slowed down the digestion of starches (Study: Lemon Juice Reduces The Glycemic Response–Limoneira).

Third, portion size matters. Eating half of a banana will have a lower GI than consuming a whole banana.

Fourth, cooking preparation makes a difference. When pasta is cooked al dente it will have a lower GI. Also, boiling a sweet potato longer will lower the GI. That is, boiling a sweet potato for 30 minutes as opposed to 8 minutes will lower the GI value (https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/sweet-potato-glycemic-index#sweet-potatoes). Also, slow-cooked oatmeal will have a lower GI than quick oats.

Fifth, it’s no surprise that sweet foods will raise your blood sugar. Choose fruits that are not overly ripe; pick Greek yogurt as opposed to sugary yogurt; choose dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate; and eat foods in their natural state, such as whole fruit, as opposed to dried fruit or juice. Also, sweetened beverages with monk fruit or stevia instead of sugar or honey.

Finally, fiber can slow down blood sugar spikes. For instance, eat high-fiber bread versus white bread. You can also eat a salad before protein and starchy meals (https://theconversation.com/food-sequencing-really-can-help-your-glucose-levels-heres-what-science-says-about-eating-salad-before-carbs-181263).

Resources

To track the GI of food, you can use an app such as Glycemic Index Load Net Carbs and Glyx: Glycemic Load and Index. You can also find many lists, charts, and databases online.

Issues with the Glycemic Index

Unquestionably, the GI is not perfect and you might find different GI levels for the same food. I’ve seen grapes listed as both low and medium GI on different lists. As mentioned previously, you need to consider other factors such as portion size into account. However, the GI can still be a useful tool in pointing you in the right direction. Like I always say, be a diabetic detective and keep track of the foods which raise your blood sugar levels.

Conclusion

While not an exact science, the GI can still help you choose what to eat to manage blood sugar levels and make better dietary decisions. Besides counting carbs, you can also use the GI to prevent high blood sugar. And use the tips above to lower the GI of food.

Quote

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Read the Tea Leaves: Tea May Prevent and Help Diabetes

For as long as I could remember, my father always had a cup of tea in his hand. Unlike my mother and me, who were avid coffee drinkers, my father was a tea drinker. He liked coffee, but it kept him up at night, so he drank tea. My father drank tea upon waking up, with his midafternoon snack, and then again before retiring to bed. Out of all his siblings, he was the only one who never developed type 2 diabetes. With new research on tea reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes, I now wonder if it was because of his frequent tea drinking.

Does Tea Prevent Type 2 Diabetes?

Numerous studies show that tea may prevent type 2 diabetes.

Drinking 1-3 cups of tea decreased the risk of type 2 diabetes but drinking 4 or more cups lowered the risk by 17%.

Dr. Kashif M. Munir, associate professor at the University of Maryland Center for Diabetes and Endocrinology, said “tea is known to contain food polyphenols, such as EGCG, which have been shown to reduce insulin resistance and improve endothelial function which is important for regulating the immune response, blood clotting, and the dilation or constriction of blood vessels. These effects may have beneficial effects on glucose homeostasis and improve diabetes risk” (https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/drinking-4-cups-of-tea-daily-may-reduce-type-2-diabetes-risk#A-few-things-to-consider-about-tea).

Types of Tea

What’s the difference between black, green, and oolong tea? They all come from the plant Camellia Sinensis and processing makes them different. To explain, oxidation (exposure to air) is minimal with green tea, whereas black tea is the most oxidized. Oolong tea falls in the middle, being semi-oxidized.

So, which tea is the best for preventing diabetes? Turns out that all of them are. Green, oolong, and black tea were consumed in the above study.

Furthermore, two more studies show that tea may prevent type 2 diabetes. According to a Japanese study, people who drank 6 or more cups of green tea a day were 33 percent less likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those who drank less (https://www.everydayhealth.com/type-2-diabetes/diet/drinking-tea-diabetes-prevention/).

By comparison, black tea, which my father drank, may also help prevent diabetes. A study included 50 countries from around the world found that countries with the highest levels of black tea consumption had the lowest incidence of type 2 diabetes (https://www.endocrineweb.com/news/diabetes/56850-black-tea-improves-glucose-levels-may-help-prevent-diabetes).

The same study also found that drinking black tea with a sugary drink reduced blood sugar spikes.

Does Tea Help Type 2 Diabetics?

While studies show tea can prevent type 2 diabetes, does it help diabetics? Well, there’s more good news for tea drinkers. Seventeen studies with over a thousand people found green tea reduced fasting blood sugar levels and A1C (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23803878/).

In addition, studies found that drinking green, black, and oolong tea could reduce the risk of diabetes mellitus and diabetic complications (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6617012/).

To sum up, it doesn’t matter which type of tea you drink, green, black, or oolong, they all may prevent and manage diabetes.

Conclusion

Studies show drinking tea may prevent type 2 diabetes and help reduce blood sugar levels. I now believe that my father’s frequent tea drinking may have prevented him from developing diabetes, even though his siblings all became type 2 diabetics. Tea is such a healthy drink it wouldn’t hurt us to consume it for its benefits. Even coffee aficionados like me. And tea (hot or iced) is an excellent replacement for diet soda. In conclusion, you can consider using tea as a natural diabetes remedy.

Tea Idioms

A storm in a teacup
Go for your tea
Not one’s cup of tea
Spill the tea
A storm in a teakettle
Not for all the tea in China
Wouldn’t do something for all the tea in China
No tea, no shade
Read the tea leaves

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Disclaimer

Please remember this is not medical advice or intended to replace the advice of your doctor. This is my experience with the natural supplements that have helped me manage my diabetes. They are not intended to cure any disease. Please do not self-diagnose. Always check with your health care provider before trying new treatments.

Also, natural does not mean safe. Many natural remedies have side effects and can interact with medication and supplements. It should be noted that the FDA does not regulate dietary supplements but treats them like foods and not medication. Unlike drug manufacturers, supplement makers do not have to show their products are safe or effective.

I ask you to please keep an open mind; be a diabetic detective and do your own research; work with your healthcare team; see what works best for you, and monitor your blood sugars.

ALA Can Reduce Blood Sugars, but Caution if You Have This

Years ago, I used Alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) and loved it. I finally found a natural solution to help me reduce my blood sugar levels. And losing weight was an unexpected but welcomed bonus. So, why did I stop using ALA? Read on for the benefits and precautions with ALA.

What is ALA?

Alpha-lipoic acid is an antioxidant made in the body. It’s also in foods such as red meat, spinach, broccoli, yams, potatoes, carrots, and beets. However, the amount of ALA in these foods is low, so people take supplements. ALA breaks down carbs by turning glucose into energy. It can also help with diabetes.

How ALA Helps Diabetes

Studies show ALA improves glycemic control and cholesterol levels (The effects of alpha-lipoic acid supplementation on glucose control and lipid profiles among patients with metabolic diseases: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials – Metabolism – Clinical and Experimental (metabolismjournal.com).

Besides lowering blood sugar and cholesterol levels, ALA may also relieve diabetic neuropathic pain (https://www.healthline.com/health/alpha-lipoic-acid-and-diabetes#takeaway).

Also, a study of 20 randomized controlled trials found that using ALA supplements reduced levels of hemoglobin A1C, insulin resistance, and fasting blood sugar (https://www.verywellhealth.com/alpha-lipoic-acid-88727).

Why I Stopped Taking ALA

So if ALA is beneficial, why did I stop taking it? I stopped because of something in my mouth. To explain, I have dental amalgam fillings which contain mercury. Upon doing further research, I discovered ALA may bind with toxic metals such as mercury. As a result, it may expose mercury to the brain. For this reason, I stopped taking ALA.

Conflicting Views

There are conflicting views on whether exposure to mercury from dental amalgam fillings is harmful.

The American Dental Association declares that dental amalgams are durable, safe, and effective.

The FDA agrees, stating “the existing evidence shows that dental amalgam is not harmful to the general population.” The FDA concludes that “the majority of evidence suggests exposure to mercury vapor from dental amalgam fillings doesn’t lead to harmful health effects for most people” (https://www.mlmic.com/dentists/blog/dental-amalgam-is-safe-says-the-american-dental-association).

In contrast, an article states there are two schools of thought regarding ALA binding with mercury in dental amalgam fillings. The first one is ALA promotes mercury’s mobilization and excretion.

The second belief is ALA is digested and removed. Then the mercury that was bound to ALA flows in the body, gets released in the brain, and leads to mercury toxicity symptoms.

The article concludes with “to answer the question, ‘is it safe to take ALA if you have dental amalgam fillings?’ one has to understand the ratio between ALA and the amount of toxic mercury stored in the tissues of the individual” (https://calgaryneuropathy.com/62-alpha-lipoic-acid/).

Indeed, there is a lot of contradictory information and not enough research on this topic. I played it safe and stopped AL A even though it lowered my blood sugars. If you think you’d to try it, please discuss it with your doctor and dentist.

Signs of Mercury Poisoning

Signs of mercury poisoning can include:

Chronic fatigue
Muscle weakness
Insomnia
Bleeding gums
Metallic taste in the mouth
Stomach cramps
Dizziness
Decreased coordination

Other Precautions

Because ALA can lower blood sugar levels, take caution using it if you are on diabetic medication. Taking alpha-lipoic acid with diabetes medications might cause blood sugar to drop too low.

Also, ALA may interfere with medications for chemo, heart, blood pressure, and osteoarthritis. It can also interact with antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, and tranquilizers, ALA may also lower levels of thyroid hormones (https://calgaryneuropathy.com/62-alpha-lipoic-acid/).

In addition, side effects may include nausea, vomiting, and heartburn.

Conclusion

I am proof that ALA can lower blood sugar levels and even cause weight loss. However, because of my dental amalgam fillings and the risk of mercury toxicity, I stopped taking it. Use caution when using ALA. If you are also taking diabetic medication, ALA may lower your blood sugar levels even more. Please consult your doctor before trying ALA. Remember, just because something is natural does not mean it’s safe to consume. You also need to consider that there are side effects and drug interactions.

Quote

“My diabetes is such a central part of my life… it did teach me discipline… it also taught me about moderation… I’ve trained myself to be super-vigilant… because I feel better when I am in control.” Sonia Sotomayor

JOIN ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Get more information on events and research on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/gabvela1

Disclaimer

I ask you to please keep an open mind; be a diabetic detective and do your own research; work with your healthcare team; see what works best for you and monitor your blood sugars.