Blood sugar helps our brain and body function – but with about 80 – 90% of the UK population experiencing glucose spikes every day, there’s a danger in reaching for the cookie cabinet. Find out why balancing your blood sugar levels could be a life-saver (quite literally)
Words: Amy Dowrick | Images: Shutterstock
We need glucose. We need it for brain power, cell function and muscle performance – but why is it so important?
“You do need a certain amount of it, particularly for brain function,” says Dr Sarah Berry, leading expert on human nutrition. “You also need sugar in your blood to provide fuel for your muscles to function, for your tissues and for your organs to function. So, it does have a role to play.”
But according to Dr Berry, excessive glucose spikes and dips when not managed correctly can play a huge part in life-threatening diseases and long-term conditions, including polycystic ovary syndrome and even cancer.
We take a look at why monitoring your blood sugar levels could save your life – and share the diet tips that don’t ask you to cut out the treats entirely.
Why should we stabilise our blood sugar?
“Most of us eat foods that contain carbohydrates, so every person every day is experiencing oscillations, peaks and troughs in blood glucose,” says Dr Berry. “These increases and these dips in glucose play quite a large role in disease.
“If you have excessive peaks, it causes a whole downstream effect of oxidative stress and inflammation,” she adds. “Not only does it increase our risk of type 2 diabetes, but it also increases our risk of any disease underpinned by inflammation, which can include cardiovascular diseases and some cancers as well.”
And while looking at the long-term, glucose spikes have also been associated with hormonal dysfunction conditions like polycystic ovary syndrome, and symptoms of the menopause such as acne, poor sleep and weight gain.
“Where the problem comes in, is where you have excessive spikes,” says Dr Berry. “You have these excessive peaks and these excessive dips in blood sugar – so we don’t want to encourage everyone to flatline, but it’s when it becomes uncontrolled.”
Signs your blood sugar is imbalanced
“There’s a wide array of symptoms that you might feel if your glucose levels are imbalanced, and if you’re experiencing these glucose spikes on a daily basis,” says biochemist Jessie Inchauspe.
These are the most common symptoms she recommends you keep an eye out for:
- Cravings: The most common symptom is experiencing cravings and becoming hungry very quickly after a meal (particularly within 90 minutes or two hours of eating)
- Energy dips: A roller coaster after eating something high in carbs, where you then crash and feel hungry again, experience cravings and feel tired, and repeat the cycle
How to control your blood sugar
Changing what you’re eating can feel a bit daunting in the beginning – but there are a few simple hacks to control your blood sugar levels without having to cut out all the good bits.
Reorder your eating
“I think the easiest hack for people who don’t actually want to change what they’re eating is simply looking at the order in which they’re eating,” says Jessie.
Studies have shown that by eating your food in the right order during a meal, you can reduce the glucose spike of that meal by up to 75% – while still eating the exact same foods.
“The correct order is vegetables first, proteins and fats second, and then starches and sugars last,” Jessie adds. “This has a tremendous impact on your physical and mental health.”
The effect of the fibre in the vegetables will reduce the speed and quantity of glucose absorbed, so Jessie suggests adding a starter that is built around vegetables to all of your meals to get the fibre in your system first and impact your glucose curve head-on.
Exercise more
“Glucose is your body’s source of energy – and your muscles specifically are really happy to use glucose if you need them to contract,” says Jessie. “So, a very simple hack is to use your muscles for 10 minutes after your meals.”
Jessie suggests walking, dancing, folding your laundry, or even cleaning your room within an hour of finishing your meal – anything that gets you moving your body for 10 minutes.
“As you exercise and contract your muscles, they will soak up glucose from your bloodstream to power themselves,” she says. “As a result, the glucose won’t accumulate as much in your bloodstream but rather will be used for energy directly. You’ll see a big impact on your glucose levels and on how you feel.”
Get better sleep
Perhaps a hack you didn’t expect to help the sugar cravings – but one that shouldn’t be ignored – is sleep.
“Many people have experienced the effects of disrupted sleep on their appetite,” says Andrew Huberman Ph.D., neuroscientist and professor in neurobiology at Stanford School of Medicine. “In particular, it’s been reported that when people are sleep deprived, their appetite for sugary foods increases.”
But what does this mean? A 2025 study published in the Cell Press Journal found that each stage of sleep is associated with a particular signature pattern of metabolism – and particular phases of sleep are associated with sugar metabolism.
“We can’t overstate the importance of getting a regular, sufficient amount of high quality at least 80% of the time for properly regulating our sugar metabolism,” adds Andrew.
Andrew suggests that getting quality sleep each night helps regulate not only appetite, but also the specific forms of metabolism that drive specific appetites, such as sugar cravings.
So if you’re looking for a sign to have that lie-in this weekend (or a midday nap if you’re feeling risky) – here it is.
