The more sugar and refined carbohydrates – such as
commercial cereals, cookies, muffins, cakes, and sweets – that you eat, the
more you become unable to maintain even blood-sugar levels. The symptoms of blood-sugar problems,
technically called hypoglycemia, are many, and include fatigue, irritability,
dizziness, insomnia, excessive sweating (especially at night), poor
concentration and forgetfulness, excessive thirst, depression and crying
spells, digestive disturbances, and blurred vision. One of the world’s experts on blood-sugar
problems, Professor Gerald Reavan from Stanford University in California,
estimates that 25 percent of normal, non-obese people have insulin
resistance. This means their bodies
don’t respond properly to their own insulin, whose job is to keep you
blood-sugar level even.
Sugar in only on side of the coin, as far as blood-sugar
problems are concerned. Stimulants and
stress are the other. When your
blood-sugar level dips there are two ways to raise it. One is to eat more glucose, and the other is
to increase your level of the stress hormones adrenalin and cortisol. There are two ways you can raise adrenalin
and cortisol. Consume a stimulant – tea,
coffee, chocolate, or cigarettes. Or
react stressfully, causing an increase in your own production of
adrenalin. You can now see how easy it
is to get caught up in the vicious cycle of stress, sugar, and stimulants. It will leave you feeling tired, depressed,
and stressed much of the time.
If you would like to break free from this vicious cycle and
eradicate the negative effects it has on your mind and mood, consult your
natural nutritionist to help you break free from your addiction to caffeine,
while improving your diet. Vitamins and
minerals are important because they help to regulate your blood-sugar levels,
and hence your appetite. They also
minimize the withdrawal effects of stimulants and the symptoms of food allergy.
Karolyn
Sheinken, David, Schachter,
Michael, Hutton, Richard. The Food Connection: How the Things You Eat Affect
the Way You Feel-And What You Can Do About It. New York: Bobbs-Merrill Co.
1979.
Ruden, Ronald. The Craving
Brain. New York: Harper Collins. 1997.
Nehlig, A. Are We Dependent
upon Coffee and Caffeine?: A Review on Human and Animal. Neurosci and Biobehav
Reviews. 1999. 23:563-576.
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