Nutrition for Insulin Resistance (Nutrition for Managing Blood Sugar)

Insulin’s primary role is to control your blood sugar.

I’ll get into more about insulin in a minute. But first, a quick orientation. This is the second in a series of posts where we dive into specific hormones and their connection with nutrition. (Check out the first article on thyroid hormones.) Why am I doing this series? Because “hormones” is one of the latest buzzwords in health on the internet. And, there’s both truth and manipulation intertwined in those messages. In this series, I’m teasing out the scientific evidence so you can spot the manipulation. Let’s start with a definition of hormones. What are hormones? Hormones are chemicals that your body creates to send a signal from one part of the body, through your bloodstream, to another part of your body.

Now, let’s get into the details about insulin.

We help a lot of people with managing blood sugar and insulin resistance. So, I wanted to cover it next in this series.

What Does Insulin Do?

Insulin is a hormone made in your pancreas. Your pancreas is a gland located near your stomach. As I shared already, insulin’s primary role is to control your blood sugar. When you digest carbohydrates (carbs), they’re broken down in your intestine into a sugar called glucose, which is absorbed into your bloodstream to be circulated to cells around your body such as your muscles and your liver. When glucose enters your blood, it signals your pancreas to release insulin. Insulin allows the glucose to move from your blood into the cells of your body where it’s needed for fuel. And, insulin helps your blood glucose to move into your liver where it’s stored to be used for energy later on.

Insulin Problems- What is Insulin Resistance?

There are two main types of problems with insulin.

Type 1 Diabetes (what used to be called juvenile or child-onset diabetes) is when the part of your pancreas that makes insulin has been damaged. This damage impairs your ability to produce insulin. That’s why people with type 1 diabetes need to take insulin (via needles or a pump). None of the dietitians currently on our team support people with type 1 diabetes so I won’t go further into this condition. 

The second problem with insulin is more common: insulin resistance. In insulin resistance, your body’s cells aren’t responding to the insulin that you make and aren’t letting glucose into your cells. At first, your pancreas will release more and more insulin to get the results – i.e. move the sugar from your blood into your cells. It does this because your body is like Goldilocks – it wants just the right amount of sugar in your blood – not too much and not too little. When you have too much sugar in your blood, over a long period of time, it causes damage to your blood vessels. Those are the side effects of uncontrolled diabetes that you may be familiar with such as blindness, nerve damage (pain & tingling in feet and hands), and amputation. High blood sugar also is associated with inflammation. To prevent this damage, your body produces more and more insulin to get the job done of moving the glucose from your blood into your cells.

Over time, despite your pancreas producing extra insulin, the resistance is so great that your blood sugar remains high. It’s this stage when blood sugar levels are high despite your body producing insulin, that is called “pre-diabetes”. When blood sugar levels rise even higher, it’s called Type 2 Diabetes (what used to be called “adult-onset diabetes”).

Risks of Insulin Resistance

Several factors increase the risk of insulin resistance. For almost all of these factors, it’s not known how or why they increase the risk of insulin resistance.

• Age: People over age 45 are at increased risk of insulin resistance.

• Genetics: Insulin resistance has a genetic component. It runs in families. People of certain cultural/ ethnic backgrounds have higher rates of insulin resistance. However, it’s not certain how much is related to genetics and how much is related to the social determinants of health (or the interaction of the two as in epigenetics). Some cultural groups that experience higher rates of insulin resistance are Indigenous, Hispanic/Latinx, and Pacific Islander people.   

• Menopause: While the relationship is not fully understood, estrogen helps insulin do its work. When estrogen levels drop in the menopause transition, insulin resistance increases.

• PCOS: It’s estimated that 75% of women with PCOS experience insulin resistance.

• Sleep Apnea: Sleep apnea increases the risk of insulin resistance.

• Larger Body Size: Insulin resistance rates are higher amongst people who carry more fat on their bodies. It’s not yet known whether the amount of fat causes insulin resistance or whether there is an unknown third factor that contributes to both the increased amount of fat and insulin resistance.

• Physical Inactivity: Physical activity helps insulin do its job. Therefore, a sedentary lifestyle means that insulin must do all the heavy lifting by itself.   

How to Support Insulin with Nutrition (Nutrition for Blood Sugar Control)

1. Move Your Body: Going for a walk or doing other forms of physical activity after you’ve eaten helps insulin clear blood sugar.

2. Choose Less Refined Carbs: When carbs are more refined, they take a shorter time to digest, resulting in the glucose hitting your bloodstream faster, i.e. a blood sugar spike. Choose whole grains so that they are digested more slowly. It’s easier for your body to handle the slower arrival of glucose into your bloodstream.

3. No Naked Carbs: Eat foods containing protein and/or fat when you have foods that contain carbs. I.e., don’t eat carbs alone (a.k.a. naked). Protein and fat help to slow the release of sugar into your blood – a similar result as #2 above. 

4. Eat Fewer Carbs: It’s logical that if you eat fewer carbohydrates, you will have less glucose entering your blood. Your body will be less stimulated to release insulin. Ketogenic (“keto”) diets are very, very low carb. But you can also eat lower or low-ish carb too. It doesn’t have to be a choice of high carb or keto. Those are just the two ends of the spectrum. Many factors go into deciding what level of carbs is a fit for you, including your physical activity, what foods you enjoy, how frequently you eat socially, and who else is in your household. What’s important is choosing a way to eat that fits your life long-term. Two weeks of doing keto isn’t going to fix your insulin resistance.   

5. Have Good Vitamin D Status: A meta-analysis found that having good vitamin D levels in your body reduces insulin resistance. To achieve a healthy vitamin D status, most of us will require vitamin D supplementation. I don’t have a specific amount to recommend because we customize our supplement recommendations to each individual.

6. Consider Other Supplements: There are supplements that have intriguing, although not definitive, scientific evidence regarding their impact on lowering blood sugar. Examples include berberine, chromium, and magnesium. As I shared above, I don’t give supplement recommendations in blog posts. We always individualize supplement recommendations because we take into consideration: what you eat, health diagnoses, medications, and other factors. 

Want more information on managing your hormones? Check out this article on Nutrition for Thyroid (Supporting Metabolism).

Photo by Alexander Grey on Unsplash

References

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Insulin Resistance and Diabetes

Moghetti, P., Tosi, F. Insulin resistance and PCOS: chicken or egg?. J Endocrinol Invest 44, 233–244 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40618-020-01351-0

Gabryelska Agata, Karuga Filip Franciszek, Szmyd Bartosz, Białasiewicz Piotr. HIF-1α as a Mediator of Insulin Resistance, T2DM, and Its Complications: Potential Links With Obstructive Sleep Apnea. Frontiers in Physiology.11. 2020. DOI 10.3389/fphys.2020.01035 

Vitamin D and Risk for Type 2 Diabetes in People With Prediabetes: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Individual Participant Data From 3 Randomized Clinical Trials https://doi.org/10.7326/M22-3018  

My Hormones Are Out of Balance. Can Nutrition Help?

Lately I’ve had a number of conversations with people who are looking for help with their nutrition because “my hormones are out of balance”. When I ask them how they’ve come to the conclusion that their hormones are out of balance, they have very vague answers. With this beginning to be a trend, I knew that I wanted to share it with you. To separate the facts from fiction.

In this post I share what hormones are. Their function in the body. And, how I’ll be writing a series of blog posts that dive into how nutrition interacts with hormones.

Why Are People Thinking That Their Hormones Are Out of Balance?

Hormones are the latest hot topic in the health world. I see it in my social media feed too. Very confident, fit people exclaiming that it’s not your fault that you’re tired and overweight. It’s your hormones. They’ve found the secret answer to balance your hormones and solve all your problems. Now I know I’m being obtuse in this description. These marketers are very convincing, playing on our emotions and insecurities. I can’t speak for these social media health influencers. Whether they’re knowingly preying on people. Or, if they honestly don’t understand human physiology and how to read scientific research.

What I do know from being in nutrition for almost 30 years is that hormones are just the latest in a long list of valid human physiology and nutrition concepts that get so co-opted and taken so far out of context that they take on a new, fiction-based meaning. Past examples include toxins and fat, as in “eating fat makes you fat” and “it’s fatty” meaning that a food is bad – you shouldn’t eat it. I also know that a popular marketing technique in the diet industry is to tell you that it’s not your fault that you’re overweight. That there’s a secret that’s been kept from you. Recently it was metabolism. Now hormones seems to be on the rise. 

Fighting Back Against Manipulative Marketing

Recognizing that hormones are just the latest in the long line of misinformation and manipulative marketing, let’s fight back. How do we do that? Through knowledge. Knowledge is power. The nutrition and health misinformation is only powerful because most people aren’t taught how the human body works. When we’re lacking knowledge, anyone can come along and use our naiveite against us.

Let me share an example from my life. When I was doing my Masters degree, I lived with a house full of roommates who are engineers and very into cars. Before I lived with them, I didn’t know how a car worked. Before I lived with them, if you’d have asked me how a car works, I would have responded something like “you turn the key in the ignition and press the gas peddle”.  Living with them I learned how engines actually work, what the pistons are doing, how that makes the wheels turn, etc. With this basic knowledge, I now understand why maintenance is required. Don’t get me wrong, I still take it to a mechanic to do the maintenance. I’m not doing my own oil changes or anything. But I’m less likely to be taken advantage of by a mechanic because I have this knowledge.

What is a Hormone? What is Their Function?

The way that I’m now empowered by my car knowledge, I want you to have an understanding of hormones.      

 So, what is a hormone anyways? The human body has two main ways to communicate messages between different parts of the body, namely nerves and hormones. You likely know your nervous system – the nerves connecting to the spinal cord and the brain. When you touch a hot stove with your finger, your nerves send a message to your brain of hot, pain. With this message communicated, you know to move your finger off of the hot stove.

 The other communication system are hormones, a.k.a. the endocrine system. Hormones are chemicals in the body that communicate a message from one part of the body to another part of the body. Often when people talk about “hormones” they’re referring to the hormones related to reproductive/ sexual function. As in “you can’t blame teenagers, it’s their hormones”. It’s true that testosterone and estrogen are hormones. But hormones aren’t just sending messages related to sexual activity/ reproduction. You’ve likely heard of many other hormones and not realized that they’re hormones. Examples include:

• Insulin: which has a role in managing blood sugar.  

• Melatonin: which has a role in sleep.

• Adrenalin: which has a role in the fight-flight-freeze stress response.

 With hormones being one of the major communication mechanisms in the body, they are intricately involved in being healthy, and conversely, in many health conditions. And, nutrition interacts with them in many, many ways. A few examples include:

• Diabetes

• The impacts of cortisol on body composition (fat and muscle).

• PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome)

• PMS/PMDD

• The symptoms associated with perimenopause.

• The increased risks for heart disease and osteoporosis post-menopause.

Stay Tuned

There are so many health conditions that involve hormones. And, so many ways that nutrition can have an impact. It’s impossible for me to cover everything in a single blog post. So, my commitment to you is that through this year I’ll publish a series of blog posts diving deeper into the role of some of these hormones in our bodies. And, how nutrition can impact them.

Our Dietitian Team’s Knowledge of Nutrition and Hormones

Here’s a taste of the team’s knowledge when it comes to hormones, health, and nutrition.

·        All of the dietitians on our team are well-versed in blood sugar management (insulin).

·        I’ve long worked to support people with PCOS, PMS/PMDD, and during the perimenopause transition.

·        Jessica, Mamta, and Morgan are currently undertaking professional development in reproductive hormone-related areas to take their knowledge from fair to excellent – for both men and women.

·        Lorrie also is well-versed in cortisol’s role for sports nutrition (i.e. maximizing muscle/leaning out). And, I’ve worked for many years with the impact of cortisol for weight gain and sports nutrition.

Use this link to book an information call with me to find out which dietitian on our team is the best fit for what you’re experiencing with your hormones and health: https://calendly.com/kristenyarker

Photo by Piret Ilver on Unsplash

How Much Should You Focus on Your Child’s Table Manners?

Before I chat about child table manners, I want to explain this photo. Yesterday I had the opportunity to see Ellyn Satter speak live. Ellyn's work is the foundation for mine. She's easily the most influential person in my career. And while I've thoroughly studied her work and used it with families for more than 7 years, I had never met her. By the time that I was finished university, had started to pay down my student loans, and could afford to travel to a US destination for her in-person training seminars, she retired. But yesterday she came out of retirement to present in Vancouver. You bet that I was going to be there - I may have been the first to register :) The table manners question was asked of her, and it was fantastic to see that she responded with the same answer as I give parents.

Table manners, like most matters of etiquette, can cause a strong reaction in us - really getting under our skin. When it comes to table manners, parents usually approach me in two ways (which really are about the same thing). Either they ask about how to best teach kids to have good table manners. Or, they’re embarrassed about their child’s messy eating and apologize to me for it.

When it comes to table manners, the best course of action is to not sweat about it. Like many other things, your actions speak louder than words. Kids naturally have an internal drive to master things and grow up. Eat together with your child on a daily basis. Use good table manners yourself – use utensils, a napkin, say “please” and “thank you” when you ask someone to pass you the pepper, don’t get up and down from the table like a jack-in-the-box. Your child will pick up your good habits.

That is, as long as they aren’t staring at a screen during the meal (iPad, phone etc).

Don’t sweat your child’s messy eating. It’s normal for kids to use a combination of utensils and fingers into the school-age years, depending on the food and how hungry they are. And like all things, some kids learn to use utensils faster than others.

The most important factor for kids to learn to love healthy eating is to enjoy eating at the table. This requires the table to be a pleasant place. Constant nagging about table manners (“elbows off the table”, “use your fork”, etc) can really get in the way of kids enjoying meals.

It takes a lot of effort to organize yourself to plan and prepare meals and snacks and to have an adult sit down with your child to eat together. Congratulate yourself for accomplishing this and know that over time your child will learn good table manners.

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Food Rewards - How to Get Your Child to Behave Without Them

I was happy to meet Julie recently. She's a child behaviour and discipline specialist. As soon as I met her I knew that she would be the perfect person to answer a question that parents often ask me. You see, I teach (based on the research) that it's not good to use food as a bribe or reward for kids behaviour. So parents would ask me for alternatives. And that's where I hit the end of my expertise - I'm a child-feeding expert - not a child behaviour expert. Read on to see what Julie recommends as alternatives to food for teaching kids to have good behaviour.

Enjoy! Kristen

• Chocolate to stop crying.
• Dessert if you finish all of your dinner.
• Candy to buy a few extra minutes of peace & quiet.

Why Food Rewards Are A Bad Idea

Parents give food rewards to their children because it works……for the short term, plain and simple. However, the long term effects on the child may include poor appetite management, low self-esteem and distorted food control because they have now associated food with negative behaviour and/or pain. This learned behaviour could possibly leave your child with a potential food addiction which can carry right on through the teen years and well into adulthood.

There are many other ways to encourage your children to do what you expect of them without bribes, threats or rewards. Add more options to your Parenting toolbox so you are not left with food rewards as your only option.

5 of our BEST BEHAVIOUR Techniques (Without Food Rewards)

1. Expectations & Routines – create routines throughout the day with your expectations in them
2. Visuals – create a chart, poster or picture for each routine & reference them throughout the day
3. Choices – offer your child at least 2 things to choose from instead of just demanding something
4. Follow through – what you say…..you do!
5. Consistency - say & do the same thing each and every time the same behaviour shows up

Try all 5 together for the BEST RESULTS!

Find out more on this topic and many others at www.missbehaviour.ca.

Learn about Julie Romanowski, Mom, Early Childhood Consultant & owner of

Miss Behaviour: parenting coach & consultant service.

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"CHILDREN'S BEHAVIOUR & DISCIPLINE SPECIALISTS!" behaviour - discipline - tantrums - communication - interactions - daily routines – solutions