Sugar Expert: Change This One Meal to Feel Better All Day | Jessie Inchauspé
In a Nutshell
The single most powerful change is swapping sweet breakfasts (juice, cereal, smoothies) for a savory meal built around protein and fat. This prevents the morning glucose spike that drives the 10:30 a.m. crash, cravings, and afternoon slump. Additional leverage comes from eating vegetables first at every meal and always pairing carbs with protein, fat, or fiber to blunt spikes by up to 75 %.
These notes were generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies.
Glucose, also called blood sugar, is the body's favorite source of energy. Every cell in the body burns glucose every nanosecond to keep a person alive. Muscles use glucose to contract, and brain cells use glucose to process information. The main way humans provide glucose to the body is by eating starches such as bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, and oats, and by eating sugars, which includes anything that tastes sweet from apples to chocolate cake.
Giving the body too much glucose leads to problems, similar to how too much water kills a plant. Most people give their bodies too much glucose, which causes cravings for sweet foods, chronic fatigue, brain fog, inflammation, faster aging, hormonal issues, and long-term development of type 2 diabetes. The goal is to eat starches and sugars in a way that does not cause these problems.
When a meal or food containing a lot of glucose such as chocolate cake or pasta is eaten, it delivers glucose very quickly to the body, creating a glucose spike. This appears as a rapid rise followed by a crash on a glucose monitor. Three main physiological mechanisms make these spikes damaging.
Mitochondria are the powerhouses of cells responsible for turning glucose molecules into energy. When glucose molecules arrive very quickly during a spike, mitochondria become overwhelmed and cannot function properly. This leads to chronic fatigue despite continued consumption of sugar and carbohydrates. People wake up tired, and daily activities like grocery shopping or playing with children become exhausting.
Glycation is the browning process that occurs when glucose interacts with tissues. Human beings slowly glycate from birth, similar to how food browns in an oven. Cartilage is white in babies but brown in 100-year-olds. The more glucose spikes experienced, the faster a person ages. This shows on the skin as wrinkles and causes organs to age more rapidly.
Glucose spikes increase inflammation in the body, which contributes to disease. Three out of five people die from inflammation-based diseases. When the body senses a glucose spike, the pancreas releases insulin, which stores excess glucose in the liver, muscles, and fat cells. Too much insulin over time leads to type 2 diabetes.
Breakfast foods are major sources of hidden glucose. Orange juice, fruit smoothies, and breakfast cereals labeled as no sugar or low in sugar still contain glucose from sources other than table sugar. The rice in no-sugar cereal can cause glucose spikes. Other hidden sources include eating large quantities of grapes, since modern fruit has been bred to be extremely high in sugar, and dried fruit, which can contain tens of grams of sugar despite originating from fruit. The body does not distinguish between sugar from orange juice and sugar from a can of Coca-Cola.
The glucose spike experienced after breakfast controls how a person feels for the rest of the day. A sweet breakfast causes a spike followed by a crash around 10:30 AM, leading to exhaustion, intense hunger, and cravings for chocolate. The crash activates the craving center in the brain. Switching from a sweet breakfast to a savory breakfast built around protein keeps glucose levels steady. Acceptable proteins include dairy, tofu, protein powder, leftover fish, or eggs. Healthy fats can be added, and a slice of bread is acceptable for taste. The only sweet element should be whole fruit if desired.
Sweet breakfast foods do not need to be eliminated completely. The best time to eat starches and sugars is for dessert after lunch or after dinner, when food already in the stomach slows glucose absorption. Breakfast is the worst time to eat starches and sugars because the body is empty and glucose enters the bloodstream rapidly. Typical sweet breakfasts include orange juice, oats with honey, breakfast cereal, fruit smoothies, and oatmeal with raisins.
The post-lunch slump results from a glucose spike followed by a drop. To eliminate this slump, start with a savory breakfast, then at lunchtime begin meals with vegetables. Research shows that eating meal elements in a specific order can reduce the glucose spike by up to 75% without changing the quantity or type of food consumed.
When vegetables are eaten first, the fiber coats the upper intestine and creates a protective mesh that slows how quickly the rest of the meal enters the bloodstream. The optimal scientific order is vegetables first, then proteins and fats, then starches and sugars last. The most important practical takeaway is to eat vegetables first and save carbohydrates for later in the meal.
Several cultures traditionally start meals with vegetables. In France, crudités consist of raw vegetables at the beginning of a meal. In Italy, antipasti are generally vegetables served first. In the Middle East, meals often start with herbs eaten by the bunch. These traditions align with the scientific findings about food order.
Glucose management was the entry point into this research due to personal experience with mental health challenges following a back injury from jumping off a waterfall. After surgery, symptoms included anxiety, depression, and depersonalization. A pilot experiment using a glucose monitor revealed that days with glucose spikes and drops correlated with worse mental health, while steady glucose levels corresponded with better mental health. During a depersonalization episode, a glucose monitor showed one of the largest spikes ever recorded.
Brain cells use glucose for energy and experience the same consequences of spikes: mitochondrial damage, glycation, inflammation, and insulin effects. Glucose spikes also impact tyrosine levels, which regulate mood. A study of 200 married couples found that participants with the most irregular glucose levels placed the most pins in voodoo dolls representing their spouses, indicating increased irritability.
Managing glucose levels provides a necessary foundation for mental health improvement, though additional interventions like therapy and EMDR may also be needed. Physical health improvements through activities like weightlifting enhance mental resilience through the nervous system connection between body and brain.
If sugar appears in the first five ingredients of any product (protein bar, yogurt), that product is dessert. Sugar can appear under many names including date puree, honey, dextrose, and fruit juice concentrate. Manufacturers use fancy words to avoid listing cane sugar, but all forms are the same molecules and the body cannot distinguish between them.
Clothing on carbs is the principle of never eating starches or sugars naked. Never snack on plain bread or a plain cookie. Always add protein, fat, or fiber to carbohydrates. Examples include adding avocado or cheese to bread, or adding five almonds or Greek yogurt to a cookie. This approach reduces glucose spikes from snacks.
Snacks consumed on an empty stomach between meals can trigger a cravings roller coaster. The same principle applies to breakfast: avoid excessive sweet foods to prevent large spikes that cause poor feelings 90 minutes later.
Type 2 diabetes is reversible and is not a genetic hereditary disease. People can put diabetes into remission using glucose management techniques in concert with their doctor. These methods allow health to improve with age rather than decline.
Symptoms are messages.
Symptoms from acne to psoriasis, infertility, and brain fog are not to be suppressed. They represent the body's attempt to communicate that something requires attention. The body is trying to keep you alive and is not fighting against you. A baby's cry is not an attempt to annoy parents but a signal of needing help. The body is smarter than the conscious mind and has information to teach.
The worst health advice received was to have a fruit smoothie first thing in the morning. Fruit juices and fruit smoothies should not be considered health foods.
The first action upon waking is removing earplugs and drinking water. The phone remains off for the first half hour. The last action before sleep is using the Daylio app to rate mental health on a 1-5 scale and write a couple sentences about the day. Four years of daily data reveals personal patterns and shows improvement in mental health metrics over time.
The belief that everybody should wear a glucose monitor changed after initial enthusiasm. While wearing a monitor changed personal outcomes, all benefits can be obtained through the discovered science without the device. Overtracking can create stress and issues. Data can become disempowering when used to determine how to feel about oneself rather than staying connected to actual bodily sensations.
The proposed law would require treating breakfast like any other meal, specifically eating lunch food at breakfast. This approach would help children, parents, and improve mood and fulfillment across populations.
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