The importance of blood sugar balance for your fertility
If you’ve checked any fertility forum or googled fertility diets I’m sure you found an army of influencers demonizing sugar.
Before you start tossing every food with even a tiny trace of sugar you have in your house, let me ask you a quick question…
Is it the sugar that is the problem or is it how you are eating the sugar that is the problem?
Sugar is a cheap energy source.
What does it mean?
When our body needs a quick boost of energy, the easiest way to make that happen is some sugar because it doesn't require energy to break down.
That’s why you crave croissants and apple pie when you don't eat enough! You need energy, STAT!
Sugar is demonized for being inflammatory and leading to things like weight gain and hormone imbalance. But what if I told you, you can have sugar AND support your health and fertility!?
You don’t have to completely eliminate any foods for optimal fertility.
Including sugar.
Yep, you read that correctly!
Sugar can have a place in a diet intended to improve your fertility.
Notice I said “completely eliminate”…
Living on a diet of candy and cupcakes doesn’t nourish egg & sperm quality but eating sugar here and there won’t ruin everything you’ve worked for!
Nutrition is a BIG deal when it comes to fertility, but do you know what else is a BIG deal?! Happiness, stress management & joy!!
So please don’t beat yourself up when you have a little something extra ❤️
So how do you eat sugar in a balanced way?...
Include fiber, fat and protein!
You can support your blood sugar balance so you can improve hormone balance and support fertility while still enjoying your favorite sweet treats!
Not sure your blood sugar levels are under control?
Let’s dig deeper together…
Are you experiencing any of these symptoms!?
Headaches or feeling shaky between meals
Requiring caffeine for energy
Getting hangry or irritable between meals
Constant sugar cravings
Tired or sluggish after eating
Always thirsty or frequent urination
If you’ve been nodding along and thinking “this is totally me” you might experience some insulin resistance.
Our cells need glucose (a.k.a sugar) for energy. Insulin is a hormone that acts like a key to unlock the cells and allow the glucose inside. When the key (insulin) isn’t fitting (resistant) we end up with excess glucose in our blood which leads exactly to these symptoms.
The goal is to find an eating pattern that allows blood sugar to follow a rolling hill pattern and avoid a sharp peak, deep valley pattern.
Balance is the key to everything, even blood sugar!
What can you do:
⭐ Focus on complex carbs for increased fiber: whole grains, starchy veggies, beans, fruit
⭐Start your day with breakfast
⭐ Include protein, complex carbs and fat in each meal and make sure to pair complex carbs with fat & protein (carbs need friends!)
⭐ Eat consistently throughout the day to keep blood sugar rolling while avoiding getting hangry & overeating
⭐ Manage stress! Increased stress compounds the effect of excess glucose swimming around
The goal is to keep things steady and avoid both highs & lows!
Keeping your blood sugar stable is important for fertility EVEN IF you don’t have a diagnosis like insulin resistant PCOS or diabetes.
Blood sugar regulation is crucial for egg quality & a healthy pregnancy. Research shows that women with recurrent pregnancy loss are 3Xs more likely to have insulin resistance (which leads to irregular blood sugar).
The majority of gestational diabetes diagnoses are also thought to be a result of undiagnosed insulin resistance before pregnancy.
Blood sugar imbalance can be occurring at a cellular level for a DECADE before it shows up on a blood test, specifically a fasting blood glucose and Hemoglobin A1c.
This means that it can be influencing hormone balance & ovulation long before your doc says it’s a concern.
When our blood sugar is jumping up and down, our bodies think we are under stress and spike cortisol levels. This response influences egg quality, increases inflammation, mood, weight, and overall hormone balance.
If the body remains under stress, it can lead to irregular periods, erratic mood, sugar cravings, energy swings with eating and even trouble sleeping.
Eating to keep blood sugar stable won’t only decrease stress in your body, it will allow our body to benefit from progesterone instead of making cortisol.
Progesterone keeps our moods stable and decreases inflammation for an overall happier, healthier person!
Who doesn’t want more of that!?
Minerals: Your Best Ally for Blood Sugar Balance
Minerals are great tools to support fertility, but did you know they also support blood sugar balance?
Let’s see how!
Potassium
Potassium helps pull blood sugar into the cells for energy, similar to insulin.
With insulin resistance we have trouble getting glucose out of the blood, if potassium is depleted it can make blood sugar harder to clear too.
Potassium is also involved in storing blood sugar as glycogen, this is important because if we don’t have enough stored we use other fuel sources that can lead to low blood sugar.
Magnesium
Magnesium is involved in blood sugar metabolism & insulin signaling.
It is also required for thyroid hormone production which supports how sensitive cells are to insulin.
Magnesium also lowers the stress hormone cortisol, which lowers blood sugar.
Calcium
Calcium works with potassium and magnesium to support insulin release, and thyroid function which — as discussed — are necessary for blood sugar balance.
Next time you crave that cupcake remember it’s all about balance.
In your choices and your blood sugar.
PS. If you’re concerned about your blood sugar balance and want to collect some data, I highly recommend trying out a continuous glucose monitor (CGM)! So you can learn which foods and habits impact your blood sugar the most :)
