It’s not unusual for people with type 2 diabetes to find they have carb cravings. Do you notice you have these cravings and that they are more likely to happen when you have already eaten too many carbs at one time, or after you’ve eaten a food that is very high in carbohydrates, such as chocolate, candy or even dessert?

When this happens, your blood sugar rises really quickly causing your body to produce a sudden, really high surge of insulin. Then this large insulin response drives your blood sugar down very quickly. In other words your body responds by producing more insulin than is needed; this is why you body then responds with a low blood sugar level.

More sugar please! Your brain relies on sugar to enable proper functioning. When your blood sugar levels are low, your brain suffers and it then demands immediate sugar for relief. This then signals an uncontrollable desire or craving for sugary foods. Your willpower really does not come into play when your brain is sending an urgent message that it needs sugar to rescue it from low blood sugar levels.

No satisfaction! When you satisfy this craving, you cause yet another surge of sugar in your bloodstream, which produces another insulin spike. With every insulin spike there is a subsequent massive drop in your blood sugar level. This roller-coaster effect can continue to cause cravings throughout your entire day.

Unfortunately, excess fat storage also occurs alongside the high insulin production.

Control these cravings! Eating adequate amounts of protein and “good” fats seems to be the best solution to help you avoid these carb cravings. You may also find the trace mineral chromium, which can be found in supplement form, a help in controlling your sugar cravings. Researchers have found many type 2 diabetics have chromium deficiencies… chromium polynicotinate was found to be the most effective type of chromium.

Foods rich in in chromium include: broccoli, green beans, whole grains and nuts. While making sure you include chromium-rich foods in your meal plan, it will help your cravings to steer clear of sugar and refined grains such as white flour. Avoiding sugary foods altogether will help your cravings disappear… you will then start to crave the healthy foods you eat rather than the sugary ones!

• IGF2BP2 variants influence repaglinide efficacy for treating Type 2 diabetes]]>
• Triglyceride Levels Predict Diabetic Neuropathy Progression
• Causes of Diabetes - Simplified
• Diabetics - Plan Your Meals
• The Diabetic Male at Increased Risk
• Causes of and Treatments For Diabetes
• What Should I Do If I Have High Blood Sugar?
• Diabetes - What You Should Know Will Save You

No Comments »

No comments yet.

RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URL

Leave a comment

You must be logged in to post a comment.