If you want to lose weight, rev up your metabolism and lower your blood sugar levels, following a diet that's rich in complex carbohydrates and lean protein will help. So will following advice you may have heard from your mother: Get a good night's sleep, eat regular meals, drink plenty of water, and go outside and play.
Weight Loss Diet
According to the Mayo Clinic, you can lose weight on virtually any diet. And any time you lose weight, you lower your blood sugar levels. But if you want to maintain weight loss and keep your blood sugar levels in balance, some diets are healthier than others. The Mayo Clinic recommends a weight loss diet that includes at least three servings of fruit and four servings of vegetables daily, four to eight servings of carbohydrates, three to five servings of fat and up to 75 calories a day in sweets. The Mayo Clinic diet combines proteins and dairy and says to include three to seven servings in your diet. You can expect to lose about a pound or two a week on this diet.
Foods to Lower Blood Sugar
A glycemic index diet can lower your blood sugar and help you lose weight, according to Leslie Beck, a Canadian nutritionist. Foods low on the glycemic index are those that cause no elevation in blood sugar--meat, poultry, eggs, fish, low-fat dairy and oils--or those that increase your blood sugar levels only slightly. Foods that register high on the glycemic index should be avoided or eaten in small quantities. These would include all forms of sugar and refined carbohydrates such as cakes, cookies, white bread, white rice and many breakfast cereals. You can eat most fruits and vegetables freely on a glycemic index diet. Beck says green vegetables such as broccoli and spinach, and acidic fruits such as strawberries and oranges are good choices for those seeking to control their blood sugar.
Nutritional Approach to Lowering Weight and Blood Sugar
Beck says that those who strictly interpret a glycemic index diet, eating mostly proteins and fats, may deprive themselves of nutrition and heart-protecting carbohydrates. She says a more balanced approached to the idea of eating low glycemic index foods is the glycemic load diet, which takes into account the combination of foods you eat at a single meal as well as the individual items. Although complex carbohydrates such as oats, oat bran, brown rice and high-fiber bread register on the glycemic index, they enter your bloodstream slowly and do not cause the rapid elevation like refined carbohydrates. According to Beck, you can safely lose a pound or two a week and lower your blood sugar level by following a glycemic load diet that would include lean sources of protein, including vegetable protein such as legumes, low-fat dairy, healthy oils such as those from nuts, avocados and olive oil, fruits, vegetables and complex carbohydrates.
Sleep Affects Appetite
Two hormones that affect appetite--ghrelin and leptin--are produced during sleep. When you don't get enough sleep, these hormones improperly signal that you're hungry. And, worse, they'll send you a message to eat junk foods, says Jennifer Sygo, a registered dietitian who writes for Canada's National Post. Lack of sleep also causes an overproduction of cortisol, a stress hormone that contributes to excess abdominal fat and reduces your body's ability to control blood sugar, Sygo says.
Blood Sugar and Metabolism
According to the American Dietetic Association, eating frequent meals and eating about the same amount at each meal will help lower your blood sugar. Eating often also helps boost your metabolism, according to author Wynnie Chan. When you skip breakfast, for instance, your body goes into starvation mode and burns calories more slowly. Exercising and drinking water can boost your metabolism, according to Beck. The Mayo Clinic recommends drinking at least five glasses a day and more if you engage in vigorous exercise or live in a hot climate. Pregnant and nursing women also need to drink more water, up to 12 glasses a day.
References
- Mayo Clinic: Diet for Life
- Mayo Clinic: Healthy Weight Pyramid
- Eat Right: Diabetes and Diet
- Mayo Clinic.com. Water: How much should you drink every day?
- "National Post"; Snooze and You'll Lose; Jennifer Sygo; Jan. 20 2009
