Question by Kelly W: How does blood sugar effect weight gain?
I heard that blood sugar effects your weight. That if you have a quick blood sugar rise then you gain weight. Anyone know any information about this? What foods make your blood sugar rise?
Also if you have any links about this, I would appreciate it.
Best answer:
Answer by Be More
This question is sort of complicated for a few reasons.
1) ALL food makes your blood sugar rise. Every last bit. This isn’t a problem in healthy people because the pancreas secretes insulin that keeps the blood sugar down. But all food makes it rise, it’s just natural insulin that keeps it down.
2) Having a high blood sugar (diabetes) is typically associated with weight LOSS, not weight gain. This is because the sugar that is in your blood shouldn’t be in your blood, it needs to be in the cells (cells use sugar for fuel). Diabetes is a problem with either insulin production or insulin resistance–but either way, the sugar can’t get inside the cells so it just stays in the blood and the cells starve. Most people newly diagnosed with diabetes experience weight loss.
3) Now, that may seem counterintuitive, because people with Type 2 diabetes (adult onset) are typically overweight. That’s because being overweight causes diabetes, not diabetes causing overweightness. Being overweight comes from poor diet and lack of exercise (which are the same things that make diabetes worse!)
So. What you said is true, though. Because all food makes your blood sugar rise, you will gain weight after eating food (if you have a positive calorie balance–IE, you eat too much). But your sugar is going to rise regardless. So they both happen together (more or less), but that doesn’t make them related.
Sorry for the longwinded answer, hope I didn’t lose you!
What do you think? Answer below!