January 2010

Yummy Foods That Lower Blood Sugar AND Stop Sugar Cravings

Did you know that there are many foods that lower your blood sugar?

The key to managing Candida and yeast, is managing your blood sugar. Your blood glucose, or blood sugar, is the amount of sugar in your blood.

Usually, when we talk about blood sugar levels, we think of people with diabetes. But, if you have Candida, you need to think about blood sugar too.

When you have Candida or a yeast infection, one thing you need to do is watch what you eat. At the most basic level - you need to cut out sugars, refined and packaged foods, white flour, baked goods, bread etc.

The reason for this, as you probably know, is that these types of food cause blood sugar surges which feed the yeast in your body.

To control your yeast, you need to control the sugar in your system and your blood. When your body is used to and getting less sugar, you will crave less sugar. Even, balanced blood sugar levels will stop sugar cravings.

Your List of Powerful, Yummy Foods That Lower Blood Sugar

Eating healthy fats slows down the absorption of sugars into your bloodstream. The fat content also helps prevent you from becoming hungry between meals, which helps stop snacking.

a) Nuts can lower insulin resistance. This makes your body's cells more sensitive to any produced insulin, which in turn, lowers your blood sugar levels. Many nuts can be prone to mold and parasites. The best nuts for a Candida diet (when allowed) are almonds, macadamia nuts, brazil nuts and hazelnuts.

b) Avocados are a healthy fat that raise insulin sensitivity. A side bonus of the avocado is that it has fiber in it too.

c) Flax seed is another excellent choice.

FIBER:

Adding fiber to our diet can do 3 things:

1. reduce the amount of glucose in our blood

2. help maintain a balanced, stable blood sugar level

3. slow the absorption of sugars into our bloodstream

Because the Candida diet often has us avoid wheat or gluten, psyllium is a great option for adding fiber to our diet.

Try some sprouted grains and beans. When sprouted, they are more digestible and have a lower glycemic index. Sprouted cooked quinoa, buckwheat and teff are good ones to try.

If you can tolerate it, steel cut oats, which is a type of oatmeal is another great fiber option.

PROTEIN:

As long as you make it lean protein source, protein helps to slow the release of glucose into your blood. It has a low glycemic index and it takes longer to digest. Often, people forget the important role protein plays in our candida diets.

NATURAL SWEETENERS:

Natural sweeteners like yacon syrup, xylitol and stevia are great alternatives to sugar.

Watch for more additions to the website on how to use these and what they are all about.

These natural sweeteners do not cause surges in your blood sugar so they don't feed the yeast like sugar does.

Be sure to learn more about the Dangers of Stevia before you try it.

FLAVOUR IT UP:

Onions and garlic are easy additions to many of your recipes. They raise insulin production and increase your insulin sensitivity. They even have antioxidant properties.

Cinnamon - A study showed that as little as 1 gram of cinnamon a day benefited people's blood sugar levels. The cinnamon used in the study is "cinnamomum cassia" which is what is sold in your regular grocery stores.

Another study showed that ground cinnamon, cinnamon sticks or even cinnamon capsules are equally effective. So add some cinnamon to your cooking, in your tea or sprinkled on your food and lower your blood sugar levels.

Putting it altogether...

Controlled blood sugar will:

-not feed the yeast

-curb cravings from blood sugar spikes and lows

-control hunger

-be healthier for your body

Remember to...

1. Incorporate the basic eating principles of fat, fiber, protein and natural sweeteners.

2. Eat low glycemic foods that support balanced blood sugar levels. Low glycemic foods are ones that are below 55 on the Glycemic index scale. (More to come on the website about this.)

3. Spice and flavour your meals with onions, garlic or cinnamon to get the blood sugar benefits.

4. Subscribe to our RSS feed or regularly check our Yeast Infection Answers Site Updates page for the latest news and info.

5. Help others and be helped by sharing your experiences - I have added many places for you to be able to do this.

FAQ - Your Questions

Pictures/Video

Your Stories

Your Treatments/Cures

Your Nutrition Tips and Recipes

Hope all is well with you and that you found this ezine informative. Let me know what you think.

Talk to you next month!

Sincerely,