The Blood Sugar Lowering and Metabolic Effects of Vinegar

This article discusses some of the beneficial effects of vinegar. A high blood sugar of more than 140 mg/dl or 7.8 mmol/L two after a meal (post-prandial) is predictive of atherosclerosis in everyone (diabetics and non-diabetics) The study that made that conclusion is in a previous article. After-meal high blood sugar predicts Atherosclerosis better than…

Ways to Lower After-Meal Blood Sugar when Eating White Bread

This article presents a study showing that doing the following on white bread can lower the blood sugar response after eating it. They are: Freezing and defrosting Toasting from fresh and Toasting following freezing and defrosting Background White bread is made of refined flour and is rapidly digested. The result is the immediate release and…

A High-Protein Breakfast Can Lower Blood Sugar the Whole Day

Previously, I wrote about the importance of eating breakfast in lowering blood sugar the entire day — Eating rather than skipping breakfast results in lower blood sugars the whole day. This article presents a study that shows a high-protein breakfast lowers the blood sugar of people with type 2 diabetes for the whole day. The…

The Simple Way To Keep Blood Sugar Low: Breakfast

This article presents four studies conducted among healthy people, those with metabolic syndrome and those with type 2 diabetes, showing that eating breakfast results in better blood sugar levels for the whole day. Background Before dawn, the body prepares for morning activities by secreting counter-regulatory hormones, including growth hormone, glucagon, cortisol, and adrenaline. They are…

Pistachios improve insulin resistance and inflammatory markers

This article presents a study showing that eating pistachios improves glucose and inflammatory markers among prediabetics. Many do not know that they have prediabetes. Prediabetes is when the fasting blood sugar is 100 to 125 mg/dl or if the after-meal blood sugar is more than 140 mg/dl. Like diabetes, prediabetes increases the risk of cardiovascular…

Pistachios decrease after meal blood sugar

This article discusses the beneficial effects of pistachios on after-meal blood sugar. Post-prandial hyperglycemia, the spike in blood sugar after a meal, has been found to increase the risk of forming atherosclerosis. A previous article showed that post-prandial high blood sugar predicts atherosclerosis better than fasting blood sugar and hemoglobin A1c – After-meal high blood…

The minimum duration of aerobic exercise to increase the good cholesterol

This article presents a meta-analysis that showed the effective duration of aerobic exercise to increase HDL or “good cholesterol.” High-density lipoprotein (HDL) is often called good cholesterol. That’s because it causes cholesterol efflux. Cholesterol efflux is when the oxidized LDL or “bad cholesterol” deposits in atherosclerosis are removed from the blood vessels and brought to…

A surprising reason why people get heart attacks

This article presents a study showing why people not previously diagnosed with diabetes get heart attacks.[1] Diabetes is a risk factor for Acute Coronary Syndromes (ACS). ACS includes those with heart attacks and those who almost have heart attacks suffering chest pains due to an occluded coronary artery. Having diabetes increases the risk factor for…

Two-Hour After-meal high blood sugar predicts Atherosclerosis better than Fasting blood sugar and HbA1c

This article presents a study that showed the best blood test to predict the development of atherosclerosis. One thousand eight hundred fifty-two patients scheduled for coronary angiography were classified into Normal Glucose Tolerance (NGT), Impaired Glucose Regulation (IGR), and diabetes based on Fasting blood sugar, Post-prandial blood glucose (PBG), and Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c).[1] Blood Sugar…

Testing Post Prandial Glucose Level after a Feast

This article is about the result of a technique to lower post-prandial blood sugar. After-meal glucose spikes or post-prandial hyperglycemia leads to atherosclerosis formation. Atherosclerosis can happen to anyone, even if they do not have diabetes. Post-prandial hyperglycemia predicts atherosclerosis formation better than fasting blood sugar and hemoglobin A1c. Read about it at After meal…

High blood sugar causes Metabolic Memory

This article presents a study that showed that high blood sugar could change macrophages and cause atherosclerosis. The study was published in the journal Circulation in Sept 2021. The authors are from Oxford, UK; the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, the Radboud University in the Netherlands; and the Life and Medical Sciences Institute (LIMES) at the…

A Healthy Lifestyle is as effective as Voglibose and Nateglinide in Lowering 10-year Cardiac Mortality

This article presents two studies that show the superiority of a healthy lifestyle in lowering cardiac-related deaths compared to diabetes medications. And second, the importance of managing early diabetes to prevent cardiovascular deaths. The first study, Effects of voglibose and nateglinide on glycemic status and coronary atherosclerosis in early-stage diabetic patients, or the DIANA (DIAbetes…

How to Prevent Hyperglycemia with the Vegetables-Meat-Carbs Sequence

This article presents a study that shows how to prevent the rapid rise of blood sugar after a meal or Post-Prandial Glycemia (PPG) After-Meal Blood Sugar and atherosclerosis High blood sugar after meals is a risk factor for developing diabetes and atherosclerosis. It injures the inner lining of the arteries and starts or continues atherosclerosis.[1]…

Blood Glucose Spike and its Prevention

This article is based on an NHK Japan YouTube video about glucose spikes. A glucose spike or post-prandial hyperglycemia (PPG) is the rise of blood sugar to more than 140 mg/dL after a meal. It can happen after every meal. Many may unknowingly have glucose spikes, including those with normal fasting blood sugar and slender. In…

What’s an Ozempic Face and How to Avoid it

Ozempic face is the skeletal appearance of the face after losing a lot of body weight quickly. Dr. Paul Jarrod Frank, a cosmetic dermatologist, coined the term “Ozempic face” to describe many of his patients who lost a lot of facial fat after losing weight with Ozempic. In a Business Insider report, Dr. Frank said…

Gallbladder Diseases and Metabolic Syndrome

First published on April 9, 2019. This page is updated with new information. Metabolic Syndrome is a common condition that increases the risk of coronary heart disease, obesity, and Type 2 diabetes. Metabolic syndrome is present if three of the five conditions are present: Fasting blood sugar of more than 100 mg/dl Obesity High triglycerides…

Triglyceride-Glucose Index tests for insulin resistance and much more

Insulin resistance is not a good thing.  Insulin resistance is when the liver and skeletal muscles do not respond to insulin, forcing the pancreas to produce more insulin to lower blood sugar.  The problem with high insulin or hyperinsulinemia is that other organs like the fat tissue, liver, muscle, brain, bone, kidneys, and vasculature also…

Intermittent Fasting: Now more than ever

I have talked about the benefits of intermittent fasting and the resulting reversal of cardiovascular risk factors like hypertension, diabetes, and hypertriglyceridemia. The past several months have shown unrelenting food price increases. This resulted from the war in Ukraine, the hyperinflationary policies of the US Federal Reserve, the culling of millions of poultry due to…

The Triglyceride/HDL ratio detects insulin resistance and predicts diseases

Anyone who had a blood test called a lipid profile has probably heard of triglycerides and HDL. HDL stands for high-density lipoprotein, commonly called the “good cholesterol.” HDL is a lipoprotein carrier and cleans up the arteries of atherosclerosis. Metabolic Syndrome Triglycerides are also good, but they are bad for the body in excess. A…

Intermittent Fasting while on Diabetes Medications

This post was initially released on October 25, 2020. It has been updated. Intermittent fasting has many benefits for diabetics. It reduces blood sugar, lowers weight, triglycerides, and total cholesterol, and decreases medication need. However, people with Type 2 diabetes or adult-onset diabetes who would like to practice intermittent fasting should avoid complications. Possible Complications…