You may have noticed that your blood sugar levels fluctuate without eating or drinking. But is stress the culprit? Does stress raise blood sugar? How are stress and blood sugar related?
Your blood sugar curve, with its ups and downs, can serve as a kind of mood barometer, much like a mirror of your feelings. But it's about much more than just how stressed, nervous, or excited you are.
For this reason, we wrote this post to explore the relationship between blood sugar and stress and answer the question: "Does stress raise blood sugar?"
Can stress raise blood sugar?
The short answer is yes. When the body is stressed, it releases hormones like cortisol and adrenaline, which lead to elevated blood sugar levels. This applies to both positive stress (excitement before an enjoyable activity) and negative stress (e.g., a meeting with your boss that you're nervous about).
adrenaline
Adrenaline is the hormone that causes symptoms like sweaty palms and rapid heartbeat, and can make us anxious and irritable. If these warning signs are ignored, cortisol is released.
Cortisol
Cortisol is a hormone designed for crisis situations. Think of the "flight or fight" response. This hormone ensures our survival and enabled our ancestors to flee from a mammoth. Because it signals our body to move, it raises blood sugar. This can still be important if we're running late and need to catch a train or bus, but it's less important in our daily activities in front of the computer.
Habits & Stress
Since stress and blood sugar fluctuations are so inextricably linked, let's look at some habits that can affect your stress levels, probably without you realizing it.
Skip breakfast
A good breakfast rich in fiber, complex carbohydrates, and protein can help replenish blood sugar levels and keep them stable throughout the day. When we skip breakfast, the pancreas produces glucagon, which signals the liver to release glycogen, which is then converted into glucose. As a result, skipping breakfast can raise and destabilize our blood sugar levels.
One study has shown that skipping breakfast leads to dramatic blood sugar spikes and drops, while another found that those who skip breakfast even once a week have an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Not enough sleep
We all know this: When we're stressed, falling asleep and staying asleep becomes a new challenge. And while we know that sleep is important for our health and recovery, we often forget that a lack of quality sleep disrupts blood sugar levels and has a particularly negative impact on insulin resistance. Lack of sleep triggers the release of the stress hormone cortisol, which can already be elevated due to stress and leads to a rise in blood sugar levels.
You can read more about blood sugar and sleep here.
Insufficient water absorption
Let's face it: When we're stressed, drinking water isn't the first thing on our minds. Some people reach for a glass of water when they feel tired and realize they haven't had enough. But did you know that dehydration also has a major impact on your blood sugar levels? Even a slight lack of fluids can raise blood sugar levels and set off a dangerous cycle: The kidneys force the body to urinate to flush out excess glucose, but the more you urinate, the more dehydrated you become. Water makes up 50-60% of body weight in women and 60-65% in men, so every biological function depends on the availability of water.
Stress and women's health
Dealing with stress and blood sugar levels can be particularly challenging for women.
Hormonal fluctuations during the menstrual cycle and menopause can affect blood sugar levels. In addition, women are more likely to experience stress related to caregiving responsibilities, work-life balance, and societal expectations. So let's take a look at five ways stress can affect a woman's health.
Reproductive health
Stress can disrupt the menstrual cycle and lead to irregular periods or even infertility. Chronic stress can also increase the risk of conditions such as endometriosis and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). This is one of the reasons why monitoring blood sugar levels is very helpful for women. It allows them to better understand their bodies and potentially determine whether they feel stressed in certain situations.
Pregnant women
High levels of stress during pregnancy can increase the risk of complications such as premature birth and low birth weight. Stress can also have long-term effects on the child's health, such as developmental delays and behavioral problems.
Cardiovascular health
High blood sugar levels and chronic stress can increase women's risk of heart disease and stroke, as well as contribute to high blood pressure and high cholesterol. This is especially important because women have a higher risk of stroke than men.
Mental health
Unfortunately, women are twice as likely as men to suffer from depression and anxiety, and stress is a significant factor in these conditions. Especially during the second half of the menstrual cycle, women are more likely to experience more intense emotions and changes in mental health. Imbalanced blood sugar levels can play a significant role in this.
The immune system
Although women are known to have stronger immune systems than men, stress can also weaken their immune systems, making women more susceptible to infections and illnesses. Checking blood sugar levels can be a good indicator of a possible infection.
It is important that women pay sufficient attention to self-care and stress management in order to optimize their blood sugar levels and thus their health.
There are many coping mechanisms that have been shown to be helpful in reducing stress and blood sugar levels.
Relaxation tips to reduce stress & lower blood sugar
We have collected some tips for you to reduce stress and lower blood sugar
to do sports
Regular physical activity is a great way to reduce stress and improve blood sugar control. In addition to its positive effects on short- and long-term blood sugar levels, exercise can boost the production of the brain's feel-good neurotransmitters called endorphins.
Yoga and gentle exercise have been shown to be particularly helpful in reducing stress. If you're wondering how to lower your blood sugar levels quickly, we recommend moderate-intensity exercise like cycling or walking. And as a nice side effect, this will also reduce the negative stress in your body.
Meditation and mindfulness
Certain practices can help calm the mind and reduce stress in the body.
A simple mindfulness exercise is to feel your feet on the ground.
Feeling the ground beneath your feet improves the connection between your mind and body, which in turn improves your awareness of the present moment.
Another good way to quickly reduce stress is breathing techniques such as alternate nostril breathing or diaphragmatic breathing, which also lower blood sugar.
Social support
Talking with friends and family can help reduce stress and provide emotional support. Supportive relationships with friends, family, or a community can provide emotional, practical, and informational support that can help you cope with stressful situations.
Relaxation techniques
Techniques such as deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation and visualization can be very helpful in reducing stress.
A good breathing exercise for stress reduction is coherent breathing, also known as resonance breathing. This is a slow breathing technique with six breaths per minute. This pattern of slowing the breathing rate alters the autonomic nervous system, including blood sugar and heart rate. Studies show that this changes brain activity, reduces stress, and maintains insulin secretion.
However, with effective coping strategies and support, women can successfully manage their stress and blood sugar levels. It's important to work with a doctor to develop a personalized plan for managing stress and diabetes that takes into account individual factors such as age, lifestyle, and overall health.
Are you ready to take a look inside yourself?
Stress affects your body in many ways, and one thing that changes rapidly is your blood sugar levels. Therefore, maintaining balanced blood sugar levels can be an important factor in your overall well-being.
With Hello Inside, you can monitor your blood sugar levels to understand what's stressing your body and make lifestyle choices that support a healthy life.
Ready to take the first step? Start with our quiz to find out how Hello Inside supports you and your health.
