stressful blood sugar crash prompts a cortisol
response, which uses glucagon to get your
blood sugar back to normal. Glucagon breaks
down liver glycogen and increases blood
sugar, but since you’re metabolically
overreliant on glucose for energy, you can’t
use fat efficiently for fuel.
Your brain translates these events as,
“Need energy now!”—so you have another
cup of coffee, plus half a bagel with peanut
butter. Since you’re generally sedentary, your
liver and muscles are still full. Some of the
carbohydrate from the bagel is used for fuel,
but the excess fuel is stored (or remains
circulating in the bloodstream).
At noon, you grab a small turkey sub
(whole-wheat bread, turkey, low-fat cheese,
and mustard), a small bag of baked potato
chips, and a diet soda from the deli next door.
Again, your carb-dense meal drives blood
sugar and insulin levels up, and the caffeine in
your soda also prompts a cortisol (stress)