A diabetes specialist has revealed a simple way to lower your blood sugar levels after a meal. What’s more, the research-backed method could start working in as little as two to five minutes, according to an endocrine specialist, known on TikTok as The Voice of Diabetes.
Speaking on the social media, the expert said: “Did you know that you can help bring down your blood sugar levels in two to five minutes after you eat?
“Of course, a lot of people struggle with high blood sugar levels after eating and they just don’t know what to do about it.”
Once you tuck into a meal, especially when it contains carbohydrates, your blood sugar level rises immediately after eating.
In healthy people, this is where insulin kicks in and the blood sugar returns to the pre-meal level within the two hours following eating. However, untreated diabetes patients don’t see their blood sugar levels return to the pre-meal level of its own accord.
Fortunately, easy lifestyle tweaks, including light walking, could help tighten your blood glucose control.
The diabetes specialist said: “New studies are actually showing that going just for two- to five-minute walk after your meal – light walking – can significantly improve your blood sugar levels.
“What happens is that our muscles start to use the glucose from the food that we just ate for energy. And therefore, reducing your blood sugar levels in the bloodstream.
“I know it’s not always easy to exercise after eating, but even going for a two-minute walk is going to have a significant impact on your blood sugar levels.”
Don’t just take the expert’s word for it, as research also backs the effect of walking on blood glucose. A five-minute stroll every half hour has been previously shown to lower blood sugar levels by a significant amount, according to a study, published in the Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine.
The findings suggested that adhering to the walking regime reduced blood sugar spikes by 60 percent, compared to sitting all day.
The American study asked 11 of the participants to sit in an ergonomic chair for eight hours, and take regular walking breaks. Five different regimes took place:
- Participants either walked for one minute every 30 minutes of sitting
- They walked one minute after 60 minutes
- They walked five minutes every 30 minutes
- They walked five minutes every 60 minutes
- They didn’t walk at all.
After all the regimens were completed, it was revealed that the optimal amount of movement was five minutes of walking every 30 minutes.
