When You Eat Sugar Before Bed This Is What Happens - Health Digest (2024)

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When You Eat Sugar Before Bed This Is What Happens - Health Digest? ›

Having too much sugar at night can be detrimental to our health. “When you eat sugar, your blood sugar levels rise and your pancreas releases insulin, which helps the sugar to be taken back into the cells, giving them fuel to run on,” says the dietitian Alex Evans. “Eating sugar late at night overstimulates you.

“Consuming too much sugar at night before bed causes your blood sugar levels to rise, and your pancreas releases insulin,” explains Alex Savy, certified sleep science coach and founder of SleepingOcean.com. “Sugar has been shown to increase restlessness at night and nighttime awakenings.

When you consume sugar or carbohydrates, the pancreas releases insulin to help the body effectively use the glucose for energy. “When you eat, food breaks down into glucose and then insulin takes the glucose to the cells, where it is used for energy,” she says.

A bedtime routine with light meals, avoiding heavy foods, and staying hydrated aids digestion. Relaxation techniques like deep breathing or gentle stretches calm the nervous system, enhancing gut function.

After you eat, your blood glucose levels rise. This process is slow, as it can take the body over an hour to fully process the sugars from the food you eat. After about 90 minutes of eating, your blood sugar levels are at their highest. This process is normal, expected, and necessary.

The easiest way to bring your blood sugar level back to normal is by drinking a lot of water. If your daily water intake level is normal, then your blood sugar remains in control. Water helps kidneys to flush out toxins and insulin from the body.

Excess sugar that cannot be broken down and absorbed by the body will be left to sit in the bowels, where it ferments. This sugar moves more slowly through the large intestine, feeding bad bacteria and yeast, and causing a build-up of gas. This gas can cause cramping, spasms and pain.

According to research, sugar tops the list of foods that are bad for your gut health.

*Weight loss: Sugar is a major contributor to excess calorie intake. By eliminating it, you may experience weight loss, especially if you were consuming a significant amount of sugary foods and beverages. *Reduced cravings: Sugar can be addictive, and eliminating it from your diet can help reduce cravings over time.

Log Position

And that's great because it's good for your health. Resting on your side, with your back mostly straight, can help cut down on sleep apnea. It can also nix neck and back pain since your spine stays aligned.

What drink is good for digestion? ›

Water: In addition to its importance for digestion, research indicates warm water may aid gut bacteria. Herbal and spiced teas: This includes peppermint tea, turmeric tea, ginger tea, and fennel tea. The herbs and spices in the tea can reduce inflammation and relieve symptoms of digestive distress.

Although water will not directly help flush sugar from your body, it is still important to drink enough of it. If you aren't drinking enough water, you'll inhibit your energy production and your ability to burn off stored body fat, as well as interfere with glucose metabolism, so hydrate often.

These sugars are the ones that are finally absorbed into the small intestine. Once they're absorbed, they're processed even more by the liver and stored as glycogen. Other glucose is moved through the body by the bloodstream. The hormone insulin is released from the pancreas and allows the glucose to be used as energy.

Meat and fish can take as long as 2 days to fully digest. The proteins and fats they contain are complex molecules that take longer for your body to pull apart. By contrast, fruits and vegetables, which are high in fiber, can move through your system in less than a day.

Hydrate. Flush out all that sweet stuff from your system by hydrating ASAP with water or other low-sugar fluids, and foods high in water content. "Drink plenty of water and go for foods like watermelon, cucumbers, strawberries and yogurt," Seaver says.

Evidence suggests consuming sugar before bed can lead to restless sleep. In the aforementioned study, researchers found volunteers who ate significantly more sugar spent less time in deep non-REM sleep. This phase of sleep is essential for healing, physical restoration, immunity, and metabolism.

These foods, which are high in unhealthy fats and added sugars, trigger cravings and overeating. They make it very easy to exceed your daily calorie needs. Eating before bed doesn't necessarily make you gain weight, but filling up on these calorie-dense foods before bed certainly can, and it's best to limit them.

Here are the tell-tale signs on your face that sugar is the culprit aging your skin: The surface of your skin looks hard and shiny. Deep, crosshatch lines appear along your upper lip. Discoloration and hyperpigmentation mark your skin.