Regulating Blood Sugar, Energy & Cravings

Nine Foundations of Whole Health

After an amazing 50 Whole Health webinars, it felt like the right time to focus on some key themes and choose nine to thread together the multifactorial ways we can look after our health through nutrition, movement, lifestyle, awareness and self-care.

To give you a flavour of the webinars, we'll share these key points as separate ‘chapters’ with you here, starting with the basis for regulating our energy, mood, sleep, metabolism and beyond - blood sugar balance. This sets the scene to explore the other themes, with the foundation in the relationships between our food choices, cravings and stress. 

1. Blood Sugar Balance: A Foundational Key to Energy, Mood & Resilience

In today’s world, where quick energy and constant stimulation are the norm, imbalanced blood sugar is one of the most common, yet overlooked, drivers of fatigue, mood swings, cravings, and even deeper health issues.

Regulating blood sugar is key to managing energy, mood, cravings, metabolism, and even hormonal and circulatory health. In fact, many of the chronic and inflammatory conditions we now face are rooted in decades of increased sugar availability and intake.

Glucose is our primary fuel, the energy source our brain and body run on. But we’re designed for slow, steady release—not the intense spikes and drops caused by ultra-processed foods and refined sugars.

How we’re meant to fuel

Whole, complex carbohydrates - vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, whole grains, legumes - are naturally rich in fibre and nutrients. When eaten in their natural form, they require chewing and digestion, which slows the release of sugar into the bloodstream. This stabilises energy and mood, and prevents the sharp highs and crashing lows that follow refined or concentrated sugar sources.

Interestingly, most foods from the animal kingdom (meat, eggs) contain no sugar at all - only fat and protein. Dairy is the one exception, as milk (meant for feeding babies) contains lactose, a naturally occurring sugar.

While glucose fuels the brain and body, fructose - the sugar found in fruit and sweeteners like agave - can raise uric acid, increase fat storage, and is not our body’s preferred energy source. Excessive fructose intake, especially outside of natural seasonal rhythms or from highly sweetened fruit, can disrupt metabolic health.

Blood sugar & mental health

Our mental and emotional stability depends on a steady supply of glucose to the brain. When glucose dips too low, the body perceives it as a danger as brain function is so vital to our lives. The brain sends signals to raise blood sugar as a survival mechanism, which will often mean the quickest route ie we crave something sweet. Cravings aren't a lack of willpower, but a deeply rooted biological response and a call to notice when we need so support blood sugar regulation.

People experiencing low mood, anxiety, or poor concentration often turn to sugar or stimulants (like caffeine or cigarettes) for a quick lift. But this perpetuates the cycle—momentary highs followed by deeper crashes.

Over time, blood sugar instability can manifest as:

• Fatigue or energy dips (especially mid-morning or mid-afternoon)

• Irritability, low tolerance, or mood swings

• Intense cravings for sugar, carbs, or stimulants

• Need for frequent snacking

• Poor concentration, memory lapses, or difficulty making decisions

• Feeling light-headed, anxious, or fluttery without clear reason

• Difficulty falling asleep or waking in the night

• Headaches, palpitations, or depressive tendencies

While these symptoms may be attributed to many things, blood sugar dysregulation is often an underlying factor. If it’s not addressed, other interventions may not reach their full potential.

Sugar, stress & survival

Blood sugar imbalance is not only about what we eat—it’s also about how we respond to stress.

In a fight-or-flight state, the brain signals the body to fuel up, ready to fight or flee. Even if the “threat” is psychological or emotional - an email, a deadline, an unresolved trauma - our physiology responds as if we’re in physical danger.

That means sugar cravings can be a survival mechanism, triggered by stress. And because the stress isn’t resolved through action (as it might be in the wild), we’re left with stress hormones and unstable blood sugar simmering inside us.

This explains why modern stress often leads to emotional eating, fatigue, and metabolic issues. It also shows why movement, nervous system regulation, and soothing practices are so essential - they help discharge stress and support balance.

Quality protein and omega 3 oils

In this webinar chapter we talk about the importance of good quality protein and omega 3 oils, discussing:

• Cravings of starchy and sugary foods may often occur around 4pm and 9pm when serotonin levels take a natural dip. These times of craving, overeating or bingeing are seen to be relieved when a quality protein source is included at breakfast.
• Fats and proteins provoke production of neuropeptides that register satiety.
• Sufficient omega 3 oils are needed to form the neural membranes where serotonin works and sources also provide good protein; oily fish, nuts and seeds - vegans may need to supplement an algal form of omega 3 oils (see below).

Magnesium - the 'calming mineral'

Magnesium is a key essential mineral we need in large amounts and is commonly deficient in the modern diet. We also use it up in the stress response and energy production, making less available for the soothing nervous system action it is needed for - a vicious cycle. We also use as magnesium when we eat sugar as it is needed to produce the hormone insulin, that moves sugar from the bloodstream into cells; it is said that 1 molecule of sugar uses 56 molecules of magnesium.

Low magnesium can show up as stress-related symptoms as it is needed for relaxation of blood vessels, all muscle contractions including bowel, action of the heart and heartbeat regulation. Low levels might be seen as reliance on sugar and stimulants, anxiety, depression, IBS, headaches and insomnia. Magnesium is found in green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds and fish. 

"Brain elevations of magnesium have shown to increase neuroplasticity / magnesium deficiency induces anxiety and HPA axis (stress response) dysregulation" (Santori et al, 2012).

Coming Back to Centre

Blood sugar balance is not about restriction. It's about nourishment. It's about choosing foods and rhythms that stabilise, support and gently fuel the brain, body and nervous system - in this webinar chapter we talk about the importance of good quality protein and omega 3 oils, discussing:

• Cravings of starchy and sugary foods may often occur around 4pm and 9pm when serotonin levels take a natural dip. These times of craving, overeating or bingeing are seen to be relieved when a quality protein source is included at breakfast.
• Fats and proteins provoke production of neuropeptides that register satiety.
• Sufficient omega 3 oils are needed to form the neural membranes where serotonin works and sources also provide good protein; oily fish, nuts and seeds.

When we recognise the subtle signs - cravings, energy dips, emotional volatility - we can respond not with judgement, but with care. A grounding meal. A breath. A pause.

This foundational support gives us the steadiness to meet our lives with clarity and strength.

This blog is taken from Chapter 1 of my Nine Foundations of Whole Health Natural Health Webinar, which is available to Whole Health Members.

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