do you get shaky/weak between meals?

[familyfun]

lately i am getting hungrier and hungrier and despite eating 3 meals a day plus fruit/biscuit inbetween i am so hungry by mealtimes i am literally shaking. what could cause this?

[crypes]

praps your blood sugar levels are too high. start cutting out sugar from your diet

[squirrel007]

I get low blood sugar and go shaky if I go too long between eating. I normally control it by eating fairly low GI and making sure I have snacks. What sort of things do you eat? Fruit and biscuits aren't the best snacks as they're high GI and I'll just give you a blood sugar spike.

[AngelDog]

I used to get this. I recently discovered it's because I'm sensitive to sugar.

The theory is that some people's bodies respond to sugar (and simple carbs like white pasta/bread/rice) as if it's an addictive drug - the biochemistry of the brain is supposed to be the same as an alcoholic's (low serotonin levels, low beta endorphins).

You also over-produce insulin in response to food, so your blood sugar level crashes, which is what causes the shakes. Then adrenaline kicks in and makes you crave more food (especially sweets / carbs), and you eat and your blood sugar rockets and you over-produce insulin again.

There is an eating plan to deal with it here. I've been doing it about a month. I'm only part-way through but it has transformed my energy (and patience) levels by about 500% so far. :)

Basically the remedy is to eat lots of protein at regular intervals. If you follow the plan you progress to giving up sugar eventually, although I'm a long way off that bit yet.

As well as the website there's a book that explains it in more detail .

HTH

[familyfun]

i eat cereal for breakfast, biscuit mid morning, 3 rounds of bread for sandwiches/toast at lunch with a yoghurt and sometimes crisps, fruit midafternoon, hot meal at dinnertime, today im doing chicken breast, rice, carrots and brocolli, prob chocolate at 8.30ish when kids asleep and im starving again.
so i could have high or low blood sugar?

[bacon]

Change cereal to porridge or egg & bacon. Have fruit morning snack. Watch your lunch is it wholegrain and loads of salad, toast isnt sufficient. Forget crisps not a food its a carb which isnt necessary. Tea seems fine. Eat more veg, less rice. Eat rich dark chocolate like Lindt you only need a chunk and i fills you up.

[familyfun]

do eat porridge sometimes, hate egg/bacon/cooked breakfast, will swap bread for wholemeal. thanks for tips.

[squirrel007]

That seems like the kind of diet that would have my blood sugar up and down all day long!

I would suggest porridge for breakfast, try nuts for a snack, check that you have lots of protein with your meals (especially lunch as it seems to be carb-heavy), switch to wholemeal (complex) carbs, buy better quality chocolate and eat less of it (dark is a good idea but unfortunately doesn't cut it for me!). And plan your snacks so you don't just get hungry and eat sugar. Maybe this page has some ideas for you

www.lowgidiet.net/pages/lowgimealideas.shtml

All easier said than done though, it's hard to change your diet :)

[familyfun]

apart from the crisps and chocolate i thought my diet was ok , i have fruit and veg each day.
best rethink

[chipmonkey]

Possibly no harm to be checked for diabetes, too. Feeling shaky between meals can be a symptom in some people.

[CogitoErgoSometimes]

You should check out the 'Low GI Diet'... there are some good books and online resources around. If you reorganise your day's foods so that you are eating more protein, fat, vegetables & wholegrains and fewer processed carbohydrates, refined starches and sugars, you should notice the difference. Swap white bread for wholegrain, white rice for brown, white pasta for wholemeal, etc. If you eat porridge, choose large 'rolled oats' rather than instant. Fruit is a good choice but, because it is rich in sugar, it is often not very sustaining. Also recommend seeing your GP for a general check-up.

[nooka]

I found moving to a good muesli with plenty of nuts (Dorset Cereals are yummy) and yogurt instead of milk for breakfast worked better than porridge (oats with chopped up apples and walnuts and milk was good too), plus having my lunch sandwich with a really grainy bread (Vogels is really nice) made a significant difference, but the most effective thing for me was to eat more frequently, so adding half a peanut butter sandwich at around 11ish and 3ish made my energy levels much more stable.

[greenandcabbagelooking]

I get this too, also get tired, cold and stroppy with it. I may well try some of the tips you've all posted.

[bacon]

Oh yes, totally agree with nuts, they are very filling and full of so any good things. My OH has a good handful of nuts on his cereal however, I do have to be careful with amounts of high fibre as it affects my bowels!!!

Back with the chocolate dont forget the average milk chocolate is packed full of sugar and you can eat loads of it but if you revert to more expensive better chocolate such as the Lindt,TTD or 70% dark chocolate its more satisfying and less crap in it. Will give you that hit you need.

I can only assume you are fit and within weight? Alcohol isnt mentioned either and high consumption over the week will increase your hunger.

[familyfun]

i bf dd2 so dont drink alcohol, i am probably unfit as i havent exercised apart from school run for 2 years, i weigh 9stone 2lb and im 5ft 7, i used to weigh more pre kids.

[familyfun]

im going to swap everything for wholemeal and get some nuts, just bought one small dark choc bar for the week but its tesco value as on a budget.
thanks.

[FredFredGeorge]

Get some more exercise if you can! Exercise does change insulin sensitivity both during and after, and as everyone has said it's blood sugar fluctuations which are causing it.

[IDismyname]

I am following the Zest 4 Life eating plan - it basically runs on a low GL basis - similar to GI, but a bit more scientific.

Porridge or very low sugar granola and fruit for breakfast is good, and so are nuts. Try oatcakes and hummous or guacamole, or plain yoghurt.

Instead of sugar, swap it for Perfect sweet or agave syrup. Perfect sweet is just like sugar - you wouldnt know the difference, and agave syrup is just like maple syrup. Perfect sweet you can get in Sains or any other supermarket.

I feel sooooooo much better!

[familyfun]

want to exercise but by the time kids are asleep i dont feel like going out after 8 to start training,
will get porridge, i dont use sugar at all.

[FredFredGeorge]

Agave Syrup is over 90% fructose, against 55% fructose in HFCS and 50% in sucrose (table sugar by the time it hits the blood stream) so if you've replaced sugars with it and things got better then it's not the fructose that was causing you a problem.

With the perfect sweet, which is xylitol, the big concern would be potential laxative effects although I think you build tolerence quickly.

[LieInsAreRarerThanTigers]

It sounds as though you are quite a low weight for your height, do you know your BMI? - perhaps you need to eat more...food! I am your height, a stone heavier and BMI middle of healthy. I know I would actually look skinny at 9.5 stone and lose my boobs!
Agree with all of what has been said above about low GI etc. I love cashew nuts as a snack and the Sainsbury's basics ones are not too expensive, peanuts much cheaper though. I also love 9 bars which are packed full of nuts and seeds (as well as some sugar, yes!) and they are not too pricey if you buy a pack of them in supermarket or look out for offers at H & B.

[familyfun]

ive just checked my bmi, its 19.9 so at lower end of healthy, i am a bit thin at the moment but still have a baby belly iykwim.

[familyfun]

what is a filling healthy main meal?

[CuttedUpPear]

I'm finding that granola is an absolute lifesaver. I always got shaky around 10.30 am, after having a toast or cereal breakfast at 8am.

Now I have granola it keeps me full til lunchtime.(That sounds like an advert, sorry, it's not!)

[naturalbaby]

I was about to post this. I spend all afternoon on a sugar rollercoaster.

[familyfun]

must order shopping with healthy food quick, ive just ate hula hoops