“Blood Sugar Spike”
Why the “Blood Sugar Spike” Fear Misses the Bigger Picture
In recent years, there’s been a growing fear of “blood sugar spikes.” Many people have been told that every rise in glucose after a meal is harmful — that if your blood sugar increases too much, you’re damaging your health and setting yourself up for insulin resistance, inflammation, and weight gain.
While this narrative sounds convincing, it actually misunderstands how the body’s energy system works. The truth is: blood sugar rises are not inherently bad — they’re a normal, healthy part of how your cells get the energy they need to function and repair.
Let’s unpack why.
The Purpose of Blood Sugar
Glucose is your body’s primary fuel source. Every cell in your body — from your brain to your muscles to your liver — relies on glucose to make energy (ATP). When you eat carbohydrates, your body breaks them down into glucose, which enters your bloodstream. This isn’t a “spike to fear” — it’s your body receiving fuel.
When glucose rises, insulin helps transport that glucose into your cells where it can be burned for energy. This process supports metabolism, recovery, hormone balance, and even nervous system function — all of which are central to how your body heals and adapts.
Why Focusing on Spikes Can Backfire
If you constantly try to flatten your glucose curve by avoiding carbohydrates or stacking meals to blunt every rise in blood sugar, you can end up reducing your metabolic flexibility — the ability to efficiently use glucose when it’s available.
Over time, this can lead to:
Lower thyroid activity and slower metabolism
Increased stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline (since your body has to make up for the lack of fuel)
Greater fatigue and brain fog
Impaired tissue recovery and muscle function
When your body doesn’t get enough glucose, it shifts toward breaking down fat and protein for energy — which produces more stress byproducts and less efficient energy production.
Insulin Isn’t the Villain
Insulin has been unfairly labeled as a “fat-storing” hormone. In reality, insulin is an anabolic and restorative hormone — it helps build and repair tissue, supports thyroid and reproductive function, and enhances your ability to make energy efficiently.
Chronic insulin resistance doesn’t come from insulin itself — it comes from metabolic stress and energy deficits within the cell. When your cells can’t produce energy well (due to nutrient deficiencies, inflammation, or chronic stress), they start rejecting glucose. That’s when blood sugar stays high and insulin has to rise chronically.
In other words: insulin resistance is a symptom of poor energy metabolism, not the cause.
What to Focus on Instead
Rather than fearing normal glucose rises, focus on supporting your body’s ability to use glucose well. That means:
Eating balanced, whole-food meals with quality carbohydrates, proteins, and minerals
Avoiding chronic low-carb or fasting patterns that elevate stress hormones
Getting regular movement to keep muscles insulin-sensitive and metabolically active
Supporting nervous system health — through chiropractic adjustments, for example — to reduce chronic stress and improve energy efficiency
Chiropractic Care and Metabolic Function
Your nervous system controls every organ and process in your body — including insulin release, digestion, and energy metabolism. Misalignments or nervous system interference can increase physiological stress, altering how your body manages glucose and recovers from metabolic demands.
Regular chiropractic care helps reduce stress on the nervous system, improve cellular communication, and support more efficient energy metabolism. When your body is balanced neurologically, it can regulate blood sugar naturally — without fear or overrestriction.
The Takeaway
Glucose is not the enemy. Insulin is not the problem. The issue lies in how well your cells are able to use energy. When your body is well-nourished, stress is managed, and your nervous system is functioning optimally, blood sugar fluctuations become part of a healthy, adaptive rhythm — not something to fear.
Your goal shouldn’t be to eliminate every glucose rise, but to restore your body’s ability to handle them gracefully.
