Is sugar bad?

[doreenrj56]

I’ve been trying to follow a gluten free diet to see if it helps my Hashimoto’s symptoms. Last night I ate something with a high sugar content and woke up feeling awful😭 puffy, red eyes, terrible brain fog, exhaustion. Now I’m wondering if sugar could be the culprit. Anyone else experienced this?

[Jazzw]

I’m sorry to read that Doreenrj56, sounds horrible. What was it that you ate?

I have to avoid gluten and have been doing so for years but every now and again get “glutened” by something. I’ve learned I also can’t tolerate gluten-free oats.

Sugar does sometimes have an odd effect on me—but puzzlingly, not always! If I eat a particular brand of gluten free chocolate brownie my heart rate shoots up over 100 and I feel awful until the effects wear off but I’ve never been able to figure out why!

[doreenrj56 in reply to Jazzw]

I made Rice Krispie treats. They really are just junk food made with Rice Krispies cereal and melted marshmallows and a little butter. Super sweet with no nutritional value. I ate them in the evening so my body didn’t have time to process it.

R

[Jazzw in reply to doreenrj56]

Ah… I can’t eat Rice Krispies because here in the U.K. they contain barley (which is another gluten grain I’m quite sensitive to).

Could there have been barley (sometimes just referred to as “malt”) in your Rice Krispies too?

(They look delicious by the way!)

[Ruby1 in reply to Jazzw]

Sorry slightly off topic for this, but chocolate (and also coffee) can do this to me sometimes - but not all chocolate (or coffee)! So perhaps it is not the sugar but the chocolate in the brownies?

[Jazzw in reply to Ruby1]

I thought that too—but I can still eat chocolate. It’s perhaps something about the combination. Haven’t had one in a while—it’s quite scary when it happens!

[TSH110]

This was interesting, I didn’t know they could be related:

People with celiac disease can have trouble eating sugar, too. People with this disorder can’t eat gluten. Their immune systems react to the protein gluten, which is found in wheat and other grains. When they eat gluten, their bodies launch attacks that damage the intestines. Their bodies may also have trouble breaking down carbohydrates, including sugars like lactose and fructose.

It’s from Healthline.

I don’t feel too good if I eat a lot a of sugary stuff - shaky

[Hidden in reply to TSH110]

I get shaky with Corn syrup. Wow.. I am glad that you mentioned it. Thank you!

[renawaltdr]

Hello, I am female, also 65 and for some years, I avoid larger amounts of sugar and carbohydrates since I noticed I cannot sleep after eating sugary food, have high heart rate, brain fog, headaches, general weakness, bowel pain etc. I came to believe insulin is kind of poisonous for me. I am gluten free and eat only dark chocolate in very reasonable amounts.

[raggydolly]

Sugar doesn't agree with me either. I'm ok with a bit of sweetness, but a chocolate bar gives me a stomach upset and if I eat it in the evening, keeps me awake half the night. I now avoid anything sweet except fruit, which doesn't seem to bother me in the same way.

Alcohol has a similar effect.

[Geography1]

Hi, sugar alone probably not the issue, what kind of marshmallows you used? The regular brands have preservatives and colors like blue #1 which that alone is a bad chemical, and the vegan ones have soy, and other bad stuff, I only eat organic clean marshmallows, also, that is a pretty heavy thing to eat before bedtime, hat to digest, and on the gluten-free theory I have found after being strictly gluten free for a year that it was bad for my digestion, made me more constipated, which is a bad thing, I reintroduced gluten and I learned, on my case, that if I eat organic plains wheat products I do fine, sprouted bread has been a savior, plus it is a source of selenium, which gluten free diet can deplete, I am just very careful not to have anything that has been fortified, that makes me sick right away, but I also have an MFTHR mutation, good luck on figuring out what is good or not to eat, it has been a long and difficult journey for me, but finally I can mostly make the right choices when it comes to food, I try my best to do organic or sprouted

[CoeliacMum1]

I’m coeliac and I can’t say I have had problems because of the condition of being coeliac, but was diagnosed and asymptomatic although my levels were in 1000s took 2.5yrs to get negative and I’m extremely careful.

I do however carry too much weight and I eat too many carbohydrates at times, and know about it when I do.

I have found it’s mainly diet that is the problem not the coeliac condition, for example when I became coeliac I was just buying and eating things from the free from aisle, most are made with white starchy rice flour, it will eventually spike your insulin, if you’re eating a lot.

Most supermarkets free from items have little nutritional value and are full of high carbohydrates they are getting better adding in a few vitamins and fibre, but are best eaten in moderation.

It’s a very individual thing on how we can tolerate insulin.

I haven’t got diabetes but my first couple of years on gf diet definitely moved me it to the nearly pre diabetic area... reversed that by swapping all the white for brown that was my first thing that gives more vitamins and fibre.

It’s probably why some can tolerate fruit but not fruit juice.

Fibre helps slow the sugar spikes, just drip feeds it into out blood rather than large spikes and fat has the same effect with carbs... but if you already have insulin sensitivity many sugar/starch/carbs can cause a problem it’s finding which you’re more sensitive too, mines definitely white rice be it in flour, pasta or basmati rice and white potatoes.

I did have a few of these spikes and come crashing down feeling dreadful and tired, I also did get jittery, shaky hot and sweaty and would feel dizzy and hungry but had not long eaten ... hypoglycaemia I was told this is, although that’s low blood sugar, and recently eaten high sugar/carbs my body couldn’t cope, but switching to more fibre rich and finding my triggers I no longer get these problems.

I do think women generally have more sensitivity as we age to metabolise carbohydrates as our hormones go all over the place.

Keeping blood sugar stable can help all our hormones... easier said than done when we have various hormone problems.

So I can’t say regarding the puffiness or red eyes maybe allergies to something.

[Workingitout]

I am a 59 year old woman with Hashi's. I always had IBS symptoms until l went gluten free. I also feel better when I avoid refined sugar and am trying to cut it out of my diet; its been a revelation to see how many savoury products it is often added to such as smoked salmon and ham so I check all labels. I tend to make everything myself like cakes, for example banana cake with honey, and biscuits with dates or maple syrup for sweetness. I am also mostly dairy free (use goats milk butter and cheese), I avoid soya, processed foods, rice, oats and nightshades such as white potatoes. I am highly sensitive to caffeine so don't have it anymore, and also find I can no longer tolerate alcohol, but I feel so much better avoiding all these things and eating lots of fresh fish, meat and a variety of vegetables, and am getting quite creative with the things like my version of fish and chips with a tapioca/ coconut flour & egg batter with sweet potato chips cooked in the oven.

[Mistydeb01]

Hi

I stay away from processed sugar, and my daughter can’t tolerate it at all - she gets really bad IBS from it. Instead we use Stevia and honey to sweeten things. Her IBS is much more controlled now. Stevia is expensive but you only need half of what you normally use and as it helps then it’s worth it for us. Debbie