How to foster healthy blood sugar levels

March 26th is Diabetes Alert Day, which spotlights the effect uncontrolled blood glucose levels can have on various areas of health. But diabetes isn’t the only reason to watch your sugar consumption.

So this week, we share the latest blood sugar news—including cool new health tech on the horizon + how time-restricted eating may work against our long-term health goals. But first, start your week off right with your naturally sweet…

• The Checkup: kind words + good eats + sweet inspo
• Sugar Rush! tech + brain function + cancer risk
• Healthcare: Wegovy hearts + measles + restriction risks

The Checkup

• Nutrition experts share 14 healthy-ish fast food orders 
• Sexy water is TikTok trending. Yeah. Water’s good for you
• Re. our last newsletter, 5 signs to get a colonoscopy before 45
• Don’t like running but really want to? These tips may help
• Here’s what we know about cloudy days + cloudy moods
• Before you give ‘em some sugar—are warts contagious?
• What to say (+ not) to a friend going through major illness
• Despite politics, (legal, safe) abortions are still on the rise
• The 90s are back. This time, via the elliptical machine
• This chicken + cabbage salad = spring potluck stunner

Turning sugar into fiber?!

Many people take digestive enzyme supplements to help their gut break down certain foods. Now, a UK food tech startup is developing an enzyme that converts sugar into fiber.

In lab models, the enzyme successfully converted around 30% of consumed table sugar into inulin fiber before it was absorbed. Tests on pig digestive tracts (similar to humans) proved promising, too. Human trials are next. Once approved by the FDA, the company plans to add the enzyme directly to processed foods—potentially as soon as 2026— easing the gap for the 95% of Americans who don’t eat their recommended amount of daily fiber.

Learn more at Wired.

Fluctuating function

As reported in US News, a new study of 200 people with type 1 diabetes found that blood sugar fluctuations can directly affect cognitive processing.

Participants wore blood sugar meters with sensors that collected data every five minutes + took cognitive tests three times daily for 15 days. During times of very low or very high blood sugar, their processing speed slowed. (General attention was not affected.)

Surprisingly, the study also showed that intellectual performance was best when blood sugar levels were slightly higher than what’s considered healthy—an observation that many people with diabetes self-report.

New cancer risk revealed

Around 30% of Americans have metabolic syndrome—a cluster of conditions including high blood pressure + a larger waistline that increase risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke. A new study shows it increases cancer risk, too.

Monitoring 400,000 participants over four years, researchers tracked who developed cancer over the next decade + found the syndrome increased risk by 30%. They also found that those with elevated C-reactive protein levels—which mark chronic inflammation—had increased risk of endometrial, breast, colorectal and liver cancers.

Last week, we reviewed why these cancers are happening in younger people. When it comes to metabolic syndrome risk, read more at NPR.

Healthcare 411

Weight loss drug Wegovy gains FDA approval to reduce heart disease risk (Medical News Today). New studies show that Wegovy reduces the risk of death, heart attack, and stroke in overweight or obese adults with cardiovascular disease by 20%. So the FDA  has approved its use for that purpose. This follows prior approvals as a weight loss treatment for adults with obesity or overweight and type 2 diabetes.

Measles cases in US rise to 62 as of Thursday, says CDC (US News). Measles cases have now surpassed those totaling 2023, mainly contracted by children over one who have not been vaccinated. 90% of unvaccinated people who come into contact with measles contract it. This is why health experts warn that big vaccination gaps put more than half of the globe at high or very high risk of outbreaks by the end of 2024.

8-hour time-restricted eating linked to a 91% higher risk of cardiovascular death (AHA). Time-restricted eating diets are credited with short-term weight management. But a study of 20K adults tracked for at least eight years shows that an eight-hour restricted period had no effect on extending life span. Instead, the restriction correlates with a 91% increased risk of cardiovascular death. There are many caveats + other correlations to the study, so read the report for details.