Staying Ahead Of The Curve

As a doctor who's spent years treating skin and understanding ageing, I've become fascinated by glucose curves - and frankly, a bit obsessed! 📈

Having just worn a CGM (continuous glucose monitor) myself, I discovered my glucose response is more sluggish than I'd like. The data doesn't lie, and it's been a proper wake-up call about what's happening beneath the surface.

The Journey from Starch to Sugar:

Before we even get to glucose storage, let's talk about what happens the moment that piece of bread hits your mouth. Your saliva contains alpha-amylase - an enzyme that immediately starts breaking down complex carbohydrates into simple sugars. It's like having a molecular demolition crew that begins dismantling starches before you've even swallowed!

This is why you can actually taste sweetness if you chew a piece of bread long enough - that's alpha-amylase working in real-time, converting starch to sugar right in your mouth. The pancreas then releases more alpha-amylase to continue this breakdown process in your small intestine.

Here's the fascinating biology behind glucose storage:

Once those starches become glucose, your body has a sophisticated storage system. First stop: your liver, which can store about 100g of glucose as glycogen. Next: your muscles, holding roughly 400-500g. These are your body's preferred storage sites - like having premium parking spaces for your energy.

But here's where it gets problematic. Once these storage tanks are full, excess glucose gets converted to fat and stored in adipose tissue. It's your body's overflow car park, and unlike the liver and muscle stores, this one has unlimited capacity!

The Inflammation Cascade: Every glucose spike triggers an insulin surge, activating inflammatory pathways throughout your body. Those sugar molecules literally caramelise your collagen through glycation - imagine your skin's scaffolding becoming brittle and yellow. Meanwhile, fat storage mode switches on, and chronic inflammation accelerates what I call "inflammaging."

Enter the Glucose Goddess and her game-changing food sequencing:

Jessie Inchauspé's research has revolutionised how I think about meals. Having just completed her book! If you have'nt read it i wholeheartedly recommend that you do. The magic formula? 

FIBRE → FAT & PROTEIN → STARCH & SUGAR

🥗 Start with a salad - that fibre creates a protective mesh in your gut, physically slowing down alpha-amylase's access to starches 

🥑 Follow with fats and protein - they further slow glucose absorption and blunt the enzymatic breakdown 

🍞 Finish with starches and sugars - now they're cushioned and absorbed slowly, giving your alpha-amylase a more manageable workload

This isn't restriction - it's intelligent sequencing that can reduce your glucose spikes by up to 75%!

The Smoothie Scandal: Sorry to break it to you, but your "healthy" morning smoothie is essentially fruit sugar delivered at warp speed to your bloodstream. When you blend fruit, you're not only breaking down the fibre matrix that nature designed to slow sugar absorption, you're also pre-digesting the fruit - doing alpha-amylase's job for it!

It's like having your demolition crew arrive at a building that's already been knocked down. The result? Instant sugar absorption with zero natural brakes. Even green smoothies with spinach can't compensate for this sugar tsunami! 🍓💨

The Savoury Breakfast Revolution: Instead of starting your day with the glucose equivalent of a rollercoaster (hello, croissants and orange juice!), try a savoury breakfast. Eggs, avocado, smoked salmon, Greek yoghurt with nuts - these stabilise your glucose for hours and keep those inflammatory pathways calm.

Think about it: would you rather your alpha-amylase spend the morning frantically processing a starch overload, or working at a gentle, manageable pace while your cells focus on repair and renewal?

Simple Hacks That Actually Work: 

🍎 Apple cider vinegar before meals - it actually inhibits alpha-amylase activity, slowing starch breakdown (honestly, not as grim as expected!) 

🚶♀️ 10-minute post-meal walks - your muscles become glucose vacuum cleaners

 🥗 The veggie-first rule - creates a physical barrier that slows enzymatic action

 ⏰ Eating windows - giving your digestive enzymes breaks from constant processing, rather than living in a continuous postprandial state.

The Clinical Reality: In practice, I see the effects of poor glucose control written across people's faces - accelerated ageing, inflammatory skin conditions, stubborn weight that won't shift. But when patients understand and work with their glucose curves and enzymatic processes, the transformations are remarkable.

Your glucose response isn't just about diabetes risk - it's determining how fast you age, how well you sleep, your energy levels, skin quality, and even your mood stability.

The Glucose Revolution book has genuinely changed my approach to food. It's not about perfection or restriction; it's about understanding that HOW and WHEN you eat matters as much as WHAT you eat - right down to the molecular level of enzymatic breakdown.

Your glucose curves and enzymatic responses are literally writing the story of how you age. The question is: what story do you want yours to tell?

Dr. Victoria Manning - Aesthetic Medicine & Skin Health Author of "The Inflammation Game: Busting The Code To Ageing"