The Diary of a CEOGlucose Goddess: The 10 Glucose Hacks!
Steven Bartlett and Jessie Inchauspé on ten Science-Backed Glucose Hacks To Transform Energy, Cravings, And Health.
In this episode of The Diary of a CEO, featuring Steven Bartlett and Jessie Inchauspé, Glucose Goddess: The 10 Glucose Hacks! explores ten Science-Backed Glucose Hacks To Transform Energy, Cravings, And Health Biochemist and "Glucose Goddess" Jessie Inchauspé explains why frequent glucose spikes—caused mainly by sugar and refined starches—drive fatigue, aging, inflammation, hormonal issues, PCOS, acne, and even mood and relationship problems. She breaks down the underlying biology: mitochondrial overload, glycation (internal ‘cooking’ that accelerates aging), and repeated insulin surges that promote fat gain and insulin resistance.
At a glance
WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT
Ten Science-Backed Glucose Hacks To Transform Energy, Cravings, And Health
- Biochemist and "Glucose Goddess" Jessie Inchauspé explains why frequent glucose spikes—caused mainly by sugar and refined starches—drive fatigue, aging, inflammation, hormonal issues, PCOS, acne, and even mood and relationship problems. She breaks down the underlying biology: mitochondrial overload, glycation (internal ‘cooking’ that accelerates aging), and repeated insulin surges that promote fat gain and insulin resistance.
- Jessie presents 10 practical, non-diet hacks that let people keep eating the foods they love while flattening glucose spikes: savory breakfasts, pre-meal vinegar, veggie starters, food order, movement after meals, “clothes on carbs,” whole fruit, and more. She shares results from a 2,700-person, 4‑week experiment where most participants reported fewer cravings, more energy, better mood and sleep, and nearly half of those who wanted to did lose weight—without calorie counting.
- The conversation also explores surprising high-glucose foods (grapes, juice, bread, oat milk), the myth of “good sugar,” sweeteners, GLP‑1 drugs like Ozempic, fertility and PCOS, menopause, depression, brain fog, kids’ diets, and systemic food-industry issues. Throughout, Jessie argues that glucose awareness is less about restriction and more about simple structural changes that create stable energy and clearer minds.
- She closes by emphasizing the mental-health and identity benefits of glucose stability—better focus, discipline, and emotional regulation—and the power of small, kind interventions (from hacks to a cab driver’s words) to change the trajectory of individual lives and public health.
IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING
7 ideasFlattening glucose spikes dramatically improves daily energy, cravings, and mental clarity.
Glucose spikes from sugar and starch overload mitochondria (causing fatigue), drive glycation (accelerated aging), and trigger large insulin surges (fat storage and insulin resistance). Jessie’s 4‑week experiment with 2,700 participants showed ~90% reported fewer cravings and more energy, plus better mood, hormones, sleep, and skin—without restricting specific foods, just restructuring how and when they’re eaten.
Start every day with a savory, high‑protein breakfast to avoid an all‑day "glucose rollercoaster."
A sugary or high‑starch breakfast (cereal, juice, pastries, sweet coffee) causes an early spike and crash, overactivating the brain’s craving center and driving hunger and sugar-seeking for the rest of the day. A savory breakfast built around protein (eggs, fish, meat, tofu, nuts, dairy, leftovers) plus healthy fats and optional small starch keeps glucose steady, extends satiety to ~4 hours, and improves cognition. If fasting, make the first meal of the day savory as well.
Use four core hacks daily—savory breakfast, vinegar, veggie starter, and post‑meal movement—to cut spikes while still eating what you love.
Jessie’s central protocol: (1) Savory breakfast; (2) 1 tablespoon vinegar in water before the day’s biggest carb-heavy meal; (3) Eating a small portion of fiber‑rich vegetables at the start of meals; (4) Moving muscles for ~10 minutes after eating (walking, housework, calf raises). These can significantly reduce glucose spikes and crashes, stabilize hunger hormones, and lower insulin—supporting easier weight loss, improved PCOS symptoms, and better sleep and mood.
Sugar is sugar: fruit smoothies, juices, honey, agave, and "natural" sugars spike glucose like cake.
Modern fruits (especially grapes, tropical fruits) have been bred to be far sweeter than ancestral varieties. Once fiber is removed or pulverized—juice, smoothies, dried fruit—the body receives a rapid dose of sucrose and fructose similar to soda. Jessie stresses there is no biochemical difference between "good" and "bad" sugar: a fruit smoothie and a chocolate cake deliver the same sugar molecules, and the body doesn’t care about the marketing halo.
Strategic food order and pairing can cut meal spikes by up to 75% without changing what you eat.
Eating vegetables first, then protein and fats, and starches/sugars last slows glucose absorption. Fiber coats the intestine, forming a ‘mesh’ that delays glucose entry into the blood. Similarly, pairing carbs with fat/protein (“clothes on carbs”—e.g., bread with avocado, cake with Greek yogurt, grapes with cheese, rice with beans) reduces peak spikes. Same foods, different structure, much smaller metabolic impact and fewer subsequent cravings.
Glucose control is tightly linked to hormones, fertility, PCOS, skin, and aging.
Chronic insulin elevation from frequent spikes contributes to insulin resistance, which is present in ~60% of PCOS cases and is strongly associated with infertility, excess testosterone (acne, hair loss, facial hair), and irregular or absent periods. High spikes accelerate glycation, visibly aging skin (wrinkles) and damaging organs. Skin conditions like acne, eczema, psoriasis, and rosacea often worsen with glucose-driven inflammation; reducing spikes can reduce flare-ups.
GLP‑1 drugs like Ozempic expose how toxic the food landscape is—but come with trade‑offs.
Endogenous GLP‑1, produced by L‑cells in the gut, tells the brain to stop eating and helps manage glucose. GLP‑1 agonist drugs massively amplify this signal, suppressing appetite and lowering glucose, leading to weight loss. Yet up to 40% of lost weight is muscle, and ~70% of lost weight tends to return after stopping—mostly as fat. Jessie frames GLP‑1 drugs as a symptom of a sick food environment where we need medications to stop eating the products around us.
WORDS WORTH SAVING
5 quotesIt's as if we found out that tap water was toxic and instead of fixing the tap water, we invented a drug that made you less thirsty.
— Jessie Inchauspé
All sugar is the same. Your body doesn't differentiate whether the sugar is in a fruit smoothie or the sugar is in a chocolate cake.
— Jessie Inchauspé
Some glucose, amazing steady energy. Too much glucose, and your little mitochondria start freaking out… they kind of go on strike.
— Jessie Inchauspé
Your breakfast is very powerful. If you have a glucose spike at breakfast, your whole day is a glucose rollercoaster.
— Jessie Inchauspé
I’m not anti‑sugar. I eat sugar all the time, but I want people to know what I know, which is how and when to eat those things.
— Jessie Inchauspé
QUESTIONS ANSWERED IN THIS EPISODE
5 questionsYou showed that food order can cut a meal’s spike by up to 75%; could you walk through a concrete example of how you’d restructure a typical restaurant meal—say, pizza and dessert—in the most glucose-friendly way possible?
Biochemist and "Glucose Goddess" Jessie Inchauspé explains why frequent glucose spikes—caused mainly by sugar and refined starches—drive fatigue, aging, inflammation, hormonal issues, PCOS, acne, and even mood and relationship problems. She breaks down the underlying biology: mitochondrial overload, glycation (internal ‘cooking’ that accelerates aging), and repeated insulin surges that promote fat gain and insulin resistance.
For women with PCOS who suspect insulin resistance is a driver, what specific lab tests and timeframes do you recommend to track whether your four core hacks are actually reversing their metabolic and hormonal dysfunction?
Jessie presents 10 practical, non-diet hacks that let people keep eating the foods they love while flattening glucose spikes: savory breakfasts, pre-meal vinegar, veggie starters, food order, movement after meals, “clothes on carbs,” whole fruit, and more. She shares results from a 2,700-person, 4‑week experiment where most participants reported fewer cravings, more energy, better mood and sleep, and nearly half of those who wanted to did lose weight—without calorie counting.
You were clear that juice and smoothies are essentially sugar water, yet many nutrition guidelines still count them as ‘servings of fruit’; what changes would you like to see in official dietary guidelines, and how should parents navigate this conflict today?
The conversation also explores surprising high-glucose foods (grapes, juice, bread, oat milk), the myth of “good sugar,” sweeteners, GLP‑1 drugs like Ozempic, fertility and PCOS, menopause, depression, brain fog, kids’ diets, and systemic food-industry issues. Throughout, Jessie argues that glucose awareness is less about restriction and more about simple structural changes that create stable energy and clearer minds.
GLP‑1 drugs risk loss of muscle and rebound fat gain; if someone is already on Ozempic, what is the most effective, practical protocol (training, protein, hacks) you’d prescribe to preserve muscle and make their results as durable as possible?
She closes by emphasizing the mental-health and identity benefits of glucose stability—better focus, discipline, and emotional regulation—and the power of small, kind interventions (from hacks to a cab driver’s words) to change the trajectory of individual lives and public health.
You mentioned a strong link between insulin resistance and major depression—if a patient with treatment-resistant depression came to you, how would you systematically use glucose monitoring and your hacks alongside standard care to test whether metabolism is part of their mood disorder?
EVERY SPOKEN WORD
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