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Jay Shetty PodcastThe SUGAR Expert: Everything You Need To Know About Glucose Spikes (& 5 HACKS TO PREVENT THEM)
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CHAPTERS
- 0:00 – 3:49
What Glucose Is and Why Too Much Is a Problem
Jessie Inchauspé explains that glucose is the body's main energy source, obtained from starches and sugars. Using a plant-and-water analogy, she says too much glucose causes cravings, fatigue, brain fog and eventually type 2 diabetes, and that her goal is to teach people to keep eating foods they love without harm.
- •Glucose is the body's favorite energy source, burned by muscles and brain cells
- •Starches and sugars are the two food categories that supply glucose
- •Like a plant given too much water, the body suffers from too much glucose
- •Excess glucose is linked to cravings, fatigue, brain fog, inflammation, faster aging and type 2 diabetes
- 3:49 – 5:55
Do We Need Sugar? Jay's Own Sugar Story
Jessie says the body doesn't need sweet foods and they are mainly for pleasure and dopamine, but that complete elimination isn't realistic for most people. Jay shares his history of eating no sugar as a monk, being addicted to it later, and having to retrain his relationship with it.
- •Sweet foods aren't needed by the body and mainly provide dopamine-driven pleasure
- •Cutting sugar out entirely is better for health but unrealistic for most people
- •Jay went three years without sugar as a monk, then returned to daily chocolate
- •Jay's glucose monitor surprised him, such as a no-sugar cereal spiking him
- 5:55 – 10:57
How Glucose Spikes Damage the Body
Jessie describes what a glucose spike looks like on a monitor and three ways spikes cause damage: mitochondria breaking down and causing fatigue, glycation speeding aging, and inflammation. She also covers how insulin stashes glucose as fat and how too much of it over time leads to type 2 diabetes.
- •Spikes overwhelm mitochondria, causing chronic fatigue
- •Glycation is like cooking the body and speeds aging, showing on skin
- •Spikes raise inflammation, tied to inflammation-based disease
- •Excess insulin stores glucose as fat and over time leads to type 2 diabetes
- 10:57 – 15:50
Hidden Sugar Sources and the Savory Breakfast Switch
Jay asks where glucose hides, and Jessie names breakfast foods, fruit juice, smoothies, grapes and dried fruit as common offenders. She explains why a sweet breakfast sets up a day of crashes and cravings, recommends a savory protein-based breakfast, and suggests having sweets as dessert after meals instead.
- •Orange juice, smoothies, cereal and dried fruit can carry lots of glucose even when labeled low in sugar
- •Your body doesn't distinguish sugar from fruit versus a can of Coca-Cola
- •A spike at breakfast leads to a crash, cravings and fatigue later in the day
- •Switch to a savory breakfast built around protein and healthy fats
- •Sweets are better as dessert after a meal than on an empty stomach
- 15:50 – 20:00
Why Sugar Is Addictive and Why Not to Go Cold Turkey
Jay asks about the withdrawal symptoms he has experienced and why sugar is so addictive. Jessie says she doesn't recommend going cold turkey, explaining that dopamine makes sugar addictive and that abruptly cutting carbs stresses a body not used to burning fat. She also criticizes diet culture and reframes the goal as energy and health rather than weight loss.
- •Sugar's dopamine hit is very addictive
- •Delaying sugar to dessert avoids withdrawal while keeping the pleasure
- •Abruptly cutting all carbs stresses a body unused to burning fat for fuel
- •Diets don't work and are stressful; the goal is craving-free energy and health
- •Weight loss can be a consequence but isn't the point
- 20:00 – 25:32
Beating the Afternoon Slump: Veggies First
Asked what to eat when tired at 3 PM, Jessie says the slump comes from a spike and drop and can disappear with steadier glucose. She describes a study in which eating a meal's elements in a specific order cut the spike by up to 75%, with vegetables first forming a fiber mesh in the intestine, and notes parallels in French, Italian and Middle Eastern food traditions.
- •The post-lunch slump generally comes from a glucose spike followed by a drop
- •Order of eating can reduce a meal's spike by up to 75%
- •Fiber from vegetables coats the intestine and slows glucose entering the bloodstream
- •Restaurant bread at the start of a meal sets up dessert cravings later
- •Simply adding a plate of vegetables at the start of a meal helps
- 25:32 – 30:20
Sugar Guidelines and the Science of Cravings
Jay asks how wrong packaged-food daily sugar amounts are. Jessie calls recommendations like the American Heart Association's an upper limit rather than a need, and argues that timing matters. She also describes an fMRI study showing that dropping glucose activates the brain's craving center and makes sweet foods more appealing.
- •Recommended sugar amounts are an upper limit, like saying three cigarettes a day are allowed
- •Changing when you eat sugar can matter before reducing how much
- •In the fMRI study, steady glucose meant neutral ratings of foods, while dropping glucose made sweets rate highly
- •Steadier glucose lets you enjoy sugar by choice rather than feeling controlled by cravings
- 30:20 – 32:38
Sleep and Glucose: A Two-Way Cycle
Jay shares that regular meal times and good sleep reduce his cravings, then asks how glucose affects sleep. Jessie explains that a tired body regulates glucose worse, creating bigger spikes and crashes, which in turn worsen sleep. She suggests a savory breakfast and even five minutes of exercise to break the cycle.
- •Eating meals on time reduced Jay's cravings, and poor sleep increased them
- •When tired, the same food causes a bigger spike, crash and more cravings
- •A glucose rollercoaster makes sleep less deep and restorative
- •Savory breakfast and five minutes of exercise can reset glucose balance
- •Many people in her study improved sleep just by changing how they ate
- 32:38 – 38:43
Blood Sugar and Mental Health
Jessie shares how, after a back injury and years of anxiety and depersonalization, a glucose monitor revealed that spiking days coincided with worse mental health. She explains the connection through brain cells' use of glucose and tyrosine, citing a voodoo-doll study of couples, and says glucose was a foundation alongside therapy. Jay adds that body care amplifies the benefits of mindfulness.
- •Jessie's own mental health improved once she steadied her glucose
- •Brain cells also suffer from mitochondrial damage, glycation and inflammation
- •The voodoo-doll study linked irregular glucose to more irritation with a spouse
- •Managing glucose was a foundation, though she also needed therapy and EMDR
- •Body and mind are connected, including through exercise and the nervous system
- 38:43 – 42:33
Moving After Meals and Eating Before Workouts
Jessie introduces the movement hack: using muscles for 10 minutes after a meal uses up some of the glucose. Jay asks about pre-workout food, and Jessie suggests testing options like sourdough with avocado, banana with nut butter, almonds or yogurt with berries rather than very sugary dates.
- •Muscles burn glucose, so moving for 10 minutes after a meal blunts the spike
- •Before or after a workout is a good time to have a cookie or cake
- •Jessie performs worse when she doesn't eat before working out
- •Options include sourdough with avocado, banana with nut butter, almonds, or yogurt with berries
- •Weight training especially benefits from fuel beforehand
- 42:33 – 45:20
Vinegar Before Meals
Jay admits he was taking shots of vinegar, and Jessie says it should always be diluted to protect tooth enamel. She explains that acetic acid slows food breakdown into glucose, recommends one tablespoon in a big glass of water before a carb-heavy meal, and suggests vinaigrette on veggies as an easy alternative.
- •Vinegar's acetic acid slows how quickly food becomes glucose and keeps you fuller
- •Take one tablespoon in a large glass of water, not as a shot, before the highest-carb meal
- •Any vinegar works, but avoid syrupy balsamic glaze
- •A vinaigrette on starter vegetables combines the fiber and vinegar benefits
- 45:20 – 48:58
Snacking, Ingredient Labels and Clothing Your Carbs
For snackers, Jessie advises reading ingredient lists, since sugar in the first five ingredients means a product is dessert, and manufacturers use many names for sugar. She introduces the hack of putting clothing on carbs by pairing them with protein, fat or fiber, and says type 2 diabetes is reversible in concert with a doctor.
- •Ingredients are listed by weight, so sugar in the first five makes a product dessert
- •Honey, date puree, dextrose and fruit juice concentrate are still sugar molecules
- •Never eat carbs naked: add protein, fat or fiber, such as almonds with a cookie
- •Snacks on an empty stomach can kick off a cravings rollercoaster
- •Jessie says type 2 diabetes is reversible and she sees people put it in remission with their doctors
- 48:58 – 52:51
Fruit: Healthy Until It's Processed
Jay asks about eating fruit alone first thing in the morning. Jessie dismisses the idea that fruit rots in the stomach, explains that modern fruit has been bred to be very sweet, and says whole fruit is still best because of its fiber, but juicing or blending removes that protection.
- •No scientific evidence supports the claim that fruit eaten last will rot in the stomach
- •Supermarket fruit has been bred to be sweeter, like a modern banana versus an ancestral one
- •Whole fruit is far better than a cookie thanks to its protective fiber
- •Juicing or blending fruit turns it into a glucose spike waiting to happen
- 52:51 – 58:34
Why Calorie Counting Falls Short
Jessie explains that calories were originally measured by burning food and gauging heat, so they say nothing about what molecules a food contains. She argues two people eating the same calories can have very different health outcomes and wants readers to become food detectives, and both speakers stress empowerment over fear.
- •Calories measure heat released when food is burned, not its effect on the body
- •A donut and an avocado could share a calorie count but act very differently
- •Two people eating 2,000 calories can have very different glucose patterns and health
- •Calories let manufacturers hide behind low numbers of pure sugar
- •Her mission is to give people agency to make informed food choices
- 58:34 – 1:02:24
Anti-Spike Supplement and Jessie's Take on Ozempic
Asked about supplements, Jessie says many glucose products on the market are ineffective or contain sugar, and describes her own Anti-Spike capsule, which she says reduces a meal's spike by up to 40%, while stressing that food hacks come first. Jay then asks about Ozempic, and she calls it a godsend for some but a sad sign of a toxic food system, and notes muscle loss when people stop taking it.
- •Jessie says she created Anti-Spike with white mulberry leaf, lemon extract, cinnamon and green-vegetable antioxidants
- •She says it reduces a meal's glucose spike by up to 40%, versus up to 30% for vinegar
- •She says to do the food hacks first and treat the supplement as an extra
- •On Ozempic, she says she won't judge but finds it sad that people need a pill to avoid the food around them
- •People on Ozempic lose muscle as well as fat, so she says learning the hacks matters to sustain results
- 1:02:24 – 1:04:22
Cultural Conditioning and Jessie's Hope for the Future
Jay and Jessie discuss how self-criticism about food comes from conditioning and marketing rather than a lack of discipline. Jessie hopes her information becomes common knowledge taught in schools, and Jay encourages listeners to take a first step and read her book.
- •Struggles with food come from programming, toxic cheap food and misleading messages, not laziness
- •A lot of money is made from people feeling bad about their bodies
- •Jessie hopes this knowledge becomes as basic as wearing sunscreen
- •Understanding how your body works should be taught in schools
- 1:04:22 – 1:11:10
Final Five with Jessie
Jessie answers the show's rapid-fire questions. She says symptoms are messages from the body, names fruit smoothies in the morning as the worst advice, describes her morning water and nightly mood tracking, explains why she no longer thinks everyone should wear a glucose monitor, and proposes treating breakfast like any other meal.
- •Best advice: symptoms are messages from your body, not enemies
- •Worst advice: have a fruit smoothie first thing in the morning
- •Her routines: water on waking, delayed phone use, and tracking mood nightly in the Daylio app
- •She no longer believes everyone should wear a glucose monitor, since over-tracking can cause stress
- •Her law would be to treat breakfast like a second lunch
