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Hi all - I've been eating paleo for over a year and a half. I've also been avoiding sugar. Over the past few months, two incidents have made me a little uneasy - in both cases, I overdid it with some higher sugar content foods (10 dates on one occasion, and then 4 blocks of 86% dark chocolate on the other). Each time, I experienced an extreme sugar high (feeling euphoric, silly, etc) followed a few hours later by the following symptoms: dizzy/lightheaded, flushed, weak, tingly fingers/hands, heavy-feeling limbs, strong heartbeat in my stomach, anxiety. These symptoms persisted for over an hour and were really uncomfortable. Wondering if my body is just reacting more intensely to sugar now that I'm abstaining from it, or if there's something else amiss. Let me know if you have any thoughts or similar experiences, o great hivemind!

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Your body is just reacting more intensely to sugar now that you're abstaining from it. Any other questions? – Dan May 26 at 3:22
I'd first try to determine if you have prediabetes or diabetes: a simple A1c test should check that. You can get it from Walmart for $9.99. Seems like hypoglycemia after a high but could also reflect prediabetic neuropathy and other conditions. – Mambo May 26 at 8:33

4 Answers

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When you eat a very low-carb diet, your body becomes somewhat insulin resistant just to spare the glucose derived from the few carbohydrates you eat for your brain and force your body to use other sources of fuel, such as fat and ketones.

This form of insulin resistance is not harmful for your health, unlike the kind of insulin resistance that happens in type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome and PCOS, and is totally reversible.

If you suddenly eat a larger amount of carbs than usual, this can rapidly lead to high blood sugar levels since your body is in this insulin resistance mode. You can prevent this problem by increasing your carb intake more gradually over a few days to reverse that insulin resistance.

You can try measuring your blood sugar levels next time you want to eat a large amounts of sugar/carbs to see how your body react.

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The OP doesn't mention anything about being very low carb. – Nasty Brutish and Short May 26 at 15:38
you're right, but I am just putting an hypothesis out there! – Aglaee the Paleo RD May 26 at 15:57
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you're correct with the low-carb assumption - I've been keeping under 50g a day. Thanks for the response, Agalee! – katerade May 29 at 21:44
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Many of us have sugar sensitively. It if I have it must be like taking cocaine or other drugs. I can achieve huge amounts after it. Work goes into over drive. it's incredible but not ultimately good for me. It is certainly not a placebo effect in any way. Radiantrecovery.com has a lot on the topic. Not everyone reacts to sugar in the same way. For me like you if I am off sugar and then have some it has a major effet. If I get back on to it and have it every day I need more and more and gradually the effect wears off. That is just like so many other drugs too. If I eat cacao blocks raw too it is the same - and they have the same effect on parts of the brain as speed (taste awful too as not sweet).

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Go to google scholar and search for: sugar dopamine You will find more research on the opiate-like effects of sugar than you can shake a lollipop at...

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There's no such thing as a "sugar high", not even from the massive sugar binge you undertook when you ate a whopping 4 squares of Lindt 86% dark.

http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?volume=274&issue=20&page=1617

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7963081

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/brainiac/2011/11/surprise_sugar.html?comments=all

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er, what? Yes there is. Maybe you don't want to call it a "high," but a sudden increase in blood sugar has profound effects on one's state of mind and energy level. I feel it every time I do something like the OP did (and I pay dearly afterwards). I've heard that it's a "myth" before too, but frankly, I think THAT's a myth. – Dan May 26 at 3:21
No, the only effect that hyperglycemia has on energy level is that it causes fatigue. – Nasty Brutish and Short May 26 at 3:31
What bull sh*t. Just cause you're not experiencing it doesn't mean other people are. I felt great binnging on tons of halloween chocolate candy, ice creams or cheese cake. True I felt like crap (fatigue) after but there is a "high " feeling when eating sweets. Blame our reward centers. – Acumen Athletics May 26 at 4:49
If you're feeling high after consuming sugar it's due to the placebo effect. – Nasty Brutish and Short May 26 at 4:55
sigh You know, you could provide a link to supporting documentation... – Blitherakt May 26 at 6:18
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