Early morning cortisol surges can elevate fasting blood glucose levels upon waking through the dawn phenomenon

Overview Debates Related claims Topics

Acute stress triggers the release of cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine, which stimulates glycogen breakdown and elevates circulating glucose in the absence of food

Engaging in physical resistance training and aerobic exercise increases skeletal muscle glucose disposal

Restricting dietary sugar and starch while increasing healthy fats, protein, and dietary fiber to at least 30 grams daily improves insulin sensitivity

A large Israeli study demonstrated that gut microbiome composition causes substantial individual variation in blood glucose responses to identical food items

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scans detect internal visceral and intramuscular fat accumulation that standard body weight scales cannot measure

Apolipoprotein B measures atherogenic lipid particles produced by high-starch and high-sugar diets and serves as a predictor of cardiovascular risk and insulin resistance

Chronic overconsumption of refined starch and sugar induces cellular insulin resistance, forcing the pancreas to produce progressively more insulin

Standard annual medical physical examination blood panels typically test only fasting glucose, basic lipids, and liver enzymes, omitting fasting insulin and advanced lipid particles

During progressive metabolic dysfunction, insulin spikes after meals before fasting insulin rises, followed by post-prandial glucose increases, and finally elevated fasting blood glucose

Metabolically obese normal-weight individuals possess a normal body mass index while carrying excessive visceral and intramuscular fat deposits

Standard lipid panels measure the mass of cholesterol rather than the size and quantity of individual lipoprotein particles

Insufficient sleep alters circulating appetite hormones including ghrelin and PYY, increasing daytime cravings for carbohydrates

Polycystic ovary syndrome driven by insulin resistance produces elevated levels of testosterone, DHEA, androstenedione, and an elevated luteinizing-to-follicle-stimulating hormone ratio in women

Continuous glucose monitors provide real-time tracking of post-prandial blood glucose spikes and glycemic variability

Skeletal muscle tissue acts as a primary sink for clearing circulating glucose and possesses mechanisms to absorb glucose independent of insulin

Practicing an overnight fast of 12 to 14 hours improves metabolic markers and insulin sensitivity

During metabolic dysfunction, circulating insulin levels rise significantly before fasting blood glucose numbers become abnormal

Historian A. Roger Ekirch documented that pre-industrial human sleep was routinely divided into two intervals separated by an awake period called the watch

In historical biphasic sleep, individuals slept for roughly four hours, stayed awake for several hours, and then slept a second phase

Subjects placed in pre-industrial lighting conditions naturally revert to biphasic sleep patterns