“Help! I am on a liver purification cleanse and I feel so much better. I am off sugar and caffeine for 2 and a half weeks. I haven’t had my sugar highs and lows, but I still wake up at 3 a.m. and cannot go back to sleep…”
The body is a complex machine with many programs that cycle through. One is cortisol. It is highest in the morning and lowest in the evening. Sending a message to the liver to release glucose for the day and to store fat for easy release in the belly is just part of its job. We will spike our cortisol if we are acutely stressed or when we eat a meal. AVOID EATING ANY CARBS ALONE. ALWAYS HAVE FAT AND PROTEIN TOO.
Using this knowledge, it is best to keep the carbs low in the AM–eat healthy fat, protein with high fiber fruit (apples, pear, any berries); no breads or grain cereals, 1/2 cup of cooked quinoa or amaranth okay.
Eat fat , protein and vegetables at lunch.
Eat no more than 45 grams of refined carbs (made from flour, or white rice, potatoes or corn) at dinner. Always have fat, protein, and vegetables and fruit.
Most importantly, have a 9p-10p snack of no more than 15 gms of carbohydrate, with high quality fat and protein: 1/2 medium apple with nuts or nut butter, or KIND nut bar, or 1 med carrot and hummus.
You can also have a handful of nuts at the bedside when you wake up, if you do.
Helpful supplements for blood sugar stabilization: Gymnema from Standard Process and Cinnamon Tea (See Gut Healthy Drinks post).
All of this should be in conjunction with other tenets of good sleep hygiene. (See Sleep Hygiene post)