What’s Up With Glucose?

In the past months there have been murmurs, and in some instances shouts, online about the effects of glucose spikes to your health from both a fat-loss and longevity perspective. From Glucose Goddess’ viral interview on the ‘Diary of a CEO’ podcast to the highly advertised ZOE app, glucose and its consequences have very much made their way into the health conversation. 

The science behind these perspectives varies hugely: with everyone from qualified nutritionists to self-led enthusiasts having an opinion on the matter, it’s hard to know whether this latest diet-craze is sensible or silly. Here we explore some of the trendiest glucose ideas. 

ZOE

ZOE is a health science company, and the ZOE app is simultaneously the ‘largest in-depth nutrition study in the world’ and a personalised diet strategy. Reviews range from “save yourself the hassle, just avoid” to “[ZOE] changed my life, I love it.” 

The ZOE app is both the result of, and an ongoing, scientific trial. The main research behind it, PREDICT ONE, was contributed to equally by an interdisciplinary cast, including Sarah Berry, Ana Valdes, Nicola Segata, Paul Franks and Tim Spector. Their research was designed to cast light on the lack of large-scale studies into the influence of metabolic responses to food and the risk of cardiometabolic disease. 

The results of their research show a significant reduction in ‘postprandial hyperglycemia’, or post-meal glucose spikes when you reduce the amount of glucose in your diet, as dictated by your own personal gut health. The research also showed person-specific factors, such as gut microbiome, had a greater influence than meal macronutrients for postprandial lipemia, but not for postprandial glycemia. 

Before digging into these PREDICT studies, postprandial lipemia and glycaemia meant nothing to me.  Let me explain for those of us who aren’t nutritionists. Postprandial glycaemia is the scientific term for the change in your blood glucose levels after a meal. Postprandial lipemia is similar, and means the rise in circulating triglycerides and fatty acids in your blood after a meal. 

These sugar and fat increases after a meal are thought to be risk factors for non-communicable diseases and obesity. As well as this, the PREDICT studies note that postprandial hyperglycemia raises the risk of cardiovascular diseases. 

Kickstarting ZOE, one of the largest nutrition studies in the world

Following this research, Tim Spector, along with Jonathon Wolf and George Hadjigeorgiou, founded ZOE on the basis of Tim’s previous studies and the results of PREDICT. The idea behind ZOE is that there is no one right way to eat, “ the key lies in understanding your own biology.”

ZOE is the culmination of machine learning technology and large-scale human studies. To live life “the ZOE way” there are a few steps to take: alongside paying a reasonably large amount of money, life with ZOE includes completing at-home tests which provide data to the scientists behind ZOE about your blood fat, blood glucose, and gut microbiome health. 

After your initial test, the ZOE app comes into play. Using the results from the at-home test, foods are ranked, so you can “make better choices of what to eat”. The idea is that certain foods are better for your personal gut microbiome, and fat and glucose levels in your blood. 

On the face of things, this sounds kind of great: a personalised, non-restrictive diet which will help me reach whatever goal I choose, be it brain health or weight loss. Based on the theory that lowering post meal glucose levels and fat levels will improve my health, one way or another. 

Even Davina McCall approves, as we see in one of the many ZOE ads which have been travelling across social media.

However, there could well be consequences to the constant food monitoring. Browsing the reviews online there are a few bruised apples among the otherwise shining reviews. One user, Amanda, writes that the process of logging her daily diet becomes “quite arduous” and is “an extra level of guilt” added to her life. 

Especially for those who struggle with eating, spending such a lot of time thinking about food intake may not be particularly healthy or helpful, despite what ZOE says on the tin. Whilst the app is a study of nutrition, it doesn’t seem to take into account the mental side effects of tracking your food intake in a world saturated by diet-culture and ‘health and wellness’ strategies.

Data guinea pigs

Amy, a particularly disgruntled reader writes at the bottom of an article about ZOE, “[it’s] another nasty little tool invented in order to turn human beings into data streams for the corporate machine”. Another reader chimes in with hearty agreement. 

There may be a little bit of truth in this, whether or not you agree with Amy. ZOE is an ongoing research study, with the thousands of people who have signed up to it contributing their data to the research. As a result, there is limited data outside of the PREDICT studies which can be used to cross reference ZOE’s science.  

Glucose Goddess

Another testament to the glucose-monitoring craze, the Glucose goddess, aka Jessie Inchauspé, has recently released a book titled ‘The Glucose Revolution’ and with it has come a sleuth of marketing and publicity. Searching ‘Glucose goddess’ in your web browser pulls up a myriad of articles lauding the great new lifestyle, as explained by Jessie herself.

Jessie’s book contains a series of seven hacks, designed to minimise the glucose spikes in your blood after a meal, and hence improve your health. These hacks include drinking diluted apple cider vinegar before your meal or exercising after. If you fancy a cookie you should definitely consider using one of these hacks to minimise its impacts, according to Jessie. 

Jessie is a biochemist with an interest in nutrition, led from her negative health experiences in the past. Her book is a summary of the lessons she learned from changing her own lifestyle, and the ways in which it improved her health. 

Whilst backed by a few references, her book has mostly been led by self-experimentation, using herself as a guinea pig for her hypotheses. Jessie’s hacks should, perhaps, be taken with a slightly larger pinch of salt than ZOE.

The glucose spike ‘scaries’

Listening to Jessie on the podcast Diary of a CEO, her explanations of glucose spikes and the threats that come with it sound remarkably believable. 

Then, without warning, Jessie is suddenly describing how glucose spikes cause glycation which ‘cook us alive from inside’ leading to our eventual death. Looking online to try and find something to explain this alarming statement, I’m somewhat reassured. 

The risk of glycation, which doesn’t mean cooking alive from the inside, but actually exaggerated glucose spikes firming up plaque in blood vessels, is increased by frequent glucose spikes over time. Whilst this isn’t particularly great, it isn’t as big a risk as Jessie would have you believe.

In order for this to be a problem, the average person with typical glucose responses would have to have repeatedly high glucose spikes. What we actually see in Jessie’s infographics on Instagram are low glucose spikes, which are a typical response from your body and not such an issue.

The hacks

Despite all of this, there are likely to be positives to the seven hacks. Take eating vegetables before proteins and carbohydrates, whether it reduces your post meal glucose spikes significantly or not, eating more vegetables will always be good for you. 

Another hack, exercising after eating, can be considered similarly. Exercise is good for you and if you integrate more exercise into your lifestyle you will see benefits. 

In general, whilst Jessie’s message remains backed by limited data, it may be worthwhile to maintain caution. 

As ZOE states, there is no one right way to eat, and the current hype around glucose is no exception. What works for some people won’t work for others. It’s always wise to do what works best for you.