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Does Sugar Make You Tired, Lethargic? Here’s Why

by Jadie Aranda 3 Comments

Does eating sugar make you tired? Unable to focus? Drained?

If you have a human body, sugar can make you tired. And it happens to children, too, despite the initial energy boost.

My stomach churned as the school bus bounced through the turns on its way to the museum. I hadn’t been on a school bus in years, but it was exactly as I remembered. The brown, clammy benches with no safety belts, cloudy windows that only open halfway, and the unmistakable aroma of foot stink and plastic.

I chaperoned three kids. At lunch, we found a great place outside under a giant grizzly bear statue to eat our sack lunches.

Delicious, sugary snacks filled the kids’ tummies: fruit roll-ups, cookies, granola bars, fruit punch drinks, flavored yogurts, candy bars.

Of course, the healthier. yet half-eaten turkey sandwiches, lunch meat, and apple slices filled the trash.

The three pint-sized balls of energy ran back into the museum and I thought to myself, “So this is what you’re supposed to feel like after you fuel your body.”

But 30 minutes later the poor kids slumped over a table and watched a woman demonstrate tiny square robots without much focus. They CRASHED.

And that is NOT what you’re supposed to feel like when you fuel your body.

Does sugar make you tired, sleepy, lethargic, sick? Here's why it happens and what you can do about it

Does sugar make you tired, sleepy, lethargic, sick? Learn why it happens, and then learn how to stop it

 

The same thing happens to adults. That donut from the break room tastes soooo good – but a little while later, you’re sitting at your desk and can’t even remember what you’re doing. Can’t you just take a nap first?

What’s going on here? I thought sugar was supposed to give us energy.

Why would sugar make you tired?

The body does use sugar for energy. Simple sugars from processed foods and desserts are powerful fuel sources – so powerful, in fact, that eating them is like adding jet fuel to your car. It is more fuel than your body can handle.

When that jet fuel hits your bloodstream your pancreas releases insulin. Yup, the same insulin from diabetes fame. Insulin’s job is to get that sugar out of your blood and into your cells.

When you eat simple, processed sugars, your blood sugar gets really high, really fast, which causes the pancreas to release a ton of insulin. Then insulin does its insulin thing and brings your blood sugar back down to normal.

But here’s where things get a little crazy.

Since SO MUCH insulin is released, it hangs out in your blood for a long time, even after it does its job. The insulin keeps pushing sugar out of your blood and into your cells which causes a condition called hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar.

Without enough sugar in the blood, your body and brain slow down to save energy. You feel tired, lethargic, ready for a nap.

Thirty minutes after that donut, you get up for another cup of coffee because you can’t focus. Or worse, grab another donut and the cycle starts all over again.

Now if you have time to watch someone demonstrate tiny robots all day, that might be okay. But for a driven, productive person like you? You should probably skip the donut. Or learn some tricks to eat sugar without the crash.

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Filed Under: Eat For Energy, Eating Healthy, Your Amazing Body Tagged With: biology, eating, food, processed food, science, sugar

About Jadie Aranda

Jadie Aranda is a passionate biologist who secretly teaches people science so they can live better lives. As a scientist and skeptic of all the diet misinformation fed to consumers, Jadie works tirelessly to sift through scientific studies, distill the truth, and share it with her readers in an understandable and engaging way.

In addition to publishing Eat My Science, Jadie is featured regularly in Denver Parent Magazine (denverparent.net) and you can buy her book, "Your High Energy Life: Banish Energy-Sucking Foods and Supercharge Your Days" on Amazon.

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  1. Why Am I Always Tired? How Food is Sucking Your Energy says:
    August 11, 2020 at

    […] Related:  Does Sugar Make You Tired, Lethargic? Here's Why […]

    Reply
  2. Sugar Crash: How to Eat Sugar without the Crash says:
    August 11, 2020 at

    […] The sugar crash occurs because of your body’s response to sugar intake. A sugar spike causes an insulin spike, which then causes the crash, as explained in Does Sugar Make You Tired, Lethargic? Here’s Why. […]

    Reply
  3. Can You Eat Your Way to Mental Health? - What the Science Says says:
    August 11, 2020 at

    […] A diet that enhances both physical and mental health can have a significant impact in all areas of your life. There is a link between learning success and mental health. A person who has a poor diet is much more likely to have difficulty with their memory and cognitive skills. The food we eat can make us better students and employees or do the opposite. Our mental health is not only put at stake by eating poorly, but our mental capacity is also harmed.In addition to consuming the healthy foods listed above, it is important to avoid processed food, sugary drinks, and alcohol that lack essential vitamins and minerals. Scientists also caution against consuming refined sugars if your goal is to improve your psychological well-being. Sugar affects your ability to process emotion due to the elevated levels of blood glucose. It can increase feelings of sadness and anxiety and is even linked with depression. Aside from that, sugar is also harmful to cognitive functions such as memory, motor speed, and learning. For more info on sugar, check out our article “Does sugar make you tired, lethargic? Here’s Why.” […]

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