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I also have reactive hypoglycemia and I tried the potato diet out and had zero crashes the entire time. It's just not possible (for me) to eat enough calories,

I also have reactive hypoglycemia and I tried the potato diet out and had zero crashes the entire time. It's just not possible (for me) to eat enough calories, quickly enough, to cause a crash. I was only on it for a few days (~5), precisely for the logistic issues that the article and the original diet post discuss - I couldn't cook and eat enough calories to not be absolutely starving after the first couple days. But zero crashes, monitored by finger stick blood glucose. Crazy stuff, for someone who has them all the time.

rubicon33 4y ago
Is a food coma / crash always the result of a blood sugar spike? I've never seen any literature supporting that the feeling of tiredness and fatigue after a meal is the direct result of blood sugar levels. Mostly what I've seen is just conjecture online, and correlational anecdotes about eating high glycemic index foods and feeling tired. Not discounting people's experiences, but trying to suss out the science here. If you were, for example, to inject sugar directly into someone's blood stream would the result be fatigue every time? It seems to me that there's more involved in this. In my experience (more anecdata!) I'm able to eat anything in the morning. Giant bolus of carbs and sugar, and I feel great. That same meal in the afternoon will give me such a fatigue that I need to lay down. Clearly there's some other factor at play for me in the function whos result is fatigue. FATIGUE_LEVEL = CARB_GRAMS * (HOUR_OF_DAY / 24)
- jaggederest 4y ago
  Well, for me, I've been monitoring my blood sugar intensively for a while. I started when I worked for a nutrition and glucose monitoring company (as a test!), found out I had really anomalous blood sugar dips, and confirmed it with finger stick and another blood sugar monitor. So for me, the answer is, yes, the "sugar crash" postprandial is actually a dip in blood sugar - not to a hazardous level (e.g. passing out or seizure) but to a very uncomfortable level, with epinephrine and the shakes. (mine has gone down to 45mg/dl at worst) For many people, it may not be, I can only speak for myself. There's another thing, called 'idiopathic postprandial syndrome' which is essentially the symptoms above, but without actual low blood sugar (<60mg/dl), which some people think is another form of insulin resistance, where your blood sugar is normal but your body "wants" more sugar in the blood. Talking with endocrinologist, they say that the insulin sensitivity for most people is much higher in the AM and daytime than at night, so it makes sense that you might have more problems in the afternoon, but you should probably talk to a doctor rather than taking my word for it! It's often difficult (in the US at least) to get primary care and endocrinologists to take you seriously if you are not actually dying of diabetes or passing out from low blood sugar - this is where dipping into the realm of concierge medicine can be helpful, or at least, it has been for me. They are often much more willing to investigate thoroughly.
- jaggederest 4y ago
  > If you were, for example, to inject sugar directly into someone's blood stream would the result be fatigue every time? Missed this the first time around. They do this, for research, it's called a glucose clamp test. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glucose_clamp_technique https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glucose_clamp_technique Unfortunately it's almost impossible to find someone willing to administer it to you. It's an outpatient hospital procedure lasting a number of hours, and almost no insurance would cover it, as far as I am aware.
- Swannie 4y ago
  https://www.newscientist.com/lastword/mg24332470-900-does-a-large-meal-make-you-tired-and-if-so-why/ https://www.newscientist.com/lastword/mg24332470-900-does-a-... Responses are by readers, so take with a pinch of salt
- imtringued 4y ago
  >It seems to me that there's more involved in this. In my experience (more anecdata!) I'm able to eat anything in the morning. Giant bolus of carbs and sugar, and I feel great. That same meal in the afternoon will give me such a fatigue that I need to lay down. What? That is quite a boring and obvious observation because your insulin sensitivity is much higher in the morning.
GordonS 4y ago
Strange, potatoes can spike and crash my blood sugar faster than anything else. I haven't eaten mashed potato in a decade or so, but IIRC it only took half an hour or so before I was trembling, sweating, feeling very anxious and fearful, and having a strong desire to eat sugar. Not long after I'd become progressively more confused, and sometimes aggressive. I know 2 T1 diabetics, and both never touch potatoes because of the GI. Can I ask how you deal with your reactive hypoglycemia? I switched to keto a long time ago, which took me from having hypos multiple times a day to never. But often in late afternoon I start feeling some mild hypo symptoms, even though my blood glucose is stable.
- jaggederest 4y ago
  Honestly it's still up in the air right now. I have glucose snacks on hand, I try to monitor how often I eat and not let it go too long, but my Hb a1c is still low and I'm still bothered once or twice a day at least. It's only maybe once a week that it gets bad enough to be super bothersome like you say, basically a panic attack. I tried keto but it was difficult to get the variety, especially (as you say) when you're intensely craving sugar. It obviously solved the problem but was really challenging to continue, so I only lasted a couple weeks.
  - idonotknowwhy 4y ago
    How long did you yet keto for, and how strict were you? I did it for 5 years and found that if you're strict, the carb cravings completely go away after a couple of weeks.
    - jaggederest 4y ago
      I was in ketosis for 3 weeks, from a total of ~1 month eating a keto diet. I was super, super strict, which was probably part of the problem. I estimated <20g net carbs a day
- omginternets 4y ago
  Do you eat your potatos with either butter or olive oil? My understanding is that lipids flatten the glycemic curve.

rubicon33 4y ago

Is a food coma / crash always the result of a blood sugar spike? I've never seen any literature supporting that the feeling of tiredness and fatigue after a meal is the direct result of blood sugar levels. Mostly what I've seen is just conjecture online, and correlational anecdotes about eating high glycemic index foods and feeling tired. Not discounting people's experiences, but trying to suss out the science here. If you were, for example, to inject sugar directly into someone's blood stream would the result be fatigue every time? It seems to me that there's more involved in this. In my experience (more anecdata!) I'm able to eat anything in the morning. Giant bolus of carbs and sugar, and I feel great. That same meal in the afternoon will give me such a fatigue that I need to lay down. Clearly there's some other factor at play for me in the function whos result is fatigue. FATIGUE_LEVEL = CARB_GRAMS * (HOUR_OF_DAY / 24)

jaggederest 4y ago
Well, for me, I've been monitoring my blood sugar intensively for a while. I started when I worked for a nutrition and glucose monitoring company (as a test!), found out I had really anomalous blood sugar dips, and confirmed it with finger stick and another blood sugar monitor. So for me, the answer is, yes, the "sugar crash" postprandial is actually a dip in blood sugar - not to a hazardous level (e.g. passing out or seizure) but to a very uncomfortable level, with epinephrine and the shakes. (mine has gone down to 45mg/dl at worst) For many people, it may not be, I can only speak for myself. There's another thing, called 'idiopathic postprandial syndrome' which is essentially the symptoms above, but without actual low blood sugar (<60mg/dl), which some people think is another form of insulin resistance, where your blood sugar is normal but your body "wants" more sugar in the blood. Talking with endocrinologist, they say that the insulin sensitivity for most people is much higher in the AM and daytime than at night, so it makes sense that you might have more problems in the afternoon, but you should probably talk to a doctor rather than taking my word for it! It's often difficult (in the US at least) to get primary care and endocrinologists to take you seriously if you are not actually dying of diabetes or passing out from low blood sugar - this is where dipping into the realm of concierge medicine can be helpful, or at least, it has been for me. They are often much more willing to investigate thoroughly.
jaggederest 4y ago
> If you were, for example, to inject sugar directly into someone's blood stream would the result be fatigue every time? Missed this the first time around. They do this, for research, it's called a glucose clamp test. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glucose_clamp_technique https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glucose_clamp_technique Unfortunately it's almost impossible to find someone willing to administer it to you. It's an outpatient hospital procedure lasting a number of hours, and almost no insurance would cover it, as far as I am aware.
Swannie 4y ago
https://www.newscientist.com/lastword/mg24332470-900-does-a-large-meal-make-you-tired-and-if-so-why/ https://www.newscientist.com/lastword/mg24332470-900-does-a-... Responses are by readers, so take with a pinch of salt
imtringued 4y ago
>It seems to me that there's more involved in this. In my experience (more anecdata!) I'm able to eat anything in the morning. Giant bolus of carbs and sugar, and I feel great. That same meal in the afternoon will give me such a fatigue that I need to lay down. What? That is quite a boring and obvious observation because your insulin sensitivity is much higher in the morning.

GordonS 4y ago

Strange, potatoes can spike and crash my blood sugar faster than anything else. I haven't eaten mashed potato in a decade or so, but IIRC it only took half an hour or so before I was trembling, sweating, feeling very anxious and fearful, and having a strong desire to eat sugar. Not long after I'd become progressively more confused, and sometimes aggressive. I know 2 T1 diabetics, and both never touch potatoes because of the GI. Can I ask how you deal with your reactive hypoglycemia? I switched to keto a long time ago, which took me from having hypos multiple times a day to never. But often in late afternoon I start feeling some mild hypo symptoms, even though my blood glucose is stable.

jaggederest 4y ago
Honestly it's still up in the air right now. I have glucose snacks on hand, I try to monitor how often I eat and not let it go too long, but my Hb a1c is still low and I'm still bothered once or twice a day at least. It's only maybe once a week that it gets bad enough to be super bothersome like you say, basically a panic attack. I tried keto but it was difficult to get the variety, especially (as you say) when you're intensely craving sugar. It obviously solved the problem but was really challenging to continue, so I only lasted a couple weeks.
- idonotknowwhy 4y ago
  How long did you yet keto for, and how strict were you? I did it for 5 years and found that if you're strict, the carb cravings completely go away after a couple of weeks.
  - jaggederest 4y ago
    I was in ketosis for 3 weeks, from a total of ~1 month eating a keto diet. I was super, super strict, which was probably part of the problem. I estimated <20g net carbs a day
omginternets 4y ago
Do you eat your potatos with either butter or olive oil? My understanding is that lipids flatten the glycemic curve.