One of my Instagram followers recently reached out to me and asked for some advice.

…can you make a blog post about how to reduce temptation when blood sugars are high. Whenever my blood sugars are low, I [don’t] really want to eat but of course I have to but for some reason when they are high, I’m soooo hungry and I’m just tempted to eat tons of carbs! Help!!

I liked this comment for several reasons. One, this person told me it was tough for her to ask me about this in such a public forum, so I applaud her for stepping out of her comfort zone. Two, it’s an excellent blog topic suggestion. Three, I can absolutely relate to feeling hungrier than normal when my blood sugar is high. And four, I’m sure others can, too!

I’ve always kind of assumed that I get hungry when my blood sugar is high because at that moment in time, food is practically forbidden…so it becomes incredibly appealing, even though it’s not always advisable to eat with a high blood sugar (because depending on what food it is, it could make high blood sugar go up even more).

So thanks to this comment on my IG profile, I started thinking about the ways I fight off hunger pangs when my blood sugar is high and came up with these 4 tried-and-true tricks I’ve learned over the years:

#1: Make a smorgasbord of low carb snacks. My mom will appreciate my use of the word “smorgasbord” in this tip because that’s exactly what she used to call the plate of snacks she’d fix for me when my blood sugar was high throughout my childhood. She’d assemble an array of low carb goodies – cheese, pepperoni, olives, nuts, pickles – that would satisfy my hunger without raising my blood sugar even further. As a child, I felt special because I was virtually getting my very own charcuterie board (just minus the crackers) and that made high blood sugars much more bearable.

#2: Drink plenty of water (or other low/no carb beverage). I’ve heard medical professionals, nutritionists, fitness experts, and the like say time and time again that one reason we might feel hungry at a given moment in time is because our bodies are trying to tell us that we’re actually thirsty, not hungry. So it makes a lot of sense to stay super hydrated when dealing with a high blood sugar because it can stave off hunger as well as help flush out our systems.

#3: Seek distractions. I write more about this in an upcoming blog post, but when my blood sugar is high, it’s important for me to not dwell on it too much because it seems like it takes it that much longer to come back down. So I distract myself in every possible way: I find an activity to do, TV to watch, a family member or friend to talk to…this helps me forget about the high as well as any cravings for food that may come along with it.

#4: Remember…this too shall pass! Again, I gotta give my mom some credit for this one because she says this motto to me all the time. When I’m feeling extra hungry and experiencing a high blood sugar, I just try to remind myself that both the high and the desire to snack are fleeting. Sure, they’re not fun to deal with at the same time, but knowing that they’re only temporary makes everything easier.