The individual responses varied considerably. In other words, for most people, taking a walk after a Coke significantly decreased their blood sugar response. The median glucose peak for activity versus no activity decreased by 18.5% (162 mg/dL to 132 mg/dL). The Resultsįor the 11 participants who completed both portions of the experiment, we found the median delta of glucose rise between a walk and no walk to be 32.8%. This allowed us to reduce the effects of individual glucose response differences, which can result from several factors, including their unique microbiome, micronutrient status, sleep, and genetics. None of the participants has a diagnosed metabolic condition.īy having participants complete both the active and stationary trials, participants served as their own controls. When we are moving, muscle contraction can enable our muscles to take up glucose from the bloodstream without a corresponding rise in insulin.”Īll participants used Levels to record their glucose response and activity, using either an Abbott Freestyle Libre or Dexcom G6 continuous glucose monitor. “Our skeletal muscle tissue is a huge glucose sink. For the activity portion, participants went for a walk immediately after finishing the Coke and continued walking for at least 30 minutes, up to 2 hours. We also asked them to consume no alcohol the night before ( alcohol can actually lower glucose production).įor the stationary (control) portion, we asked people to avoid moving as much as possible for two hours after drinking the Coke.
DRINKING A SODA 12 MINUTES FULL
We asked each participant to consume the full can in a fasted state, at least one hour after waking up, and to consume no other food during the trial period.
DRINKING A SODA 12 MINUTES HOW TO
Here’s what it does to your body and how to avoid it. This 2014 study found that Coke was 60% fructose and had roughly 21g of glucose.)įructose is a natural sugar but as an added sweetener its metabolic impact can be severe. (Note that HFCS contains both fructose and glucose, and the ratio varies. We sent each participant two cans of Coke, all from the same source, to ensure uniform sweetener type ( high fructose corn syrup) and amount (39g carbohydrates). Eleven people (3 female, 8 male) completed both the active and stationary portions of the experiment, and another 4 (all males) completed at least one of the portions. We recruited subjects from among Levels employees worldwide (we are a fully remote company). We hypothesized that people who were active after consuming a glucose load would see a reduced blood glucose rise and peak. The subject warrants further study under controlled clinical conditions. Note : This was an informal experiment, not a clinical trial. Although consumption is declining in some groups, it’s still far too high.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), between 20, nearly half of adults (and 63% of people 19 and under) in the United States consumed a sugar-sweetened beverage on a given day. But in addition to universal disgust at the overly sweet orange drink taste, the intense glucose spike and crash left more than one employee feeling bad for hours afterward (said one, “I got super shaky, sweaty hands, blurred vision, had to lay down in bed immediately”). We first tried this experiment using the 75g-glucose drinks used by doctors administering an oral glucose tolerance test (common for pregnant women to test for gestational diabetes). “To improve metabolic fitness, time bouts of even moderate exercise strategically throughout the day to blunt post-meal blood-sugar surges.” But we were curious if we’d see the real-world impact in our Levels dashboards across most employees with a controlled glucose load: a standard American can of Coke. There’s a good physiological reason for this effect: muscle contraction (as happens when you’re moving) can spur glucose uptake. Our Slack was full of unenthused reactions to downing what was, for many, their first Coke in years: “chest burning!,” “so many burps,” “Coke tastes pretty good … my stomach hurts now.”Our aim, however, was serious: We wanted to back up with controlled data something we saw anecdotally from our members all the time: Going for a short walk after a meal can help blunt the rise in blood sugar caused by the carbs you just ingested. That was the first thing we learned when we started logging the results of our Coke Experiment. Levels employees are not, for the most part, soda drinkers.
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