Most people think they only need to worry about blood sugar once they have been told they are prediabetic.
But as I see every day in my clinic, blood sugar problems often start years earlier – through cravings, energy crashes, stubborn belly fat, poor sleep, brain fog and the feeling that your body is no longer responding the way it once did.
This is the stage I try to highlight with people by insisting on annual blood tests checking blood glucose levels and insulin.
Early detection is so important, and it is where you can change the trajectory.
Why insulin resistance starts long before prediabetes
By the time someone is diagnosed with prediabetes, the underlying metabolic dysfunction has often been building quietly for years.
Blood sugar has been spiking too often, insulin has been working too hard and the body has gradually become less responsive to it.
That process, known as insulin resistance, does not appear overnight. It develops through repeated dietary and lifestyle pressures that include too many refined carbohydrates, too little fibre, too little protein, too much ultra-processed food, not enough movement, poor sleep, chronic stress and weight gain around the middle.
Clinical Nutritionist Sarah Di Lorenzo observes in her clinic that blood sugar problems start long before prediabetes is diagnosed
The good news is that blood sugar instability is not something you have to sit back and wait for. There is a lot you can do to lower blood sugar naturally before it progresses to prediabetes, and most of it starts with how you structure your meals.
The simple meal mistake driving blood sugar spikes
The first mistake people make is thinking this is just about sugar. It is not. It is about the overall glycaemic load of the diet and how quickly food is hitting the bloodstream.
A bowl of cereal, toast with jam, fruit juice, crackers or a muffin on the run – all of these can send blood sugar up quickly, especially when they are eaten on their own.
That is why I often give the advice to avoid eating carbs alone. Carbohydrates without protein, fibre or healthy fat are far more likely to cause the rapid rise-and-crash pattern that leaves people tired, hungry and craving more food soon after.
Why protein and fibre are your best blood sugar allies
This is where protein and fibre become absolutely essential. Protein helps slow digestion, supports satiety and reduces how quickly glucose enters the bloodstream.
Fibre – especially the kind found in legumes, oats, vegetables, berries, seeds and whole grains – helps slow carbohydrate absorption, flatten the glucose curve and improve the feeling of fullness. Together, protein and fibre act like a metabolic buffer. They make a meal more stable, more satisfying and far easier for the body to handle.
It’s important to build all meals around a protein source, says Di Lorenzo
The breakfast swap that can change your day
This is why breakfast is so important. I am forever telling people not to skip it. If you start the day with cereal and milk, toast and jam, or just coffee and a biscuit, you are setting yourself up for a blood sugar rollercoaster. You may feel fine initially, but two hours later you are often hungry again, reaching for something sweet, or struggling to concentrate.
Now compare that with eggs on grainy toast with avocado, or Greek yoghurt with berries, chia and nuts: the difference is dramatic.
One meal spikes and crashes; the other steadies and sustains.
The same principle applies across the entire day. Build all your meals around a real protein source first, such as eggs, fish, chicken, Greek yoghurt, cottage cheese, tofu, legumes or lean meat. Then add high-fibre carbohydrates and vegetables.
The goal is not to fear carbs, which many do. It is to choose complex carbohydrates that still resemble where they came from, and to eat them with the right foods.
That means oats instead of sugary cereal, lentils instead of white crackers, fruit with nuts or yoghurt instead of juice. Try brown rice, quinoa or sweet potato paired with salmon or chicken instead of refined takeaway meals that are built around white bread, chips, pastry, white rice or white pasta.
Eggs on grainy toast with avocado is a far better breakfast for blood sugar levels than a bowl of cereal or toast and jam
The drinks that sabotage blood sugar control
Another major issue is liquid sugar. This is something so many forget about.
Soft drinks, fruit juice, iced teas, energy drinks and sugary coffees are one of the fastest ways to overwhelm blood sugar regulation because they deliver a large glucose load with almost no fibre and very little satiety.
If somebody is serious about lowering blood sugar naturally, reducing liquid sugar is one of the quickest wins.
The overlooked role of exercise, sleep and stress
Exercise is essential, and it does not have to be extreme, like many think. A short walk after a meal can make a meaningful difference, because muscles help clear glucose from the bloodstream. Resistance training is especially powerful, because skeletal muscle is one of the body’s biggest sites for glucose disposal. The more muscle you preserve and build, the better your body will manage carbohydrates.
This is why I insist on a holistic approach that includes food strategies with exercise and general movement.
Sleep is another major piece that people underestimate. Poor sleep worsens insulin sensitivity, increases hunger, raises cravings and makes people more likely to reach for quick energy.
In other words, it makes good food choices harder and blood sugar control worse.
‘Resistance training is especially powerful, because skeletal muscle is one of the body’s biggest sites for glucose disposal,’ writes clinical nutritionist Sarah Di Lorenzo. (Stock image)
Abdominal weight gain is among the early signs of prediabetes. (Stock image posed by model)
Stress does something similar. Chronic stress raises cortisol, which creates a more blood sugar-unfriendly environment, particularly when it is combined with under-eating, over-caffeinating and running on empty.
How to lower blood sugar naturally before it’s too late
So if someone asks me how to lower blood sugar naturally before it becomes prediabetes, my answer is this: do not wait for a diagnosis to start acting.
Look at the early signs: the cravings, the crashes, the abdominal weight gain, the constant snacking, the poor sleep, brain fog, lack of concentration and the afternoon slump. Don’t just think this is all normal life because you are busy. Take these symptoms seriously.
Sarah Di Lorenzo’s new book, The Blood Sugar Repair Plan, is out now
Then start with the fundamentals. Prioritise protein at every meal and increase fibre. Stop eating carbohydrates on their own. Cut back on liquid sugar. Avoid processed foods. Move after meals. Build muscle. Protect sleep. Manage stress.
This is not about perfection. It is about creating blood sugar stability before metabolic dysfunction becomes more entrenched.
When you catch blood sugar problems early, you are not just avoiding prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes; you are improving energy, appetite, waist circumference, mood, inflammation, quality of life and long-term metabolic health. You are changing the whole environment in which your body has to function, and you just feel so much better.
See this as an opportunity to take action, rather than waiting for blood sugar to become a disease. When you address this early enough, it is easier to repair, because the body will still be incredibly responsive.
