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Blood sugar & metabolic health: where to start.

Cravings, the afternoon crash, weight around the middle, a fasting glucose that's 'fine' but creeping. Insulin resistance is the most reversible pattern of the six — and the earliest to catch if you test the right marker.

Where should I start?

Three steps, in order.

1Understand insulin

Why fasting insulin moves years before glucose, and what the reversal plan looks like.

2Understand your numbers

Review the metabolism and blood sugar test list, including fasting insulin, HbA1c and triglycerides, to discuss with your doctor.

Review the blood sugar tests →
3Follow the protocol

The Type 2 Diabetes Protocol

Open the protocol →
The most useful reads

Read these first.

Expert interviews

From The Dr. Axe Show.

Watch more episodes →
Protocol

The Type 2 Diabetes Protocol

The Type 2 Diabetes Protocol

The Type 2 Diabetes Protocol

Open the protocol
One practical tool

Bloodwork Marker Reader

Create a free account, then enter your fasting insulin or HbA1c in the Bloodwork Marker Reader.

Open Bloodwork Marker Reader (free account)
Common questions

Straight answers.

What should my fasting insulin be?

Reference ranges run to 25; the research links the best outcomes with the low single digits. Above 7–8 is worth a plan, even with a normal glucose.

Does walking after meals really lower blood sugar?

Yes — ten minutes was enough to blunt post-meal peaks in a large trial. It's the cheapest metabolic intervention there is.

Is berberine as good as metformin?

They work on overlapping pathways and berberine performed comparably in some trials, but it isn't a substitute for prescribed therapy. Talk to your prescriber before combining or switching.

Visit preparation

Before a metabolic visit

Tick what you have; bring the rest. Print this page for the appointment.

Other concerns

Start somewhere else.