Extra cozy Keys to steady blood sugar

As the temperature drops, your blood-sugar level rises up to 8 mg/dL higher than it is in the summer. Luckily, you can steady your glucose while relaxing at home

Sip a ‘switchel’ In her classic book The Long Winter, Laura Ingalls Wilder and her family sipped a prairie drink called switchel, or ginger dosed with vinegar. And prediabetic people who do so just before a meal reduce their blood sugar after eating by nearly 50%, say Arizona State University scientists. Vinegar’s acetic acid slows stomach emptying. To do: Add 10 to 12 pieces of thinly sliced fresh ginger, 1⁄2 cup of apple cider vinegar and 4 cups of water to a pitcher. Refrigerate at least 1 hour. Sip 1 cup before eating.

Tap your toes University of Missouri researchers found that fidgeting intermittently by tapping your leg after a meal aids the body’s ability to ferry glucose out of the bloodstream and into muscle cells, where it belongs. New Zealand researchers report this improves blood sugar response by up to 30%.