Summer brings with it the promise of warmer temperatures, a change in activities, and a change in the type of foods you eat. It's goodbye to soups and stews and hello to foods that are more fresh and cool. Some popular summer snacks include ice cream, lollipops, chips, and cookies. But while these snacks may be tasty, they aren't healthy. However, there are many other great summer snacks that can help support your health, help your body manage stress, and satisfy your taste buds as well.
Before exploring the range of tasty summer snacks that can support your body, it is important to understand adrenal health and how nutrition can help support it. Your adrenals are two glands that sit atop your kidneys and release hormones such as cortisol in response to stress. These hormones help your body cope with stress, and when the stress subsides, the production of these hormones decreases.
However, if the stress does not stop and continues, your adrenal glands continue to produce these hormones. This depletes your adrenal glands and causes low levels of cortisol. Additionally, there is a system in your body called the NeuroEndoMetabolic (NEM) Stress Response System that helps to support your body during stress. When stress continues and your adrenal glands become depleted, it causes imbalances within the circuits of this system. These two occurrences result in Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome (AFS). AFS is the non-Addison's form of adrenal dysfunction, where the body's stress response cannot keep up with life's chronic stressors.
The symptoms of AFS will depend on where the imbalance in the NEM system is occurring. The Bioenergetics circuit is one of the six circuits of related organs within the NEM system. It consists of the pancreas, thyroid, and liver and is responsible for converting fat, protein, and carbohydrates to energy for your body.
An imbalance within this circuit can cause a range of symptoms that include weight gain or weight loss, shakiness, sugar cravings, and dizziness. Nutrition plays an important part in helping to relieve these symptoms.
Compounds such as vitamin C, E, selenium, and probiotics help to support the adrenal glands and the production of hormones such as cortisol. They also help to neutralize free radicals in the body that can occur in response to stress. These free radicals can cause further damage to the body and increase inflammation. By neutralizing these free radicals, cellular damage is prevented or reduced (1).
Sugar level control is also important. Your pancreas, one of the key organs within the Bioenergetics circuit, is responsible for maintaining blood sugar levels. When you consume carbohydrates, your body breaks them down into glucose, also known as sugar, one of the main sources of fuel for your body. In response to this glucose, your pancreas releases insulin. This hormone allows your cells to use the glucose. If there is too little insulin, your blood sugar levels can become high, and too much insulin will cause low blood sugar levels.
In AFS, when there is an imbalance within the Bioenergetics circuit, it can cause changes in your pancreas and the release of insulin. This can result in changes in your blood sugar levels, leading to weight loss or weight gain and shakiness.
Carbohydrates are the main macronutrient that affects blood sugar levels, whereas fat and protein do not. However, they can help to slow the release of glucose in the bloodstream, helping to manage blood sugar levels.
When choosing summer snacks to help support your blood sugar levels, combining fat and/or protein with carbohydrates can help. Additionally, choosing carbohydrates that release glucose slowly, also known as low glycemic index (GI) foods, can help.
Whilst its name may remind you of the frozen yogurt that you can buy in the grocery store, this one is a bit different. Rather than adding sugar and preservatives to it, this frozen yogurt can be made using plain yogurt and freezing it or adding fruits and nuts to it and then freezing it. Not only does this provide a cool summer snack for those hot days, but it also changes the texture and provides a healthier alternative to ice cream. The protein and fat in the yogurt will help with a slower release of glucose and the combination of fruits such as berries will help to provide nutrients such as vitamin C that can help to support the adrenal glands.
This one is very similar to frozen yogurt. However, rather than being in a container, this summer snack involves spreading out yogurt on a baking tray, adding nuts and berries, and then freezing it. Once frozen, it can be cut into bite-sized pieces, resembling bark.
Using popsicle molds, fill the mold with milk or yogurt and a combination of fruits such as berries. Like the frozen yogurt, the fruits will add antioxidants to support the adrenals, and the addition of yogurt or milk will help slow the release of glucose. Another spin on this summer snack is to make a smoothie and use that to fill the molds before freezing.
This is a tasty as well as super versatile summer snack. You can use your choice of fruits and vegetables to blend and can add yogurt, milk, or ice as well as nut butters or seeds to add to the taste and texture. If you do use fruits, try to keep it to a maximum of three fruits. Whilst the addition of yogurt, milk, nuts, and seeds will help slow the glucose release, the portion size of fruit can lead to a larger glucose level, so portion size is important here.
Slide a combination of small pieces of different fruit and vegetables onto a skewer. If you would like to jazz up this snack, you can dip it in yogurt or dark chocolate and freeze to harden the outer coating.
Slice an apple and place a nut butter such as almond or peanut butter on the apple slice. When choosing a nut butter be mindful that the one you choose does not contain sugar. The addition of sugar will spike your sugar levels and place extra stress on your body.
If you are yearning for a more savory summer snack, pinwheels can be a great option. Using a whole wheat tortilla, place a spread on it such as mayonnaise, mustard, yogurt, hummus, or nut butter, and add a filling such as grated cheese, turkey, or sliced chicken. Roll the tortilla up and slice into pinwheels. You can substitute whole wheat tortilla for almond flour tortilla, coconut flour tortillas, or vegetable tortillas.
If you are looking for a summer snack after dinner, chia pudding can be a healthy alternative. To make this pudding, place chia seeds in milk, and for some sweetness, add a fruit. Once added, let the pudding soak for a few hours. During this time, the seeds will soak up the milk and expand, making a pudding-like texture. Ideally, add a low GI fruit such as strawberries, raspberries, and or blueberries as this will help slow the release of glucose in the body.
If you are craving chips or something crunchy, kale chips are a great alternative and surprisingly tasty. To make them, remove the stems off the kale leaves, sprinkle some olive oil on them, place them on a baking tray, and bake at 275 degrees for 20 minutes. Once baked, let them cool off before you indulge. Kale is low in carbohydrates, will not spike your blood sugar levels, and is rich in nutrients.
As a summer snack, granola is incredibly versatile. You can have it by itself, bake it into bars, or even add plain yogurt for some extra creaminess. To make your own granola, combine oats, nuts, and seeds as well as a small amount of olive oil and honey. Place on a baking tray and bake for 10 minutes at 300 degrees. After 10 minutes, remove, toss the contents, and place in the oven for another 10 minutes, Once baked, let it cool for 45 minutes. Once cooled, crumble the ingredients to your preferred consistency.
Incorporating low GI carbohydrates and pairing them with protein and/or fat in your summer snacks is one way to achieve sugar control. However, supplements can also come in handy.
Chromium is an essential trace mineral, meaning it is essential for your health and needed in small amounts. The evidence on the effects of chromium and sugar levels is positive, with multiple studies showing that chromium can help improve insulin sensitivity, thus improving sugar levels (2, 3).
Whilst food sources do contain chromium, supplementation can help to provide a higher, more reliable dose of chromium. Chromaster by Dr. Lam is one such supplement, containing 200 mcg of chromium. This supplement is available in tablet form and should be taken once to twice a day with food.
If you're experiencing symptoms like fluctuating weight or dizzy spells, it might be worth looking into your adrenal health. Dr. Lam's Adrenal Fatigue Recovery Program offers a comprehensive solution, including diet adjustments, meditation techniques, exercise routines, and targeted supplementation—all without the hassle of doctor visits, costly tests, or prescriptions.
With a structured meal plan and expert guidance, you'll gain invaluable insights into conquering adrenal fatigue and reclaiming your vitality. Dr. Lam, having battled adrenal fatigue himself and aided countless others in their recovery journey, distills his wealth of experience into this educational program, helping you sidestep common pitfalls and achieve lasting wellness.
Ready to take control of your health? Schedule a free initial call today at +1 (626) 571-1234.
Optimise Your Sugar Levels
Patani, Anil, et al. “Harnessing the Power of Nutritional Antioxidants Against Adrenal Hormone Imbalance-associated Oxidative Stress.” Frontiers in Endocrinology, vol. 14, Nov. 2023, https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2023.1271521.
Khodavirdipour, Amir, et al. “Chromium Supplementation; Negotiation With Diabetes Mellitus, Hyperlipidemia and Depression.” Journal of Diabetes & Metabolic Disorders, vol. 19, no. 1, Mar. 2020, pp. 585–95.https://doi.org/10.1007/s40200-020-00501-8
Asbaghi, Omid, et al. “Effects of Chromium Supplementation on Glycemic Control in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.” Pharmacological Research, vol. 161, Nov. 2020, p. 105098. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phrs.2020.105098.
Sometimes making your own summer snacks is not possible, If this is the case, there are options you can choose from stores. These include fruits, snack-sized packets of nuts and/or dried fruit, and whole-grain crackers. For better sugar control try to combine a carbohydrate with a protein or fat.
