This Common Kitchen Staple May Do Something Surprising Before Carbs Hit Your System
You may have noticed some meals leaving you energized, while others seem to send your blood sugar on an exhausting roller coaster. What you eat contributes to this, but so might the order you eat it in.
Researchers are exploring whether eating certain foods before carbohydrates can influence the body's response to a meal. In a new mouse study, scientists investigated what happens when olive oil comes before sugar, uncovering a possible way the kitchen staple may impact gut hormones and digestion.
About the study
For the initial experiment, researchers compared three groups of mice. One group received water, another received olive oil, and a third received glucose (sugar).
Fifteen minutes later, the water and olive oil groups received glucose, while the third group received olive oil. This allowed researchers to compare what happened to the mice's metabolism when they consumed olive oil before glucose, after glucose, or didn't consume it at all. The researchers tested this by measuring blood sugar, insulin, gut hormones, and how quickly the stomach emptied.
They also conducted additional experiments in mice with diabetes-like conditions and mice lacking specific hormone receptors to investigate which biological signals were involved.
Previous human research suggests that eating certain foods before carbohydrates may help moderate blood sugar responses, but the mechanisms aren't fully understood. This more specific study was conducted in mice because the animals share over 95% of their genes with humans, but are much easier to manipulate and observe in a lab setting.
Olive oil before sugar blunted the initial blood sugar rise
Mice given olive oil before glucose had a smaller initial blood sugar spike and slower stomach emptying than the other groups. By two hours, however, blood sugar levels were similar, suggesting olive oil delayed the early rise in blood sugar, rather than completely lowering it.
Timing was key for this. When mice received olive oil after glucose, the same effect on blood sugar didn't occur.
The researchers also observed changes in three hormones, glucagon, GIP, and GLP-1, which help coordinate digestion and blood sugar regulation. The effect persisted in diabetic mice with impaired insulin production, suggesting the response may involve more than insulin alone.
How the gut may be involved
Researchers found that glucagon and GLP-1 appeared to work together. Disrupting either hormone's signaling alone didn't eliminate the effect, but disrupting both did.
Cutting the vagus nerve, which carries signals between the gut and brain, also weakened the response, even though hormone levels remained elevated.
Together, these findings suggest that gut hormones and communication between the gut and brain may help slow stomach emptying, allowing sugar to enter the bloodstream more gradually.
However, the study used a substantial amount of olive oil relative to the mice's body weight. Human trials are needed to determine whether the same mechanism applies to people and whether a practical serving of olive oil could produce a similar effect.
How to put meal sequencing into practice
You don't need to start taking spoonfuls of olive oil before meals. Some meal-sequencing strategies already have human research behind them.
Eating vegetables before carbohydrates, for example, has been shown to reduce post-meal blood sugar and insulin responses in some studies, potentially because fiber slows digestion.
To support steadier blood sugar:
- Start with vegetables: Eat fiber-rich vegetables before foods such as bread, rice, or pasta.
- Build balanced meals: Pair carbohydrates with protein, fiber, and healthy fats like olive oil to promote slower digestion and optimal nutrient absorption.
If you're managing blood sugar concerns, talk with your health care provider about approaches supported by human evidence.
The takeaway
Olive oil gave mice a slower start to their blood sugar rise, but whether the same trick works for people is still an open question according to this study. We know olive oil comes with a host of other health benefits though, so enjoy it regularly as part of a well-balanced, real-food diet.