Between meal cortisol spikes

Hi, I'm on day 12 of protocol 1000 plus. The biggest positive change that I've noticed so far is that my previously intractably high blood pressure, that normally runs 150/100+, is now running 120/80 so long as I've eaten within the last 4 hours. After 4 hours post meal, my blood pressure gradually goes back up almost as high as it used to run. Then after eating again it'll drop within 30 minutes. I find this very interesting. I've never previously observed any correlation between blood pressure and meal timing (and I definitely would have noticed). I'm also now waking up WIDE awake after just a few hours of sleep each night. I went ahead and got up at around 2am every night for a week before correlating this to the post meal blood pressure pattern and began suspecting cortisol is rising significantly several hours after eating and causing my blood pressure spikes and insomnia. I've now tested and confirmed that I can get back to sleep within 30 minutes or so if I eat upon waking (RIP my waistline). Incidentally my meals are very consistent and basic. Mostly oats, beans, lentils, brown rice, olive oil, and beef. I've eaten these same foods for a very long time. Anyway, I wanted to see if my theory seems reasonable and if this is a known pattern with mitigation strategies. Thanks!

DJackson wrote:

Hi, I'm on day 12 of protocol 1000 plus. The biggest positive change that I've noticed so far is that my previously intractably high blood pressure, that normally runs 150/100+, is now running 120/80 so long as I've eaten within the last 4 hours. After 4 hours post meal, my blood pressure gradually goes back up almost as high as it used to run. Then after eating again it'll drop within 30 minutes. I find this very interesting. I've never previously observed any correlation between blood pressure and meal timing (and I definitely would have noticed). I'm also now waking up WIDE awake after just a few hours of sleep each night. I went ahead and got up at around 2am every night for a week before correlating this to the post meal blood pressure pattern and began suspecting cortisol is rising significantly several hours after eating and causing my blood pressure spikes and insomnia. I've now tested and confirmed that I can get back to sleep within 30 minutes or so if I eat upon waking (RIP my waistline). Incidentally my meals are very consistent and basic. Mostly oats, beans, lentils, brown rice, olive oil, and beef. I've eaten these same foods for a very long time. Anyway, I wanted to see if my theory seems reasonable and if this is a known pattern with mitigation strategies. Thanks! 

Interesting! I would not know about this question, so I asked Leo, the AI bot at Brave search about this question: 

"Meal timing significantly influences diurnal cortisol patterns, with distinct spikes observed in response to food intake. A meal consumed at noon typically triggers a reproducible, rapidly increasing meal-related cortisol peak in all subjects studied, which is more pronounced than the response to an identical meal consumed in the evening. 

This evening response is attenuated, with lower mean cortisol increases and greater interindividual variation, suggesting that the time of day modulates the pituitary-adrenal axis response to food. The midday meal may play a synchronizing role in normal plasma cortisol fluctuations, even in individuals with different meal and activity schedules. Cortisol levels can rise acutely after eating, with increases beginning around 30 minutes after a meal, peaking approximately one hour postprandially, and returning to baseline within two hours. 

This postprandial cortisol surge is observed during the day, particularly in response to lunchtime meals, which produce higher cortisol peaks than evening meals. However, even small cortisol surges after a late-night dinner can negatively impact metabolic health by contributing to nocturnal glucose intolerance. In some cases, skipping breakfast has been associated with a disrupted cortisol rhythm, including elevated cortisol levels from arrival to mid-afternoon and a larger cortisol response to lunch, suggesting a compensatory or anticipatory mechanism.

Interestingly, the cortisol response to meals can vary based on individual chronotypes. Early birds, who typically go to bed early, experience a 30% higher blood sugar spike and a 20% reduction in fat breakdown after a late meal compared to night owls, who show minimal metabolic disruption from late eating. This indicates that the timing of meals relative to an individual’s circadian rhythm is critical for metabolic outcomes.

Moreover, the anticipation of a meal can trigger a pre-prandial cortisol rise, which may be absent in individuals who skip meals, such as those practicing time-restricted eating (TRE) by skipping dinner. This anticipatory response is similar to cortisol increases seen in anticipation of stress or physical activity. In contrast, skipping breakfast is linked to a blunted diurnal cortisol pattern, with reduced morning cortisol and a flattened rhythm, which may indicate HPA axis dysfunction and is associated with poor cardiometabolic outcomes. 

These findings highlight that both the timing of meals and the consistency of eating patterns are key factors in regulating cortisol secretion and metabolic health."

AI-generated answer. Please verify critical facts.

 

Thanks