Anti-spike cookie balls

There are two things you need to know to understand the birth of this recipe.

1. I travel Europe full time.

2. I love coffee, but coffee does not love me and I try coffee in every single country we visit.

And here’s the problem: When we lived in the UK, I drank decaf when we were out and about. It was just the norm for me, and coffee had gotten so good in the UK, that a decent decaf flat white was possible at pretty much any coffee shop (even the cool ones, that used to turn their nose up to decaf).

At home, I generally try to avoid caffeine or keep it very low, and making coffee at home, allows me to do that - if I am making my own coffee, I tend to only use 1g (yes, really) to 5g of caffeinated coffee, the rest is decaf.

This is for two reasons. I have interstitial cystitis, and caffeine/coffee generally make it worse, and I also have dysautonomia, which means the involuntary actions of my body such as breathing, heart beat and blood pressure cannot regulate properly. The result for me personally is dizziness, low blood pressure, feeling faint (occasional fainting too), blood sugar dysregulation, heart pain, racing heart and palpitations, to name a few of these fun symptoms.

Now, there are numerous ways to improve these symptoms, and one of them is avoiding stimulants. Whilst some people with POTS and dysautonomia may be able to tolerate a lot of caffeine, many of us cannot.

For me, it tends to trigger an adrenaline surge, followed by a big crash in blood pressure and blood sugar - I end up getting severe shakes, dizziness and feeling faint. So, you can see why I avoid drinking lots of caffeine.

But as we travelled, we discovered that the decaf coffee movement hasn’t made its way to all countries. But one of the things Chris and I love most is to visit coffee shops across Europe and try out the coffee on the weekends, when we’re not at work. At first, it wasn’t so bad, I had a few episodes, but I didn’t react too much - but over time, the reactions have gotten more severe and my tolerance has reduced.

We also tend to do a lot of walking when we’re out and about, so suddenly having a blood sugar crash whilst miles away from any food, is not fun.

Now, here’s something also worth mentioning. It’s not just people with dysautonomia or POTS who can have blood sugar spikes and crashes following coffee. This can happen to anyone, but especially people who are struggling with blood sugar regulation or are struggling with their stress response.

The reason this happens is because caffeine stimulates your stress response, and the purpose of your stress response is to move fuel and resources to muscles, the heart, lungs, etc. in order to get you out of a stressful, potentially life threatening situation fast. Part of this process is to release glucose from the liver and fat cells, which can create a spike - that glucose is then used up, and is followed by a crash.

Interestingly enough, some people don’t get the spike, they just get the crash. And this is partly due to the high variability we see in individual glucose responses, but also, how people’s nervous system responds to caffeine and how much adrenaline and cortisol they release.

So, for me, I tend to spike and then crash, although sometimes I just crash! You can learn more about how caffeine affects blood sugar and individual responses in this great evidenced based article here (not sponsored/affiliated, just a good article!).

So anyway, I needed something to stabilise me when having a coffee out and about. Something to prevent both a spike and a dip. I had looked into supplements to help prevent those in the moment blood sugar irregularities from food and coffee, but really couldn’t afford any of them and also, couldn’t get hold of them in time, as I am rarely in one location for more than four weeks, and shipping is tricky.

So, I decided to make a snack I could carry it my bag, that helped to slow down a blood sugar spike, but also prevented my blood sugar from getting too low as well.

The beauty of this snack, is that it doesn’t just work for coffee too, it works for food responses as well. So, if you’re someone who is prone to spiking and then crashing, known as reactive hypoglycaemia, then these Anti-Spike Balls could be just the ticket.

Now, before you jump into the recipe - there’s something you should know. I originally made these for me, to solve a problem, but they worked so well (no crashes since making these!) that I wanted to share them with you. But I made them to be a functional food - to serve a purpose health wise, and so they have a high amount of flax in them to do this, which makes them taste very flax-y (earthy), and also, I only use two dates, to keep blood sugar levels stable (as I spike from too many). So, the idea of these were to serve a function first, and taste to come second - really, that doesn’t bother me because reducing those crashes for me personally, is more important than taste. They don’t taste bad at all, they just taste on the healthier side. So, if you want to give them a flavour boost, check the notes below!

So, let’s get to it.

This recipe is…

• Made with peanut butter to prevent blood sugar spikes from starchy and sugary foods.

  Nuts have been shown to have a positive effect on blood sugar, particularly peanuts and peanut butter. One study showed two tablespoons (32g) of peanut butter with a high glycemic index meal (a.k.a blood sugar spiking) significantly reduced the blood sugar spike, this is due to the fat, fibre and protein in peanut butter, which all can play a role in slowing down the digestion and absorption of glucose to the blood stream.

And the same can be said for coffee - consuming coffee on an empty stomach, is a recipe for a blood sugar rollercoaster for many of us, but consuming coffee with or after food, especially food that’s rich in fat, fibre and protein, all helps to slow down digestion, meaning we get a steadier and slower absorption of the caffeine.

• Made with flax seeds to slow down the release of glucose and to slow down digestion.

  Chia seeds contain something called viscose fibre. Viscose fibre forms a gel-like texture when added to water, and when combined with liquids and food in the gut. This slows down digestion (so great for us when we’re drinking coffee) and also the release of glucose (even better when we’re drinking coffee with a pastry or cake!). In fact, research shown that 30g of flaxseed helped reduce the glucose spike with a sugary or starchy meal, whilst 20g flax per day improved overall glucose levels and responses over 12 weeks.

• Made with chickpeas to provide slow release carbohydrates (energy!) and prevent blood sugar spikes.

  Research has shown that when compared to other carbohydrates, like white bread, chickpeas not only cause a lesser spike, but a lesser crash as well. When compared to white bread, which created a large spike followed by a more severe crash, chickpeas created a gentler, more even rise in blood sugar that was followed by a gentle return to baseline blood sugar levels pre-meal. What’s even more interesting is that when eaten first, chickpeas reduce blood sugar spikes in the following meal! So, we can use chickpeas here to prevent or lessen a blood sugar drop (meaning us reactive hypoglycaemia gals can avoid the shakes after coffee or high carb meals), but also reduce or prevent blood sugar spikes. Win-win.

• Made only with small amount of naturally occurring sugar to keep blood sugar levels sustained and stable.

In this recipe, to prevent that blood sugar crash following coffee, I am providing you with complex carbohydrates (which convert into glucose, for energy) from chickpeas and dates.

Of course, we want a little sweetness to support flavour, but not too much to create a spike. I have chosen to use dates as the sweetener, because they contain naturally occurring sugar to help give us a blood sugar boost, but also fibre, which means that the release of fructose (the sugar found in fruit) is in theory is slower (especially in contrast to simple sugars like maple syrup, honey and regular white sugar).

In fact, dates are generally classified as low to moderate glycemic (depending on the date) when consumed moderately, which means, thanks to their fibre content, they shouldn’t have a severe affect on blood sugar, and should actually only create a gentle rise. Now, remember that research has shown that people have very individual blood sugar responses, and I personally spike from dates if I don’t combine them with fibre, fat and protein, or if I have a lot of them in one go (there are some recipes out there that use A LOT of dates!). That’s why I kept the amount low, but also ensured there was lots of blood sugar stabilisers from the peanut butter, flax and chickpeas. If you want the balls to be sweeter, you can increase the dates by one or two, but I wouldn’t go too much higher as of course, the aim is to keep your blood sugar balanced and not spike it!

• Can support a healthy oestrogen to progesterone balance thanks to the flax seed.

Flax seeds are rich in a type of fibre called viscous fibre, which creates a gel-like substance in the gut, and bulks out bowel movements, improving regularity and treating constipation. This is absolutely essential for the last step in clearing out oestrogen - we want to be having at least one bowel movement a day to keep oestrogen at a healthy level. When oestrogen is hanging out in the gut, not going anywhere, it can be reabsorbed, creating higher levels of oestrogen once again.

This is especially true if we have elevated levels of an enzyme called beta glucuronidase, that can be high in people with endo, and recirculates waste oestrogen. The good news? Eating a diet rich in fibre (which flax seed offers in great amounts) helps to lower levels.

Flax seeds have also been shown to improve the metabolism of oestrogen through the liver, by increasing the amount of healthy oestrogen waste products (known as metabolites) and reducing the amount of the more potent, harmful ones, which can cause more oestrogenic activity.

Finally, flax contains lignans, plant compounds that have mild oestrogen-like effects, but are no where near as potent as oestrogen. Structurally, they mimic oestrogen and so can bind to oestrogen receptors. Think of a receptor as the lock, and oestrogen as they key, when we turn the lock, it triggers an oestrogen activity like thickening of the uterine lining. This can actually reduce the impact of high oestrogen levels, but also supports low levels, in menopause, for example.

In fact, one study showed that the participants who consumed 10g fresh, ground flax seeds (uncooked), daily for three cycles had longer luteal phases and a higher progesterone to oestrogen ratio in the luteal phase as well. You’ll be pleased to know that these balls provide 15g of flax per serving (two).

Now, despite what the research shows, everyone is individual, so if you find flax seeds make you feel more oestrogen dominant, please listen to your body, and I advise you listen/or read this and this, for more info on how to use flax for your body and endo.

• Absolutely packed with endo and hormone supportive vitamins and minerals.

The peanut butter in these anti-spike balls provides about 30% of your RDA for one serve.

Vitamin E can help us manage endo and the associated pain that comes with it. A recent meta-analysis of over 589 participants, concluded that vit E supplementation can reduce period pain, pain with sex, daily pelvic pain and even improve quality of life with endometriosis patients. And a systematic review and meta-analysis of eight studies and over 1000 people concluded that vitamin E significantly reduced period pain and could be used as a treatment for dysmennorhea.

One study found people with endo had a 40% reduced intake of vitamin E, but levels increased after following a high antioxidant diet, and oxidation levels reduced by 20% - this study actually used sunflower seeds as their main vitamin E provider.

Vitamin E can also help raise progesterone levels, and whilst we’re not using as high a dose as used in the studies, ensuring you’re getting enough vit E can support a healthy corpus luteum and progesterone production.

They also provide roughly 35% of your magnesium RDA, 20% of your folate, 19% zinc, 15% of your B6 and 11% iron.

Research has shown magnesium to be an effective treatment in preventing dysmenorrhea (period pain) because it reduces inflammatory prostaglandins that are the drivers of both endo and period pain. One study showed that six months of magnesium treatment reduced prostaglandin F2a by over half!  In fact, in recent research, magnesium is being explored as a dietary treatment for endo and a higher intake of magnesium rich foods was associated with a lower risk of endo. Additionally, magnesium helps to regulate our sex hormones, and as result, is a recognised treatment for preventing PMS.

Folate is crucial to ovarian function and ovulation, and low folate levels can cause irritability, mood swings and fatigue, and fertility problems.

Low levels of zinc have been linked to endo, and research has shown it can significantly reduce period pain thanks to its anti-inflammatory benefits. It additionally supports follicle development and ovulation, while deficiency has been linked to infertility.

B6 is one of the most important B vitamins for balanced hormones as it supports progesterone production and oestrogen metabolism. Additionally, research has shown that B6 treatment can help reduce PMS, especially the mood challenges that can come with the syndrome.

Iron deficiency is extremely common in general, but even more so in people with heavy menstrual bleeding. Iron plays a major role in preventing fatigue, and yet many of the clients who I work with, come to me with significantly low levels due to having SIBO, avoiding red meat, heavy periods or other reasons. Supporting healthy iron absorption and intake is a key part of beating endo fatigue and recovering from heavy blood loss and low levels can cause brain fog, extreme tiredness, heart palpitations, dizziness, muscle weakness and depression to name a few.

• Low FODMAP to keep endo belly at bay, yet rich in prebiotics for a healthy gut microbiome.

People with endo can often suffer from bloating, dubbed as the endo belly. This can be caused from numerous factors, but is often linked to small intestine bacterial overgrowth and/or microbiome issues. Research has shown that the low FODMAP diet may help ease symptoms in people with endo who also have gastrointestinal symptoms, such as bloating.

People with endo have been shown to have microbiome dysbiosis, with lower levels of some beneficial bacteria and higher levels of pathogenic (bad) bacteria, which can not only fuel IBS symptoms like bloating, but also inflammation.

These cookie balls are a great source of polyphenols and prebiotic fibre from the cacao nibs, flax, dates, chickpeas, and peanut butter. Polyphenols are types of antioxidants found in certain plant foods that not only reduce inflammation levels and improve overall health, but they are also a favourite food for our gut microbiome, which means that can support our good gut bugs to thrive.

Often fibre rich foods can trigger bloating in sensitive populations, but by keeping the fermentable carbohydrates down (FODMAPS) we can help keep our gut healthy, whilst also reducing endo belly flare ups.

Important notes to help you tailor this recipe to your own body and needs (and tastebuds!)

Serving sizes and functional servings

When I originally designed this recipe, I wanted one serving to provide the studied doses - so 30g flax seed and 32g peanut butter, so that would mean the batch would make two servings of four balls each. The problem with that is that they’re pretty damn filling, and also high in calories, which in my opinion, is fine - especially if I am not about to eat a meal and am just having a coffee, but I know for some people, calories matter so I wanted to respect that, and I also didn’t want you to not be able to eat your meal or snack because you’re so full from the balls! So it’s up to you, you could have two, or four in one go, or something I’ve been doing is taking four out with me, and having two before coffee and then one or two before starchy/sugary treats (we also like to visit bakeries at the weekend too!).

Now two balls will still serve your blood sugar really well, because don’t forget, the studies were on these individual components i.e 30g flax improved blood sugar responses on its own, so even though you’re not getting the full dose in two balls, you’re getting half the dose of both peanut butter and flax, with chickpeas to boot, so personally I have found I haven’t needed the four in on go, but see what works for you. I’ve even just had one ball and it’s worked well.

Sweetness and flavour

As I mentioned at the start of this recipe, I have put health over flavour here. However, if you’re not keen on the flax flavour and want to mask it, you can add one or two extra dates, as I explained above, I wouldn’t go too far over that because the point of these balls is to support blood sugar, not spike it! And if you’re eating these before something sugary, like ice cream, we don’t want to add more sugar to the mix ideally.

Alternatively, if you’d rather avoid adding more dates, try a few drops of monk fruit syrup or powder, which is a natural, blood sugar friendly sweetener with no sugar and gut benefits. You could also use a tsp or two of carob powder, which is naturally sweet and adds a caramel taste, yet doesn’t spike blood sugar due to a specific fibre that helps slow down the release of glucose.

Finally, I also used cacao nibs for extra fibre and to keep the sugar content down, but if you’d rather have some real chocolate in there, go for a high percentage one with a low sugar content, for example 85% or 90% preferably.

The good news is, I have a brownie version of these coming your way, so if you’d rather some extra flavour, those might be more your cup of tea.

Low FODMAP Serving sizes

The balls are only low FODMAP at two balls per serve, if you want four across one day but you’re on the low FDOMAP diet, try eating the other two separately, a few hours or more later.

Further resources

If you’re struggling with your endo nutrition or gut health, you might find my courses and one to one coaching helpful. You can find out more here. I’ve also got endless podcast episodes on gut health and blood sugar.  

To understand more about the low FODMAP diet, start here.

anti-spike cookie balls

Method:

• Grind the flax (if using whole) in a spice grinder.

• Add all the ingredients excluding the water and cacao nibs, into a food processor. Pulse a few times until it reaches a sticky breadcrumb consistency.

• Add the water, pulse again few times again, and then let the food processor run until a dough forms. The dough should be malleable and hold together when pressed. If it feels to dry, add another 1/2 tbsp of water.

• Add the cacao nibs and pulse to combine.

• Divide into 8 equal balls, and refrigerate in an airtight container for at least an hour.

• Take two to four out with you when you’re on the go, and have two before coffee or a starchy/sugary/carby meal. You can also eat four in one sitting for the full serving sizes of peanut butter and flaxseeds.