What Happens to Your Blood Sugar When You Eat Apple Pie

Like other desserts, apple pie can raise your blood sugar because it contains carbohydrates. However, you don’t have to avoid apple pie altogether if you’re watching your blood sugar. There are several steps you can take to minimize the impact on your blood sugar.

Carbohydrates in Apple Pie Can Raise Your Blood Sugar

Sugary and starchy foods (like apple pie) contain carbohydrates, which can spike your blood sugar. One slice of apple pie typically contains between 40 and 60 grams (g) of carbs, depending on the recipe.

Your body breaks down carbs into sugar, which raises your blood sugar levels. However, not all carbs affect your body the same way.

There are three main types of carbohydrate, and apple pie contains all three:

• Sugar: A simple carbohydrate that can quickly raise your blood sugar.
• Starch: A complex carbohydrate that can spike your blood sugar; the degree to which it spikes depends on the type of starch (e.g., rapidly digestible, slowly digestible, or resistant starch).
• Fiber: A complex carbohydrate that can help slow the absorption of other carbs, helping you maintain stable blood sugar levels.

Apple Pie and Your Blood Sugar

Even though apple pie contains some fiber from apples (which helps slow glucose absorption and minimize blood sugar spikes), it also includes a lot of sugar and other simple carbs (such as flour).

What all this means is that eating apple pie is likely to raise your blood sugar, but it might not spike it to the degree that some other desserts do.

You can still enjoy apple pie if you have diabetes or are watching your blood sugar; however, you may want to modify the recipe, be mindful of your portion size, and consider the foods you pair with your pie.

How to Make Apple Pie More Blood Sugar Friendly

There can be a pretty big difference between one apple pie and the next. If you’re watching your blood sugar, then the general rules of thumb are:

• The less sugar your pie contains, the less it will spike your blood sugar.
• The more apples your pie contains (particularly fresh apples with skin on), the less it will spike your blood sugar.
• The more fiber and protein your pie contains (from whole grain flour, for instance), the less it will spike your blood sugar.

Next time you’re prepping an apple pie, consider these strategies, which can minimize the effects on your blood sugar:

• Make your pie at home so that you have more control over the ingredients.
• If you’re getting a store-bought apple pie, look for ones that are low-sugar or sugar-free, and avoid high fructose corn syrup.
• Use fresh apples instead of canned apples, especially if they’re canned in syrup.
• Leave your apples unpeeled.
• Use whole-grain flour in your crust, such as whole wheat, brown rice, or even oat flour.
• Use less sugar or sugar-free sweeteners.
• Add more cinnamon to enhance the flavor (rather than adding more sugar). Cinnamon has blood sugar-lowering properties.
• Eat your apple pie plain, without ice cream or other high-sugar additions.
• If you have diabetes, consider the rest of your meal and your daily carbohydrate intake, and monitor your blood sugar.