The brain would be able to regulate blood glucose through a real cognitive process that allows the body to burn more sugar.
The protagonist of this mechanism is the hippocampus, a small area of ​​the brain in the shape of a seahorse located in the temporal lobe, but which is also part of the limbic system.

The hippocampus is included in an important long-term memory circuit, which allows information to be stored. It also plays a role in orientation and spatial navigation.
But to these peculiarities of the hippocampus today another one is added .

This tiny portion of the brain makes it possible to use glucose not only for memory operations, but also regulates the metabolism of brain activity by acting on the hypothalamus.
The greater this activity, the more the hippocampus allows the body to burn sugars.

Put simply, if you want to regulate your blood sugar and burn more, train your brain.

HERE’S HOW THE HIPPOCAMPI REGULATES THE GLUCOSE IN THE BLOOD

The discovery of the role of the hippocampus in glucose regulation is due to a new study conducted by Tingley and published in the journal Nature . As a rule, the brain alone consumes 90 grams of glucose, or 360 calories. But people who train their minds and study burn a lot more.
It is the hippocampus that regulates this energy demand, as if it were a metabolic control unit of the brain.
In fact, it receives sensory and metabolic information from our brain: the projections of its neurons reach various cortical and subcortical areas, including that of the hypothalamus.

THE CONTROL UNIT OF METABOLISM

Through this function of control unit, the hippocampus acts as a bridge between cognitive processes and their energy needs.
Tingley recorded oscillatory patterns called SPW-R, which are sensitive to changes in the electrical potential of hippocampal neurons. Their waves pass through various areas of the hippocampus and then reach other regions.

Tingley’s team analyzed the SPW-R waves in rats and found that when they are engaged in particular brain activities, these waves intensify and produce a reduction in blood glucose within ten minutes.
The hippocampus in fact uses the SPW-R to connect, through the lateral septum, to the hypothalamus, which we know is a region that regulates metabolism and with it calorie intake, hunger and some types of hormones.
This would explain why a decrease in glucose follows cognitive effort, but it could also explain why many people with dementia also develop type 2 diabetes.