Just out of curiosity, checked my online record. It goes back to 2010, numbers are 5.6 5.6 5.9 5.7 5.9 5.7 6.0 5.9 5.9 5.7 5.9 and most recent…6.2 !
Re: #39, #40
Statins are associated with increased blood sugar levels, though the Mayo Clinic says that “The benefit of taking statins likely outweighs the small risk to have the blood sugar level go up.”
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/in-depth/statin-side-effects/art-20046013
Do not juice your fruits!
http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2013/08/reduce-type-2-diabetes-risk/
@momsquad Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes are not the same. Type 1 is caused by autoimmune destruction of the insulin producing cells of the pancreas so that eventually the pancreas no longer makes insulin. This type of diabetes must be treated with insulin and is more common in children and young adults but can be diagnosed later. Type 2 diabetes is caused by insulin resistance, usually in people who are overweight but not always. In this type, insulin is produced but is not being utilized properly. As the pancreas tries to make more insulin to keep up with rising blood sugar eventually it can’t keep up.
Do you have access to an endocrinologist? It would be important to distinguish between the types of diabetes, they are not the same and are treated differently.
[/quote]
In my case, YMMV, wine drives up blood sugar level. Interestingly, beer and hard liquor are ok including furit schnapps.
@ucbalumnus, Thank you for those links, I’ve bookmarked them for the next dialogue with my husband’s next doctor. I quoted a Wikipedia entry in my first message which probably elicited an eye roll reflex from the doctor. It was stated that 50% or more of non-obesity related adult onset diabetes is due to autoimmune (type 1) disease and that early treatment with insulin can slow the progression. The doctor’s comment was that I shouldn’t panic, my husband does not need to see an endocrinologist because he does not have diabetes. Perhaps that’s true, but with a progressive disease it seems worthwhile to consider the possibilies while early intervention is still an option. I at least expected a somewhat informed discussion. The doctor’s apparent unfamiliarity with the concept of adult onset type 1 diabetes prompted me to request a new primary care doctor for husband, a recent graduate who may recall a chapter on the topic.
This morning I cut the carbs in half by slicing the sourdough rye loaf half the thickness- voila!
Hey, it could be worse. My husband doesn’t have a doctor and has no intention of seeing one.
It looks as though you are already moving in the right direction by requesting a new primary. My brother is slender and very athletic (bikes 24 miles or more/day) and was diagnosed with late onset Type 1 diabetes. A couple other names that my brother’s diabetes has been referred to is late onset juvenile diabetes and type 1½ diabetes. What my brother has experienced is line with what @cellomom2 wrote in that this is very different than type 2 and the treatment has been very different. The fact that your husband’s primary is not aware that there is a difference is very unsettling. When my brother first went to the doctor there seemed to be a slow progression with his diabetes yet then it was almost as if overnight his pancreas completely shut down.
It has been a few years back that my brother was first diagnosed yet to put a positive spin on a difficult diagnosis is that my brother is 60 and is just as active as when he was first diagnosed. It’s impossible to say at this point what is the actual diagnosis for your husband but you are very wise to seek a second opinion so you know exactly what you are dealing with and how to move forward.
Type 2 diabetes used to be called “adult onset diabetes.” But type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes (no matter the age of onset) are NOT the same thing. Type 1 is always treated with insulin (as mentioned above, the pancreas quits making it due to reasons that have nothing to do with diet patterns). Type 2 can often be reversed entirely with lifestyle changes. If not, it is usually treated with oral meds, and occasionally, additional coverage with insulin. Perhaps he misunderstood your question.
@andsometimesY, I’m glad your brother was correctly diagnosed and got appropriate treatment. I don’t know why there is not more awareness of the possibility of type 1 disease first appearing in adulthood. The standard of care seems to be to assume it is type 2 until interventions (lifestyle, medication) fail and then refer to an endocrinologist for testing. By then the people who have type 1 have already suffered significant pancreatic damage.
@Nrdsb4, I will post the reply from the doctor. Maybe he was just oversimplifying, but his response makes me wonder how his adult onset type 1 patients are faring.
@momsquad, it’s an easy rule: no cereal at all, period. No sodas or sweet drinks other than diet versions. Flavored seltzer is fine.
Be VERY wary of nutritionists: they tend to push whole grains as the basis of the diet. Nope, just doesn’t work for T2s. Of course it is better than refined carbs, but that doesn’t mean it is GOOD. You will also find that most diabetes educators are so accustomed to people that aren’t at all compliant that they suggest a very low standard.
Our state just got a significant NIH research grant because over 1/2 our state is diabetic and pre-diabetic! Yikes!
I’m going to sign up for the classes offered by our HMO. If they are good I will try to get husband to attend, but I suspect he will become exasperated with an emphasis on calorie reduction. It’s all he can do to maintain a healthy weight. With fewer carbohydrates he’s going to need to eat a LOT of fat and protein to get the calories he needs. I will find out if he can have an appointment with someone to tailor the dietary recommendations for him.
It’s not that hard to get extra fat. Have a mashed avocado with no sugar added salsa with breakfast. Put some avocado oil or olive oil and vinegar on his salad instead of sugary dressings. Eat a hard boiled egg for a snack or top off a dish with a fried egg. Put some sliced almonds in your green beans. Scramble your eggs in a T of butter instead of using Pam spray. People always have this image of people on low carb diets sitting around dipping bacon in mayonnaise in order to get their extra fat in. That is not necessary.
There are all kinds of recipes out there using almond flour or coconut flour in order to cut carbs. I made some waffles last week using almond flour and they were delicious. I’ve made muffins out of coconut flour or ground flaxseed. There are tons of ingenious ways to switch out carbs and still have healthy, tasty meals.
Count me as another one like the OP. Fit, healthy, and prediabetic. Allow me to cover a few things mentioned above. There is no need to test for type 1. You already did. If you had type 1, your A1c would be nowhere near 6 without meds. And an A1c of 6 does not need to be on any meds. Someone mentioned oatmeal instead of corn pops. Actually that would be even worse for a diabetic. Sure it’s healthier, but loaded with carbs that your pancreas can’t handle well enough. Just like a bagel is even worse than a donut. It’s best to stay away from carbs altogether for breakfast. Bacon and egg is a better choice than wheat toast. Best advice is to buy a glucose meter and strips (cheap and private on ebay) and test before and after every meal for a month or two. That will show you definitely what foods are causing you problems. Then you can minimize those foods. Not necessarily eliminate, just minimize with less frequency and smaller portions. If you’re healthy and fit, and are at “only” 6 on the A1c, you should be able to reverse that with some painless diet changes. The key is finding out what you need to change.
Dude!! Complex carbs get in slower and it is much easier for insulin to match it and keep one’s blood sugar from spiking high and raising one’s a1c. A bagel is a much better choice then a refined, sugary donut. Cereal is one of the worst things for blood sugar, while oatmeal is great.
@Auracle, for some people, even some of the complex carbs will spike blood sugar and insulin. And there are plenty of bagels that are really hardly any better than eating a donut. Those with more severe diabetes or even certain people with metabolic syndrome/insulin resistance can’t indulge in things like bagels or oatmeal (and even those “healthy grains”) because those foods still spike insulin. People who are insulin resistant and have chronically high levels of fasting insulin must take even more drastic measures to curb this. You can’t just make broad statements. How one’s body reacts to carbohydrates of any variety is a very individual thing.
Can you fast too long for a fasting blood glucose draw such that it’s inaccurately low?
Good question @Madison85. Our insurance offers discounts for metabolic screening and getting an annual physical. I put these off to close to the deadline. Both were less than a week of each other and several tests were duplicated. I found it interesting that my blood glucose at the metabolic testing was a good bit lower than at the physical, which I attributed to a cardio workout the morning before the test. But maybe it could be the longer fast? I read somewhere that up to 15 hours was okay.
In my experience, longer fasting doesn’t necessarily reduce blood sugar level. I have a higher reading in the morning before breakfast than 2 hours after breakfast. My reading is also higher in the afternoon in general. It gets higher than after lunch although I don’t eat anything between meals. Sometimes, it gets even higher when I skip lunch.