Not to be ugly I am interested only in a Type 2 perspective since I am T2 that does take insulin.
What are your experiences with IF? I just started and I am liking some of the changes. Whenever I have hungry pains I just drink water which has been really good for me. Since leaving the south I have had super dry skin and now it is not so bad.
My approach is to quit eating around 10 pm and fast till 2pm. Avoid any night snacking and just drink water. I am having a little issue of how to break my fast after 2pm? I am use to drinking coffee with cream in the morning. Does the coffee alone cause a spike in levels? Does adding a little cream increase the spike? It doesn’t seem to come down unless I take insulin in which I am trying to avoid.
Many people are moving to intermittent fasting not every day but some days or part of some days. I have been doing intermittent fasting not to lose weight but for other benefits. I just finished a 36 hour intermittent fast and wasn’t hungry at all even after 36 hours. Before you fast you should load up on caffeinated coffee , whole cream, butter and foods that are high in fat. For me at least they truly do suppress my appetite.
I am a Type 2 not on insulin. I did the 16/8 IF for about 1 1/2 years. Dropped 40 lbs. and felt healthy until I started to really struggle to go the full 16 hours of fasting. Got to where 10 - 11 hours was becoming almost impossible! I stopped IF all together after I was diagnosed in July 2020 with T2 Diabetes.
Since then I have dropped another 25 lbs. through healthier food choices, minimizing carb intake, daily physical activities/exercise, getting at least 6 1/2 hours of sleep on work nights (more on the weekends). I do take 1000 mg of Metformin twice a day (with Breakfast and then Dinner) which I believe has helped not only in more normal BG levels but has helped in stabilizing my weight.
I know TIR is the new measurement of BG success, but I am not on a CGM to get that constant feedback, so I still use my A1C for that purpose. July 2020 when diagnosed I was 12.3 A1C, my latest lab test was 5.6.
As I am still figuring out my new T2D life, I don’t see adding IF back into the equation, but am not opposed to the idea should it provide needed benefit in the future.
I have run through pretty much the whole gamut with 30 years since diagnose T2DM. For a decade I had good BG control with a carb limited diet and exercise, then had to add Metformin, later Lantus insulin and most recently Humalog.
Last year I was noticing my BG was inching up. If my fasting BG was high I would do a 16/8 fast. This worked for a while, but even continuing doing what I had been doing for 30 years BG was still rising. My HbA1c elevated a full percentage point in 6 months. That’s when my doctor and I discussed me going on multi daily injections with a CGM.
My last HbA1c was 5.2%. Will see what the next will be near the end of September.
Not only are our responses to treatment unique to each of us, type 2 DM has a way of progressing as the Beta cells just tire out (like my knees )
If it works for you, go for it. Your meter is one of your best friends.
)