Why, only at lunch if I have a few carbs (10-15) do I spike a lot more than the same amount of carbs in the morning or evening? I typically walk for 1/2 hr or more after each meal but even with a 45 min walk today I was 11.2(100) at 1 hour and back down to 8(144) at 2 hours. I'm not on insulin just 2x500mg Met so there not much I can do except totally cut the carbs to zero at lunch :( ?
Thanks, Paul
I meant 11.2 (200)...
Aaah, one of those diabetes mysteries. Afternoon must be your time of carb sensitivity/insulin resistance. Could it be related to stress at work? It might also be the type of carbs you eat for lunch. Some digest more quickly & spike quickly.
Sorry Metformin isn't helping. As a thin, active person eating few carbs, you should be getting better results. Your Metformin dose could be increased to see if that helps. Know we've talked before about the possibility that you're not T2.
Carb to insulin ratios are not static. I generalize that I must give 1 unit of insulin per 10 grams of carbs. But in the morning, using that ratio, my blood sugars will go high. My ratios are different at that time of day, and I have to adjust accordingly. It takes some tinkering to get it right.
Thanks Gerri...
I work from home so don't think stress is the problem as I can usually work before breakfast and past dinner also... Yes, I still haven't asked to see an Endo yet because my a1c is still at 6.0 and has been for the last few years. Maybe its time press for this but with an a1c of 6.0 I don't have much hope any Dr/specialist would prescribe me insulin.
I had a soup for lunch (12:00) which I've had for dinner and saw no real spike. I usually take my Met at 7am and then 5pm, maybe this is the reason?
Thanks...
Thanks Chris...
I could be LADA, not had any tests but maybe its time for that. Had a terrible time here in Ont finding Dr who knows more than Type 1/2...
P.S. Sorry about Boston ;)
(Sorry for the delay, Paul. Having some tech problem with Tu notifications arriving days later.)
Yea, not going to be easy convincing most doctors that a conistent 6.0 A1c requires insulin. Remember that most have pretty low expectations for PWD. Worth asking for an endo referral. Showing an endo how little you eat & your postprandial spikes may get more attention than from a doctor who only knows about treating T2's. A endo would be more willing to running a GAD antibody panel & C-peptide. Hate seeing doctors take action only when BG is really high instead of being proactive to save beta cells.
Perhaps you'd have better results using time-release Metformin. You could try changing Metformin timing, but I question if that will just serve to change the spike to another meal.
Here again; watching the cgms clearly shows that the digestion cycle really has a 6 hour glucose output after 6 hours of ingestion of meal.
That is 30 to 90 minutes to see glucose peak out from intestine; 1 to 2 hours at peak and then fall off main part of cycle and then see 5 to 6 hours there will be the output of cracking the proteins and hard to crack stuff.
You will not see this in am as last nights meal would have been at 5 to 6 pm and bump at 11:00 pm to 12:00 midnight and then none at breakfast at 8 am.
Next bump will be 5 to 6 hours after breakfats and can occur at lunch time and 1:00 pm.
Its a shame the inaccurate useless data out there.
Try taking metformin at lunchtime.
Can you ask your dr to up your met? I take 1000 mg in am and in pm. Like you, my numbers aren't out of the ballpark because I eat a very low carb diet. I'm also in a normal body weight range and workout regularly. My last A1C was 6.4 so they think I'm healthy and don't seem to understand that I have to jump through a lot of low carb hoops to stay there.
Anyway, upping my dose of met from 1500 to 2000 mg dropped my spikes over 200 to none and my fastings from 135 to 123 on average. I have also found that if I exercise strenuously it drops my BG better. Walking is good for me but doesn't alter my BG. Running is knocking it down a little lower.
Thanks Whirlygig,
Exactly... I know my numbers are not bad because of the low carb and lots of walking/exercise I do. I know if I didn't exercise and ate more carbs my numbers would be a lot worse. I'm already skinny so not much else I can do. Maybe I'll try taking an extra Met just before lunch and see if it makes a difference.
If I walk after dinner my numbers are great and I rarely see a spike past 120. Lunch is the hardest with 10 grams of carbs sending me past 140 with a 45 min, brisk walk...
Thanks, Paul
Our bodies work in mysterious ways sometimes ;) My blood sugar sometimes spikes for no particular reason at all, or I'll get up in the morning and it's high! Why? I don't really know. maybe it has something to do with your food over the course of the week or over the course of the past few days? Is this a trend, or a single incident?
This is a trend for me. Lunch has and is the worst meal. Even 5g carbs will raise me too much. I'm having scrambled eggs and a little low fat meat now and I'm fine. I really miss having that piece of toast with my eggs but without insulin there's not much I can do unless I want that spike.
In comparison I can handle 30g carbs at dinner if, and that's only if I go for a 1 hr walk right after the meal. No walk and I'm in the 200's, with the walk and I'm around 130ish at an hr...
Paul
I am this way with breakfast. I can eat some carbs later in the day and get away with it, but breakfast has to be way low-carb. Plain yogurt with a few berries, an egg, and I've had to give up my beloved orange juice for tomato juice.
yes, great idea. and maybe at 10:00 pm and midhight 12:00 am.
one big dose useless as met works best on up to strength in blood system - not residuals.
work with your doctor at all times and good luck.
Exactly. My breakfast is very same - cut carbs, low glycemic and proteins.
Once body running later, body handles carbs waY BETTER.
I even have to watch my coffee and better black.
After being asleep, body needs time for meds to get back up to speed.
Juice, cereal's - no - no.
Maybe that's it, Jims. Of course that wouldn't explain Paul's reaction at lunch, except if he doesn't take a metformin in mid-day that might explain it.
I agree you should try metformin at lunch too. I would try first to split a dose, e.g. 250 breakfast and 250 lunch, to see if that's enough. If it's not ask your endo to up dose to 500x3.
I think you are in the strange common sitcom of PWD too good to cure themself, so that they do good enough and cannot have the pharma goods they need.
Keep on looking for an endo who understand your good A1c is due more to your hard work than to your "weak" diabetes.
Perhaps even a "cheap" regular insulin could now help you keep your numbers low after lunch.
Keep on with your good habits, but ask for a little insulin: the lower A1c the better and you could gain a little weight, if you need.
Yes, I have started taking my 3 metformins this way: one in the early morning hours to help with my dawn phenomenon problem, then I split the other two and take 1/2 at breakfast, 1/2 at lunch, 1/2 at dinner, and 1/2 at bedtime. Keeps it more in my system that way.