Sugars levels not improving

[dwelldon]

My blood sugar levels don't ever seem to be lower than 7 at the moment no matter what time of the day it is. I have seen the doctor and he has changed my meds again, thin time to xelevia which was changed from glicazide as I was having a reaction to them. (Itchiness argh terrible)

I also take pravastin for cholestoral, I have asked if I should come off those but he says not to. I am thinking that perhaps I should myself for a while to see if that makes any affect.

My diet and excercise is really good, for example yesterday I did 2hrs at on the bike and had chicken / veg for lunch and fish in sauce with runner beans for tea. So my carbs are normally fairly low. I drink a lot of tea / coffee and water throughout the day.

I really am at a loss as what to do, my next bloods are due in a few weeks.

Any advice / help is always appreciated.

 

[kaylz91]

Have you tried leaving the coffee out or switching to decaff? Some do find that the caffeine can have an impact on their levels, maybe its just the time of the year, 7 isn't overly concerning so I wouldn't be stressing too much xx

 

[JoKalsbeek]

My blood sugar levels don't ever seem to be lower than 7 at the moment no matter what time of the day it is. I have seen the doctor and he has changed my meds again, thin time to xelevia which was changed from glicazide as I was having a reaction to them. (Itchiness argh terrible)

I also take pravastin for cholestoral, I have asked if I should come off those but he says not to. I am thinking that perhaps I should myself for a while to see if that makes any affect.

My diet and excercise is really good, for example yesterday I did 2hrs at on the bike and had chicken / veg for lunch and fish in sauce with runner beans for tea. So my carbs are normally fairly low. I drink a lot of tea / coffee and water throughout the day.

I really am at a loss as what to do, my next bloods are due in a few weeks.

Any advice / help is always appreciated.

...Statins can push up blood sugar levels, and in some people, cause T2. Do you absolutely need them? Have you had a cardiac event in the past, or really, really high levels? Because a lot of T2's are given a statin because that's just "the thing to do", which doesn't mean it is the RIGHT thing to do. Anyway.... I'm not going to tell you to ditch the statin, as we're not allowed to give medial advice on here, but you might indeed "forget" to take it for a while, see what happens with your bloods.

 

[Daibell]

Hi. How high do your BS levels go, say 2 hours after a meal? Anything below 10 is fine as long as it's not constant. Yes, stains do push up your BS levels and you do need to ask yourself whether you need them and not just because the GPs says you must. He/she needs to provide a good case to take them as they can have serious side effects. You need to review your full lipids results and consider the ratios of HDL/LDL etc. If you don't have a family history of cardio issues then the lipids results should be the deciding factor. Don't along with the common GP view that all diabetics need statins - they don't.

 

[dwelldon]

It's the highs that are concerning I've been as high as 15. I could try cutting out the coffee, but I don't think that is the problem.
I think I will wait til after my next bloods to cut out the stations tbh. The main reason I think is that my dad had heart attack and we use the same doctors so probably knows the family history. Saying that he did smoke like a chimney

Thanks for advice

 

[Resurgam]

I did find that once my blood glucose was down below 7 for a while it did drift lower over the following months. I was perhaps doing more exercise as I felt so much better and more energetic, and trying to recover from the knock which taking Metformin and Atorvastatin gave me. I was in a bit of a state both physically and mentally.
I would not take a statin again, as it affected my memory - presumably, but I could not report my problems as I was taking two medications together and could not determine which one cause what with total confidence.

 

[HSSS]

Are you testing before and 2 hrs after meals? How much is the rise? If it’s more than 2mmol then maybe you are still eating more carbs than you and the meds can deal with successfully. I’d suggest keeping a food and bgl diary. If you can get this in sync with an appropriate rise only you might not need the meds. But do check your levels carefully as you reduce carbs to make sure you don’t hypo.

 

[dwelldon]

Yes I do test after meals, doesn't matter what it is tbh, usually 4 or 5 higher. I do keep a spreadsheet to track and there really is no pattern. Other than drug changes over recent times

Are you testing before and 2 hrs after meals? How much is the rise? If it’s more than 2mmol then maybe you are still eating more carbs than you and the meds can deal with successfully. I’d suggest keeping a food and bgl diary. If you can get this in sync with an appropriate rise only you might not need the meds. But do check your levels carefully as you reduce carbs to make sure you don’t hypo.

 

[HSSS]

Yes I do test after meals, doesn't matter what it is tbh, usually 4 or 5 higher. I do keep a spreadsheet to track and there really is no pattern. Other than drug changes over recent times

If it’s going up by 4 or 5 after each there’s some carbs in there somewhere you can’t cope with for whatever reason. Sauces? Some veg can do it? What’s going in your tea and coffee? Sweeteners that don’t suit you? Gravy? Maybe try posting a few more meal examples that have caused you issues and we’ll see if we can spot something.

How long have you been diagnosed?

And the choice re statins is ultimately yours not the drs. They just make recommendations. Sadly sometimes based on a tick box that says all diabetics should be on statins or outdated understanding of cholesterol. Do you know all the accurate and full details of your scores and what they actually mean?

 

[Weehotty]

When i eat it jumps massively ... for example yesterday after one slice of toast i went from 7 to 14 .... crazy mind you doc seams to be delighted with my latest HBA1C coming in at 51 ??!!!

If it’s going up by 4 or 5 after each there’s some carbs in there somewhere you can’t cope with for whatever reason. Sauces? Some veg can do it? What’s going in your tea and coffee? Sweeteners that don’t suit you? Gravy? Maybe try posting a few more meal examples that have caused you issues and we’ll see if we can spot something.

How long have you been diagnosed?

And the choice re statins is ultimately yours not the drs. They just make recommendations. Sadly sometimes based on a tick box that says all diabetics should be on statins or outdated understanding of cholesterol. Do you know all the accurate and full details of your scores and what they actually mean?

 

[JoKalsbeek]

Jumping up after toast is normal, there's a lot of carbs in that. Mine would do the same... You really do need to look at your diet, there's a lot of foods that really don't agree with you now...

When i eat it jumps massively ... for example yesterday after one slice of toast i went from 7 to 14 .... crazy mind you doc seams to be delighted with my latest HBA1C coming in at 51 ??!!!

 

[dwelldon]

Don't use sweetners, but veg wise I always eat low carb like broccolli or spinach. Gravy / sauce tend to make my own so low again. I'm not sure but will keep more closer eye on things. Probably give statins boot after next bloods for a month or rwo

If it’s going up by 4 or 5 after each there’s some carbs in there somewhere you can’t cope with for whatever reason. Sauces? Some veg can do it? What’s going in your tea and coffee? Sweeteners that don’t suit you? Gravy? Maybe try posting a few more meal examples that have caused you issues and we’ll see if we can spot something.

How long have you been diagnosed?

And the choice re statins is ultimately yours not the drs. They just make recommendations. Sadly sometimes based on a tick box that says all diabetics should be on statins or outdated understanding of cholesterol. Do you know all the accurate and full details of your scores and what they actually mean?

 

[HSSS]

For example how do you make gravy? With flour? Another grain based product that will be spiking you most likely.

 

[TwoTone]

My blood sugar levels don't ever seem to be lower than 7 at the moment no matter what time of the day it is. I have seen the doctor and he has changed my meds again, thin time to xelevia which was changed from glicazide as I was having a reaction to them. (Itchiness argh terrible)

I also take pravastin for cholestoral, I have asked if I should come off those but he says not to. I am thinking that perhaps I should myself for a while to see if that makes any affect.

My diet and excercise is really good, for example yesterday I did 2hrs at on the bike and had chicken / veg for lunch and fish in sauce with runner beans for tea. So my carbs are normally fairly low. I drink a lot of tea / coffee and water throughout the day.

I really am at a loss as what to do, my next bloods are due in a few weeks.

Any advice / help is always appreciated.

Hi dwell don,
You don't mention if you're on Metformin or how long you've been taking meds. Long time use of Metformin is known to cause vitamin B12 deficiency which mimics T2D symptoms, increases HbA1C and lower limb numbness. I found this after 15 years on Metformin. Statins cause increase in BGs as mentioned by another lister. Just about two years ago now, I stopped eating meat after my numbers were going out of whack again. I have halved my metformin and cholesterol is normal. I've also increased the carbs I eat. I'm probably headed for another meds reduction after next blood test.
Good luck.

 

[VashtiB]

Coming late to the thread- but does your exercise effect your blood sugar levels- 2 hrs on a bike is quite a lot. I find vigorous exercise increases my blood sugar levels- just a thought.

I also agree that a piece of toast would increase my levels a lot- I went to a different church and had a different communion wafer (later found our using European flour rather than Australian) and that tiny thing increased my levels by more than 2. My normal church wafer has no effect. So the type of c arbs can also matter not just the quantity.

 

[HSSS]

Just to say that even if exercise temporarily increases levels many find that later in the day and even into the next day they are lower than without the exercise. Also the more muscle you have generated the better you cope with carbs as you have more places to safely stash glycogen.

 

[dwelldon]

Hi only was on Metformin for a week or two. I can't tolerate it body rejects it

Hi dwell don,
You don't mention if you're on Metformin or how long you've been taking meds. Long time use of Metformin is known to cause vitamin B12 deficiency which mimics T2D symptoms, increases HbA1C and lower limb numbness. I found this after 15 years on Metformin. Statins cause increase in BGs as mentioned by another lister. Just about two years ago now, I stopped eating meat after my numbers were going out of whack again. I have halved my metformin and cholesterol is normal. I've also increased the carbs I eat. I'm probably headed for another meds reduction after next blood test.
Good luck.