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Levels

K

karen559

Member
Messages
7
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Only started taking my levels over past 5 days, after change of medication. My levels are everywhere from 3.8 one day to 14.2 when i get up in the morning. I dont know how to control this and its making me very anxious.
 
Yes I am on metformin, and jardiance 25mg(empagliflozin. Which was only prescribed last tuesday. My levels are fluctuatung daily. Thurday went from 7.5 11.3 5.8 14.2 Today is has been high most od today 7.9 12.5 8.7 and 12.7
 
The problem with the perpetual advice type 2's get of not testing is that you have no idea if your present levels are normal for you or not - and are you testing first thing then before and after eating?
As the jardiance medication means that you lose sugar in urine you will need to watch out for dehydration for a start, but are you keeping tabs on the amounts of carbs you are eating?
Eating low carb will cause blood glucose to drop for most typical type twos, like me, so if you read up on the information from Daisy 1 you might find it clarifies things greatly.
 
azure said:
Welcome @karen559 :)

Are you on any meds?

Let me tag @daisy1 for you as she has some basic info.
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Resurgam said:
The problem with the perpetual advice type 2's get of not testing is that you have no idea if your present levels are normal for you or not - and are you testing first thing then before and after eating?
As the jardiance medication means that you lose sugar in urine you will need to watch out for dehydration for a start, but are you keeping tabs on the amounts of carbs you are eating?
Eating low carb will cause blood glucose to drop for most typical type twos, like me, so if you read up on the information from Daisy 1 you might find it clarifies things greatly.
Click to expand...
Thank you. I test as soon as I get up. An hour and half after breakfast. Hour or so before dinner and about hour to hour half after dinner. Drinking lots of water. Now I know why.
 
Today for breakfast had two pieces of toast. Cup of tea. Lunch was ham roll pkt crisps. Yogurt. Dinner was beans and egg on toast. Tomorrow dinner will be turkey kebabs with onions peppers. Side salad.
 
Hi @karen559 , I remember being concerned when I first started taking my levels and feeling helpless until I began to notice a pattern. Are you keeping a food and exercise diary? Have you been advised to eat a low carb diet and to take regular exercise? If you keep a record of what you have eaten you may begin to understand what is causing the raised levels, it is different for each of us. The high reading early morning is your body trying to 'kickstart' the day. If you can lose some fat round your liver you may find that these levels come down. Don't worry you will still be able to get going in the morning. Try cutting out grain products, that will bring the bg levels down.
 
Thank you phoenix 55. I have been keeping a diary of meals but nothing seems logical to me at the moment. Only been checking for 5 days.
 
Why are you eating so many carbs?
Bread, beans, crisps - I can't even taste them if I want to keep my BG under control.
The usual testing regime is very first thing, for fasting level, then just before and two hours after starting a meal.
You can then see how you react to the meal, and if you are rising more than two whole numbers that would indicate too many carbs or too much of the wrong foods
 
Resurgam said:
Why are you eating so many carbs?
Bread, beans, crisps - I can't even taste them if I want to keep my BG under control.
The usual testing regime is very first thing, for fasting level, then just before and two hours after starting a meal.
You can then see how you react to the meal, and if you are rising more than two whole numbers that would indicate too many carbs or too much of the wrong foods
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Thank you. I have not been informed about diet as such re carbs. Now I will know. The bread pasta will be a no no. Thank you again
 
karen559 said:
Thank you. I have not been informed about diet as such re carbs. Now I will know. The bread pasta will be a no no. Thank you again
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The advice is to Eat at Your Meter @karen559 Be guided by your blood sugar. The amount of carbs people here eat varies depending on their needs.
 
Oh dear - that is just so typical of the way diabetics are being treated, take the tablets and trust us to know what is best for you.

I did low carb for under three months and when tested had dropped to below the official diabetic level of Hba1c. It is so effective, and you get to eat so many good things.
 
Resurgam said:
Oh dear - that is just so typical of the way diabetics are being treated, take the tablets and trust us to know what is best for you.

I did low carb for under three months and when tested had dropped to below the official diabetic level of Hba1c. It is so effective, and you get to eat so many good things.
Click to expand...

What's typical? The fact is that we're all individuals and one size doesn't fit all.

Low carb can be up to 130g carbs a day and each person has to find the level of carbs that works for them. You've found a diet that works for you but other people's 'ideal diet' may differ from yours.
 
Hi @karen559
welcome to the forum !!

as you are so recently diagnosed -- I would start by saying be kind to yourself.
you will have to live with this for a long time ( hopefully ) :)

the best advice I can give is to eat to your meter.
I am Type 1 and so must take insulin ( 44 years )

over time you will learn what works for you .
 
Eating to your meter is the best way to go, but that means keeping a detailed food diary of everything you eat and drink including portion sizes. Test immediately before you eat and again 2 hours after first bite, then record these levels alongside the food. Look at the rise from before to after. More than 2mmol/l and that food needs changing - either by reducing the portion sizes of the carbs or eliminating some. It is preferable to keep the rise below 1.5mmol/l if you can. The lower the better.

Doing this will show you which foods your body can manage, and which ones it can't - and in what quantities. You will soon learn and be able to formulate a diet suitable for you personally. We all have different carb tolerances. The main foods that cause problems are potatoes, rice, bread, pasta, breakfast cereals, pastry, batter, flour. We also need to be careful with milk and fruit.
 
With the medication you are taking you will have to be careful to check your levels as your kidneys will be leaking glucose all the time - you could go hypo, so you will not be safe at low levels of carbs.
At least you will be able to show your results to your health care people to show them how you are getting on.
 
I am on forxiga which is the same class of drug and I have never gone hypo or heard of anyone going hypo because of this type of drug. It removes excess glucose by preventing your kidneys from reabsorbing it back into the bloodstream. If you do not have excess glucose you will not pee it out. Lower carbs in the diet will also help prevent thrush and UTI's which can be side effects of having too much sugar in your urine.
 
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