Undiagnosed but high blood sugar

Ballofwool

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82
Type of diabetes
Prediabetes
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Hi there,

I signed up to the forum after doing some interesting reading on other people's posts here and was hoping for advice. I am not diagnosed as diabetic, but I decided to do some home blood glucose tests (due to symptoms) and got readings over 10! I would really appreciate some insight on whether this is dangerous. I am also seeking advice from my doctor.

On all tests I ate one meal and drank nothing other than tea without sugar during testing. Did not exercise during test. Washed hands and dried with disposable kitchen roll for every single test to get accurate results. My BMI is 15.5 (underweight).

Friday 29th May:
6.00AM: Fasting BG = 5.0
6.15AM: Ate my normal breakfast (2 x whole grain toast with spread and Fortisip high calorie drink - total 560 kcal).

7.15AM: BG = 10.3 (1 hour)
8.15AM: BG = 5.6 (2 hours)
9.15AM BG = 5.2 (3 hours)
10.15AM BG = 5.0 (4 hours)

13.30PM on the same day, I did another test by eating one cup of instant white rice (plain, total 350 kcal).

13.15PM: BG before eating = 4.9
13.30PM - ate cup of white rice
13.45PM: BG = 4.4. (30 mins)
14.15PM BG = 9.9 (1 hour)
14.45PM BG = 9.3 (90 mins)
15.15PM BG = 9.3 (2 hours)
15.45PM BG = 8.3 (2.5 hours)
16.15PM BG = 7.7 (3 hours)

I repeated the breakfast test (exactly the same meal) on two other mornings with the following results:

30th May:
Fasting blood glucose = 4.2
BG after 1 hour = 10.1
BG after 2 hours = 6.3
BG after 3 hours = 5.8

2nd June (today)
FBG = 4.7
BG at 45 mins = 8.4
BG at 1 hour = 10.3
BG at 2 hours = 6.4
BG at 3 hours = 5.2

However, I've noticed I get different results for larger meals.

Sunday 31st May:
12.20PM: BG = 5.2
13.15PM: ate large roast dinner including beef, Yorkshire puddings, roast potatoes and veg plus a sugary J20 drink.
14.15PM: BG = 5.1 (after 1 hour)
14.45PM: BG = 4.8 (after 90 mins)
16.00PM: BG = 4.0 (after 3 hours).

Background;
I am a 23 year old female. I have had a lifelong anxiety disorder treated by antidepressants, but no other diagnosed health conditions. I have been having very strange symptoms for the past year which seem to have suddenly increased in intensity over the past month. Particularly, I am always exhausted with headaches and have experienced near-collapse when I try to walk around. I almost called 999 on several occasions, but I felt too terrible to make the decision so generally sat on the floor for hours until I felt better. I was always underweight my entire life, but have lost weight despite eating more food plus taking prescribed Fortisip (high calorie food replacement). Now my BMI is at 15.5. My GP sent me for an ECG which showed an abnormal heart rhythm so I am being referred to a cardiologist in mid-June. I feel this is a "red herring" given my blood sugar tests.

Should I take these results to my GP or will she laugh at me?! Any thoughts, advice or insights would be greatly appreciated.
 

Mike d

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Should I take these results to my GP?

In my opinion, yes you should. Can't say I'm crazy about the diet (rice and bread) and those spikes but that runs a DISTANT second to your other concerns.

Please have a consult and I wish you well

Mike
 

kateincornwall

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Hello and welcome , I notice that your fasting tests are giving good results . However , most meals are carb heavy and this will definitely impact on your post meal results . Many people who are either pre diabetic or diagnosed Type 2 chose to adopt a lower cab regime which definitely improves the BS content . I can tell that you are very anxious about your health , so yes, ask your doctors advice on what you have written here , only then can you move forward . I am sorry to read about your heart problems , hoping you can find some solace when you see the cardiologist this month .
 

Ballofwool

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In my opinion, yes you should. Can't say I'm crazy about the diet (rice and bread) and those spikes but that runs a DISTANT second to your other concerns.

Please have a consult and I wish you well

Mike
Hi Mike,

Thank you for your fast response. I was worried my GP would dismiss me and make me feel embarrassed for having done experiments on myself. I never eat plain rice normally , I just did this as a test.
 

Ballofwool

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Prediabetes
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Hello and welcome , I notice that your fasting tests are giving good results . However , most meals are carb heavy and this will definitely impact on your post meal results . Many people who are either pre diabetic or diagnosed Type 2 chose to adopt a lower cab regime which definitely improves the BS content . I can tell that you are very anxious about your health , so yes, ask your doctors advice on what you have written here , only then can you move forward . I am sorry to read about your heart problems , hoping you can find some solace when you see the cardiologist this month .

You are right in saying I'm very anxious about my health. My GP put it all down to my weight, and suspected me of not eating properly, but this is a total fiction... I eat the same types and amount of food as my partner (who is twice my weight!)

I also read fasting readings are high for diabetics so this made me think I was paranoid... But on the other hand, I also read that blood glucose in normal people doesn't go above 7.8 ever. I am not sure whether this is true in reality?
 

Ballofwool

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I was also under the impression that it is not possible to get Type 2 diabetes if you are underweight (although I understand you can get it at a healthy weight, e.g BMI 18 - 25.

My BMI has never been near 18 throughout my lifetime.
 

kateincornwall

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Blood glucose levels in non diabetic people can sometimes go high just the same as it can also go low , its the consistency that tends to point to a diagnosis, so please let your doctor decide for you . It is a sad fallacy that weight always has a bearing on Type2 , it can strike anyone, no matter what their weight is , especially if it runs in the family , but anyone can develop it , whatever their weight or build .
 

Ballofwool

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Type of diabetes
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Blood glucose levels in non diabetic people can sometimes go high just the same as it can also go low , its the consistency that tends to point to a diagnosis, so please let your doctor decide for you . It is a sad fallacy that weight always has a bearing on Type2 , it can strike anyone, no matter what their weight is , especially if it runs in the family , but anyone can develop it , whatever their weight or build .

Thank you. As everyone has said I can show these results to my doctor, I feel much more confident in bringing them to her. It would be very embarrassing if it was no cause of concern whatsoever. I haven't tested my blood sugar before these experiments so I didn't know what it was "supposed" to be like!
 

brettsza

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Hi @Ballofwool

I would like to not welcome you on the forum, I say that as I obviously do not want you to join us due to it being a diabetic forum, I would suggest run it past your GP whether he thinks you are stupid or not I would insist on getting an A1C done, I know its not easy, even being Diabetic I find it hard to convince my gp to do it but no harm asking.
If you still want it done, then you can get it done privately too just to make sure you do not suffer unknowingly.

We all go through this phase, none of us know what our levels were before we were diagnosed.
So please please please go and speak to your gp and insist on getting an a1c test done, and come back with some good news.

All the best.
 

brettsza

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Also as @kateincornwall said, it is quite normal for even non diabetics to peak at 1 hour so dont be overly concerned, your readings look ok but again I am not a doc. I can only suggest what I feel is right.
 

Brunneria

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Hi and welcome,

There are many reasons why people get type 2, so the weight thing is a bit of a red herring. It is generally true that type 2s are overweight at diagnosis, but it is more of a symptom than a cause, for many people.

Like Mike, I would go to your GP with your test results, but be prepared for them to resist a bit. Docs often seem to dislike people educating themselves. And you are not going to fit neatly into the fat, middle aged type 2 sterotype, so you may need to be persistent before they take you seriously.

Personally (and I have no medical training) I would suggest you ask for investigation into your metabolic/endocrine situation. If you eat well, and are under weight, then something is going on, but it may not be to do with your liver and pancreas.

Hopefully you can use the ECG as a doorway to ask for more investigations.
 
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Mike d

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Hi Mike,

Thank you for your fast response. I was worried my GP would dismiss me and make me feel embarrassed for having done experiments on myself. I never eat plain rice normally , I just did this as a test.
@Ballofwool

Understood :) I think @Brunneria has pretty much nailed it.

Get a referral (if needed) and work this out ... and please keep us updated as this is a sharing community. You're now part of the group !!

Mike
 

Daibell

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Hi and welcome. I would look at your carb intake and keep it, say, below 200gm/day max if you can. Take blood tests 2 hours after a meal and it should be below 8.5 mmol. There is a hint that you may be pre-diabetic but more tests are needed. At your young age and being slim if you do having diabetes moving in will would almost certainly be T1. T1 is where the islet cells are failing and you don't produce enough insulin to use the carbs you eat hence you lose weight. T2 is where you have insulin resistance thru excess weight and the islet cells may be producing too much insulin but the body can't use it efficiently; I'm generalising of course. Do see the GP anyway.
 

BooJewels

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As you noticed, the carb heavy meals induced a noticeable short-term spike, but the mixed, balanced meal (more fat and protein) produced a perfectly predictable non-diabetic response. I would expect a diabetic to still get a significant rise from that food, just over a longer period of time, due to the slower digestion process of protein and fat.

Has your thyroid been tested? I suspect it probably has if they're investigating your heart and the tests would probably be done alongside any diabetes tests anyway. But an over-active thyroid might explain unexpected weight loss with exhaustion and anxiety.

I knew a lady a few years ago with an overactive thyroid who when it wasn't well controlled, demonstrated temporary signs of being diabetic and would get very high BGs, then go hypo etc. when she didn't eat enough - her heightened metabolism was presumably desperate to try and fuel her body - a bit like an engine that's idling too fast. But when her thyroid meds were increased and she got it better controlled she came out of that diabetic-appearing state and her BGs were perfectly normal.

No matter what me might speculate that it might be, your doc is your first port of call - if you're really not feeling well, she owes it to you to give it a thorough investigation, especially if you're losing weight unintentionally.

Good luck.
 

DeejayR

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2,375
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My BMI is 15.5 (underweight).
Hiya, and welcome. Good advice from everyone, but I can't see beyond your BMI. I would have thought it must affect everything else. Maybe we should be focusing on that.
 

Ballofwool

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Hiya, and welcome. Good advice from everyone, but I can't see beyond your BMI. I would have thought it must affect everything else. Maybe we should be focusing on that.

You may be right! But the annoying thing is that I've tried to gain weight to no effect. I estimate I eat about 2,5000 calories a day, sometimes much more calories if I eat a heap of cake (which my partner gets free from work). My highest (lifetime) BMI has been about 17 - it's typically in the 16 - 17 range, but this is a "new low", so to speak.

I will post again after discussing my results with my doctor. It might be useful for anyone else that comes across this post if they are having similar issues. :)
 
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Ballofwool

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I do look noticeably emaciated and unwell recently. Very visible sternum bones on my chest and my spine and hip bones and ribs are all easily seen too. I look like a skeleton, such that sitting down is painful because of a "lack of padding". My mother (who I hadn't seen for some months) said I look gaunt like a meth addict. I've never touched it!
 

BaliRob

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I would be over the moon to experience your readings and would suggest that your anxiety is the denominator of all your ills. I would go as far as to say that you are not a Diabetic but who am I to say that because I am not a doctor?

I wish you well and to remember that our brains will not allow us to experience anxiety forever.