diabetes

[xav]

Hi, have been suffering from diabetes for a year or so now? I am on 2 tablets, 500mg Metformin daily, sometimes I will find that the levels are good sometimes that they are high? Sometimes my glucose goes down and I start to feel very weak and shaky. This week I am encountering tirdness and fatigue again..and a dry mouth...I have been told that I am a type 2 but sometimes I reckon i am a type 1.5..here in Malta I am not finding much help...I suffer also from a lot of stress and I reckon it is affecting my sugars also...can anyone suggest anything please? the metformin are being taken at 12 in the morning and at 5 in the afternoon, if i change the timings I will encounter low sugar problems

 

[jopar]

Stress can certainly push blood glucose, as infections, illness can..

Generally the signs of an individual being wrongly dignoised with T2, is generally from the start medication doesn't bring it under control, and the individual has every increasing blood sugar levels..

There are two tests that help determin which diabetes an individual (neithr full proof) C-piptide and GAD tests can often help make a clinical judgment clearer..

As to timing of taking the metformin, yes to suit to a certain extent, but really needs to be taken with food..

You might have to also look at your eating habits and what you eat to see if any changes in this might stable your control..

As you are on a reasonably low dose, so the lows might be caused by basically not eating enough to keep the blood glucose up.. As metformin reduces the amount the liver delivers to the blood..

Do you do any blood glucose testing, as in truth this is the only way you really find out what is happen with your BG's, and the only way you find out how different food may or may not effect your BG..

 

[Sue Morton]

I am on 2x500mg metformin and take 1 after breafast and one after eveing meal. I also asked a question on here because I sudddenly started to shake and feel really ill had a sweet and managed to take my BS which was 4.4 not my usual count I am normally in the range of 6 to 7 occasionally but not often, in the 5.1. Our bodies get used to being 6 to 7 and suddenly to drop to 4.4 your body reacts to this but if you kept your count in the 4s your body will gradually (I assume) get used to it and you wouldn't get the shakes etc.

If your BS is going high then you will start to get the thirsts etc especially if you are not getting your BS down.

Try reading items on here about low carb diet look at what you are eating - are you eating breakfast - try taking your metformin after breakfast and then eating something like an apple or pear or even a banana in between lunch to stop that drop - have lunch and then your evening meal/metformin. Test 2 hours after breakfast, lunch and then after your eveing meal and see what your BS is after each meal and you will see which meal is making your BS go high.

Each time you have something different to eat test. I don't know if you can get the test stips there on prescription but it is the only way to control your BS. Its also to good to test on the food you normally eat now and again as your body can change and suddenly its high. As an example I tried some polish rye & wheat bread 2 slices of toast and after tested I was 5.1 brilliant I thought then the next day was 6.1 didn't test the following day but did the next and I was 9.9 and the next was 10.1 so what looked like i could eat I can't only probably as a one off once now and again.

Hope you suss out and get things under control.

All the best
Sue

 

[cugila]

Hi, have been suffering from diabetes for a year or so now? I am on 2 tablets, 500mg Metformin daily, sometimes I will find that the levels are good sometimes that they are high? Sometimes my glucose goes down and I start to feel very weak and shaky. This week I am encountering tirdness and fatigue again..and a dry mouth...I have been told that I am a type 2 but sometimes I reckon i am a type 1.5..here in Malta I am not finding much help...I suffer also from a lot of stress and I reckon it is affecting my sugars also...can anyone suggest anything please? the metformin are being taken at 12 in the morning and at 5 in the afternoon, if i change the timings I will encounter low sugar problems

Here is the information we give out to all diabetic's, usually newly diagnosed but it might help you understand a little about the effect that certain foods can have on your levels. It also has other information which may be of benefit to you.

Here is the advice we usually give to newly diagnosed diabetics. We hope that these few ideas gained through experience help you to gain control and give you some understanding of Diabetes. This forum doesn't always follow the recommended dietary advice, you have to work out what works for you as we are all different.

It's not just 'sugars' you need to avoid, diabetes is an inability to process glucose properly. Carbohydrate converts, in the body, to glucose. So it makes sense to reduce the amount of carbohydrate that you eat which includes sugars.

The main carbs to avoid OR reduce are the complex or starchy carbohydrates such as bread, potatoes, pasta, rice, starchy root veg and also any flour based products. The starchy carbs all convert 100% to glucose in the body and raise the blood sugar levels significantly.

If you are on Insulin you may find that reducing the carb intake also means that you can reduce your dose of insulin. This can help you to keep weight gain down as Insulin tends to make you put on weight and eventually cause insulin resistance. This should be done slowly so as not to cause hypos.

The way to find out how different foods affect you is to do regular daily testing and keep a food diary for a couple of weeks. If you test just before eating, then two hours after eating, you will see the effect of certain foods on your blood glucose levels. Some foods, which are slow acting carbohydrates, are absorbed more slowly so you may need to test three or even four hours later to see the effect that these have on your blood glucose levels.

Buy yourself a carb counter book (you can get these on-line) and you will be able to work out how much carbs you are eating, when you test, the reading two hours after should be roughly the same as the before eating reading, if it is then that meal was fine, if it isn’t then you need to check what you have eaten and think about reducing the portion size of carbs.

When you are buying products check the total carbohydrate content, this includes the sugar content. Do not just go by the amount of sugar on the packaging as this is misleading to a diabetic.

As for a tester, try asking the nurse/doctor and explain that you want to be proactive in managing your own diabetes and therefore need to test so that you can see just how foods affect your blood sugar levels. Hopefully this will work! Sometimes they are not keen to give Type 2’s the strips on prescription, (in the UK) but you can but try!!
If you are an Insulin user in theory you should have no problem getting test strips.

The latest 2010 NICE guidelines for Bg levels are as follows:
Fasting (waking).......between 4 - 7 mmol/l........(Type 1 & 2)
2 hrs after meals......no more than 8.5 mmol/l.....( Type 2)

2hrs after meals....... no more than 9 mmol/l ......(Type 1)

If you are able to keep the post meal numbers lower, so much the better.

It also helps if you can do 30 minutes moderate exercise a day. It doesn't have to be strenuous.

The above is just general advice and it is recommended that you discuss with your HCP before making any changes. You can also ask questions on the forum on anything that is not clear.

You say you were diagnosed as a T2, your profile says 1.5.......why do you think your diagnosis is incorrect. Why not get a second opinion if you feel that way ?

Stress is never a good thing.....it will affect your Bg levels, sometimes quite dramatically.

Metformin is supposed to be taken as directed usually with or after meals. If you plan to take it otherwise than as directed then you should first of all discuss it with your GP/HCP.

Ken

 

[Pneu]

Ken,

I often see it posted that stress effects BG's and so I have done some reading on the subject.. being a type 1 diabetic and having a very stressful job (so much so that I do on occasion take medication to control it).. I thought it something I should find out about

In my own experience my level of day - to - day stress has remained constant over 12 - 18 months and although I am currently having issues with what appears to be some sort of insulin resistance I don't think day - to - day stress effects my blood glucose levels. This would also seem to tally with studies which show no direct effect between stress and BG's.. I for instance take no more insulin during the week compared to at the weekend when I am not working and significantly less stressed

What I think does effect BG's is an adrenal or "fright or flight" response to a situation which yes can be caused by stress such as a panic attack but inst a standard stressful response that people will have on a day - to - day basis.. In my experience if I have a panic attack and an adrenal response to this my BG's will rise (am assuming along with adrenaline my liver dumps glucose to help the body)..

Does this tally with other peoples experiences?

 

[cugila]

When you're stressed, your blood sugar levels rise. Stress hormones like epinephrine and cortisol kick in since one of their major functions is to raise blood sugar to help boost energy when it's needed most. Think of the fight-or-flight response. You can't fight danger when your blood sugar is low, so it rises to help meet the challenge. Both physical and emotional stress can prompt an increase in these hormones, resulting in an increase in blood sugars.

I was in an extremely stressful occupation for 27+ years, that took it's toll on me both mentally and physically. More recently very stressed out due to a serious illness. My Bg levels were much higher on those days where I knew I was stressed out.

Most people who suffer stress at work are not aware of the effect it is having on them as they get accustomed to it. It becomes the norm. I didn't realise what was happening and it caused me untold damage over time. As a Diabetic it pays to avoid getting stressed out, of course it causes other damage as well not related to the Diabetes.

Stress does have an effect on your Bg levels. It matters not what type of Diabetic you are. I have done much reading into it as well. Here is just one of the medical links available about it.

http://diabetes.webmd.com/features/stress-diabetes

Ken

 

[Pneu]

Cheers Ken..

Interesting read certainly food for thought

 

[k9kitty]

Hi Xav,
Although others have answered your post comprehensively I too take metformin. Your doses seem quite close together, is this the way your doc told you to take it, if not why, not have the first dose with your breakfast and the other with your evening meal. Take metformin with your food , never on an empty stomach, make sure you do not become dehydrated whilst on it. As 'jopar' mentions below you need to be eating enough food when on this medication, if you don't your bg can go too low.

If you find your blood glucose dips overnight have a carby snack before you go to bed withsome fat in it, a peanut butter on burgen bread or ryvita, plain yoghurt with fruit, etc. Keep a note of any lows or highs you experience you can discuss them with your doc.

Regarding the stress . I find meditation helps me but it does take time to find what works and to do it right. When you feel anxious or particularly stressed, make yourself a cuppa and just sit quiet, put your thoughts into being still and becoming clamer. You can focus on a picture or ornament, a candle, a window, etc. Take a few slow deep breaths in and out, breathing normally in between them, this helps put a tiny calm space between the chaos you are feeling and the business of the day to come. I get spooked by crowded places sometimes, especially when they are hot and airless and this technique can helps me calm down enough to cope with what's happening.

 

[k9kitty]

Sue Morton"
As an example I tried some polish rye & wheat bread 2 slices of toast and after tested I was 5.1 brilliant I thought then the next day was 6.1 didn't test the following day but did the next and I was 9.9 and the next was 10.1 so what looked like i could eat I can't only probably as a one off once now and again.

Sue, what was the carb level of the polish rye? You could try burgen which is around 11 gms of carb and the linseeds it contains helps with slower absoption of the carb. I also find those ryvita's with seeds on are tolerated well (around 6.8 gms of carb each). Polish wheat bread is sometimes fine milled and the rye is mixed with white flour hence the higher card content and gi level.
Hope you don't mind me mentioning this