Feedback on my readings, if possible?

[Auto E]

What a great thread! Thanks for joining us, Keith!
So many great comments here! One thing I'd like to add:
**When I drank red wine (my favorite, ahhh) my fasting blood glucoses were significantly lower (almost 2mmol/L!). I quit drinking last April, and have been totally shocked at the difference. So I would suggest a "no alcohol" experiment to compare morning blood sugars. Alcohol inhibits gluconeogenesis by the liver.

Also, you really sound like you are making such proactive choices, and you and your wife are a team on this. That's great! Keep doing all that critical thinking.

 

[Lamont D]

Hi @KernowKeith
I agree with @Brunneria, it isn't anything that I have come across. RH is a condition that is a food reaction!
However, there are other conditions that have not been fully explained that do have hypoglycaemic episodes, and just to confuse things there are conditions that are called Hypoglycaemia but don't follow hypoglycaemic symptoms.
There are pancreatic conditions that do cause Hypoglycaemic episodes and if you continue to have these symptoms, do ask your GP for a referral, because only a specialist endocrinologist can get you the tests necessary for diagnosis.

Eating low carb and keeping a food diary to record your results is an idea to show your doctors what is going on.

 

[KernowKeith]

After another two-egg omelette for lunch, this afternoon's 4 o'clock reading was 4.8 mmol/L - the lowest afternoon reading to date. In the space of four days, the reading has come down progressively: 6.1, 5.7, 5.1, 4.8 – change of lunchtime diet appears to be working.

Thank you everyone for your input and kind words. I'm somebody who likes a challenge and is naturally a little competitive (motorsports, etc) so this is not going to get me down.

 

[Auto E]

After another two-egg omelette for lunch, this afternoon's 4 o'clock reading was 4.8 mmol/L - the lowest afternoon reading to date. In the space of four days, the reading has come down progressively: 6.1, 5.7, 5.1, 4.8 – change of lunchtime diet appears to be working.

Thank you everyone for your input and kind words. I'm somebody who likes a challenge and is naturally a little competitive (motorsports, etc) so this is not going to get me down.

I could tell that you are like this. A kindred spirit! Success can be defined by the number of experiments we do!

 

[andromache]

Some people do OK on high carb/low fat - sounds as though you used to be one of them, but you no longer are, and maybe haven't been for a while.

Plenty of people on here (me included) do well on low carb/high fat, as you will know, having read this forum and the information on the main site.

But it is awfully hard to stay properly nourished on low carb AND low fat - a person has to eat something, and consistently overeating protein is neither pleasant nor very healthy. I think you are going to struggle if you try to eat the way you were eating, just with with less sugar or things that turn to sugar. You're going to be hungry and you are probably going to struggle to keep your weight and your strength up. I would suggest that you could do with a rethink on fat.

Many of us who don't manage sugars terribly well have had to overcome a fear of fat that has been ingrained from 40 years of official guidance. Even though it is becoming increasingly clear that this guidance was underpinned by not a lot in terms of actual scientific evidence, those old habits can die very hard, particularly with a FH like yours. There is lots of great info on this site about incorporating good fat into a healthy diet, and why that is good for us - including good for our hearts. I think that looking into how to increase your healthy fat intake is something for you to think about.

 

[SlimLizzy]

Perhaps you need to think more about full fat. Rather than High Fat. For example Full Fat milk is only 3.5- 4% not exactly massive.
My totally decadent, creamy and delicious full fat Greek yoghurt is 10% fat 4.5 g carbs per 100g. Served with a few berries makes a great dessert.
It's encouraging to see the BG coming down, keep up the good work.

 

[KernowKeith]

Thanks for the feedback and encouragement, everybody. Very much appreciated! Yesterday evening's reading was 7.7, although I had sneaked a few grapes an hour or so earlier. This morning after waking, the reading was 5.5! The highest ever in the morning and a lot better sounding than the 'twos' – but I'll be interested to see what tomorrow brings as it may have been a spurious reading for some reason. This afternoon's reading was 5.4 – after a lunchtime salad (butter beans, pecan nuts, cherry tomatoes, cashews and a homemade vinaigrette dressing. Plans are to increase fat intake – with one eye on BP and cholesterol levels, of course (one angioplasty is enough, thanks...).

Also, for information (and comment?), I am taking Bisoprolol (beta blocker), aspirin, Tamsolusin (for prostate... it's my age) and Vitamin D each morning, plus Atorvastatin each night.

 

[HSSS]

plus Atorvastatin each night

You do know that statins can increase hb1ac and in a few people even cause a diabetes diagnosis.

May I suggest if you haven’t found it already you make yourself familiar with (some of ) the huge wealth of knowledge and science in this thread
https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/cholesterol-and-statins.156985/

 

[KernowKeith]

OK, so for the last week or so, I've been testing first thing in the morning on waking, late afternoon (around 4.30) and evening around 10.00pm (2-3 hours after meal). Initially, as mentioned above, I had a couple of hypo readings first thing (2.4-2.6, or thereabouts) but I've discovered that an insufficient blood sample gives an artificially low reading (I suffer from Reynaud's, so quite often blood flow to my fingers is bad, especially first thing). On a couple of occasions since, when I've had a low reading, I've retaken the reading after provoking a better blood flow and had a more sensible result within a minute of taking the first reading. So, for those who may find it of interest, here are my daily readings in mmol/L for the last week or so (waking/afternoon/post-meal evening):
Day one: 5.2/5.7/8.0 (after group Christmas meal at local restaurant!)
Day two: 5.2/5.1/7.1
Day three: 2.6 (false?)/4.8/7.7
Day four: 5.5/5.4/6.9
Day five: 5.7/5.7/6.2
Day six: 5.0/5.2/5.5
Day seven: 6.0/5.7/5.7
Day eight: 5.1/5.0/6.1
Day nine: 6.0/5.1/7.0 (after consuming bottle of Champagne between two – wife's birthday!).
This morning: 5.4

I'm entering the readings on the mySugr app on my iPhone, with gives daily averages and a projected estimated HbA1c reading. Daily averages (which maybe don't count for much?) are all in the 'fives', while the HbA1c projection is 33.8mmol/mol. The HbA1c figure which lead me to be referred by my practice nurse was 43mmol/mol, so hopefully I'm heading in the right direction with dietary changes.

 

[bulkbiker]

OK, so for the last week or so, I've been testing first thing in the morning on waking, late afternoon (around 4.30) and evening around 10.00pm (2-3 hours after meal). Initially, as mentioned above, I had a couple of hypo readings first thing (2.4-2.6, or thereabouts) but I've discovered that an insufficient blood sample gives an artificially low reading (I suffer from Reynaud's, so quite often blood flow to my fingers is bad, especially first thing). On a couple of occasions since, when I've had a low reading, I've retaken the reading after provoking a better blood flow and had a more sensible result within a minute of taking the first reading. So, for those who may find it of interest, here are my daily readings in mmol/L for the last week or so (waking/afternoon/post-meal evening):
Day one: 5.2/5.7/8.0 (after group Christmas meal at local restaurant!)
Day two: 5.2/5.1/7.1
Day three: 2.6 (false?)/4.8/7.7
Day four: 5.5/5.4/6.9
Day five: 5.7/5.7/6.2
Day six: 5.0/5.2/5.5
Day seven: 6.0/5.7/5.7
Day eight: 5.1/5.0/6.1
Day nine: 6.0/5.1/7.0 (after consuming bottle of Champagne between two – wife's birthday!).
This morning: 5.4

I'm entering the readings on the mySugr app on my iPhone, with gives daily averages and a projected estimated HbA1c reading. Daily averages (which maybe don't count for much?) are all in the 'fives', while the HbA1c projection is 33.8mmol/mol. The HbA1c figure which lead me to be referred by my practice nurse was 43mmol/mol, so hopefully I'm heading in the right direction with dietary changes.

Sounds like brilliant results well done sir.

As for the low readings when not much of a sample I think I have experienced the same a few times so you could well be correct.

 

[KernowKeith]

Interesting, yesterday's lunch was a two-egg cheese omelette, followed by a mug of tea – late afternoon reading was 6.3, which surprised me. Evening was 5.9. Day's average was 5.9mmol/L

Today, 5.8 on waking, followed by 6.0 late afternoon (lunch was a very thin slice of bread and butter with one poached egg.

 

[Alexandra100]

I did just wonder if you had ever come across someone who had "negative dawn phenomenon"

Could it not be that a person's bg might shoot up at the theoretically usual dawn phenomenon hour of 4am but then might have plenty of time to settle back down to a more reasonable level before the person woke and got up at eg 8am? So without a cgm the dawn phenomenon would not be recorded. Just asking!

 

[Alexandra100]

a coffee and danish (which I guess I'll have to stop eating now!

My substitute would be an Americano with double cream (or maybe you can stand it black) with nuts and 100% chocolate drops from Café Chocolat. The snag is that most of this has to be organised and packed up beforehand.

 

[Alexandra100]

lunch was a very thin slice of bread and butter with one poached egg.

Have you tried substituting iceberg lettuce for the bread under your egg? In which scenario you could surely afford (in terms of carbs) to eat 2 eggs?

 

[KernowKeith]

Have you tried substituting iceberg lettuce for the bread under your egg? In which scenario you could surely afford (in terms of carbs) to eat 2 eggs?

I only had one egg that day because we'd run out!

 

[Lamont D]

I only had one egg that day because we'd run out!

That is a criminal offence under LCHF rules!

 

[KernowKeith]

Well, I've decided to buy a new monitor - I've been using a Sinocare monitor bought off Amazon. On a few occasions when I've had a reading which seems a little odd, I've immediately retaken it and got a completely different outcome. Last night, for example, a post-prandial reading showed 7.5, which I was surprised about , so I immediately took another sample from another finger (pincushion comes to mind...) and the reading was 6.5. This is not the first time this has happened, and it leads me to wonder about other spikes that have occurred when I haven't resampled. The test strips are all well in date (2021) and the container opened and resealed quickly each time. Hands washed and dried, etc. So, lacking confidence in the Sinocare (is everything made in China these days?), I've ordered a Tee2+, which appears to be a popular choice on here. I will then carry out some back to back readings with both monitors and see what we get. My analytical mind is ticking into action...

 

[Alexandra100]

I've ordered a Tee2+, which appears to be a popular choice on here. I will then carry out some back to back readings with both monitors and see what we get. My analytical mind is ticking into action...

IMO not a bad choice (I have one too). Unrivalled 24 hour free customer helpline, so you will be able to complain in the middle of the night if not satisfied! They are also surprisingly good for freebies - batteries etc. However, don't expect too much! The sort of inconsistent readings you mention are a frequent peeve on the forums. Some deal with them by a policy of sticking with the first reading, some like you and me will retest when we don't like / don't believe it. Never mind, your analytical mind will stand you in excellent stead. You may find eventually that it will lead you to invest c. £50 in a 14 day Libre sensor for a continuous readout, which you can then compare to readings on your strips. The Libre is also somewhat unreliable, but in a different way. Nothing around diabetes is consistently reliable - including laboratory A1c tests. We just have to work with what we have, which is an awful lot better than what little was available for diabetic care in the past, and is evolving. Have fun with your researches, and yes, do share them with us.

 

[KK123]

Well, I've decided to buy a new monitor - I've been using a Sinocare monitor bought off Amazon. On a few occasions when I've had a reading which seems a little odd, I've immediately retaken it and got a completely different outcome. Last night, for example, a post-prandial reading showed 7.5, which I was surprised about , so I immediately took another sample from another finger (pincushion comes to mind...) and the reading was 6.5. This is not the first time this has happened, and it leads me to wonder about other spikes that have occurred when I haven't resampled. The test strips are all well in date (2021) and the container opened and resealed quickly each time. Hands washed and dried, etc. So, lacking confidence in the Sinocare (is everything made in China these days?), I've ordered a Tee2+, which appears to be a popular choice on here. I will then carry out some back to back readings with both monitors and see what we get. My analytical mind is ticking into action...

Hi Keith, I can predict that you will get a lot of different readings. I started off with 3 different monitors (it was a chaotic time and I was being given them left, right and centre), I had brought my own too and 'won' one online (!!!!), all well known makes. I did many tests and experiments with them, testing each one at the same time, comparing them with each other and so on. There was up to 1.5 mmol difference each time I did a test, sometimes using the very same one seconds apart. In the end I picked one and stuck with it because it does tend to show a pattern at least, even though it still shows readings 1mmol + difference if I do them in the same few seconds.

 

[bulkbiker]

I've ordered a Tee2+, which appears to be a popular choice on here.

I've had mine for about a year and has certainly given quite consistent readings.. just waiting for my next HbA1c to double check they have been the right consistent readings!