Alcohol and blood sugar experiment

[WAGR57]

I would like your thoughts on a little experiment I did on myself. A little bit on what I've been doing first. My last A1C was 6.1 mmol/l in May. Before summer (once every two weeks)I would have 1 maybe 2 pints (typically 1)of beer/ale with a steak or chicken wings. After checking my blood 2 hours later my BG would rise maybe 1.5 to 2 points higher and my morning BG would be good (low 6s mid 5s). Summer arrives and I'm golfing lots , beer goes well after a game, for the most I've had 1 beer a day 2 maybe 3 times in a week and it didn't appear to do any harm. Then I did a week of 1 beer and up to 3 beers a day. This resulted in a higher morning BG reading. Another thing I noticed was my BG during the day (8 am to 6 pm) took a longer time to come down. For example after my morning meal my BG would read 7.5 and at around 4 pm it might read 6.5 i would check an hour later and it would read 6.3. I'm puzzled, why isn't my BG going down faster? So I stop the beer for 3 days and I see the morning BG is getting better each day, My mid day BG is still taking a long to get into the 5s. So I had this idea, what if I have 1 oz of whisky straight?My BG is 6.7, one hour later it's 5.3, two hours later 5.5. another hour an I'm at 4.9. My conclusion with this is a small amount of alcohol with zero carbs can be helpful in speeding up the lowing of your BG. Not that I think it's good to do this constantly but maybe now and again is okay. I have two meals a day that are LCHF average 20 carbs never more than 50 even with the one beer.

 

[JenniferM55]

I have the same reaction with a smoked mackerel breakfast at zero carbs, BG after an hour or so is lower than my fasting level.

Think the after effects of alcohol is nicer than the fish though

 

[ianf0ster]

I would like your thoughts on a little experiment I did on myself. A little bit on what I've been doing first. My last A1C was 6.1 mmol/l in May. Before summer I would have 1 maybe 2 pints (typically 1)of beer/ale with a steak or chicken wings. After checking my blood 2 hours later my BG would rise maybe 1.5 to 2 points higher and my morning BG would be good (low 6s mid 5s). Summer arrives and I golfing lots and beer goes well after a game, and for the most I've had 1 beer a day 2 maybe 3 times in a week and it didn't appear to do any harm. Then I did a week of 1 beer and up to 3 beers a day. This resulted in a higher morning BG reading. Another thing I noticed was my BG during the day (8 am to 6 pm) took a longer time to come down. For example after my morning meal my BG would read 7.5 and at around 4 pm it might read 6.5 i would check an hour later and it would read 6.3. I'm puzzled, why isn't my BG wasn't going down faster? So I stop the beer for 3 days and I see the morning BG is getting better each day, My mid day BG is still taking a long io get into the 5s. So I had this idea, what if I have 1 oz of whisky straight?My BG is 6.7, one hour later it's 5.3, two hours later 5.5. another hour an I'm at 4.9. My conclusion with this is a small amount of alcohol with zero carbs can be helpful in speeding up the lowing of your BG. Not that I think it's good to do this constantly but maybe now and again is okay. I have two meals a day that are LCHF average 20 carbs never more than 50 even with the one beer.

Hi, I'm afraid that alcohol is never good for a diabetic, just that if it is low in carbs then the fact that the alcohol is dealt with before the carbs (since it is mildly toxic), means that any spike from carbs is delayed. But it still happens, so the alcohol apart from helping you relax, has no actual beneficial effect. Indeed extra calories in the alcohol may be unwanted as would be any carbs if it was a normal beer, a normal mixer or a sweet wine etc.

 

[Oldvatr]

I would like your thoughts on a little experiment I did on myself. A little bit on what I've been doing first. My last A1C was 6.1 mmol/l in May. Before summer I would have 1 maybe 2 pints (typically 1)of beer/ale with a steak or chicken wings. After checking my blood 2 hours later my BG would rise maybe 1.5 to 2 points higher and my morning BG would be good (low 6s mid 5s). Summer arrives and I golfing lots and beer goes well after a game, and for the most I've had 1 beer a day 2 maybe 3 times in a week and it didn't appear to do any harm. Then I did a week of 1 beer and up to 3 beers a day. This resulted in a higher morning BG reading. Another thing I noticed was my BG during the day (8 am to 6 pm) took a longer time to come down. For example after my morning meal my BG would read 7.5 and at around 4 pm it might read 6.5 i would check an hour later and it would read 6.3. I'm puzzled, why isn't my BG wasn't going down faster? So I stop the beer for 3 days and I see the morning BG is getting better each day, My mid day BG is still taking a long io get into the 5s. So I had this idea, what if I have 1 oz of whisky straight?My BG is 6.7, one hour later it's 5.3, two hours later 5.5. another hour an I'm at 4.9. My conclusion with this is a small amount of alcohol with zero carbs can be helpful in speeding up the lowing of your BG. Not that I think it's good to do this constantly but maybe now and again is okay. I have two meals a day that are LCHF average 20 carbs never more than 50 even with the one beer.

I advise caution when attempting to use alcohol for blood sugar experiments. It is a known side effect of alcohol and is a trick I use myself if I eat a 'forbidden delight'. Beer and wine tend to contain more sugar that elevates bgl at first but can then trigger an insulin rush that drops the levels. Spirits generally are more efficient at dropping the bgl without the spike. One thing to bear in mind, and that is that the sugar bump being suppressed means that carbs are being pushed into the cells, and especially around the liver and pancreas area. As a T2D I suffered NAFLD which is the fatty liver that is not due to alcohol. but there is the big brother AFLD that is due to alcohol, Drinking regularly and / or excessively will make either of these conditions worse, so whilst it looks like a 'cure' it comes with kickback.

 

[ianf0ster]

Alcohol should be treated with respect when you have diabetes just like for someone without diabetes.
I strongly disagree that it is “never good for a diabetic”.
Talking as someone with type 1 diabetes (but not defined by it) diagnosed later in life, my alcohol intake has changed little compared to before my diagnosis.
Alcohol does have an impact on blood sugars - our livers can’t cope with clearing out the toxins at the same time as dripping out glucose which is why we may see a drop in blood sugars and why someone taking insulin needs to be wary of their basal insulin dose.

But if you know this, alcohol does not have to be avoided when you have diabetes. It is a choice and blood sugars can be managed with alcohol without becoming dangerous.
It is incredibly important to consider balance in life.

The OP was suggesting that alcohol can be good for a diabetic as part of a mechanism for managing Blood Glucose.
Strange that although you strongly disagree that Alcohol is never good for a diabetic, everything else you say suggests that alcohol intake shouldn't be increased in order to manage Blood Glucose.

So do you agree with the proposal of the OP, or do you agree with me. - You can't have it both ways:
Either Alcohol is good for Blood Glucose management or it is not!

 

[Oldvatr]

The OP was suggesting that alcohol can be good for a diabetic as part of a mechanism for managing Blood Glucose.
Strange that although you strongly disagree that Alcohol is never good for a diabetic, everything alse you say suggestes that alcohol intake shouldn't be increased in order to manage Blood Glucose.

So so you agree with the proposal of the OP, or do you agree with me. - You can't have it both ways:
Either Alcohol is good for Blood Glucose management or it is not!

Apart from any moral issues, there is a simple physical issue to resolve, and it depends on which belief system one follows.

On the one had, alcohol increases urination and this is believed to flush out more glucose down the pan. This is one explanation as to why the sugar levels drop. The second stream of consciousness is that the sugar in alcoholic drinks triggers an insulin response, and that increase in insulin forces more blood sugar into storage in the body.

I used to be with the up against the wall brigade, but now I understand the processes a bit better, I am convinced that booze puts on the weight and the flab instead, I also see these results empirically both in my own personal experience and in that of friends and family around me. Incidentally, I use whisky and I do not increase my output - in actuality, I pee less in the night after drinking, and sleep longer.

It is still largely a matter of personal choice, providing one is over the legal age. I do not support the OP proposal since I believe it is not assisting in blood sugar control in any beneficial way, so I advise avoidance of this excuse to drink the stuff (it is not IMHO a medicine except as a mild disinfectant)

Edit to clarify
Of course my thinking above is for me as a T2D. Someone who is insulin dependent will not suffer an increase in insulin secretion. However, the extra calories are empty calories, and this still causes an adverse reaction and may increase hunger pangs instead. Searching the internet shows that insulin users still can suffer hypoglycemia during the night so tanking up with alcohol is still not advised especially if you bolus for it. Apparently large amounts of alcohol stops the liver feeding glycogen stored in it to support low sugar levels later on when asleep, and also lowers a fasting FBGL in the morning. Beware that this is a false reading - which I used to trick my GP on the surgery spot test, but did not touch the high HbA1c - but you are only fooling yourself when you knowingly do it. Newbies, beware. My GP was not fooled by this.

 

[WAGR57]

I would like your thoughts on a little experiment I did on myself. A little bit on what I've been doing first. My last A1C was 6.1 mmol/l in May. Before summer (once every two weeks)I would have 1 maybe 2 pints (typically 1)of beer/ale with a steak or chicken wings. After checking my blood 2 hours later my BG would rise maybe 1.5 to 2 points higher and my morning BG would be good (low 6s mid 5s). Summer arrives and I'm golfing lots , beer goes well after a game, for the most I've had 1 beer a day 2 maybe 3 times in a week and it didn't appear to do any harm. Then I did a week of 1 beer and up to 3 beers a day. This resulted in a higher morning BG reading. Another thing I noticed was my BG during the day (8 am to 6 pm) took a longer time to come down. For example after my morning meal my BG would read 7.5 and at around 4 pm it might read 6.5 i would check an hour later and it would read 6.3. I'm puzzled, why isn't my BG going down faster? So I stop the beer for 3 days and I see the morning BG is getting better each day, My mid day BG is still taking a long to get into the 5s. So I had this idea, what if I have 1 oz of whisky straight?My BG is 6.7, one hour later it's 5.3, two hours later 5.5. another hour an I'm at 4.9. My conclusion with this is a small amount of alcohol with zero carbs can be helpful in speeding up the lowing of your BG. Not that I think it's good to do this constantly but maybe now and again is okay. I have two meals a day that are LCHF average 20 carbs never more than 50 even with the one beer.

I would like to clarify more (there may be a misunderstanding) with my original post, I have made an edit to it, “ Before summer Added this part --(once every two weeks)-- I would have 1 maybe 2 pints”

First I don’t really like hard liquor, I’m a beer and sometimes wine person and typically don’t drink that much, this summer was an exception (since going on the LCHF diet 9 months ago). When I was having a beer once every two weeks I noticed my BG level did not jump very high and the carbs in the beer are somewhere between 12 and 15 grams. So I thought what if I have alcohol without the carbs? I felt my BG would go down and it did. FYI, I do lots of BG monitoring.

Tidbit, I had a beer claiming 2g of carbs, my BG went almost twice as high a 12 to 15 carb beer.

I appreciate the replies, they’re very helpful to me.

 

[darenu]

Hi WAGR57, I recently found that some Italian bottled beers (Birra Morretti & Peroni) in moderation have minimal effect on my BG (using Libre sensor). But the Birra in cans same volume, with same meal spiked me for over 2 hours. I’m thinking it’s the pilsner types in bottles that are better. I’m similar to you in that I’m not a shorts person, a golfer and enjoy a beer afterwards and being allowed is better for my MH than not partaking. Word of caution tho, more than a couple of 330ml bottles and my BG drops alarmingly, especially if going to bed on it