HBA1C Result - not as good as I hoped …..

[JayBee28]

Good evening,

I was diagnosed in September 2021 Type 2 with HBA1C of 56. In November it was 48. I’ve just had results from last test and it’s only 43. I am devastated. I have worked so hard, I’ve lost 2.5 stone and my carb intake is often less than 35g, no more than 50 per day. I take no medication. My glucose readings in the morning is in the 6’s and during the day goes down to 5 and sometimes 4. HBA1C of 43 is an average of 7.1. I have cut out bread, cereals, pasta, rice, potatoes, sugar, cakes, biscuits, sweets etc.

My typical day is as follows:
Berries and full fat yoghurt for breakfast
Omelette of mushrooms and cheese for lunch
Fish or meat with salad or veg for dinner
I don’t eat between meals just a few nuts after dinner
I drink water or decaf tea with a bit of milk, or decaf coffee with unsweetened almond milk

I was really hoping to get below 41. Any tips would be amazing please.

Thank you

 

[Finlay1021]

Is 43 not very very good? I'd love to be that low

 

[JayBee28]

Is 43 not very very good? I'd love to be that low

I just thought it would be lower as I’ve been so strict the last three months. Maybe I had a too high expectation.

 

[VashtiB]

Hi @JayBee28 ,

I can understand the feeling of being a bit disappointed after working so hard.Having said that you have achieved a great result.
I know I was slightly disappointed when my HbA1C went up a time bit. What I had failed to factor in was stress, illness and sleeplessness. This is what I do regular tests with a meter. I can then have instant feedback which allows me to tweak things a little.

Do you have a meter? If so try regular testing for a while. Some people find that some carbs 'punch above their weight' that is their body reacts to some types of carbs as if they were higher.

Good luck.

 

[searley]

I think that 43 is great.. I think the lower you get the more effort it takes to achieve little changes.. see the positive its still lower than it was before and that's good

 

[shelley262]

Good evening,

I was diagnosed in September 2021 Type 2 with HBA1C of 56. In November it was 48. I’ve just had results from last test and it’s only 43. I am devastated. I have worked so hard, I’ve lost 2.5 stone and my carb intake is often less than 35g, no more than 50 per day. I take no medication. My glucose readings in the morning is in the 6’s and during the day goes down to 5 and sometimes 4. HBA1C of 43 is an average of 7.1. I have cut out bread, cereals, pasta, rice, potatoes, sugar, cakes, biscuits, sweets etc.

My typical day is as follows:
Berries and full fat yoghurt for breakfast
Omelette of mushrooms and cheese for lunch
Fish or meat with salad or veg for dinner
I don’t eat between meals just a few nuts after dinner
I drink water or decaf tea with a bit of milk, or decaf coffee with unsweetened almond milk

I was really hoping to get below 41. Any tips would be amazing please.

Thank you

Hiya @JayBee28 you are making great progress and as others have said you are doing well.from what you list re food I don’t think you could make it much lower carb and wondering if you should be looking a bit more holistically at your general health things like your sleep - how much and how well, your activity levels not necessarily lots of exercise but movement not sitting down too much, your stress management- this one puts my sugars up most! I also do believe that we are all different and some people may be able to achieve lower levels than others. Look at your whole lifestyle and make a few tweaks and keep up the low carb - I’m presuming your yoghurt btw is plain and has live bacteria? Keep going you are doing very well.

 

[catinahat]

Please don't get disheartened, you are doing extremely well. In just six months you have gone from being firmly in the diabetic range, to only just in the pre diabetes range and knocking on the door of non diabetic numbers. All this you have managed to do without medication.
The HbA1c measures how much glucose has stuck to your blood cells over their lifetime, blood cells usually live somewhere around 12 weeks so the HbA1c is considered a sort of 12 week average.
How do you know how long your blood cells last ? You and I could have exactly the same day to day blood sugar levels but if my blood cells kick the bucket after 11 weeks and yours hang around for 13. Your blood cells would have an extra 2 weeks to gather glucose and your HbA1c would be higher than mine.
My point is that it's just a number but more importantly it's your number, don't compare your self or try to compete with others because well, they're not you.

 

[MrsA2]

That's a good number, and it is in the right direction. Celebrate it.

We often say in here that diabetes is a marathon not a sprint, and it's taken years in the building and will take time to reverse.

I prescribe patience, and a continued low carb way of eating

 

[ultradad]

HBA1C of 43 is an average of 7.1

Like everyone else has said your doing great and its going in the right direction. After i had worked out with my meter what i could eat i was left at about 10 carbs per meal without it rising more than 2 points so ended up going carnivor. I found checking my bloods at end of day around 9 my bloods were at 6.5 or 7 and would drop over night to 5 - 5.5 in the morning.
I went to eating 2x a day and saw a improvement in my morning bloods which are between 4 and 4.5 now. Basicly even though i was low carb the extra protein was raising my blood sugars higher than i wanted going by my meter readings
I dont think your doing much wrong just check everything using your meter and see how your bloods react

 

[ajbod]

Your HBA1c is an average of the lifetime of your blood cells. During the 3 months the glucose level has been dropping, BUT the higher levels at the start are also in the average calculation. Your next HBA1 c will not have those higher initial readings in the calculation. Take heart you're doing very well, and your next HBA1c i'm positive will be a further improvement, possibly a revelation.

 

[HSSS]

I empathise. No matter what I did in the last 4 yrs I hit a similar wall. I started at 55 and went to low 40’s quickly but got stuck there despite keeping carbs very low and losing nearly 3 stone. I mostly only had two meals a day too. It is really disheartening to hear of people going from much higher numbers into the 30’s and possibly eating more carbs than we did. But it’s not an awful place to be. In fact it’s a reasonably good one compared to where it could be without the efforts made. Could I have gone even lower/carnivore/exercised more? Possibly but not with keeping a life/mental balance I could sustain at that time. I guess that’s the question you need to ask yourself. If you can make an extra push and maintain quality of life go for it. If not recognise that you really are in a much healthier position overall now than you were last year. And that’s not nothing.

I’m off for my hba1c this morning. I’ve allowed this disappointment in progress, the pandemic, lost job and life in general to get the better of me last 6 months despite knowing exactly what I need to do to at least maintain my prediabetic levels. I am now facing starting almost again I suspect. Whilst hoping for a good result I know it won’t be (I’ve gained weight back and eaten higher carb than I did the previous 3 yrs). Please, don’t let this eat away at you and have the same demotivating effect on you.

 

[Cec57]

Hi i thought I Would chip in as your numbers seem similar to mine when I was diagnosed.
I was diagnosed in 2020 at 52, 6 months later I was 48, six months again I was 43. We went a year before testing and I was 38 so really happy with the results.
I started using a finger prick test as soon as I was diagnosed and still use it everyday. it really helped me find the best foods for me. I have lost just over 4 stone in that time but can’t really exercise that much as I’m disabled.
You seem to be heading in the same direction so just give yourself more time and perhaps a pat on the back for the good things you have achieved so far.

 

[TeddyTottie]

As @ultradad says, it may be worth trying a bit of intermittent fasting. You could reduce to one or two meals a day, several days a week. If you eat enough for your meals then you shouldn’t suffer unbearable hunger, but by increasing the fasting window between mealtimes you may help lessen your insulin resistance and thereby improve your BG. Might be just the final push you need!

 

[ianf0ster]

You have made great progress, remember that those in this forum are exceptional in that we are prepared to do something about our diabetes (most T2D's just take the medicine prescribed and so would already be worse rather than better in 6 months.
It took me over 12 months to get my HbA1C below 40. We are all individuals and so react differently to the same amount of carbs.
Don't let yourself get disheartened because if you keep going it's likely your next HbA1C will be lower still.

 

[JayBee28]

Hi @JayBee28 ,

I can understand the feeling of being a bit disappointed after working so hard.Having said that you have achieved a great result.
I know I was slightly disappointed when my HbA1C went up a time bit. What I had failed to factor in was stress, illness and sleeplessness. This is what I do regular tests with a meter. I can then have instant feedback which allows me to tweak things a little.

Do you have a meter? If so try regular testing for a while. Some people find that some carbs 'punch above their weight' that is their body reacts to some types of carbs as if they were higher.

Good luck.

Thank you fir your reply. I do have a meter. In the morning, I am in the 6’s and then that goes down during the day to 5’s and 4’s. I think I need to exercise more and definitely get better sleep.

Good luck to you too.

 

[JayBee28]

Hiya @JayBee28 you are making great progress and as others have said you are doing well.from what you list re food I don’t think you could make it much lower carb and wondering if you should be looking a bit more holistically at your general health things like your sleep - how much and how well, your activity levels not necessarily lots of exercise but movement not sitting down too much, your stress management- this one puts my sugars up most! I also do believe that we are all different and some people may be able to achieve lower levels than others. Look at your whole lifestyle and make a few tweaks and keep up the low carb - I’m presuming your yoghurt btw is plain and has live bacteria? Keep going you are doing very well.

Thank you for your reply. I am seeing the positives that the number is coming down, I was a bit miffed the number wasn’t lower. I’m not sure if I have a dodgy glucose monitor as my readings are between 4-6 and HBA1C of 43 is equivalent of 7.1. The yoghurt is Greek natural full fat. I definitely need to sleep better, I am the world’s worst and manage stress better.

Good luck to you.

 

[catinahat]

I’m not sure if I have a dodgy glucose monitor

I think each and every one of us have had the same thoughts about our meters. The standards for accuracy is plus/minus %15. You can do 2 tests using the same drop of blood and get different readings. If you buy another meter it will have been manufactured to the same standards. Now you will have two meters giving Two different readings, one could be up to %15 high the other %15 low as far as their manufacturers are concerned they are both working ok so which one do you choose ?
The meters give us a rough idea of our levels, if you normally see 5 & 6's and then you start getting 7 & 8's then something has changed, maybe an infection, extra stress or perhaps you relaxed your diet a little. If you normally see something around 6 or 7 after a meal then you get a post meal reading of 9 or 10 then either that meal had too many carbs or it was a faulty test (something on your fingers or a duff strip) don't get too caught up with the numbers just look for trends.

 

[HSSS]

The only other, less likely, thing is certain blood conditions (eg anemia, rapid or slow recovery turnover etc) may have an influence on hba1c but not meter readings. The hba1c reads the amount of glycation (exposure to glucose) the red blood cells have suffered rather than the actual glucose in the blood as meters do. In cases like this where there is cause to suspect an inaccurate hba1c there is an alternative fructosamine test (more commonly used in pregnancy btw).

 

[Ronancastled]

My glucose readings in the morning is in the 6’s and during the day goes down to 5 and sometimes 4. HBA1C of 43 is an average of 7.1.

Your dawn phenomenon is driving up your average BG.
Your fasting is normally the last to go up prior to diagnosis but also the last to come down.
I was stuck in the 6s early days post remission.
Then I slowly started to see 5s, after a year I saw low 4s where I've stayed since.
Your body needs to regain it's insulin sensitivity to morning glucose dumps from your liver.
Keep at it

 

[JayBee28]

I empathise. No matter what I did in the last 4 yrs I hit a similar wall. I started at 55 and went to low 40’s quickly but got stuck there despite keeping carbs very low and losing nearly 3 stone. I mostly only had two meals a day too. It is really disheartening to hear of people going from much higher numbers into the 30’s and possibly eating more carbs than we did. But it’s not an awful place to be. In fact it’s a reasonably good one compared to where it could be without the efforts made. Could I have gone even lower/carnivore/exercised more? Possibly but not with keeping a life/mental balance I could sustain at that time. I guess that’s the question you need to ask yourself. If you can make an extra push and maintain quality of life go for it. If not recognise that you really are in a much healthier position overall now than you were last year. And that’s not nothing.

I’m off for my hba1c this morning. I’ve allowed this disappointment in progress, the pandemic, lost job and life in general to get the better of me last 6 months despite knowing exactly what I need to do to at least maintain my prediabetic levels. I am now facing starting almost again I suspect. Whilst hoping for a good result I know it won’t be (I’ve gained weight back and eaten higher carb than I did the previous 3 yrs). Please, don’t let this eat away at you and have the same demotivating effect on you.

Good luck with your test and I’m sure you’ll be back on the right track. Thank you for your reply