• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

BG not making sense to me

B

BeBeautiful

Member
Messages
10
My BG was 12 before dinner at 7pm (hadn't eaten since 1pm, drank some diet coke)
2 hours after dinner it was down to 8.9
1 hour later it was up to 9.9

What does this mean? I have been diagnosed with Type 2, my blood test result was 56 and i have been diagnosed with an under active thyroid and reduced liver function from same blood test
 

Hi. These figures one their own tell us very little that would allow for a simple answer. Personally, I find that my own system takes up to three hours to come back down rather than the much quoted two hours. We are all variations on a theme with this (just like we are in life) so little is exact in a general sense. Also, how your blood sugar does over a couple of weeks of readings at these kinds of times will tell you a lot more than this pre and post meal. I would strongly suggest you also keep a a note of what you are eating; that with the readings will help you see any correlation between your diet and your blood sugar levels. In my opinion (and that's all it is), you may well be eating an amount of carbohydrates that is "too high" for your blood sugar to settle more quickly. Cutting down on carbs will bring your levels down if that is the case. The single most important thing I have learned while getting in control of my blood sugar is realising the simple fact that carbohydrates effectively become sugar in the blood. What are you eating ?
 

Thank you for your reply!

I eat very little carbohydrates, the most I eat will be in vegetables as for months carbs such as pasta / bread etc have made me feel ill.

I was classed as borderline diabetic when pregnant as my initial fasting bg was high, but the rest of my test was normal, I then had to monitor my bg before and after meals. Over 6 months, eating a very balanced diet - my bg were highest before eating and first thing in the morning and normal two hours after meals.

A similar thing seems to be the case now where my highest readings are before meals - I can't find reasons for this anywhere online and my diabetic nurse doesn't know either. I have an underactive thyroid, should I check my bloods at three hours instead of two perhaps because of slow metabolism?

Everyone keeps telling me to eat less carbs, but if I did I would only be allowed to eat meat!
 

Hi, Seems like the dawn effect but during the day. I’m not a health professional. Did you try eating a little between lunch in dinner? I wonder if this would make a difference in your # values? Just an idea.
 
It's good that you are limiting your carb intake as much as you can. In general, above-ground veges are very low carb and below-ground veges can be quite carby, depending what they are. I was a bit disappointed when I found that carrots have 5g carbs per 100g. Brocolli has 0.3g.
 
if of any help,I think there is "still"? sugar even though diet coke?? that may have contributed, I know some people may tolerate,but in your case may prove different, again, if you recall what you ate for dinner may answer the difference of 8.9 to 9.9 hoe this helps.
 
I agree with @pleinster, It is too early to make any suggestions and especially from one meal of testing. Some meals do cause a double rise.

I would do a 2 week diary of testing fasting blood glucose, before and 2 hours after food eaten to establish a clear trend of what is going on.
 
Thanks everyone!

I’ve been limiting carbs because the past few months they have made me very tired, dizzy, sick after eating. With low carb (although obviously some carbs in veggies and occasional pasta / toast!) I don’t feel so ill directly after eating and generally feeling less dizzy.

I spoke to my nurse late yesterday she said now I’m on my thyroid medication to try some carbs today and have snacks between meals and today has been really steady!! I was 14 on waking (eeek!) but it’s been between 4 and 7 all day!

I did feel a bit woozy at 4.2 but a snack soon perked me up and the carbs I had (a sausage roll for lunch and some pasta for tea - yum) didn’t make me ill! Hurraaay!!

Think I’m finally getting to grips with this, feels very weird eating more but I’m not complaining!
 

There is no sugar or carbs in Diet Coke, at all, 0% - which is lucky because I love it! Lol
 
You must have funny broccoli in NZ then.. the UK version has 1.8g of carbs per 100g
 

I love carrots too! So sweet though, red peppers are my current favourite!
 
bulkbiker said:
You must have funny broccoli in NZ then.. the UK version has 1.8g of carbs per 100g
Click to expand...
I got the info from an online search but thank you for your close attention to life in NZ.
 
Bluetit1802 said:
Carbs & Cals gives broccoli 1g per 100g.
Click to expand...
Thanks, it seems there are slightly different results on different websites, but the context was that I was giving someone an example of why above-ground veges are generally a better choice than below-ground. So, I was being helpful and kind, in line with the forum ethos and rules. I'm not sure anyone's diabetes management would be hugely impacted by getting the carb value of broccoli wrong by less than 1% but I could be wrong. One never knows.
 
Until your thyroid replacement gets your levels up to normal anything could happen - the dose has to be ramped up slowly so as to avoid palpitations and wobblies.
It might help to lower your Hba1c to normal if you avoid high carb foods - though I am not sure why you think that would leave only meat - the sausage roll you ate would have had a lot of fat in it, so you aren't eating low fat...
I treat my diabetes with lots of salads and low carb veges, along with meat fish etc, as it is very effective in keeping readings normal.
 

If you read my posts properly you would see my pre-diagnosis diet consisted of very little carbs, due to it making me feel ill afterwards. Eating less carbs at that point would mean cutting out veg & fruit.

With my thyroid medication, my blood sugars were high in the morning and before meals. When I started metformin my bloods started dropping too low. Now I’ve reintroduced carbs (fat content is irrelevant, I have no intention in losing weight and yes I did have one of the kids fatty sausage rolls for the first time in half a year!) I have balanced my BG now which has remained between 4.2 & 7 consistently.

In other words, the lack of carbs was increasing my pre meal and morning BG, it’s resolved now and carbs no longer are making me feel ill
 
You seem to have firmly grasped the wrong end of the stick - when I wrote avoid high carb foods, that is exactly what I meant - I did not write eat fewer carbs because that is not what I wished to advise.
You seem to have missed the fact that I was approving of your choice to include fat in your diet, though I have lost over 40lb on a high fat diet, so don't quite understand your response to my comment - unless you think that I was advising you to avoid eating fat in order to lose weight - which I would never do as I know that it never worked for me - and I am 67 now, with a lifetime of bad diet advice from those who should know better.
 
Thanks for posting again to give us more info about your needs. I note you said this today (below):

"I have balanced my BG now which has remained between 4.2 & 7 consistently.

In other words, the lack of carbs was increasing my pre meal and morning BG, it’s resolved now and carbs no longer are making me feel ill"

This is great news and if you can keep your BGs in this range long term, your HbA1c will likely drop right out of the T2 diabetic range and even lower. I call this remission not reversal, but at this forum we devote entire threads to quibbling over the words, lol.

Suggestions were given in this thread about next steps for thyroid and liver issues. How are you getting on now with those two issues?

I hope your nurse/doctor will send you for an HbA1c test 3 months after your previous one of 56. If later on they reduce the intervals between A1c tests you will need to at least do a fasting BG test at home once every 3 months. I wish I had.

You said below that you have no intention of losing weight. If you were already in the healthy weight range (18-25 BMI) when your A1c was 56, you might need some further tests but I couldn't say without knowing more.

If you had a bit to lose, then the same eating changes that are getting your BGs down will probably help with that, without even trying, which is a nice bonus.

So, it's good news all round so far on the diabetes front.
 

Hello Jenny, thanks for your reply! Thank you, I do hope the stable BG continues long term!

My thyroid is due re-testing soon since I have been on the meds a little while now. My liver needs scanned and I am waiting on that, plus an appointment with the endocronologist. I am now on Metformin, so will be followed up with another HbA1c in a couple of months.

My BMI was within the healthy range at testing, however I have lost a further 9lbs whilst being on the thyroid medication. Introducing more carbs now I can stomach them will hopefully stop me losing too much more.

I was originally diagnosed type 2, but the doctor now seems unconvinced, he mentioned type 1.5 and then mentioned it might not be typical diabetes at all but something else causing the high blood glucose. I will just need to wait it out, but if I am somewhat able to stop it going too high and causing damage, I am happy with that for now. For the past three days I have had quite severe facial spasms, including my eyeball - I am hoping this is a normal reaction to the medication I am taking and not something more sinister!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn More.…