can anyone help me out here when i got up late today after some long shifts at work (got up at 2:00pm)tested my blood sugars and it read 4.5 is this low :?:
It is low Andy,below 4 is considered as going hypo. I also get this happening after night shift if I sleep till the afternoon. As you are diet only in your profile you would eventually 'liver dump' and bring up your levels again. How did you feel BTW?
tired but i,ve just started new job and its long hours and different each week also should i try eating small amounts but often (so shifts are 4:45-1700)
Andy, as a diet controlled type 2, 4.5mmol/l is a remarkably non-diabetic blood sugar in my opinion!
You have negligable risk of hypoglycemia without blood sugar lowering medications, so there is absolutely no harm in running those sorts of numbers in your case.
Diabetics using insulin would tend to run bg's slightly higher to give themselves a little cushion between them and hypoglycemia, but that's not an issue for you.
Andyl
4.5 is,as Fergus says, a non-diabetic number. A diet controlled T2 is unlikely to suffer hypos, so there's no need to worry about getting close to 4. Bernstein quotes 4.7 as the ideal non-diabetic blood glucose number. Non-diabetics frequently run at under 4 perfectly safely.
Hana
I'm a Type 2 on metformin only and I've reversed my condition through diet. These days I often have readings in the 4s and sometimes in th 3s (my lowest being a 3.2). These levels seem to do nothing to the way I feel and ceratinly haven't caused me any problems. My GP tells me that as a Type 2 on metformin only that I'm in no danger of having a hypo (going too low) - at least in no more danger than a non-diabetic. He says that if I feel in anyway strange I should simply take something to eat.
However, I notice from your profile that you are a HGV driver. In that case, I would suggest that you ought to talk about your levels with your GP.