Coffee and Insulin Spikes in the morning.

[Glycemic]

I can only warn you that a dietician may not have encountered RH before and on my experience, she would have to understand that having RH is very similar to having a carb intolerance. I have since birth had a lactose intolerance and as this is quite common and the majority of doctors and dietician insist on avoiding it. However, because of text book treatment regarding RH, the intolerance to carbs is ignored! The textbook says it is carb laden meals that trigger the reaction but for me and many otheres, it does not matter how many carbs are in your meal wether high GI or low GI, the result is the same, carbs are carbs and carbs will trigger the reaction and the symptoms, the hypos!
Only a very low carb diet or being in or near being in keto levels will work for me! You may be different in some respects but it always comes back to carbs and sugars!
I hope you get your monitor for testing your BG levels, it is so important for those that are diagnosed, to discover which carbs are worse than others and how much you can tolerate without the reaction. I was told to keep a food diary with as much information about my intake and before and after two hours readings, as a baseline., Portion size, exercise, important stuff, including fasting BG readings. You get to know your body and what you can do to improve your health. It can be done!

Keep asking. Knowledge is important!

Thank you Lamont. And you are right the dietitian isn't really much help as the foods that she recommends that i eat send me into a hypo. The truth is at the moment this all feels like hell. But i'm so ever thankful that i have peers who not only live the rh life but are also here to educate and teach us newly diagnosed. I'd like to thank both you and everyone here who as responded and shared their own experiences.

 

[Lamont D]

Thank you Lamont. And you are right the dietitian isn't really much help as the foods that she recommends that i eat send me into a hypo. The truth is at the moment this all feels like hell. But i'm so ever thankful that i have peers who not only live the rh life but are also here to educate and teach us newly diagnosed. I'd like to that both you and everyone here who as responded and shared their own experiences.

I came on here like you looking for answers and advice, why this condition has very little research or knowledge on how to treat it. Luckily I found a someone who had experienced RH for most of her life, she is still around, but between us, we set up with the admin and others to set up our own sub forum, as we both knew that there was others in a similar situation and very little sound advice from those who have RH itself and found a way to stop going hypo every time we had a meal, what would be termed a healthy diet, and don't believe I haven't tried everyone of them!
I was porridge for breakfast, baked potato for lunch with beans and the usual meat and potatoes with gravy for evening meal! And I ended up being nineteen stone, and going hypo three of four times a day, not that I was aware of it but nor did my doctors! That was my hypo hell! Until I was referred to a specialist who after a few tests, I was diagnosed.
I lost weight quickly after starting a low carb diet and my health improved.
I have had relapses through mental health issues, but I am convinced that if not for diagnosis and low carb, I would not be here now!
You have to find out by using a monitor to test BG levels, the only way to know which foods you need to avoid.
My highest BG levels readings for one type of food was high teens for a potato. And that was from normal levels. I have big problems with grains of every type.
I use intermittent fasting every day, which has so many benefits, a small window between mid afternoon and early evening. This is because, it ensures four hours after food I know that I won't go hypo going to bed.
For some reason, little portions of fruit help with good vitamins. And I don't get the spikes, it could be different for you!
I have only fresh salad vegetables. So there is options, I can't eat dairy but dairy may be a different source of protein for you.
I am sure you will work out your best options! The more you experience the awareness of what is actually happening to you. And get a monitor! Keep a food diary!
Best wishes
Keep asking.

 

[Guzelino]

Good morning all, Just a very concerning question. How many of you drink coffee in the morning just after waking? I have been drinking coffee for years and mostly to increase my hypotension (low blood pressure. But lately i have noticed that drinking coffee in the a.m. straight after waking is causing hypoglycaemia symptoms, mainly the headaches, blurred vision, dizziness and making me feel weak, tired and under the weather.

I had a read online and most of the information states that coffee indeed causes blood sugar spikes:-

How Does Coffee Affect Your Blood Sugar?

That cup of coffee, tea, or soda can affect blood sugar control. Here’s what people who have diabetes need to know.

www.webmd.com

• Caffeine raises levels of certain stress hormones, like epinephrine (also called adrenaline). Epinephrine can prevent your cells from processing as much sugar. It may also keep your body from making as much insulin.
• It blocks a chemical called adenosine. This molecule plays a big role in how much insulin your body makes. It also controls how your cells respond to it. Caffeine keeps adenosine which plays a big role in how much insulin your body makes.

I'm a type 1 for 14 years, and always had my 1st cup of coffee within the first 30 mins after waking up, and thus far, I have not seen any effects via my CGM (libre 1/2). My to-go coffee option is a brewed Turkish coffee (approx. 1 cup of 150-200 ml, 2 teaspoons grinded coffee). I usually drink 3-5 coffees a day, with no effect on my BG.
Many articles have surfaced lately, stating that it influences the BG levels, but I personally think this mainly depends on the person, as each individual is unique, metabolic processes are different in everyone at different times of the day.
The title here says "spikes" but your experience says "hypo" which are contradictory terms. Also, the choice of coffee plays a significant amount (whether it is clean coffee, mixed with milk/sweeteners etc.).
As one commenter said, see how it works for you, if it does more damage than good, better drop it and switch to alternative "wake-up" drinks (for example, tea).

 

[healthy1]

After reading Dr Ritamarie blog about

Navigating the Dangers of Caffeine, Chronic Stress, and Hormonal Imbalance I reduced my caffeine intake down to 3 drinks per week. Wanted to go cold turkey completely, but don't have enough willpower​

 

[theoldfunker]

Good morning all, Just a very concerning question. How many of you drink coffee in the morning just after waking? I have been drinking coffee for years and mostly to increase my hypotension (low blood pressure. But lately i have noticed that drinking coffee in the a.m. straight after waking is causing hypoglycaemia symptoms, mainly the headaches, blurred vision, dizziness and making me feel weak, tired and under the weather.

I had a read online and most of the information states that coffee indeed causes blood sugar spikes:-

How Does Coffee Affect Your Blood Sugar?

That cup of coffee, tea, or soda can affect blood sugar control. Here’s what people who have diabetes need to know.

www.webmd.com

• Caffeine raises levels of certain stress hormones, like epinephrine (also called adrenaline). Epinephrine can prevent your cells from processing as much sugar. It may also keep your body from making as much insulin.
• It blocks a chemical called adenosine. This molecule plays a big role in how much insulin your body makes. It also controls how your cells respond to it. Caffeine keeps adenosine which plays a big role in how much insulin your body makes.

Coffee black for me and type 2 for some years and never a problem. Iv'e learnt a lot about my intake and now in pre-diadetic and find my black coffee is a great help.

 

[lawrence21360]

I don't drink coffee! My tipple during the day is tea!
And it could be the lactose in the milk!
Quite a few have full fat milk or cream in their coffee a lot less carbs and more natural fats.
The question does highlight the reaction from coffee and tea, how the hormones do play a part in his our bodies cope with food.

i have liver disease and coffee is good but i mix tea and coffee .People dont realise that tea has caffeine in it

 

[Rod Sanders]

I always drink green tea and a large mug of Ceylon tea with breakfast. coffee mid morning, water lunchtime Darjeeling in the afternoon. Never coffee at night. this regime seems ok for me. any help?

 

[pauldogs_0]

I'm not a doctor but have you tried caffeine free coffee or tea? I can’t say I’ve ever thought about this before but if you haven’t tried it then all I say is it could be worth a try.

 

[Leftcoastcali]

I live in Los Angeles, California, and have been dealing with type 2 diabetes for 15 years. It has been a constant battle. I have been reading about your program over the last several months. I have enjoyed your forum.

 

[Old’un]

I am a tea drinker myself and never have it with milk in it so there is absolutely no meaningful carbohydrate present. I do notice that drinking the hot fluid raises my blood sugar levels as does taking a hot shower. There are so many things that can affect our bodies that we often don’t consider.

 

[SimonP78]

I am a tea drinker myself and never have it with milk in it so there is absolutely no meaningful carbohydrate present. I do notice that drinking the hot fluid raises my blood sugar levels as does taking a hot shower. There are so many things that can affect our bodies that we often don’t consider.

That's really interesting, does it happen at any time of the day?

 

[jabalka]

I would say that if you do not exercise regularly, caffeine will have a stronger impact on your body, particularly in how it interacts with insulin. However, if you exercise frequently and drink coffee, the effects of high blood sugar will be minimized, while the stimulating effects of caffeine will be more pronounced in your brain. It’s a win-win for staying healthy—even while living with Type 1 diabetes, as I do.


If you engage in daily activities or, preferably, regular exercise, you will not only be able to enjoy coffee but also many other foods that would otherwise negatively affect you. I speak from personal experience.


I have had diabetes since I was six years old (now nearly 30). There was a period in my life when I felt constantly tired, lacked positivity, and struggled to find purpose. I realized that the turning point was when I became independent and had to work instead of playing outside with other kids. Suddenly, I had little time to focus on my health—something that should always be the number one priority for anyone with diabetes.


This neglect trapped me in what I call a "black cloud" for over five years. I lacked motivation, slept excessively without feeling rested, and struggled to think clearly. My body—both physically and mentally—slowed down to the point where I started questioning whether my lifestyle was the cause or if my routine itself was flawed. Eventually, I discovered that maintaining a proper diet was not enough—regular exercise was a must-have!


During this "black cloud" phase, I drank a lot of coffee to keep my brain active. However, I noticed that the insulin I injected stopped working for several hours after consuming coffee. After investigating, I found that my body fat percentage had exceeded 20%, and my lack of cardio exercise made it difficult for my body to process both coffee and insulin simultaneously.


Caffeine blocked the effects of insulin while it was in my bloodstream. Whether I drank coffee with or without milk (I prefer mine 50/50), my blood sugar would always rise—even with constant insulin injections.


So, every time I consumed caffeine, my blood sugar increased while my insulin stopped working!


This is a fact—at least for me. I am not surprised that even people on a diet experience blood sugar spikes from caffeine. If it happens to me while injecting insulin, it certainly affects those who do not use insulin.


Why does caffeine affect some people more than others?


I discovered that a sedentary lifestyle makes these effects much worse.


To prove this, I bought a treadmill and started running every night. Over time, I noticed that improving my stamina, cardiovascular health, and overall physical condition significantly reduced the negative effects of various foods—including caffeine.


You don’t have to stop drinking coffee—you need to start exercising!


I hope this helps someone who is struggling as I was a few years ago.

 

[lovinglife]

Hi @jabalka & welcome to the forum

Interesting post, but I do disagree with some of your points, especially this one

“You don’t have to stop drinking coffee—you need to start exercising!”

I drink a good few cups of black coffee a day and do very little if any exercise and it doesn’t affect my BG one iota, so saying everyone needs to exercise is a bit of a blanket statement that doesn’t apply to everyone. However if I took my coffee with milk then that would be a different story for me and that definitely would affect my BG. When I was on hypo inducing meds a cortardo when out and about would stop the hypo and bring me back to acceptable levels without over treating and going to high, so black coffee no, either cream no, but with milk most definitely yes

 

[jabalka]

Hi @jabalka & welcome to the forum

Interesting post, but I do disagree with some of your points, especially this one

“You don’t have to stop drinking coffee—you need to start exercising!”

I drink a good few cups of black coffee a day and do very little if any exercise and it doesn’t affect my BG one iota, so saying everyone needs to exercise is a bit of a blanket statement that doesn’t apply to everyone. However if I took my coffee with milk then that would be a different story for me and that definitely would affect my BG. When I was on hypo inducing meds a cortardo when out and about would stop the hypo and bring me back to acceptable levels without over treating and going to high, so black coffee no, either cream no, but with milk most definitely yes

Thank you for welcoming me!


I appreciate the fact that you are managing your life without exercising, though I know it will have a significant impact on your health in the future. However, taking a few sentences out of context and trying to argue over them does not contribute to a meaningful discussion.


Most importantly, please keep in mind that you have Type 2 diabetes, which is a completely different condition from Type 1. While both are called diabetes, they have very little in common. My point was based on my own experience of having to take insulin to stay alive—caffeine prevents the absorption of insulin in the body, and this effect is further intensified by a lack of exercise or physical activity.


Additionally, Type 2 diabetes must be carefully managed, as it heavily depends on a strict diet. Failure to follow this diet can lead to serious complications in the near future. As I mentioned in my previous post, I wanted to highlight the fact that exercise significantly contributes to a better diet, which in turn leads to a healthier lifestyle and better blood sugar control. Unlike Type 1 diabetes, where insulin injections can help regulate blood sugar, Type 2 diabetes requires a different approach since the issue is not caused by the immune system attacking insulin-producing cells. Therefore, maintaining a clean, stable, and well-balanced diet is a top priority.


That being said, I want to emphasize that if you enjoy drinking coffee with milk while exercising, it won’t affect your blood sugar levels the same way it would if you were not exercising—and the reason for this is quite easy to understand. I am not trying to say you are doing anything wrong; rather, I believe there is always room for improvement, and incorporating exercise into your routine would be beneficial.


I hope you understand my perspective without judging my personal experience on the matter. I also hope my comment can be helpful to someone.

 

[Jaylee]

Hi @jabalka ,

Welcome to the forum.

This post about coffee & spikes is posted in the RH “reactive hypoglycaemia” section of the forum from the OP.
Morning spikes can be causation from a liver dump but also coffee (caffeine) is a stimulant. (Tobacco can act in a similar way. Smokers generally don’t need it to “calm down?”)
I take my coffee black & still see a nominal rise for me as a T1 with a close eye on BGs & an active lifestyle. (Or should I say professional lifestyle.)
Using a CGM or flash monitor has been an eye opener.. (on just my basal dose.)

What I do know (or come to understand.) with reactive hypoglycaemia members of our community is carbs can have a negative affect with an over reactive pancreas response producing insulin.. so it could also be feasible the the metabolic stimulation from caffeine could possibly cause issue with the RH members of our community which has no bearing on how we as T1s manage our personal condition…

Best wishes.

 

[Grant_Vicat]

During this "black cloud" phase, I drank a lot of coffee to keep my brain active. However, I noticed that the insulin I injected stopped working for several hours after consuming coffee. After investigating, I found that my body fat percentage had exceeded 20%, and my lack of cardio exercise made it difficult for my body to process both coffee and insulin simultaneously.


Caffeine blocked the effects of insulin while it was in my bloodstream. Whether I drank coffee with or without milk (I prefer mine 50/50), my blood sugar would always rise—even with constant insulin injections.


So, every time I consumed caffeine, my blood sugar increased while my insulin stopped working!


This is a fact—at least for me. I am not surprised that even people on a diet experience blood sugar spikes from caffeine. If it happens to me while injecting insulin, it certainly affects those who do not use insulin.

@jabalka Having been Type 1 from 1959 - 2013, my BG management was never impacted by caffeine, and even now I drink a lot and my blood chemistry is exemplary (checked every 3 months) in spite of not being allowed to exercise significantly. It's fine to say "in my experience", but generalising is not helpful since we are all different.

 

[Antje77]

Most importantly, please keep in mind that you have Type 2 diabetes, which is a completely different condition from Type 1. While both are called diabetes, they have very little in common. My point was based on my own experience of having to take insulin to stay alive—caffeine prevents the absorption of insulin in the body, and this effect is further intensified by a lack of exercise or physical activity.

I've had T1 for over 8 years, and during those years I've had periods of beig very sedentiary due to depression, and periods with a decent amount of exercise. My coffee intake stayed the same, and it never impacted my BG.
So while you may see this effect as a T1, it's definitely not the same for all.

However, I noticed that the insulin I injected stopped working for several hours after consuming coffee. After investigating, I found that my body fat percentage had exceeded 20%,

Increasing body weight can affect insulin sensitivity all by itself, have you considered the possibility that it may take a longer time for your insulin to work when you're heavier? Also, exercise can speed up insulin action (exercise with insulin on boarb makes many of us drop like a stone), so mayby it wasn't the coffee.

I wanted to highlight the fact that exercise significantly contributes to a better diet

You can exercise with a horrible diet, or have a very healthy diet spending most of your day in bed, I'm puzzled how exercise contributes to a better diet.

Therefore, maintaining a clean, stable, and well-balanced diet is a top priority.

What do you mean by a 'clean, stable, and well-balanced diet' for managing T2 diabetes? What type of diet should T2's follow?

I appreciate the fact that you are managing your life without exercising, though I know it will have a significant impact on your health in the future.

Please keep in mind that not everyone is capable of exercising. It isn't very nice to tell people their health will deteriorate because they can't exercise. Not exercising doesn't mean it's impossible to get T2 diabetes in remission either, many T2's on this forum have done exactly that without significant exercise because of some form of disability or simply old age.

 

[jabalka]

@jabalka Having been Type 1 from 1959 - 2013, my BG management was never impacted by caffeine, and even now I drink a lot and my blood chemistry is exemplary (checked every 3 months) in spite of not being allowed to exercise significantly. It's fine to say "in my experience", but generalising is not helpful since we are all different.

Sorry if my words offended anyone (somehow).


All I wanted to do was share my personal experience, as I clearly stated. I did not generalize but spoke mainly about my own observations regarding caffeine. The only thing I did generalize was the fact that exercise undeniably benefits everyone, especially those of us living with diabetes.

I sincerely apologize if some of you felt deeply affected, as if I were criticizing you for not being particularly sporty. That was never my intention.

In fact, I chose to write in this forum to raise awareness based on my own experiences. Of course, taking a few sentences out of the full context of what I wrote might lead to a different interpretation.

Please, try to focus on the overall message rather than just a few sentences that may have come across as offensive.


Best and warm wishes!

 

[Grant_Vicat]

Thank you @jabalka for the warm wishes.
I am not in any way offended, but simply pointing out that none of us can use our personal experiences as absolutes. I am more offended by being instructed as to how I should read or interpret posts. I always read a complete post and digest it before wading in. There is one definite generalisation:
" it certainly affects those who do not use insulin." Statements like this at the very least need a supporting link.
It is not my intention to turn this into a battleground, merely to alert you to possible pitfalls. Keep well!

 

[clarejenkins]

Today is the first day that i haven't had coffee. So far i'm not symptomatic, but in saying that i'll have to continue for a few days to see whether it helps or whether it's just a one off thing. I'm not sure why the coffee affects me so much since i only drink it black with no sugar/substitute sugar or milk/cream. So at this stage for me it's wait and see.

Your post said you were getting symptoms of HYPOglycaemia which is the opposite of a spike. Do you actually measure your BS with either a CGM or finger prick to see what is actually happening? Without that all this advice is speculation.