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Confused!!!!!

Avocado Sevenfold said:
@roonah It is often reported on here that the fasting bg level is the last one to come down as the result of lifestyle changes so you may just have to be patient. I have given up worrying about my fasting level. I don't think the dawn phenomenon is such a bad thing - I would be more worried if my liver was not giving me a little nudge to prevent me going too low when asleep. I have found however that my fasting is lower if I don't snack in the evenings, but everyone is different.
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Hi Avocado Sevenfold, thats a really good point you make. As i said in an earlier post, when i look at the big picture HbA1C is in range, post eating readings are in range, fasting glucose is out of range. However, its only by listening to the contributors on here that I now realise that my raised fasting levels may be short lived and only occur just before i get up. I know from testing that my post eating levels are always in range so if i eat pretty soon after rising I should be able to limit the length of time i'm in a raised state.
Thanks again for your input.
 
roonah said:
HbA1C - in range, after food readings - in range, after fasting readings - out of range.
Is 2 out of 3 ok or do all 3 need to be spot on?
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Well that depends on what you are trying to achieve...

You have achieved a good drop in HBA1C in two years and also lost weight which is fantastic.

I don't think your fasting readings should have such an impact on your HBA1C as it is only for a few hours a day. What are we missing?

Can I ask what meter you are using as some do read quite high at higher levels? Also, what range are you happy with post meal?
 
Alison Campbell said:
Well that depends on what you are trying to achieve...

You have achieved a good drop in HBA1C in two years and also lost weight which is fantastic.

I don't think your fasting readings should have such an impact on your HBA1C as it is only for a few hours a day. What are we missing?

Can I ask what meter you are using as some do read quite high at higher levels? Also, what range are you happy with post meal?
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Hi Alison, I'm using an Accu-Check Mobile. I'm using the NICE recommended levels as per the table on this site. It says post prandial should be 7.8 or below. Going back through my records the range of my readings are between 5.9 and 6.6. I'm going to try to speak to my GP about my concerns and if necessary i'll purchase a Freestyle Libre sensor and use the free phone app which should let me see exactly what is happening and when.
Thanks again for your input. All the contributors to this thread have been a great help and have given me a clearer understanding of my situation. I'm hoping that the Freestyle Libre will reveal that my elevated levels amount to nothing more than Dawn Phenomenon and that my efforts over the last couple of years haven't been in vain.
 
roonah said:
Hi CherryAA, thanks for your input.
I'm 55, reduced my HbA1C from 47 to 40 over the last 2 years by following DR Michael Moseley's blood sugar diet, which is essentially a low carb plan. I've lost 2 stone but still have a further 2 to go to get in healthy BMI range. My pre food and post food levels are always in range but my fasting levels are always between 6.3 and 7.6 so I feel like no matter what I do I can't impact my liver performance throughout the night?
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you may well find that your fasting figures are nothing like as bad as you think. when I wake my levels often show somewhere in the 6- 7 range and often continue rising upto around 8 and peak around 11.00 am. However when wearing a 24/7 monitor, its clear that my actual overnight fasting is much lower - ie around 5, and it is only shortly before I wake up that it starts rising.

Generally speaking whatever level it is when I went to bed, it stays at that or lower for the next few hours. Thus if you want low fasting overnight levels then you should aim for 5 before bed, and a way to do that c\n be to try to eat your last food around 7 pm.
 
I'm similar to Cherry - my overnight BG is usually less than 5, often in the low 4's, but starts to rise anywhere from 4am onwards, so it's usually 6ish by the time I get up, and then often continues to rise across the morning.

But by late morning, it will usually be on its way down, a good (LCHF) choice at lunchtime sees a negligible rise, so by pre-evening meal I'm usually 4's or low 5's.

I can of course stuff this up by eating crisps in the evening, after which my BG will shoot up to 8 or 9, and then stay over 6 for hours and hours.
 
This is me too.... I get up every morning around 6-6.4 and often can climb as high as 7.5 within 15 mins. Yet my a1c recently was 5.3

I now no longer check in the mornings as it depresses me.

I now only worry about what I can control, after meal peaks, seems to be the right approach for me.
 
4ratbags said:
My HbA1c is 34 and my FBG is always in the 6's and sometimes even a 7. I got the surprise of my life the other day with a 5.3.
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I just had a 4.9 before dinner.... Lowest I've ever seen too without the need for 48hr fasting to force lower it.

My BP is unusually lower than its normal for a few days too...

Strange....
 
BarbaraG said:
If HbA1C and postprandials are good but fasting is still high, it may be just an effect of keto:

http://ketopia.com/physiological-insulin-resistance/
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I had that 12 months ago. My FBG and pre-meals all went up quite a bit but post meals were good. The way to deal with it is to eat extra carbs for 2 or 3 days, then back to low carb. It all goes back to normal. I haven't had it since.
 
Oh, interesting! I knew the 3 days of higher carbs would be enough to reset it, because I've seen that recommended if you need to do a glucose tolerance test. But I'd assumed that if you went back to low carb afterwards, the physiological insulin resistance would reoccur - and I'd assumed it would be sooner than first time round.

You almost tempt me to a 3- day carb-fest. Perhaps when I go on my summer holiday ;-)
 
BarbaraG said:
Oh, interesting! I knew the 3 days of higher carbs would be enough to reset it, because I've seen that recommended if you need to do a glucose tolerance test. But I'd assumed that if you went back to low carb afterwards, the physiological insulin resistance would reoccur - and I'd assumed it would be sooner than first time round.

You almost tempt me to a 3- day carb-fest. Perhaps when I go on my summer holiday ;-)
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Mine corresponded with a convenient holiday!
 
Bluetit1802 said:
Mine corresponded with a convenient holiday!
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Of course, if you were going to up carb intake you should do it with better carbs, like sweet potatoes, pulses, oats. But The Easter weekend is a tempting opportunity..... hot cross buns AND chocolate!
 
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