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Dawn Syndrome

M

MaggieM-UK

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Am T2 and have got my blood sugar down to the pre-diabetic range. I take Metformin. Am trying to get it to ‘normal’ using a low carb calorie restricted diet to lose weight. Am losing weight OK slowly but surely. However am having a problem with morning blood sugar readings and am wondering what, if anything, I can do about it.
For example, my last meal last night was around 8pm - roast chicken and steamed non starchy veg followed by natural yoghurt with some resistant starch added, with a small amount of stewed apple. Took 1000mg Metformin. At midnight my blood sugar was 4.9. This morning at 8am it was 6.2 and can be anything up to 6.9. Sometimes it stays under 6.
Do I need to worry about this or doesn’t it matter?
 
How long have you been low carb?
It can take a few months for dawn phenomenon to subside.. about 6 months for me and I still get some higher than expected readings after 4years..
 
Blimey! I don't call that much of a dawn phenomenon. I'd say those ranges were pretty darned acceptable. I'd kill for figures like those.
 
MaggieM-UK said:
Am T2 and have got my blood sugar down to the pre-diabetic range. I take Metformin. Am trying to get it to ‘normal’ using a low carb calorie restricted diet to lose weight. Am losing weight OK slowly but surely. However am having a problem with morning blood sugar readings and am wondering what, if anything, I can do about it.
For example, my last meal last night was around 8pm - roast chicken and steamed non starchy veg followed by natural yoghurt with some resistant starch added, with a small amount of stewed apple. Took 1000mg Metformin. At midnight my blood sugar was 4.9. This morning at 8am it was 6.2 and can be anything up to 6.9. Sometimes it stays under 6.
Do I need to worry about this or doesn’t it matter?
Click to expand...

Those morning levels are perfect. Nothing wrong with them at all
 
Those don't look so bad to me - but if you want to get your fasting blood sugar down further then try cutting out the resistant starch and/or the apple, and eat a little extra fat with your last meal before bed?
 
OK many thanks all for the advice. Would the apple still be making a difference overnight given that my reading was already down to 4.9 four hours after eating it? I have been low carb for 4 months so far. So the consensus seems to be that numbers under 7 aren’t too bad for a morning reading? Will try eating a piece of cheese before bed to see if that helps.
 
Eating cheese before bed helped me. I need to go back to it because my morning readings are always the worst. Cheddar helped more than low-fat mozzarella, but that’s when I got frustrated and gave up.
 
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