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Do oral steroids raise your blood sugar?

E

EmilyMay11

Active Member
Messages
39
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Been feeling ill for weeks so went the doctors yesterday and was diagnosed with a chest infection, due to having asthma also I was given a course of oral steroids for 5 days.

Took my first 8 tablets of steroids this morning and checked my blood sugar and it’s 9.0!! My blood sugar is never that high (even after eating sugar!) and especially not that high before eating. I did read that oral steroids raise your blood sugar but do they really raise your sugars that high??

Is it worth not taking the steroids and seeing if the antibiotics work on their own? Or will it go back down after the steroid course is finished?
I’m a bit worried about continuing to take the steroids
 
Hi @EmilyMay11
It’s a very common side effect of steroids, but you also have the perfect storm of an infection, steroids & antibiotics which all have the potential to mess with BG, try not to stress about it as that won’t help either. It’s a short term temporary blip so it’s very likely once you’ve finished the meds and your infection has cleared you’ll be back to normal.

Sometimes we have to accept that our BG will be raised for whatever reason and do the best we can. It’s important for you at this time to get rid of your chest infection so I wouldn’t stop any medication without medical advice. Keep an eye on your diet and if you can reduce your carbs further for now then that may help. Hope you’re feeling better soon
 
T
Thank you for your response. It was just such a shock seeing it that high, when I’m normally around 5 mark before meals. Think I need to be kinder to myself.
Would you say to stop testing for a few days as I’m sure I’ll panic myself or do you think I should continue to test?
 
I can’t really advise you whether to test or not, for me I would be testing, but then i don’t get stressed so I’m different from you. As you are T2 diet only then you aren’t in danger of hypos so if you would feel better “not knowing” then it wouldn’t do any harm not to test for a couple of days. It’s up to you, you know yourself best
 
Thank you for your response
 
I sometimes need oral steroids. I hate taking them, because my blood glucose is always several points higher than usual. Whether this is due to the steroids, the infection, or the fact that I become very hungry, and eat too much carby stuff,, perhaps even a combination, I have no idea. It can take a week or two for bloods to settle down afterwards, but I always find the breathing settles very quickly when prescribed steroids for chest infection.
 
1 to 2 weeks to settle down so potentially 3 weeks of high blood sugars just wanted to start using my CMG. Going to give that 3 weeks to start trying that. It’s of course only the first day and it’s not making me hungry yet. Bit scared of eating as I know my blood sugars are going to go mad after eating
 
You possibly, won’t have the same reaction. What I do is try to evaluate which is worse. The raised BG for a couple of weeks, or the struggling to breathe comfortably for even longer (possibly up to six weeks with and following a chest infection) when within a day of starting the steroids the breathing problem starts to resolve. The steroids win every time.
 
11.2mmol 2 hours post meal!! It was only eggs on low carb toast. 1.5g of carbs that meal and it’s still spiked to 11.2
 
I will continue to take the steroids. Just never expected such a big jump. Never seen my blood sugar in double figures (even after a bar of galaxy caramel) and to read 11.2 after some toast and eggs is shocking to me.
 
HI yes indeed had to take Streroids after LYNPHONY INFUSION OF KEMO
NOW HAVE NEW BASEL .
UP FROM NORMAL TOTAL PER DAY OF 11,2 TO 23 -00 NEARLY AN UNIT PER HOUR PER 24 FOR 3 DAYS
NIGHT MARE BUT STILL HERE 2 YES LATER BY THE WAY I DIDNT DO MUCH TO WEAK KEEP GOING VIC
 
Hi EmilyMay11

I have just finished a ten day increased dose of steroids. I decreased my steroids to the level they were at pre illness about ten days ago and I still have high levels and am needing a lot more insulin.

I did feel the benefit of the increased dose of steroids but do not like the side effects.

Hope you feel better soon and get back to your normal
 
Yes oral steriods will kick up your glucose up.

At least it is a short term treatment as you will go back to your normal levels once you finished the course..

I take oral steriods for asthma flares up or chest infection.

My glucose go high as 16 mmol to 22 mmol on oral steriods and keep eyes on your ketones levels as it also increase my ketones above 1.5 to 3 mmol. (Risk of DKA - Diabetes Ketoacidosis.)
 
All oral steroids are essentially the same kind of molecule that our own internally produced molecules are - the full name of course being Corticosteroids, so if you understand that your own Cortisol will drive an increase of blood Glucose, you can rest a little easier that it's just the same thing... so long as it's temporary you just need to solve one thing at a time..
 
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