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Type 2 Fatigue - how are BG levels relevant?

K

Kjell

Active Member
Messages
27
Location
London
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Inactivity
I’m trying to work out what can be done, if anything, about fatigue.

I’m told that the reason I’m tired much of the time - even slight exertions can exhaust me - is because the blood glucose is not getting to my cells in the amount it should, and so with insufficient fuel the cells don’t function effectively. I’m also told that the reason that not enough glucose is getting to my cells is because I don’t offer up enough insulin to transport it there – either because of insulin resistance or insufficient production of the hormone.

What I’m having trouble understanding is why the level of glucose in the blood is relevant. If there’s a finite amount of insulin available to mop up the blood glucose it shouldn’t matter if there’s loads of glucose available, the insulin can only absorb a fixed amount. So presumably what determines what gets through, and therefore how tired I am, is the amount of insulin available, not the amount of glucose available.

The practical implication is therefore if I want to increase my energy levels should I be doing something else other than trying to lower my blood glucose, and if so what? Obviously it’s crucial to lower blood sugar for heart, eye, liver, foot etc health, but is it doing any good for tiredness?
 
As I understand it, it takes a while for the body to catch up when you get your blood sugar levels back to "normal" levels. For a long time, I would fall asleep after I ate. My HbA1c was a horrible 122 at diagnosis. I got my levels down very quickly, but it took a few months to stop feeling tired and for my eyesight to re-adjust.
 

Kjell - It isn't possible to tell from your message or your profile which type of diabetes you might be living with, or if you have been diagnosed at all. That information could well impact the responses folks offer you.

In order to change that, you can go to your account settings, by clicking on your user name at the top of your browser page and using the menu on the left hand side. so let one of the Mod team know, and they can help.

In life, there are many reasons we might feel fatigued, but certainly blood glucose (too high or too low) can be one of them.
 
I don't see how being diabetic makes you tired. I get tired from working and now the nights are darker earlier that also makes me tired too. I certainly don’t think it’s because I’m diabetic!
 
Sarah69 said:
I don't see how being diabetic makes you tired. I get tired from working and now the nights are darker earlier that also makes me tired too. I certainly don’t think it’s because I’m diabetic!
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I have to say I feel my D makes me exhausted. I certainly don’t seem to have the stamina at the mo that I dud even a few months ago.

but even if you don’t it doesn’t mean the rest of us don’t get tired because of diabetes. Maybe you are just blooming lucky. Everyone is affected differently.

it may not be how you wanted it to come across but it doesn’t come across as particularly supportive.
 
Sarah69 said:
I don't see how being diabetic makes you tired. I get tired from working and now the nights are darker earlier that also makes me tired too. I certainly don’t think it’s because I’m diabetic!
Click to expand...

Volatile blood sugars and the side effects of diabetes medications are two of the obvious ones .. ?
 
I was diagnosed T1 just over 2 years ago and it has definitely affected my energy levels. Even if I spend the day in range I'm still exhausted - I'd like to understand why
 

hi and welcome @Kjell
What type of diabetes do you have?
What medications are you on?
What are your blood glucose levels like when you feel like this?
Has your doc run blood tests for all the usual suspects for fatigue? (Thyroid, B12, Vit D, sleep apnoea...)
Is your way of eating appropriate for your diabetes type and medications?
Depending on this information, you will get very different answers from members.
 

Thank you. Done.

The question was primarily a scientific one (although bearing on my situation). On the face of it the evidence suggests that the way diabetes engenders fatigue is via inadequate insulin - failing to provide the cells with enough of the fuel they need. (It's not clear what mechanism high BG levels could utilise to engender fatigue). Low BG levels, yes, because there would be inadequate fuel for the insulin to transport to the cells, but high BG levels are providing all the fuel required. It's the lack of effective insulin that limits how much BG is taken up, so it's irrelevant how much BG there is available if it can't be used. So, this suggests, lowering BG is not the answer to fatigue, increasing the supply of effective insulin would be the answer if possible. Or maybe something else?
 

Hello again Kjell - Have you done much reading into insulin resistance? Those experiencing insulin resistance - a decent percentage of T2s, at diagnosis, they are producing plenty (perhaps even too much) insulin, but their bodies are unable to utilise it efficiently.

That is certainly an instance whereby high blood glucose can lead to fatigue.

It's certainly something reading up on, I'd say.
 
Sarah69 said:
I don't see how being diabetic makes you tired. I get tired from working and now the nights are darker earlier that also makes me tired too. I certainly don’t think it’s because I’m diabetic!
Click to expand...

Yes, that's exactly my point. What is the mechanism that induces fatigue in me, and others? It has worsened in tandem with the progession of the diabetes. The fact that some diabetics don't experience it doesn't invalidate it. Maybe a comparison might help identify the cause:
My diabetes is late onset, I was normal weight and active (cycling and rowing) before it came on, the progression involved a sharp and unintended weight loss in the two months prior to diagnosis and my energy levels plummeted in that time.

It would be interesting and useful to hear if any of those features applied in your case, and therefore whether I could isolate the salient ones. Thanks for responding.
 
woollygal said:
I have to say I feel my D makes me exhausted. I certainly don’t seem to have the stamina at the mo that I dud even a few months ago.

.
Click to expand...
Thanks for responding. It helps to know others are in the same boat. Maybe some clues as to how to combat it might emerge here?
 
 
Circuspony said:
I was diagnosed T1 just over 2 years ago and it has definitely affected my energy levels. Even if I spend the day in range I'm still exhausted - I'd like to understand why
Click to expand...
Thanks for responding. It helps to know others are in the same boat. Maybe some clues as to how to combat it might emerge here?
 
Type 2 recently diagnosed, no medications at the moment, I feel tired whatever the levels (with the exception of very low ones which leave me totally exhausted), all the usual suspects have been tested and come out good (the only recalcitrants are A1c and plasma glucose)
My question was really a scientific one (see reply to DCUK Mod), wondering what the mechanism is whereby fatigue is engendered and postulating that it had to do with insulin availability only and nothing to do with high bg levels.
 
I find that the higher my carb intake, the greater my fatigue is. This goes hand in hand with higher blood sugar levels.

I think it is to do with circulating insulin increasing my insulin resistance, rendering the release of glucose for energy useless.

@Jim Lahey can you shed some light on the mechanism please?
 

Thanks, that's interesting. I'll certainly follow it up. In the meantime though is it the case that insulin resistance diabetics tend to experience fatigue in greater proportion than low resistance diabetics (which would support the theory) and is it known what mechanism could be at work here? Specifically, how would increasing bg reduce the amount of insulin available? No need to reply if the answer isn't immediately to hand. Thanks for the responses. This needs more investigation.
 
@Kjell that is an interesting question and so I did some internet research but there doesn't seem to be a definite answer. There are lot of possible causes of fatigue and diabetes is one of them, but the exact mechanism is not known, of course there are theories. My own observation, before I was diagnosed, was that I became tired after eating but I put this down to my body diverting it's energy to digestion, the snooze after Sunday lunch effect. Since my blood sugar has been below diabetic levels I haven't noticed this happening so it was probably diabetes related or it could be the change of diet.
 
How about this idea:

Blood sugars are high

Body circulates lots of insulin.

Insulin grabs the glucose quickly

As there is so much circulating insulin it grabs too much glucose quickly and stores it

Leaving little or none for daily energy requirements

Insulin resistance keeps the grabbed glucose stored so it can't get accessed.

Then we eat again and so the cycle continues
 
The cure:

Eat few carbs to reduce circulating insulin and blood glucose levels, which lowers insulin resistance and breaks the cycle, freeing the glucose to provide energy.

That's what seems to have happened with me over the past 7+ years since diagnosis, and my hba1c has remained mainly stable
 
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