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Glucose Blood Level Went Down After Eating Dinner?!?

Chronicle_Cat

Chronicle_Cat

Well-Known Member
Messages
555
Location
Toronto, Canada
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hi all,

I experienced something tonight I hadn't seen before. My glucose blood sugar went down after eating dinner. Have others experienced this? (I was under the impression it always rises to a degree after eating). Is there an explanation for this? (I don't take any meds or insulin and I am trying to control in through diet/exercise for the last month.)

Tonight before eating, it was 5.2 Two hours later, it was 4.7.

I'm baffled - the explanations I can come up are not exclusive to this evening.

For example, I ate a meal with a lot of fibre in it that was low carb (although I've been eating low carb for a while and I've reduced the number of carbs since I started).. It was homemade chicken stir fry (with cauliflower, brocolli, red peppers, mushrooms and shirataki/konjac noodles) and a homemade ginger/peanut cabbage slaw. I ate the same meal yesterday at dinner & didn't see a drop then. I wonder if the previous night's exercise could have been a factor (both cardio & weightlifting) although it's not the first time I've exercised with both (did a longer session weight lifting at 30 min after the usual 30 min cardio.)

Was it going to happen anyway? (I've noticed overall it has been trending downward since I modified my eating and frequency of exercise.)



Is there an explanation for this?
 
Hi @Chronicle_Cat, All I can think of is that your meal was absorbed slowly enough that the late phase of your insulin response was able to 'mop up' the glucose well. In T2D the insulin response may be delayed and overshot the mark in amount = lower blood sugar and possible low blood sugar at ? 4 hours or so.
I cannot find a way to transfer an insulin response graph onto here to demonstrate what I have read about and written here. but the other interesting thing is that the order in which the food in a meal is eaten also has an effect on blood sugar levels after a meal of the food Diabetes Care: 2015 Jul 38(7) Food order has significant impact on post-prandial glucose and insulin levels. Shuka et al. In summary this article reported that eating a meal in the order, veg and protein followed by carbs 15 minutes later gave 2 hour BSL readings lower than if themopposite food eating order was followed. I appreciate that this food order finding does not necessarily explain your BSL findings but it may be useful all the same. Best Wishes !!
 
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Chronicle_Cat said:
I experienced something tonight I hadn't seen before. My glucose blood sugar went down after eating dinner. Have others experienced this?
Click to expand...
I had this happen after breakfast this morning I was 5.4 before, and after I was 5.1 after. I have just tested to see what I am at present (about four hours after the breakfast test) and have gone back up to 5.3.

It's not the first time it has happened so I do not worry about it. just go with the flow.
 
Tipetoo said:
I had this happen after breakfast this morning I was 5.4 before, and after I was 5.1 after. I have just tested to see what I am at present (about four hours after the breakfast test) and have gone back up to 5.3.

It's not the first time it has happened so I do not worry about it. just go with the flow.
Click to expand...
And your cat agrees ??
 
@Chronicle_Cat: as meters aren't always 100% accurate, it can happen, It may also be evidence that your glucose levels are stable, and you're probably eating few enough carbs and enough fat that you won't get a perceptible rise. I'll often see similar small changes - and sometimes also see a bigger dip or even no change at all post meals - it's nothing to worry over.

But have a read up too on reactive hypoglemia where there is a big dip in glucose levels post meal - possibly causd by an overshoot in insulin produced to handle the carbs - but this is not what you're seeing!

Tipetoo said:
It's a anagram.
Click to expand...
It's deliberately slippery fingers or lisp of the tongue! :rolleyes: :D

Robbity
 
@Chronicle_Cat
Two things to consider. Alcohol and fats can cause this by slowing down the rate of carbohydrate absorption. The same thing happens to me when I have a glass of red and two slices of pizza. ( only on special occasions of course )
Secondly, most meters are only accurate to around +/- 15% anyway.

Glenn
 
I wonder whether it was my meter or a sign that my levels are fairly stable. It was only a slight dip - .5.

When I first got the meter, I noticed that I tended to get a drop in late afternoon followed by a spike upward after dinner. I adjusted my eating slightly to take in a few more carbs and protein for an afternoon snack at this time and it seems to have smoothed out. No more late afternoon dip and usually only a slight increase after dinner. (My only reading in the hypoglycemic range was late afternoon, before dinner.) Otherwise, my levels are relatively stable throughout the day (unless I eat something higher in carbs.) I'm still trying out foods but it seems I'm quite reactive to carbs and eating a lower carb diet has kept them fairly level.

Alcohol is not an option for me. I have GERD (Gastroesophageal reflux disease) and any alcohol opens the valve to the stomach and lets stomach acid splash upwards. The resulting night and day of pain is not worth the momentary pleasure of wine. :(
 
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