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High blood sugars metformin

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leec32

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11
Hi

1st post, i don't normally post on forums but looking for a bit of advice.

Please go easy as i know a lot of people will look down on me for this but anyway.

I have been using anabolic steroids for around 10 years, i am now in my 40's

the past couple of years when i was coming of my course after about 6 weeks of not having any i would get severely thirsty, drinking lots of water, at the time i thought it was withdrawal from the steroids and thought nothing of it, soon after going back on them it would go

This had only happened the past couple of year.

Back in march/april during the lock down i decided to stay off them because of covid during the lock down and the thirst came back, thought nothing of it but then my eyesight was effected this time, needed to buy some cheap reading glasses, a friend checked my blood sugars and it was 14.0 with prick test

Went straight to the docs got a blood test and it came back around 116, very high i know.

They put me on metformin and after a few weeks i was on 2x 500 on a morning and 2x 500 on a night

Around the same time i started back on the steroids (foolishly i know)

My bloods dropped to around 8.0 with the prick test, still always high when i first woke around 10.0 but i wasn't to worried about that.

Had my 3 monthly blood test and the specialist called and he was amazed how much my bloods had lowered in 3 month, i think they were around 60 down from 116

By this time my steroid course was coming to an end, i have been off them now for around 9 weeks, and don't plan to go back on them as they are probably what have caused the type2 or will not of helped.

i have no symptoms like thirst but my blood sugars have been sky high the past 4 weeks since the steroids have left my system, constantly around 15.0 even 18.0 that is with regular exercise, still going to the gym and eating well.

Its as if the metformin are doing nothing, i am thinking it was the steroids after all keeping my blood sugars down, it seems strange the same time i started on metformin i started steroids they dropped, now i am off the steroids they are high again, i am due another blood test in December.

I have spoke to my doctor and he didn't seem concerned but i am a little worried

could it be the steroids controlling my blood and the metformin never worked after all and i need something else ?

One good thing, i have lost a stone in weight and dropped 2 inch of my waist, they steroids help do this but not normally this much so i can only presume the metformin have helped.


I am worried about having to go on insulin, the nurse did mention it when i was first diagnosed, but from what i have read insulin causes weight gain, i worry if i started piling weight on i would go back to the steroids which i don't want to do.
 
Insulin in itself does not cause weight gain, its what you eat alongside it that causes you to gain weight and also if you have to feed the insulin because of hypo's rather than adjusting the insulin to lessen them

After having a google research shows that anabolic steroids may lead to high insulin resistance which is what Type 2 diabetes is

You say you eat well but what do you eat? As a diabetic you will struggle to tolerate carbohydrates so have you cut down on high carbohydrate foods?
xx
 
Hi

Thanks for your reply, i eat a lot of protein foods, typical day would be 2x weetabix no sugar around 7am, mid morning fruit, afternoon, after the gym chicken with carrot and suede mash, come tea time steak with veg.

I eat a lot of fruit in between, pears, plumbs, grapes, kiwi

That's an example, not the same every day, i take sweetex with my tea and coffee, weekends i do have a take away, but i cant eat clean all week without having a takeaway at the weekend, would drive me mad.

I didn't eat as clean as this before i was diagnosed back in march, i use to eat a lot of carbs, pasta, jacket potatoes etc.

I just don't think the metformin are doing anything at all and it was the steroids lowering my blood sugar, strange how now i am not using them blood sugars are very high, i am really disappointed because once i knew it had lowered so much over the 3 month which i thought was because of metformin i then thought once i come off the steroids it would get even better but really its got worse and i am back to square one.
 
How regularly do you test? Weetabix assuming with milk isn't the lowest carbs of things and many don't do well with cereals, have you tested before eating that and then again 2 hours later to see what effect it has on you?

Grapes especially aren't a low carb fruit and are often referred to as "sugar bombs" because of the impact they can have on BG, for this reason many can actually use them to treat a hypo, lower carb fruits are things like strawberries, raspberries and blackberries, carbs are carbs it doesn't matter if they are in the form of fruit, bread or pure sugar your body still turns them all to glucose xx
 
I got quite obsessed with testing, every few hours at one point, the doctor told me now not to test at all and wait for blood test as there is nothing you can do which i was a bit amazed at that.

now off the steroids it is always around 14.0 i can have a cup of coffee and it can rise to 16.0, this morning was 18.0 but i did have fish and chips yesterday tea time so that wouldn't help

when i was on the steroids it would be around 10.0 morning then drop to 7.0 - 8.0 mid morning and not really raise much after food, after the gym it could drop to 5.0 sometimes, now after the gym, it hardly drops.

it just seems to be static at around 14.0 on average now
 
it is very confusing about grapes, some articles say good and others say bad

Summary Though grapes are high in sugar, they have a low glycemic index. Additionally, compounds in grapes may protect against high blood sugar.
 
Yes doctors and nurses aren't keen on self testing but without it you don't know what effect things are having on you so you can't adjust to try and gain better control

Do you drink regular coffee? Some find caffeine has an impact on their BG, also the amount of milk you use could have a small impact, I don't often use cow's milk and use unsweetened almond milk instead as it has no carbs

Everything effects everyone differently, diabetes is a condition that effects us as the individuals we are and there is no "one size fits all" hence why self testing is essential to gain knowledge on how things effect you personally

It isn't just food that has an impact either, stress, illness, anxiety, even the seasons can all play a part in BG levels
xx
 
Anabolic steroids will in all probability cause insulin resistance and a higher level of visceral fat and raise blood sugar levels.

I have for several years been taking a corticosteroid (Prednisolone) and that is what has caused caused my diabetes.

I do not believe the steroids would be reducing your glucose levels but I have on occasion actually had hypos as I have found that the effects of the steroids on IR and the bodies ability to deal with glucose to be at times not consistent that is it seems to have little holidays when insulin sensitivity kicks back in for a while.

here is a link to an article you may have found it yourself but will post it any way.

https://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=198200

And this the study refered to I think

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/09/160913184951.htm

By the way my grandson is a body builder and follows a strictly Keto diet there is no need for carbohydrates in order to build muscle.

Also must add the term steroid abuse is not mine but the author's.
 
Last edited:
Hi @leec32 nobody on here will look down on you, we are determined to share experiences and hopefully shine a light on a path to improved health. From what I can glean you are using the steroids for body building. Often when questions are asked the answers are within the statements. If you eventually remove the steroids, replace the fruit with berries, swede mash with whole swede /butternut squash, weetabix with bacon eggs - your numbers will drop significantly.

I would recommend you read this page contents https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/keto

Another reference for you is the below (ignore the tubers section)
http://www.burnfatnotsugar.com/index.html:



If, as I suspect you are trying to build muscle whilst eating well, here are some references for you:

- ketogains (https://www.ketogains.com/)
- Drew Manning (https://fit2fat2fit.com/)
- ketosavage (https://ketosavage.com/)
I have alot more references if you would like them
 

I am always stressed lol, i run my own online business from home and it is quite busy at the moment, the last lock down was when i found out i had type2 and i was working 7 days a week 12 hours a day virtually to keep up with orders, i was drained.

Thankfully this lock down hasn't been quite as dramatic
 

yes i always tried to keep carbs low and just use for energy but now i try not to eat them at all, my aim in the gym is to get lean and not bulk as i have always been big set anyway from a child, the steroids i used were more for cutting and not bulking.

Thank you, i will have a read this afternoon.
 

Thank you, that is very helpful

I mainly used steroids to loose weight and shape up to be honest, the compounds i used were mainly for that and not so much to bulk as i have always been heavy set since a child, when i was younger i could put body fat and weight on quite easily and as everyone knows its a lot harder to loose lol

i feel i am in the best shape now than i have been in the last 10 years since been diagnosed with type 2, its strange, i just wish i could get my bloods at a reasonable level now.
 
You already have a taste for meat and 2 veg effectively, this is nutritious and will shrink fat, whilst supporting your bodily structures (and being a pillar for reversing your Type 2).

You will not need metformin on a real food protocol either, as your insulin resistance will reduce. Here are some of the meals I eat:
https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/lchf.177863/#post-2329278
I have put on muscle and removed fat. I'll send you a pm with some results.
 

Thanks
 
So basically, what you're saying, you were always prone to some amount of insulin resistance. (Gaining weight fast). The steroids made a bad situation worse, but I do take away from that that there was already some inclination there to develop T2, so it's likely not entirely steroid-induced. Just a guess though.

Anyway, cut the carbs, because you're still eating a lot of them, and just go for the proteins and fats... You should lose weight and gain control of your blood sugars without having to resort to more steroid use, which would make a bad situation worse and you'd probably end up on insulin. There's people on here who need steroids to keep inflammatory chronic conditions and pain at bay, but if you don't require it for that sort of thing, best leave it alone entirely, and see what can be salvaged through diet.

https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/blog-entry/the-nutritional-thingy.2330/ might help some.

Good luck eh!
Jo
 

Thank Jo
 

Hi sorry to butt in. Could you please send me some info too please
 
Hi. First Metformin never does a lot but keeps the docs happy as they are doing something about the diabetes. Low-carbing is always number one. Bear in mind that if you are losing weight unexpectedly and are already fairly slim then being T1 not T2 becomes a possibility and there are two tests for that. Steroids virtually always raise BS so avoid them when you can
 
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