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High c-peptide results

Skippy1

Well-Known Member
Messages
73
Location
Derbyshire, UK
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Non-insulin injectable medication (incretin mimetics)
Hi - I was hoping that someone might be able to offer some insight into these results, as I can't get to see my DSN for another week or so.
I was diagnosed type 2 way back in 2004, but had had symptoms long before then. I've been fairly well controlled during that time through meds and LCHF. Lately, I've been getting much higher fasting BGs and spikes after exercising so I was sent for a c-peptide test - over night fasting and no meds for 2 days. It has just come back at 2.2 - the range is 0.25 - 1.2. BG that morning was 12.
So, why is there so much c-peptide/insulin rushing about at that time in the morning? Any ideas?
Thanks.
 

Hi Skippy - I'm no expert in C-Peptide results, but according to webmed (https://www.webmd.com/diabetes/c-peptide#3 ) T2 diabetics or those with significant insulin resistance can return "high" c-peptide results, but longstanding T2s may display lower levels. It's an interesting read.

Would you be able to have a telephone consultation with your DSN before your appointment to ease your mind?
 
Hi. What is your BMI? Do you have excess weight? If so, you may have insulin resistance causing excess insulin. Also are you on a low-carb diet? More information is needed to help with any insight.
 
Thanks for your ideas - I'd read that, but couldn't see why IR should increase so much so quickly. My DSN is on holiday and when I phoned the clinic, they said that no-one else was qualified to comment on the result!
 
Daibell said:
Hi. What is your BMI? Do you have excess weight? If so, you may have insulin resistance causing excess insulin. Also are you on a low-carb diet? More information is needed to help with any insight.
Click to expand...
Hi - BMI is high, but I don't know the figures. I have lost about 30kg over the past year and plenty more to go. It's the increase in HBa1c from 7s to 10s in the last few months, with no real change in my LCHF diet that triggered the test.
 
High c-peptide prove the high BG are not due to you being Type1, this is way the test is done.
 
Most type 2 diabetics start with very high insulin levels. This is what causes the insulin resistance. Then insulin goes even higher to counteract the resistance and creates even more resistance. A vicious cycle indeed. It is in the later stages of type 2 that the pancreas wears out and can no longer keep up. Your low carb diet should slowly bring the level of insulin down but it takes time. It is likely lower now than at diagnosis but without having numbers from that time there is no way to tell in your particular case. Mine was almost 4 times the highest number of the normal range but is slowly coming down with low carb. At the very least you now know that your pancreas is still working even if a little too hard.

It is my belief that every diabetic, regardless of type, should have this test done when diagnosed and periodically after that for type 2.
 
While not expert on that, I can give my two choices:
1. Your high C-peptide along with your high blood glucose indicates that your body was still trying to bring down the glucose through the night If you could have monitored your glucose through the night with a CGM or other device, we could know.

2. Your body started to secrete more glucose and insulin just in the early hours of the day. This might have been triggered an abnormal hepatic glucose production, or a change in hormones that promote the liberation of glycogen from the liver. Again, if we have access to your blood glucose of the 12'16 hours before the masurement, we might know.

Of course, everything change if you ate, experienced stress prior to the sample -i.e. rushing to get the bus might spike your glucose, etc- .

Hopefully your physician knows more data will be necessary to determine what happened.

A NOTE of hope: if you c-peptide is still high when your glucose is high, good news ! you still produce a lot of insulin ! you are candidate to increase your insulin sensitivity-decrease consumption of carbs and beat diabetes !
 
The most powerful way to bring down insulin production is too combine
  • Very low carb
  • Intermittent Fasting
  • Resistance Training
  • High-Intensity Interval Training
  • Newcastle Diet (limit to no more than 10 weeks every 6 months, or body will just slow down.)
  • 8 week Blood Suger Diet (limit to no more than 10 weeks every 6 months, or body will just slow down.)
They can be combined in 101 different ways, I have listed them in order according to how well they seem to work for people, but they all have clearly worked for lots of people. (Exercise does not work for many unless combined with diet.) Metformin seems to be of benefit to most people with Type2 provided the side effects stop after a few weeks.
 

So what does a high C-Peptide mean when your fasting blood glucose is normal range?
 
It means you have a high insulin resistance and if you don't already have Type2 you are at high risk of Type2 unless you change your diet.

(It also rules out Type1)
 
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