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Sweet6asaydez

Newbie
Messages
2
Type of diabetes
Don't have diabetes
Fortunately I haven't been diagnosed with any form of diabetes, but do have a lot of similar symptoms. I've decided to keep a journal of my blood glucose readings, so that I can rule it out or if need be, get checked for diabetes, so I can get to the bottom of what's wrong with me? So my question is this, "For a person without diabetes, what should the normal target reading range be from?" I'd appreciate any information or help on this.
I'm also very grateful, to be able to be a part of this group.I can strongly emphasize with everyone that suffers from, in my opinion, a dangerous silent killer.
I've had & still do have, many close friends & family members with all different types & forms of diabetes. These are 2 of the severest people in my life, battle with it. First person I ever knew with diabetes was my grandmother, she suffered terribly with diabetes & sadly enough, she passed away as a direct result of it. My sister presently has severe diabetes, that isn't under control, I live with her & at times it's really scary. Sometimes her sugars are so high that the meter can't read it. A norm for her or should I say the goal their aiming for, is a target reading between 10-20 range, which I find extremely high, but when she hits a low of anything under 10, her mind & body react like she's under a 4, & that scares me so much just as it does everyone else here at home. (My mom, other sister, brother in law, & father all have different forms of diabetes as well as countless friends)
I want to thank & let you all know that I'm here for everyone as well, not just for myself, nor for any self righteous or ulterior reasons.
Thank you & bless it be to all...
 
@Sweet6asaydez I had so many questions when I was re-diagnosed type 2. In the first chapter of Jenny Ruhl's book, Blood Sugar 101, 2nd Edition (2016), she explains in detail how the blood glucose rises and falls in both a normal person and in a person who has type 2 diabetes. She also gets into the genetics and so many other interesting topics. What I appreciated about this book is that she reviewed the research and using the information gleaned from those studies to answered so many of the "scary" questions for me. I'm actually re-reading the book this summer.

I learned from Chicago pathologist Joseph Kraft, M.D.'s book recently that increases in insulin levels precede increases in blood glucose levels. So if you're developing diabetes, that's where it will show up first. Ivor Cummins interviewed him recently. It's on YouTube.com.

I think it's a great idea to test your blood glucose levels for a few days then periodically to get a sense of where you are.

I test in pairs: before bed, upon awakening; pre-meals and snacks, 1 or 2 hours post meals and snacks; pre-exercise, post-exercise. I can run high blood glucose levels if I eat a piece of fruit.

I find it interesting to see how far I can knock a blood glucose level down walking 1, 2, or 3 miles - (blood glucose level, however, doesn't change much when my levels are near or within the normal range).

Occassionally, I also track my blood glucose pre-meal, then 30 minutes post-meal followed by tests every 15 minutes for 2 hours or more just to see where my personal blood glucose peaks and how it falls over the hours that follow. But I'm a bit of a geek in that I like metrics. :)

Your smart to do this. Informed is empowered. ;)
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Welcome to the forum. :) I will tag @daisy1 who will provide you with some very good information. Just a thought. Your font is a lovely blue but I find it quite difficult to read.
 
@Sweet6asaydez

Hello and welcome to the forum :)

Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. It will give you the details on blood sugar levels that you are looking for. Ask more questions and someone will be able to help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 150,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

  • Reduce your carbohydrate intake
  • Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes

LOW CARB PROGRAM:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/low carb program


Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)
  • Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

  • structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
  • self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
 
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