- Messages
- 18
- Type of diabetes
- Other
- Treatment type
- I do not have diabetes
Thanks for having me in the forum, what a great place you have here to support each other.
I am not diabetic currently but earlier this year I was diagnosed with PCOS. Though my HBA1C and fasting glucose were both fine when the GP tested me earlier this year (forgive me I do not have my results to hand but I can check them tonight) I have done a lot of reading around links between PCOS and insulin resistance and progression to T2 diabetes and this has me a little worried.
How would I be able to find out if I am indeed insulin resistant? I have searched the forum and understand that in the UK the NHS are very unlikely to test my insulin levels to see if they are high, and I have not been offered an OGTT. As I understand it, insulin resistance is very likely to progress to T2. But it seems madness that the NHS do not investigate whether someone has IR or not, even in high risk cases like PCOS? Any tips for how to approach this with my GP? Is it worth getting private blood testing for insulin level/calculation of HOMAir?
If I am indeed insulin resistant am I correct in thinking that the best cause of action is a lchf diet to prevent progression pre-diabetes and T2?
Behind this I also have my mother in mind, she is having her second fasting glucose test this Friday after a high reading 3 months ago. If it is high again she will be diagnosed T2. She has been having annual blood test (which we now think was HBA1C only, at least in recent years) for around 20 years, after being told she was pre-diabetic when taking part in a medical study. This year she had a foot ulcer that took many months to heal and I asked her to get a fasting blood glucose test as at all of her healthcare provider appointments (podiatrist, vascular consultant, orthotics etc) the first thing they asked her was 'are you diabetic?'. I am worried that she may also have had PCOS, related insulin resistance and this has led to her weight problem and potentially to T2 diabetes which could have perhaps been prevented.
Small amount of backstory for anyone interested, particularly any PCOS cysters in this forum: Last year I put on a lot of weight after a change of pill from mini pill to progesterone only pill. I am 38 years old and had been on the combined pill relatively happily for >20 years but had an ocular migraine so had to come off all estrogen containing birth control. I was on the new pill for 5 months last year Apr-Sept 2018 and had rapid weight gain, low mood and developed cystic acne. By the end of September 2018 I decided to stop the pill completely to see if that helped. My mood improved but I was still gaining weight and struggling with acne. By January 2019 I was a full 2 stone heavier than in May 2018, which was already about a stone over what I call my 'fighting weight' My cycles also went a bit haywire after stopping the pill, I had no cycles for 5 months and during this time visited my GP who, on the basis of the acne and the irregular periods and nothing of note wrong with my hormones, diagnosed me with PCOS. I am still seriously struggling to get the extra weight off but am 10lbs down since January 2019. I am fairly active, I run and swim regularly, and do not have an awful diet though I do like a sweet treat.
Thanks for reading if you got to the end - all thoughts and suggestions are most welcome.
I am not diabetic currently but earlier this year I was diagnosed with PCOS. Though my HBA1C and fasting glucose were both fine when the GP tested me earlier this year (forgive me I do not have my results to hand but I can check them tonight) I have done a lot of reading around links between PCOS and insulin resistance and progression to T2 diabetes and this has me a little worried.
How would I be able to find out if I am indeed insulin resistant? I have searched the forum and understand that in the UK the NHS are very unlikely to test my insulin levels to see if they are high, and I have not been offered an OGTT. As I understand it, insulin resistance is very likely to progress to T2. But it seems madness that the NHS do not investigate whether someone has IR or not, even in high risk cases like PCOS? Any tips for how to approach this with my GP? Is it worth getting private blood testing for insulin level/calculation of HOMAir?
If I am indeed insulin resistant am I correct in thinking that the best cause of action is a lchf diet to prevent progression pre-diabetes and T2?
Behind this I also have my mother in mind, she is having her second fasting glucose test this Friday after a high reading 3 months ago. If it is high again she will be diagnosed T2. She has been having annual blood test (which we now think was HBA1C only, at least in recent years) for around 20 years, after being told she was pre-diabetic when taking part in a medical study. This year she had a foot ulcer that took many months to heal and I asked her to get a fasting blood glucose test as at all of her healthcare provider appointments (podiatrist, vascular consultant, orthotics etc) the first thing they asked her was 'are you diabetic?'. I am worried that she may also have had PCOS, related insulin resistance and this has led to her weight problem and potentially to T2 diabetes which could have perhaps been prevented.
Small amount of backstory for anyone interested, particularly any PCOS cysters in this forum: Last year I put on a lot of weight after a change of pill from mini pill to progesterone only pill. I am 38 years old and had been on the combined pill relatively happily for >20 years but had an ocular migraine so had to come off all estrogen containing birth control. I was on the new pill for 5 months last year Apr-Sept 2018 and had rapid weight gain, low mood and developed cystic acne. By the end of September 2018 I decided to stop the pill completely to see if that helped. My mood improved but I was still gaining weight and struggling with acne. By January 2019 I was a full 2 stone heavier than in May 2018, which was already about a stone over what I call my 'fighting weight' My cycles also went a bit haywire after stopping the pill, I had no cycles for 5 months and during this time visited my GP who, on the basis of the acne and the irregular periods and nothing of note wrong with my hormones, diagnosed me with PCOS. I am still seriously struggling to get the extra weight off but am 10lbs down since January 2019. I am fairly active, I run and swim regularly, and do not have an awful diet though I do like a sweet treat.
Thanks for reading if you got to the end - all thoughts and suggestions are most welcome.
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