• Guest, the forum is undergoing some upgrades and so the usual themes will be unavailable for a few days. In the meantime, you can use the forum like normal. We'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Insulin resistant in the morning

DannyG

Member
I usually eat breakfast at around 8am and take my insulin (NovoRapid) but by 10am my levels are through the roof (as high as 20). But when I correct after a few hours it comes right down. Does anybody else find that they are insulin resistant in the mornings? And how do you deal with it?
 
What are you eating for breakfast? Are you having a normal fasting blood glucsoe? i.e. dawn phenomenom
I notice a morning spike if I have a typical UK breakfast (toast or porridge). I typically eat low carb so find that this doesn't spike me as much obviously.
Counteracting it could involve a)checking the carb ratio b) taking insulin earlier to catch the spike as long as you are sure you are going to eat at the specified time.
 
Yes, I even experimented with taking 2-3 times my usual dose but my BG still shoots up before it eventually comes down. Would spacing out morning injections help? I'm only newly diagnosed and I'm a bit of a lost sausage
 
What are you eating for breakfast? Are you having a normal fasting blood glucsoe? i.e. dawn phenomenom
I notice a morning spike if I have a typical UK breakfast (toast or porridge). I typically eat low carb so find that this doesn't spike me as much obviously.
Counteracting it could involve a)checking the carb ratio b) taking insulin earlier to catch the spike as long as you are sure you are going to eat at the specified time.
I usually eat the same, toast/cereal/porridge etc. I could try take the insulin earlier but I'd be a bit worried about getting a hypo before I eat. I suppose it would be worth experimenting with
 
I usually eat breakfast at around 8am and take my insulin (NovoRapid) but by 10am my levels are through the roof (as high as 20). But when I correct after a few hours it comes right down. Does anybody else find that they are insulin resistant in the mornings? And how do you deal with it?
I'd suspect your choice of breakfast if a type2 too. Not IR but carb intolerance on a sluggish metabolism. We aren't normally fired up first thing and that's why many people, even none diabetics, go for a run to wake their metabolism up.
 
Yes, I even experimented with taking 2-3 times my usual dose but my BG still shoots up before it eventually comes down. Would spacing out morning injections help? I'm only newly diagnosed and I'm a bit of a lost sausage
Are you a type1 or type2?
 
Evening! Not sure what type of diabetes you have, but I’ve found I’m quite insulin resistant and carb sensitive in the mornings - my usual 1:10 ratio for most of the day is 1:7 or even more for corrections early in the day. I have as low a carb breakfast as possible because of this - or often skip it altogether.
 
@DannyG I suffer Dawn Phenomenon, the only way I can control this is to look at my evening base injection, I was stumped with it for quite some months, but with some advice from the DSN and the Dietician I changed the time of my evening Basel, I now do it aroud 22:00 (just before bed) this has helped, but I can still occasionally see 8-9 after I wake, so I pre bolus now approx 45 mins before breakfast, this seems to have sorted my issue.
 
As others have said, this is called the Dawn Phemenon and is caused by your liver dumping glucose into your blood, because you've been fasting overnight and you need the energy when you wake. Happens to most people, whether diabetic or not.

The only remedy is to take extra insulin, which is different for each person. I need an extra 1 unit. Also, if it's spiking you into the 20s, then I'd consider reducing your carb intake for breakfast. Go for yogurt, cheese, eggs, bacon, nuts, low carb porridge (Google recipes), low carb granola (again, Google recipes)
 
Back
Top