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I've had no carbs but have high bloods

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VikkiB81

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Morning everyone. I stopped eating carbs on Monday and my blood results this morning are confusing, considering I've had the same for breakfast each morning... A mixture of ground almonds, chia seeds, sesame seeds, almonds, almond milk, coconut milk and sunflower seeds. I also have a coffee with soya milk. I did have a slightly bigger portion today than yesterday. Can anyone offer any advice on what could have happened this morning (going from 10 to 10.5) and if my results so far are OK... I'm new to testing my bloods. Thank you. Screenshot_20200108-100043.jpeg
 
What you ate is not carb free so there will be some insulin response. Most T2s here say a rise of less than 2 for a meal is acceptable.
 
As @Diakat says above everything you had for breakfast has some carbs. And you had a larger portion than usual.

Also the reading differences are with in the permitted error range of your meter so it could be that the readings are all fairly similar.

Maybe try bacon and eggs and some cream in the coffee.

Edit to add or maybe skip breakfast altogether and just have the coffee with cream.
 
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Hi @VikkiB81,

The rise is only 0.5 mmol, so definitely fine in my book. Also, as you will know, meters are not 100% accurate (allowable margin of error is 15%), so your actual blood sugar levels could have been as low as 8.9 mmol and as high as 12 mmol.

Overall, your blood sugar levels look quite stable with minimal rises, if at all, after meals. Give it a bit of time and I'm sure your averages will start to gradually move downwards.
 
I wouldn't worry about your breakfast as pointed out a rise of 0.5mmol is good, however what did you have for dinner last night that gave you a rise of 1.2mmol - still acceptable but worth looking at just in case?
 
Thanks for your replys, I'm still all new to this, which part of my breakfast had the carb in so I know to take it out? I'm trying to mimic cereal as I have omelette for lunch and don't want eggs twice.
For my evening meal I had sausages, carrots, brocolli, green beans and Brussel sprouts... I think the sausages had a small amount or carbs in, I could find any at the time that had no carbs in so that may have accounted for the rise. Plus I had a large Orange after, could that have contributed too?
 
VikkiB81 said:
Thanks for your replys, I'm still all new to this, which part of my breakfast had the carb in so I know to take it out? I'm trying to mimic cereal as I have omelette for lunch and don't want eggs twice.
For my evening meal I had sausages, carrots, brocolli, green beans and Brussel sprouts... I think the sausages had a small amount or carbs in, I could find any at the time that had no carbs in so that may have accounted for the rise. Plus I had a large Orange after, could that have contributed too?
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Near enough everything has some carbs in it. Even if its small amounts. Protein and fats can also have an affect on blood sugar levels - just not as sharp.
 
VikkiB81 said:
Thanks for your replys, I'm still all new to this, which part of my breakfast had the carb in so I know to take it out? I'm trying to mimic cereal as I have omelette for lunch and don't want eggs twice.
For my evening meal I had sausages, carrots, brocolli, green beans and Brussel sprouts... I think the sausages had a small amount or carbs in, I could find any at the time that had no carbs in so that may have accounted for the rise. Plus I had a large Orange after, could that have contributed too?
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An orange is a little carb bomb, as are most fruits, save for berries, avocado's and such... https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/fruits The nuts have some too, as well as the nut and soy milks, as those are often sweetened as well as the carbs tht are in there naturally. https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/nuts

It's hard to find something without practically any carbs at all, save for meats, eggs, hard cheeses, fish, poultry... I don't know if full fat greek yoghurt would be acceptable to replace all those milk-replacements? It's fattier, and thus will slow down the uptake of the carbs in the nuts for instance. You wouldn't peak as much, with the same amount of nuts, most likely. As for veggies, there's some carbs in there too, though not all that much: https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/vegetables thing is, the little bits do add up eventually.

The before and after meal readings seem pretty good: no rise of more than 2.0 mmol/l, even if the readings themselves are individually higher than I'd personally like them to be. Did you test 2 hours after the first bite?
 
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VikkiB81 said:
Morning everyone. I stopped eating carbs on Monday and my blood results this morning are confusing, considering I've had the same for breakfast each morning... A mixture of ground almonds, chia seeds, sesame seeds, almonds, almond milk, coconut milk and sunflower seeds. I also have a coffee with soya milk. I did have a slightly bigger portion today than yesterday. Can anyone offer any advice on what could have happened this morning (going from 10 to 10.5) and if my results so far are OK... I'm new to testing my bloods. Thank you. View attachment 37697
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Sorry, me again. You do eat relatively low carb, so I'm wondering about your numbers. Is there anything else going on? Do you sleep alright, are you on steroids or statins or any meds for another condition, is there stress, a cold, anything that could skew your numbers and get your liver to dump extra glucose? Just wondering... Your starting point is relatively high and aside from the orange you're not eating THAT many carbs. More than I would, but then I'm doing keto. Just a little puzzled.
 
While those figures are not too far out, and it will take time for your blood fats to consistently drop after going low carb because you will have glucose stored in your liver, I think you might find a carb counting app or site helpful.

I found I could reduce my blood sugar enough by going down to 85g of a carbs a day, with no more than 30g in a single meal, but others need to go lower.
When I went low carb I decided to try a mix of milled flaxseed, chia seeds and avery small amount of oatbran made with water and a little coconut milk for breakfast served with double cream and cinnamon - I eat eggs but not for breakfast.

I can't have soy milk but use full fat cow's double cream or coconut milk for drinks, with cashew milk when it's on special offer.

The only fruits I eat are berries and rhubarb. usually with full fat greek yogurt.
 
I'm trying to aim for 20g or less carbs a day... Trying! Cows milk/cream/yogurt gives me bad tummy pains so I gave that up a while ago. I'm eating 3 meals a day, no snacking as I don't feel I need it. My sleep has been awful recently, my brain doesn't shut up half the time and my son ends in bed with us every night so what sleep I get is very broken and light, can this effect my blood sugar in the morning? Should I be testing 2 hours after my first bite rather than 2 hours after I've finished? Thanks everyone x
Just taken my bloods and they are 9.6.about to have lunch x
 
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Yes lack of Sleep, Stress, Illness, Statins, Steroids and several other things are likely to increase your Blood Glucose. They do that for most people including me, which is why I cut my statin dose in half when diagnosed with T2D.

Yes in general 2hrs after 1st bite is better than 2hrs after finishing a meal, though that depends upon the carb loading of the meal and whether the biggest carb lo9ad was early or late in the meal. If you want to be really thorough in testing exactly who a 2 or 3 course meal affected you, you might test every 30min from 30min after 1st bite through to 3hrs after 1st bite.
I like lots of detail, but even I have never tested more than 3 times after a meal, but I know some who have done more plus others who self funded a Continuous Glucose Monitor so they can see the minute detail.
 
I was speaking to an elderly work colleague today who had T2 diabetes. He no longer has T2 diabetes. He says he has not changed his diet. On developing our conversation,he explained that he had a very stressful job from which he has since retired from....

He used to be on Metformin, statins etc but is no longer on them anymore as his GP says he is no longer diabetic.
 
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Less stress and coming off statins is good for lots of conditions. Provided you aren't one of the few for whom statins are actually a benefit.
 
bulkbiker said:
I would recommend reducing down to two meals a day with no "snacks"
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Much easier once fat adapted a few weeks down the line though dont you think? Right now I think focusing on reducing the carbs and learning how to eat this way is the priority. If fewer meals fits in earlier then all the better but for some it’s just too much too soon and it all falls over as a result.
 
VikkiB81 said:
I'm trying to aim for 20g or less carbs a day... Trying! Cows milk/cream/yogurt gives me bad tummy pains so I gave that up a while ago. I'm eating 3 meals a day, no snacking as I don't feel I need it. My sleep has been awful recently, my brain doesn't shut up half the time and my son ends in bed with us every night so what sleep I get is very broken and light, can this effect my blood sugar in the morning? Should I be testing 2 hours after my first bite rather than 2 hours after I've finished? Thanks everyone x
Just taken my bloods and they are 9.6.about to have lunch x
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Hi again Vikki,

Well, the 20 grams a day are not going to happen with fruit in the mix, I'm afraid. Maybe it's an idea to really focus on finding out what contains carbs, and how many per portion you use of it. Takes a heap of calculating, weighing and time, but it is worth it. I know it took me about 3 months to really sort it out, and then there were still the occasional surprises in the three and a half years or so after that. You've got a lot going on at home, so do give yourself the time to figure out what works for you eh. And yeah... Light and often interrupted sleep will get your liver to start dumping glucose in the middle of the night. Stress will add to it too, triggering even more. There's mindfullness apps you might use to find some calm in the storm. And I myself use SleepPhones and a white noise app to keep me asleep. (We have very noisy neighbours, one of which works shifts so gets in late, the others like to pretend they're in a loud, over-acted p*rn*. And naturally, my husband snores to boot. I block all the noise out that way, which works miracles for my sleep).

Usually it's test 2 hours after the first bite, as that is also when your metabolism starts up, and it's a bit of a "steady" point.

Hope you got some decent sleep last night!
Jo
 
Thank you everyone for your advice. I've found an app to help count my carbs. I thought it might be handy to count calories and I sometimes don't eat enough. I'm not on statins, I'm on antidepressants and a small dose of beta blocker for migraines. I did get a better night sleep but I do get quite stressed during the day so it might be good to try mindfulness. Not only do I have a toddler we have a puppy too-not my idea. I spend all day removing dog toys from my son and vice versa, puppy related toilet needs and stopping the puppy from eating absolutely everything. I also have a daughter who is 11 but really a teenager when it comes to her attitude... I surprised I don't have blood pressure issues at the moment!! Come night time my other half falls asleep as soon as his head hits the pillows and then snores all night! it's both interesting and frustrating how so many things can effect your blood sugars. My fasting blood was 9 this morning then after breakfast 9.4 so I'm happy with that for now! thanks again for all of your advice
 
VikkiB81 said:
Not only do I have a toddler we have a puppy too-not my idea. I spend all day removing dog toys from my son and vice versa, puppy related toilet needs and stopping the puppy from eating absolutely everything. I also have a daughter who is 11 but really a teenager when it comes to her attitude... I surprised I don't have blood pressure issues at the moment!! Come night time my other half falls asleep as soon as his head hits the pillows and then snores all night!
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Sorry I had to laugh at that - I can sympathise on 3 of those - having experienced toddler, puppy and pre-teen teenager........all I can say is the dogs behaviour will get better with training and age..........the others................:eek:o_O!

You are doing really well, and your numbers should eventually start to come down, so long as you avoid the oranges :D
 
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