Ketones

[Mark3]

Hi everyone , I was diagnosed type with type 2 Jan the 4th this year I Was put on Metformin 500mg 1 tablet a day , I immediately changed my diet replacing all my white flour goods with wholewheat & cut all sugar out & reducing all my carbs,6 weeks later & 8kg lighter I started noticing my hands were sore & starting to peel so I rang the doctors to make an appointment with a diabetic nurse, as soon as my nurse saw me she could tell I was having problems my lips were all cracked & dry I was dehydrated but I was drinking so much water,the nurse firstly checked my blood sugar levels which read 5.1 then she said I'll test you ketone levels which read 7 this totally threw her & the doctor who she got a second opinion off,firstly they thought I was maybe type 1 & not type 2, then they thought it might be down to my rapid weight loss ( almost starving myself)Im now taking 2 Metformin 500 mg a day my blood sugar readings are between 5-6 after increasing my food intake, my question is why is my blood sugar level low but my ketones are high, thanks in advance

 

[robert72]

Hi @Mark3 and welcome to the forum

That sounds like Euglycemic Diabetic Ketoacidosis, which is normally the result of starvation. Normal sugars but high ketones.

 

[Mark3]

Thanks for the advice things are starting to get a lot clearer now, I've got my appointment first thing in the morning & my blood results will be back, it will be interesting what they will advise, cheers

 

[Daibell]

Hi. Yes, fat burning from greatly reduced carbs will produce ketones. These are not harmful with normal blood sugar levels but it sounds like you went to far too quickly. I would guess pushing the carbs back up a little will help a lot.