Type 2 Postprandial blood sugar compared to fasting

[NomisR]

Hi

I've been checking my blood sugar for the last month or so. My morning blood sugars are almost always around 7-7.5. My before meals blood sugars likewise. I don't snack and generally have between 5 and 6 hrs between meals. My two hour post eating blood sugar is always lower than my fasting, usually around 6 but it can be 5.5 That seems a bit back to front to me. Why is this happening? Anyone got any insights?

Thanks

Simon

 

[urbanracer]

Hi

I've been checking my blood sugar for the last month or so. My morning blood sugars are almost always around 7-7.5. My before meals blood sugars likewise. I don't snack and generally have between 5 and 6 hrs between meals. My two hour post eating blood sugar is always lower than my fasting, usually around 6 but it can be 5.5 That seems a bit back to front to me. Why is this happening? Anyone got any insights?

Thanks

Simon

Hi there Simon.

The likely culprit is something called Dawn Phenomenon which is a romantic name for a liver dump.

This is a trick your body pulls on you to get up and ready for the day. Problem is of course that we cannot use the glucose so it sits in our system causing all sorts of problems.

Liver dumps often happen as a result of strenuous exercise also.

 

[Alexandra100]

My two hour post eating blood sugar is always lower than my fasting

I suggest you try testing at 3 hours and, if you don't see a rise then, even at 4 hours. High blood sugars over time can lead to gastroparesis / delayed stomach emptying. This means the stomach empties unpredicatably, which makes testing tricky. As long as the food has not yet been digested, the body thinks one is still fasting! In my case I might see a bg of 5.8 before a meal, 4.9 two hours after (raising false hopes) and then 6.0+ after 3 - 4 hours. Very frustrating!

 

[Alexandra100]

I suggest you try testing at 3 hours and, if you don't see a rise then, even at 4 hours. High blood sugars over time can lead to gastroparesis / delayed stomach emptying. This means the stomach empties unpredicatably, which makes testing tricky. As long as the food has not yet been digested, the body thinks one is still fasting! In my case I might see a bg of 5.8 before a meal, 4.9 two hours after (raising false hopes) and then 6.0+ after 3 - 4 hours. Very frustrating!

I should have said, delayed digestion can also happen after a large or fatty meal.