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Protein and blood sugar

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dowuchyalike

Well-Known Member
Messages
53
When I consume a protein shake first thing in the morning (1 scoop protein with water only) I always get a fast and radical spike in my sugar level. I use pea protein powder that purports to contain only 3.2g CHO per scoop, so it's hardly the carb content that's responsible. I can have a fasting glucose of 4mmol and see it shoot up to 14 or 15 after the shake unless I have a bolus of about 3 units. I've read quite a bit about the body being able to convert protein to glucose and though my dietitian's opinion is that it's unlikely that this is what's happening, I'm inclined to think otherwise. My diabetic specialist reckons it's down to the surge of morning stress hormones and that the protein shake is a red herring. I've tested his theory by omitting the shake altogether (no breakfast either) and have not seen any significant change in my glucose levels during the morning.

Anybody else have any experience with this phenomenon?
 
Some people convert protein to cab very quickly.
Hana
 
Shooting up to 14/15 isn't good news so I would be ditching the shake, why don't you just have some scrambled eggs or an omelette instead?

I find if I eat protein based meals that I need nearly as much insulin as I do for one that is carb based, typical example is eggs as above where I would need 4 units of QA insulin compared to 5 units for a bowl of porridge.
 

Does this mean it's better if you go for fat based meals?
 
Greetings dowuchyalike,

I would be careful with the protein shakes some quite frankly don't actually label their carb contents correctly. Assuming you exercise the sugar increase should not be so drastic. Are you using a slow absorption shake or a quick one? I do not know much about pea protein, I use instant whey with 1g of carbs in it and it seems to have no impact on the sugar levels. Then I have a casein protein which is very slow absorption with apparently 3.2g of carbs and that does tend to push my levels up high.

Frankie
 


Sorry Noblehead, I should have pointed out that I'm vegan, so eggs are out for me. As for your suggestion, Frankie, that the protein powder has some hidden extras, I really don't think that is the case as it a UK-made product and the manufacturer's own website provides comprehensive nutritional data about it.

As I mentioned, I can avoid the spike with a small bolus, so I don't really need to stop having the shake but I was just curious as to whether anyone else had experienced anything similar with concentrated protein sources. It would seem from what you say Noblehead, that I'm not alone. Strange, however, that both a dietitian and diabetologist were loathe to accept this as a possibility.
 
Have you carried out a fasting test!

As your consultant might be right that you are suffering from Dawn P, And a fasting test will show if this is a problem or not!

Protein normally have little effect on blood glucose levels, because of the length of time it takes the body to break the protein down into glucose, so often we've burn off the energy it produces before it impacts on the blood glucose, unless we eat an high percentage of protein within the meal...

But you are drinking a protein shake, which has been heavily processed to extract the protein from it's sources and turn it into a protein powder, so a lot of the breaking down process has already been done before it hits the body... So the body has less work to do break it down into a glucose/energy...

Do you know what protein source the manufacturer's are using to make the protein powder from, as protein can be plant or animal source...

Perhaps finding a suitable natural source (food) of protein for your breakfast might not hit the system so quick, and easing the spike you are suffering..
 
In Scheiner's Think Like A Pancreas book, he says that if you consume protein on its own your body will convert half of it to glucose. If you consume carbs with that protein, your body will not convert the protein and use the carbs instead.
 
SamJB said:
In Scheiner's Think Like A Pancreas book, he says that if you consume protein on its own your body will convert half of it to glucose. If you consume carbs with that protein, your body will not convert the protein and use the carbs instead.
Click to expand...


That is my experience :thumbup:
 


Hi jopar

This is definitely not dawn phenomenon. I could get up at 7am, have the shake immediately with a fasting blood sugar of between 4 and 5, then in under an hour it spikes. Next day I could get up at the same time, test at 7am but have no shake or other source of food and then test again at 8am and see no spike and in fact very little difference in the two results.

This may be something specific to pea protein but it's not an issue I'm concerned about. If anything, I see it as a good thing because it suggests the amino acids in the protein are getting into my body quickly. This is useful because the shake is taken before a morning workout to try and spare lean tissue from being used as a fuel source. Note, that the second blood test is being done before the exercise and not after, so this is not a response to elevated cortisol levels.
 
As a PhD specialising in protein chemistry I can reassure you that proteins do not have any carbohydrate content in themselves, but may be associated with some carbohydrates and fats in natural - unrefined food stuffs. In most cases, unless the sugars and starches, have been artificially augmented to bulk up the product, they will be minimal. You should always read the ingredient list very carefully.
 
Hi dowuchyalike I know this is an old thread, so I hope you are still reading just wondering if you found anything more out about this? I am having the same issue at the moment. I am having a shake in the morning with protein powder. The powder only says it has 7gm of carb per serve and I am giving my normal number of units per carb ratio but my levels just keep shooting up. I had enough this morning when1 hour after the smoothie I tested to find my level at 19.1. Like you I have tried not having the protein powder and my levels are stable. I am very curious to know if you found out anything more about this!
 
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