Questions for GP

[Shepster48]

hi

Tomorrow I see my gp. I do not have a diagnosis yet but have fatty liver for 7 years and been getting episodes of feeling faint and hungry and needing to eat something. I am male, 48, 85kg and 6 feet And I wouldn’t consider myself overweight.

These episodes seem to be getting more regular so i bought a glucose monitor, lancets and strips and have been testing my blood before and 2 hours after every meal and before bed and when I get up for the past week.

The results have scared me. In a morning I’m usually over 7 and have been over 8. I have heard this is the dawn phenomenon. The first day I had bran flakes and 2 hours later was 11.3. Later that night I had a spud with salad and my bloods were 10.7.
This scared me and I’ve been carb free for the rest of the week. It’s still not going below 6 even during the day even when having just tuna and salad.

Other than the feeling faint episodes I haven’t felt thirsty or other diabetes symptoms. I was expecting low readings not high.

So I’m unsure how to approach my gp.

What tests do I ask for?

Is there a simple test that can tell if it’s type 1 or type 2 diabetes?

Will I be transferred to a specialist and if so how long does it take. I’m starving as i darent eat any carbs or sugars and my bloods keep spiking really high. I also worry how long I’ve had this high bg as I’ve had fatty liver for 7 years.

Is there anything I need to ask about regarding whether it’s my pancreas that is at fault or if it’s insulin resistance.

Thanks.

 

[Daibell]

Hi and welcome. Your BMI by calculation is high and hence you appear to be noticeably overweight? Your blood sugar readings imply being diabetic but they could be worse. I can only guess that you will be insulin resistant due to body fat and hence likely to be T2 rather than T1. Why were you expecting low readings rather than high? There is not a simple test to differentiate between T1 and T2. Having excess weight will favour a T2 diagnosis and being slim will favour T1. Your BS readings aren't high enough to produce obvious symptoms (which is why diabetes is an insidious condition). I would just explain to the GP that you suspect you have diabetes and leave it to him/her to decide what to do. I suspect T2 will be guessed and an HBa1C blood test done to confirm diabetes. With T2 the pancreas will typically be producing too much insulin due to insulin resistance. With T1 the opposite will be true. A c-peptide test helps measure that but it's very unlikely the GP will do that test if T2 is guessed. A GAD test can help prove T1 but it's not conclusive and is only done if there is doubt.

 

[Shepster48]

Thanks Daibell

Wow, you’re right, just checked nhs and I have a bmi of 25.3 and classed as overweight. I didn’t think I was that much overweight. My waist is only 36 inches which I didn’t think was too bad for a six footer. People actually say I look trim for my age.

I was hoping I would be at worst prediabetic but my readings don’t seem to be going down and the moment I have carbs it shoots up. I guess chips will be off the menu.

I have Gilbert’s syndrome which means my bilirubin is always high, however, I had a spike last year so was admitted to hospital. They did a ct scan and I also paid for a pancreatic protocol mri to have a good look at my pancreas. Nothing was found. I’ve checked my blood tests done in the hospital but can’t see any of what you have said above so guess they didn’t do any.

Thanks, I will ask him to do the HBa1c test tomorrow.