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Testing regime, how strict is this?

HSSS

Expert
Messages
7,675
Location
South of England
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
on a very tightly administrated type 2 diabetic Facebook group they are advocating testing after 1 hour and seeing no more than 20mg (1.1mmol) rise and being back where you started by 2 hrs.

I’m struggling to understand where they get this regime from (no one seems to have an answer when I ask) and I wonder if there’s a “guru” out there that advocates this.

In here and in most other places it’s 2mmol (36mg) or less after 2 hrs.

I like to rise less than this if possible and sometimes I’m even close to the starting point at 2hrs and rarely have tested after an hour.

Is 1.1mmol after an hour realistic for those used to achieving the 2mmol in 2hours advice? Guess maybe I need to do a few 1 hour tests and see what I get....

I’m wondering if even non diabetics would manage just this tiny rise or is it more likely the reasoning is that is the only way we get back to the starting point after 2hrs the way a non diabetic would regardless of how much higher they might be at 1 hour.
 
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They are probably trying to flatline - minimum variance. This cuts out spikes at any time as it is believed it is spikes that cause the damage to the eyes and nervous system. The flatter the better. (standard deviation etc)
 
I should add that testing at an hour and also at 90 minutes is more likely to catch your peak and can be illuminating sometimes. The 2 hours is only a guideline, and the 2mmol/l is also a guideline mainly for beginners. It would be cruel to expect beginners to flatline or keep under 1mmol/l the whole time.
 
I keep promising myself a libre just to see what’s happening when I’m not testing but all the threads about them not being at all accurate and or falling off or causing rashes then puts me off as they’re not cheap. I should just bite the bullet and get and and see for myself.
 

It is worth a try. I have had dozens and not one has fallen off, and I don't get a rash. Like anything, some folk get side effects, others don't. Most don't. They aren't 100% accurate, but neither are meters. If you do a few cross checks with your meter you can see how much lower or higher it is reading and adjust your calculations. It isn't the actual numbers you need to know, it is the graphs and wriggly lines, the trends, the big bumps and little bumps. I flatline all night, but have a couple of little bumps - this is when I need a wee!

What they are, is consistent.
 
helensaramay said:
I think it is important to keep BG management in perspective.
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I don’t think I have any problems on perspective, just curiosity. I’m pretty consistent on the whole with my eating and levels but am interested why people choose various regimes in case there’s something of value there for me. For me getting a libre would be a short term thing just to see if there are any surprises or lessons about my personal responses that I haven’t picked up on that could enable tweaks. Thanks for the link. Interesting
 

Yarp, I've done the odd BG test against my non D (& nowhere near any type wife.) after the same meal. (Just for a laugh.) different gender + other variables. Plus I've personally had a little help from my pens. (Yes not a typo.)

A sense of perpctive i agree we can peak & trough. Most non Ds just don't have access to any sort of meter. Even when a dodgy A1c can be picked up routinely...
My meter reads 15% higher than it should I got a 6.6. My wife got a 7.8? (But she also demolished a bag of chocolate raisins..)
Just so long as it stays in healthy parameters...

I would never wig my wife out with a Libre..
 

Hi,
check the Libre out, you may be pleasantly surprised? I've no issue with plasters. But they have a habit of just not sticking?
The Libre holds on for me with no skin reaction. I've tested the adherence beyond its lifespan...
 
Yeah, its strictish, has it's pros and cons like a lot of other things.

I guess it depends on the means to achieve that goal. If it's done without increasing hypos it could well be a better thing, but that would also depend on the experience level of each person. Of course, being that strict must require more monitoring, especially in the early stages and someone newly diagnosed would be at a greater risk of hypos depending on if and what meds they are on.

There is a possibility people may become so fixated on monitoring levels etc that they forget about life and enjoying each day because they are tracking numbers obsessively, but each to their own.
 

I can only refer to what diabetes.co.uk think is normal. Even for a non diabetic a rise of nearly 2 mmol/l is considered normal.

 
Sorry if I wasn’t clear it’s a type 2 diet only group I’m referring to, therefore next to no risk of hypos.
 
DavidGrahamJones said:
I can only refer to what diabetes.co.uk think is normal. Even for a non diabetic a rise of nearly 2 mmol/l is considered normal.

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Yeah that’s what I’m used to too and wondering if longer term that extra strictness (if you can stick to it without driving yourself crazy) is “better”? Or if any gains would be incredibly marginal. I guess until there are longer term rigorous trials of varying levels of low carb eating it’s all supposition as well never know what would have happened otherwise.
 
HSSS said:
I’m thinking on insulin it’d be near miraculous to have that tight control consistently and all consuming.
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Yes, I agree. And possibly on some of the other hypo inducing drugs. Even just diet, I still wonder how much people would be focused on testing and forgetting about living.
 
Help please. I've never tested my bsl. Following a moderate low carb high fat diet. Have stopped taking metformin because I feel so much better and hated the fuzzy head. Started to lose weight and keeping it off. GP upset so thinking self test and show him the results. He said I would be pushing up daisies before I could stop metformin. I Not sure when to test? Is it an hour before and 2 hours after every meal or just tea time? Thank you x
 
Maxine3624 said:
Not sure when to test? Is it an hour before and 2 hours after every meal or just tea time? Thank you x
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At the start and to get a decent data set I'd test when I get up and immediately before and maybe 1 and 2 hours after each meal.
You'd then record those readings and the composition of the meal and try to get a feel for the food types that cause drastic elevations in blood glucose. The main suspects will be carb heavy foods so quite easy to check.. simply have the same meal the next day without the carb heavy item and record that too. That's what I did for the first couple of months. After that you'l probably be eating fewer meals a day so won't need so much testing and should know what happens after the meal so can try and catch your peaks when you think they are likely to be. These days I tend to test 2 or 3 times a day (partly down to usually only eating one big meal each day and because I'm used to testing when I get up!).
 
Immediately before and then typically 2 hrs after a meal. All meals are equally valid to test not any single one.

You can choose to expand this to 1 hrs, 2hrs 3hrs or even 4hrs after the meal for more information about how quickly or slowly the rise occurs and how long it lasts.
 
I think with this, as with many things, there can be a race to see who can be the most extreme. In my humble opinion, extremism of any form is rarely a good thing.
 
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