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Type 2 What constitutes a spike

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AlbertoLaidlaw

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Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Tablets (oral)
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Carbohydrates
I am not sure what constitutes a spike in BG levels. Mine range between 6.5 mmol/l and 9.5 mmol/l is this considered a spike?
 
Hello AlbertLaidlaw,welcome to the forum,a spike is defined as a rise of more than 3 mmols after eating.ImageUploadedByDCUK Forum1457539621.557361.jpg
 
I think 3mmol/l is far too generous. The thinking seems to be that it is better to be at say 6mmol/l all day than at 4mmol/l with a spike to say 6mmol/l after each meal. Too many variations in levels is what appears to cause the damage. As flat as possible is the answer, nice gentle waves on a graph rather than mountain peaks, but we all know that is difficult, and certainly impossible if we eat too many carbs.
The general advice given on this forum is to keep spikes down to under 2mmol/, preferably under 1.5mmol.
 
It's the % of the change that really matters rather than the actual amount.

4 to 6 is a bigger spike than 6 to 8
 
britishpub said:
It's the % of the change that really matters rather than the actual amount.

4 to 6 is a bigger spike than 6 to 8
Click to expand...


Where has the 4 to 6 figure data come from?
 
I can assure you the numbers appeared on the screen after I pressed the corresponding key.
 
britishpub said:
I can assure you the numbers appeared on the screen after I pressed the corresponding key.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, the op, being a newbie, may not appreciate your idea of a joke, and may not have realised you were simply making it up.
 
As a T2 I still have not achieved the pre meal range yet. Ive been taking medicines since last September. I have reached the after meals range though. For me a spike is what my bs read when I eat oats (30g) or shredded wheat, I got a BS reading of 15 an hour after eating either.
 
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If you dig out CGM traces for non diabetics they rarely go above 8 mmol but do spike between 4 and 8. I would suggest that is really what we all ideally aim for or as close as our individual cases and diet/lifestyle choices allow.
 
Here's a nice example of what's an unacceptable spike for me:

spike.png

Shows what scoffing sugar does to me at the start of the graph against a smaller gentler rise from a slightly carby meal towards the right hand end. Other small low carb meals showed virtually no changes at all.

Grey bar shows 4.5 to 7.5 mmol/L range; yellow dots show (incomplete) start and end of pre meal to 2 hours post meal periods. All data from 24hours worth of continuous monitoring on a Freestle Libre. Levels are actually slightly lower than spot checks on my Contour Next give me.

Robbity
 
@Robbity before everyone else gets an inferiority conplex I would suggest this is a pretty **** good day and nobody should be shooting themselves for spiking to a 10 for an hour or so.
 
Thanks @steve_p6 - apart from that spike it was also a very nice example of what low carbing can do for me; most days my levels are a bit more wiggly, but it was the only time where I had such a good example of a big (for me) spike on the Libre. Data from my meter can't show things quite so dramatically.

And I've now had two and a bit years of low carb lifestyle practicing to improve glucose levels.

Robbity
 
For me today it's been going from 5.8 to 8.5 1 hour after eating a McChicken sandwich fool that I am in fact at first I thought I was holding the meter upside down.
 
Mike D said:
4 to 6 is 50% ...6 to 8 is 33.3%
Click to expand...
the numbers mathematically add up - but somebody experiencing a 4 to 6 rise every day would not need to worry to be fair( non diabetic) -- somebody doing 6 to 8 would have a bit ( not loads more ) more cause for concern
 
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