What's really going wrong? Reactive Hypoglycemia|Insulin Resistance?

[Ecmy]

I have been gaining weight unintentionally for 2 years. I do eat well, countşng calories proteins carbs etc, (beside the times I cannot control sugar addiction attacks) and I do serious resistance and cardio trainings 4 times a week. I still gain weight slowly. I am 25 years old, not yet overweight but I spend a big effort to stay like this. I have fatigue, and 2-3 times a week I get sudden energy loss and the feeling like "I have to eat something immediately in order to stay awake" - especially during my periods. We have checked everything a body could have in terms of hormone, minerals, vitamins etc. My tyroid And cortisol levels are okay. I had ferritin and vit D deficiency but they came back to low-normal after 2 months of supplements. I had oral glucose tolerance test last week. Doc said I am insulin resistance + reactive hypoglycemia due to this. He said my insulin is pretty high considering how well I eat and the exercise I do. He prescribed me metmorfin, 1000 mg/day. Looking at the same results, another doctor said I am okay, I don't need metmorfin. Could I take your opinion? My results are below:

---Glucose (mg/dL)
Fasting: 89
30 mins: 115
1 hour: 88
90 mins: 77
2 hours: 73
180 mins: 63

---Insulin (uU/mL)
Fasting: 7.1 (range <10)
1 hour: 54.6 (range 10-50) *
2 hours: 22.6 (range 5-30)

 

[Resurgam]

I had exactly the same problems at your age - but never got tested until I was 66 years old - I did Atkins and that sorted me out.

 

[ickihun]

I have been gaining weight unintentionally for 2 years. I do eat well, countşng calories proteins carbs etc, (beside the times I cannot control sugar addiction attacks) and I do serious resistance and cardio trainings 4 times a week. I still gain weight slowly. I am 25 years old, not yet overweight but I spend a big effort to stay like this. I have fatigue, and 2-3 times a week I get sudden energy loss and the feeling like "I have to eat something immediately in order to stay awake" - especially during my periods. We have checked everything a body could have in terms of hormone, minerals, vitamins etc. My tyroid And cortisol levels are okay. I had ferritin and vit D deficiency but they came back to low-normal after 2 months of supplements. I had oral glucose tolerance test last week. Doc said I am insulin resistance + reactive hypoglycemia due to this. He said my insulin is pretty high considering how well I eat and the exercise I do. He prescribed me metmorfin, 1000 mg/day. Looking at the same results, another doctor said I am okay, I don't need metmorfin. Could I take your opinion? My results are below:

---Glucose (mg/dL)
Fasting: 89
30 mins: 115
1 hour: 88
90 mins: 77
2 hours: 73
180 mins: 63

---Insulin (uU/mL)
Fasting: 7.1 (range <10)
1 hour: 54.6 (range 10-50) *
2 hours: 22.6 (range 5-30)

Sounds like your liver is storing from your carb intake and when your eating it is dumping as it thinks your meal isn't enough to sustain your strenous activity!
You could benefit from metformin or lower your carbs and hope your body doesn't use protein instead as your fat content of food isn't available.

 

[Lamont D]

I have been gaining weight unintentionally for 2 years. I do eat well, countşng calories proteins carbs etc, (beside the times I cannot control sugar addiction attacks) and I do serious resistance and cardio trainings 4 times a week. I still gain weight slowly. I am 25 years old, not yet overweight but I spend a big effort to stay like this. I have fatigue, and 2-3 times a week I get sudden energy loss and the feeling like "I have to eat something immediately in order to stay awake" - especially during my periods. We have checked everything a body could have in terms of hormone, minerals, vitamins etc. My tyroid And cortisol levels are okay. I had ferritin and vit D deficiency but they came back to low-normal after 2 months of supplements. I had oral glucose tolerance test last week. Doc said I am insulin resistance + reactive hypoglycemia due to this. He said my insulin is pretty high considering how well I eat and the exercise I do. He prescribed me metmorfin, 1000 mg/day. Looking at the same results, another doctor said I am okay, I don't need metmorfin. Could I take your opinion? My results are below:

---Glucose (mg/dL)
Fasting: 89
30 mins: 115
1 hour: 88
90 mins: 77
2 hours: 73
180 mins: 63

---Insulin (uU/mL)
Fasting: 7.1 (range <10)
1 hour: 54.6 (range 10-50) *
2 hours: 22.6 (range 5-30)

Hi, you have reactive hypoglycaemia.
Which means that you react to the food you eat.

Welcome to the forum, known as RH on here, we have our own sub forum. If you click on forums at the top of the page, then scroll down to the Reactive Hypoglycaemia forum and click on there you will find a lot of information about RH.

What is happening when you eat too many carbs or even too much exercise, you create too much glucose for the insulin, then a second insulin response is excessive and you have too much Insulin.
You go high, then low. You hyper, then hypo!
That's what your eOGTT shows.
That is typically a RH glucose test.

The only way to treat RH is with diet and experimenting with a glucometer to see how you react to different foods and combinations of food, that includes drink.
The usual suspects are carbs and all forms of sugar. You need to have a diet that is very low in carbs.

Your symptoms of hunger and brain fog, lethargy etc. Is your brain telling you to eat the stuff that is bad for you.

I would definitely read the low carb forum, as there is some great ideas and recipes to get alternatives to carbs.

As with food exercise is what you can do without your liver supplementing your glucose levels without creating the excess insulin.

You are in a viscous circle of going high then low.
Your health depends on breaking that circle.


Enough for now.

Have you a glucometer?
I will tag @Brunneria to give you the cheapest option.

Do ask questions, you can feel normal again if you eat and exercise to your meter.

Best wishes.

 

[Ecmy]

I had exactly the same problems at your age - but never got tested until I was 66 years old - I did Atkins and that sorted me out.

I will look up to Atkins. Thank you!

 

[Ecmy]

Sounds like your liver is storing from your carb intake and when your eating it is dumping as it thinks your meal isn't enough to sustain your strenous activity!
You could benefit from metformin or lower your carbs and hope your body doesn't use protein instead as your fat content of food isn't available.

Thank you so much for your reply! I tried really low carb and sugar diet for around 3 months, before I was diagnosed and prescribed metformin. I Kkpt doing exercise too. It made me gain more weight! I feel like I am the only person who cuts off the sugar and carbs and gain more weight. Now I started eating carbs and sugar, for last 1-1,5 month, now it is rather easier to control my weight. Is şt the case for everyone who have same problem as me?

 

[ickihun]

Hi @Lamont D . Are RH sufferers never offered metformin?

Do they think your hypo would be worse on it?
Have you known any RH sufferers to have been initially on metformin by misdiagnosis and did it cause lower hypos?

 

[ickihun]

Thank you so much for your reply! I tried really low carb and sugar diet for around 3 months, before I was diagnosed and prescribed metformin. I Kkpt doing exercise too. It made me gain more weight! I feel like I am the only person who cuts off the sugar and carbs and gain more weight. Now I started eating carbs and sugar, for last 1-1,5 month, now it is rather easier to control my weight. Is şt the case for everyone who have same problem as me?

How long were you on metformin? It takes me months to benefit from it! Mind u I'm not a RH sufferer.

 

[ickihun]

Thank you so much for your reply! I tried really low carb and sugar diet for around 3 months, before I was diagnosed and prescribed metformin. I Kkpt doing exercise too. It made me gain more weight! I feel like I am the only person who cuts off the sugar and carbs and gain more weight. Now I started eating carbs and sugar, for last 1-1,5 month, now it is rather easier to control my weight. Is şt the case for everyone who have same problem as me?

A meter will be able to tell you whether exercise raises your bgs and for me that gains me weight!

 

[Ecmy]

Hi, you have reactive hypoglycaemia.
Which means that you react to the food you eat.

Welcome to the forum, known as RH on here, we have our own sub forum. If you click on forums at the top of the page, then scroll down to the Reactive Hypoglycaemia forum and click on there you will find a lot of information about RH.

What is happening when you eat too many carbs or even too much exercise, you create too much glucose for the insulin, then a second insulin response is excessive and you have too much Insulin.
You go high, then low. You hyper, then hypo!
That's what your eOGTT shows.
That is typically a RH glucose test.

The only way to treat RH is with diet and experimenting with a glucometer to see how you react to different foods and combinations of food, that includes drink.
The usual suspects are carbs and all forms of sugar. You need to have a diet that is very low in carbs.

Your symptoms of hunger and brain fog, lethargy etc. Is your brain telling you to eat the stuff that is bad for you.

I would definitely read the low carb forum, as there is some great ideas and recipes to get alternatives to carbs.

As with food exercise is what you can do without your liver supplementing your glucose levels without creating the excess insulin.

You are in a viscous circle of going high then low.
Your health depends on breaking that circle.


Enough for now.

Have you a glucometer?
I will tag @Brunneria to give you the cheapest option.

Do ask questions, you can feel normal again if you eat and exercise to your meter.

Best wishes.

Oh thank you so much! Like I wrote above as a reply, low carb+low sugar diet made me worse, I gained more weight. And yes, I feel like exercise makes it harder for me to control my appetite, and even if I control it and don't consume any extra food, exercise still makes me gain weight time to time. After few long term trials and comparison, now I am 100% sure carbs and sugar consumptiom helps me to at least maintain my weight. Do you think I still should stop eating carbs?

I will dig into the RH forum to get more information. And I will try to find a best deal glucometer that I can find in my country. You're right, if I have such problem ç, I should have it. Thank you very much for all these information and your help!

 

[Ecmy]

Hi @Lamont D . Are RH sufferers never offered metformin?

Do they think your hypo would be worse on it?
Have you known any RH sufferers to have been initially on metformin by misdiagnosis and did it cause lower hypos?

My doctor said I have RH due to my insulin resistance. He said he prescribed metformin for my insulin resistance. So my insulin would go lower, as a result of that, my blood sugar will rise. So it will help my RH too. This is. My endoc's explanation for why he gives metformin for my case, but I thought exactly what you wrote too.

 

[Bluetit1802]

Do you think I still should stop eating carbs?

Yes! The less carbs you eat the less insulin you will produce, the less high blood sugars you will have and the less low blood sugars you will have.

 

[Resurgam]

Doing serious resistance and cardio exercise should make you gain weight - why would you think that building muscle mass would be lowering your weight?
I was 147 lb with a 24 inch waist in my teens - no one believed I could weigh so much but I was very active - women did not do gym work in those days.
A lower carb way of eating allows for most normal exercise, but high intensity could be detrimental if it lowers glucose to the extent that your liver releases everything to try to sustain it.

 

[Ecmy]

How long were you on metformin? It takes me months to benefit from it! Mind u I'm not a RH sufferer.

When I did low carb-sugar diet, I didn't use metformin. In fact, I didn't even know I had insulin/blood sugar issues. I was just trying to şose weight with that diet. So you mean if I do low carb/sugar diet together with the metformin, I will benefit from it?

 

[Ecmy]

A meter will be able to tell you whether exercise raises your bgs and for me that gains me weight!

Oh okay! I will definatelly do that. I hope it gives me an idea about my issue with the exercise. Thank you!

 

[Ecmy]

Yes! The less carbs you eat the less insulin you will produce, the less high blood sugars you will have and the less low blood sugars you will have.

I got it know! Thank you so much!

 

[LittleGreyCat]

Could you perhaps give us an idea about what you were eating on your low carb/low sugar diet?
Usually you would expect to replace the carbohydrates (which include sugars) with fat to make you feel full and maintain your energy levels.

 

[Ecmy]

Doing serious resistance and cardio exercise should make you gain weight - why would you think that building muscle mass would be lowering your weight?
I was 147 lb with a 24 inch waist in my teens - no one believed I could weigh so much but I was very active - women did not do gym work in those days.
A lower carb way of eating allows for most normal exercise, but high intensity could be detrimental if it lowers glucose to the extent that your liver releases everything to try to sustain it.

I agree with you, but seriously, no one can say that I have gained these 5 kg's as muscle mass. It's obvious, and what I used to wear doesn't fit anymore. That's another issue, I don't feel like the resistance work (what I do is way heavier than what other girls in the gym do) help me to get thighter and gain muscle too. My gym's professional trainer is very suprised too after obaerving my last 2 years. I have read this may be a result of the insulin/blood sugar problem too - simply, if you don't produce energy over sugar, protein will not work efficiently. I hope metformin helps me on that too.

 

[Bluetit1802]

Protein? Can you explain what you mean by protein won't work?
Are you using protein supplements?

 

[Ecmy]

Could you perhaps give us an idea about what you were eating on your low carb/low sugar diet?
Usually you would expect to replace the carbohydrates (which include sugars) with fat to make you feel full and maintain your energy levels.

It was more like a paleo diet. For example, I used to eat

- breakfast: eggs, high fat (healthy-organic) cheese, 15 mixed nuts, tomatos, cucumber for breakfast.
- in the middle: a coffee with full milk (sometimes)
- lunch: a small soup, a portion of meat (with it's own fat), a small side salad or veggies
- a cup of yogurt, one portion of fruit, and sometimes 10-15 nuts if I do exercise on that day (I do exercise 4 times a week mostly)