Why now, after years of low-carbing?

[Totto]

I grew up with a diabetic father. We never had any sweets or biscuits at home, never pudding etc. I never really got the taste for sweet things so have rarly over-dosed on sugar as an adult. Three years ago my husband had a TIA, and that made me turn our diet more towards low-carb. So for the past three years I have done sort of LCHF but not very strict and adapted to what is convenient. I certainly have taken the HF part to heart though.

I have had lowish bg for years and been proud of it. And then in the last year things have begun to change. I got a random bg reading at 7.2 several hours after eating and another at 8.2 two hours post-prandial. Then I bought myself a glucose monitor. Mostly things are all right, but rice and bread give me readings above 10.

Now I wonder: Why? After being on a low-carb diet?

I have booked an appointment with my GP next Thursday and mean to ask him for whatsitcalled, the test when you drink glucose and test what it does to your bg. This will presumably show highish, but apart from that, what can it tell?

I am not over weight and have low blood pressure. Should I try to convince my GP to test for antibodies? Other tests?

Or is it normal to develop insulin resistance on a low-carb diet?

 

[Andy12345]

i have read that low carbing can make you more sensitive to carbs, maybe thats the problem, but I'm confused as to your confusion over the bread and pasta? you know they spike us, why would you expect them not to push up your bg?

i would push for the tests, if nothing else it would be nice to know..... i love tests lol

 

[Totto]

Hi Andy, no I am not confused as such, I just don't understand why I get so high readings now, when I never had them before. Maybe you are right about low-carb diet can make you more sensitive but I have never been very strict. And would a low-carb diet cause me to be so very sensitive to carbs as some of my readings indicate?

I have checked bg yearly all my adult life, for the past thirty years at least, so I know what is normal for me. And that is around 3.5-4 fasting and rarely above 5 after a meal.

Can there be a connection to other hormones? I have hypothyroidism and have reached the time in life when you suffer from hot flushes.

We have all kinds of autoimmune diseases in my family.

 

[Andy12345]

it is weird, i am hoping someone with a brain a bit larger than mine (which is everyone) jumps in, perhaps it is just the natural deterioration of the condition/pancreas/beta thingies if it is indeed that, i thought tbh that carb sensitivity came from very low carving, if you haven't been very strict perhaps it isn't infact that, I'm almost certain your hormones doing their thing could do it, seeing as every other thing seems to effect them

 

[Daibell]

Hi. The fact that you are not overweight may be relevant. The hypothyroidism may also play a part as other posters have indicated this may have some effect. Yes, do get tested. The two tests for LADA (Late onset T1) i.e. GAD and c-peptide might be relevant but the GP needs to diagnose diabetes first. GPs often don't rush to assume LADA and may just place you anyway in the T2 category and prescribe meds if needed. Low-carbing would only help prevent insulin resistant T2 diabetes. If you do have an autoimmune form e.g. LADA then low-carbing would merely delay not prevent your blood sugar going higher. I think you need to see what the GP thinks and tests for.

 

[sugarmog]

Was your father type 1 or type 2. Diabetes can run in families, and unfortunately, contrary to popular belief, you do not have to be overweight or an excessive consumer of carbs to develop it. You are wise to get straight to the doctor and check it out. If there is a problem at least you will have identified it early, rather than going undiagnosed for years, which happens to many people.

 

[Ali H]

Totto, are you saying you are not a diagnosed diabetic but over the years you have kept a check because of Dad and now you seem to have gone into diabetic ranges despite low carbing?

 

[Totto]

Excellent summary, Ali.

I don't know what type dad was, probably T2. He was diagnosed in 1962 or there about, and died in the mid eighties. I think he was on insulin the last years of his life, but I left home in 1979 so can´t be sure. He probably would have benefited from insulin earlier. Seeing what diabetes did to him has me very scared of this disease. He was only 72 when he died after being severely ill for some years.

Mum is diabetic too, but that may be due to her being on Prednisolone, but I think her diabetes started before the steroids. Apart from diabetes she has pernicious anaemia, asthma and psoriasis and a lot of other things I won´t bore you with, she is 92 and frail. And I am hypothyroid, so there is autoimmunity in the family.