AnnaK152

Member
Messages
5
Type of diabetes
Don't have diabetes
Treatment type
I do not have diabetes
Hello everyone,

I am extremely new to worrying about blood sugar and insulin. Recently, due to other symptoms, I got a PCOS check advanced from Medichecks that also had insulin and blood sugar tests included. I am very confused by my results and the doctor's comments were not very helpful. I eat a very healthy (vegan) diet with fats and protein and lots of vegetables, although suffered from an eating disorder in the past, which may have affected my health.

My fasting blood glucose was 4.94 mmol/L.
HBA1C - 29.2 mmol/mol
INSULIN -6.83 mIU/L
F INSULIN RESISTANCE INDEX- 1.35

The doctor said
"You have an increased fasting insulin resistance index. This could be an early indication that your body is beginning to struggle to metabolise glucose (sugar) correctly. We advise you to reduce your consumption of sugar and refined carbohydrates (e.g. white bread, pasta rice and potatoes) and check your HbA1c result in 3 months. HbA1c provides a more direct assessment of the control of your blood glucose over the previous 3 months, and is used in the diagnosis of diabetes and pre-diabetes."

I am very worried as I already eat a healthy diet with little to no refined carbs at all and always eat fat with every meal to balance blood sugar. Has anyone had a similar experience and is my insulin resistance index normal?
I was also tested for HBA1C last year and I had 30.2. I am only 21 and have excellent cholesterol and other things seem to be normal. Does anyone have any advice? I would really appreciate it :)
 

Circuspony

Well-Known Member
Messages
959
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
I've just looked this up because I've never heard of the test. Apparently under 1 means insulin sensitive but early stages of insulin resistance start at 1.9. So with 1.35 you're below that - and your hba1c is great.

Let's see if anyone else has experience with this test
 

bulkbiker

BANNED
Messages
19,576
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hello everyone,

I am extremely new to worrying about blood sugar and insulin. Recently, due to other symptoms, I got a PCOS check advanced from Medichecks that also had insulin and blood sugar tests included. I am very confused by my results and the doctor's comments were not very helpful. I eat a very healthy (vegan) diet with fats and protein and lots of vegetables, although suffered from an eating disorder in the past, which may have affected my health.

My fasting blood glucose was 4.94 mmol/L.
HBA1C - 29.2 mmol/mol
INSULIN -6.83 mIU/L
F INSULIN RESISTANCE INDEX- 1.35

The doctor said
"You have an increased fasting insulin resistance index. This could be an early indication that your body is beginning to struggle to metabolise glucose (sugar) correctly. We advise you to reduce your consumption of sugar and refined carbohydrates (e.g. white bread, pasta rice and potatoes) and check your HbA1c result in 3 months. HbA1c provides a more direct assessment of the control of your blood glucose over the previous 3 months, and is used in the diagnosis of diabetes and pre-diabetes."

I am very worried as I already eat a healthy diet with little to no refined carbs at all and always eat fat with every meal to balance blood sugar. Has anyone had a similar experience and is my insulin resistance index normal?
I was also tested for HBA1C last year and I had 30.2. I am only 21 and have excellent cholesterol and other things seem to be normal. Does anyone have any advice? I would really appreciate it :)
Hi and welcome Anna
I had a similar test a while ago 1.06 which I was quite pleased with as an ex T2.
When you say you are having fats in your meals could I ask what kind?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Charis1213

AnnaK152

Member
Messages
5
Type of diabetes
Don't have diabetes
Treatment type
I do not have diabetes
Hello- thanks for your reply! I am having things like nuts, seeds, tahini, almond butter, avocado, some olive oil and maybe coconut milk. Mainly things like that without much oil at all
 

AnnaK152

Member
Messages
5
Type of diabetes
Don't have diabetes
Treatment type
I do not have diabetes
I've just looked this up because I've never heard of the test. Apparently under 1 means insulin sensitive but early stages of insulin resistance start at 1.9. So with 1.35 you're below that - and your hba1c is great.

Let's see if anyone else has experience with this test
Thanks for your reply- I feel a bit less anxious about it now. I just wish the doctor would have explained it more as I hadn't even considered I could be at risk for this sort of thing
 

bulkbiker

BANNED
Messages
19,576
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hi and welcome Anna
I had a similar test a while ago 1.06 which I was quite pleased with as an ex T2.
When you say you are having fats in your meals could I ask what kind?
Glad to hear you are avoiding the seed oils..
Not sure what to recommend so will let the other vegetarian/vegan eaters advise.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Charis1213

AloeSvea

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,051
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Other
@AnnaK152, I find making a young healthy person worry about prediabetes when their HBA1c is at 29 no less, is beyond bizarre! Especially if you have had experiences with eating disorders in the past, so you don't need to start being hyper vigilante about your food, I would say. "Just keep an eye on the refined carbs" is more what I would say.

I would say also - "doing great - but watch your vitamin D as in getting enough safe sun, and B12 especially as a Veg/Vegan", in fact all the important nutrients that we know about that support a healthy lower insulin and a healthy functioning blood glucose regulation system. And, again, absolutely watch the refined carbs, which is true for everyone in terms of having good health.

Have you actually had or got PCOS? Because absolutely that is a insulin resistance indicator, big time. And an organ breaking down situation, making you subfertile, and mucking around with your hormones. In that case, yes, refined carbs out absolutely, and get your insulin sensitivity/resistance checked frequently. PCOS is my own history, as it is with many women who get diabetes when the hormones do a re-shuffle when fertility changes again at mid life. Carbs, insulin, IR was never even whispered in my ear in my youth, when my own ovaries were screaming with ill-health, so I am very pleased it is being spoken about and tested for, for your generation. Here we are doing more than whispering about it. There is no reason for you to have happen to you what happened to me. And this is what I say to my own millenial daughter.
 

AnnaK152

Member
Messages
5
Type of diabetes
Don't have diabetes
Treatment type
I do not have diabetes
@AloeSvea. Thanks so much for your kind words and advice! You're right- it is great that we have so much more knowledge now, but in some ways that has made me a bit of a hypochondriac. I have never asked any doctor about PCOS and only have a couple of the symptoms now so I might go to the doctor for an ultrasound to see if there is any chance of it. I already watch what I eat a lot and completely avoid refine carbohydrates anyway and am constantly trying to balance blood sugar with proteins, fats and low GI carbs. I also supplement with vitamin D and B12 to make sure I get enough.

It's good that there are these online services that help, but this doctor has never seen me so I guess they don't really have enough information to make comments about an individual's health. You have eased quite a bit of my worry though- I was spending hours researching reasons why my result could be like this!
 

Mbaker

Well-Known Member
Messages
4,339
Type of diabetes
Type 2 (in remission!)
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Available fast foods in Supermarkets
That is a really good set of results, which many would swap with you in an instant.

Your HbA1c is spectacular, you have a good fasting blood glucose and insulin set of numbers.

Whilst you choice of dietary protocol is different to mine, the truth for the individual is based on how vibrant you feel, backed up by blood work in my opinion, so in your shoes I would keep doing what is working and keep a long distance, maybe every 6 months eye on micronutrients and perhaps your yearly similar check to what you have done. A 30 HbA1c the previous year, shows that you are maintaining well, so congratulations.
 
  • Like
Reactions: OrsonKartt

AnnaK152

Member
Messages
5
Type of diabetes
Don't have diabetes
Treatment type
I do not have diabetes
@Mbaker Thanks so much for your reassurance! I was quite oblivious to blood sugar and fasting glucose before a couple days ago (in reference to myself) so I didn't know what is good or bad. You are right about seeing how I feel, as most of the time I feel full of energy. I will keep doing what I'm doing and maybe take extra care to avoid sugar highs and keep checking my HBA1C.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Mbaker

Glink

Well-Known Member
Messages
252
Type of diabetes
Prediabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Your fasting glucose and HbA1c are fantastic! I'm not familiar with this index, but I would probably just keep an eye on things and not worry too much at this point.
 

Tigernash

Member
Messages
10
Type of diabetes
Don't have diabetes
Treatment type
I do not have diabetes
Hello everyone,

I am extremely new to worrying about blood sugar and insulin. Recently, due to other symptoms, I got a PCOS check advanced from Medichecks that also had insulin and blood sugar tests included. I am very confused by my results and the doctor's comments were not very helpful. I eat a very healthy (vegan) diet with fats and protein and lots of vegetables, although suffered from an eating disorder in the past, which may have affected my health.

My fasting blood glucose was 4.94 mmol/L.
HBA1C - 29.2 mmol/mol
INSULIN -6.83 mIU/L
F INSULIN RESISTANCE INDEX- 1.35

The doctor said
"You have an increased fasting insulin resistance index. This could be an early indication that your body is beginning to struggle to metabolise glucose (sugar) correctly. We advise you to reduce your consumption of sugar and refined carbohydrates (e.g. white bread, pasta rice and potatoes) and check your HbA1c result in 3 months. HbA1c provides a more direct assessment of the control of your blood glucose over the previous 3 months, and is used in the diagnosis of diabetes and pre-diabetes."

I am very worried as I already eat a healthy diet with little to no refined carbs at all and always eat fat with every meal to balance blood sugar. Has anyone had a similar experience and is my insulin resistance index normal?
I was also tested for HBA1C last year and I had 30.2. I am only 21 and have excellent cholesterol and other things seem to be normal. Does anyone have any advice? I would really appreciate it :)

If your HbA1c is 42 or over then be more concerned. I have found no evidence of a vegan with diabetes under the age of 65. If you worried about your diet, just make a note of how much added sugar you are having in your diet. White carbs yes are fiber less but eaten with a lot of vegetables your body wont produce a massive insulin spike.

To get around insulin resistance, could be to add some form of resistance training to your exercise programe if you don't already. The resistance is just the bodies response to high sugar and insulin in the body, but this can be slowed down with more fiber in the diet, reduced added sugar and in some cases intermittent fasting.

hope this helps
 
  • Like
Reactions: AnnaK152