Hi, I bought the Spirit Healthcare Tee2 BG meter and used it for the 1st time today. Was just back from an hour's walk and have really only had a big salad today with smoked salmon & avocado etc. The reading was 3.9. eeks! Is that too low? Had a square of choc then some full fat yogurt & berries in case it is. Advice welcome.
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Surprise type 2 diagnosis
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rebrascora
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Hi. Sounds like a great meal and exercise. Well done! Hope you enjoyed both.
As a Type 2 diabetic (assuming you are not on Gliclazide or insulin) then you do not need to worry about readings that drop a little below 4. Non diabetic people can and do also drop below 4 occasionally.
The only reason that those of us who use insulin or Gliclazide have to treat these low readings below 4 is that we could drop significantly lower due to not balancing things quite right with medication and carbs which then becomes dangerous. Your body will stop producing insulin when levels get this low which prevents you going any lower but if we have injected insulin, then we can't get it back out again, so we have to have carbs to soak it up.
If we regularly spend time below 4 our brain can get used to it and then we may not feel the signs that we are going low so that by the time our brain does realise that we are in the danger zone, it is already shutting down and we can go unconscious before we get some carbs into us. Hence as insulin users we are supposed to take 15g carbs to bring us up if we drop below 4. That doesn't mean dropping below 4 is dangerous for everyone. just for those of us who inject insulin or take medication to encourage our pancreas to produce insulin. Hope that makes sense.
As a Type 2 diabetic (assuming you are not on Gliclazide or insulin) then you do not need to worry about readings that drop a little below 4. Non diabetic people can and do also drop below 4 occasionally.
The only reason that those of us who use insulin or Gliclazide have to treat these low readings below 4 is that we could drop significantly lower due to not balancing things quite right with medication and carbs which then becomes dangerous. Your body will stop producing insulin when levels get this low which prevents you going any lower but if we have injected insulin, then we can't get it back out again, so we have to have carbs to soak it up.
If we regularly spend time below 4 our brain can get used to it and then we may not feel the signs that we are going low so that by the time our brain does realise that we are in the danger zone, it is already shutting down and we can go unconscious before we get some carbs into us. Hence as insulin users we are supposed to take 15g carbs to bring us up if we drop below 4. That doesn't mean dropping below 4 is dangerous for everyone. just for those of us who inject insulin or take medication to encourage our pancreas to produce insulin. Hope that makes sense.
Thanks, I wondered if I'd done something wrong with the BG meter or whether I'm not eating enough carbs(if that's a factor). Have stripped out all pasta, rice, bread, spuds etc and replaced with veggies & lean meat/fish. Is it possible I need more carbs?
rebrascora
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Your body is quite capable of obtaining glucose from protein and fat that you eat as well as breaking down fat stores for energy and the liver is able to release glucogen which converts to glucose, so you don't actually need carbs in your diet although a low level from things like veggies is healthy as those foods contain beneficial micronutrients, so as long as you eat lettuce and greens etc which contain a very small amount of carbs but lots of micronutrients you are getting as much as you need.
Hi Christy, I got HbA1c of 49 out of the blue 6 weeks ago too, the GP didn’t give me a diagnosis until follow up blood test which was this week, by changing my diet to low carb and losing weight my HbA1c was 44 this week so it can be done, I am now in pre-diabetes stage.
there is loads of good advice on this forum, I use a calorie counting app which also counts carbs and bought a couple of Keto recipe books, have stopped eating rice, pasta, potatoes and replaced with low carb veg eg I make cauliflower rice, celeriac mash etc
there is loads of good advice on this forum, I use a calorie counting app which also counts carbs and bought a couple of Keto recipe books, have stopped eating rice, pasta, potatoes and replaced with low carb veg eg I make cauliflower rice, celeriac mash etc
Thanks, I wondered if I'd done something wrong or whether I'm not eating enough carbs(if that's a factor). Have stripped out all pasta, rice, bread, spuds etc and replaced with veggies & lean
Thanks, today's worry was if I was eating enough because of a low BG level of 3.9. Good to hear of your success. Hoping to emulate it!
I didn’t buy a BG monitor, think I would be testing constantly then worrying what it meant! I think an app for monitoring carbs really opened my eyes to how much carbs I was actually eating, thought it was healthy as lots of beans and pulses but the actual carb amount was ridiculously high. I am now eating about 50g carbs a day which is low but not Keto.
Yeah, that's the danger! Do you have an App you can recommend? I'm probably going over the top but it was such a shock & I want to sort it.
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3.9 is at the low end of normal BG, but is nothing to worry about if you are not on any BG-lowering medication.
People on hypoglycaemic meds (insulin, sulfs, glic etc) are told that ”4 is the floor” and to treat readings below that as hypoglycaemia because this gives a small amount of ‘breathing room’ if BG is dropping before the brain starts malfunctioning.
People without diabetes who wear CGM as an experiment can quite often see 3.9s on a busy day (and of course all BG monitoring whether sensors or strips has a potential degree of inaccuracy) but their metabolism is likely to correct it smoothly and speedily by releasing glucose stored in muscles and the liver (a protection mechanism that breaks down or only works erratically in PWD).
Did the 3.9 make you feel hungry or light headed? That can often be a sign that your body knows it needs a little extra glucose 🙂
People on hypoglycaemic meds (insulin, sulfs, glic etc) are told that ”4 is the floor” and to treat readings below that as hypoglycaemia because this gives a small amount of ‘breathing room’ if BG is dropping before the brain starts malfunctioning.
People without diabetes who wear CGM as an experiment can quite often see 3.9s on a busy day (and of course all BG monitoring whether sensors or strips has a potential degree of inaccuracy) but their metabolism is likely to correct it smoothly and speedily by releasing glucose stored in muscles and the liver (a protection mechanism that breaks down or only works erratically in PWD).
Did the 3.9 make you feel hungry or light headed? That can often be a sign that your body knows it needs a little extra glucose 🙂
I felt fine until I saw the reading. I guess I wasn't expecting the reading to be so low so was more focused on that rather than how I felt.
BG on waking today was 5 & 4.4 pre brunch after an hour's walk so I'm thinking this is ok so far?
BG on waking today was 5 & 4.4 pre brunch after an hour's walk so I'm thinking this is ok so far?
rebrascora
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Those are really great results Christy. Keep doing what you are doing and you will have your next HbA1c in the normal range I am sure.
Apologies for the stupid question...if I'm checking my BG levels approx 8 times a day (not during the night) can I assume that if I eat the same breakfast I'll normally get a similar reading or should I keep checking regardless? My levels all are well within the guidelines but that's probably because I'm avoiding all rice, pasta, added sugar etc.
rebrascora
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Yes, that is a reasonable assumption.
Most people build up a list of foods/meals they tolerate well and remain in range after when they have been testing for a few weeks/months and then ease off testing those meals and just test new foods and then random occasional checks of the meals that usually work well for them, just to make sure nothing has changed.
Most people build up a list of foods/meals they tolerate well and remain in range after when they have been testing for a few weeks/months and then ease off testing those meals and just test new foods and then random occasional checks of the meals that usually work well for them, just to make sure nothing has changed.
grovesy
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Some people find they can be, I personally don't always have the same readings.
trophywench
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Well - it's a reasonable assumption to make if you do more or less the same things at the same times every day without much variation.
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