I had a hba1c end of July which came back 55 (7.1) at the time I had lost a couple stones due to bereavement and my gp told me I was a T2 diabetic and low carb low sugar diet would help no meds yet till second hba1c confirmed it in october, I continued to loose weight slowly altogether I have lost around 3 stones and still loosing around 1 or 2 kgs a month ~ Second hba1c came back 41 with across the top non diabetic no further treatment necessary........ my question is was/am I diabetic or am I in remission?
-
Please Remember: Members are only permitted to share their own experiences. Members are not qualified to give medical advice. Additionally, everyone manages their health differently. Please be respectful of other people's opinions about their own diabetes management.
-
Take a look at our new Type 2 Diabetes Remission section on the Diabetes UK website: https://www.diabetes.org.uk/diabetes-the-basics/type-2-remission
-
Learn more about joining the Diabetes UK Support Forum team here: https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/volunteering-opportunities-why-dont-you-join-us.112862/
Am I in remission after only 10 weeks?
- Thread starter Mighi
- Start date
- Status
Leadinglights
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Welcome to the forum
Very well done with your result. The definition of remission is a bit of a hot potato so to speak. There is an 'official' definition of 2 consecutive HbA1C tests in normal range of below 42mmol/mol without medication.
But once you have had a diabetes diagnosis then you are always diabetic and in some ways that helps to get regular checks and helps people to keep their eye on the ball when it comes to diet and exercise.
So at 41mmol/mol no treatment as in medication is needed but that doesn't mean that you don't need to maintain a sensible dietary regime otherwise it is quite possible to slip back over the line.
Leadinglights
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
I can never understand the logic of that as if it was that you would be diagnosed as diabetic and pushed into medication by quite a few GPs.
thank you so much and yes I keep up the diet as before x and keep an eye on the blood sugars as I do not want to slip back x
Lucyr
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
As you didn’t have two hba1cs over 48 you were never a diagnosed diabetic, so you can’t really be in remission from diabetes if you didn’t have the diagnosis.
I’d forget the technical terms and just see it as, you definitely are close to the point of having issues with blood sugar control, perhaps enough that stress (like the bereavement) can tip your a1c above the threshold. So trying to continue the progress with weight diet and exercise, and having an annual hba1c check if offered, are important to avoid developing t2
I’d forget the technical terms and just see it as, you definitely are close to the point of having issues with blood sugar control, perhaps enough that stress (like the bereavement) can tip your a1c above the threshold. So trying to continue the progress with weight diet and exercise, and having an annual hba1c check if offered, are important to avoid developing t2
trophywench
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
It sounds to me that had you had an HbA1c taken at the exact time of your bereavement or just before that and before you lost any weight at all, you'd have definitely had 2 tests in excess of 48. When you had the 55, because the test looks at the excess glucose that has adhered itself to red blood corpuscles, and some of those will be a bit older than others, hence although you'd probably have reduced whatever your A1c actually was without anyone knowing before, you hadn't yet quite got it low enough. Now you have!
So, consider yourself as having had a severe warning that you were right on the very edge of Type 2 but have now very successfully averted that danger for the time being.
So me and @Lucyr agree - and when you've lost enough weight to suit yourself (and you're happy in your skin) - stop making that aim a target except for your own sake please don't jack in the exercise too quickly cos it's so helpful to everyone mentally as well as physically, like for ever.
So, consider yourself as having had a severe warning that you were right on the very edge of Type 2 but have now very successfully averted that danger for the time being.
So me and @Lucyr agree - and when you've lost enough weight to suit yourself (and you're happy in your skin) - stop making that aim a target except for your own sake please don't jack in the exercise too quickly cos it's so helpful to everyone mentally as well as physically, like for ever.
I disagree with the notion that you are always diabetic even in remission. Significant weight loss is the key to remission, and If your diabetes is in remission, then you are non-diabetic by definition. It is true that someone in remission is always in danger of becoming diabetic again. In fact, as Prof Taylor points out, if you regain sufficient weight, your chance of becoming diabetic again is 100 percent.
Harbottle, If you're not diabetic you may certainly be pre-diabetic. Rather than worry which it is, I'd look to your diet, exercise, and most particularly your weight to get a better and more consistent reading over time. Best of luck.
Drummer
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
I have only ever had one HbA1c over 48, but it was 91 and I was told in no uncertain manner that I was a very bad diabetic.
Even with HbA1c in the low 40s, I have never been told that I am in remission - just 'doing very well' a couple of times at the annual checks done by the nurse.
I suspect it is all down to the protocols of the clinic and the attitude of the person we meet there.
Even with HbA1c in the low 40s, I have never been told that I am in remission - just 'doing very well' a couple of times at the annual checks done by the nurse.
I suspect it is all down to the protocols of the clinic and the attitude of the person we meet there.
Personal opinion here on doctors: there are still many who don't believe that remission is even possible. 7.5 years ago my doctor said...paraphrasing: "You're diabetic, so here are your pills, this is your meter, and don't let the door hit you in the bum on the way out." I've had 5 different GP's since then, and not ONE of them has suggested that reversal/remission is even a possibility. As an aside, I'm here in the U.S. where doctors are only taught to use a script pad. It's only been in the last couple of years that the American Diabetic Association has acknowledged that remission is possible even though its been understood for more than a decade. So, the good news is you're talking and thinking about it. As an American, I've found the Diabetes UK site light years ahead of what we're doing here, and that's why I'm following Prof. Taylor's protocol for remission.
Drummer
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
My daughter and son in law were in America for a few years, and found it very difficult to find what I think of as unadulterated foods. Everything had added seed oil and sugar syrup, and they came home with significant weight problems and their metabolisms pretty much shot to ribbons.
We were probably diagnosed at around the same time, and by doctors with a similar attitude to the permanence of the situation - I was lucky that I'd been brought up on a low carb diet and discovered the Atkins version of low carbing by a chance purchase of New Diet Revolution when buying popping corn and liquorice in a health food shop.
I think what you are referring to is REAL food. We do have it, but you have to hunt for it...lol. To be healthy here what we do is shop around the edges of the supermarket; all of the ultra processed food is at the center of the store. We have the worst diet in the world, but before you congratulate yourself, I think the UK comes in second ;-) . Anyway, we all have the same problem; we're victims of cheap processed foods. Even 20 years ago I'd have said that real food was cheaper; not so today. Its cheaper to eat chemicals out of a box. Sad but true.
harbottle
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Thanks for that.
I was diagnosed over 2 years ago with a hba1c of 83, but got it to 36 in 3 months (+low dose of Metformin) by losing 3 stone.
Been in the 30s since.
Lucyr
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
I’m sure diabetes can be diagnosed based on one a1c if high enough or there are symptoms. If no symptoms and not much over the threshold then 2 are needed before diagnosing, from the OP this sounds the situation they were in. If your dr said you have diabetes after 1 a1c then your situation was different - your hba1c was higher and/or you had symptoms
harbottle
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
The repeat test in the case of no symptoms (I had no symptoms, by the way) should be done shortly after the first one. There is nothing in the guidelines to suggest a diagnosis of diabetes needs two hba1c results, and even in cases where a 2nd test is < 48 the process it to consider the patient 'at risk'. The OPs second test was done 3 months later after continued weight loss. And GPs should also take into consideration other factors than can temporarily raise hba1c.
AndBreathe
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
So I was never diabetic? My signature tells my story.
AndBreathe
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Likewise
- Status