Couple of question re Copilot

[Emmandelo]

Hi, I'm still new to all this. Thanks to some really helpful advice from forum members I am now in possession of Gretchen Becker's book and the excellent Carbs And Cals book. I have also got my FreeStyle Lite meter from Abbotts and am using the copilot software to keep a record of my readings. I'm T2 and taking Metformin 500mg twice a day at the moment upping it to three a day as from next Saturday. Just a couple of questions. i am having difficulty trying to find a definitive answer to target mmol/L ranges for the different times of day. In particular what is the target range for the Bedtime reading?

Am I correct with these figures

Fasting/Pre breakfast 3.9 - 5.5
Pre meals 4 - 7
2 houirs after meals 5 - 10

We normally eat about 6.00 - 6.30 pm. so I test at 8.00pm - 8.30pm. So the bedtime test is done about 11.00pm. What should I be aiming for with the bedtime test?

 

[Northerner]

I would say the figures you quote are the general guidelines, although in theiry your GP should agree individual targets for you, depending on your situation e.g. if they were still working at getting your meds right to get you down from double figures then it would be unresonable to give you targets you would always by likely to fail at - eventually though, it would be hoped that you could achieve the 'normal' figures quoted.

Pre-bed figures should be similar to pre-meal figures i.e. when all your food has digested and you have returned to your 'base' state where your body if happily dealing with the glucose put out by your liver. So, 4-7, although 4 might be a little on the low side - a minimum of 5 would be better 🙂

 

[Emmandelo]

Thanks Northerner, I'm glad I;m on the right track. I've had some very low readings of 3.1, 2.9 and 1.6 all pre meal. These are after exercise (by exercise I mean looking after our 3 year old grandson!) Is there any way to combat these with diet?

 

[Northerner]

Thanks Northerner, I'm glad I;m on the right track. I've had some very low readings of 3.1, 2.9 and 1.6 all pre meal. These are after exercise (by exercise I mean looking after our 3 year old grandson!) Is there any way to combat these with diet?

Whoa! As a Type 2 on metformin you really shouldn't be getting such extreme lows! My lowest ever has been a 1.7 and that was because I'm on insulin. Have you discussed these lows with your doctor? Really, you should not be dropping below 4.0, or at a pinch 3.5 - definitely not below 3.0. Do you get any low blood sugar symptoms, like sweating, shakiness etc.? You sound a litlle like our 'special' Lucy123 who is also Type 2 but had a problem with hypoing after exercise. There is a possibility that what you are suffering from is 'reactive hypoglycaemia', where you pancreas overproduces insulin in reaction to food and the addition of exercise (which makes you more insulin sensitive) leads to a drop in levels below what would normally expected. I thin you need to discuss this as a matter of urgency with your doctor. A 1.6 is potentially very dangerous.

Diet may be able to alleviate the problem - Lucy went on to a low GI diet and this seems to have helped her.

 

[Emmandelo]

I thought it was a bit extreme. will try and get appt for before weekend The only sort of symptom I get is feeling really really tired.

had my retinal screening this morning. she said it all looked ok but obviously has to go off to experts for analysis.

 

[Vicsetter]

Fasting/Pre-breakfast is just a pre-meal and should be 4-7 - keep life simple 3.9-5.5 is too tight.
Feeling tired is usually associated with high BG not low. Cold sweats and unsteadiness is more symptomatic of low BG are you sure you are using your meter correctly?
My GP advises a bedtime guide of 8, but when you are stable on your meds you can reduce this so your waking reading is good.
If you are only on Metformin then your readings should be used to judge what foods to eat, you can always combat low readings with carb rich food, you will have to experiment as to what spikes you and what can give a longer smoother increase (e.g a cracker may cause a spike but combined with cheese will not go so high but will last longer).

 

[Emmandelo]

thanks Vicsetter. when i got the low readings I tested again five minutes later and got the same result. I'm still experimenting with how my diet affects me so it's ongoing at the moment but thanks for the tip.