Does water help reduce bg

Status
Not open for further replies.
H

HalfpipMarathon

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Can someone help settle a well known claim:

I have read that drinking water as well as flushing sugar out can help to reduce bg levels particularly when not able to exercise unless of course that doesn't actually help either! This is very demoralising if it's true, as it's the only way I have of reducing, when it works as I'm not on insulin which someone told me is only thing that lowers bg.

I have been drinking more water at least 2 pints.
 
Can't answer your question but I'm guessing that drinking more water is a long way down the list of effective methods for reducing blood glucose. Why do you think it is the only way for you?

Many of us have got blood glucose down without insulin and not drinking loads of water. As a gentleman of uncertain age, for me, drinking anything in quantity has the most inconvenient of repercussions!
 
Docb said:
Can't answer your question but I'm guessing that drinking more water is a long way down the list of effective methods for reducing blood glucose. Why do you think it is the only way for you?

Many of us have got blood glucose down without insulin and not drinking loads of water. As a gentleman of uncertain age, for me, drinking anything in quantity has the most inconvenient of repercussions!
Click to expand...
Other than exercise which is not always convenient water is the only way I know of to reduce my bs although as I stated it hasn't always worked.
trophywench said:
Snap!
Click to expand...
Snap?
 
It depends how high your BG levels are and if you are dehydrated.

If your BG levels are persistently in double figures (ie not just a spike from food but a baseline level) particularly mid teens or above then your kidneys will start to remove the surplus glucose from your system and you may start to feel thirsty as the kidneys start to work harder and is why one of the symptoms of high BG is a raging thirst and frequent trips to the loo, but this is only when levels get really high. Whether you can trigger this function of the kidneys by drinking more water I am not sure, it is more about assisting your kidneys once they start this process, however keeping well hydrated will dilute your blood and interstitial fluid so that can drop the concentration of glucose in your blood to a small extent and those of us who use Libre and perhaps go all day without drinking much or anything will sometimes see a notable drop of 1-2 mmols after a good long drink.

Exercise can increase your BG in some instances and decrease it in others. It depends on your fitness and the type and level of intensity of the exercise. High intensity which stresses the body and causes your heart to race and your muscles to burn will usually increase your BG in the short term but build muscle in the long term which will improve insulin sensitivity and glucose storage. More gentle prolonged exercise like a 40 min walk will usually start to lower your levels.

Your means of managing your diabetes as a dietary controlled Type 2 is to note which foods cause your levels to spike to high and reducing the portion and/or frequency of eating those foods, so it is about preventing your levels going too high through dietary choices rather than trying to bring them down when they do.

I hit 27mmols one night not long after diagnosis after eating something I shouldn't at suppertime. This was before I was on insulin and I spent all night drinking pint after pint of water and weeing every half an hour, to get it down to 22 by the morning, so not massively effective but took me away from the danger zone. The water was necessary to allow my kidneys to remove the glucose and without it I probably would have totally dehydrated or gone into DKA but I was so desperately thirsty I did not want to stop, because that was my body's way of dealing with the problem of very high BG levels. If you are at 11mmols I imagine it is much less effective and a couple of pints of water probably won't do much. Better just not to eat whatever pushed your levels that high next time.
 
Drinking more water than you need can upset your electrolyte balance and something recently suggests that people don't need to drink nearly as much as was thought.
It is suggested that drinking water helps bring blood glucose down if very high for some reason but not necessarily as a routine thing unless your medication requires it as that is how it works.
 
rebrascora said:
It depends how high your BG levels are and if you are dehydrated.

If your BG levels are persistently in double figures (ie not just a spike from food but a baseline level) particularly mid teens or above then your kidneys will start to remove the surplus glucose from your system and you may start to feel thirsty as the kidneys start to work harder and is why one of the symptoms of high BG is a raging thirst and frequent trips to the loo, but this is only when levels get really high. Whether you can trigger this function of the kidneys by drinking more water I am not sure, it is more about assisting your kidneys once they start this process, however keeping well hydrated will dilute your blood and interstitial fluid so that can drop the concentration of glucose in your blood to a small extent and those of us who use Libre and perhaps go all day without drinking much or anything will sometimes see a notable drop of 1-2 mmols after a good long drink.

Exercise can increase your BG in some instances and decrease it in others. It depends on your fitness and the type and level of intensity of the exercise. High intensity which stresses the body and causes your heart to race and your muscles to burn will usually increase your BG in the short term but build muscle in the long term which will improve insulin sensitivity and glucose storage. More gentle prolonged exercise like a 40 min walk will usually start to lower your levels.

Your means of managing your diabetes as a dietary controlled Type 2 is to note which foods cause your levels to spike to high and reducing the portion and/or frequency of eating those foods, so it is about preventing your levels going too high through dietary choices rather than trying to bring them down when they do.

I hit 27mmols one night not long after diagnosis after eating something I shouldn't at suppertime. This was before I was on insulin and I spent all night drinking pint after pint of water and weeing every half an hour, to get it down to 22 by the morning, so not massively effective but took me away from the danger zone. The water was necessary to allow my kidneys to remove the glucose and without it I probably would have totally dehydrated or gone into DKA but I was so desperately thirsty I did not want to stop, because that was my body's way of dealing with the problem of very high BG levels. If you are at 11mmols I imagine it is much less effective and a couple of pints of water probably won't do much. Better just not to eat whatever pushed your levels that high next time.
Click to expand...
The highest I have ever been is 12..4 but it hasn't lasted as next test I have been at a more normal I tend to run/walk or gym.

I don't really drink enough. Two coffees and diet drink on a work day so decided to drink a bit more water.
 
Leadinglights said:
Drinking more water than you need can upset your electrolyte balance and something recently suggests that people don't need to drink nearly as much as was thought.
It is suggested that drinking water helps bring blood glucose down if very high for some reason but not necessarily as a routine thing unless your medication requires it as that is how it works.
Click to expand...
Wouldn't have thought 2 pints of water is much. I drink coffee but only twice day. My drinks are fairly spaced out.

Not so much now but I hated going to bed at 9+ still do but I haven't seen a 9+ for 6 days now before bed.
 
HalfpipMarathon said:
Wouldn't have thought 2 pints of water is much. I drink coffee but only twice day. My drinks are fairly spaced out.

Not so much now but I hated going to bed at 9+ still do but I haven't seen a 9+ for 6 days now before bed.
Click to expand...
I'm sure that is fine and a sensible amount as you are not having that many other drinks.
 
My Snap! was to Docb, confirming that drinking a lot of anything also has unfortunate consequences for ladies!
 
HalfpipMarathon said:
Can someone help settle a well known claim:

I have read that drinking water as well as flushing sugar out can help to reduce bg levels particularly when not able to exercise unless of course that doesn't actually help either! This is very demoralising if it's true, as it's the only way I have of reducing, when it works as I'm not on insulin which someone told me is only thing that lowers bg.

I have been drinking more water at least 2 pints.
Click to expand...
I found that not eating things that push up my blood sugar was a good way to start. Also not eating anything (fasting) was another useful string to my bow
 
Another vote for changing what you eat to avoid the highs in the first place. I’d go as far as to say staying well hydrated is a good plan, not least to enable the kidneys to help out reducing levels as best they can and to avoid “concentrating” the sugar in a lower blood volume, but I don’t think it’s going to make a significant change, unlike the food option.

I’m not sure if your exercise limitations are physical, time or personal safety orientated but a steady walk or doing the stairs a number of times or some squats are more likely to do a lot more post a high number than the water. Anything that makes you move in a sustained but not too energetic a way really.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top