Hello, Just diagnosed T2 and hoping for some advice regarding blood testing

[Scott Jackson]

Hello everyone,

3 weeks ago i was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, after getting my test results back my glucose levels on the day where 22 mmol then after going for the hba1c that came back at 107 this confirmed the diagnosis. I waited 3 weeks for my nurse appointment and obviously was very concerned so i started to try and educate myself as much as possible online regarding foods and what not.

I started a low carb diet that i'm still tinkering with but in the 2 weeks i was doing it i tried to stay under 20 carbs per day sometimes sticking to it sometimes slightly over which resulted in me losing 5kg from 109 kg so was fairly happy with that and asked the nurse at my appointment yesterday was it a good idea to monitor my levels after eating like i read about here, just before and 2 hours after which she agreed it was good to sort out what foods are suiting you and which aren't.

So i had a normal low carb meal today of chicken breast and broccoli and cauliflower but i was super confused as my reading pre meal was 6.1mmol (this was the first test since diagnosis) then my test 2 hours later after it had dropped to 4.3mmol i was just hoping for not to big of a rise but of a drop of 2 still doesn't make sense to me. Again i'm fairly new to all this and felt like i was doing well diet wise but is it really realistic i dropped this amount of glucose and is it dropping after a meal a problem?

Would really appreciate any advice i see my doctor again soon and will mention it by trying to figure out what either i did wrong or is it something to worry about

 

[rebrascora]

Hi and welcome.
Sorry to hear of your diagnosis but you have come to the right place for advice and support. It sounds like you have made some fantastic progress so far.
I would be a little wary of going very low carb all at once, especially when your HbA1c was so high to start with.... A dramatic change in BG levels can cause problems with the eyes. I would aim for a more realistic 50-100g carbs a day and then bring it down further in a few weeks or months if your BG monitor tells you your readings are still too high.
Some people do see a drop after a low carb meal, particularly in the evening and I would not be overly concerned about it. You will not go too low unless you are on medication which can induce the pancreas to produce more insulin like Gliclazide. The body will actually produce glucose from protein and fat in your diet (not just carbs but to a much lesser extent) as well from fat stores in the body which you must be burning since you have lost some weight, so don't be concerned that you will run out of glucose or anything.
It may be that the liver is sucking glucose out of the bloodstream after you have eaten your evening meal to store for later... to keep your bodily functions ticking over during the night. You can think of the liver a bit like a rechargeable battery.... it stores glucose to power the body when there is no food in the system. When you are on mains power (ie you have eaten a meal and food is digesting and producing glucose), the liver taps into that and recharges itself for later when the food is gone and the mains power is off. It is a much more complex process but hopefully this little analogy gives you the basics of what is going on.

 

[Scott Jackson]

Thank you for your quick response Rebrascora, What you are saying does make sense and has helped settle my mind a little the added confusion for me is that i didn't get started on medication yet as my bloods showed a liver issue (enzymes) that as of yet im still waiting for a scan. The doctor seemed very concerned with my initial levels and wanted to get me on metformin asap was holding back prescribing until i had the scan results back.

Now this is the first blood test i did since the initial one being 6.1 pre meal and lower after would this possibly mean going onto metformin could be dangerous?

 

[rebrascora]

I would say that it means going onto Metformin would be unnecessary. From the (admittedly very limited) readings you have so far, it looks like you will be able to manage your diabetes by diet and perhaps a little exercise without the need for medication.
The GP was rightly concerned about your high HbA1c reading as 107 puts you in the red risk zone I think but what the health care professionals have difficulty in grasping is that a low carb diet is significantly more powerful and effective than the majority of meds in many Type 2 cases.
If you continue with readings like those two, your next HbA1c in 3 months time could be into the prediabetes (42-47) range and your GP will be a very happy doctor.

 

[rebrascora]

You might find Martin's account of his first year with diabetes quite helpful..... since he started with a reading of 114 a year ago and has pushed it into remission mostly through diet and exercise...

One Year In

So here we are. On this day last year I got a call from my GP to say that the results of my blood tests for unexplained weight loss were in and everything was normal except my HbA1c (114) so her diagnosis was Diabetes. In a way it was a relief because I was also waiting on the results of my...

forum.diabetes.org.uk

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @Scott Jackson

As you are not on medication, I would not worry too much about occasional rogue results.

All BG meters have permitted +/-15% tolerance, and those only apply 95% of the time, so it could be that it was a duff strip, or that it wasn’t as extreme at is appeared.

I would wait to soak to your nurse if GP regarding the possibility of medication. Metformin does not directly reduce BG, but acts by reducing glucose output from the liver, and increasing insulin sensitivity - so it’s unlikely to cause hypoglycaemia.

 

[ianf0ster]

It seems as though you are taking the right advice an taking control of your Blood Gucose.
Well done for that!
This is a marathon, not a sprint, so keep it sustainable and keep going, that way you will be healthier than the average person of our age!

 

[Ljc]

Hello @Scott Jackson , welcome to the forum. I agree this is a marathon not a sprint, whatever changes you make the need to be sustainable long term.

Fortunately T2 is a condition that can be managed well and doesn’t always need medication. Though some medics/ nurses seem to want to put us straight on meds without giving a person the info and opportunity to do as you have done. some folks do need to go straight on meds to bring there very high BG (blood glucose) levels down.

Sometime in fact quite often when our BG levels come down fast our vision goes blurry, this is why they want to bring our levels down more slowly, it’s usually temporary while our eyes adjust, it can take around a month for things to improve. If this happens to you don’t panic, you shouldn’t drive till your vision complies with the DVLA regs.
If you get your eyes checked out, a good option will not try to sell you glasses till your eyes have settled down, if they do , then walk out, I bought some cheap ones from pound shops ,

 

[Scott Jackson]

Quick update, i have stayed on my 20 carbs a day diet and have 2 more readings of 5.2 pre meal and 5.4 two hours post then today 5.1 then 4.7 two hours post, again i really am surprised by the effectiveness of a low carb diet having no experience i thought this would be something i would have to really fight with to get the sugar down. While i understand i'm virtually eating no sugar and i have no doubts if i hadn't changed anything i still would have been sky high, feel like i may up my carbs to 50g per day next week to see if i can still maintain these numbers.

Does anyone think i should question going onto metformin the doctor wants to prescribe? (We havent spoken since i went from 22 mmol to my current numbers) or will it help me long term to take it, say would allow me to relax slightly this really low carb diet?

 

[Ljc]

My own personal non medical opinion is
As you have brought your levels down to a very good range then all the time your BG (blood glucose levels) are so good , then I don’t think you need medication for diabetes.

Metformin doesn’t actually lower your blood glucose like say insulin does, it works by preventing the liver producing as much glucose that fuels our body when our mealtime glucose runs down and by making us more sensitive to our own insulin, you don’t seem to need this help atm also Metformin is often called Metfartin on here because with quite a few people it has some unpleasant digestive tract upsets, (which with the current panic buying of loo rolls , would be rather erm.... inconvenient ) , they are not always temporary.

Be guided by your meter , we are all so very different in what and how many carbs we can tolerate, some do need to go very low others do not. I always worry when someone new to diabetes goes very low carb , as I don’t want them to set themselves up to fail.

 

[Toucan]

Well done @Scott Jackson those are excellent results, and good to know that you are coping with low carb eating so well.
Many of us find it to be enjoyable and as well as getting good reading usually feel a lot better as well.

You need to ensure though that you have an eating plan that is sustainable for the long term though, and it is a matter of trial and error at first to though to find out what is right for you, so yes I would try 50g for a few days and see how it goes.

If you can sustain your current reading as they are or even a little higher, then I would suggest to your doctor that you can manage well without metformin, but just keep things monitored.

Best wishes, and keep posting !

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Thanks for the update @Scott Jackson

Sounds like you are doing brilliantly. Hope the increased carbs suit you well, especially if they will make that way of eating more sustainable long-term for you. Diabetes is a long game, so you need to find an approach that will suit you going forward.

As to medication - I would discuss the potential benefits and drawbacks in the light of your current results. I believe there is thought to be some cardio-protective aspect to Metformin, but also as @Ljc suggests, it is well known for ‘gastric upheaval’ side effects.