Hypers

[bevpugh]

Afternoon..I’m having trouble with hypers why am I suffering so much with them ? How do they come on ? Is it something I’m drinking or eating? Any information would be appreciated thank you

 

[harbottle]

It could be because you're eating too many carbs.
Are you on any medication for your diabetes?

 

[bevpugh]

It could be because you're eating too many carbs.
Are you on any medication for your diabetes?

Yes I had it increased last December as my numbers kept climbing….my doctors are not very helpful and even after 5 years I still don’t understand diabetes

 

[rebrascora]

What do you mean by a "Hyper"? I am not sure there is any set definition other than high BG so it is important to understand what you mean the term.
I assume you are testing your levels to know you are hyper or perhaps it is just a sensation or symptoms you are feeling?

If you are testing, when are you getting the high levels?
If you are newly diagnosed it sometimes happens that you are permanently high/hyper in which case it takes time with diet, exercise and perhaps medication to bring them down.

 

[bevpugh]

What do you mean by a "Hyper"? I am not sure there is any set definition other than high BG so it is important to understand what you mean the term.
I assume you are testing your levels to know you are hyper or perhaps it is just a sensation or symptoms you are feeling?

If you are testing, when are you getting the high levels?
If you are newly diagnosed it sometimes happens that you are permanently high/hyper in which case it takes time with diet, exercise and perhaps medication to bring them down.

I’ve been type 2 diabetic for 5 years was told by my gp I didn’t need to test my levels but I bought a blood glucose meter anyway I was feeling light headed so tested it was 10.1 and the meter said hyper ….I’m feeling quite bad most days even after just my breakfast I’m just confused and not much support from my gp

 

[Martin.A]

I’ve been type 2 diabetic for 5 years was told by my gp I didn’t need to test my levels but I bought a blood glucose meter anyway I was feeling light headed so tested it was 10.1 and the meter said hyper ….I’m feeling quite bad most days even after just my breakfast I’m just confused and not much support from my gp

You've shown why some HCPs are wrong about self-testing.

When you tested was it a fasting test or was it after eating, and if after eating how long after and what did you eat?

 

[bevpugh]

You've shown why some HCPs are wrong about self-testing.

When you tested was it a fasting test or was it after eating, and if after eating how long after and what did you eat?

After lunch about an hour and fifty after I ate it was a chicken and cucumber sandwich

 

[harbottle]

After lunch about an hour and fifty after I ate it was a chicken and cucumber sandwich

Bread will probably put your blood sugar up.
What were you before you ate?

T2D can progress as time goes on and blood sugar starts rising.

What was your last hba1c? And what medications are you on?

 

[bevpugh]

Bread will probably put your blood sugar up.
What were you before you ate?

T2D can progress as time goes on and blood sugar starts rising.

What was your last hba1c? And what medications are you on?

Because I was told I don’t need to test I only test when I’m feeling ill I’ve no idea of my numbers I was told they have gone up…again not a very helpful or supportive gp I’m on metformin

 

[harbottle]

Because I was told I don’t need to test I only test when I’m feeling ill I’ve no idea of my numbers I was told they have gone up…again not a very helpful or supportive gp I’m on metformin

It's a good idea to test before food and then two hours later to get an idea of the effect.

I have found GPs to be pointless as well. I guess if they are saying it's gone up, they mean your hba1c has increased. Try lowering the carbs in your diet and testing and try to keep the levels under 8.5 after a meal and between 4 and 7 when fasting.

(My breakfast is usually Greek yoghurt and some berries, I stopped eating bread when I was diagnosed, unless it's my home made rolls made from almond flour.)

How is your weight? (I know it's a rude question).
I lost 3 stone of weight very quickly and this helped get levels down.
(I was overweight)

 

[Martin.A]

After lunch about an hour and fifty after I ate it was a chicken and cucumber sandwich

2 hours after the first bite is the norm but @harbottle is right, bread will put your BG up. Testing before the first bite and 2 hours later would tell you by how much. It's a useful way of managing diet.

If it was 2 slices from a standard 800g loaf that could be in the region of 35g carbohydrate in most cases.

 

[bevpugh]

It's a good idea to test before food and then two hours later to get an idea of the effect.

I have found GPs to be pointless as well. I guess if they are saying it's gone up, they mean your hba1c has increased. Try lowering the carbs in your diet and testing and try to keep the levels under 8.5 after a meal and between 4 and 7 when fasting.

(My breakfast is usually Greek yoghurt and some berries, I stopped eating bread when I was diagnosed, unless it's my home made rolls made from almond flour.)

How is your weight? (I know it's a rude question).
I lost 3 stone of weight very quickly and this helped get levels down.
(I was overweight)

I’m overweight I’m also in perimenopause I don’t think that’s helping….I’ve never heard of making bread with almond flour that’s something for me to look into thank you I’m a bit confused over carbs the nurse at my gp surgery told me to look online for info but that’s just confusing me even more

 

[bevpugh]

2 hours after the first bite is the norm but @harbottle is right, bread will put your BG up. Testing before the first bite and 2 hours later would tell you by how much. It's a useful way of managing diet.

If it was 2 slices from a standard 800g loaf that could be in the region of 35g carbohydrate in most cases.

Ok thank you

 

[rebrascora]

Whilst a reading of 10 is not idea nearly 2 hours after food, it should not make you feel il/dizzyl. Non-diabetic people can find their levels spike up briefly into double figures, so I would be surprised if this is the cause of you feeling unwell.
I am quite surprised that the meter suggests you are hyper at that level.

Can you tell us the sort of things you typically eat and drink for breakfast, lunch and evening meal, so that we can perhaps suggest alternatives which might help you.

It is also important for us to know what medication you are taking for your diabetes as that can impact any dietary advice we give.

It is great that you have got yourself a test kit because success with diabetes management is all about taking control yourself and finding what works for you as an individual. All you need now is a testing strategy which will help you to understand how your body responds to particular foods and meals and then adjust your diet around those results and we can help you with that.

Firstly it is important to know that all carbohydrates break down into glucose in our digestive system and get absorbed into our blood, causing it to rise, so diabetes isn't just about sugar but all carbs including bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, couscous, breakfast cereals including porridge and even fruit as well as the obvious sugars and sweet things like cakes and biscuits.
That is not to say that you can't eat those things and some will affect your BG levels more than others, so doing some testing will help to show you which carbs your body is OK with and in what portion size and which send your levels into orbit and are best avoided or kept for very special occasions only.

In this case, the bread from your sandwich may well be responsible for pushing your levels up into double figures, but without knowing what your premeal reading was we can't be sure. For instance, if your levels were 9.1 before the sandwich and went up to just 10.1 two hours afterwards then that would suggest your body coped with it OK because they have only increased by 1mmol. If however you were 6.1 before the sandwich but 10.1 afterwards then that would be a large rise of 4mmols. Ideally, if you can keep the rise from each meal below 3mmols, your HbA1c should gradually come down and your diabetes management will improve and you may even be able to reduce your medication.

 

[Martin.A]

I’m a bit confused over carbs the nurse at my gp surgery told me to look online for info but that’s just confusing me even more

I've found that a useful way to get carb info online is to go onto one of the supermarket websites as though you were going to place an order for home delivery, search for the item and then scroll down to the Table of Nutritional Information. This is an example (bread) from the Sainsbury's site:-

 

[bevpugh]

Whilst a reading of 10 is not idea nearly 2 hours after food, it should not make you feel il/dizzyl. Non-diabetic people can find their levels spike up briefly into double figures, so I would be surprised if this is the cause of you feeling unwell.
I am quite surprised that the meter suggests you are hyper at that level.

Can you tell us the sort of things you typically eat and drink for breakfast, lunch and evening meal, so that we can perhaps suggest alternatives which might help you.

It is also important for us to know what medication you are taking for your diabetes as that can impact any dietary advice we give.

It is great that you have got yourself a test kit because success with diabetes management is all about taking control yourself and finding what works for you as an individual. All you need now is a testing strategy which will help you to understand how your body responds to particular foods and meals and then adjust your diet around those results and we can help you with that.

Firstly it is important to know that all carbohydrates break down into glucose in our digestive system and get absorbed into our blood, causing it to rise, so diabetes isn't just about sugar but all carbs including bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, couscous, breakfast cereals including porridge and even fruit as well as the obvious sugars and sweet things like cakes and biscuits.
That is not to say that you can't eat those things and some will affect your BG levels more than others, so doing some testing will help to show you which carbs your body is OK with and in what portion size and which send your levels into orbit and are best avoided or kept for very special occasions only.

In this case, the bread from your sandwich may well be responsible for pushing your levels up into double figures, but without knowing what your premeal reading was we can't be sure. For instance, if your levels were 9.1 before the sandwich and went up to just 10.1 two hours afterwards then that would suggest your body coped with it OK because they have only increased by 1mmol. If however you were 6.1 before the sandwich but 10.1 afterwards then that would be a large rise of 4mmols. Ideally, if you can keep the rise from each meal below 3mmols, your HbA1c should gradually come down and your diabetes management will improve and you may even be able to reduce your medication.

I have cereal with skimmed milk for breakfast honestly I don’t always eat a lunch from just not being hungry or not knowing what to eat…dinner is homemade pizza burgers chips jacket potatoes lots of chicken plain and breaded the odd roast dinner…after 5 years I’m not used to using the meter as the nurse said no point as your just a type 2..I’m on 4 metformin a day that’s from 2 a day …it’s not just hypers I’m having problems with my feet as well it’s hard getting a face to face appointment at the doctor that’s why I’m asking here I appreciate the help

 

[Sally71]

Ooooh that so annoys me, when they say “no point testing because you’re only a type 2”. How exactly do they expect you to improve your HbA1c if you don’t know what’s causing the problem? It’s like driving down the motorway in a 50mph average speed zone without being allowed to look at the speedo to see how fast you are going at any particular moment!
Out of what you’ve listed, cereal, pizza, chips and jacket potatoes are all high carb, burgers are OK but do you put them in a bun? You need to try to cut down on bread, potatoes, rice, cereals etc as well as sugar. What you can eat lots of is unprocessed meat, fish, eggs, cheese and green veg. So maybe for your dinner try to reduce the amount of chips and potatoes and maybe replace them with more meat or veg or salad. You can do things such as mash cauliflower and have that instead of potato, or shred courgettes up to make a replacement for rice or pasta. For breakfast, maybe try an omelette or natural yogurt with berries (which are the lowest carb fruits). Or have a trial of different cereals and different portion sizes, you may find there is one particular type of cereal your body can cope with. Then do some serious testing, immediately before you eat and again 2 hours afterwards to see how much the food makes you rise. Less than 2-3 mmol/l is OK, more is not. From that you will learn what foods you can get away with and what you need to avoid. Then maybe you can show your nurse that testing can be useful if done sensibly!

When shopping, you need to look at the total carbohydrate number on food packets, and try to get that as low as you can. The “of which sugars” bit is useless.

 

[bevpugh]

Ooooh that so annoys me, when they say “no point testing because you’re only a type 2”. How exactly do they expect you to improve your HbA1c if you don’t know what’s causing the problem? It’s like driving down the motorway in a 50mph average speed zone without being allowed to look at the speedo to see how fast you are going at any particular moment!
Out of what you’ve listed, cereal, pizza, chips and jacket potatoes are all high carb, burgers are OK but do you put them in a bun? You need to try to cut down on bread, potatoes, rice, cereals etc as well as sugar. What you can eat lots of is unprocessed meat, fish, eggs, cheese and green veg. So maybe for your dinner try to reduce the amount of chips and potatoes and maybe replace them with more meat or veg or salad. You can do things such as mash cauliflower and have that instead of potato, or shred courgettes up to make a replacement for rice or pasta. For breakfast, maybe try an omelette or natural yogurt with berries (which are the lowest carb fruits). Or have a trial of different cereals and different portion sizes, you may find there is one particular type of cereal your body can cope with. Then do some serious testing, immediately before you eat and again 2 hours afterwards to see how much the food makes you rise. Less than 2-3 mmol/l is OK, more is not. From that you will learn what foods you can get away with and what you need to avoid. Then maybe you can show your nurse that testing can be useful if done sensibly!

When shopping, you need to look at the total carbohydrate number on food packets, and try to get that as low as you can. The “of which sugars” bit is useless.

Got to admit I’m quite fussy not big on eggs or cheese ( on my pizza it’s a thin layer) veg is ok I’ve tried sweet potato it’s horrid I need some potatoes as I feel full after eating it so I’m not snacking after dinner but I get your point I just wished the nurse gave me some useful information and support I know I’m fat I don’t need to be told …I’ve got to learn about carbs and to test more…thank you

 

[rebrascora]

Nurses and GPs mostly have no understanding of the power of self testing and unfortunately, the NHS doesn't have the funds to finance it for every Type 2, so of course they don't recommend it, but if you read some of the success stories here on the forum you will find that the majority of people find testing an invaluable tool in managing their diabetes well and in many cases, pushing it into remission. It can help to discourage you from eating the not so good foods when you see what they do to your levels but also encourage you to keep going when you make changes and start to see good results.

Which cereal do you have for breakfast?

Do you like skimmed milk? I ask this because if not, full fat milk may be better for your diabetes and more enjoyable.
Unfortunately the NHS advice is to go low fat and eat moderate wholegrain carbs but this is not helpful advice for many Type 2 diabetics. Wholemeal/wholegrain carbs (ie wholemeal bread, pasta, brown rice, sweet potato, etc) contain only marginally less carbs than the white versions and your body often doesn't care if they are brown or not and breaks them down in the same way, resulting in your levels increasing. Added to that, fat helps you to feel satisfied and therefore reduces hunger, so eating less carbs and more fat means that your BG levels will be lower and more stable and you won't feel hungry 2 hours after a meal and be looking for a snack.
Many of us find that creamy Greek style natural yoghurt (not low fat but full fat) with a few berries which are the lowest carb fruits (tartier fruits have less carbs than sweeter ones and our native berries tend to be pretty low carb, so raspberries and blackberries and blackcurrants and a few blueberries and some mixed seeds and perhaps chopped nuts, works well as a low carb start to the day. Interestingly a full English breakfast is also lower carb than a bowl of cereal, provided you don't have baked bean, toast/bread or hash browns with it. I am not advocating a full English every day, but once in a while as a treat, it is a nice low carb option.

Cereals are about 60% carbs which is a lot. If you have 50g of cereal, that is 35g carbs. Eggs, bacon, mushrooms and a link of high meat content sausage contain almost no carbs at all. Full fat Greek natural yoghurt is about 5% carbs and a few berries are about 5% carbs, so if you have 100g yoghurt and 100g berries, that is about 10g carbs. That means a breakfast of yoghurt with berries is more than 2 thirds less carbs than your cereal, so that is a very significant reduction just in that one meal.

You really need to learn to read food labels and in particular the Nutritional info on the back or side of packets, not the traffic light system on the front which is not much help to us diabetics.

 

[Sally71]

Protein is also supposed to make you feel fuller for longer than carbohydrate, so maybe try increasing the meat content of your meals rather than have potatoes?
We know it’s hard and nobody expects you to change everything at once. There are lots of good ideas though so try one or two at a time and see how it goes. Maybe change one meal first and when you’re happy with that start working on the next one. If you try to change things too drastically you won’t be able to stick to it, but if you really want to change you can do it, you just have to put a bit of effort in. Good luck