just a thought...

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D_G

D_G

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Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
When you test 2 hour post meal, do you do it 2 hours after you started the meal (first bite) or 2 hours after finishing the meal (last bite) and will this make a difference to the readings?

Also i have been using my new contour meter which has a 2 hour post meal alarm. this alarm is set straight after you test pre meal, so between the time when the alarm has been set i have worked out my insulin, injected and then waited 10-15 mins to eat, then the alarm goes off 2 hours later...but surely this wont be accurate as i didnt actualy eat my meal until about 20 mins later than when the alarm was set??

God i hope this makes sense!! lol
 
I often wonder if it is 2 hours after first bite or last bite. I imagine it will make a difference to the test results, especially if it is a large meal. This is one debate that will continue for a while, I hope we reach a satisfactory answer.
 
My somewhat unhelpful answer would be "does it really matter?"

But that is from a Type 2 (non-insulin controlled) perspective! 🙂

I await, more helpful responses with interest!

Andy
 
I'd say after because thats when all the carbs you've taken insulin for are in your body and starting to be digested x
 
It's because two hours after injecting is when the peak of action for the insulin is. I personally test two hours after bolusing on my pump.
 
That's got my brain thinking. Generally I do 2 hours after eating, but Tom has a point about the peak of insulin being about 2 hours after bolusing - but I've found I have to inject a good 30 mins - sometimes up to an hour - before I eat. I've also found that insulin lingers in my system for about 5 or 6 hours after bolusing.

Oh my brain hurts. I might ring the DSNs and ask.
 
We test 2 hours after the bolus. It takes 10 minutes for the insulin to even start working. Most of the time we bolus seconds before eating - so the food starts to hit the system when the insulin starts to work - so it makes sense to me to time it from initial bolus. Of course, this can be different for foods that are very fatty and take longer to digest - so I would suggest trying one of these fatty foods and doing a 2 3 and 4 hour check to see when the peak of the food is for you. This way you will know when the apropriate test applies to you. If you look at the food experiments you will see just how different everyones results can be from eating the same food.

AndyB it matters because it is a way of stopping the 'spikes' caused by certain foods and a correction of insulin can be given. The aim is to keep levels as close to those of a non-diabetic - so if you spike at 2 hours then this needs to be addressed - with either a correction or a change in ratios or even a basal change if on a pump. Hope that helps.🙂Bev
 
I have wondered about this, but have always tested two hours after my injection. If you're not on insulin then the rules are probably different, because you're looking for the glucose peak and have no way of controlling the insulin peak - you want to know how high the food ultimately sends you. On insulin, you hope to make the curves of insulin and food coincide.
 
as a T2 when i was testing post meal to see what foods did what... i did it 2 hrs after finishing ...but i wasnt having to be that scientific about it now i tend to test am and pm as im working on the DP i seem to always get (apart from when i ate chinese!)
 
I test 2 hours after finnishing eating. I try and have my injections a good 20 mins before starting to eat, so I think 2 hours after injections would be a bit too soon.

To be honest I eat that quickly, I don't think whether it was 2 hours from the first or last bite would make that much difference for me.
 
bev said:
AndyB it matters because it is a way of stopping the 'spikes' caused by certain foods and a correction of insulin can be given. The aim is to keep levels as close to those of a non-diabetic - so if you spike at 2 hours then this needs to be addressed - with either a correction or a change in ratios or even a basal change if on a pump. Hope that helps.🙂Bev
Click to expand...

Thanks Bev, I'm finding this all very useful and am storing it away for future reference!

I was a little unclear though. I was wondering whether it 'matters' if one tested after 2hrs or whether it was 1hr 50mins or 2hrs 10mins? I assume that the spike isn't going to occur spot on 2hrs.

Andy
 
Andy HB said:
Thanks Bev, I'm finding this all very useful and am storing it away for future reference!

I was a little unclear though. I was wondering whether it 'matters' if one tested after 2hrs or whether it was 1hr 50mins or 2hrs 10mins? I assume that the spike isn't going to occur spot on 2hrs.

Andy
Click to expand...

That's the really tricky part Andy. Some people test at 1 and 2 and 3 hours so that they can see the 'profile' of the food. Fine tuning when repeating the same meal then occurs until you find the point at which the BG doesn't get higher, and also hopefully stays within range. A CGM (Continuous Glucose Monitor) would give you much better information.
 
This all sounds terribly complicated to me - am I a 'bad diabetic' who doesn't test, test and test again to find out about 'spike' foods, levels 2 hours after, at 3am, before I step out the house............the list goes on. Some days I want to be like other folks. Sorry for rant.
 
I test 2 hours after my insulin, so that usually is 2 hours after I have finished eating as I generally bolus afterwards. For me 2 hours into my novorapid I could safely correct. I don't tend to do many 2 hour checks anymore though, I am happy with my ratios and don't find that I have too many bad spikes.
 
I know my consultants think I test too often. They dont recommend doing 2 hour testing on a regular basis, just every now and then to check your ratios are working properly. I think it is possible to become a bit too obsessed with it, I definitely think I am and have been for a while.
 
Rather simplistic approach, estimate how long it takes you from taking a reading to 2hrs post eating and put that number in as the default countdown (say 2:40). It's never going to be 100% accurate but close enough I would have thought. You could always use the kitchen timer of course.
 
Wow i didnt expect this to spark so much interest and debate, theres me thinking it was a question with a straightforward answer.....🙄

But then again if i have learnt anything its that the D is far from simple! :(
 
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