Sorry, I've still got newbie questions

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Janmh

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Hi and sorry, still new to this, trying to reverse pre-diabetes. I have lost 30lbs since the start of November but now having read another post when I first joined I took my first blood glucose reading at 12pm today and it was 5.7mmol. I had oat cluster cereal with natural plain
yoghurt and a few raspberries, blueberries and chopped apple with a skinny foods zero calorie maple syrup pour for a bit of sweetness which is the only way I can manage plain yoghurt. My question is, did I do the right thing testing after 2 hours? Isn't that a long time to wait to see if my blood sugar spiked? Apart from losing weight and upping my exercise, I really wnat to know more about how what I'm eating affects my blood sugar and my body but I can't afford the Zoe so today is that start of me keeping a results table to see what (healthy) foods are better for me than others. Thank you in advance for your help on best points in the day to test.
 
Never apologise for asking questions @Janmh 🙂 Well done on your weight loss! Yes, you should test just before your meal and then again two hours later. It’s normal for blood sugar to go up after a meal but it should come back down by two hours. If your 5.7 was a two hour reading, then that’s great.
 
These are the targets for Type 2:

If you have type 2 diabetes​

  • before meals: 4 to 7mmol/l
  • two hours after meals: less than 8.5mmol/l
 
Hi @Janmh

The 2 hour test is a rough measure of how quickly blood glucose comes back down to normal after eating. It's long enough for most, but perhaps not all, of the carbs in a meal to hit the bloodstream, depending on the composition of the meal. It's not a perfect test but it does provide a simple way to compare foods. For a full blown type 2 diabetic, who may not be producing enough insulin or whose insulin isn't working as effectively as it should, it's as good a measure as any as to how well they're able to 'handle' specific foods. For you it might provide some insight but as you are prediabetic and have a mostly-working or perhaps even completely-working pancreas producing insulin the 2 hour test may not be as clear-cut as it might be for a diagnosed Type 2. It might not show you big differences between foods as you might be able to handle most foods very well.

5.7 two hours after eating is a very good number BTW and congratulation on the weight loss! 🙂
 
Keep asking away @Janmh - there’s no such thing as a silly question on the forum 🙂

The ‘pair of readings’ approach can be really powerful. Immediately before eating, and again 2hrs after the first bite allows you to see the rise from the meal. Initially in a way the numbers themselves arguably could be considered to matter less than the differences between them. Ideally you would want to see a rise of no more than 2-3mmol/L at the 2hr mark. It may have very briefly been a little higher, but if the rise is down to 2-3 at 2hrs it’s unlikely to have been crazy high (especially if you keep below 8.5 at the 2hr mark.

Once you can see how you respond to different meals you can begin experimenting with reducing portion sizes of the carbs where you see bigger rises. You might find that you are particularly sensitive to carbohydrate from one source (eg bread), but have more liberty with others (eg oats or basmati rice) - It’s all very individual!

You might even find that just having things at a different time of day makes a difference - with breakfast time being the trickiest.

Over weeks and months of experimentation you can gradually tweak and tailor your menu to find one that suits your tastebuds, your waistline, your budget and your BG levels - and a way of eating that is flexible enough to be sustainable long-term. 🙂
 
everydayupsanddowns said:
Keep asking away @Janmh - there’s no such thing as a silly question on the forum 🙂

The ‘pair of readings’ approach can be really powerful. Immediately before eating, and again 2hrs after the first bite allows you to see the rise from the meal. Initially in a way the numbers themselves arguably could be considered to matter less than the differences between them. Ideally you would want to see a rise of no more than 2-3mmol/L at the 2hr mark. It may have very briefly been a little higher, but if the rise is down to 2-3 at 2hrs it’s unlikely to have been crazy high (especially if you keep below 8.5 at the 2hr mark.

Once you can see how you respond to different meals you can begin experimenting with reducing portion sizes of the carbs where you see bigger rises. You might find that you are particularly sensitive to carbohydrate from one source (eg bread), but have more liberty with others (eg oats or basmati rice) - It’s all very individual!

You might even find that just having things at a different time of day makes a difference - with breakfast time being the trickiest.

Over weeks and months of experimentation you can gradually tweak and tailor your menu to find one that suits your tastebuds, your waistline, your budget and your BG levels - and a way of eating that is flexible enough to be sustainable long-term. 🙂
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This is really helpful, thank you!
 
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