Spikes

[Flora Peach]

Afternoon Everybody,
Could anybody tell me what is considered to be 'a bad spike' and what is 'a normal spike'?
Is it the normal one hour reading and then the two hour reading or some extraordinaryily high number following food?
I read a lot about people and their spikes, but I'm not sure how high a spike should be before it is considered dangerous.
What damage does it do if the spike is high?
Usually, before I eat, my mmol/ reading is around 5.3/5.5 ish. One hour after, it is around the 6.5 or 7.0, then two hours, it doesn't really drop too much below 6.5/7.0. Perhaps it would go lower as the evening draws on, but I tend to forget once I settle down for the evening.
I hope I am making sense here.
I would appreciate hearing any wise advice on the subject that you all have accumulated over the years.
Regards, Flora.

 

[SB2015]

Hi Flora

Could you tell us a little more about how you manage your diabetes, and what type you have.
Spikes can be very different for T1 compared to T2, and other types of Diabetes, so it is difficult to answer your questions at present.

I am aware that each of us is different, and I know that a food that spikes my BG will have a different effect on another person’s. The only way I have become more aware of the impact of different foods, that I regularly eat (or used to regularly eat in some cases) is by testing in a controlled way, motiroing and then adjusting either the quantities I eat or switching that food for another in some cases.

As a basic rule of thumb, the more carbs I eat at a meal the bigger my spike is going to be. Yup I know that is pretty obvious, but it took me a while to cotton on to this simple idea!!! I have set my own limit on carbs per meal (which is virtually ignored at present as I am away on holiday and staying with friends). I do not do ‘Low carb’ which I think some do as little as 6 g of carbs per meal, but have found out what works for me. It is all down to test, adjust and review, test, adjust review, ... and so on for the rest of my time. Just the new ‘normal’ for me.

 

[Mark Parrott]

Generally, a spike is more than 3mmol rise 2 hours after food. At 1 hour you may spike higher but the key is to recover quickly. I know that non D's can spike quite high after 1 hour but will return to normal after 2 hours. Spikes are generously dangerous if you have too many of them. The odd one here & there shouldn't cause you any harm. A serious spike would be if you end up in double figures. Best to try & avoid these if possible.

 

[Ralph-YK]

Advice is for a rise to be max 3, and to have a level around 8.5/9 max.
The Diabetes UK webpage has some guidelines, along with info about tests:
https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/managing-your-diabetes/testing

 

[Flora Peach]

Thank you all for your lovely replies and advice to my spike questions.
I was diagnosed three months ago as Type 2 with a reading of HpA1/ 50 and put on 1 Metformin a day. I was told that dieting can help and it did - 800 carbs per day. Last week my new number following a blood test was HpA1/ 46. The Doctor said that my D was now 'resolved' and that I was pre-diabetic. Fantastic.
But, I have lost too much weight and have been told to eat more and put half a stone back - hence my question about spikes. Because I now am adding some carbs back into my diet I have noticed that it doesn't really reduce my BS in mmol/ numbers after two hours but will begin soon after that.
I think the highest number that I have been is 7.3, my pre food being around 5.4 ish.
I would really like to reduce my HpA1 number further but don't see how I can do that without losing more weight and eating carb loaded food.
I thought I might try the Mediterranean diet and see if that works.
I have noticed that some of you have managed to get down to the 30's which is truly a great success but how have you done that???? I can't diet any more.
Thank you all again for your support,
Regards, Flora.

 

[Ralph-YK]

As diabetics we have to manage carbs. Other foods like meat, fish, eggs, cheese, don't affect our BG like carbs do. So try increasing non & low carb foods a little.
Possibly exercise makes a difference to BG levels.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

If you are trying to increase weight and keep BG variation (spikes) to a minimum, then fat, and to some extent protein, are your friend.

Good fats (eg full fat dairy, oily fish, nuts seeds, quality/unprocessed meat, olive oil) add calories, don’t affect BG and also slow down uptake if carbs in a meal and make you feel fuller for longer.

As an example many T2 members here enjoy full fat yoghurt and berries for breakfast. Very simple and much less troublesome than cereals for most people.

 

[Spireite72]

If you are trying to increase weight and keep BG variation (spikes) to a minimum, then fat, and to some extent protein, are your friend.

Good fats (eg full fat dairy, oily fish, nuts seeds, quality/unprocessed meat, olive oil) add calories, don’t affect BG and also slow down uptake if carbs in a meal and make you feel fuller for longer.

As an example many T2 members here enjoy full fat yoghurt and berries for breakfast. Very simple and much less troublesome than cereals for most people.

I love yogurt and blackberries or raspberries for breakfast with little to no spike

 

[Mark Parrott]

I love yogurt and blackberries or raspberries for breakfast with little to no spike

I add a few mixed nuts (not salted) to add a bit of texture.

 

[Flora Peach]

Morning,
Thank- you everyone for such sound advice.
I'll be following all your info on eating more fats and good protein to see if I can add weight without raising my HpA1 level.
I usually have porridge with water for breakfast, but the yoghurt with fruit sounds yummy, so I'll give that a try, also making the porridge with milk instead.. Much quicker too 🙂
I do exercise daily around the Plain here. Such a fantastic place to wander for miles, providing one doesn't get mown down by tanks and soldiers !!!!
Thanks once again,
Flora.

 

[Mark Parrott]

I add a bit of double cream to my porridge,