Re: I think my Metformin may be kicking in. ie. fruit testing

On 1/3/2010 12:24 PM, Màck©® wrote:
On Sun, 03 Jan 2010 11:49:58 -0600, Michael<micoder@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

On 1/3/2010 9:41 AM, Loretta Eisenberg wrote:
Michael I take 2000 mgs of metformin. It allows me to eat normlly but
just in smaller portions. It works for me, because I cant deprivation.
this is what I had for breakfast today, I took a mini weight watchers
bagel and soaked in egg and made bagel french toast, I fried it in pam,
sugar free syrup, just a drop and three slices of very light peach
slices. I was 100 and will test in an hour to see how it affected me.
I think I will be fine as the bagel had 18 carbs and the peaches maybe
two. Its all a game of figuring out what works and doesnt work.

So my point is that I will stay with the 2.000 metformin a day

Loretta

--
I



Loretta,

As you know, I am taking 2000 mg per day of Met. I am not able to eat
anything like the level of carbs you are able to eat. However, I can eat
half an orange now in the evening without even a bump.


In the evening. Timing is also something you will learn to take into
account. Mornings tend to be the most carb sensitive part of the day.

Yes, I learned that here. I only eat test a carb meal in the evening.

Perhaps my tolerance for carbs will improve with time. No way for me to
know.

Yes there is. BG testing.

What I meant was that there was no way for me to know now. I know that testing later will tell me.


I did try something yesterday that I was previously completely unable to
eat. I had some blueberries and cottage cheese. My BG went from 90 to
99. I thought that might be OK. However, in the morning my now normal
FBG of about 104 went back up to 122. I suspect there is a connection
between the ingestion of carbs the day before and my FBG the next day.

If that was your bedtime snack then yes it was related. It would not
have lasted through the night. Even though it was a low glycemic
snack it was still a short acting carb. What you experienced was a
slight impact from dawn phenomenon. This is a natural occurrence in
all people as the body prepares to wake. The liver releases stored
glycogen which is converted to glucose to provide energy for a quick
response when waking up.

Mack

It was not my bedtime snack. It was taken 5 hours before bedtime. I am just wondering whether carb intake the day before can influence FBG the next AM.

Unfortunately in diabetics this can be a problem. Mostly for type 2s,
because type 1s can knock it down quickly with a light breakfast and
insulin.

Keep in mind that your 122 BG in the morning is nothing to get upset
over. You can work to get it a bit lower, but don't lose any sleep
over it.

Yes, you are right. I am just trying to connect where there difference comes from between a 104 FBG and a 122.

One way to control it is your bedtime snack. Some eat crackers and
lunch meats, others crackers and peanut butter. What they are doing
is having a small amount of carbs with a specific amount of protein.
The exact amount that works differs from person to person. And you
being type 2 can't follow what I eat as a type 1.

So it would be a weird snack but you could have the blueberries and
cream again but add some kind of protein before or afterwards. The
carbs are used up before dawn and the protein converts (at least in
part) to glucose much more slowly. This causes the body to react to
the steady glucose level by not releasing the stored glycogen or not
as much. Because the body detects you don't need as much.

Eating a carb snack at bedtime would be very easy for me. However, it does not seem to do any good. Eating protein at bedtime did not seem to help either. However, I was recommended here to try some alcohol at bedtime. I discovered that 1.7 ounces of rum will knock my FBG down so that there does not even appear to be a bump between my evening values and morning AM FBG. This treatment is very consistent. However, I have not been consistent in drinking it. I am not a fan of alcohol. It just doesn't do anything for me. I also have to have a slice or two of swiss cheese with my rum. I need this not to wake up in the middle of the night with an acid stomach from the rum. I can only say that this combination has been a very consistent block to a FBG bump. The next test to do I suppose is to have my cottage cheese an blueberries and then the rum at bedtime.


It is just a theory at this time. However, I told this to my wife and
she said she had had similar problems. So she just wrote off trying
simple carbs.

Michael

Don't give up on it just modify it a bit. The type 2s will explain
what works for them with dawn phenomenon.


See explanation above. I am not giving up. My wife gave up 10 years ago and just doesn't eat carbs. This has worked well for her. Her only complaint is that after 10 years of this treatment she get very low BG episodes if she starts concentrating on some task or hobby. If she does not eat for 4 to 6 hours her BG will drop to around 50. She becomes scatter brained and cannot remember what to do or even where she is. She also turns cold and starts shivering. I always know what to do. I give her vegetables to eat right away and some cheese. She complains about this aspect of T2. I am envious. I never ever have low BG. Maybe if I eat like her for 10 years I will begin having low BG episodes. BTW, she takes no drugs. She believes all the drugs are bad for you. Maybe she is right. I know Susan does not think much of Met. I feel a little bad taking it because plenty of other people don't and still have good T2 control. I just wanted to eat fruit so bad.
.

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