I had some blood test done this morning, and my glucose level was 7.11mmol/L. The normal range is 3.8 - 6.3. I’d had an apple and soya milk for breakfast. So tomorrow morning I will do the full diabetes test (no brekkers or coffee for me tomorrow morning).
Some symptoms on a website, with my answers in bold:
Increased thirst NO
Increased hunger (especially after eating) NO (EXCEPT WHEN I USED TO CONSUME THE GREEN)
Dry mouth NO (DITTO ABOVE)
Frequent urination YES (BUT I DO CONSUME A LOT OF LIQUIDS, INCLUDING COFFEE AND TEA, DIURETICS)
Unexplained weight loss (even though you are eating and feel hungry) NO
Fatigue (weak, tired feeling) NO (YES, WHEN I WORKED 20 HOUR SHIFTS IN THE FILM INDUSTRY)
Blurred vision NO (OK, OK, WHEN I USED TO DRINK - YES)
Headaches OCCASIONALLY (DON’T WE ALL?)
Loss of consciousness (rare) NO (A COUPLE TIMES WHEN I WAS OFF THE WAGON)
So, should I be worried, or am I being a hypochondriac?
[quote=“Baas Babelaas”]I had some blood test done this morning, and my glucose level was 7.11mmol/L. The normal range is 3.8 - 6.3. I’d had an apple and soya milk for breakfast. So tomorrow morning I will do the full diabetes test (no brekkers or coffee for me tomorrow morning).
Some symptoms on a website, with my answers in bold:
Increased thirst NO
Increased hunger (especially after eating) NO (EXCEPT WHEN I USED TO CONSUME THE GREEN)
Dry mouth NO (DITTO ABOVE)
Frequent urination YES (BUT I do CONSUME A LOT OF LIQUIDS, INCLUDING COFFEE AND TEA, DIURETICS)
Unexplained weight loss (even though you are eating and feel hungry) NO
Fatigue (weak, tired feeling) NO (YES, WHEN I WORKED 20 HOUR SHIFTS IN THE FILM INDUSTRY)
Blurred vision NO (OK, OK, WHEN I USED TO DRINK - YES)
Headaches OCCASIONALLY (DON’T WE ALL?)
Loss of consciousness (rare) NO (A COUPLE TIMES WHEN I was OFF THE WAGON)
So, should I be worried, or am I being a hypochondriac?[/quote]
Don’t be worried, just go get the test. A level of 7.11 will get you diagnosed with diabetes, but it’s not that high. When my level is around that, I feel OK (I have diabetes). I don’t start feeling like shit until my level goes up to 9 or 10. When I was first diagnosed, it was 23 BTW.
[quote=“Baas Babelaas”]I had the full test done (after fasting for 8 hours) and the results came back as such:
GLU: 6.13 (just within range)
INS: 9.27 (well within range)
C-p: 0.37 (ditto)
HbA1c: 5.50 (ditto)
Have no idea what the last two are though.
Bit of a wake up call - need to control my diet/lifestyle better.
bababa, any suggestions on keeping glucose down/from spiking?[/quote]
Baas: I believe C-p is the C-peptide test marker of insulin secretion for type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Generally speaking, C-p should be five times more prevalent than insulin. The normal range is 1.0-5.0, meaning you’re very low, which might indicate some sort of issue but exactly what I’m not sure since high C-p levels are more common – however it’s most likely more indicative of your 8 hour fasting and nothing to worry about.
HbA1c is a Hemoglobin / glucose test. Normal levels are between 4-6.5%, meaning you’re normal.
As far as keeping your glucose from spiking, it’s pretty simple. Avoid artificial sugars and big meals. Snack often, exercise when permissible. Go big on fruits and vegetables – all natural stuff. Alcohol really fucks with diabetics so try to avoid it.
According to the results sheet the C-p should be between 0.19 - 1.20 nmo1/l, and mine’s 0.37.
My worry is that my glucose was still pretty high, even after the 8 hour fast.
I guess this means more (than I already do) exercise. And more attention to diet - gotta cut the refined stuff (sugar, flour), and apparently potatoes too.
More oats, fruit, veg too. And smaller portions over the course of the day.
[quote=“Baas Babelaas”]I had the full test done (after fasting for 8 hours) and the results came back as such:
GLU: 6.13 (just within range)
INS: 9.27 (well within range)
C-p: 0.37 (ditto)
HbA1c: 5.50 (ditto)
Have no idea what the last two are though.
Bit of a wake up call - need to control my diet/lifestyle better.
bababa, any suggestions on keeping glucose down/from spiking?[/quote]
The glucose is a bit high for a fasting test, yes, so you are right to take this as a wake-up call. I had a similarly high but not too high test a year before I was diagnosed, and I sure wish now I had modified my diet and lifestyle right away.
Cut added sugar out of your diet completely. Yes, diabetics can eat sugar - I can eat a bit of sugar with an otherwise healthy meal with a lot of fiber without causing my levels to skyrocket. But you are at the cusp, so try to cut all added sugar out until you get healthier. Do not drink fruit juice: it seems healthy, but for diabetics or pre-diabetics it is as bad as soda pop.
Cut down on carbohydrates such as bread, pasta, potatoes, rice, etc. They don’t tell you to stop eating them completely though. If something has a lot of fiber it is OK in moderation.
In general, if you do have carbohydrate at a meal or snack, make sure to eat complete protein as well.
Try to exercise a bit more and lose some weight if you are overweight.
For a level as low as yours this should be enough for now, but you’ll have to keep getting tested, because even with a good diet and exercise diabetes or pre-diabetes can progress.
One things that should be noted was that I had been taking flu medication up until the afternoon before the test, with Amantadine Hydrochloride in them, which I researched and dicovered can cause spikes in glucose and/or false readings. I was also taking Azithromycin.
Apparently certain medication can give false readings, no?
I’ll retest in a month or so. And I’m thinking of buying my a home test kit from the pharmacy too.
Yeah, it might just be a temporary rise, and will go back to normal a few days off the medications. Being sick makes my blood glucose levels go up.
If you don’t have any risk factors for diabetes, or a family history of it, then maybe nothing is actually wrong. I’d still suggest cutting out soft drinks and too much added sugar, though.
