Anyone else check their Blood Glucose?
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Jigglypuff00
Posts: 267 Member
Before I started this woe on the first of October, my BG was in the high 100's to low 200's mg/dl. Within a week it dropped to average 135 mg/dl. This past week it's been hovering around 100 mg/dl, sometimes going below, sometimes going around 110.
Earlier today, I felt really tired. So tired I had to take a nap. I usually never take a nap. I think I slept about an hour. When I first woke up, I felt like I had taken some sort of sleep aid. I felt groggy and not very rested. I checked my bg and it was 70 mg/dl. It's never been that low. I took a glucose tablet and ate. I feel better, but that was kind of scary.
Has anyone's blood glucose dropped that low? Is it bad? Or my body just needs to adjust to it?
Earlier today, I felt really tired. So tired I had to take a nap. I usually never take a nap. I think I slept about an hour. When I first woke up, I felt like I had taken some sort of sleep aid. I felt groggy and not very rested. I checked my bg and it was 70 mg/dl. It's never been that low. I took a glucose tablet and ate. I feel better, but that was kind of scary.
Has anyone's blood glucose dropped that low? Is it bad? Or my body just needs to adjust to it?
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70 is still not low though. Mine is often anywhere from 65-85 except after meals it might be as much as 100.
That groggy feeling could’ve been low sodium which the glucose also would’ve helped the symptoms because of the insulin response causing sodium retention in the kidneys.
A lower blood sugar like that with strict adherence to keto would suggest ketones were higher.2 -
Ok, thanks! I will keep on monitoring it. I was afraid of ketoacidosis. I feel completely fine now. I drink a lot of water, and drink pickle juice or chicken broth.0
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Measure a few times a day. Want mine as low as possible. Have had 65 as my lowest fasted, felt fine. Highest has been 93 fed. Average an 75-80 fasted and 85-90 fed. I want super insulin sensitivity!1
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Hmm...my mom told me to be careful and not go too low. She said 70 would be the lowest I should go. I measure 3 times a day usually, but haven't after I've eaten.0
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After being near 200's, 70 will feel low to your body. If checking 3 times per day i would do it fasting, then just before eating, and 90ish minutes after 1st bite. One different meal each day. Check with your doctor, but i aim for fasting and before meals around 80, and rise of 20-30 after eating. Have been diabetic for 10+ years. Ohh, we are suppose to be a person with diabetes (PWD) now, hate that term.3
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Jigglypuff9363 wrote: »Ok, thanks! I will keep on monitoring it. I was afraid of ketoacidosis. I feel completely fine now. I drink a lot of water, and drink pickle juice or chicken broth.
Are you Type 1 Diabetic?
If not, it’s physically impossible for you to get ketoacidosis and it can’t happen with blood sugar in normal range even if you are T1D.
70 is a normal blood sugar. With high ketones, even 50 wouldn’t concern me personally, but there’s no way you’d drop that low without taking Diabetes meds or insulin.1 -
Oh, thank you! I am not T1D, nor T2. Both parents are T2. I'm trying not to become one. I had read that keto acidosis is more common with T1D, but I had also read that T2 can get it too. Other than the extreme tiredness and fogginess, I felt fine. No nausea or vomiting or abdominal pain.0
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Jigglypuff9363 wrote: »Hmm...my mom told me to be careful and not go too low. She said 70 would be the lowest I should go. I measure 3 times a day usually, but haven't after I've eaten.Jigglypuff9363 wrote: »Oh, thank you! I am not T1D, nor T2. Both parents are T2. I'm trying not to become one. I had read that keto acidosis is more common with T1D, but I had also read that T2 can get it too. Other than the extreme tiredness and fogginess, I felt fine. No nausea or vomiting or abdominal pain.
How can you possibly NOT be diabetic with readings in the high 100s and 200s? Whatever the source of your conclusion may be, I would not rely on it further!
If you're not checking your BG frequently and regularly before and after meals, it would be hard to tell whether your feelings of fatigue were/are from wide BG swings (or whether you may need insulin...)
I'd urge you to get checked out by a competent doctor, if you can afford to do it. If not, scrupulous regular BG testing could be very illuminating.
http://Chriskresser.com/how-to-prevent-diabetes-and-heart-disease-for-162 -
I have an appt with the doctor in two weeks. The last time I saw a doctor she said I wasn't. I was borderline according to her. My readings of close to or over 200 were infrequent. Most of the time they were around 130 to 160. I will start measuring it more often. I was trying to save on the strips. Now it's always around 100 mg/dl. That 70 scared me as I've never been that low. Trust me, I will be asking the doctor when I see her. Thanks for all the info.0
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130 to 160 fasting? That's well into diabetes territory. Even post-meal, it's high enough to increase risk for CVD, kidney disease, Alzheimer’s...
100 is sounding much better.
And 70? ... I'd pay to blow a 70 every morning!2 -
I eat to my meter, meaning I test before my first bite, then at one hour from the start of my meal and also at 2 hours after I started. I try to stick to foods that don't give me a rise of over 20 points above my pre-food test and to stay below 120 as much as possible.
If you live in the US, Walmart has the Relion Prime meter which sells for $9 and you can get 100 test strips for $18. I got a new meter and 100 strips for less than I had been paying for 50 strips for my old meter.
Also, I was diagnosed t2 at the end of June after over 25 years of being told I was on the normal side of borderline. Keto has helped me get my A1c down from a 9.5 to a 6.1 in 2 months. I am actually looking forward to finding out what my A1c is next time!2 -
laraharvell wrote: »I eat to my meter, meaning I test before my first bite, then at one hour from the start of my meal and also at 2 hours after I started. I try to stick to foods that don't give me a rise of over 20 points above my pre-food test and to stay below 120 as much as possible.
If you live in the US, Walmart has the Relion Prime meter which sells for $9 and you can get 100 test strips for $18. I got a new meter and 100 strips for less than I had been paying for 50 strips for my old meter.
Also, I was diagnosed t2 at the end of June after over 25 years of being told I was on the normal side of borderline. Keto has helped me get my A1c down from a 9.5 to a 6.1 in 2 months. I am actually looking forward to finding out what my A1c is next time!
Thank you! I think I will need to look at getting a new meter and new test strips. I just picked up strips for my Contour and it only had 50 strips in it. I used to just test when I got up and when I went to bed. Sometimes when I got home from work. Yesterday, I started testing before and after meals, and realized how quickly doing this will eat up my strips.
Soon I will have a dr's appt. Since it's been a couple of years since the last time I went, I will show her my readings from before. I guess I was wrong. I went past being borderline to actually being a T2D. But I thought diabetics had to take insulin. I never felt bad, even when my bg was over 200. I never felt thirsty or had to urinate in the middle of the night. I actually feel more tired now than I did when my readings were higher. Now that my readings are lower, I frequently feel light-headed. I keep waiting for that phenomenal energy and mental clarity to happen that a keto-diet is supposed to bring. I am more forgetful and foggy brained now. Other than my readings being lower, all the symptoms that a T2D is supposed to have is now happening. Maybe my body likes the sugar!1 -
Jigglypuff9363 wrote: »laraharvell wrote: »
I actually feel more tired now than I did when my readings were higher. Now that my readings are lower, I frequently feel light-headed. I keep waiting for that phenomenal energy and mental clarity to happen that a keto-diet is supposed to bring. I am more forgetful and foggy brained now. Other than my readings being lower, all the symptoms that a T2D is supposed to have is now happening. Maybe my body likes the sugar!
Are you having enough salt? See various other posts re when people feel foggy on Keto there is a lot of advice and usually around needing to up various electrolytes. I never had Keto Flu etc I think because I've always been a salt junkie!1 -
chinatowninchina wrote: »Jigglypuff9363 wrote: »laraharvell wrote: »
I actually feel more tired now than I did when my readings were higher. Now that my readings are lower, I frequently feel light-headed. I keep waiting for that phenomenal energy and mental clarity to happen that a keto-diet is supposed to bring. I am more forgetful and foggy brained now. Other than my readings being lower, all the symptoms that a T2D is supposed to have is now happening. Maybe my body likes the sugar!
Are you having enough salt? See various other posts re when people feel foggy on Keto there is a lot of advice and usually around needing to up various electrolytes. I never had Keto Flu etc I think because I've always been a salt junkie!
Hi, my name is Jigglypuff and I am a salt-aholic! LOL! Yes, I try to keep up with my electrolytes. I also take both a potassium and magnesium supplement, plus they are both in my daily vitamin. My sodium, I keep going over on the diary. Maybe I have too much?0 -
@Jigglypuff9363 - I can't see your diary to look, but unless you're over 5000 mg - 10,000 mg, you're probably okay. There are far more risks to the body from being under 2000 mg than over it... There's an awesome post about that in the sticky called Kidney Stones and the Russian Nephrologist or something that gives the science.
That being said...extreme sodium cravings (like keeping a bouillon cube as a salt lick, etc.) can be indicative of thyroid dysfunction. I cannot remember if you've mentioned elsewhere whether you've had that tested (TSH is not a good test for thyroid - it's not even a thyroid hormone - and you can have verifiable thyroid dysfunction for over a decade before it will show up in that test)...but know, too, that insulin and the thyroid have a kind of a weird yin-yang relationship thing...and if one is all messed up (as you indicate your insulin is high), it will suppress or kick into overdrive - the others!
When insulin is really high, it will drive thyroid function into the ground. When thyroid function is in overdrive, it can make insulin and blood glucose management really difficult.1 -
@KnitOrMiss - Interesting. I'll bring that up to the doctor. I'm afraid to mention I've been eating a ketogenic diet to the doctor. But I know I was wondering if I may have a thyroid problem. I have my sodium set to 1500. Yesterday I went to 1835, not counting the pink salt I add to just about everything.
ETA: On the 5th, my sodium was 2950. But I had pork rinds and ham. Time to start thinking about my choice of foods.0 -
Jigglypuff9363 wrote: »@KnitOrMiss - Interesting. I'll bring that up to the doctor. I'm afraid to mention I've been eating a ketogenic diet to the doctor. But I know I was wondering if I may have a thyroid problem. I have my sodium set to 1500. Yesterday I went to 1835, not counting the pink salt I add to just about everything.
ETA: On the 5th, my sodium was 2950. But I had pork rinds and ham. Time to start thinking about my choice of foods.
It is really difficult to replace the 5000 mg of sodium you dump (estimated) from a ketogenic diet due to a number of processes - without intentional over-salting and such. 5000 mg should be your goal until you get level and determine that is too much or too little.
Make sure you are seeing an endocrinologist - not just a primary care doctor. And endocrinologist is supposed to help balance all of the endocrine functions - which includes insulin/blood glucose management, adrenal function, sex hormones, and thyroid function... Interesting article on the functions: https://www.emedicinehealth.com/anatomy_of_the_endocrine_system/article_em.htm
(I just glanced at the article...didn't read it, but the graphics and noted comments I scanned followed what i know to be true, too)...
If anything, I'd say it's time for MORE pork rinds and ham, based on your sodium levels...not as an opinion of pork. LOL @Jigglypuff93631 -
I would honestly expect your doctor to freak out and immediately tell you that you are going to have a heart attack and that sodium will give you high blood pressure.
Make sure you do your own research instead of blindly following anyone’s advice. Doctor or not.2 -
Thankfully, my endocrinologist was the final push I needed to actually go low carb!1
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Sunny_Bunny_ wrote: »I would honestly expect your doctor to freak out and immediately tell you that you are going to have a heart attack and that sodium will give you high blood pressure.
Make sure you do your own research instead of blindly following anyone’s advice. Doctor or not.
Funny. I've also been taking my blood pressure. I averaged 160/90 before keto. My numbers are now around 115/65. My resting heart rate used to be around 95. It's now closer to 65-70. No exercise, just low carb, high fat, moderate protein. I've lost almost 17 pounds since October 1st and 11.5 inches. I'm OCD like that. I measure everything! I keep spreadsheets.
This doctor I'm gping to is new to me. But her office should have my history from 2 years ago. Back then I didn't really care too much for my health. Oh, I cared a little bit, but not enough to do anything about it. What made me change? I now have a grandson. I am so in love with that little guy. I want to see him grow up. I want to be around for all his milestones. And I don't want to be incapacitated by medical problems. Plus I don't want him to think of me as the fat Grandma! His other grandma is skinny, but smokes like a chimney! LOL!
Bottom line: I'm trying to do everything right, finally. There are just so many differing opinions on how to do keto. It's real hard to know what to believe. Since my stats have improved so much after being keto for one month, I think I'm headed in the right direction.
BTW...My blood glucose was 88 upon wakening. Right before breakfast it went up to 112. After breakfast one hour it was 130. 2 hours - 98. Before lunch it was 105. 1 hour after - 81. 2 hours - 113. I think my glucometer is broken. Those numbers are weird, right?1
