keto and glucose levels
daraalt
Posts: 30 Member
I've been on keto for over 6 months now. been losing weight consistently (50 lbs) but it has slowed down now since i'm getting closer to goal weight. i have never been diabetic but probably at my highest weight i was pre-diabetic and had metabolic syndrome. which is why keto has worked so great for me. but i have been testing my blood in the mornings before i eat and i get 110 and 100 glucose numbers and my keys are 1.0 and 1.1. i also have gained a pound back which sometimes happens. i am not eating over my net carbs and the sugar is below 5 grams (from natural foods). i wonder if it just what happens every cycle (a feminine reason) or is there another reason why my glucose is so high in the morning. i was tested recently and am still not diabetic. is something triggering the insulin to spike in the morning like "the dawn phenomenon"?
any insights?
any insights?
2
Replies
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Your body releases cortisol to wake you from sleep. This also causes glycogen and insulin secretion. This is what people call dawn phenomenon but it’s not really a phenomenon at all. It’s totally normal human physiology.
People that are insulin resistant take longer for the blood sugar to come back down though.
It’s curious that your blood ketones and glucose would both me high at the same time. That suggests too much total energy in the blood. Do you take any exogenous ketone supplements or use coconut oil or MCT oil?
You can read about the relationship of blood glucose and ketones here
https://optimisingnutrition.com/2015/07/20/the-glucose-ketone-relationship/
Not all of what’s written there applies to your question but read through it and you may see the connection.
I would be thinking instead of too many carbs, the issue may be too much fat intake. Or too much energy, ie; calories since your total energy seems to be higher than you would require. Insulin is needed to stuff the excess energy into cells but if you have metabolic syndrome, your cells are resistant. And if insulin is present, then your body will need to counter that with extra glycogen as well and in the insulin resistant body, this function doesn’t work properly so it leaves you unable to lose weight and with higher blood glucose than you’d like.
Take a look at how much you’re eating each day and if you are adding extra fat you probably don’t need to.4 -
yes i do use MCT oil..sometimes before bed. i also read that it could be my energy level. i guess i will try to do a day with less fat...or should i be working out more to use that energy?
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Glucose levels almost always go up right before your period. And if your having a hard time dropping below a hundred on a regular basis try apple cider vinegar at night 1 tablespoon in a glass of water has miraculous impact on your a.m. blood glucose. Also make sure that you test the minute you get out of bed not 20 minutes later. And in my case more fat helps not less fat.1
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yes i do use MCT oil..sometimes before bed. i also read that it could be my energy level. i guess i will try to do a day with less fat...or should i be working out more to use that energy?
One way or another it seems you need to reduce the immediately available energy. Simplest to me would be to not put so much in. Otherwuse, you might want to plan to burn it off.1 -
You stopped losing weight because you are not in a calorie deficit anymore ( because you are lighter, your TDEE has decreased and you probably have some metabolic adaptations due to prolonged dieting).
Blood glucose levels are not to blame.1 -
trigden1991 wrote: »You stopped losing weight because you are not in a calorie deficit anymore ( because you are lighter, your TDEE has decreased and you probably have some metabolic adaptations due to prolonged dieting).
Blood glucose levels are not to blame.
yes i'm still in a calorie deficit every day.
i forgot to test myself this morning but my weight stayed the same so i think i was about the same with my numbers this morning like yesterday and my fat percentage was the same as the day before. i think hormones have something to do with it. i'm actually going into an ovulation time-frame so i think this makes things fluctuate more. but i'm determined to exercise more to see if there is energy that needs to be released.
thanks all1 -
trigden1991 wrote: »You stopped losing weight because you are not in a calorie deficit anymore ( because you are lighter, your TDEE has decreased and you probably have some metabolic adaptations due to prolonged dieting).
Blood glucose levels are not to blame.
yes i'm still in a calorie deficit every day.
i forgot to test myself this morning but my weight stayed the same so i think i was about the same with my numbers this morning like yesterday and my fat percentage was the same as the day before. i think hormones have something to do with it. i'm actually going into an ovulation time-frame so i think this makes things fluctuate more. but i'm determined to exercise more to see if there is energy that needs to be released.
thanks all
I have found that certain points of the cycle wonk things around. Your body is probably just doing a do-si-do. Scale not responding but shifting hormones and water retention.
Plus, the closer to goal weight the stupider the scale is. For just about everyone. As Trigden mentioned, you're developing some metabolic adaptations. Everyone requires fewer calories as they lose. But when you're doing this for a long time, your body will fight you a bit. You can to go 4-6 weeks with scale nonsense before it will start moving again. It happens.
It can't hurt to maybe take a maintenance break. Eat at maintenance for a week or 2, then go back to your deficit. Sometimes this helps the body to rebalance hormones and let it know it is ok for it to stop retaining water it's holding in fat cells as placeholder, because it's not coming back. That everything is fine, and it can stop downregulating things because it's freaking out over all the loss.
Hang in there.2 -
could be this: "A rise in estrogen occurs just prior to ovulation which in turn triggers a surge in LH (Luteinising Hormone). This rise or excess (known as oestrogen dominance) may cause symptoms such as bloating, mainly due to increased water retention."
"The hormones that regulate your menstrual cycle, estrogen and progesterone, interact with the insulin hormone and may make your body more resistant to its own insulin or injected insulin. Because of this, either before, after, or during menstruation you may experience a rise in blood glucose levels for three to five days. These effects might be consistent from month to month, or they might vary, making them more difficult to monitor."
and i think there is some research about diabetic women and the menstrual cycle having an effect on glucose levels. so wonder if it has the same effect on non-diabetic women?1 -
non-diabetics typically have very stable glucose levels, on average (even after eating) under 100. if you are 100-110 when fasting in the morning, that is on the high side of 'normal' and may indicate metabolic syndrome. What are your readings during the day before lunch or dinner? A more accurate measurement is A1c, which tracks average over 2-3 months. You can ask your doctor to check that if you are interested, but it sounds like you've got it well under control.
Everybody says those last few pounds are the hardest to lose, but make sure your goal weight is reasonable. Sometimes the scale is misleading. Take measurements as well, thighs and stomach are good indicators. Sometimes the scale shows weight added, but measurements show inches lost, which means fat lost, but added more dense muscle at the same time.
Do not cut FAT on LCHF diet. You are at 1 for ketones, so should be in ketosis. Keep your ratio of fat to (Carb+protein). Cutting fat, while keeping (carb + protein) same could throw you out of ketosis. Also, DRINK. if you have issues with water retention (often a problem at that time o month), drink more water.1 -
catherineg3 wrote: »non-diabetics typically have very stable glucose levels, on average (even after eating) under 100. if you are 100-110 when fasting in the morning, that is on the high side of 'normal' and may indicate metabolic syndrome. What are your readings during the day before lunch or dinner? A more accurate measurement is A1c, which tracks average over 2-3 months. You can ask your doctor to check that if you are interested, but it sounds like you've got it well under control.
Everybody says those last few pounds are the hardest to lose, but make sure your goal weight is reasonable. Sometimes the scale is misleading. Take measurements as well, thighs and stomach are good indicators. Sometimes the scale shows weight added, but measurements show inches lost, which means fat lost, but added more dense muscle at the same time.
Do not cut FAT on LCHF diet. You are at 1 for ketones, so should be in ketosis. Keep your ratio of fat to (Carb+protein). Cutting fat, while keeping (carb + protein) same could throw you out of ketosis. Also, DRINK. if you have issues with water retention (often a problem at that time o month), drink more water.
i have had my A1C tested recently and in normal range. i don't test that often due to the expense of the ketone test strips. but after 6 months i know i've been in at least nutritional ketosis. Even on days when i "cheated" and ate more carbs i stayed in ketosis. and yes i have been taking measurements as well. that has slowed down too. i think the water retention and hormones definitely is playing key roles here. i'll test my glucose more often. see if there is a pattern month to month.
thanks2 -
catherineg3 wrote: »non-diabetics typically have very stable glucose levels, on average (even after eating) under 100. if you are 100-110 when fasting in the morning, that is on the high side of 'normal' and may indicate metabolic syndrome. What are your readings during the day before lunch or dinner? A more accurate measurement is A1c, which tracks average over 2-3 months. You can ask your doctor to check that if you are interested, but it sounds like you've got it well under control.
Everybody says those last few pounds are the hardest to lose, but make sure your goal weight is reasonable. Sometimes the scale is misleading. Take measurements as well, thighs and stomach are good indicators. Sometimes the scale shows weight added, but measurements show inches lost, which means fat lost, but added more dense muscle at the same time.
Do not cut FAT on LCHF diet. You are at 1 for ketones, so should be in ketosis. Keep your ratio of fat to (Carb+protein). Cutting fat, while keeping (carb + protein) same could throw you out of ketosis. Also, DRINK. if you have issues with water retention (often a problem at that time o month), drink more water.
i have had my A1C tested recently and in normal range. i don't test that often due to the expense of the ketone test strips. but after 6 months i know i've been in at least nutritional ketosis. Even on days when i "cheated" and ate more carbs i stayed in ketosis. and yes i have been taking measurements as well. that has slowed down too. i think the water retention and hormones definitely is playing key roles here. i'll test my glucose more often. see if there is a pattern month to month.
thanks
Not a bad idea. The more data, the better. Hell, I often have fasting glucose levels around 100-110, but my A1c is almost what one would call low-normal (4.9). Turns out my liver dumps a metric shitload of glucose first thing in the morning, in response to two things: caffeine and habitual early AM training.
That said, I haven’t been keto (or even LC) for a couple of years now.1 -
I'm type 2 and was doing well by drastically cutting back carbs and protein. But I overdid it one day and it scared me. So I upped my protein grams to equal my fat grams. My BG stayed up around 200 for a long time. I did it again the next day to see if the same thing would happen and it did it again. So, maybe the problem is too much protein? Just a suggestion.1
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MoonriverDreamer wrote: »I'm type 2 and was doing well by drastically cutting back carbs and protein. But I overdid it one day and it scared me. So I upped my protein grams to equal my fat grams. My BG stayed up around 200 for a long time. I did it again the next day to see if the same thing would happen and it did it again. So, maybe the problem is too much protein? Just a suggestion.
What were you using as protein sources? While amino acids do induce an insulin response, they’ve actually been shown repeatedly to decrease glucose levels in T2D patients, due to insulin’s nutrient shuttling effects, when paired with a lower carbohydrate intake.2 -
Gallowmere1984 wrote: »MoonriverDreamer wrote: »I'm type 2 and was doing well by drastically cutting back carbs and protein. But I overdid it one day and it scared me. So I upped my protein grams to equal my fat grams. My BG stayed up around 200 for a long time. I did it again the next day to see if the same thing would happen and it did it again. So, maybe the problem is too much protein? Just a suggestion.
What were you using as protein sources? While amino acids do induce an insulin response, they’ve actually been shown repeatedly to decrease glucose levels in T2D patients, due to insulin’s nutrient shuttling effects, when paired with a lower carbohydrate intake.
I agree.
Protein is more important for T2D than a non insulin resistant person even.
Dr Bernstein says his diet is low carb high protein and it’s worked fabulously for thousands of people1
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