Re: Too Low?

May 24, 2002

Hi Dawn,

Some of us T2-ers still have perky 2nd phase insulin response. If I eat a

large amount of high GI carbs without anything to slow them down, I'll go

high initially, then drop like a rock a few hours later. Many T2s

experience years of hypoglycemia before the dx of T2.

I'm not on any meds now (I was on glucophage for 6 months initially) and have

to eat 5-6 small meals/day to stay level. My bgs don't go up ro down much.

Carol T

In a message dated 5/23/02 10:57:53 PM Pacific Daylight Time,

dawnmichele@... writes:

Can anyone please explain to me how a type II can have a hypoglycemic bg

level if they do not take insulin or a sulf drug

May 24, 2002

Hi Dawn,

Some of us T2-ers still have perky 2nd phase insulin response. If I eat a

large amount of high GI carbs without anything to slow them down, I'll go

high initially, then drop like a rock a few hours later. Many T2s

experience years of hypoglycemia before the dx of T2.

I'm not on any meds now (I was on glucophage for 6 months initially) and have

to eat 5-6 small meals/day to stay level. My bgs don't go up ro down much.

Carol T

In a message dated 5/23/02 10:57:53 PM Pacific Daylight Time,

dawnmichele@... writes:

Can anyone please explain to me how a type II can have a hypoglycemic bg

level if they do not take insulin or a sulf drug

May 24, 2002

Hi Dawn,

Some of us T2-ers still have perky 2nd phase insulin response. If I eat a

large amount of high GI carbs without anything to slow them down, I'll go

high initially, then drop like a rock a few hours later. Many T2s

experience years of hypoglycemia before the dx of T2.

I'm not on any meds now (I was on glucophage for 6 months initially) and have

to eat 5-6 small meals/day to stay level. My bgs don't go up ro down much.

Carol T

In a message dated 5/23/02 10:57:53 PM Pacific Daylight Time,

dawnmichele@... writes:

Can anyone please explain to me how a type II can have a hypoglycemic bg

level if they do not take insulin or a sulf drug

May 24, 2002

You can contact them online at

www.medicalert.org

and register from there. It's a great service...you pay a small amount yearly

and they send you a bracelet (or whatever, but bracelet is best)...and

there's a phone number EMTs can call for your up-to-date medical info which

can be updated at no charge as many times as necessary. No diabetic should

be without one, IMHO. Vicki

In a message dated 05/23/2002 10:57:56 PM US Mountain Standard Time,

dawnmichele@... writes:

> And does anyone know where to get a medic alert tag or

> bracelet?

May 24, 2002

You can contact them online at

www.medicalert.org

and register from there. It's a great service...you pay a small amount yearly

and they send you a bracelet (or whatever, but bracelet is best)...and

there's a phone number EMTs can call for your up-to-date medical info which

can be updated at no charge as many times as necessary. No diabetic should

be without one, IMHO. Vicki

In a message dated 05/23/2002 10:57:56 PM US Mountain Standard Time,

dawnmichele@... writes:

> And does anyone know where to get a medic alert tag or

> bracelet?

May 24, 2002

You can contact them online at

www.medicalert.org

and register from there. It's a great service...you pay a small amount yearly

and they send you a bracelet (or whatever, but bracelet is best)...and

there's a phone number EMTs can call for your up-to-date medical info which

can be updated at no charge as many times as necessary. No diabetic should

be without one, IMHO. Vicki

In a message dated 05/23/2002 10:57:56 PM US Mountain Standard Time,

dawnmichele@... writes:

> And does anyone know where to get a medic alert tag or

> bracelet?

May 24, 2002

Carol, You just answered a 10 year question for me....For the longest

time I have felt so sick if I didn't eat I now realize that all the

shaky dizzy sickness I would experience was a precursor to T2. Thanks,

Dawn

May 24, 2002

Carol, You just answered a 10 year question for me....For the longest

time I have felt so sick if I didn't eat I now realize that all the

shaky dizzy sickness I would experience was a precursor to T2. Thanks,

Dawn

May 24, 2002

Hello minotspyder2@...,

In reference to your comment:

ð My numbers usually stay between 74 and 82 with my

ð exercise regimen, diabetic nutritional plan and

ð medication (glucovance).

Spyder, your bs goes low not due to the diabetes, but due to the medication

you are on.. the glucovance because its a sufl drug...

May 24, 2002

Yes, but there are other medications besides sulfs that don't cause lows.

Glucophage is one. Check with your doctor. Vicki

In a message dated 05/24/2002 9:36:51 PM US Mountain Standard Time,

minotspyder2@... writes:

> without the medication it's very high

>

> ----- Original Message -----

>

May 24, 2002

--- Dawn & Michele wrote:

> Can anyone please explain to me how a type II can

> have a hypoglycemic bg

> level...

Hi Dawn,

I have 41 year old daughter who is type 2 and on

glucophage only . So I hear you when you say, HOW???

Well, let me tell you, tho she fights to stay on the

straight and narrow, she has to eat regular and well

spaced meals. Stress can send her low as well as can

spurts of activity. I guess that's why we test so

often...You get to know your body and how it reacts.

Diabetes is spelled " C_A_R_E_F_U_L " Let us know how

you get along. Fran

__________________________________________________

May 24, 2002

I'm a type 2 diabetic and my blood glucose can go high or low. It usually

goes

hypoglycemic between 5 p.m. and 5 a.m. so my two biggest meals/snacks are

my evening meal and my 9 p.m. snack. I also have quick sugar stuff to take if

I go low. The lowest it's gone before I was able to get a candy bar or

something

is 50. My numbers usually stay between 74 and 82 with my exercise regimen,

diabetic nutritional plan and medication (glucovance).

Diabetes doesn't always mean high (hyperglycemia), it can be low

(hypoglycemia) too.

Spyder

minotspyder2@...

--- Dawn & Michele wrote:

> Can anyone please explain to me how a type II can

> have a hypoglycemic bg

> level...

May 25, 2002

Dawn and ,

I've had lows all throughout my teenage years;it arrived as part of the PCOS

package, which was never dxed until I was 48. My high school lessons

included learning not to eat a breakfast of 2 doughnuts and expect to get

100% on a test. At 19, I fasted to fit into a bearutiful bridesmaid dress

for an evening wedding after eating 1 pancake for breakfast; fortunately my

groomsman escort glided my semi-conscious body down the aisle to the

reception room where I was fed all sorts of stuff. (The bride's mother

thought it was a bad omen; the wedding lasted about 1 yr).

Two years ago, I had a fasting blood draw and the lab-vampire was late. My

blood was taken at 10 AM.........lab results documented my glucose at 51. I

was feeling mild hypo symptoms. It is unusual for T2s to have this happen,

but it can. Carrying glucose tabs or gel is the best solution.

I have to eat before and after exercise to stay level. BTW, I eat 5-6

amall mini-meals to avoid this problem; since i adjusted my eating pattern,

I've been fine. I eat about an hour before exercise and right after.

Carol T

May 25, 2002

Yes, but you said you're taking Glucovance. That's a combination drug...the

" Gluco " part of it is Glucophage. The " vance " part is the sulf...which is

probably causing the lows. Sulfs are known to cause lows - but Glucophage

usually doesn't. So you're already taking a form of Glucophage. Combination

drugs often cause problems. Check with your doc...but IMO if you can take

Glucovance without problem interactions with other meds, you should be able

to take Glucophage. Vicki

In a message dated 05/24/2002 10:31:17 PM US Mountain Standard Time,

minotspyder2@... writes:

> Yes, but I'm limited in what I can take due to other medications I'm on for

> other

> medical problems. Heart, epilepsy, etc...

>

May 25, 2002

I test immediately before exercise and if I'm below a certain level I take a

" preventative " glucose tab. After almost five years of frequent testing I

have a pretty good idea of how much exercise will lower my BG so I know

whether to take a whole or portion of a tab. And after exercise I also test,

just to make sure that I got it right. Sometimes I'm a little low...but I

also know from frequent testing (and because I exercise an hour after

breakfast) that my BG will go up automatically, even if I don't take any

glucose tabs and I'm low. For example, yesterday I was 60 after

exercise...but two hours later it was 129, without taking anything -- food or

glucose tab -- to raise my BG. (But I'm a type 1 and take insulin).

Now...I know for some people 60 is pretty disorienting. But since I try for

" tight control " and use insulin, I'm often pretty close to hypo numbers

(hypos being anything below 65) And at other times of the day I may feel a

hypo at about 55 (I rarely go there, however). But I never do in the morning

after exercise. I seem to feel the same - energetic - whether I'm 60 in the

morning or 190 after an insulin-miscalculated dinner out. (This also doesn't

happen very often).

The advantages of frequent testing cannot be overstated! (Of course it helps

to have good insurance that covers 90% of supplies...and they've never

complained about the number of strips I buy, smile.)

Vicki

In a message dated 05/25/2002 6:08:02 AM US Mountain Standard Time,

cprcarol@... writes:

>

> I have to eat before and after exercise to stay level. BTW, I eat 5-6

> amall mini-meals to avoid this problem; since i adjusted my eating pattern,

>

> I've been fine. I eat about an hour before exercise and right after.

>

May 25, 2002

Tootie, I was told that the GAD antibody test is only good for a certain

amount of time after diagnosis...like a year or two -- I'm not sure of the

exact time, but I do remember there's a time limit on its accuracy. Since

you've been " officially " diabetic for a number of years, it may not be

diagnostic for you.

I had my GAD test within one year of diagnosis. And I was diagnosed pretty

early on after onset, none of this slow onset stuff like most type 2s, being

undiagnosed but diabetic two or three years before " official " diagnosis. As

some of you may know -- I've mentioned this before -- I was part of a Fosamax

trial and I went in for blood and urine testing every three months. So

between one three-month exam where everything was normal and the next where

ketones turned up in my urine, I was sent for an A1C which turned out to be

10.6. And I did have another autoimmune disorder prior to diabetic

diagnosis. Vicki

In a message dated 05/25/2002 7:53:10 AM US Mountain Standard Time,

nws@... writes:

> I think I'm going to insist on that GAD test when I go back to my diabetes

> doctor.just for my own satisfaction.

May 25, 2002

Hi Anne,

My experience/history is similar to yours. For decades, my symptoms weren't

wasn't taken seriously. My PCOS and DM were dxed on the same day. I was on

glucophage for 6 months, but wt loss and a new way of eating and exercise did

improve my insulin resistance. I finally weaned off the glocophage and am

closely monitoring my bgs before and after meals. I still have about 20+ lbs

to lose and I'm interested to see how that affects my IR.

Carol T

In a message dated 5/25/02 8:47:27 AM Pacific Daylight Time,

anne@... writes:

>Very high blood sugar followed a few hours later by very low blood sugar

can be caused by insulin resistance and is very easily controlled by

Glucophage. I don't have a problem with this at all any more since I've

been on Glucophage. No more highs and no more lows, and I watch my diet

much more carefully.

May 25, 2002

Hi Anne,

My experience/history is similar to yours. For decades, my symptoms weren't

wasn't taken seriously. My PCOS and DM were dxed on the same day. I was on

glucophage for 6 months, but wt loss and a new way of eating and exercise did

improve my insulin resistance. I finally weaned off the glocophage and am

closely monitoring my bgs before and after meals. I still have about 20+ lbs

to lose and I'm interested to see how that affects my IR.

Carol T

In a message dated 5/25/02 8:47:27 AM Pacific Daylight Time,

anne@... writes:

>Very high blood sugar followed a few hours later by very low blood sugar

can be caused by insulin resistance and is very easily controlled by