Re: peak blood glucose level time

January 22, 2006

Harry,

Good topic to discuss, the idea of testing to see when your individual blood

sugar peaks. I've taken a slightly different approach up to now in trying to

find the point when my sugar returns to acceptable level after a meal and

with me it seems to be more than 2 hours but within 2-1/2 hours. Most of the

time. Except today for some reason I decided to test the waters with some

pancakes and Aunt Jamima syrup which my wife and I would both enjoy for

breakfast. I never noticed any real problem with this when I was taking the

Actos but with the Metformin and Glyburide even after 2-1/2 hours the blood

sugar was 171. I figured it would go down after that but by the time I was

headed on the way to work this morning, roughly an hour after that test, I

felt a little " out of it " for about 15 minutes but then returned to normal.

Of course I was on the road and did not have the benefit of a blood sugar

test, but my guess is that my sugar must have continued to go up and then

finally subsided. Well, now I know for sure under present conditions I can't

do that again and will have to eliminate that from my diet. Now what I will

try for experiment sake is a sugar free syrup to see how much effect that

alone has to see if I can still enjoy pancakes. I'm still learning what I

can and can't utilize with my present regimen.

It's days like this that I wish I had the Actos since 2 years ago I could

eat the pancakes with the same syrup and 2HPP would be 115. But then I have

to deal with weight gain from the Actos and would also have to wonder if

there were other things it was doing to me that I have yet to discover.

Since I've been on the Metformin and Glyburide, my running average BS has

been about 109 until this morning's kicker.

Now that you mention the idea of checking to see how long it would take me

to reach my peak sugar, that is something I need to check also just so I can

see how high it will actually go. I might be shocked though, and that's kind

of scary. Yes, I know it will come back down to a good level but idally I'd

like not to have it get high in the first place.

But then I know that even in a normal person the sugar level can be high

after eating something, as I tested my wife the other night who is

nondiabetic and right after she ate a pop tart her blood sugar was about

151. So even nondiabetics can register high blood sugars.

I will have to continue to investigate what I can and can't put in my diet

and find a happy balance of things. It is a difficult balance because a lot

of the things I should eat are things my wife doesn't like and vice versa,

and I don't see any sense in buying two different sets of groceries, so we

have to come to grips with stuff we can both have and like. All in a day's

work.

Thanks for bringing up this issue.

Bill Powers

January 22, 2006

Hi Harry:

The cost of the strips would be worth it just to know when my peak time was,

I should think, because wouldn't knowing my peak time help with controlling

my blood glucose level?

Becky and Cassidy, Pilot Dog, Poodle

maddpoodle27@...

Fw: Update-Dr.Mirkin's E-Zine: Diabetics and

> pre-diabetics, frequent urination, more . . .

>

>> Dr. Gabe Mirkin's Fitness and Health E-Zine

>> January 22, 2006

>>

>> Why Exercise Is Essential for Diabetics and Pre-Diabetics

>>

>> Thirty-five percent of all Americans will develop diabetes,

>> which can cause heart attacks, strokes, blindness, deafness,

>> impotence, amputations, kidney failure and sudden death. Three

>> studies show why virtually all diabetics should exercise. The first

>> study shows that exercising before a meal markedly reduces the

>> rise in blood sugar that usually peaks 20 minutes after you eat

>> (Lipids in Health & Disease, October 2005). The second shows

>> that exercise lowers HBA1C in diabetics (Journal of Obesity,

>> October 2002), while the third shows that exercise lowers high

>> blood pressure (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise,

>> August 2005)

>> When you eat, your blood sugar level rises. In diabetics,

>> most of the damage is done within 20 minutes after you eat

>> because that's the time that blood sugar levels are at their

>> highest. The higher blood sugar rises, the more sugar sticks on

>> cells. Once sugar is stuck on a cell, it can never get off. It is

>> eventually converted to a poison called sorbitol that destroys the

>> cell. This cell destruction causes all of the horrible side effects of

>> diabetes.

>> Doctors measure the amount of sugar stuck on cells with

>> a blood test called HBA1C. The first goal in treating diabetes is

>> to use drugs and diet to get HBA1C below 6. Since blood sugar

>> levels are highest 20 minutes after you eat, you should do

>> everything possible to prevent the high rise in blood sugar that

>> follows meals. The only places that your body can store sugar

>> are in your muscles and your liver. After you eat, sugar goes

>> from your intestines into your bloodstream. Then if your muscles

>> are empty from exercise, the sugar can pass into your muscles.

>> However, if your muscles are full because you do not exercise,

>> the sugar has no place to go and blood sugar rises to very high

>> levels to stick to cells and destroy your body.

>> Exercise is also vital for diabetics because it helps to

>> control blood pressure. Eighty percent of diabetics die of heart

>> disease, and anything that increases risk for heart attacks puts

>> diabetics in danger. High blood pressure is a major risk for heart

>> attacks and strokes. Since exercise lowers high blood pressure,

>> it helps to prevent heart attacks and thus to keep diabetics alive.

>>

>

January 22, 2006

Hi Bill:

I gave the sugar free syrup at a restaurant a try the other night. For now

I've decided to leave pancakes and waffles completely alone, not only

because of the carbs, but because of that syrup. I was glad that Bob had

been agreeable to giving me a small piece of his waffle, both to taste the

syrup to see if I liked it and to satisfy my wanting a waffle.

Please post if you find a sugar free syrup that you like. I would be

interested in knowing in the event that I can work the occasional waffle or

pancake back into my diet.

Becky and Cassidy, Pilot Dog, Poodle

maddpoodle27@...

Re: peak blood glucose level time

> Harry,

>

> Good topic to discuss, the idea of testing to see when your individual

> blood

> sugar peaks. I've taken a slightly different approach up to now in trying

> to

> find the point when my sugar returns to acceptable level after a meal and

> with me it seems to be more than 2 hours but within 2-1/2 hours. Most of

> the

> time. Except today for some reason I decided to test the waters with some

> pancakes and Aunt Jamima syrup which my wife and I would both enjoy for

> breakfast. I never noticed any real problem with this when I was taking

> the

> Actos but with the Metformin and Glyburide even after 2-1/2 hours the

> blood

> sugar was 171. I figured it would go down after that but by the time I was

> headed on the way to work this morning, roughly an hour after that test, I

> felt a little " out of it " for about 15 minutes but then returned to

> normal.

> Of course I was on the road and did not have the benefit of a blood sugar

> test, but my guess is that my sugar must have continued to go up and then

> finally subsided. Well, now I know for sure under present conditions I

> can't

> do that again and will have to eliminate that from my diet. Now what I

> will

> try for experiment sake is a sugar free syrup to see how much effect that

> alone has to see if I can still enjoy pancakes. I'm still learning what I

> can and can't utilize with my present regimen.

>

> It's days like this that I wish I had the Actos since 2 years ago I could

> eat the pancakes with the same syrup and 2HPP would be 115. But then I

> have

> to deal with weight gain from the Actos and would also have to wonder if

> there were other things it was doing to me that I have yet to discover.

>

> Since I've been on the Metformin and Glyburide, my running average BS has

> been about 109 until this morning's kicker.

>

> Now that you mention the idea of checking to see how long it would take me

> to reach my peak sugar, that is something I need to check also just so I

> can

> see how high it will actually go. I might be shocked though, and that's

> kind

> of scary. Yes, I know it will come back down to a good level but idally

> I'd

> like not to have it get high in the first place.

>

> But then I know that even in a normal person the sugar level can be high

> after eating something, as I tested my wife the other night who is

> nondiabetic and right after she ate a pop tart her blood sugar was about

> 151. So even nondiabetics can register high blood sugars.

>

> I will have to continue to investigate what I can and can't put in my diet

> and find a happy balance of things. It is a difficult balance because a

> lot

> of the things I should eat are things my wife doesn't like and vice versa,

> and I don't see any sense in buying two different sets of groceries, so we

> have to come to grips with stuff we can both have and like. All in a day's

> work.

>

> Thanks for bringing up this issue.

>

> Bill Powers

>

January 22, 2006

I would definitely think so! One of the keys to mastery is knowledge of how

your body works. If you eat a lot of fat laden carbs like pizza, the fat in

the food can delay your peak time for the carbs to be converted to glucose.

Besides if you purposefully hike your glucose level to a peak, then this

would be an excellent time for you to learn what your U factor is. The U

factor is, for those who dose short-acting insulin, the average number of bs

points dropped by a single unit of insulin injected. You can run your bs

high and then dose several units of insulin to see how this affects your bs

level. For instance you have a bs of 220 at the peak and dose five units of

Humalog. Two hours or three hours later you check your bs level again and

discover it dropped from 220 to 120 or a difference of 100 points caused by

five units of insulin. In this example the U factor would be 100/5=20. 1

unit of insulin drops your bs by 20 points. This is what I call real

knowledge about your body. My U factor happens to be 7.5. Do you know your

U factor? For bs mastery you should!

Fw: Update-Dr.Mirkin's E-Zine: Diabetics and

>> pre-diabetics, frequent urination, more . . .

>>

>>> Dr. Gabe Mirkin's Fitness and Health E-Zine

>>> January 22, 2006

>>>

>>> Why Exercise Is Essential for Diabetics and Pre-Diabetics

>>>

>>> Thirty-five percent of all Americans will develop diabetes,

>>> which can cause heart attacks, strokes, blindness, deafness,

>>> impotence, amputations, kidney failure and sudden death. Three

>>> studies show why virtually all diabetics should exercise. The first

>>> study shows that exercising before a meal markedly reduces the

>>> rise in blood sugar that usually peaks 20 minutes after you eat

>>> (Lipids in Health & Disease, October 2005). The second shows

>>> that exercise lowers HBA1C in diabetics (Journal of Obesity,

>>> October 2002), while the third shows that exercise lowers high

>>> blood pressure (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise,

>>> August 2005)

>>> When you eat, your blood sugar level rises. In diabetics,

>>> most of the damage is done within 20 minutes after you eat

>>> because that's the time that blood sugar levels are at their

>>> highest. The higher blood sugar rises, the more sugar sticks on

>>> cells. Once sugar is stuck on a cell, it can never get off. It is

>>> eventually converted to a poison called sorbitol that destroys the

>>> cell. This cell destruction causes all of the horrible side effects of

>>> diabetes.

>>> Doctors measure the amount of sugar stuck on cells with

>>> a blood test called HBA1C. The first goal in treating diabetes is

>>> to use drugs and diet to get HBA1C below 6. Since blood sugar

>>> levels are highest 20 minutes after you eat, you should do

>>> everything possible to prevent the high rise in blood sugar that

>>> follows meals. The only places that your body can store sugar

>>> are in your muscles and your liver. After you eat, sugar goes

>>> from your intestines into your bloodstream. Then if your muscles

>>> are empty from exercise, the sugar can pass into your muscles.

>>> However, if your muscles are full because you do not exercise,

>>> the sugar has no place to go and blood sugar rises to very high

>>> levels to stick to cells and destroy your body.

>>> Exercise is also vital for diabetics because it helps to

>>> control blood pressure. Eighty percent of diabetics die of heart

>>> disease, and anything that increases risk for heart attacks puts

>>> diabetics in danger. High blood pressure is a major risk for heart

>>> attacks and strokes. Since exercise lowers high blood pressure,

>>> it helps to prevent heart attacks and thus to keep diabetics alive.

>>>

>>

January 22, 2006

Becky,

Wow I learned something new. I didn't know about the U-factor because I

don't dose with insulin, I just use oral meds. The downside of this is the

example yesterday, when I was feeling bad, I just KNEW it was because the

sugar level had cranked up past a good point and my body TOLD me that, and I

simply had to wait it out. I knew from previous history that the feeling

would subside within 15 minutes and it did. I am lucky that I can tell when

my body says " too high " and " too low " and I do pay attention to that.

I guess I could go one of two ways here. I could learn to use insulin as

part of my regimen to defend against such spikes, or I could use the more

sensible and proactive approach and learn to " live within my means " and know

which foods I can't tempt fate with in the first place, so that I wouldn't

have to be dosing to get me out of trouble. Only once in a blue moon do I

run into a situation like that, but probably now that I'm on a different med

regimen (Metformin and Glyburide instead of Actos), I might run into this

more often. If the Actos was still working for me, in terms of weight gain

and overall performance, I'd still be on that because I had less trouble

managing peaks than I do now. I'll just have to deal with this though and

keep close tabs on whether this regimen is truly working for me.

Thanks for that info on the U-factor though, that is VERY interesting.

Big Bill

January 23, 2006

Hi Harry:

I do not know my U Factor but shall find out.

Becky and Cassidy, Pilot Dog, Poodle

maddpoodle27@...

Fw: Update-Dr.Mirkin's E-Zine: Diabetics and

>>> pre-diabetics, frequent urination, more . . .

>>>

>>>> Dr. Gabe Mirkin's Fitness and Health E-Zine

>>>> January 22, 2006

>>>>

>>>> Why Exercise Is Essential for Diabetics and Pre-Diabetics

>>>>

>>>> Thirty-five percent of all Americans will develop diabetes,

>>>> which can cause heart attacks, strokes, blindness, deafness,

>>>> impotence, amputations, kidney failure and sudden death. Three

>>>> studies show why virtually all diabetics should exercise. The first

>>>> study shows that exercising before a meal markedly reduces the

>>>> rise in blood sugar that usually peaks 20 minutes after you eat

>>>> (Lipids in Health & Disease, October 2005). The second shows

>>>> that exercise lowers HBA1C in diabetics (Journal of Obesity,

>>>> October 2002), while the third shows that exercise lowers high

>>>> blood pressure (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise,

>>>> August 2005)

>>>> When you eat, your blood sugar level rises. In diabetics,

>>>> most of the damage is done within 20 minutes after you eat

>>>> because that's the time that blood sugar levels are at their

>>>> highest. The higher blood sugar rises, the more sugar sticks on

>>>> cells. Once sugar is stuck on a cell, it can never get off. It is

>>>> eventually converted to a poison called sorbitol that destroys the

>>>> cell. This cell destruction causes all of the horrible side effects of

>>>> diabetes.

>>>> Doctors measure the amount of sugar stuck on cells with

>>>> a blood test called HBA1C. The first goal in treating diabetes is

>>>> to use drugs and diet to get HBA1C below 6. Since blood sugar

>>>> levels are highest 20 minutes after you eat, you should do

>>>> everything possible to prevent the high rise in blood sugar that

>>>> follows meals. The only places that your body can store sugar

>>>> are in your muscles and your liver. After you eat, sugar goes

>>>> from your intestines into your bloodstream. Then if your muscles

>>>> are empty from exercise, the sugar can pass into your muscles.

>>>> However, if your muscles are full because you do not exercise,

>>>> the sugar has no place to go and blood sugar rises to very high

>>>> levels to stick to cells and destroy your body.

>>>> Exercise is also vital for diabetics because it helps to

>>>> control blood pressure. Eighty percent of diabetics die of heart

>>>> disease, and anything that increases risk for heart attacks puts

>>>> diabetics in danger. High blood pressure is a major risk for heart

>>>> attacks and strokes. Since exercise lowers high blood pressure,

>>>> it helps to prevent heart attacks and thus to keep diabetics alive.

>>>>

>>>

January 23, 2006

Hi Bill:

I was surprised by the U Factor, too, because I've not heard of it before

and thought I would have since I have family members who are on Insulin.

Becky and Cassidy, Pilot Dog, Poodle

maddpoodle27@...

Re: peak blood glucose level time

> Becky,

>

> Wow I learned something new. I didn't know about the U-factor because I

> don't dose with insulin, I just use oral meds. The downside of this is the

> example yesterday, when I was feeling bad, I just KNEW it was because the

> sugar level had cranked up past a good point and my body TOLD me that, and

> I

> simply had to wait it out. I knew from previous history that the feeling

> would subside within 15 minutes and it did. I am lucky that I can tell

> when

> my body says " too high " and " too low " and I do pay attention to that.

>

> I guess I could go one of two ways here. I could learn to use insulin as

> part of my regimen to defend against such spikes, or I could use the more

> sensible and proactive approach and learn to " live within my means " and

> know

> which foods I can't tempt fate with in the first place, so that I wouldn't

> have to be dosing to get me out of trouble. Only once in a blue moon do I

> run into a situation like that, but probably now that I'm on a different

> med

> regimen (Metformin and Glyburide instead of Actos), I might run into this

> more often. If the Actos was still working for me, in terms of weight gain

> and overall performance, I'd still be on that because I had less trouble

> managing peaks than I do now. I'll just have to deal with this though and

> keep close tabs on whether this regimen is truly working for me.

>

> Thanks for that info on the U-factor though, that is VERY interesting.

>

> Big Bill

>

January 23, 2006

Hi Bill:

I was surprised by the U Factor, too, because I've not heard of it before

and thought I would have since I have family members who are on Insulin.

Becky and Cassidy, Pilot Dog, Poodle

maddpoodle27@...

Re: peak blood glucose level time

> Becky,

>

> Wow I learned something new. I didn't know about the U-factor because I

> don't dose with insulin, I just use oral meds. The downside of this is the

> example yesterday, when I was feeling bad, I just KNEW it was because the

> sugar level had cranked up past a good point and my body TOLD me that, and

> I

> simply had to wait it out. I knew from previous history that the feeling

> would subside within 15 minutes and it did. I am lucky that I can tell

> when

> my body says " too high " and " too low " and I do pay attention to that.

>

> I guess I could go one of two ways here. I could learn to use insulin as

> part of my regimen to defend against such spikes, or I could use the more

> sensible and proactive approach and learn to " live within my means " and

> know

> which foods I can't tempt fate with in the first place, so that I wouldn't

> have to be dosing to get me out of trouble. Only once in a blue moon do I

> run into a situation like that, but probably now that I'm on a different

> med

> regimen (Metformin and Glyburide instead of Actos), I might run into this

> more often. If the Actos was still working for me, in terms of weight gain

> and overall performance, I'd still be on that because I had less trouble

> managing peaks than I do now. I'll just have to deal with this though and

> keep close tabs on whether this regimen is truly working for me.

>

> Thanks for that info on the U-factor though, that is VERY interesting.

>

> Big Bill

>

January 23, 2006

Becky:

The " U Factor " doesn't apply to you unless you are taking insulin.

Mike

Fw: Update-Dr.Mirkin's E-Zine: Diabetics and

>>>> pre-diabetics, frequent urination, more . . .

>>>>

>>>>> Dr. Gabe Mirkin's Fitness and Health E-Zine

>>>>> January 22, 2006

>>>>>

>>>>> Why Exercise Is Essential for Diabetics and Pre-Diabetics

>>>>>

>>>>> Thirty-five percent of all Americans will develop diabetes,

>>>>> which can cause heart attacks, strokes, blindness, deafness,

>>>>> impotence, amputations, kidney failure and sudden death. Three

>>>>> studies show why virtually all diabetics should exercise. The first

>>>>> study shows that exercising before a meal markedly reduces the

>>>>> rise in blood sugar that usually peaks 20 minutes after you eat

>>>>> (Lipids in Health & Disease, October 2005). The second shows

>>>>> that exercise lowers HBA1C in diabetics (Journal of Obesity,

>>>>> October 2002), while the third shows that exercise lowers high

>>>>> blood pressure (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise,

>>>>> August 2005)

>>>>> When you eat, your blood sugar level rises. In diabetics,

>>>>> most of the damage is done within 20 minutes after you eat

>>>>> because that's the time that blood sugar levels are at their

>>>>> highest. The higher blood sugar rises, the more sugar sticks on

>>>>> cells. Once sugar is stuck on a cell, it can never get off. It is

>>>>> eventually converted to a poison called sorbitol that destroys the

>>>>> cell. This cell destruction causes all of the horrible side effects

>>>>> of

>>>>> diabetes.

>>>>> Doctors measure the amount of sugar stuck on cells with

>>>>> a blood test called HBA1C. The first goal in treating diabetes is

>>>>> to use drugs and diet to get HBA1C below 6. Since blood sugar

>>>>> levels are highest 20 minutes after you eat, you should do

>>>>> everything possible to prevent the high rise in blood sugar that

>>>>> follows meals. The only places that your body can store sugar

>>>>> are in your muscles and your liver. After you eat, sugar goes

>>>>> from your intestines into your bloodstream. Then if your muscles

>>>>> are empty from exercise, the sugar can pass into your muscles.

>>>>> However, if your muscles are full because you do not exercise,

>>>>> the sugar has no place to go and blood sugar rises to very high

>>>>> levels to stick to cells and destroy your body.

>>>>> Exercise is also vital for diabetics because it helps to

>>>>> control blood pressure. Eighty percent of diabetics die of heart

>>>>> disease, and anything that increases risk for heart attacks puts

>>>>> diabetics in danger. High blood pressure is a major risk for heart

>>>>> attacks and strokes. Since exercise lowers high blood pressure,

>>>>> it helps to prevent heart attacks and thus to keep diabetics alive.

>>>>>

>>>>

January 23, 2006