[Tracker]

My husband has had an A1c of 5.9 for years. Recently he finally started using a glucose meter. It revealed fasting level of 82. The 1h pp blood sugar level was 191 (~110 2h pp) and after lunch and dinner it was at around 103 each. Same the day after. His breakfast is high carb (2 cups cereal), and the other meals aren't low carb, but pretty average SAD.

My question is : is there such a thing as "only after breakfast" high BS? It doesn't seem to be dawn phenomenon since his fasting is always around 82. Or could it be DP?

 

[itissteve]

Hi, Tracker!

If your husband's A1cs have been running around 5.9 on SAD he seems to be doing well overall. You don't say if you husband is on any medications or insulin for his diabetes, nor whether he's a Type 1 or Type 2 (guessing T2).

It's entierly possible the two cups of refined flours and sugar in the cereal are enough to push his BG to 191; that hour usually is the peak of BG response for many foods. I agree it does not seem like dawn phenomenon. It would be an interesting control to eat a low-/no-carb breakfast for a few days (eggs, maybe bacon or some low-carb vegetables) to isolate the cereal as the source of the high BG.

 

[Tracker]

Hi, Steve,

Forgot to mention a bunch of details! He is on 1,300mg of Metformin and is type 2. And he did try a low carb BF and got a 103 reading. So clearly it's the cereal. But I was just wondering whether this is common or not that one very carby BF can make BG shoot up but the others (still with plenty of carbs) won't? At any rate, at least he only has to deal with one meal instead of three, like me.

 

[itissteve]

It seems your husband's ability to generate insulin is still sufficiently intact that it's processing most of the breakfast carbs without storing too many of them (for later distribution into the bloodstream). That storage is why some of us have a really carby meal and then find our BG higher than usual for many hours later (sometimes even 24+ hours later).

Over time that "free ride" is likely to end. Your husband might want to look for other breakfasts he would enjoy. But I suspect that you already know that. 🙂

 

[mbuster]

The simple sugars of the breakfast carbs probably metabolize much quicker than the carbs eaten later in the day. There may be other factors too at lunch and dinner, more fats or fibers that slow down the digestion, thus reducing the height of the spike.

Like itissteve, I'd think finding an alternate breakfast food would be beneficial.

 

[Luposian]

As soon as I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes, I went crazy. By crazy, I mean IMMEDIATELY avoiding all the carbs I used to consume. I do NOT let drugs (metformin) "make up the difference" for eating the way I used to eat. Nope! No more cereals, no more cakes, cookies, orange juice, sugared beverages, etc. I will "splurge" every now and then (like eating at Panda Express or a Thai Restaurant), but that is my "carb hit" for the day... I eat a home-made chicken salad (salad mix and chicken with olive oil and home-made sugar-free balsamic glaze) lunch and dinner a lot... I got no problem eating the same things every day... what I like, I always like! And eating this way (I call it "Keto-centric", but it's not true Keto... that's too extreme) has allowed me to go from a size 36 waits down to a size 32, and I haven't been able to wear pants like that since before I got married about 23 years ago! And my only exercise nowadays? Walking the dogs around the block every evening!

 

[itissteve]

Luposian, it's nice to read a success story. Low-carb has helped a bunch of us avoid medication or insulin. But sometimes things are far enough along that they're needed, in which case low-carb can help keep those substances to a minimum in our lives.

Everyone needs to decide what they're willing to take on and what they're willing to give up. Getting to low-carb for long periods of time can be tough for some people. I'm glad it has worked so well for you.