[Cricket]

Let me explain my reason for asking this. In another thread I noticed that someone mentioned that hot showers raises their blood sugar. All this time I thought it was just me and my body being weird because everything I had read mentioned that hot showers and baths can cause LOW blood sugar.

Besides your diet (carbohydrates) what things do you find impact (positive or negative) your blood sugar?

 

[macksvicky]

Showers, hot or just warm raise mine. Heavy house work raises it, but 2 hours of lifting weights drops it like a rock. Go figure how that works!? Also, stress can do it and being sick or getting sick, somehow BG going up before you even know you're sick.

 

[FRSam]

My understanding, which is very limited at this point, is stress & pain can raise one's blood sugar. I thought that exercise would lower your BG, burning up blood sugar required for exercise right? But this morning 1 hour after my morning breakfast my BG was 90. I went on a short walk just over a mile and my BG after the walk and 2 hours after breakfast was up to 93? It seems like heavy house work should lower your BG as well? So many questions?

 

[smorgan]

For me, nothing really. Just what I eat.

 

[Steve3129]

A 1.6 mile walk at lunch time will drop my BS 20-30 points!

 

[MaJoie]

Like Vicky I get higher readings for a few hours after a shower-whether it's as hot as I can stand it or barely warm. I usually have my lowest readings in the afternoon and evenings. So when I got oddly high readings when I showered before dinner I decided to test it specifically. That's when I got the 170 immediately after my shower. It took several hours to get down to expected numbers. I don't remember exactly.
I agree also about stress and illness/infection raising my BG, too. I thought my meters, which had originally been very close, had changed when I started getting higher numbers on the bionime than I had been seeing on the relion. But when I tested one right after the other the numbers were within 1 mg/dL, But I have been ill and have a nasty sinus infection. So now they both read high, but similar. It's me, not the meter.
I'm suspicious that Ibuprofen lowers my blood sugar, but I haven't tested it to be sure it isn't just time of day. I usually take it before I start dinner prep to take the edge off of the pain of being on my feet for extended times.

 

[Mare]

Heavy house work raises it, but 2 hours of lifting weights drops it like a rock. Go figure how that works!?

Being one of the new kids on the block, I have no answers for the original question but I sure do like Vicky's above response, I'll be remembering that!! Love the #sisterhood. :kiss2:

 

[neohdiver]

Let me explain my reason for asking this. In another thread I noticed that someone mentioned that hot showers raises their blood sugar. All this time I thought it was just me and my body being weird because everything I had read mentioned that hot showers and baths can cause LOW blood sugar.

Besides your diet (carbohydrates) what things do you find impact (positive or negative) your blood sugar?

Showers - this morning's was a lower bump than usual (only 20 points). I've had as much as a 60 point bump from a shower. I"m working on decreasing that by snacking a bit before & right after on almonds (which drop it).

Lack of sleep - on nights I stay up all night (or nearly all night), my BG is about 20 points higher in the morning. (Whether I snack during the night or not.)

Alcohol - sort of diet, but a different mechanism. Alcohol shuts down the background glucose mill & drops my BG significantly (enough to permit me to more than double my carb intake while the liver is shut down).

Illness - so far does NOT affect my BG - I was expecting it would, but was pleasantly surprised the one time I've been sick since diagnosis..

 

[Cricket]

Exercise lowers my blood sugar unless it is extended without eating.

Fasting raises my blood sugar unless I add something besides water. As an example, a cup of coffee loaded with heavy cream when going extending periods of time without eating will stop the rise.

When I get overheated, my blood sugar goes up. This could be from the weather or a hot bath.

Another thing I have never figured out is why some diabetics can drink alcohol without raising their blood sugar. Mine take a drastic jump when I have any at all.

Being sick, stressed, or over tired will also increase my blood sugar levels.

I am not certain, but I think if I get dehydrated, I also notice an increase but this could be related to being sick or getting overheated.

 

[Taso]

Walks lower my blood sugar, so I try to hit the road every morning.
Sickness pushes my number significantly higher.
Off to take a hot shower and test. I am intrigued.

 

[RobertIA]

Blood Glucose Variables



The following are some of the variables:
#1 Food consumption can be a large component of blood glucose reading variability.
#2 Meter accuracy can be a factor.
#3. Exercise and physical activity is another variable.
#4. Insulin is also a variable.
#5. Liver output of glucose is a variable.
#6. Emotions and stress are variables.
#7. Illness and injury is a variable.
#8. Hormones are variables.
#9. Food consumed at other meals and snacks are variables.
#10 The menstruation and menopause variable.

These are many of the variables that are known to cause fluctuations in blood glucose readings, but is not a comprehensive list.

 

[Daytona]

For a while I thought that a morning cup of coffee with heavy cream helped stop my BG from rising, but lately it just doesn't stop it anymore.

Otherwise, I find that most things, exercise, stress, illness, pain, a.k.a. my day to day, raise my BG, and not much lowers it other than insulin!

 

[neohdiver]

Another thing I have never figured out is why some diabetics can drink alcohol without raising their blood sugar. Mine take a drastic jump when I have any at all.

That's interesting. You must have a funky liver.

Theoretically what happens is that when you drink alcohol, your liver shuts down part of its glucose production factory (since it has a one-track mind) - decreasing the amount of glucose it releases into the bloodstream that normally has an additive effect with what you eat. So unless the alcohol has a carb content that is equivalent to (or higher than) your liver's normal glucose output, your BG should go down, not up. (Alcohol consumption is a known risk factor for hypos.)

My liver seems to put out the equivalent of around 30 grams of carbs worth of glucose. In testing, with a 5 oz glass of wine I can consume approximately 50 carbs in a sitting - rather than the 20 that I can usually tolerate. It came in handy on a business meal a month or so ago, when the restaurant my companions chose didn't have any nutritional information available, no plain salads or meats, and everything looked pretty carby. Starting the meal with a glass of wine gave me a bit of a cushion in case I guessed incorrectly about the carb content.

 

[neohdiver]

Walks lower my blood sugar, so I try to hit the road every morning.
Sickness pushes my number significantly higher.
Off to take a hot shower and test. I am intrigued.

If you don't get the "desired" rise, try it again in the morning (I haven't tested anytime other than morning - although I am seriously considering shifting my showers to the end of the day to see if there is a difference.)

 

[Daytona]

I'm in the same camp as Cricket. Alcohol, such as straight whiskey or a glass of dry red wine, raises my BG a bit. Too bad it doesn't give me any extra carb wiggle room, that would be fun. Instead of having your cake and eating it too, you could have your booze and drink it too.

 

[Cricket]

I'm in the same camp as Cricket. Alcohol, such as straight whiskey or a glass of dry red wine, raises my BG a bit. Too bad it doesn't give me any extra carb wiggle room, that would be fun. Instead of having your cake and eating it too, you could have your booze and drink it too.

I just laughed so hard I spit all over my monitor. :biggrin:

 

[neohdiver]

I'm in the same camp as Cricket. Alcohol, such as straight whiskey or a glass of dry red wine, raises my BG a bit. Too bad it doesn't give me any extra carb wiggle room, that would be fun. Instead of having your cake and eating it too, you could have your booze and drink it too.

Yup! It's a bit of magic to keep in my pocket for uncertain dining situations - or special occasions when I want a smidgen of a carby treat.

As long as it is a dry wine, I can not only have my booze, drink it too, but I can also eat a (very) small piece of cake!

(Guess I'd better keep checking, though, in case it has to do with whatever stage of diabetes I'm in . . . )

 

[MaJoie]

If I don't eat in the morning my BG bounces all over the place. Usually but not always when I eat it goes down. But I do have the occasional rise from the exact same meal. Breakfast for me doesn't change much. I alternate between a cheese omelet (preferably Swiss) or an avocado mashed up with butter S&P. Same meal, different results. So I guess my pancreas responds the way it's meant to sometimes but can be seriously broken. I don't know.

 

[smorgan]

I think this is why doctors didn't think it was a good idea for people to have home testing of glucose! :smile2:

 

[glwilso8]

taking recommendations of some of our friends here i cut my portions of protein and upped the fat, my carbs are under 30. on my days off i rode bike and lifted and behold i didn't get my usual bs roller-coaster and my two best FBGs to date. finally feel like the veil may be pulled back a bit.