Tuesday, August 2, 2011

INITIAL A1C AND BLOOD GLUCOSE LEVELS

Today, I tested my A1C and it was 5.1, which is pre-diabetic.  Bill's was 5.5, which is pretty close to diabetic.  I also bought a glucometer and started testing my blood glucose right before each meal, and 1 hour after starting to eat (postprandial) and 1 hour after that.  Here is my chart:

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10 comments:

  1. KellyAugust 2, 2011 at 10:28 PM

    I am not an expert, I just read blogs!, but I don't think that those are prediabetic, or nearly diabetic numbers at all.

    From the Mayo Clinic website:

    For someone who doesn't have diabetes, a normal A1C level can range from 4.5 to 6 percent. Someone who's had uncontrolled diabetes for a long time might have an A1C level above 9 percent.

    When the A1C test is used to diagnose diabetes, an A1C level of 6.5 percent or higher on two separate tests indicates you have diabetes. A result between 5.7 and 6.4 percent is considered prediabetes, which indicates a high risk of developing diabetes.

    So, at 5.5, Bill would be fairly close to the prediabetic range, but not in it and your numbers are normal.

    Kelly

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  2. Rebecca LathamAugust 3, 2011 at 7:40 AM

    Thanks for your thoughts, Kelly! But I do not trust the conventional wisdom, ADA and Mayo Clinic recommendations on blood sugar, which are so high that by the time a person reaches those numbers they are full blown diabetic.

    Dr. Bernstein recommends that fasting blood sugar be no higher than 83. My personal doctor agrees with that, and feel that my levels and Bill's levels are too high and pre-diabetic. She wants us to take serious steps to bring down our blood sugar.

    I follow the advice of Dr. Richard Bernstein. You can find his book here:

    http://www.amazon.com/Dr-Bernsteins-Diabetes-Solution-Achieving/dp/0316167169/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1312374714&sr=8-1

    Soon, I am getting a fasting insulin test done, which, if high, will show that the numbers I am getting on blood sugar are being artificially lowered. When this number gets factored in with my high Reverse T3 and low thyroid, it shows a level of Metabolic Syndrome that could be the reason why I can sit down at a table and eat the same meal as all my sisters, and they will maintain their weight the next morning, and I will have gained three pounds.

    I'm hoping that I will be able to get to the bottom of this soon. When I get my test results back and have the full picture, I'll be blogging about what I find out and what I'm going to do about it.

    Thanks again and wish me luck!

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  3. Rebecca LathamAugust 3, 2011 at 7:46 AM

    Kelly, if you go to that link that I posted above, and "Look inside this book" and read page xi, you will get an idea of Dr. Bernstein's recommendations about BG levels and why they are lower than the ADA.

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  4. StephanieAugust 3, 2011 at 10:21 AM

    Rebecca, Rob Wolf talks about this and I can't remember if it is Chris Kresser or who, but they say that if you are a low carber your A1C levels will get a higher reading because you dont turn over your blood cells as often.
    I cant remember if it is red or white, but I will do some digging around on his site and see if I can find the podcast(s) where he talks about this.
    I just know that in Paleo circles they have gone away from that marker as proof of anything when you eat low carb.

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  5. StephanieAugust 3, 2011 at 10:49 AM

    Rebecca,
    Here is a link that explains it. (It is our red blood cells that live longer and therfore skews the test results)

    http://www.paleovillage.com/2011/06/08/hemoglobin-a1c-test-and-its-implications/

    If I find it on Robb Wolf's site I will post it back to you again, but this is the essence of what he now believes too.

    And I just read his book and can't remember if he covers that in his book or not. It may have been a realization he came to after the book was published.

    Did you listen to the Jimmy Moore interview with the bloodsugar 101 lady? She had an interesting comment about some people with metabolic syndrome taking metformin to help with weight loss even if they were not a type II diabetic.

    It is something in the back of my mind because like you my body seems to be happy at a weight that I am not happy with.

    Anyhow, the A1C thing seems like a non-issue. Your blood sugar levels look good. I have been tracking mine and mine stays between 85 (fasting) and up to 110 (after meals). I did get a reading of 140 1 hour after eating cherries.

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  6. StephanieAugust 3, 2011 at 1:35 PM

    Rebecca,

    Here is a link to a post that talks about A1C in paleo (low carb) people.

    http://www.paleovillage.com/2011/06/08/hemoglobin-a1c-test-and-its-implications/

    I know I have heard Robb Wolf talk about this too, I just have not had time to find it. It may even be in his book.

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  7. StephanieAugust 3, 2011 at 2:00 PM

    Here is a post from Chris Kresser

    http://chriskresser.com/blog/why-hemoglobin-a1c-is-not-a-reliable-marker/

    Hope this eases your mind a bit, your blood sugar numbers look quite good.

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  8. StephanieAugust 3, 2011 at 2:47 PM

    When you say you are getting "fasting insulin done" are you talking about a glucose tolerance test?
    Robb Wolf also says if you are low carb this test will be way off because your body is not producing the proper enzymes to process the massive amount of glucose they give for the test. If it is the glucose tolerance test then he reccomends that you jack up your carb intake for a few days before going in for the test so your body can give a more accurate response.

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  9. Rebecca LathamAugust 4, 2011 at 7:37 AM

    Hi, Stephanie! I worked all day yesterday and this morning I am heading out of town for several days, so I may not have a change to take a close look at the things you have posted. But I wanted to thank you for all the time you have taken to locate those things for me! I'll be very interested to read them when I get back!

    I did want to let you know that it is a fasting insulin test that I will be taking and not a glucose tolerance test. They are different tests altogether. I have also heard that you are supposed to carb load before the glucose tolerance test, but with the fasting insulin test, you do not do that, even if you have been eating low carb.

    Thanks again, and I'll be back soon.

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  10. Rebecca LathamAugust 4, 2011 at 7:46 AM

    Stephanie,

    http://forum.lowcarber.org/archive/index.php/t-129948.html

    ReplyDelete

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