Newbie

Have tried the diet this week and it has been great, but testing my blood sugar this morning before breakfast, it has gone up to 6! Is this ok?

Di

[TheAwfulToad Ambassador]

I wouldn't worry about single-point readings. Your fasting glucose is delivered by your liver, which (at the moment) is apparently still a bit "leaky" ... although not dramatically so. 6 is more-or-less normal.

Keep it up for a few weeks and take a reading at the same time each morning. Watch for the trend. You should find it drifts downwards.

[Hidden in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Many thanks. Di

[Praveen55]

Hidden

I fully agree with what TheAwfulToad has said. Diet does not affect the fasting blood sugar directly. Some improvement in fasting blood sugar comes after losing weight which improves insulin sensitivity.

Low carb diet improves post-meal blood sugar from the start.

Fasting blood sugar of 6 is quite good. Nothing to be concerned about.

[Hidden in reply to Praveen55]

Diabetic society count 5.6-6 as pre-diabetic!

[Praveen55 in reply to Hidden]

In a strict sense you are right. 5.6 - 6.9 is considered pre-diabetic. However, you should get the lab test done if you are concerned about your number. Home blood glucose meter is not good for confirming a medical condition because its accuracy is not good enough. Secondly, it is good to have HbA1c test done which gives better idea in assessing diabetes.

[Hidden]

Had HbA1c done last year, it was 37.6 so ok there. Di

[Praveen55 in reply to Hidden]

That is normal below 42. Congratulations! You may consider HbA1c test every six months.

High fasting: there can be many reasons for slightly elevated fasting number - quality of sleep, any stress resulting in release of stress hormone, age etc. Usually morning readings vary quite a lot. As long as it is consistently not very high, it is acceptable. There is no separate risk of complications due to fasting number. As long as peak blood sugar( after the meal) is below 7.8, the risk of complications is low.

[Hidden in reply to Praveen55]

Thank you so much for putting my mind at rest. Di