Since her diagnosis Oct 2019 my mum hasn't been given a blood sugar test, despite requesting it often. They did one finally after another Dr was assigned to her, as she suspected she now has pred induced type 2 diabetes.
Since losing her vision, her only little enjoyment in life has been occasional sweets - she's always had a sweet tooth. Other than that, she eats healthily, no caffeine or alcohol and exercises well every day.
I don't yet know what new medication they will be prescribing but does anybody with a similar experience have any advice or info please?
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Jeromekjerome
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Pred-induced diabetes is not quite the same as Type 2 diabetes - did she cut out processed carbs early on? What test did they do? Was it Hba1c and if so, what was the level?
I just found out HbA1c is 50, that's all they could tell me. He is going to speak to the rheumatolgyst about reducing steroids and she is having a further blood test tomorrow morning.
That is high and she may be given medication - but she can help it along with a low carb diet.
However - I am appalled they haven't been checking it since diagnosis because they should have seen it creeping up and avoidance measures put in place.
What dose of pred is she on? Once her vision was gone there was no point keeping it very high but she does need enough to keep the inflammation down.
No, not the finger prick - the Hba1c is the only reliable way of seeing the effect of pred on blood sugar and should be checked every 2 to 3 months when the routine blood tests are carried out. The pred causes the liver to release random spikes of glucose into the blood stream - that is in addition to the BS level rising as the result of eating carbs and sugars. Overall that increases the Hba1c level. Once way of reducing the impact is to control what you can control: the dietary carbs and added sugar.
I was prescribed with type 2 a few months after my PMR diagnosis. I was put on gliclazide for 6 months and went on a low carb high fat diet. I was taken off the gliclazide because my hba1c had dropped to 39 and they were worried I would hypo if I stayed on it. I walk a lot (over 10,000 steps each day) and my hba1c is now 35.
The trouble with Pred, is that it pushes up the blood sugar level without the person eating a morsel. The odd sweet or even small amounts of carbs will then add to the problem. When taking Pred, a healthy diet alone can sometimes not be enough of a protection. So, when they say diabetes it can mean different things. It can be that the blood sugar is just kept high but the pancreas is functioning ok. Or the pancreas isn’t able to function as well as it should be. The person may also just be not sensitive to the sugar clearing hormone insulin. If it was me, and it was possible I’d want to see what a proper low carb diet does before throwing more meds in. In your circumstance it may not be possible.
In 3 months, my OH has managed to reduce his HbA1c from 56 to 43. He isn't on pred, but I wanted to encourage you that it can be done by some people, by diet and activity. He goes for his prescribed 20 minute walk every day and has cut out added sugars. Prior to this, he had a period of reduced activity due to 2 eye operations, coupled with ploughing his way through a Christmas hamper sent by his Mum, who does have diabetes - so he has a family history!
That is encouraging, thanks. Yes - gifts from family and friends are usually sweets, homemade cakes and shortbread etc. I've been getting into fermentation lately and give her little jars of sauerkraut
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