Glucose Tolerance Test on Autoimmune Paleo Diet?

[Shkmigmo]

Hi!

I'm new here and I need your help. This is the first Thyroid community that I approached to, since no such a strong support exists in my country (Bosnia).

I was diagnosed with Hashi and Hypothyroidism in July this year and since then I've been on Letrox 75mg and following Autoimmune Paleo Diet strictly. In a very short period my antibodies dropped significantly.

At the last check up at the Endocrinologist I was suggested to do Oral Glucose Tolerance Test. I'm well acquainted with the procedure, but my concern is whether taking large amounts of glucose (or, taking it at all) would interfere with my AIP or would even kick me out of it.

I would really appreciate any suggestion or thoughts on this issue.

Kind regards,

Elma

[Frances0008]

Why take a test if you already know quitting gluten is making you feel better, and you are happy to continue on the diet?

Unless you want the test to confirm you don’t have a problem so you can eat gluten again, then there is no point in putting yourself through it, I’d say.

[MaisieGray in reply to Frances0008]

I thought a glucose tolerance test was to identify diabetes/pre-diabetes

[Shkmigmo in reply to MaisieGray]

Yes, that's right, with OGT test you can identify diabetes/pre-diabetes...

[MaisieGray in reply to Shkmigmo]

Yes that's what I thought, so wasn't getting the gluten connection raised by Frances0008

[Shkmigmo in reply to Frances0008]

Thank you for the reply!

I don't plan to eat gluten ever again, but on July when I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism my doctor suspected that I might have issues with insulin resistance (because I would have a fatigue half an hour after having a meal). So I did Oral Glucose Test which showed that I might have hypoglycemia with hyperinsulinemia. Since then, I've been on AIP and only recently was instructed by my doctor to do that test again, to check whether that sugar-insulin issue was ''an accident''...

Since I don't have fatigue anymore after eating something, I would guess that hypoglycemia was just an ''episode'', so I don't feel comfortable ruining my AIP...

[Kes8]

I do the AIP diet - still in the reintroduction phase.

Although thanks to the diet I have far less type I diabetic hypos I do have to go off AIP and have glucose occasionally.

Apart from being more sensitive to sugar - it doesn't trigger any symptoms returning that the AIP reduced/removed.

Biochemically I don't see any way a one of ingestion of sugar/glucose will effect anything negatively long term.

Having followed the AIP you should have repaired/increased but health so again this should not be affected by glucose.

[Shkmigmo in reply to Kes8]

Thanks a lot for sharing your experience!

Prior to writing my inquiry at this site I googled for the similar experiences and found some information on this site:

phoenixhelix.com/2015/04/25...

where they cited the ingredients of the OGT concoction (the very picture I found on this site: foodbabe.com/shocking-why-a....

Basically those information intensified my concerns...

But, it helps a lot to hear that you have done this test and have no flare ups or bigger health issues after taking it.

[MMaud]

Hello there.

have you been given any guidance on preparing for your OGTT?

It seems likely if you are eating Pqaloe that your consumption of carbs will be down on what you might have been having before. Do you know, roughly, how many gramms of carbs you are eating a day?

When you have an OGTT, the glucose drink is at a controlled level, but if you have been eating few carbs recently, you would be at an increased risk of returning a positive result - by that I mean having a reaction to the drink suggesting you could be Prediabetic or even full blown diabetic.

The usual protocol would be to ensure you were consuming 150mg carbohydrate for at least 3 days prior to the test. The carbs don't need to involve gluten. They could be composed of rice or potato, or even gluten-free products, for example, and of course vegetables contain carbs, albeit in modest quantities.

Good luck with the OGTT.

[Shkmigmo in reply to MMaud]

Thank you very much for your suggestion!

On most of the sites that I've read about preparation for the OGTT it is said to eat ''your standard diet 3 days prior to the test'' (sites in Bosnian language). I calculated the nutritional value of my daily meals and I would roughly estimate that I consume 100g of carbs daily.

After I had done my first OGTT I suspected that my body was just ''shocked'' by the amount of glucose, since I have never liked nor eaten much sweets and, in my family, we don't eat much bread or any ''heavy'' carbs or sugar. So, taking more carbs than I usually eat for the last 5 years I found as ''cheating'' (I've been on Paleo for the last 5 years, but on AIP only since this July).

Or, ''loading'' with carbs should be done anyway?

[MMaud in reply to Shkmigmo]

I think it's up to you how you go about things, as long as you are mindful your body might be a bit slow reacting the the glucose, as it's not used to the significant hit, in one go.

I eat a gluten-free, low carb diet, and did an OGTT about 18 months ago, without carbing up (I'm usually <50gr carb a day), and passed it, so a false positive isn't necessarily a given.

Good luck with it all.

[G2G2 in reply to Shkmigmo]

You should eat as your normally would. Don't carb load. This does nothing. The test is measuring how your pancreas responds to pure glucose. Your system wasn't shocked by the previous OGTT. Either your pancreas can handle it, or it can't. I'm a T1 diabetic so sadly know too much about this.

[Shkmigmo in reply to G2G2]

That is valuable information! Thanks a lot! Based on the discussion here, I've decided to do OGT test tomorrow!

[G2G2 in reply to Shkmigmo]

Good luck!

[Shkmigmo]

Thanks again for the prompt reply, this was very helpful!

[G2G2]

An easier & better alternative to OGTT, is to ask your doctor for a C-peptide test. If you're C-peptide is too low, that indicates T1 diabetes. If it's too high, that's T2 diabetes. C-peptide is directly related to insulin.

[Shkmigmo in reply to G2G2]

Ok, good to know! If I'm suggested to repeat the test in the following months, I'll mention C-peptide test... (I must admit that in a way I'm trying to get away with this diabetes story, cause I don't want do "be awarded" with one more diagnosis...)

And again, thank you all, this support means a lot to me!

[G2G2 in reply to Shkmigmo]

Hope you're not awarded another diagnosis. Fingers crossed.