How to manage prediabetes whilst on T3

[Alanna012]

I got a message from my GP surgery today saying my results show I am prediabetic, and I'm feeling a bit down because I have enough health issues to deal with.

I had a blood draw this morning in hospital which I didn't think included a diabetes test, but feasibly could have I suppose, and the phlebotomist said those results wouldn't come in to my GP surgery till Friday in any case, so I'm assuming this is from a test I had a few years ago which showed elevated blood sugar and I'm not even sure I fasted beforehand.

I do find taking T3 makes me a bit more sensitive to sugar.

In terms of diet I'm actually stumped as I am more a savoury and fat person than a sugar person. I do have sugar or honey in my tea, like jacobs crackers or a rich tea to dunk sometimes. White rice I'll eat fairly often to be honest but very little. It will be the smallest thing on my plate. Very seldom have white bread. Don't drink fruit juices much. Rarely pasta. So I'm not having high carbs. Imo.

For years when undertreated in levo and before that I couldn't do much if any exercise due to severe fatigue and post exercise malaise and that has doubtless caught up with me.

Any and all suggestions or advice on how I prevent myself tipping into full diabetes welcome.

[TiggerMe Ambassador]

How long have you been on T3? Chances are if this comment was made based on an old test whilst still undermedicated on T4 the addition of T3 will have resolved this issue... I wouldn't worry about it until you see the latest results 🤗

[Alanna012 in reply to TiggerMe]

🤗 Thank you Eeyore. If it's the test I'm thinking about and not one I had this morning, I was on T4 only and was given a range of tests by the GP because I had tried to argue I need better treatment and he wasn't having it, even though I gave him two private tests:

One where I had been on no meds with a sky high TSH showing low T4 and low T3.

And another after months of T4 only, showing a highly elevated T4 and T3 still not having budged by much at all.

Still refused to accept what his eyes were showing and said T3 is inconsequential and conversion wasn't important because T3 does nothing.

After that I went onto NDT.

So you're right, things might be different now. I feel a bit better x

[TiggerMe Ambassador in reply to Alanna012]

Sounds like you've got a right chump there! Next GP please🙃 can you review your results online? My A1c dropped from 40 to 33 once I had a bit of T3 in my system

[Alanna012 in reply to TiggerMe]

Ahhhh I was under the impression T3 made you more vulnerable to diabetes 😬. I ought to read more and contrasting how metabolically ill I was on T4 only as opposed to now, I assume you can only right. Because everything was bad then and I was quite overweight. Many thanks x

[TiggerMe Ambassador in reply to Alanna012]

Remember to take everything they say with a pinch of salt and do your own follow up and investigation work 😉

[TiggerMe Ambassador in reply to TiggerMe]

Also, I think it is pretty shonky to just drop that bit of information in your lap without a follow up or suggestion of retest... especially if it has taken them a couple of years to notice 😕

[Alanna012 in reply to TiggerMe]

Yeah it was rubbish. I then had a hospital appointment I've waited a year for about the urticaria just to be told oh sorry, administrative error, they gave you an appointment in the wrong clinic. Have to wait all over again!

[TiggerMe Ambassador in reply to Alanna012]

What a bunch of chumps! Are you able to access the system to check for any cancellations that you can grab? This was how I short tracked seeing an Endo 🙂

How are you tackling it in the meantime? Food diary?

[Alanna012 in reply to TiggerMe]

No point apparently, the hospital has only one line of treatment and consider it an immune system dysfunction they dismissed any food investigations and I must say periods of flare ups don't always match food eaten in a clear pattern.

I know I have histamine intolerance and in my last post everyone was basically saying 'fgs woman, you mean you haven't even tried gluten-free??!😄😄

So I'm going to give that a real longer trial and plan to take a food intolerance test like York or something. Because standard medical approach isn't holistic at all, in any sense of the word.

[TiggerMe Ambassador in reply to Alanna012]

I found the lifelab test useful and was able to find out that barley was my nemesis rather than all gluten 😅along with common gluten frees amaranth, buckwheat also dairy, nightshades, avocado, olives, beans.... I clocked up 100 out of 160!! 🏅

potato starch gets added to a lot of GF things 😖

I've cut out leftovers and anything aged... except the other half but he's walking a tightrope 🤣

[HKAnne in reply to Alanna012]

Hi Alanna012,

I was prescribed Atarax by a dermatologist for my urticaria and it cleared up within two days. I had suffered miserably for months as GP thought I was allergic to make up!

[jade_s]

I really like the bloodsugar101 website bloodsugar101.com/

[As someone who is not medically trained...] I would suggest getting an Hba1c blood test first, and then do home testing as explained on the website above, if needed. A fasting morning glucose test is not very meaningful. A bit like testing TSH lol. Hba1c can be considered like an average of the past few months.

[jade_s in reply to jade_s]

Also some of this stuff is just genetic. I have an uncle who exercises like crazy, eats cleaner than anybody I know, never touches carbs/sugars, is super fit/skinny, has no other autoimmune issues that I know of, and still got full-blown type 2 diabetes. It seems to run in my family as he's not the only with prediabetes issues. (Hmm maybe it *is* autoimmune i.e. type 1, and nobody bothers to test for it).

I have prediabetes and take metformin. Combined with the advice from the website (adapting diet based on blood sugar testing), and staying away from refined carbs and sugar, I've kept my blood sugar in check so far, knock on wood 🙏

[Alanna012 in reply to jade_s]

Thank you so much, that's reassuring that you've managed to keep it in check and so it can be effectively managed. Really good to know. The genetic component too. On my Dads side there are relatives with diabetes.

[Alanna012 in reply to jade_s]

I would not have known, thank you for this tip (website Hba1c test)

[jade_s in reply to Alanna012]

They / you - whoever tests - should also do a red blood cell panel eg MCV, MCH, MCHC, etc. Hba1c measures the amount of glucose attached to the hemoglobin in RBCs. If your RBCs are off for whatever reason, there is a risk of a false reading in the a1c, so it should be done together. I don't remember the details too much, but it is common knowledge and there is plenty of info online if it turns out RBCs are wonky.

[Alanna012 in reply to jade_s]

You're great, thabks!

[jade_s in reply to Alanna012]

You're welcome! Hopefully everything will turn out fine, but if not, don't worry too much - there are solutions and you aren't alone! : )

[Kapuna]

I have been “prediabetic“ for at least 25 years. The funny thing is that “they” (whomever they are) keep lowering the threshold for what makes a person diabetic. I’m not sure what it all means but I have continued my life, trying to eat as healthily as possible, with the exception of a few glasses of wine a week or an occasional chocolate something. I have yet to be diagnosed as “diabetic”.

[Bertwills]

I’ve had similar blood test results & I’m on T3 only. I think you’re correct in linking T3 & blood sugar problems. I went onto a low carb diet and got my reading below the pre-diabetic level.

You could also research berberine which is a supplement that works in a similar way to Metformin. I’m taking it now as low carb long term is very tedious although it helps in avoiding gluten.

Dr Michael Mosley & others have diet books that focus on reducing blood sugar. It’s particularly important not to sit still for too long. Getting up & walking around for 5 minutes every 30 mins is crucial, every fifteen minutes is even better.

Always eat protein alongside carbs to stop help blood suger peaks. Science now shows that individuals react very differently to the sugar in various foods. Without complex blood testing it’s difficult to know what will send your personal sugar reading high but sometimes you can feel a reaction to a certain food. My heart races if I have high sugar foods after alcohol so I think that’s a bad combination for me.

I think GPs are paid for identifying diabetics so they’re keen to do frequent blood sugar tests.

[Alanna012 in reply to Bertwills]

Many thanks that's really useful info and appreciated!

Yes, I got another blood test alert in the evening, so it seems my morning blood test was processed by the lab and passed to my GP in record time considering NHS. So my blood sugar results would be up-to-date and I can well believe there's cash incentive to run them frequently.

Unfortunately I do sit down a lot, it's hard when energy is average to poor but my energy is improving slowly on the T3 and I will consciously aim to move more. Thanks again!

[SmallBlueThing in reply to Alanna012]

The expense to the nation of treating diabetes and its consequences are considerable. It can be tough restricting carbs at the beginning (it's a bit easier with the feedback from a blood glucose meter), but not nice at all to be faced with an amputation further down the line. Best wishes for getting to grips with the problem.

[Alanna012 in reply to SmallBlueThing]

True and and a point not to be overlooked, thanks.

[SmallBlueThing in reply to Alanna012]

I've had annual HbA1c testing for the past decade, due to hypothyroidism and family history of diabetes and other autoimmune conditions. It went too high no doubt due to "stoking up" in the first lockdown, so I went on the NHS funded course, which was of minimal help. Then I got COVID19 and the hotline doctor suggested I use the blood glucose meter I'd left languishing in a drawer since buying it on a whim after reading someone on here say a few oatcakes could spike their blood glucose. Apparently, doctors don't like pre-diabetic patients monitoring with a meter, perhaps in case they get obsessed over it, or another explanation from those who are anti Big Pharma. I can't remember when I last tested, as by now I know the kind of meals I can handle and what to limit or avoid. My HbA1c and cholesterol tests are now fine, with triglycerides much reduced and in the normal range.

[Miffie]

It is very possibly this morning results are back as sent electronically to surgeries by labs usually.

I doubt it’s T3 that is the cause as I developed diabetes after being on T4 mono therapy following decades of ndt. Back on ndt it’s not a problem. So in my case T3 helps control blood sugar.

For the best advice on looking after yourself check out Diabetes UK. It’s the best source of accurate information.

Many people find that they actually eat rather more carbs than they think so worth keeping an eye on packaging, and don’t forget that fruit in moderation may be good but most is quite high in carbs. I eat a lot of berries as they are the lowest.

I note someone commented that the morning blood test is not suitable , an HBA1c is most accurate and done by blood draw. A finger prick is not usually done. Was it a finger prick you had? If not it’s an HBA1c which is completely accurate.

[Alanna012 in reply to Miffie]

Many thanks I will check out Diabetes UK. A few weeks ago I was eating bowls of fruit dolloped in cream 😬

Blood test feedback time is truly impressive if that's what they're doing now.

[Miffie in reply to Alanna012]

I have always been told it takes a week to get results, it’s nonsense really, I have online access and can see they come in same day/ next day for most blood tests.

[arTistapple]

During my very brief time spent on T3, I got caught for an Ha1c test. I get one annually normally, always been on the cusp (but they have changed the range again I think, lowering it) for about 20 years but I went over into actual diabetes. Since stopping T3 it’s reverted to its previous level but I still fall into the new range of diagnosed diabetes (no treatment). I found some reading that said when you initially go on to T3, the levels do rise. It makes sense to me, that the body is readjusting itself with the input of T3. Probably a lot of different chemicals caught up in mucin, which is definitely released when on T3 (my limited experience) I think it was on the Canadian site, which is also incredibly interesting.

[Alanna012 in reply to arTistapple]

Yes it's one of those things I must of read without giving it proper notice in regards to T3 contributing to increase in blood levels, and now I wish I had paid more attention.

In any case I've just come back from the doctors and it was a HBA1c test, and I'm 1 point over the range and if I'm correct that may well be an improvement from the previous test. Normal is 20 - 41 and prediabetic is 42 - 47

What you say about body readjusting itself with T3 also makes sense

I clearly need to prevent BC going higher now though.

Thanks for the info.

[jade_s in reply to Alanna012]

Wow that's a high range. In the US, 39 mmol/mol (5.7%) is already considered prediabetic.

cdc.gov/diabetes/managing/m....

UK to % converter here diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-di...

I'm in Belgium but from the US. When my level was 5.7% the endo did a glucose tolerance test (GTT) and my blood sugar definitely spiked into prediabetic, nearly diabetic, ranges.

I feel best when I can get a1c to around 34 or lower. Higher and i get brain fog, fatigue, crashes, mood swings, aches.

The bloodsugar101 site explains how to use a meter to test which foods spike BG. bloodsugar101.com/how-to-lo... For example, i found that i can eat 2 potatoes but not 4. In the mornings carbs will spike my BG 2x what the same amount does at night. I'm not low carb per se but do limit carbs mainly to the evenings. I eat a small amount of low carb GF bread in the mornings. And metformin helps. Once you get in the rhythm it's not too bad & your body adapts. I no longer have sugar cravings lol.

I have no idea if T3 triggered it but like i said above, my whole family seems to have this issue & i'm the only one on thyroid meds.

Best wishes x

[Alanna012 in reply to jade_s]

Many thanks for sharing!

Maybe intermittent fasting is the way to go ......