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I think you completely misunderstood me. Maybe you should read my last two posts? I am not on insulin and never have been. I take 1000mg of Metformin and 2mg of Glimepiride a day. As I mentioned the metformin does not cause lows even without food. It is used to treat insulin resistance. The other pill I take (Glimepiride), stimulates insulin production and is in a class of drugs called sulfonylureas and I take the lowest dose available. I do a low carb diet but I am not super strict or anywhere close to a true ketogenic diet. Some days out of the week I do intermittent fasting where I skip breakfast and lunch and eat dinner with snacks in the evening. I probably average 50g of carbs per day. I do have my "cheat" days every once in a while. Not often but every now and then. I mention Dr. Bernstein in a previous post. I highly recommend his book to any and all diabetics. His diet is a bit too strict for me but that is only a small part of the book. He recommends cutting way back on the carbs and insulin. If your eat less carbs, your blood sugar stays low and you would need less insulin to bring it down to normal levels. That should be the aim for all diabetics, to lower blood sugar AND insulin whether it's produced by the body or injected. In my case, my body (pancreas) still produces it, I just have to push it a bit to do so.
As for the alcohol, it is possible to remain low carb as long as you drink low carb drinks. Beer is basically liquid bread and generally high in carbs. I will drink a couple of low carb beers (2g each). Wine in limited amounts is not too bad. Most distilled spirits are low or zero carb. What you have to be careful with it what you mix it with. Many mixers are full of sugar.
You mention you are a pre-diabetic but you didn't say if you took medication. Unless you have some other problem besides being a pre-D, there should be no reason for you to go hypo. Diabetes is a problem with high blood sugar, not low. Fasting alone will not do it as is mentioned in the video below. As I mentioned, I use a glucose meter to test myself when necessary. By the way, I started doing intermittent fasting way before I ever heard of Dr. Fung. I took it upon myself to try it and got great results with weight loss and BG control. Being on a LCHF diet eliminates cravings it makes intermittent fasting much easier.
Yes, you're right, I misunderstood your posts. I thought you'd started out on insulin, brought that down, then substituted these other treatments, sorry.
I know Fung claims that people won't get hypoglycemic on a fast, and that's one thing that concerns me about his theories. I've been through phases over the years, when I do get hypoglycemic. I won't go into the details, but I'm coming to the conclusion that maybe my blood sugar and insulin resistance issues are different from the standard model, because it's driven by underlying thyroid disease, not by whatever the usual factors are. (Genetics, in part?) I have an appointment to see the best endocrinologist I can find in my region, next month, so I'll ask her all my questions, and see if she's up on all these details.
Thanks a lot for taking the time to respond. Some of this info will at least be very helpful for my friend, who's been intrigues by the J. Fung videos, and wants to try the fasting. He also does enjoy a glass of wine from time to time, so it's good news that he wouldn't have to give that up. I've learned a lot, here, too.
I know Fung claims that people won't get hypoglycemic on a fast, .... .
As long as you have fat or muscle left to metabolize, you won't get hypoglycemic- unless you're dong strenuous activity, burning glucose faster than you can replenish it.
Prolonged fasting does waste muscle. As you stop providing new sources of energy from your diet, you will first use up your glycogen stores, then your fat stores and finally your protein stores for energy-- although it's not quite so orderly a process-- ie- you're already using up muscle before all your fat is gone.
Yes, you're right, I misunderstood your posts. I thought you'd started out on insulin, brought that down, then substituted these other treatments, sorry.
I know Fung claims that people won't get hypoglycemic on a fast, and that's one thing that concerns me about his theories. I've been through phases over the years, when I do get hypoglycemic. I won't go into the details, but I'm coming to the conclusion that maybe my blood sugar and insulin resistance issues are different from the standard model, because it's driven by underlying thyroid disease, not by whatever the usual factors are. (Genetics, in part?) I have an appointment to see the best endocrinologist I can find in my region, next month, so I'll ask her all my questions, and see if she's up on all these details.
Thanks a lot for taking the time to respond. Some of this info will at least be very helpful for my friend, who's been intrigues by the J. Fung videos, and wants to try the fasting. He also does enjoy a glass of wine from time to time, so it's good news that he wouldn't have to give that up. I've learned a lot, here, too.
You are welcome.
Pure alcohol will lower blood sugar. I won't go into the details as to why. It is the other ingredients in the drink that may offset the lowering effects of the alcohol.
How do you know you are hypo? Do you use a meter? The only other way to know would be when you start to feel dizzy, faint, disoriented etc. I have been like that after fasting and exercising. So I test my BG and even then I found that I was around 70 which is still not that low and on the bottom end of normal. My point is, the only true way to know is with a meter.
It seems to me the regime would work only for people who are able to maintain a strict discipline, and stay with the diet long-term. People who can't control the urge to "cheat", or to give themselves a treat now and then, wouldn't be successful at staying off insulin? What about alcohol consumption? Would that be a problem, once someone weans themselves off of insulin?
For me, strict discipline applies to my routine daily meals and snacks, the backbone, the mainstay of my diet. But yes I do have a treat occasionally, but only if the treat doesn't raise my sugar extremely high, and I test to make sure the food that I choose to cheat with doesn't cause a monstrous raise in my blood sugar. Meaning, I don't sit down and eat an entire chocolate cake as a treat, but I will occasionally have a tiny sliver of my husband's cake, and that's my cheat.
As for alcohol, I have 1-1/2 glasses of red wine twice a month which, again, does not cause a monstrous rise in my blood sugar.
An occasional small treat or alcoholic drink that raises blood sugar somewhat above your normal daily diet doesn't do much to raise your A1c, so even strict discipline can include a select treat once in a while.
My A1c is my measure of control. If it stays under 6 with an occasional small treat or alcoholic drink, I'm happy with it.
Edit: I want to mention that when I say the word "diet" I'm not referring to a special diet that is meant to cause weight loss or meant to have some kind of special effect; I'm referring to my everyday, normal, daily foods, and those foods are not bland, horrid foods that are a chore to eat...they are foods that I enjoy eating every day. My "diet" is not something I have to force myself to maintain.
Last edited by oldgardener; 09-21-2017 at 11:17 AM..
Pure alcohol will lower blood sugar. I won't go into the details as to why. It is the other ingredients in the drink that may offset the lowering effects of the alcohol.
How do you know you are hypo? Do you use a meter? The only other way to know would be when you start to feel dizzy, faint, disoriented etc. I have been like that after fasting and exercising. So I test my BG and even then I found that I was around 70 which is still not that low and on the bottom end of normal. My point is, the only true way to know is with a meter.
I can tell from the symptoms. Also, I sometimes have trouble sleeping on an empty stomach. OTOH, it can't hurt to try the intermittent fasting. I can gauge it as I go along. If things really start to get wonky, I can eat. No harm done. And who knows, it may work out. I'll have to get his book, and read up on it all.
I don't sleep on an empty stomach. When I fast I do it during the day and eat in the evening. I can tell you from experience that what you may "feel" has nothing to do with your actual blood sugar. Before I was diagnosed, I would feel symptoms of something that I thought was low blood sugar. It turns out it was the opposite and since I was ignorant at the time, I never suspected. If you really care about managing your condition and want to take the guess work out of it I recommend you buy a meter. Walmart sells one with the strips and lancets for about $25.
I don't sleep on an empty stomach. When I fast I do it during the day and eat in the evening. I can tell you from experience that what you may "feel" has nothing to do with your actual blood sugar. Before I was diagnosed, I would feel symptoms of something that I thought was low blood sugar. It turns out it was the opposite and since I was ignorant at the time, I never suspected. If you really care about managing your condition and want to take the guess work out of it I recommend you buy a meter. Walmart sells one with the strips and lancets for about $25.
Maybe the meters these days are easier to use (and a lot cheaper, apparently), but I bought one over 10 years ago, and couldn't get anyone to show me how to use it. The pharmacist wouldn't do it, since it wasn't by prescription, and my doctor also refused to help, telling me to get the pharmacist to do it. Are they pretty self-explanatory, now? Oh, and btw, I just got my annual blood test results back; my blood sugar is in a healthy range, but my A1C is high. I guess the important time to test (aside from when possibly feeling hypoglycemic, which is rare) is after a meal? Maybe 1 hr. & 2 hrs. after?
Ruth, you say your A1c is high...how high, within diabetes range? If so, your doctor should have a diabetes nurse educator show you how to use a glucometer and teach you how and when to test.
Maybe the meters these days are easier to use (and a lot cheaper, apparently), but I bought one over 10 years ago, and couldn't get anyone to show me how to use it. The pharmacist wouldn't do it, since it wasn't by prescription, and my doctor also refused to help, telling me to get the pharmacist to do it. Are they pretty self-explanatory, now? Oh, and btw, I just got my annual blood test results back; my blood sugar is in a healthy range, but my A1C is high. I guess the important time to test (aside from when possibly feeling hypoglycemic, which is rare) is after a meal? Maybe 1 hr. & 2 hrs. after?
I'll try to make this brief.
I use the ReliOn Prime meter from Walmart. The meter is $9, 50 strips are $9 and the lancets with the device is less than $10. You will only have to re-purchase the strips and lancets from time to time. I do not change lancets every time. Only when I feel that it has become dull. Never share lancets. If someone else uses the meter, use a new one. Some people will tell you to change them every time. That is up to you.
I used to hate to test because I didn't want to hassle with it. Over a short time it became easy and with practice you will get better at it. I don't test all the time or every day. There are key times when you should test. Fasting in the mornings and 2 hours after you eat. The fasting test will tell you a lot of how you are doing generally. Normal range for non-diabetics is 70 to 99. The 2 hour test tells you how you are handling spikes. If by the 2 hour mark you are not under 140, you need to seek treatment with at least medication. Of course your doctor will determine this.
The meter I use requires a tiny amount of blood. The strips do not expire. that was a problem with other meters I've used. Make sure your hands are clean. Wash them. I use hand sanitizer to make it easy. Let them dry. When you poke your finger you will have to try different settings on the lancet device to see how far you need it to go. I found that if you poke yourself at an angle it hurts less then if you do it directly.
In my opinion and especially if you are type 2, once you establish a pattern with foods and treatment it is not necessary to test all the time. Just stick with the plan. Of course this is up to you. Try eating something with carbs like sweets, then test. You will see how you are truly doing. Some food will make you go up right away, some will take time.
An excellent book you might want to read is The Blood Sugar Solution by Mark Hyman. Covers diabetes and obesity. Recommends foods, supplements and exercise -- and blood/sugar testing for diabetes.
I read it for weight control and thought it was excellent. Good lay-out, easy to read, and thorough.
Hope this helps...
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