I'm essentially "pre-diabetic"??? please help... page 2

[Periwinkle]

I am an RN, and without knowing a complete medical history, I can not give any medical advice or diagnose you in anyway. However, I want to ask if the 101 was a fasting blood glucose? If so, i would suggest doing a strict Whole 30 and then getting re-tested on all labs. I might also suggest keeping track of your 2 hour post prandial blood glucose levels for about a week. If it was me, I would not hop right on to medication, but make deliberate changes to my diet and exercise routine and then retest. I might also ask for a Hemoglobin A1C before taking medication as well. I think it is a huge over reaction to go on medication based on a "snap shot" of your blood glucose. I would want to better idea of how my glucose acted over a whole day or a week and then compare it what you are eating.

From American Diabetes Association:
FPG•Requires a person to fast overnight. The blood glucose is measured first thing in the morning before eating.
•Normal FPG is below 100 mg/dl. A person with prediabetes has a fasting blood glucose level between 100 and 125 mg/dl. If the blood glucose level rises to 126 mg/dl or above, a person has diabetes.
A1C•A blood test that gives the average amount of glucose in the blood over the past 3-4 months.
•An A1C 5.6% or below is normal. In prediabetes, A1C levels range between 5.7%-6.4%. If the A1C is 6.5% or above, a person has diabetes.

So really your blood glucose number is 2 points too high? For me personally, I would make some lifestyle changes and then retest. Do a Whole 30 or a Whole 42 and then see where you are. Good Luck.

[merryish]

I agree you should work on eating clean without the cheat weeks. Primal works okay at 80/20 if your 20 isn't that bad, but it probably doesn't work at all at 50/50 when the "bad" 50 is mostly comprised of sugar. Those sugary weeks are overloading your pancreas with ongoing demand for more and more insulin to regulate the sugar you're pumping into your body. Not good for your diabetic prospects long-term.

You should probably find out if the blood sugar test they did was fasting or non-fasting/random. 101 isn't all that bad for a random test. Do you remember if they asked you specifically to come in for the blood test in the morning before eating? If they did, that's a fasting level. They generally want your fasting levels to be somewhere 70-90ish.

Blood sugar will spike after you eat something with carbs -- the more carbs, the higher it will spike. Protein can also increase your blood sugar, but probably not as much. I'm pre-diabetic, and my blood sugar will hit around 120 after a meal with say, sweet potato in it, then drift back down to the nineties, or high eighties, after about two hours.

Pre-diabetes is totally reversible, especially at your age. The Blood Sugar Solution book is a good idea. So is exercise - it helps control your blood sugar. You don't have to become an exercise addict, but some planned exertion almost every day will be good for you. You're not that overweight for your height, from what you've said - and right now you've got youth and energy on your side.

That said, you are overweight, your cholesterol LDL to HDL ratio isn't great, and your blood sugar is high. You're at a turning point in your health. It's great that you're thinking about it and trying to figure things out, and it's awesome that you're getting into the primal lifestyle. So this is a great time to commit, and break yourself of the sugar addiction - you have a whole lifetime of strength and good health ahead of you!

[healthseekerKate]

Here's a comforting thought for you, Theresa: if you have the commitment to clean up your diet for a few months, and allow your body to heal itself fully, you will very likely be able to eventually allow yourself some dietary leeway. From my experience, I had been recording early-morning fasting blood glucose levels in the range of 110-125, which was problematically high (even though, following 80/20 primal, my other BG values throughout the day & postprandially, were all fine). I went completely grain-, alcohol- and sugar-free for 3 months, and one day measured my early-morning fasting BG levels again... mid-60s! Since then, I've found that even if I do indulge in a treat once in awhile (alcohol, dessert, sometimes with the same meal), my BG levels still remain in the healthy range. So, not that you'll ever want to return to sugar binges, but if you commit to healing yourself for a few months, you can eventually start to enjoy your 20% again with no guilt.

[JamesS]

I got some blood work done yesterday. The nurse called me this morning and told me that my cholesterol is 296(LDL=191 and HDL=89). He also said that my blood sugar is 101 and that since I am over the limit of 99, I am essentially pre-diabetic. He said that I need to make an appointment with the doctor to talk about weight reduction and possibly medication to help with the blood sugar. He said the blood sugar might be a cause of diet, but it could also be a malfunction in the way my blood sugar works. He didn't say anything about cholesterol medication. Just blood sugar medication.

I'll admit, I know NOTHING when it comes to medical terminology. Is my cholesterol something to worry about? But more importantly.... what's up with my blood sugar?? I have been Primal since the Spring of this year. And I will be honest.... I haven't done so well on it. I eat pretty well for about a week or two(lots of fatty meat, eggs, some veggies and fruits). Then I will binge on every sugary thing in sight for about a week. So in reality, I have been on and off Primal since Spring of this year. NOWHERE near fully Primal.

Are these "cheat days" where I completely fall of the wagon the reason why I've turned pre-diabetic? What about my cholesterol? I'm a 19 year old female, 140 lbs and 5'1. I agree with the nurse that weight reduction is necessary. But what's up with the blood sugar thing?? Please help...

To start with I would not worry about a single barely high blood sugar level. Something as simple as stress will raise blood sugar levels temporarily. If you were having a bad day when you went in or are afraid of needles this is enough stress to cause a blood sugar rise slightly above normal. I don't know if you are on any medications either, but some medications such as Prednisone also raise blood sugar above normal.

The A1C test would be a better choice since it can indicate whether or not your blood sugar has been high over a longer period of time rather than a possible temporary rise.

Being overweight can also increase your insulin resistance. But you would be better off losing a little weight rather than going on oral hypoglycemics. A lot of people do not realize that it is not only the long term elevated glucose that causes islet cell damage, but the oral hypoglycemics used to treat diabetes can also damage the islet cells.

I also recommend supplementing with chromium polynicotinate (not picolinate) and an acidified form of magnesium such as magnesium malate or citrate. Chromium and magnesium are essential for keeping insulin receptors open and functional:

Chromium and blood sugar abstracts

Chromium and magnesium effects on blood sugar-abstracts

[otzi]

This should be your wake-up call to get your diet in line! After 21 years in the military with regimented eating and exercising, I retired and swore off exercise and weight-watching. Within 2 years I had gained 50lbs and developed gout, high bp, high chol, high trigs, hypothyroid, fatty liver disease, and an erratic heartbeat. It wasn't until my fasting glucose was 115 for a year that I got serious. No way could I be going on ANOTHER drug.

You are probably in the early stages of metabolic dissaray that gets lots of people. Clean up the diet and beat it into submission. That means NO sugar, NO industrial seed oils, NO refined flours. Eat lots of seafood, fatty red meat, liver, and bulky vegetables--just like the Primal Blueprint says. Cheat weeks negate the good weeks in a huge way. You got to get away from the sugar burning metabolism and into fat burning. Eating sugar/crap one week and fatty meat the next is suicide.

[Neckhammer]

This should be your wake-up call to get your diet in line! After 21 years in the military with regimented eating and exercising, I retired and swore off exercise and weight-watching. Within 2 years I had gained 50lbs and developed gout, high bp, high chol, high trigs, hypothyroid, fatty liver disease, and an erratic heartbeat. It wasn't until my fasting glucose was 115 for a year that I got serious. No way could I be going on ANOTHER drug.

You are probably in the early stages of metabolic dissaray that gets lots of people. Clean up the diet and beat it into submission. That means NO sugar, NO industrial seed oils, NO refined flours. Eat lots of seafood, fatty red meat, liver, and bulky vegetables--just like the Primal Blueprint says. Cheat weeks negate the good weeks in a huge way. You got to get away from the sugar burning metabolism and into fat burning. Eating sugar/crap one week and fatty meat the next is suicide.

Haha...I felt the same way after 16 years as a wrestler. Well at least about the eating (starving) part. I never got fully away from exercising. I agree with those before in that your case is borderline at best, so there is ABSOLUTELY NO REASON to even consider a pharmaceutical intervention at this stage. You can get this straightened out quickly I'm sure. Just do it! Good luck!

I'm with otzi on this especially "That means NO sugar, NO industrial seed oils, NO refined flours. Eat lots of seafood, fatty red meat, liver, and bulky vegetables--just like the Primal Blueprint says." This along with 2 resistance training routines a week and plenty of walking should be more than enough to get you well within healthy parameters. Exercise doesn't have to rule your life but one session can improve your insulin sensitivity for up to 16+ hours post workout so definitely utilize it.

[Paleobird]

Also Primal works 80/20 (ish) when you are healthy and everything is functioning properly. If you have a health condition, you have to be more strict with yourself. Time to buckle down and get serious.

My Dad had a diagnosis of pre-diabetes as well and is now doing great on Primal without having to resort to medication or shots.

I agree about the A1C test. Insist on it.

[marcadav]

This site has a lot of good information:
Blood Sugar 101

[Theresa92]

I just got a copy of my blood tests. I uploaded them into two links. This is the first page: Image - TinyPic - Free Image Hosting, Photo Sharing & Video Hosting This is the second page: Image - TinyPic - Free Image Hosting, Photo Sharing & Video Hosting Anybody have any insight?

However, I want to ask if the 101 was a fasting blood glucose?

Yes, it was a fasting blood glucose. It's interesting that you bring it up. For everyone else that suggested getting an A1C test done, do I just go in and say I'd like to have an A1C test done or is it something that the doctor has to request?

Eat lots of seafood, fatty red meat, liver, and bulky vegetables--just like the Primal Blueprint says.

I guess this is the part that I'm confused about.... is my high cholesterol(my LDL) a result of eating the fatty meat I've been eating or is it a result of the weekly/bi-weekly binges that I have? When I am eating Primal, sometimes I will go a day or two with barely touching a fruit or veggie. I seem to lean more toward tons of eggs and fatty meats instead with only small amount of veggies. Is this bad? I'm thinking that maybe I would do better to increase vegetables.

My Dad had a diagnosis of pre-diabetes as well and is now doing great on Primal without having to resort to medication or shots.

Was he able to reverse his diagnosis? How long did it take for him if so?

Thank you for all the advice everyone! I appreciate it.

[otzi]

I guess this is the part that I'm confused about.... is my high cholesterol(my LDL) a result of eating the fatty meat I've been eating or is it a result of the weekly/bi-weekly binges that I have? When I am eating Primal, sometimes I will go a day or two with barely touching a fruit or veggie. I seem to lean more toward tons of eggs and fatty meats instead with only small amount of veggies. Is this bad? I'm thinking that maybe I would do better to increase vegetables.

You want a variety of food, but with no sugar (especially refined, white sugar and HFCS), no grains of any kind (at first), and no industrial vegetable oil (soybean, corn, mazola, canola, etc...). Once you have weaned yourself off of burning starch and sugar your metabolism will function very well. You need to see where your cholesterol ends up after you've lost the majority of the weight you need to lose. I say this because your numbers will be off when you are actively losing excess fat.

You are 19, you got a long way to go and a long time to play with calories and carbs and all that. But for now, I'd recommend adopting a strict 100% primal approach for 6-12 months and then going back and getting all your lipids and fbg checked. If the numbers aren't close to where they should be, you need to get to the botom of the problem with a good doc who can order labs and interpret them for you. My guess is you're pretty healthy and tightening up the diet will fix all your problems. Wait til your 30 and it will be a different story. Once you are at or pretty close to goal weight, then you can relax and get on the 80/20 deal, but at first, with numbers like yours, I'd get it under control first and play with it second.