What am I doing wrong?! ( blood sugar levels)

[user1471556443]

I did a fasting blood sugar test at home with a glucose meter and obtained a reading of 5.5 which is classified as being pre diabetic!!
I am very slim, 5'5 weighing 8 stones 2 with a bmi of 18.9.
I do have a serious sweet tooth and regularly eat chocolate and cake every day.
I am now going to cut down on my sugar consumption but has anyone any other ideas how I can reduce my sugar levels.
Apart from eating lots of cake, I think my diet isn't too bad but maybe I am wrong?
Breakfast - one cup of coffee, no sugar plus one banana.
Lunch - fruit and vegetables and water
Dinner - large portion of pasta / curry / fish etc.
Cake is eaten after dinner daily.
Will now stop the cake but should I be cutting down on all carbs at dinner even though I am eating v little during the day?

Reduce carbs - it’s amazing how it stabilises your blood sugar and cuts out cravings.

Look at The Diet Doctor website. Low carb doesn’t mean ‘no carb’ and it’s not just due weight loss.

The fruit and pasta will cause massive spikes in your sugar levels.

It might be worth you checking online to see what the sugar levels are in the different fruits you eat.

Why did you do this test?

You need more fat and protein. Try having yoghurt at breakfast, and definitely some protein at lunch. Nuts or avocado or cheese as snacks.

Try to swap high GI carbs (sugar, bread, white rice, mash) for lower GI versions (new potatoes, pearl barley, sweet potato)

And yes, loads of cake and choc probably isn't ideal... sorry! But I think the main thing is waaay more protein and fat.

Some people are just prone to blood sugar issues (I am as have PCOS) and need to be more careful about carbs.

5.5....pre-diabetic! .sorry, but I don't believe that. Have you a link?

I'm a type 1 diabetic. 5.5 is the epitome of 'normal'. It's what every diabetic aims to be at

And when you say fasting,. Do you mean first thing in the morning? Lots of people get a slight spike due to cortisol levels rising. It is the bodies way of waking you up!
Or 5.5 after skipping lunch? Because that too it totally normal

I'm pretty sure that a level of 5.5 does not mean you are pre-diabetic.

If you are concerned about your blood sugar levels go to your GP and get tested properly.

To explain a bit: the fat and protein kind of act as buffers for the carbs as they are slow release energy sources and so will level out the energy going into your blood. Without them, you will probably be having low blood sugar between meals and then the carbs (quick release energy) hit your bloodstream like a freight train and cause a blood sugar spike.

Actually this also explains why you crave the sugar - because you aren't getting enough slow release energy and so are getting a blood sugar dip.

Eat more protein and fat and you should find you crave the sugar and carbs less.

What do you mean by lunch - fruit and vegetables? Are you literally having a plate of plain fruit and vegetables? That seems very unlikely.
Yes white pasta will spike sugar levels, but a few plates a week won’t make anyone diabetic on they’re own.
If you’re eating cake and sweet every day, your pancreas probably is really struggling. This will be massively overloading your system with simple sugars. Weight alone really isn’t an inductor of health.

Sorry just seen all the posts about 5.5 not being a problem!

Still think you need more protein in your diet though

Another type 1 and that's not pre diabetic at all. Also sugar doesn't give you diabetes. One or two

The cake alone will probably be taking you over the recommended daily allowance, so I'd just try that first as you are clearly a healthy weight. I drastically cut back on sugar in the last year or so and found that there's sugar in loads of stuff where (perhaps foolishly) I hadn't expected it - bread, ketchup, yogurts, chutneys, fruit, most drinks, cereals (even healthy ones like Bran Flakes) and so on. Porridge for breakfast helped me cut down on the sugar cravings as it releases energy slowly.

Should I stop eating fruit and have vegetables instead? And perhaps I should eat a smaller portion at dinner time?
Would the blood sugar diet be appropriate for me?

Why did you check your blood sugar levels in the first place, do you have reason for concern? If so have you seen your GP?

Have you not listened to anyone on here that actually knows what they are talking about?

You don't have a fucking problem! Your fasting blood sugar is not high.

You're not overweight, your health is not suffering at all.

Try living with type 1 for nearly 30 years and battling with your weight due to being treated with insulin. Not being able to even look at a carb as you get a spike. And even when you eat nothing but salad and protein you still get spikes because life is a bitch

Look at Google to find out what's got sugar in . Oh, and so you know, it's everything with carbs in.

But. You do not need to worry!

You can't tell some people!!!!!

That’s not a high sugar level at all
I’m usually 4 and my kids 4.5

Dh is diabetic and ranges between 5-7 on a low carb diet and no sugar
Before that he was 11

What do you mean by pre diabetic? You either are or you aren't. 5.5 is perfectly normal and diabetes wouldn't be diagnosed on the basis of a finger prick test.

Diabetes isn't CAUSED by dietary sugar. Type 2 can be caused by being overweight so I suppose indirectly by too much sugar but sugar itself if not the cause of diabetes. It sounds like you are getting a bit needlessly panicked

5.5 is normal? Albeit just within the range.

5.5 is the top end of the range for a fasting blood glucose.

Blood glucose is a shit diagnostic tool. Only really good for monitoring.

If you're concerned then go to your gp.

A single test in time tells you nothing. Especially If you are other wise fit and healthy.

I wouldn't say you had pre-diabetes based on one borderline reading.

You can be what is known as a TOFI (thin outside fat inside) and develop type 2 diabetes even when slim.

But obviously it's great if you want to improve your diet, it's certainly not going to cause any harm. Like you say, cut back on sugar. Also exercise is really important.

I was pre-diabetic, I used to get fasting blood sugars of around 7, and after a GTT my blood sugar was 11. I followed the blood sugar diet, but I do have a BMI of 30. I also have PCOS. I've really gone off sugar now, I don't have a sweet tooth at all and find if I have a something sugary I get a headache. I eat carbohydrates now though, I just try to avoid refined sugars and processed foods.

I don't think you need to make any drastic dietary changes, just eat sensibly.

I think you should talk to your GP if you are worried.

You need to look at your A1c through a proper diagnostic test, not a testing meter, to determine what your blood sugar is really doing.

One 5.5 does not make you pre-diabetic, and eating cake last thing at night before bed would be enough to keep your reading high into the next morning.

Who told you this result was "pre diabetic"? Some dodgy test off the internet?

5.5 is top end of normal for fasting, and statistically people with fasting blood sugar of 5.0 upwards are more likely to develop type 2 in the next few years.

However, you can not diagnose diabetes on the strength of one finger prick test. The meters have a 20% accuracy tolerance, so it could actually have been 20% lower (or higher). Some meters are far less accurate than others. You may not have washed your finger properly. Etc.

The best way to be sure is to see your doctor and to ask for an h1bac test (that’s an average blood sugar over the last 3 months or so) and a glucose tolerance test. But if you don’t have time for that, or want a clearer indication at home first, you can do your own test (this is just to give you an illustration; you should still go to the doctor for a proper check):

• fast overnight for 10 hours or more
• take and record your fasting level
• consume 75g glucose (drink lucozade or similar, but you’ll need to check label as they’ve changed lucozade now because of the sugar tax)
• sit very still for 1 hour
• test and record reading at 1 hour
• sit very still for another hour
• test and record reading at 2 hours

Ideally you want to be under about 10.0 at the 1 hour and under 7.8 at the 2 hour readings.

However - diabetes isn’t so much black and white as it is a slippery slope, and the cut-offs are rather arbitrary. If you’re close to the borderline, your blood sugar response isn’t entirely “normal” and may well warrant further testing and pre-emptive measures like cutting carbs down, especially refined carbs, and doing more muscle building exercise. Plus a diabetic friendly diet is generally a healthy diet - lots of meat, fish, eggs, some cheese and nuts, and lots of veg, esp green leafy veg - you can find loads of decent recipes online.

I think it’s very wise to check it, as so many people have undiagnosed higher blood sugars, but the best way to do that is a proper regular medical check-up. Good luck!

(Here’s a quick leaflet that gives details of the increased risk with a regular higher fasting blood sugar:

ketteringhealth.org/communityoutreach/pdf/ask/ask-diabetes.pdf

I should also have added that your fasting reading will be different not only every morning but even with every finger prick - frustrating but normal! This is another reason why only a proper lab test and dr advice can be truly diagnostic.)