Question:

Bob, You don’t need the tests if you are low carbing unless you have reason to think that your blood sugar isn’t under control even with the diet. However, if your fasting was normal, the diet is likely to be all you’d need to normalize your blood sugars. Where this is important, though, is if you ever get tempted to boost your carbs in the future.  At that time, you should have the doctor do the hba1c (which is the one they like to do.) If you are low carbing your hba1c will probably be within normal limits or at least in the 5% range. My latest one was 5.2 and I hadn’t been all that impeccable in the weeks before it. I’ve had tests go as high as 6.2 while low carbing faithfully however. Usually because some med was messing me up. Doctors in the US don’t seem to do GTTs any more because they actually require some effort. They were standard in the 1970s and 80s which is when I had a couple. You have to carb up before you do a GTT because if you don’t and have been low carbing you’ll register a higher value than you would otherwise (probably because your body doesn’t have all the enzymes etc at hand to process the carb load.) I do my own "bagel tolerance test" with a bagel of known weight and carb count and my trusty meter evey so often so to see how my blood sugar is doing–more as a reference thing than an absolute. Generally I can get into the 180s still, but when I went off my hormones I got into the low 200s which was disturbine. That’s why I’m back on the hormones. For you, as long as you low carb, it shouldn’t be an issue, but if in a few years you do burn out on the diet, you DO need to keep track of your blood sugar and find out where it is.  My latest test is as good as it is because I do take Precose (a diabetes medicine) when I overdo the carbs because keeping my blood sugar normal has to be a priority with me. — Jenny Weight: 168.5/137 Diabetes Type II diagnosed 8/1998 Low Carb 9/1998 – 8/2001 and 11/10/02 – Now http://www.geocities.com/jenny_the_bean How to calculate your need for protein * How much people really lose each month *  Water Weight Gain & Loss * The "Two Gram Cure" for Hunger Cravings * Characteristics of Successful Dieters * Indispensible Low Carb Treats * Should You Count that Low Impact Carb? * Curing Ketobreath * Exercise Starting from Zero *  NEW! Do Starch Blockers Work?

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Thanks, Jenny.  I’ve never had a hba1c value or GTT.  Would either of these be of use for one who is low carbing?  (In other words, would they be indicative of high blood sugar, when my blood sugar is likely very low all the time now.) Bob, "Normal blood sugar when measured by a fasting blood test" does NOT mean you aren’t diabetic. If your doctor told you that, he or she is way behind. For many people with diabetes (including myself) the fasting blood sugar is the last thing to go. More important are the hba1c values and glucose tolerance test values. Hba1c over 7.0 (or for more forward thinking doctors 6.0) and GTT values of 200 mg/dl at 2 hours after ingesting 70 gm of glucose are diagnostic too. This is important. If you wait for your fasting blood sugar to be abnormal, you will probably already have significant complications (heart disease, neuropathy, damage to the kidneys and retinas). There are people on the diabetes newsgroup who have ended up with complications when their blood sugar was as low as 126 mg/dl for prolonged periods of time. The article linked below should be helpful to you. It talks about the blood sugar levels that seem to be truly definitive for "normal" and "diabetic". As you can see there is a huge "no man’s land" in the middle but people who are truly  normal and have no diabetic heart disease have hba1c values of 4.7 or lower. This translates out to blood sugars of 85 mg/dl, which is, coincidentally what Dr. Bernstein says a normal person’s blood sugar will be at ALL times.

http://care.diabetesjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/26/2/485?maxtos… TS=50&hits=50&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=neuropathy+hba1c&searchid=106558370503 8 _902&stored_search=&FIRSTINDEX=0&sortspec=date&fdate=1/1/2002&journalcode=d i – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – acare OR http://tinyurl.com/q4ei — Bob M in CT

Response:

"If you are not diabetic you probably will not be able to see a blood sugar rise when you eat a food that raises blood sugar, because your pancreas will start pumping out insulin at the very first bite you eat. This will keep your blood sugar normal." Another example of Jenny’s peculiar and specious reasoning.  A food raises blood sugar, yet it can’t be measured.  The rest of us would just say that food didn’t raise blood sugar, period.

Response:

"If you are not diabetic you probably will not be able to see a blood sugar rise when you eat a food that raises blood sugar, because your pancreas will start pumping out insulin at the very first bite you eat. This will keep your blood sugar normal." Another example of Jenny’s peculiar and specious reasoning.  A food raises blood sugar, yet it can’t be measured.  The rest of us would just say that food didn’t raise blood sugar, period.

Except that your statement isn’t true.  Foods do raise blood sugar, but in individuals with "normal" blood sugar control, insulin steps in to lower the blood sugar.  For those of us who are insulin resistant, blood sugar does go up.  One of the reasons I started this diet was because pasta or brown rice would cause my head to spin due to blood sugar spikes.  And I’m not diabetic (normal blood sugar levels when measured via a fasting test), just insulin resistant. — Bob M in CT

Response:

Bob, "Normal blood sugar when measured by a fasting blood test" does NOT mean you aren’t diabetic. If your doctor told you that, he or she is way behind. For many people with diabetes (including myself) the fasting blood sugar is the last thing to go. More important are the hba1c values and glucose tolerance test values. Hba1c over 7.0 (or for more forward thinking doctors 6.0) and GTT values of 200 mg/dl at 2 hours after ingesting 70 gm of glucose are diagnostic too. This is important. If you wait for your fasting blood sugar to be abnormal, you will probably already have significant complications (heart disease, neuropathy, damage to the kidneys and retinas). There are people on the diabetes newsgroup who have ended up with complications when their blood sugar was as low as 126 mg/dl for prolonged periods of time. The article linked below should be helpful to you. It talks about the blood sugar levels that seem to be truly definitive for "normal" and "diabetic". As you can see there is a huge "no man’s land" in the middle but people who are truly  normal and have no diabetic heart disease have hba1c values of 4.7 or lower. This translates out to blood sugars of 85 mg/dl, which is, coincidentally what Dr. Bernstein says a normal person’s blood sugar will be at ALL times. http://care.diabetesjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/26/2/485?maxtos… TS=50&hits=50&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=neuropathy+hba1c&searchid=106558370503 8 _902&stored_search=&FIRSTINDEX=0&sortspec=date&fdate=1/1/2002&journalcode=d i acare OR http://tinyurl.com/q4ei — Jenny Weight: 168.5/137 Diabetes Type II diagnosed 8/1998 Low Carb 9/1998 – 8/2001 and 11/10/02 – Now http://www.geocities.com/jenny_the_bean How to calculate your need for protein * How much people really lose each month *  Water Weight Gain & Loss * The "Two Gram Cure" for Hunger Cravings * Characteristics of Successful Dieters * Indispensible Low Carb Treats * Should You Count that Low Impact Carb? * Curing Ketobreath * Exercise Starting from Zero *  NEW! Do Starch Blockers Work?

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – "If you are not diabetic you probably will not be able to see a blood sugar rise when you eat a food that raises blood sugar, because your pancreas will start pumping out insulin at the very first bite you eat. This will keep your blood sugar normal." Another example of Jenny’s peculiar and specious reasoning.  A food raises blood sugar, yet it can’t be measured.  The rest of us would just say that food didn’t raise blood sugar, period. Except that your statement isn’t true.  Foods do raise blood sugar, but in individuals with "normal" blood sugar control, insulin steps in to lower the blood sugar.  For those of us who are insulin resistant, blood sugar does go up.  One of the reasons I started this diet was because pasta or brown rice would cause my head to spin due to blood sugar spikes.  And I’m not diabetic (normal blood sugar levels when measured via a fasting test), just insulin resistant. — Bob M in CT

Response:

Thanks, Jenny.  I’ve never had a hba1c value or GTT.  Would either of these be of use for one who is low carbing?  (In other words, would they be indicative of high blood sugar, when my blood sugar is likely very low all the time now.) – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Bob, "Normal blood sugar when measured by a fasting blood test" does NOT mean you aren’t diabetic. If your doctor told you that, he or she is way behind. For many people with diabetes (including myself) the fasting blood sugar is the last thing to go. More important are the hba1c values and glucose tolerance test values. Hba1c over 7.0 (or for more forward thinking doctors 6.0) and GTT values of 200 mg/dl at 2 hours after ingesting 70 gm of glucose are diagnostic too. This is important. If you wait for your fasting blood sugar to be abnormal, you will probably already have significant complications (heart disease, neuropathy, damage to the kidneys and retinas). There are people on the diabetes newsgroup who have ended up with complications when their blood sugar was as low as 126 mg/dl for prolonged periods of time. The article linked below should be helpful to you. It talks about the blood sugar levels that seem to be truly definitive for "normal" and "diabetic". As you can see there is a huge "no man’s land" in the middle but people who are truly  normal and have no diabetic heart disease have hba1c values of 4.7 or lower. This translates out to blood sugars of 85 mg/dl, which is, coincidentally what Dr. Bernstein says a normal person’s blood sugar will be at ALL times. http://care.diabetesjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/26/2/485?maxtos… TS=50&hits=50&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=neuropathy+hba1c&searchid=106558370503 8 _902&stored_search=&FIRSTINDEX=0&sortspec=date&fdate=1/1/2002&journalcode=d i acare OR http://tinyurl.com/q4ei

– Bob M in CT

Response:

RK, If you see a change in your blood sugar 90 minutes after eating a moderately carby meal, you may well be heading towards being diabetic. People on the alt.support.diabetes newsgroup have tested people in their families and workplaces in order to see what a truly normal blood sugar looks like. They’ve found that many people do, in fact, maintain a blood sugar around 85 mg/dl no matter what they eat and they do not spike. This is exactly what Dr. Bernstein (author of "Dr. Bernstein’s Diabetes Solution") says is the case. He claims to have tested many normal people and always gotten blood sugars very close to 85 mg/dl. The confusion comes in around this issue because for years doctors were considering people with higher blood sugars as normal, when in fact they were in the early stages of type II diabetes. If you can observe a spike after eating carbs, you need to be that much more careful about keeping your carbs normal because it is the first sign that your pancreas is not keeping up with the stess caused by carbohydrates. — Jenny Weight: 168.5/137 Diabetes Type II diagnosed 8/1998 Low Carb 9/1998 – 8/2001 and 11/10/02 – Now http://www.geocities.com/jenny_the_bean How to calculate your need for protein * How much people really lose each month *  Water Weight Gain & Loss * The "Two Gram Cure" for Hunger Cravings * Characteristics of Successful Dieters * Indispensible Low Carb Treats * Should You Count that Low Impact Carb? * Curing Ketobreath * Exercise Starting from Zero *  NEW! Do Starch Blockers Work?

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – check at the 90min mark, you should see a change. you’ll still see a change as a non-diabetic. everyones rises and falls. just diabetics not as fast. t1’s not at all rk How can you know whether or not sugar alcohols will impact your blood sugar? Can you figure this out by first checking your blood sugar before eating something with sugar alcohols in it and then checking your blood sugar again sometime soon after eating something with sugar alcohols in it?  I think I read someone here that indicated it took about 2 hours after eating something with sugar alcohols in it for their blood sugar to go up. I’m not diabetic, but would like to know if sugar alcohols impact my blood sugar. Thanks, Randy

Response:

check at the 90min mark, you should see a change. you’ll still see a change as a non-diabetic. everyones rises and falls. just diabetics not as fast. t1’s not at all rk

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – How can you know whether or not sugar alcohols will impact your blood sugar? Can you figure this out by first checking your blood sugar before eating something with sugar alcohols in it and then checking your blood sugar again sometime soon after eating something with sugar alcohols in it?  I think I read someone here that indicated it took about 2 hours after eating something with sugar alcohols in it for their blood sugar to go up. I’m not diabetic, but would like to know if sugar alcohols impact my blood sugar. Thanks, Randy

Response:

Randy, If you are not diabetic you probably will not be able to see a blood sugar rise when you eat a food that raises blood sugar, because your pancreas will start pumping out insulin at the very first bite you eat. This will keep your blood sugar normal. However, the rise in insulin that is triggered by eating the carby food will make it easier for your body to store the fat that comes in with the meal. Many of the foods that stall low carb dieters stall them because they produce high levels of insulin not high blood sugar. For example, large amounts of protein foods can cause an insulin rush. For many people the sweetness of a no-cal diet soda can also produce an insulin rush. It has been documented, in fact, that just thinking about eating, or chewing gum, can trigger insulin releases, because the body is preparing for the sweet food it thinks is on the way. Chewing tells the body "food is coming!" too. How sensitive people are to these triggers varies which is why some people find they have to limit no-cal sodas to lose and others don’t. — Jenny Weight: 168.5/137 Diabetes Type II diagnosed 8/1998 Low Carb 9/1998 – 8/2001 and 11/10/02 – Now http://www.geocities.com/jenny_the_bean How to calculate your need for protein * How much people really lose each month *  Water Weight Gain & Loss * The "Two Gram Cure" for Hunger Cravings * Characteristics of Successful Dieters * Indispensible Low Carb Treats * Should You Count that Low Impact Carb? * Curing Ketobreath * Exercise Starting from Zero *  NEW! Do Starch Blockers Work?

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – How can you know whether or not sugar alcohols will impact your blood sugar? Can you figure this out by first checking your blood sugar before eating something with sugar alcohols in it and then checking your blood sugar again sometime soon after eating something with sugar alcohols in it?  I think I read someone here that indicated it took about 2 hours after eating something with sugar alcohols in it for their blood sugar to go up. I’m not diabetic, but would like to know if sugar alcohols impact my blood sugar. Thanks, Randy

Response:

How can you know whether or not sugar alcohols will impact your blood sugar? Can you figure this out by first checking your blood sugar before eating something with sugar alcohols in it and then checking your blood sugar again sometime soon after eating something with sugar alcohols in it?  I think I read someone here that indicated it took about 2 hours after eating something with sugar alcohols in it for their blood sugar to go up. I’m not diabetic, but would like to know if sugar alcohols impact my blood sugar. Thanks, Randy

Response:

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