This post was written yesterday. I posed this question to a friend of mine in his journal but found out that he is on vacation. Is there someone here who can help me?
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I had to go to the doctor today to have a consultation on a minor UTI problem. I had to give a urine specimen and it turned out I was spilling sugar. This has never happened before. The number was 117. I don't really know what that number means. They're going to have me in on Friday for proper testing. I have been doing Neaderthin for a few weeks now but because I was feeling so crummy from the UTI I went off plan. I had a pint of Hagan Daz last night and today for breakfast I had a stalk of grapes, two red plums, and a cinnamon bagel with butter and honey. That was at eleven. Fifteen minutes before my doctor's appointment I had a hard candy. They took the sample at 1:30. I've been feeling great up until the UTI hit. I've been exercising and routinely having fruit for breakfast and then waiting two hours before having a protein meal. That's been fine and hasn't bothered me at all.
What do you think? Is 117 alot? Do you think I should panic? I guess I'm looking for a pat on the head and a there, there. I know you are wise in the ways of this stuff. Could you give me some advice?
Thanks!
Signey

P.S. I read in another post here in the Bernstien's Forum that you need to eat carbs for a few days before testing in order to get an accurate reading. Because of that I am now eating more carb than I would on Neaderthin. I had a hamburger and two eggs for breakfast and some plain yogurt with stevia and vanilla and two red plums for a snack. I don't want to eat starch products unless I have to. I figured I'd focus on more carby vegies and fruits to get the extra carbs to make the reading correct.
Or maybe I am just totally clueless. That's why I decided to come here and talk to the folk who are living this stuff. I sure appreciate any insight you can give me.
Thanks so much!

Hi Signey...it would help to know 117 what...??...it's just an arbitrary number unless you can relate it to a unit of measure, so no help on that question. Do you know what tests you'll be taking? The GTT is the one that requires elevated carb consumption a couple of days before taking it. The other common tests for diabetes are A1c and fasting blood sugar. If you could tell us what you'll be doing in the lab on Friday and if you know what the 117 relates too it would help to help you....did that make any sense....??...

Yes It did make sense. More sense than my doctor did.
I am doing what I belive is called a glucose tolerance test. I have to go in fasting in the morning, drink nasty sweet stuff, and have them draw blood over the course of four hours. ick.

The 117 is the number the nurse came up with after she poked my finger and fed the blood into a little strip attached to a digital meter of some sort.

I'm so grateful that you took the time to ask. Many people have looked at this post and didn't. I have to admit that this situation has me a bit shaken and I'm in need of some competent counseling.

Thank you!
Signey

Hey Iceman!
You're from Alaska too!
Cool

I had one of those "duh" moments. I got to thinking about it and realized that I could call his nurse and ask her for more information. What she used to test my blood was a glucometer. It only gives one reading and that was 117. I told her that I had been low carbing and that I had splurged the night before the test and also that morning. She said that given the circumstances it was likely that I was fine. Still it's good to get this stuff checked. It will give me a baseline to work with in the future.
In any event I will check back in here tomorrow after I get tested and let you know how it turned out. If you have any input I'd appreciate that too.
Thanks!
Signey

Surely the 117 is mg/dL...Can't believe anyone would still be walking around with 117.0 mmol/L...!!If it is 117mg/dl Signey, it's not all that bad, but does need looking at. What is a 'hard candy' carb wise..?
Cheers........Eve

Hi Eevee,
I think the number is the more modest one. The nurse made me feel much more confident about that. Apparently here the normal is 90 - 95 and below and above 100 is pre diabetic, 200 is diabetic. Something like that.
A hard candy or a penny candy is the size of a thick coin. Like a butter toffee or a peppermint wheel. My husband and I can't remember the exact count but we think it's about 10 - 12 carbs for one.
Thanks!
Signey

Yuppa...southwest corner of the North Slope, about 180mi NW of Kotzebue...I've got two girls in Anchorage and freinds scattered from Petersburg to Prudhoe Bay, including Palmer. I get down to Anchortown a few times every year...visit friends in Palmer, Wasilla and big lake so maybe we can have a cup of coffee one of these times.

Anyway, the 117 was fasting glucose only you weren't fasting so the number is not that alarmingn considering the food and candy you ate prior to the test...I bet if they'd waited another 30 minutes for the candy to ingest you would have recorded a higher number....it's a good sign that they want to take it a step further with more tests though...it's the only way you'll put your mind to rest one way or the other. The GTT is exactly what you said...you ingest 75g of glucose and they take blood sugar readings over a timed period. Your response to this test will indicate whether or not your insulin response is normal or insulin resistant/diabetic.

A couple of things. Take a look at THIS SITE (clik2vu) and check out the forums. There are several members there that have recently or are soon to take a GTT and the discussion is very informative.

Also, here are the new diabetes guidelines...they will help put some of the numbers whizzing around you in context. If it helps at all the outcome of your GTT will settle the issue and you will either go on as a normal person or, the alternative...end up with a very interesting new hobby..

The Joslin Center (and ADA) have recently updated their "non-diabetic" ranges. If your blood sugars are above these numbers, then you might have diabetes or pre-diabetes. The new numbers I refer to are probably lower then the ones your MD checked yours against, but are likely to be used by an up to date diabetes MD in any evaluation.

These are the new blood sugar readings in (mg/dL):

Before Breakfast 60-100 mg/dL

Before lunch supper and bedtime: 60-120 mg/dL

1 hour after meals: < or = 140 mg/dL

2 hours after meals < or = 120 mg/dL

2am - 4 am > or = to 70 mg/dL

A1c 4.0 to 6.0% (indicates average blood sugars over last three months)

** as reported by the Joslin Diabetes Center at Upstate Medical University

Hello,
I got my testing done this morning and here are the results.

Fasting: 112
1/2 hr. after glucose: 216
1 hr. after glucose: 313
2 hr. after glucose: 358
3 hr. after glucose: 215

I've been diagnosed as being pre-diabetic. He wants me to come in in a month, fasting, for a gluco hymoglobin test. Until then he wants me to work on diet and exercise. He'd also like me to take an expensive class at the local hospital about how I should be eating. I'm balking at this because I don't have insurance and I'm very good at reading and educating myself. That being said, could you all recommend some good books so that I can start this process. What about diet? Is Dr. Bernsteins the way to go? What about the Insulin Resistance Diet or Neanderthin for this? As you Iceman said, looks like I have a new hobby. Just what every Alaskan needs. Like we don't have enough of them already.
Iceman,I would love to meet you at Vagabond Blues for a cup when you get down this way. That would be fun. Thank you for the information that you've shared. I'm going to pop over to that site right now and see what's up. I live out in the Butte. Right off of Bodenburg Creek.

Thanks alot!
Signey

Hi Signey,


I have had a wonderful experience using Dr. Bernstein's method of managing my type 2 diabetes for the past two years. I'm not familiar with the IRD or Neandethin; they may work just fine, but Dr. Bernstein's book is written specifically for diabetics and he has been a diabetic himself for over 60 years, so his advice is very practical.



I am amazed that your doctor called these results pre-diabetic. I must stress that I have no medical training whatsoever, but to me those look like full blown diabetes without any doubt. The glucose tolerance test I had recently was 254 at 2 hours, and I'm diabetic. I agree with you that you need to find a new doctor.

Good luck and don't hesitate to ask your questions. There's always someone who can answer them, either here or over at Dr. Bernstein's forum that Iceman referred you to.

Karen D.

Hi Karen,
I appreciate your input. I have ordered Dr. Bernstein's book from Amazon and paid the full price so I'll get it quickly. I have also made an appointment with a doctor in Anchorage who is not only an M.D. but is also holistic. She is well respected and I'm hoping that she will go further than just what the Diabetic Assoc. teaches. Meanwhile I will stay low carb and continue to exercise until the book arrives.
I really do appreciate your assistance.
Thank you,
Signey

I'm glad to hear you've ordered the book, and I'm sure you won't regret it. Let us know if you have questions.

Karen

Hey Sig...I'm with Karen on your diagnosis...here's the interpretation numbers I got off a test site...

Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT)
Results (2 hours after a 75-gram glucose drink)

Less than 140 mg/dL (7.8 mmol/L) = normal glucose tolerance

From 140 to 200 mg/dL (7.8 to 11.1 mmol/L) = impaired fasting glucose (pre-diabetes)

Over 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) = probable diabetes

You can draw your own conclusions but you might be right in considering other options...at least find a doc with more contemporary knowledge. I see Dr. Richard Neubauer at Regional in Anchorage and would be glad to refer you if you don't find anything you're happy with. Rich is cool tho, he's put up with me for 10 years and we've learned a lot together. He supports my control regimen and should be reading up on DrB anytime now as I sent him a copy of the book about a week ago.

I endorse DrB's plan because it is based on the needs of diabetics and not just all the rest of the fat people out there wandering around. I think that Atkins, Neanderthin...any low carb approach is going to help diabetic blood sugars though and if the diabetic is intuitive enough and not afraid to chek often and keep good records then he/she will sooner or later tailor whatever plan they use to give them optimum control. The name of the hobby is CONTROL....I can't stress enough how fortunate you are to know now and bring your curiosity and willingness to learn into the lab with you...your own personal lab...

So read the book, shop for the doc that will be your helper and not your absolute ruler...you gotta have a doc if for nothing else than to order the labs you want and need and to write scripts for meds. There are less expensive lab options available online to if your insurance situation puts a cramp in the $$ you have to spend on your health.

Vagabond Blues it is...we'll leave the date open as I'm workin' 7/10s right now and don't know exactly the next time I'll be down...somtime in the next couple of months tho...I just sold a place in Homer and need to get the proceeds reinvested before the kids find out I got money....

Keep On Keepin' On Bro......

Hi Iceman,
I so appreciate your looking up this information for me. I would love to see your doctor. That solution would be even better for me because you've already roughed him up. He has a book, this just sounds very doable. The doctor I was talking about seeing turns out to be very, very expensive. If you give me his name, address, and phone I can have my doctor refer me. After just buying a box of a 100 text strips I'm seeing I'm going to need to cut corners abit. Test strips are priced for people that have insurance. What a racket!

I always over run the 6 pokes a day my script is written for and end up buying an extra box every month...I usually shop ebay for strips. A lot of times you'll find them at a really good price because someone just got a new meter and doesn't need their old strips or any number of other reasons..anyway, that's where I save a dime on strips. Here's a link to an ebay search I ran...it'll give you an idea for comparative pricing anyway...did you know that pawn shops use ebay to price items they get in that have an unknown value...??...kewl, huh..

http://search.ebay.com/test-strips_...rectZ1QQfromZR8

I'll send my doc an email and get the ball rolling. If you'd like, send me an email...we can't post email addy's here but you can get mine by hitting my control page link at the bottom of this post and using the email link on the site.

Here's Dr Neubauer's contact info.

NEUBAUER, RICHARD M.D.
907-263-2200
FAX = 276-0366