Is Moderation Enough?
In my previous blogs, I stated that moderation is important in managing my diabetes. In recent months, I discovered that this is not enough. How did I know? Tracking my daily blood glucose levels I noticed that on daily basis, the difference between the lowest and the highest readings are significant. For example, in the morning before breakfast, it is in the 130 mg/dL range, and by noontime before lunch (after taking my medications after breakfast), my blood sugar is in the low- hundreds. That is a 30 mg/dL range!
Tracking Blood Sugar
Health Data App on the iPhone.
This leads me to provide a short narrative as to how I track my sugar. From my glucose meter (OneTouch Verio IQ), I enter the information into an app on my iPhone. The app is part of iOS. I did not have to download it separately. Apple calls it Health Data. it takes an extra step to copy the glucose test results to the iPhone, but it works for me. (I know that there are newer glucose meters that link via Bluetooth to the smartphones, but more on that in future blogs.)
This app is fairly comprehensive for it allows tracking of other results such as blood pressure, and steps taken (in km or miles). For a diabetic, the tool is very helpful for most folks like myself also suffer from hypertension and high cholesterol.
Test Results
Monthly Readings from iPhone App
The test results shown below are daily readings for the month displayed from the iPhone Health Data app. Every time I enter a test result from my glucose meter, they are displayed here. I take two to three tests every day.
The app also displays long-term trends. In the display below, it shows average readings by month from April 2016. For every month, it shows the highest and lowest reading. Again, I can see the slightly downward trend.
Monthly Highs and Lows from the iPhone app.
I find these results very useful in managing my diabetes. Without this trend displays, it would be difficult to see the impact of my daily activities to my blood sugar. I noticed that every aspect of daily life affects blood sugar levels. The food intake, stress levels, exercise – all these things affect the sugar levels. The ideal situation is for the blood sugar level to be as constant as possible during the day. The highs and lows like those I described earlier are definitely not good.
Food Intake Plus Moderation
I find that in addition to moderation, I also have to pay close attention to what I eat. I used to think that I can eat a small piece of pie or a small candy bar for dessert. After reviewing these blood sugar trends, I see that there is a direct correlation between my eating habit (even with moderation) and the kinds of food I eat. For example, I attribute the downward trend in my blood sugar levels to avoiding carbohydrates such as rice, potatoes, and bread. Again I used to think that I can eat “just a little bit” of these foods. What I am finding out is that while it helped manage my diabetes, a better way is to avoid them at all.
So what have I been doing? By avoiding most carbohydrates, I lost some weight as well. In the last 5 months, I lost about 8 pounds. Unfortunately, one cannot eat. To fight hunger and the urge to eat, I supplement my diet with fresh nuts (walnuts and almonds). I find it therapeutic to actually crack the nuts and eat them. There is no salt, no processing of the nut and other additives that add calories.
I will continue monitoring my progress on this new approach and hope that the downward trend in my blood sugar continues.
I know several people I can recommend this app to. What I like about using an app to track and manage diabetes is it takes all the guess work out. Like you said, there’s a tendency to think ‘oh, just a little piece of pie can’t hurt’ … but then you see for yourself the results and you absolutely KNOW it does make a difference.
Congrats on your weight loss and keep up the good work. Your quality of life is worth it!
Jackie, thank you for your comment and appreciate your offer of recommendation. Yes, many people with diabetes are “flying blind” on the cause-effect of simple things like food. By writing the blog, I hope to bring awareness to many afflicted with the disease. Every person has a different story, and I share mine and hopefully someone else will see the post and share their own experiences.
Regards,
Fred
Thank you for the very information. It was very helpful.
My husband is diabetic and has experienced many of the same fluctuations that you describe. It is great that you’ve learned what triggers the swings in blood sugar levels and you’ve given up certain behaviors. You have Type 2 and my husband is Type 1(diagnosed at age 27 right after we’d gotten engaged). Unfortunately, my husband hasn’t learned to “give up” certain foods as you have. He still loves the carbs and the sweets and simply adjusts his insulin dosage accordingly. At least he doesn’t drink because I know that alcohol turns to sugar.
I’m going to mention your site to my spouse because he insists that i just don’t understand it but everything you say makes complete sense to me.
Any tips for my husband?
Lynnn, thank you for your comments. I appreciate it. Although I am Type 2 and non-insulin, I would think that the trigger points for Type 1 would be similar. My tip is to keep an eye on what to eat, and keep weight to a healthy BMI (Body Mass Index). Stay away from sweets and carbs. I recently lost 8 pounds (got my weight down to 160 from 168) by avoiding carbs. I noticed that when I do my blood test in the morning, it went down to between 115 & 122. It was between 125 & 130 before that.
My doctor asks me to test my blood 2 times a day. Based on my test results I adjust what I eat. If my sugar level is high, I avoid the foods I love to eat (bread, sweets, desserts, etc.) If it is low, I would splurge a bit. I believe that diet and eating healthy is key to managing diabetes, although many other factors influence it. For example, stress levels, not enough sleep, etc. Just remember, for me, if my blood sugar is high, sometimes it takes a day or two for it to go down. Remember that every individual has different reactions. Your husband has to be aware of his reactions to food intake and exercise.
Final tip is to be sure that you see your doctor regularly and check the A1C levels and any other complications (high blood pressure and cholesterol). Also visit a Podiatrist to check feet circulation.
Hope this helps, and many thanks again for your input.
Regards,
Fred