[Ronin]

Hi Homeschoolmom!

The missing word in this is "sustained." If a person has sustained BG levels over 140 there is a danger of tissue damage. To be classified as sustained, the BG levels must remain there for a long time, much longer than just an hour or so.

Be very careful because there are people who just love to use scare tactics to get diabetics on the "straight-and-narrow." Yes, sustained BG levels will do damage. Add in the fact that diabetics heal slower than non-diabetics and the damage can be permanent. As long as your BG levels return to "normal" levels in a reasonable amount of time you need not worry about tissue damage.

Your A1c numbers indicate that your body returns to an acceptable range consistently. Your test with your sister indicates that even non-diabetic people can spike if they eat sufficent amount of High GI carbohydrates in a short period of time. The thing is that their insulin kicks in and brings their BG back down. I don't know how large the slices were, nor the size of the coke (a lot of places consider a quart to be a normal serving -- just check out your local movie theater) considering that a serving of coke is only 8 oz (check the label) that is a load of glucose that is more than you had in your OGTT! I get a headache just thinking about that.