Feet Pins and needles

[Hortz]

Dear all;

I have just joined the site and need some advice. Been type 1 for 3 years and last A1c reading was 8.4 which needs improving, I also inject.

The last couple of months I have been getting pins and needles in my left foot and I feel it everyday now and doesn't feel good.

I have booked in the doc; this Wednesday any advice.

Cheers

Dean

[Cinnabon]

Welcome..
Im glad to hear that you will be seeing a doctor soon. Neuropathy (The Neuropathy Association: Neuropathy, Peripheral Nerve Disease (http://www.neuropathy.org/site/PageServer)) is a diabetes wonder that is known for this that you are feeling, but it can be other things as well. Since your last A1C how have your Bsugars been?

[Hortz]

Hi Cinnabon

Bg's not great going to have a H1c test on Wednesday as well. I'm tending to spike at the first meal of the day, i think its the carbs. I tend to have DP every morning and most times either breakfast or if I skip breakfast lunch, im spiking . For a bowl of 40g cereal I tend to take 12 unit of novorapid i still spike, it around 200 -220 when i check an hour later. I'm also a bit lost when I spike do I take more novorapid to bring myself down? a bit lost with it right now..

I know H1c 8.4 wasn't great last time but im amazed im getting this feeling only 3 years being a type 1..

Appreciate your help

[xMenace]

Welcome.

Glad you are seeing your doctor.

Your BG's can be controlled. Ask your Dr. about splitting your basals and about you discovering your own basal and bolus rates. Information is power! Also start investigating a pump. Your numbers are a lot like mine, and I am amazed everyday how I can eliminate most spikes.

[jjames]

Hey there,

I know you pretty much have your answer, and I'm definately not "an authority" on the subject as a few on here claim to be, but I thought I'd share my experience with neuropathy. I'm 23 years old, was DX'ed 7 years ago, and didn't take any insulin for about 4-5 years, but have since brought my A1c down to 8.1 from 13+. I started getting these pains back in March that were like you said, pins & needles and they became VERY sensitive; walking for periods of time sucked - I hated to go shopping with my wife. I talked to my doctor about it and he had suggested Lyrica - which is also used to help seizure patients. From what I understand, Lyrica relaxes the nerves so they don't hurt as much.

What you're probably going through is that the outter layers of the nerves are getting damaged, but I assume you still have full feeling in your feet. I was told that this means there is hope for the damage to be reversed. The past couple of months I've been taking MUCH better care of myself (as far as the db goes) and have stopped taking the Lyrica. My feet still hurt every now and then, but not very often, and not for very long.

I hope you get better control of this, and be sure to ask your doctor about Lyrica, or any other drugs that may help in freeing you from much of the nerve pain. I will say though since you're also male & could start taking Lyrica, you MAY notice some sexual side effects. I don't think it's ever listed as a possible side effect, but since I've been off of it - I haven't been experience any problems.

[Hortz]

Thanks for the post, do you inject or are you on a pump?

If your on a pump are you taking more insulin on board to avoid the spikes?

Appreciate your advice

Dean

[dgrilli]

I've been studying this and found that (R-Alpha Lipoic Acid ) is supposed to do wonders for this.

I have ordered some but it has not arrived yet. (Insulow) My Choice.

From my reading and understanding is with BG's running that high your like on a perpetual wheel like a hamster.

So do some Resistance, Cardio training. Eat a better diet getting most of your carbs from Vegitables.

They say a raw food diet works wonders for us but my feeling is who would want to eat just a raw food diet for ever? Raw food Diet is said to reverse a lot of conditions associated with the Big D.

I guess eating a Raw Food Diet would be very expensive and boring and not to imagine the Mass Quantities of consuming food all day long just to staive off the hunger.

[Cyborg]

Bringing the bg down can help reverse some neuropathy. There are some other drugs, including Topamax and Cymbalta that may be helpful also.

Welcome aboard :wavey:

[NoraWI]

Try benfotiamine. Helps treat and prevent small vessel peripheral damage. Google it. You can get it mail order at iHerb.com and other sources of supplements.

Nat Med. 2003 Mar;9(3):294-9. Epub 2003 Feb 18.
Benfotiamine blocks three major pathways of hyperglycemic damage and
prevents experimental diabetic retinopathy.


Hammes HP, Du X, Edelstein D, Taguchi T, Matsumura T, Ju Q, Lin J,
Bierhaus A, Nawroth P, Hannak D, Neumaier M, Bergfeld R, Giardino I,
Brownlee M.


Medical Clinic V, School of Clinical Medicine, Mannheim, Germany.


Three of the major biochemical pathways implicated in the
pathogenesis of hyperglycemia induced vascular damage (the hexosamine
pathway, the advanced glycation end product (AGE) formation pathway and
the diacylglycerol (DAG)-protein kinase C (PKC) pathway) are activated
by increased availability of the glycolytic metabolites
glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate and fructose-6-phosphate. We have discovered
that the lipid-soluble thiamine derivative benfotiamine can inhibit
these three pathways, as well as hyperglycemia-associated NF-kappaB
activation, by activating the pentose phosphate pathway enzyme
transketolase, which converts glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate and
fructose-6-phosphate into pentose-5-phosphates and other sugars. In
retinas of diabetic animals, benfotiamine treatment inhibited these
three pathways and NF-kappaB activation by activating transketolase, and
also prevented experimental diabetic retinopathy. The ability of
benfotiamine to inhibit three major pathways simultaneously might be
clinically useful in preventing the development and progression of
diabetic complications.

[DanG]

Try benfotiamine. Helps treat and prevent small vessel peripheral damage.

It seems that nerves are coming up in many diabetes related issues and treatment.

One of the "sticky" threads here relates to capsacin being used to stimulate the nerves in the islets. And this thread relates to nerve damage at the periphery, which we know to be neuropathy.

What other nerve issues relate to diabetes, and what types of whole foods are essential to keeping good nerves and repair of damaged nerves?

Interesting, I think.