New Member of Prediabetes

[didi1]

[Hi all. Thanks for all of your support. I did get a A1c reading of 5.3:) I have a c-peptide level of 12.1. What does that mean exactly? :confused: :confused: The doc said I was inulin resistant? I am going to a endo. doctor on Monday at San Antonio and I'm wondering if I should be asking him certain types of questions since I'm new to all this. I got diagnosed in late April. I would greatly appreciate any suggestions before I see the doctor. Thanks again for all your support.

No medications, just diet and exercise

[princesslinda]

Welcome Dora. Sounds like your A1C was within normal range (4-6) for a non-diabetic. C peptide shows if you are producing insulin and how much. Normals vary from lab to lab, but the one we use at our office gives normal being 1.5-3.5. Looks like you're producing a lot of insulin.

Most people with insulin resistance (myself included) produce way more insulin than average. In insulin resistance, cells aren't able to efficiently utilize the insulin you are making. Many people with insulin resistance are also overweight, they're making lots of insulin, cells are using it and are starving, they send hunger signs to your brain, you eat, make more insulin you don't use, cells are still hungry, send more hunger messages...and so on.

My doctor started me on metformin which is supposed to stimulate your cells to absorb the insulin you're making so you don't overwork your pancreas.

I'd ask the doctor to explain to you the function of your pancreas and what yours is doing that is making you insulin resistant...it's YOUR body, you should know how it works. Also, i'd ask to talk with someone about diet/nutrition. I'd ask what I could to to put off development of T2 diabetes, and then i'd do it, WHATEVER it is.

Exercise is very effective in reducing insulin resistance as well.

I'd read all I could about insulin-resistance and T2 diabetes. I'd also keep a close eye on my blood sugars by having A1Cs every 6 months or so, so that if they do start to rise, you'll catch it early on and do better.

[Ronin]

Hi Dora!

Welcome to "The Club" the club nobody ever wanted to join, that is. Being diagnosed a Pre-D is confusing. On one hand you are not "diabetic" in the traditional sense, but you are on the path and the diagnosis allows you change your life and possibly avoid becoming a full-blown Type-2.

Linda is correct about the exercise. I will give you an analogy that I got to explain "Insulin Resistance." Imagine your cells, in particular the muscle cells, all have little door with locks that allow glucose/glycogen inside to fuel the engines inside the cells. Insulin resistance is the condition in which somebody has come along and shoved toothpicks into the locks so that the keys cannot open the door. Now, there are two solutions. One is drug therapy where you are provided drugs that clean out the locks, but these have some nasty side effects and don't always work for each person. The other is exercise. The problem here is that most folks have learned to hate exercise (as is exemplified in the fact that the "Exercise Forum" is one of the least visited among the Diabetes Forums).

Then, what should you do? I recommend exercise, but it has to be something that you like doing that will burn calories. Assigning yourself to hours on a treadmill is not going to work unless you get a kick out of hours on a treadmill. My personal choice is bicycling, a return to my youth as it were, when I loved riding my bike. I will willingly ride for hours on end, in in turn my muscle cells add more little doors with fresh locks ready to take in all kinds of glucose/glycogen.

The next thing you must do, yes you really must, is to start testing yourself. Now, there is a lot of debate about the value of self-testing for non/pre-diabetics. It is worth it and the expense because you begin to get an idea of how your body works. I test about four times per day -- A Fasting Blood Glucose (FBG) every morning, and one about two hours following breakfast, lunch, and the last before bed.

Finally there is eating. In America it is generally true that we overeat. If you look at the calorie load of most meals, generally, unless you are aware and careful, one American meal usually provides all the calories you need for a full day, and then we have dessert, and snacks! The good news is that if you exercise you get to eat a bit more. My bicycling burns about 850 calories/hour and I ride my bicycle at least 1.5 hours per day and often longer on weekends when riding with my tandem bicycle club (okay, I'm retired so I have that kind of time).

The Pre-D diagnosis is your "Wake-Up" call. So, welcome to the club nobody wanted to join and start learning about how your body works.