hello, question about prediabetes

[peony]

Hi,
I am new here and think I am a prediabetic.


2 years ago for an stressful event I had to see a neurologist for tingling of all 4 extremities , . Among the tests I had done was: fbs ( normal ) and a gtt ( 2 hours ) which was elevated at all 1/2 hour levels and was told to see my GP.
Eventually the parathesias disapperaed

Diabetes does not run in the family, I am not heavy and I exercise and thought I ate well.
However I am treated for high BP which is under control with medication. I get my eyes checked routinely too, check my feet ( fine )
I was educated on diet, told to lose a few pounds and continue to exercise and come back in 6 months for tests


That I did, my A1c was 5.5, my Gtt was mildly elevated at the second hour, 125 ( cutoff 120 ) ( which the Md dismissed ) my Fbs was 90,Fructosime was 238 ( nml ) and serum insulin was < 2 ( < 17 is normal at this lab )

I was told to monitor my blood sugar randomly, fasting etc.continue to exercise , eat healthy etc.


At random samples my FBS can be low as 78 and the highest mid 90's at morning Fasting levles

Recently I also did my own home GTT by eating 60 gms of fast acting carbs ( like a boiled potato ) and my BS did not return to baseline ( 85 prior to the potato ) until the 3 hour mark. I also had to substract 10 points for my low carb diet I am on .
BS stayed above 140 ( was 159 ) after the first hour, over 120 ( was 168 ) after the second hour and back to base ( 85 ) at the third hour

So therfore I do beleive I am prediabetic!

What bothers me is that I seems to have cycles ( comes and goes perhaps every 3 to 6 months )of tingling of my hands and feet with increased urination with normal Fbs and normal random Bs during the day on the low carb diet.

I saw a 2nd Neuro Md, more blood tests for everything


By the way, b12 is nml as is thyroid, mri negative and other tests for imflamation that could cause the tingling are neg. Cholesterol and triglycerides, hdl.ldl- nml. My Fbs sugar then was 78

I basically watch my carbs, and basically eat a low carb diet with lean meat and fish, low glycemic fruits and veges although I do eat cheese and fatty dairy at times

I am not sure if my parathesesis are form prediabetes or from a pinched nerve as I do have cervical issues after a bad car accident years ago

Anyway, any suggestions about diet, the numbness and tingling, or what is the best route to handle prediabetes

Thanks

[xMenace]

Welcome.

Continue with the low carb diet, regular exeercise, and weight control.

Do not make any diagnosis based on small samples of home monitoring tests. There are so many things that can go wrong with a test, especially for a noob. Did you wash your hands? Have you ever calibrated the meter? What kind of meter is it? Was the coding correct? Were the strips expired? Was there a band of gypsies passing by the house? meters can have a 20% variance. That could have easily been a 130.

[Ronin]

Hi Peony!

Welcome to DF!

I'm not a big fan of self-diagnosis. Not being a trained medical person can lead you down the wrong path. That being said, following the regemen for Pre-D cannot hurt your health.

It sounds as though you are doing the right things. Eating a balanced diet, getting exercise, et cetera. Question: do you get sufficient rest? How about stress at work or in "relationships" with family and others? The elevated BP could be related to some of the symptoms you note.

The "tingling" could be the result of many things. For example, if I don't massage my leg muscles following bicycle rides I can get tingling in my lower legs and feet. If I don't change position on the bicycle on long rides my hands can go numb. These have nothing to do with the fact that I am Pre-D -- they have to do with being a very active bicycle/tandem rider.

What is your form of exercise? How intense do you exercise? For what duration? In addition it helps all of us if you fill in your user profile as a way to give us some details about you so that you don't have to repeat them in postings.

[goaltender_31]

Hi, i was talking with my uncles whose been a diabetic for over 40 years now.i understand he is not a doctor but after hearing what symptoms ive been having he suggested i get tested for diabetes.the symptoms i have been experiencing are unquenchable thirst, liquids run through me in minutes,tingling in my arms and occasionally the legs, undeniable hunger shortly after large meals, blurred vision(a few times i felt i was going blind) and also i see spots when i skipped a meal or ate little. my vision in general has seemed to worsen over the last month as well.i have a small frame(was 158 lbs) and in a month ive dropped down to 140 ish with no difference in my diet from the last yr. i get very irritable and feel mentally and physically fatigued, also deep rapid breathing occurs.occasionally i will get a very bitter taste in my mouth.after eating i feel nausia.also ive almost completely lost my sexual appetite which doest just dissapear in a 24 yr old male.I recently visited my family doctor and she sent away a sample of blood for an a1c test however it wasnt until a week or so before the appointment my "highs and lows" started beginning to happen more frequently and the side effects of the highs and lows became more severe.i will start to get very confused(cant hold a conversation or even say whats on my mind), feel very sluggish and begin to lose my balance(walk into walls or stumble),headaches,nausia and blurred vision.i have a cup of juice and 15-20 mins later im back to my old self.My uncle gave me a glucose reader to keep on eye on what happens and ive got readings as low as 3.0,as high as the meter saying HI(33+) and everywhere in between.my uncle has helped me with a diet which has seemed to stabalize my blood/sugars but i still go under 6 and above eight(as high as the 20's depending if i slip up).my test however came back negative?my doctor said the 30 point variance is normal for a healthy person,and that i know is NOT true.she tried pushing me out the door and it seemed i knew more about diabetes than she did.saying peeing more frequently becaus i drink alot of water is normal but not minutes after consuming liquid.she also said that blood glucose readings should be taken 2 hours after eating not a half hour like i have been,which seems a little weird because if i am dangerously high(which i am at times) it could be causing damage to my organs for an extensive amount of time...correct?she insisted i stop taking them all together.as i said it wasnt until a week or so before the test my side effects have gotten worse.is it possible that the test was taken before my blood glucose became too spuratic for the a1c to show an unhealthy level?and if so what other tests can i have done to get to the bottom of this?i do not feel like the same person i was 6 months ago and my doctor doesnt seem to care or have a worry about any of what ive just discussed.can someone pls help me with an answer because it seems almost weekly im feeling worse and worse.thank you!

[ShottleBop]

What are your circumstances? Can you go to a different doctor? Would you be able to have someone get you to an ER the next time you start feeling (or test) low/extremely high?

[genie86333]

Goaltender, When you've had the "HI" readings, had you washed your hands well before testing? Sometimes something on your hands can cause a reading that high. If not, you're right, you shouldn't be going that high normally.

Now, you didn't mention where you are. I'm assuming from your readings (3 to 33) you're not in the US...most of the world uses that scale, but the US uses a different scale (70-140 being normal.) I just mention this because if your meter is set to the 3-33 scale & you're in the US & told the doctor your blood sugar varies by 30 points, they would say that's normal -by US standards, that would be a variance of over 500 points!

Now, as for water going right through you...are you thirsty when you drink that water or are you just drinking it because it's good for you? If it's just a case of you drinking a lot of water because you should, then your body may just not feel the need to retain it because it's fully hydrated & used to being that way.

If at all possible, find another doctor if this one won't listen to you.

[goaltender_31]

GENIE,you are correct i am not in the US,i live in canada and we use the "point scale".by your standards that is a 500 point difference.I do wash my hands before every measurement, scrub with warm water and dry them before. i live in a small town (40,000+) and family doctors around here are scarce.ive been out looking for a new family doctor but the best result i get is being put on a waitng list until someone either leaves or moves.im still searching and asking others i know about their doctor,i dont think i can afford to go to another noob! as i said with the water i have an "unquenchable thirst",sometimes its not the case but most of the time i fill up my water bottle and still very very thirsty,as if i havent had a drink in days. what other tests can be done? and also to SHOTTLEBOP, i do occasionally have my roommate around but he drinks and sometimes just passes out or too drunk to drive.if i cant find a doctor soon would it be wise to go to EMERGENCY, where they would be able to diagnose me with whatever this is on the spot?i have contemplated it as some nights ive been 'off my rocker' with the way im feeling,almost more than i can handle.feel like passing out and vibrating on the inside.

[Totsied]

You sound exactly like I did at the beginning of this year.

A low glycemic diet made up of 5 to 6 small meals a day (eat every couple hours) plus getting to bed at a reasonable hour has worked wonders for me.

I did do some self-diagnosing with a monitor. Tested basically every hour for a few days and found I was all over the scale with nothing below 90 and when I did get to 90 I had severe Hypo symptoms (shakey, anxious, weak, passed out once, etc). Doctor's office would have taken a 'point in time' test and found me to be normal more then likely. I charted my personal readings and took them to my doctor who then ordered a six hour BS test. Oh yeah, I'm hypo. Spike and crash and spike back up on adrenal rush. No fun.

If it sounds familiar, maybe a similar approach would help. Hope you feel better soon.
~T

[genie86333]

Yes, I'd go to an ER...and also report that doctor to whatever licensing board Canada has, because a range of 3-33 is extremely abnormal & the doc doesn't know what they're doing if that's what you were told.