Comments (18) -

  • Anonymous

    2/4/2011 1:30:56 PM |

    Life extension had article recently about Metformin
    Any comments about this med in the non diabetic to help with insulin

  • Flavia

    2/4/2011 1:59:03 PM |

    How long after eating?

  • jehane

    2/4/2011 2:54:32 PM |

    Thanks for the post, Dr Davis. If blood glucose goes down after eating a meal, for instance 113 pre meal (fasting) and 97 1 hour after eating - is this an indication of insulin resistance, and excess release of insulin?

  • Anonymous

    2/4/2011 4:12:05 PM |

    Maureen  I Love You and you need to stop eating wheat. Vince

  • Anonymous

    2/4/2011 4:14:40 PM |

    I can't find this exact model in stock online.  What features do you recommend so I can look for an alternative?

  • Kathryn

    2/4/2011 4:18:48 PM |

    I know you've been recommending this for some time.  I'm now at the point of being ready to act on it.  Do you have a brand of glucose monitor that you recommend or think works best?  I thought folks used to have to have a doctor's Rx to purchase these.  No longer true?

  • Anonymous

    2/4/2011 6:35:28 PM |

    You don't need an Rx at all to buy a glucose meter, unless you're trying to get it reimbursed through insurance of some kind. What you do need is a fat budget for test strips if you're diabetic or plan to do lots of testing over the long run. The meters themselves are only $15-$50. One touch ultra seems to be decent. You want to look for the ones that only need a super small drop of blood, which allows you to stick your forearm or other places. The old type meters required a huge drop from a fingertip, and you really had to slaughter yourself with a needle to get a decent amount. Some of the new ones are also calibration-free and they're very compact - not much bigger than a stopwatch. I may pick up one myself. Where do we find info on what is a reasonable post-pranadial level to shoot for, say 1 or 2 hours after eating?

  • Geoffrey Levens

    2/4/2011 8:07:50 PM |

    I think most meters now only need tiny drop. Walmart's Relion has lowest cost strips by far but it does suffer from some variability in readings.  My experience is AccuChek is excellent.

    This study seems to indicate that the one hour sugar (I would think the absolute peak whenever it comes) is the best marker to follow:

    http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/33/3/557.abstract

  • Dr. William Davis

    2/4/2011 9:10:44 PM |

    Among upcoming posts will be how to use postprandial blood sugars to achieve all these benefits.

    As one of the anonymous commenters suggested, OneTouch Ultra is a good device, as are Bayer Contour, Accuchek Aviva, and the Walmart device. We've had nothing but problems with the Walgreens' device.

  • LeonRover

    2/4/2011 9:19:51 PM |

    I have a digital thermometer, a BP meter, a BG meter but with respect, without a home basal insulin meter we lack the single most important tool.

  • Might-o'chondri-AL

    2/4/2011 9:30:29 PM |

    Hi jehane,
    You want to know pre-1st meal of the day blood glucose. This is only called "fasting" blood sugar level since overnight went without food. You may know this;
    maybe I've confused your phrasing.

    That pre-prandial reading is your reference to see how after meal(post-prandial) blood sugar reacts. Since your data sounds unusual it would help responders to specify if 113 number is on an empty morning stomach (as opposed to between meals and pre-next meal).

  • revelo

    2/4/2011 10:46:52 PM |

    There are 3 types of accuracy for blood glucose monitors: absolute, relative, consistent. Absolutely accurate means the reading is the same as a quality lab would give. Relatively accurate means the readings are always the same distance up or down from what a quality lab would give, so all you have to do is add or subtract a fixed amount to get the true readings. Consistent means the device gives the same readings when multiples samples are taken at the same time. A device might be consistent but not relatively accurate, if the deviation from the true readings is not constant but rather varies with the blood glucose level.

    I have confirmed that my Walmart Reli-on Confirm model glucose tester is consistent. That is, if I take three samples within a space of 5 minutes, they will agree to within about 5 mg/L. The Reli-On Confirm test strips are $0.40 each, which is much cheaper than most meters. These strips requires only a tiny bit of blood, so the lancing device doesn't hurt much at all and the puncture quickly heals.

    I ordered the control solution, to test whether the Reli-On is absolutely accurate, but it hasn't arrived yet. Another way to test absolute accuracy is to measure with the Reli-On within a few minutes of getting blood drawn at a laboratory.

    Note that Reli-on also sells an inexpensive ($9) mail-in home H1Abc test.

    I learned a lot from my Reli-On (assuming it is accurate). First, when I went on a paleo diet, my insulin sensitivity declined, so that my blood sugar was skyrocketing after eating a huge bowl of oats. Then when I went back to my usual high-carb diet, my insulin sensitivity returned to a reasonable level. Second, when I stepped up my exercise program ever slightly (10 minutes of one-legged squats in addition to my usual leisurely yoga), my insulin sensitivity rose to a very high level for the next few hours, so that eating a huge bowl of oats within that time had very little effect on blood sugar. This makes sense, since those squats probably deplete glycogen stores in the legs.

  • Sara

    2/5/2011 2:53:33 AM |

    I wholeheartedly agree with measuring blood glucose.
    I was, unbeknownst to me, on my way to Type 2 diabetes until I found this blog and read the doc's previous posts on blood glucose  levels.
    If you all really like to get into the nitty gritty of cholesterol, blood glucose, etc. and relish numbers and stats like I do then join the TYP forum. It's a veritable bonanza of numbers, advice and data crunching.

  • Kristjan

    2/5/2011 11:14:43 AM |

    What would you say is a good number to have as your postprandial glucose?

    And would you say that the lower the better or is there a lower level people should try to stay above?

  • Peter

    2/5/2011 8:17:19 PM |

    I've been trying to keep my glucose under 100 an hour after eating since you suggested it last summer.  Haven't lost any weight but my fasting blood sugar and HgA1c are both down a little after going up for years.  I like having a simple rule (don't eat meals that raise my blood sugar over 100) but I sure do miss rice and beans.

    I don't think the cost of the strips is prohibitive since it doesn't take long to figure out which foods jerk your blood sugar around: whole grains being the main thing in my case.

  • Jay Newman

    2/6/2011 10:58:52 AM |

    Well I bought one an Accu Check blood sugar checker yesteday, but I do wonder.Yesterday I checked four hours after eating a MacD breakfast (but left the bread)so it was mainly egg and burger with some potato has thing. Got a reading of 82, however this morning after a 12 hour fast got 118 (which I thought a little high for a non diabetic). Its understanding whats going on. Is the body busy swilling insulin around to keep my sugar down to 118 or has the pancreas intervened overnight to pump in some glucagon to get my blood sugar up? Without knowing some of the other dynamics it can be difficult to fathom out. I'm sure some kind of insulin test would be better.

  • Jay Newman

    2/6/2011 11:13:42 AM |

    Sorry my fasting blood sugar was 97.2 or 5.4 mmol/l (I'm from the UK). It was indeed 118 two hours after a meal last night of steak chop and buttered roast parsnips last night plus a thin wedge of chocolate brownly with double cream and a sprinkling of walnuts. After reading this blog however will have to reduce my love for proper butter and roasting food too Frown

  • Anonymous

    2/10/2011 3:01:44 PM |

    Does whey protein isolate with unsweetened almond milk raise blood glucose levels?

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