Those blood sugar tests

It is not dangerous as there are natural substitutes. I think the reason that we have to take those pills is because in our cold climate the vegetables and fruit that would prevent high blood sugar levels does not grow and we have to import them. So if you are watching your budget, you do not buy that rare vegetable that will regulate your blood sugar. I have to go to a health food store to get those pills that are made from a plant that only grows in sub tropical countries and that reduces high sugar levels. Right now I am taking one a day and combining with my regular gluride pill and so far I have had no lethargy or light headedness, which is a warning if it reduces my sugar too fast. But then I am not exactly strict in my diet. I want to see how it works with a normal diet first.

I was wondering whether I would have to have the medication for the rest of my life even if I improved my diet. I mean I can see one taking diabetic pills temporarily if you have diabetes two, but not for the rest of your life especially if you decide to change your diet for the better.

You are so right, ever since I was diagnosed with diabetes my food expenses have doubled. I don't understand why things that are not processed are always more expensive than processed items. I also have to eat much more seasonal fruits and vegetables. Right now tomatoes, cabbages, cauliflower and broccoli are at a reasonable price. Also I saw a special of BC cultivated blueberries 2 boxes each 2.5 lbs for $ 5.00. I bought 4 boxes and froze them so I can have some blueberries with my oatmeal in the winter. I am also fortunate to be able to go to a bulk food store. A friend and I drive there. It is senior's day every Wednesday and we get 10% off. I buy my walnuts, whole grain flour, rolled oats, oat bran, dried cranberries, flax seeds, sesame seeds and chia seeds there in bulk plus any spices I need. The spices usually cost a few pennies to fill up a spice bottle while the brand names in the supermarket cost over $2.00. As far as your theory goes as to where diabetes comes from, I wonder if you would find it beneficial to join a Diabetes support group or diabetes program offered by your hospital. You get valuable information for instance diabetes is caused by factors such as genetics, life style, obesity and age. Also certain groups such as indigenous people (Indians), Mexicans, Afro-Canadians and Afro-Americans are more prone to become diabetic, so your theory of subtopic climates preventing diabetes can not be correct. I think we don't hear about diabetes in those countries because the life expectancy is much shorter and people simply die untreated. So sad.

I think that when it is warmer more vegetables grow and as you say it costs more to eat a good balanced diet when you have a short growing season and have to import the fresh food. Also I think when people who live in the tropics and sub tropics eat the same food that we eat, they are more likely to get diabetes because they are used to eating more fruits and vegetables whereas here those who do not get diabetes and do not have the starvation gene in are used to having less nutritious food during the cold months and their bodies adapt. Now I do not have an African or Native American in me, but I am part Welsh and some of the Welsh were descended from the ancient Romans who came from Italy and escaped over to Wales when the Anglo Saxons started taking over and Italy has a warm climate and a longer growing season so if I have that gene in me, I would need more fruits and vegetables then normal.

As long as if I went somewhere like to a shower and had a piece of cake the day before, it does not screw everything off. And it is getting hard to find food that I can eat that is not more expensive then the regular food and I am not talking about junk food. I do not want to rely on medication because I think that diabetes is caused by a lack of something in our diet, something that would have been available if we lived in a sub tropical climate, but not in a climate with a short growing season.

I was wondering that because well the last two times, there were a couple of baby showers and bridal showers in between and they really screwed up the results. It is like they are saying if you have diabetes, do not go anywhere where there is something sweet to eat because that will make your blood sugar go sky high and it will remain that way for a month or so no matter if you go back on your diabetic type diet.

If it is messing up your you will just have to bypass the sweets from now on! Will power what it takes. and My dad was the worst of sweets but he would gage what he ate so he could have a sweet at a party then not a big peice

Do not want to miss the baby showers. It was just that the tests were at that inconvenient time.

That is the problem. If my blood sugar is normally high then the medications will just take it down temporarily and the effect would not be cumulative. So if I watched my diet every day for a whole month, it would not make a difference, would it?

I just have regular Type 2 diabetes. My father had it and that put me at high risk. I am trying to lose weight, and I already have, but I guess I have naturally high blood sugar. I think I am lacking in something, so I have been taking chromium and it helps. I want to try some more natural solutions, but they cost money.

From experience when I had gestational diabedies, the diet alone didn't bring my blood sugar down. I had to have the meds. to actually bring it down.

Suspenseful hi there, The test that you are taking is the A1C test. Usually it is ordered every three months. It is called glycosylated hemoglobin test and shows your blood sugar control over the past 3 to 4 months. It is also an indication if your meter is fairly accurate or should be replaced or adjusted. For instance if you were to self test your blood sugar daily and it would always show up within the acceptable range that is between 4 and 7 in the morning before breakfast and 5 and 10, 2 hours after supper you would show good control but if your A1C test was way over 7 something would be wrong. Attention to American diabetics: we measure the daily self test differently in Canada than in the USA. You have to take the Canadian daily numbers and multiply them by 18. The A1C test is measured the same way to my knowledge.

That is what I was worried about whether cheating on one day near to where I was to take the test would mess everything up. I think if it were, then that would encourage people to cheat - at least it would in my case - but if it is the average over the last three or four months then that is okay. Except I rather hate taking pills except for multi vitamins, and vitamin pills because in those cases it is not a take them or else.

I was wondering whether if I decide to well eat a whole lot of candies one day (not that I will, but many cereals contain sugar and bread does raise blood sugar levels) and that would make my blood sugar go through the roof. And consequently if I decide to keep to a strict no sugar diet the day before the test, whether that would make any difference. I know that when there is a holiday or a special day even though I had been careful for most of the month, that that particular day made my blood sugar go off even if the test was a week or so later. That leads to a problem where the doctor thinks I have been cheating every single day since my last appointment. So that is why I do not trust those tests.

Thanks. I wondered about that. I cannot see me keeping on a diet for months and not cheating even once. So I guess it is the average over those months. Then it is all right.

Oh but if they want an accurate reading, would it not be better to take two, one with the medication and one without so they can better regulate the dosage? This way I am told to go without any medication or vitamins the night before until the test is one, so if my blood sugar with medication was 7.2 without it might be 8.1 but they are not sure that with medication it would be 6.2 or 7.2 so they do not know if I am getting too much or too little. Then does the medication just keep my blood sugar at an acceptable level or does it actually reduce my blood sugar over time?

That sort of makes sense. Except I wonder if there is a natural alternative. I know our provincial government pays for part of our prescriptions and what I take is not that expensive, but I would rather take a natural solution even if I have to pay for it out of my pocket. I do not know the long term effect of taking glyride. I heard it was not good for those who had diabetes after 65.

I can go without food for a few hours, and I can skip the meds for a day without any problem. I think I am on the borderline, but there is a family history and the build that goes with it. I know because when I did lose a lot of weight, I looked as if I were starving and yet I still had a large waist line and a large hip size for that matter.

Heh, that bootle of Boost is an excellent idea. I also go to the lab first think in the morning but the lab is at the hospital and there is a Tim Horton's coffee shop and a cafeteria. For me those needles and taking away my blood is very traumatic so each time I survive it without screaming at the technician because she/he cannot find a vein and has to stab me more than once I reward myself and have a nice breakfast after the ordeal is over. Yes, you are right it is the A1C test and so far I have not been able to get one under 7.0 but I try and try my best.

I take Glyburide, but what I heard is once you start taking a pill, soon you will be increasing the dosage or taking insulin, so it seems the effect diminishes and you need more. I do not know if that is true, but my father-in-law was a diabetic and he was on a strict diet and he just gave up, and my father was also diabetic and ho matter how much he did not eat, he could not lose weight. I do take victamin C and muliti vitamins but I take the kind that does not contain sugar or any fillers. They are more expensive but at least I do not have to worry.

winorak5, You are right on the mark. I am a diabetic and what you say is totally correct. I have my A1C test every three months and yes it is fasting glucose no food or medication before the test and when you see the doctor after he/she has the test results there will still be a glucose measurement that day.