into my 5th week and suddenly my blood sugar levels shot up. this has been very dissapointing even allowing for such things as the Dawn Phenomenon. i am 63, pre-diabetic and quite active ( i run about 25 to 30k per week). i started with a normal (just) BMI and not really too worried about my weight as i knew it was inevitabe. I was more concerned about my Blood levles and lowering blood pressure. the blood levels fell gradaully for 4 weks with occasional spikes…then this ,3 days with a huge spike upwards almost back to where i started! anyone who has experienced this as well could they let me know if its worth continuing as this was the reason i began this journey int he first placed..

Hi. Lots of folk have reported similar spikes, but then the levels drop. Seems to be the body reacting to all the changes, but then settling down.

Presumably you have checked what you have been eating? Have some extra carbs crept in, or perhaps you have not eaten enough fat? Drinking enough water? Exercise?

Let us know how you get on.

Hi Winston,
It happened to me too, around week 5. A bit disconcerting after my levels dropped to the non diabetic range in the first couple of weeks of starting the diet.
Read the post titled: rising fasting blood sugars. You’ll see Bill posted advice from the team re this, and some posts from a few others who’ve experienced the same thing.
Hang in there, apparently it should improve within a couple of weeks.

Hi Winstin

I just saw your post and thought you might be interested in a post I have just shared in the thread ‘Rising blood sugar levels.’

Sounds like you are in exactly the same boat as us.

how do i find this thread entitled rising fasting blood sugars

Hi Winston, click on fast 800 then scroll down the page until you see the thread
I have had the same problem. sugar levels suddenly shot up and took almost 3 weeks to stabilise.
It was explained to me as stored sugar being released from my liver.

Hi all, I think this is happening to me!

Just to give you a bit of background. Diagnosed in 2010, medication Metformin 850mgx3, pioglitazone 30mg x 1 and 1.2 units of Victoza.

My fasting BG levels have hovered around 8.5 mmol/L for the last year or so. (Last hb1ac 15th Jan was 9.7). Height 6.1’ weight 102kg

I started Newcastle diet plan on 25th Jan and on 30th Jan my fasting BG levels showed an unbelieve 4.4 mmol/L, so unbelieve I purchased another monitor and it also confirmed these levels. I stopped taking the pioglitazone and still the fasting BG levels hadn’t moved much beyond this figure. Which of course was most welcome!. On 15th March I weighed 88.3kg.

Came off the Victoza about three weeks ago, now just on Metformin 850mgx3.

Generally my fasting BG levels are between 4.7 – 5.4, However on Tuesday this week my Fasting BG level was 6.8, 6.5, 6.1 and 6.5 this morning, You can imagine this was extremely disheartening to say the least.

all, I can’t the thread entitled ‘rising fasting blood sugars’. anyone got a link?
Cheers

Hey AKB 382
try not to worry about those fasting figures, They are still below 7
I did message the team about this as I was having the same problem, this is their reply,
Hi Bill

Chances are it is nothing to worry about. Your body is still adjusting and it’s not unusual to see a little fluctuation.

Also, if it’s first thing in the morning, your levels will naturally rise slightly during the night.

Keep an eye on it and I’m sure it’ll get on track again. If you’re at all unsure, consult with your doctor.

Hope that helps

Oh the thread you were looking for

https://thebloodsugardiet.com/forums/topic/rising-fasting-blood-glucose-levels/

Many thanks Bill1954. it just came as bit of a shock.

Tell me about it.
There was I sitting feeling fairly smug with the weight and the sugar readings reducing day by day.
Then one morning – BANG a 9.9 fasting reading. It took almost a fortnight for them to stabilise again although I do get the odd high result still but I know it’s just stored sugar coming out so I stopped worrying about it.

Well here i am going into the final week of this diet and i have to say that from my point of view it has achieved very little. As before the blood sugar spikes continue and have NOT settled down, in fact today was the biggest jump to the highest reading yet!!!(9.2) after 7 weeks!! Clearly this has not worked for me. i have lost 11% of my body weight which has enabled me to run faster times and i am pleased about that. Also i have had a marginal drop in average blood pressure readings. HOWEVER the most important part of this diet was to bring my blood sugar readings back to normal and to arrest the onset of type 2 diabetes and it clearly hasnt worked. I am very down and dissappointed today and felt that for such a lot of effort i have gained very little. I wonder how many others have found this to be the case too. I hope it works for some as it seems to and you are able to return to relatively normal life…for me its seems the drugs are now a looming and inevitable path…but at least i tried.

That’s very disappointing to hear especially when others are having so much success.
Perhaps you will take longer to stabilise (how long have you been diagnosed)
Maybe switch to the 5:2 for a couple of weeks to see how it goes ?

I feel this whole diet movement is still in its infancy and a lot more work needs to be done to ascertain its success rates before we all start proclaiming its merits as a beakthrough or whatever other hyperbole others seem to think it is. The onset of type 2 is clearly more complex and whilst diets have some success i wonder just what the figures are. You askd when i was diagnosed. The answer is that i have been gradually creeping towards a diagnosis of type 2 since 2012…i was just into the definate diabetis range in Dec last year, so very recently. I have been prescribed no drugs as yet and that was why i embarked on this diet…only to go a complete circle for 7 weeks! will i carry on?Perhaps. will i reccommend this? no…with some caveats. Yes you will lose weight but dont think it will free you from the onset of diabetes…this has a long way to go in research and science before it can claim that.

I understand your disappointment but there are many people who are seeing remarkable sugar readings, myself included, in fact I have just been downgraded to pre diabetic.
True, the diet is in it’s infancy and although some have had blips, this is the first negative result I’ve seen. Are your readings the fasting ones ? It just occurred to me that, as you are a runner, your liver may be releasing extra stored sugar to compensate for the extra calories you are burning during exercise.

i would agree that i wished to see lower blood levels but not necessarily remarkable ! They are all done as soon as i get up. True i ran yesterday and posted a fast 10k time …last week i posted a personal best at that distance. I said before that i was pleased with my running results and had put this down to loss of weight and adjustment to the diet. The spikes of such magnitudes are hard to comprehend…is 8 weeks not enough? if not, how long? i am not prepared to go on indefinately only to see more of the same. Its the hope that kills in the end.I have 6 days left and i will see then how i feel. Right now i am gutted.

Hi Winston, I hear you but 10% of body weight is significant, a good 10k time I could only dream of, a personal best, slightly lower BP? I don’t suppose that you carb load before a run or anything but maybe its time for a medical second opinion. In his book there were some tricky cases and one who was in fact type 1 if I recall. I am lucky in that I am not type 1 or 2 and have other challenges. I will be interested to see how you get on but as for not recommending a way to lose 10% body ms and set a best 10k run time – surely you must be feeling very depressed after your linked success. I hope others can be more help with their personal Type 2 experiences. All the best..

Hi Winston, that is a terrible disappointment for you! I can understand you being so upset. Please persevere though, even for just a couple more weeks. I see from your first post that the spike started in week 5, and you are one day into your final week. My high blood sugars lasted for a little over 3 weeks, I think Bill was also around the three week mark too. It is a scary time wondering if you are going to ever get through it. Like you, I dreaded the threat of meds to control my blood sugar. They really only treat the symptoms not the disease. Then slowly my fasting sugars came down until they are now consistently under 5.
So please don’t give in yet after all the effort you’ve put in. It’s worth pushing on, even if you have to do an extra week or two. Check your carb intake is low enough, 50g carbs a day is what achieved results for me. It would be awful if you dropped out without realising your goal, so keep posting and let us know how you’re doing.

Well I’m sorry to report it looks like it hasn’t worked for me.
Having started the regime of 25th Jan, my weight is now 86KG, BMI of around 24. After 3-4 good weeks fasting results of lower than 5.3, BG reading have been raising since I came off the medication.
Fasting results 12.6 last couple of mornings. Continue to have shakes for breakfast and lunch and lots of greens with dinner.

I came off the medication metformin, pioglitazone and Victoza as I say remained relatively stable for a few weeks, I am now reconsidering introducing the medication which is off course massively disappointing. It kind of puts me back where I was. I’m so gutted !

AKB382 did you come off the meds under medical supervision ?
Did you stop them all at the same time or stagger it ?
I first stopped my Exanatide injections and monitored the sugar readings for a week, then I halved the metformin, again watched the results for a couple of weeks, that was when I got the spikey readings that others have experienced, it took a couple of weeks to calm down.
Finally, after consulting the GP, I stopped the last Metformin and really haven’t had any BS problems since.

Hi Bill1954.
My consultant told me to watch Roy Taylor lectures and read his literature etc., other than that she said off you go.

I did stagger it, pioglitazone was the first to go, then Victoza about 3-4 weeks later, and finally metformin, last metformin was about 3 weeks ago.

Having worked so hard, I feel great having lost so much weight, but the BG levels have left me gutted. Dread the idea of going back on meds.

Have you had a previous incident of spikes during the time you have been on the diet?
Cheryl and I had it in weeks 4 to 5 and it did take 2 – 3 weeks to sort itself out.
I think I would keep monitoring for a week or two to see if the readings decrease again before starting the meds again.

Hi Bill1954,
Yes, I did have spikes from week 7. I just don’t get it !.
did you change your diet much after week 8?

I know some people are saying to wait and see, but it’s my understanding that high blood sugar is doing you damage every time. Maybe check with your doctor and go back on a low dose for a while? The drugs may only treat the symptoms, but that is still important with something as dangerous as diabetes.

Hi AKB382,
It is really disappointing and alarming when the spikes happen. There is a post on here somewhere, from Clare, Michael’s wife who is a GP. She said that it’s ok to continue for a couple of weeks with higher blood sugar levels and see if they come down.
I’m wondering what your pre & post meal levels are doing, also your bedtime reading? If it’s only your fasting reading that’s high then things are not so grim as you fear. It will be down to a combination of the dawn phenomenon and your liver getting rid of the sugar stored as fat.
The other thing to check is the carb content of your shakes + any milk you make them with. You could be low cal but high carb and this will spike your blood sugars.
One of the things that helped me, Bill and some of the others was to have a fatty snack at bedtime. Something like a few tablespoons of full fat yoghurt or 20g cheese helps to counteract the dawn phenomenon.
Stay in touch and let us know how you get on.

Hi Cherrianne,
Pre-meal is usually under 7, (although yesterday it was 9) post meal yesterday after an hour and half was 8.3. This morning 12.6.
I’ve read about the fatty snack I will definitely give it a go.
I have remained on the slim fast shakes made with water.

Hi AKB382,
I’m not familiar with slim fast shakes so I just checked the carb content. Found a vanilla powder one that you mix with water on the Boots website. It has 35g carbs per serve. So with two shakes a day you are already on 70g carbs without counting whatever you are eating at night, or any milk added to tea/ coffee.
I had to go down to 50g carbs per day to get my blood sugars under control whilst my liver was getting rid of the stored fat. I was a TOFI as mentioned in the book.
Something for you to consider? You might be better off ditching the shakes and eating low carb instead.

Hi Cherrianne
That’s definitely something to consider, the shakes have been excellent for losing the weight. Perhaps making a change at this time might be the right thing to do.