I always like to figure out how things work. It's more a curiosity thing than an intellectual thing. Once I learn it, I don't retain it forever. I move on to something else. Since I know a lot of people who are diabetic or diabetic resistant, I wanted to know more about it. I also wanted to know if I was getting close myself.
This is not by any means a medical blog. I am not a professional and actually know very little about the dynamics of diabetes. I am just a grandma trying to understand some things about blood sugar and health. As it turns out, I am not diabetic. I don't even know if I have insulin resistance. In order to understand all of it better my daughter gave me a continuous glucose monitor for two weeks. She is also in the process of understanding resistance, weight gain and good health. If you are diabetic maybe some of my discoveries are already familiar to you.
The biosensor was put on the back of my arm. There are many brands. I have the Lingo and its app. It cost about $45 for one of them. It was painless and it is waterproof so I didn't have to worry about it falling off in the shower. I had to download the proper app on my phone with Bluetooth activated. It took a couple hours for it to connect and start recording my results. I can now check my blood sugar at anytime. This chart is from the app. The app also gives suggestions, averages and even recipes.
I made some interesting conclusions. I learned that if you eat something higher in carbohydrates, you can pair it with a protein or a fat. For example, I ate an apple and my number raised by 25 mg. When I ate an apple with 3 oz of cheese or dipped it in some nut butter, the spike was half. You can eat meat and it won't cause any spikes. There are no carbs in meat. I also learned how important exercise is. If you overdo what you eat and get a big spike, a ten minute walk or some type of exercise can minimize the effect. Moving around for 10 minutes or more is much better than sitting right down. There are foods you wouldn't think would matter. We always thought orange juice was healthy. It isn't, it's mostly sugar. Even oatmeal isn't as good as we thought. It might be good calorie wise but not for sugar, but you can eat eggs and sausage and have no effect. I discovered broccoli and shrimp has no effect but if you add a carbohydrate like rice. Oops. I have found a rice that is grown in Louisiana called Parish Rice. It has 53% more protein and a low glycemic index. I have not tried it but I think I will.
Stress pays a huge part in it too. It is kind of a double edged sword. If you worry too much your blood sugar rises and when your blood sugar rises, you worry. I have no cures for that although some say exercise lessens stress. For me it causes it so there is that.
Tonight I had some homemade Tomato Soup in the freezer. I was hungry so I thought I would thaw it and heat it up. Much to my surprise I had hardly any sugar spike. I even ate it with cheese. Here is the recipe.
Tomato Soup
28 oz. can whole peeled tomatoes ( San Marzano style are excellent)
14.5 oz can Cannellini beans, undrained
1 diced onion
1 t. minced garlic
2 T. olive oil
1 t. thyme
1 1/2 t. salt
3 cups water
Cook in Crockpot or pressure for 20 minutes in an instant pot or
heat in a saucepan until the onions are soft. You can add any other spices that are favorites.
Then take an immersion blender or regular blender and blend until smooth.
I learned if you eat before bed, it can sometimes take 4 hours before you get back to resting numbers. That is when your liver recalibrates and heals. I always had a bedtime snack but I am trying not to eat in the evening. My stomach actually growls I am so used to eating at night. Can I keep this up, the jury is still out on that. I actually found out my blood sugar gets too low and I need a few more carbs than I am getting, however people with diabetes might not have a choice.
Now I know that diabetes is totally different from what I am doing. It isn't a game and it's very serious and complicated. What spikes one person is fine for another. Even myself saw different results with the same meal depending what I ate before or after. The longer the space between meals the better and snacking doesn't give the body time to adjust. Previously I was like a baby who needed to eat something every two hours. I'm trying to stop that. It's more something to do than hunger anyway.
I have only been doing this a week. It is very interesting how complicated the human body is and how hard it is to get everything to work perfectly.
To anyone struggling, I am sure medical science will continue to come up with solutions and I hope it happens soon. I wish them success. I also hope I never get it. It would not be fun.
Now I have to figure out my next life question like how social media knows what I am thinking before I do. By writing this, my Facebook is full of information on Diabetes and continuous glucose monitors. 🤷
