> We have a list member who told us in her intro that she gets
> post-prandial hypoglycemia. Would that be the proper description of what
I
> had?
That is extremely rare (see below). Most people who feel worse soon after
eating have food sensitivities/allergies *while* blood sugar levels are
*increasing*.
Glucometer Limitations
See the section titled "My meter readings do not match the laboratory's
results. Is my meter accurate?"
at this site: www.lifescan.com/products/faq/products_faq.html#accurate
To summarize:
* home glucometers typically have accuracy's of +/- 20%
* the only way to definitively test the accuracy of the glucometer is to
test it against a lab test
* home glucometers measure whole blood, which is about 12% lower than lab
plasma-based test results. Therefore, home readings must be multiplied by
1.12 to achieve a comparable reading
* blood samples are drawn from a vein for a lab test; samples are drawn from
a fingerstick capillary at home. Capillary levels can be much higher (up to
70 mg/dl higher) if one consumed food recently. Fasting for 4 hours should
eliminate the difference.
Here are some possible explanations for hypoglycemia:
Case 1: if your bs levels immediately go down after you eat, maybe you
have fructose intolerance.
Case 2: if your bs levels peak out between 15 minutes and 30 minutes,
then maybe you have hypo resulting from a digestive disorder (such as
stomach surgery, giardia, hyperactive small intestine, overactive
pancreatic production of amylase, etc.) I assume this is where many thin
hypos are at.
Case 3: If your bs levels peak between 30-45 minutes, then go too low
right away, maybe your pancreas generates too much insulin, or maybe you
have underactive adrenals. If you have low blood pressure, I'd suspect
the low adrenals.
Case 4: If your bs levels peak out later than 45 minutes, maybe you have
hypo due to insulin resistance. In this case, the later you peak, I
assume would also mean the higher you would peak. I also would assume
this group would have the highest age and weight-for-their-height
statistics.
Case 5: If your bs levels peak after 30 minutes and you experience
hypoglycemia 2.5 to 4 hours after eating, insulin may be slow to be cleared
from the liver. Have your doctor check your liver enzymes.
Case 6: If your bs levels go up and down randomly after eating, then
possibly you have an allergy to insulin. If so, another clue could be
that you have a lot of other allergies.
Rob
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