Am I a diabetic ?

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dawg44 Posted: Tue, Nov 17 2009 1:08 AM

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I have had a fasting testing 2 times 10/22 and my level was 130, and another on 11/5 also 130.  my glycoglobin was 5.3.  When I spoke to the Physicians Aide for my DR, his response was to cut out soda, chocolate cake and sweets and get another test in 4 months.  I have done quite a bit of "internet research" in the last 1.5 weeks and find much contradiction on what level is and indicator of diabetes.  I think my major concern is what I feel may be a lacodasical approach by the PA towards this.  My first thought is to call my Dr and discuss this in detail with him.  Or should I just go with the original recommendation.

I also question what is "frequent urination".  Today for instance, no fluids after 11:00pm last night, 8 ozs coffee around 8:30 am and about 8 oz unsweetned ice tea around 10:00am, and I urinated about 5 times between 7:00am and 12:30am.

Thanks for any input....

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Ron AKA replied on Tue, Nov 17 2009 11:06 AM

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I would agree that you have not been given very good advice from you PA. Both of the tests you had confirm you have diabetes. Under 100 fasting is considered normal. From 100 to 127 is called pre-diabetes, and over 127 is diabetes. See this link:

Diagnosis of Diabetes

At this point some choose to treat with an improved diet, more exercise, and weight loss if applicable. Other doctors often prescribe metformin. If it were me I would do both. There is a chance you could reverse the progress of the diabetes or for sure at least slow it down.

I find The New Glucose Revolution one of the best books on what to eat and what not to eat. It is based on the glycemic index of carbohydrates, and promotes eating low glycemic index foods, and avoiding high GI foods (or at least limiting the quantity of them). You can also find lots of glycemic index information on line.

So yes, I would ask for a doctor appointment. Ask about a weight and exercise target, and metformin. See what he says. At minimum he should give you a prescription for a home blood glucose meter. I find the One Touch Ultra2, UltraMini, and Ultra Smart very good meters, but there are other good ones. See this site for some recommendations. Look for the ones with the check marks and happy faces!

Blood Glucose Meters

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Spirit replied on Tue, Nov 17 2009 7:35 PM

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dawg44:  The whole idea of diabetic symptoms can be pretty murky.  Frequent urination?  Thirsty often?  These are pretty subjective things.  Unless you discuss your peeing and drinking habits with a whole lot of people, it's hard to know if you are out of the range of normal. As far as I know I never showed either of these symptoms before diagnosis, but my lab tests came back without a doubt.  So, that's not a good guideline, in my opinion. 

On the other hand, numbers are objective rather than subjective.  One standard test of diabetes is two fasting tests over 126.  There has been some movement to even lower that bar a bit, but in any case you meet the older criteria.  I think that should be investigated more fully than your PA wants to do at this point. 

Please understand that no one except a doctor can diagnose you.  But in your case, I would defintiely ask for an exam by the doctor, not just the PA.  Ron has given you some excellent guidelines about what course you might want to discuss with your doctor. 

And the advice about sweets and soda and chocolate cake?  Not so complete.  It is ALL carbs that affect glucose levels.  Carbohydrates are all sugars, true, but they are also all starches.  Sometimes the biggest culprit is bread or pasta or rice, not just the dessert at the end of a meal.   Portion sizes count, too.  Believe it or not, as a diabetic I can work a small sweet, even a sliver of chocolate cake, into a sound diabetic meal plan.  But that takes some learning how.  When you speak to your doctor I would recommend that you ask him about Diabetes Education Classes.  Most major hositals offer these and I think that now they are open (and usually covered by insurance) to even those diagnosed with pre-diabetes.  They will teach you about self-monitoring, healthy food choices and other aspects of diabetes care that you haven't even thought of yet.  These classes will not teach you everything you need to know, but they will give you a terrific jump-start on knowledge.  And the more you know, the better off you will be.

Spirit

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dawg44 replied on Wed, Nov 18 2009 9:32 AM

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I appreaciate your answers.  I did call and ask to speak to the Dr directly and I am waiting for his callback.  How much does the hemoglobin count acually indicate diabetes as well.  It was in the normal range of 5.3, However if becoming diabetic is a recent event, does it not take time for that test to show high levels ?  6-8 weeks ?

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Ron AKA replied on Wed, Nov 18 2009 10:02 AM

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dawg44:

I appreaciate your answers.  I did call and ask to speak to the Dr directly and I am waiting for his callback.  How much does the hemoglobin count acually indicate diabetes as well.  It was in the normal range of 5.3, However if becoming diabetic is a recent event, does it not take time for that test to show high levels ?  6-8 weeks ?

The A1C at 5.3 is normal. However, A1C is not accepted as a diagnosis method for diabetes. For the same blood sugar levels A1C can be quite different for different people. Yes, it is kind of an average of BG for the past 2-3 months, with more emphasis on the last month.

Type 1 diabetes can come on very fast, but usually BG levels are also much higher all of a sudden. If you are older and overweight then it is much more likely you are type 2 diabetes. This is most often quite slow to develop, and BG levels do not change rapidly.

Hope that helps some,

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dawg44 replied on Thu, Nov 19 2009 9:22 AM

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Update:  Spoke to the Dr this morning and he agrees that i might have diabetes.  Having blood tested again tomorrow, and go from there. 

Thanks to all for the adice and support !!!!

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JoyceL replied on Fri, Nov 20 2009 8:45 AM

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It is always good to discuss your concerns with you doctor