Comments on: the A1C Game http://diabetes.pocket-book.com/2005/07/30/the-a1c-game/ Some tips for diabetic, recipes and products. Thu, 20 Nov 2008 09:57:13 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2.1 By: John Smith http://diabetes.pocket-book.com/2005/07/30/the-a1c-game/#comment-11166 John Smith Thu, 04 Aug 2005 11:58:39 +0000 http://diabetes.pocket-book.com/2005/07/30/the-a1c-game/#comment-11166 I had to buy a new computer and so lost some of the emails, kind of read a few about the glucose spikes, Graves disease and anemia. I'm Type 2 and was diagnosed a few years ago with hypothyroidism. I've read a book that says a lot of these things, including Type 2, are caused by low thyroid, and as a result low thyroid is very common in diabetics. Just curious, how many of you with Type 2 also have low thyroid that you know of? It many times goes undiagnosed for years when it is just slightly low, just as diabetes sometimes goes for years undiagnosed. Kady [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] I had to buy a new computer and so lost some of the emails, kind of read a
few about the glucose spikes, Graves disease and anemia. I’m Type 2 and was
diagnosed a few years ago with hypothyroidism. I’ve read a book that says a
lot of these things, including Type 2, are caused by low thyroid, and as a
result low thyroid is very common in diabetics. Just curious, how many of you
with Type 2 also have low thyroid that you know of? It many times goes
undiagnosed for years when it is just slightly low, just as diabetes sometimes
goes for
years undiagnosed.
Kady

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

]]> By: Endy King http://diabetes.pocket-book.com/2005/07/30/the-a1c-game/#comment-11165 Endy King Thu, 04 Aug 2005 01:18:10 +0000 http://diabetes.pocket-book.com/2005/07/30/the-a1c-game/#comment-11165 Hi Jeff and Chris. I present an odd data point in your charts and schemes. Perhaps it is a hopeful one for those of us unable to consistantly rodeo-ride our blood sugars into the small corral of 'acceptable' limits. I am type 1, which may be significant in my good fortune as I have no insulin resistance issues. But the truth is, I've been on a pretty major roller coaster, blood- sugar-wise, for most of my 35 diabetic years (I am 51 now). The best A1c I've managed, outside my 2 pregnancies (I gave more attention to blood sugar then and managed 7.4 as I recall) has been 8.1. That was just recently when I switched to Lantus insulin for my long-acting. The rest of the time, throughout my life I've been between 10 and 13 A1C, and this is with swings whose average bottom was maybe 120, top <!--more--> in the 400's, and average in the high 200's or low 300's. Ghastly, yes!? Until I got Graves Disease 13 years ago, I was healthier than most normal people -Built railroad tie and 2X6 fences by myself, for my herd of Spanish Mustang horses, raised many kids (my own plus several others) and generally ran a farm, haying (throwing up the bales to the truck, driving tractor, training foals etc. I guess I preferred to give my attention to my joys and passions rather than spend it endlessly focused on my own bod. I didn't go to doctors at all, for decades, to avoid the thing you so eleoquently note below - "all/most of us have been beaten > senseless with the "YOU MUST KEEP THE NUMBERS LOWER THAN THAT..." speech or > face dire, life threatening long term consequences!!! I decided early on that since fear is creative, and having "YOU WILL GET THE COMPLICATIONS!!" drilled into me by doctor-gods was surely scary (I am quite suggestable)...- I would just do the best I could and live my life, die when I die. The MD's could intimidate someone else! Free from profesional advice my diet evolved into vegetarian, mostly, with some eggs and cultured dairy products, natural sweeteners like honey or applesauce for baking. I always spend the extra $ for organic, grow most of my own veggies in summer, also keep my own happy chickens...I take vit. E, Cal-Mag-Zinc (Magnesium is important to stop complications), vit.C, selenium, thyroid meds (no thyroid left, which has made blood sugar control harder). I no longer farm, and have lost a lot of ground health-wise since the Graves Disease, but I do not have kidney trouble, my feet and hands get cold more easily but they are pink, sentient and functional, there is a little macular degeneration in my right eye but the left is perfect, my heart is great, and other parameters check out fine (did just have to get dentures - terrible teeth!)...I now see ad doc from time to time for tests, plus a naturopath. Exercise, never an issue in the past, is hard now and I need to do more of it! But I don't fit on your chart. I had great health and NO complications for the first 30 years of unruly sugars, and only light damage now. Maybe genetics, spirituality, exercise, joy for life, are factors not noted on that chart. I'm sure low A1C's are best, and I am working harder at it now than I ever have. But to scare people with unequivocal statements of doom UNLESS....might be counterproductive, not to mention untrue. I think we should all surely do the best we can, given who we are, and forgive ourselves the rest. Thank the Great Spirit for slack and whatever joy we can find in this life! -Just one woman's experience and view. -Linda R Hi Jeff and Chris.

I present an odd data point in your charts and schemes. Perhaps it is
a hopeful one for those of us unable to consistantly rodeo-ride our
blood sugars into the small corral of ‘acceptable’ limits. I am type
1, which may be significant in my good fortune as I have no insulin
resistance issues.

But the truth is, I’ve been on a pretty major roller coaster, blood-
sugar-wise, for most of my 35 diabetic years (I am 51 now). The best
A1c I’ve managed, outside my 2 pregnancies (I gave more attention to
blood sugar then and managed 7.4 as I recall) has been 8.1. That was
just recently when I switched to Lantus insulin for my long-acting.
The rest of the time, throughout my life I’ve been between 10 and 13
A1C, and this is with swings whose average bottom was maybe 120, top

in the 400’s, and average in the high 200’s or low 300’s. Ghastly,
yes!? Until I got Graves Disease 13 years ago, I was healthier than
most normal people -Built railroad tie and 2X6 fences by myself, for
my herd of Spanish Mustang horses, raised many kids (my own plus
several others) and generally ran a farm, haying (throwing up the
bales to the truck, driving tractor, training foals etc. I guess I
preferred to give my attention to my joys and passions rather than
spend it endlessly focused on my own bod. I didn’t go to doctors at
all, for decades, to avoid the thing you so eleoquently note below -

"all/most of us have been beaten
> senseless with the "YOU MUST KEEP THE NUMBERS LOWER THAN THAT…"
speech or
> face dire, life threatening long term consequences!!!

I decided early on that since fear is creative, and having "YOU WILL
GET THE COMPLICATIONS!!" drilled into me by doctor-gods was surely
scary (I am quite suggestable)…- I would just do the best I could
and live my life, die when I die. The MD’s could intimidate someone
else! Free from profesional advice my diet evolved into vegetarian,
mostly, with some eggs and cultured dairy products, natural
sweeteners like honey or applesauce for baking. I always spend the
extra $ for organic, grow most of my own veggies in summer, also keep
my own happy chickens…I take vit. E, Cal-Mag-Zinc (Magnesium is
important to stop complications), vit.C, selenium, thyroid meds (no
thyroid left, which has made blood sugar control harder). I no longer
farm, and have lost a lot of ground health-wise since the Graves
Disease, but I do not have kidney trouble, my feet and hands get cold
more easily but they are pink, sentient and functional, there is a
little macular degeneration in my right eye but the left is perfect,
my heart is great, and other parameters check out fine (did just have
to get dentures - terrible teeth!)…I now see ad doc from time to
time for tests, plus a naturopath. Exercise, never an issue in the
past, is hard now and I need to do more of it! But I don’t fit on
your chart. I had great health and NO complications for the first 30
years of unruly sugars, and only light damage now. Maybe genetics,
spirituality, exercise, joy for life, are factors not noted on that
chart. I’m sure low A1C’s are best, and I am working harder at it now
than I ever have. But to scare people with unequivocal statements of
doom UNLESS….might be counterproductive, not to mention untrue. I
think we should all surely do the best we can, given who we are, and
forgive ourselves the rest. Thank the Great Spirit for slack and
whatever joy we can find in this life! -Just one woman’s experience
and view. -Linda R

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