The results of my recent blood tests indicate I have an HbA1c of 7.5. What!!!! No way. This does not make sense to me. I test 5-6 times a day, before and after meals. According to my meter (FreeStyle Flash) my 15 days average is 104. That should put the HbA1c between 5 and 6. Something strange is happening here.
I just finished reading "Think like a pancreas" and I remember reading about the Dawn Phenomenon. While sleeping the body releases certain hormones which can have the effect of raising blood sugar. One can go to bed with a reading of 95 and wake up with a reading of 108. So I performed a test. I went to bed at 10 PM and woke up during the night (2AM and 4 AM) to take blood glucose readings. The numbers are as follow:
Time | meter reading |
---|---|
10 PM | 95 mg/dL |
2 AM | 95 mg/dL |
4 AM | 94 mg/dL |
6:30 AM | 108 mg/dL |
The last set of numbers I took just after waking up. My numbers appear to be higher in the morning than they were when I went to bed. For my last blood test, I recall my bedtime numbers ( I need to start keeping a log ) before going to bed were just over 100. The lab tests show that my urine glucose was 128 mg/dL and my blood glucose was 111 mg/dL the morning I took the test ( about 7:30 AM). Does this mean I suffer from the Dawn Phenomenon? This would likely explain that rather high HbA1c number.
So how do I deal with this? Not sure. I can skip my bedtime snack. I did that last night and my BG was 108 mg/dL so that was not much help. I plan to increase my basal dosage by 1 unit and repeat last nights tests. I guess some experimentation ( on myself !! ) is in order. Now I'm scared!!
I have been testing 5-6 times a day for the last 5 months and rarely do I have any spikes after meals ( unless I miscount my carbs ). Using my 90 day average as a guide I should be a 6.