For those suffering from diabetes, things are a little different. Most diabetic patients wake up almost every night at the same time, around 3 pm, not by some noise or anything else, but because of the sudden spike in the blood sugar level. It can happen due to two reasons - the Somogyi effect or the dawn phenomenon.
“For people with Type 1 diabetes, the pancreas does not produce insulin, therefore it's important to eat regular meals to regulate insulin dosage accordingly.” A good rule of thumb, Moyer says, is to eat within one hour of waking up. It is optimal for people with diabetes to eat carbohydrates that contains fiber.
The most obvious might be a dry mouth but you may have suspected something was amiss if you had already spent the night getting up frequently to pass urine and feeling thirsty. The thirst and increased urination of diabetes are well known and occur when blood glucoses are really high.
The dawn phenomenon is an early-morning rise in blood sugar, also called blood glucose, in people with diabetes. The dawn phenomenon leads to high levels of blood sugar, a condition called hyperglycemia. It usually happens between 4 a.m. and 8 a.m.
While many people with diabetes aim to keep blood sugar levels below 180 mg/dl during the day, some people aim for the lower range of 120 or 140 mg/dl at night, when they are not eating. At night, symptoms of hyperglycemia include: Poor sleep. Waking up often to urinate or to drink water.
These early morning wake-up calls often are simply one of many low blood sugar symptoms. Sleeping through the night represents a long period without food when blood sugar can drop too low. This is bad news for the brain, which depends on glucose for energy.
Answer From M. Regina Castro, M.D. If you have diabetes, late-night snacks aren't necessarily off-limits — but it's important to make healthy choices. Late-night snacks add extra calories, which can lead to weight gain.
But if you have diabetes, you may not make enough insulin or may be too insulin resistant to counter the increase in blood glucose. As a result, your levels may be elevated when you wake up. The dawn phenomenon does not discriminate between types of diabetes.
DO mind your carbohydrates—and eat more fiber. Avoid foods that have a high glycemic index (GI), like white bread, soda, juice, and russet potatoes. These foods raise your blood sugar faster. Switch them out for medium- to low-GI foods, such as whole wheat bread, brown rice, beans, carrots, and greens.
Try to go 10–12 hours each night without eating, Sheth said. For instance, if you eat breakfast at 8:30 a.m. every morning, that means capping your nighttime meals and snacks between 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. each night.
Fatigue is a common symptom of type 1 and 2 diabetes and can profoundly impact a person's quality of life.
When is blood sugar lowest? Blood sugar levels lower than 100 mg/dL 8 hours after a meal and 140 mg/dL 2 hours after a meal are normal. During the day, the lowest blood sugar levels usually occur right before a meal. For most people without diabetes, pre-meal blood sugar ranges between 70 and 80 mg/dL.
Missing Meals? Avoid Dangerous Blood Sugar if You Have Diabetes. Skipping a meal is typically no big deal. But if you're a person with diabetes, skipping meals or a lack of meal structure could result in dangerously low or high blood sugar levels.
A skipped meal alters the balance between food intake and insulin production, and can cause your blood sugar levels to eventually drop. “For diabetic people dependent on insulin or blood sugar–lowering medication, skipping meals can be more dangerous because it can lead to low blood sugar,” says Pearson.
Low blood sugar in the mornings, also known as morning hypoglycemia, can make people feel faint, light-headed, or confused when they wake up. Having low blood sugar in the mornings is common in people on medication for diabetes, though it can also happen for other reasons.
Conditions that change the life span of red blood cells, such as recent blood loss, sickle cell disease link, erythropoietin treatment, hemodialysis, or transfusion, can change A1C levels. A falsely high A1C result can occur in people who are very low in iron; for example, those with iron-deficiency anemia link.
Tiredness upon waking
If tiredness occurs upon waking after a full night's sleep, it can also be a result of too high or to low blood sugar levels overnight. Tiredness accompanied by a headache in the morning can often be a sign of an overnight hypo in people taking insulin.
But yes, it may be possible to put your type 2 diabetes into remission. This is when your blood sugar levels are below the diabetes range and you don't need to take diabetes medication anymore. This could be life-changing.
Amongst those who are currently 65 years old, the average man can expect to live until 83 years old and the average woman to live until 85 years old. People with type 1 diabetes have traditionally lived shorter lives, with life expectancy having been quoted as being reduced by over 20 years.
It's important to understand that lowering your A1C levels is a gradual (slow) process. As discussed, your A1C, unlike a blood glucose test, measures your average blood sugar over a period of 2 to 3 months. This means, it can take up to 3 months to notice significant changes in your A1C.
Peanuts and peanut butter have even been shown to help lessen the spike in blood sugar when paired with high-carbohydrate or high-GL foods. Peanuts and peanut butter are both low GI and GL foods, as they contain healthy oils, protein, and fiber that have a positive effect on blood sugar control.