October 27, 2003
Daily Care
Question from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA:
I’m 50 years old and have had type 1 diabetes for five years, and I have had to increase my insulin gradually. My old doctor said it was because of insulin resistance. So I was up to taking 5 units of Regular with 15 units of NPH twice per day, I usually awoke with readings above 200 mg/dl [11.1 mmol/L], and basically, I felt lousy all the time. I had high blood pressure and triglycerides at 1300 (no kidding). I don’t take any prescriptions for either. I quit my job about a year ago because it was a major contributor to my declining health. I quit drinking alcohol and went on a diet to help my liver function better. That doesn’t mean I have a liver problem. It’s only that the liver is a major player in handling food metabolism.
My glucose readings gradually went down over a period of several weeks until I had to start taking less and less insulin because the readings were always in the 70s mg/dl [3.9 mmol/L]. So, very slowly over a period of about one more week, I got to the point of no insulin and it’s been that way for more than a week now. I tested my blood almost every hour for several days; the readings are about 80 mg/dl [4.4 mmol/L] in the morning and throughout the day, they run in the 70-90 [mg/dl, 3.9-5 mmol/L] range. I even tested through the night on two occasions.
I have energy, I feel fine, and I’m sleeping well for the first time in years. My diet is mostly fresh vegetables, nuts and seeds, yogurt, fish, meat, chicken, occasional sprouted bread or whole grain unleavened rye crackers, unsweetened cranberry juice, and the juice from lemons. Also, I eat five Hershey kisses in the morning because they have a calming effect on me.I have lost about 25 pounds since I quit drinking wine and eat better and exercise. Please tell me I’m onto a good thing. I’m really happy about the situation so far and will continue to monitor my blood sugar.
I tried to discover what’s going on via the University of Barnes and Noble and Borders, but there is no mention of this happening. Have you encountered this before?
Answer:
I am confused about your letter. You say you have type 1 diabetes, but what you described sounds like type 2 diabetes. It is very possible to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and require insulin at that time and then to eat well, exercise, lose weight and go off insulin. You also stopped drinking alcohol which contributed to your success. In type 1 diabetes there may be a honeymoon period in the beginning where the diabetes seems to disappear, but it would not last this long. So, if indeed you have type 2 diabetes, you are currently in excellent control — thanks to all of your efforts but need to continue to test your blood sugar at home and have hemoglobin A1ctests to make sure that the “honeymoon” is not over!
JS
