My Issues with Insulin & Weight Gain
Okay, my issues with insulin are that when first added to my protocol to better regulate my BG I gained 22 pounds in 6 seconds, or so it seemed. I now struggle with that 22 pounds and if I am not careful I can gain weight extremely easily. So, I am trying to lose that 22 pounds today by NOT giving myself the corrective bolus that I have come to rely on. If I really need more insulin to correct a BG level of 250 or more then I will take it, but, I am trying to cut back on my Novolog to see if I can drop those unwanted pounds. So far, I have not taken but 2 corrective boluses in the past week, that is great for me because I am used to about 2 per day. I am not going to weigh myself for a few more weeks, I don't want to jump on the scale too soon and be disappointed. In most cases when my BG has been too high 2-hours post I have been able to get back to normal with water and some form of exercise. Even a 20 min walk and a good amount of water seems to help. So,,,,,below are some facts I found if you are interested. I will let you know in a few weeks how I did.
Insulin Posted By Dr. Ben Kim
If you have too much sugar floating around in your blood vessels, it is likely that you also have too much insulin traveling through your system as well. Even if your fasting blood sugar level is in a healthy range, it is possible that you have too much insulin floating through your vessels, particularly if you have high triglycerides and/or are overweight. Normal blood sugar and high blood insulin can be the result of your cells losing some sensitivity to insulin, which necessitates that your body releases extra insulin into your blood circulation in an attempt to stimulate your desensitized cells into sponging up excess sugar out of your blood circulation.
What's the problem with having too much insulin in your circulation?
Excess insulin is known to cause:
• Weight gain, since insulin promotes the storage of fat
• Lower cellular levels of magnesium, a mineral that is essential for keeping your blood vessels relaxed and your blood circulation efficient
• An increase in sodium retention, which leads to holding excess water in your system, which causes high blood pressure
• Increased amounts of inflammatory compounds in your blood, which can cause direct physical damage to your blood vessel walls and encourage the development of blood clots which can lead to heart attacks and respiratory failure
• A reduction in HDL, an increase in undesirable small molecules of LDL, and an increase in triglycerides, all of which increase your risk for heart disease
• Possibly a higher risk for cancer due to insulin's ability to contribute to cell proliferation
You can test your insulin level by asking your doctor or laboratory for a fasting insulin test. Less than 10 IU/mL is ideal. Anything over 10 IU/mL indicates that you are eating too many foods that are stimulating excess insulin release from your pancreas, paving the way to all of the negative health effects listed above.
What can you do with your food and lifestyle choices to support healthy blood sugar and insulin levels?
1. Make non-starchy vegetables the foundation of your diet. Dark green leafy lettuce, tomatoes, celery, cucumber, cabbage, kale, Swiss chard, bok choy, zucchini, broccoli, cauliflower, and all unmentioned green vegetables are excellent choices.
2. Reduce or eliminate your intake of sugar and all foods that contain sugar. Some of the most concentrated sources of sugar are soda, cookies, chocolate bars, donuts, pastries, ice cream, and ketchup.
3. Reduce or eliminate your use of sweeteners like molasses, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, pasteurized/heated honey, and maple syrup.
4. Limit intake of fruit juices. Even freshly squeezed fruit juice taken over the long term can lead to high blood sugar and insulin levels. If you want to taste fruit, eat whole fruit, not the juice. The fiber, vitamins, and minerals that come with whole fruit help to slow down the pace at which the natural sugars from fruit enter your bloodstream.
5. Do activities and exercises that build or maintain your muscles. Muscle tissue acts as a storage site for extra sugar. The more muscle tissue you have, the better you can regulate your blood sugar and insulin levels.
Insulin Posted By Dr. Ben Kim
If you have too much sugar floating around in your blood vessels, it is likely that you also have too much insulin traveling through your system as well. Even if your fasting blood sugar level is in a healthy range, it is possible that you have too much insulin floating through your vessels, particularly if you have high triglycerides and/or are overweight. Normal blood sugar and high blood insulin can be the result of your cells losing some sensitivity to insulin, which necessitates that your body releases extra insulin into your blood circulation in an attempt to stimulate your desensitized cells into sponging up excess sugar out of your blood circulation.
What's the problem with having too much insulin in your circulation?
Excess insulin is known to cause:
• Weight gain, since insulin promotes the storage of fat
• Lower cellular levels of magnesium, a mineral that is essential for keeping your blood vessels relaxed and your blood circulation efficient
• An increase in sodium retention, which leads to holding excess water in your system, which causes high blood pressure
• Increased amounts of inflammatory compounds in your blood, which can cause direct physical damage to your blood vessel walls and encourage the development of blood clots which can lead to heart attacks and respiratory failure
• A reduction in HDL, an increase in undesirable small molecules of LDL, and an increase in triglycerides, all of which increase your risk for heart disease
• Possibly a higher risk for cancer due to insulin's ability to contribute to cell proliferation
You can test your insulin level by asking your doctor or laboratory for a fasting insulin test. Less than 10 IU/mL is ideal. Anything over 10 IU/mL indicates that you are eating too many foods that are stimulating excess insulin release from your pancreas, paving the way to all of the negative health effects listed above.
What can you do with your food and lifestyle choices to support healthy blood sugar and insulin levels?
1. Make non-starchy vegetables the foundation of your diet. Dark green leafy lettuce, tomatoes, celery, cucumber, cabbage, kale, Swiss chard, bok choy, zucchini, broccoli, cauliflower, and all unmentioned green vegetables are excellent choices.
2. Reduce or eliminate your intake of sugar and all foods that contain sugar. Some of the most concentrated sources of sugar are soda, cookies, chocolate bars, donuts, pastries, ice cream, and ketchup.
3. Reduce or eliminate your use of sweeteners like molasses, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, pasteurized/heated honey, and maple syrup.
4. Limit intake of fruit juices. Even freshly squeezed fruit juice taken over the long term can lead to high blood sugar and insulin levels. If you want to taste fruit, eat whole fruit, not the juice. The fiber, vitamins, and minerals that come with whole fruit help to slow down the pace at which the natural sugars from fruit enter your bloodstream.
5. Do activities and exercises that build or maintain your muscles. Muscle tissue acts as a storage site for extra sugar. The more muscle tissue you have, the better you can regulate your blood sugar and insulin levels.
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Clee on -
My ISF (according to my doctor) is 1:25....and....I have tried what you just suggested...and sure enough...it came down by 25 points per 1 unit....man...you are good....lol.....I tried it before I read your post though, but all and all....it is exactly as you say.....BUT...it came down over the course of one hour....do you think this is good?
-
Permalink Reply by Natalie ._c- on -
Yes, it's great, because insulin injected under your skin takes a while to reach the circulation, and even longer to reach the liver. So BGs are never going to come down instantly!
-
-
Permalink Reply by Brian (bsc) on -
Well, I understood you. You were trying to tighten up your blood sugar control, your diet and use exercise to "avoid" any need to correct. I think that is an admirable and beneficial goal. I think the thing that set of peoples alarms is that you "can" lose weight by withholding insulin and letting your blood sugar run high. I think we would all agree that is a bad thing, but I've never seen anything suggesting that was your intent.
-
Permalink Reply by She Ra on -
No, I would never do that. I think about it from time to time but it is not worth it.
-
Permalink Reply by MidwestMommy on -
Your post frightens me a bit. Having another T1 agree with you doesn't mean it is a sound plan.
What about trying to change your dosing so you avoid a correction at all? I think it takes much more insulin to solve a problem than to prevent it.
If you are only eating 60 grams of carbs per day do you think your corrections relate to you not getting enough basal insulin?
Also, is Dr. Kim speaking directly to diabetics utilizing synthetic insulin? I'm not familiar with Dr. Kim.
-
Permalink Reply by She Ra on
-
Basil isn't for meals so pretty sure it wouldn't pertain to this discussion. I do know that the basil dose I am on now works fine for me.
All I am doing is cutting out a corrective dose of rapid insulin when I can. It doesn't mean I am sabotaging my control.
I am in better control now, I swear it.
-
Permalink Reply by Anthony Holko on
-
I am trying R humalin instead of apidra because the food I eat do not spike at 1 hour but later. Seems to reduce hunger a bit. I have eliminated the grains and veggies and meat are not so fast. This is like BSC mentioned is to tailor the kinetics of the insulin to the kinetics of blood sugar production from the food.
-
Permalink Reply by latvianchick on
-
That is a rather dangerous way to lose weight in the long term. Perhaps you need to reduce by one or two units of insulin rather than cut it out altogether. You are setting yourself up for complications if you continue this.
By reducing the insulin slightly you are less likely to go hypo - which is one of the reasons why we put on weight.
-
Permalink Reply by She Ra on
-
Lativianchik I didn't cut out insulin. I adjusted the way I use it.
5u Lantus 5am
Bolus for breakfast
Bolus for lunch
Bolus for dinner
11u Lantus 10pm
I still take a good amount of insulin.
-
Permalink Reply by acidrock23 on -
I used to sort of do this, in that I'd "augment" R by taking a shot in my leg, letting it soak in for like 20 minutes and then running up and down the stairs 10 times. I'm not sure I'd totally agree with skipping CB altogether but I have noticed that highs are not all the same. Post exercise spikes, at least for me, seem to disappear with just a whiff of insulin. A lot of times, DP is the same way but if I miscount carbs by like 33%, it seems to take longer to get rid of. I also tend to try to eat less or eat more conservatively when I'm running higher. I wouldn't say I'd skip a CB but I think I'm more conservative with them than I used to be?
-
Permalink Reply by She Ra on
-
Acidrock I think we are on the same page here. If I really need it I take it, but if I can get BG back in sync with some exercise and a lot of water then that is my drug of choice.
-
Permalink Reply by Natalie ._c- on
-
It could be that 60g of carbs a day is too much for you. If you're not losing weight and keeping good BGs on that amount, you could try to reduce it, although I know that's difficult. The salient point is that insulin doesn't make you fat; food makes you fat, and particularly carbs. If you eat enough protein and fat, you shouldn't be hungry. You might need to eliminate fruits, because in spite of what Dr. Kim says, they have too many sugars.
I think exercising after meals is a very good idea -- many Type 2's find it extremely effective, and a high peak that comes down promptly is not really all that dangerous, although a lower peak would be more desirable. Cutting down your carbs can flatten out the peaks and lows in addition to helping with weight loss. I would really recommend Bernstein's Diabetes Solution to you -- he's kind of extreme, but some people need to go to that extreme.
Good luck!
Advertisement
REsources
Groups
From the Diabetes Hands Foundation blog...
Congratulations Diabetes Advocates Scholarship Recipients!
The Diabetes Hands Foundation and Diabetes Advocates Program is proud to announce and congratulate the members of DA who were granted scholarships to attend diabetes conferences in 2013! Thanks to a generous grant from Novo Nordisk, in 2013 we were …Continue Reading
La Familia de EsTuDiabetes Sigue Creciendo
El Centro Nacional de Prevención de Enfermedades Crónicas y Promoción de la Salud en el Estados Unidos encontró que a partir de 2002-2009, el 11,8% de los hispanos mayores de 20 años, que viven en los EU, viven con diabetes …Continue Reading
TuDiabetes Team
DHF STAFF
 Manny Hernandez(Co-Founder, Editor, has LADA)
|
DHF VOLUNTEERS
Lead Administrator
 Bradford (has type 1) |
Administrators
 Lorraine (mother of type 1) |
 Marie B (has type 1) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
LIKE us on Facebook
Spread the word
This site complies with the HONcode standard for trustworthy health information: verify here.
© 2013 A community of people touched by diabetes, run by the Diabetes Hands Foundation.
