I am a type 2 diabetic, no insulin. I have been fasting 16-18 hours each day with only a few days where I slipped up and snacked after my eating window or ended my fast early one day.
Weight seems to be coming off a bit , down 3.8 pounds since 1 December. So that’s cool for sure.
My morning blood sugars have been 20-40 points higher than before. I used to experience night sweats when my blood sugar would get high, but now it is happening in the early morning 2-4 hours before my eating window.
Is this lifestyle just not compatible with mild diabetes or am I normal and this is to be expected for some reason?
Anyone have any experience managing diabetes alongside intermittent fasting?
Sounds like you’re getting some dawn phenomenon, where the body has an increase in blood sugar due to hormones like cortisol being released before you wake.
I would keep going, since you’re losing weight and I suspect as insulin resistance goes down as time goes on and you continue to fast, it will lessen. I kept track of mine using test strips in a cheap meter, and my morning fasting blood sugar slowly went down. Hope this helps!
I highly, highly, highly recommend you take a minute and check out the YouTube channel for Dr Rob Cywes. He is a brilliant, experienced surgeon and researcher who can explain it all:
Hi! I’ve been recently diagnosed with pre-diabetes, insulin resistance, diabetes (3 doctors I spoke with called it differently) but I am taking metformin 2x500mg at evenings, no insulin.
I am checking my blood sugar every morning and it tends to fluctuate a little bit but it never goes too high even after eating, so if yours stays okay during the day after the meals I’d say it’s ok too.
I am also fasting 16:8, or 18:6 when I actually forget to eat, and I am feeling alright. Give your body some time to adjust, usually it’s a month or so until it all should settle down. But if you continue feeling weird I’d definitely check with your doctor.