hi, i'm a newbie from the uk.I'm 31,been diagnosed ibd for 3 years and been having food reaction problems for longer than that.I had all the allergy/food intolerance testing done and my doc said it's probably a bad leaky gut and may improve with time and following the elimination diet i had started.Two years on i'm still struggling,i have the same sleep reaction with varying severity and someone's just told me it sounds like her insulin resistance.I had tested my blood sugar for a while but there was nothing that really stood out.I recently bought a blood pressure monitor to see what happened to my bp after i'd eaten.I discovered i was generally hypertensive except for when i'd eaten when it would drop to below normal (65 diastolic) even though my pulse was racing.Anyway i read up on insulin resistance last night but i never found anything which mentioned this sleep reaction.Does anyone know why this happens at what the process is behind it,i want to know so that i can explain it better to my doctor.I get typical vasomotor symptoms followed by exhaustion,feeling ice cold and then falling asleep as if i've been sedated.I hope that i can get whatever needs checking out done with the doctor and then remove the rest of the trigger foods to hopefully get back to normality.Without really understanding the reasoning behind what i'd done i'd eliminated all grains except rice,dairy,yeast,processed food and potatoes,although potatoes wouldn't send me to sleep but just make me starving hungry again.When i did stop eating them i lost 20lb in 10 days,but this water retention has crept back on since.I still find i feel weak and hungry after many meals so i know there is more to deal with.So you can see i've kind of stumbled into a low carb diet but need to fine tune things and i'd like to understand whats going on.Has anyone else had this sleep reaction problem?? Why is fruit recommended when it is largely sugar?? It sees to make me more hungry. Is it better to eat small meals?? Does anyone else have problems with packaged natural food like nuts,seeds and vegetables?? I wonder if i have a sensitivity to foods that may have been treated perhaps to keep them fresh longer? This could be a personal thing or a common problem,all i know is it makes it difficult to have a safe meal. I'd love to hear from you if you have experienced anything like my problems,have some dietary advice or any questions for that matter.Appreciate any help thanks

Pete, let me qualify my answer by saying that I am by no means an expert to be offering advice on this subject. That being said, what you have descirbed sounds very much like hypoglycemia. Doreen, who is qualified, recently posted some information on this to another member and i will attempt to dig up the thread for you to read. The sleepiness, the cold feeling etc all correlate with hypoglycemia.

Another suggestion I can make is to get your hands on a copy of Protein Power Lifeplan. The Eades devote an entire chapter to grain and it's relation to leaky gut and all the auto immune disease associated with it.

Hope to be back shortly with some more info for you.

Ok, Pete, have a look here please.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthre...3998#post283998

Nat

I have been a type II diabetic for about 5 years and I get extremely sleepy when my sugar goes too high (after high carbs), but also when it spikes and then drops.

When my sugar goes too low I get shaky (nervous like)and kind of weak feeling.

I carry nuts with me for a quick snack if I get caught out and they don't cause a spike in my sugars for me.

Have you had a HBa1c? This will give you an average of what your blood sugar has been for about a 12 week period. You could also check your sugars at home to give you an idea if something you are eating is raising your blood sugar (may help to keep a record to take to your doctor).

If you decide to check your own sugar I would suggest something like checking it first thing in the morning before anything else and then throughout the day -- something like before lunch and then an hour after, before dinner, an hour after and then at bedtime. Journal that with how you are feeling and what you have eaten and this may help the doctor to see a pattern that would help give you both some direction.Also on that I would record my blood pressure.

I have noticed that some frozen foods have baking soda in them as a preservative -- sodium. That could affect blood pressure. Some also have added sugars.

I would suggest more small meals throughout the day may help in stabilizing your blood sugar. Big meals can raise them.

I have also found that most fruit I have a problem with except yellow apples and then I can only eat 1/4 to 1/2 but I need to have protein with it -- peanut butter or cheese. Also if I offset any type of carb with fat or protein it really helps.

I hope this helps, that is what I do for me. This way of eating has really helped my blood sugars and my blood pressure is good and I am feeling good.

If I can help you -- just give a hollar.

Debi

hi, thanks for the replies.I checked out doreens post about reactive hypo.I had checked my blood sugar before and i noticed it would drop back to below 5 very quickly after eating.It never really got any lower than 4.5 though.I don't understand why i should fall asleep if the blood sugar doesn't go too low,is it the shift between high and low that's the cause? I guess this would cause different reactions in different people. I never had a hba1c done (whatever that is). I still don't fully understand why excess insulin production sends me to sleep though,can anyone clear that up for me.I will keep a record of my blood sugar for a week and let you know what i find. I noticed a glucose/insulin intolerance test on the great smokies website.I heard the clamp tests are the best way to check this out but they are rarely done in practise.Does anyone know what this smokies test is like and would they recommend it?? Also i loved the article by ron rosedale on this website,is that available in a book anywhere?? Should i get stuck into a diet to reduce my hyperinsulinism or should i try to convince my doctor that this is what i feel is happening,knowing my doctor as i do i don't think he'd be too interested without being able to run some tests,or are there other causes that need to be ruled out?? thanks again for your help.

The best advice that is often repeated on this web site is to read and follow Dr Bernsteins book The Diabetes Solution. Excerpts can be read at his web site.
http://www.diabetes-normalsugars.com/index.shtml
but you do need to get the book and read it thoroughly. To quote him on the issue of fatige and Mental Changes " Most common is the feeling of being more alert, and no longer chronically tired. Many people who " felt perfectly fine" before their blood sugars are normalized, comment later that they had no idea they could feel so much better"
Also you may not be surprised that Dr Bernstein does NOT recommend that diabetics eat fruit, again to quote him "I haven't eaten fruit for more than 25 years, and I am considerably healthier for it"
I have bought this book for several friends who are diabetic or insulin resistant and they have all had great success and considerable reduction in their diabetic symptoms.

hi, me again.Well i've just seen my new doc and it was business as usual.Deaf ears all round.I'm so depressed today.I just don't know what to do to get this sleep reaction thing sorted.I don't know if a hba1c test would be any good or not,my test strips don't seem to go too high or too low so if this test takes an average then how would it help?? I'm not sure who i should be trying to see about maybe having some insulin tolerance testing done, is that a gastro/diabetes/endocrinologists area?? Please ehlp me lovely people,i'm on my knees in despair.

Could you post what your blood sugar reading are? That might help us to help you.

Also is your blood sugar high, low or what when you feel really sleepy?

Are you spiking then dropping, that wears me out, but my sugars have really stabilized since beginning this plan.

Maybe if you could give us a typical day of what your sugars are on rising, an hour after breakfast, before lunch, an hour after lunch, before dinner, an hour after dinner, then bedtime something will pop out for someone. Also how do you feel during the day.

My family doctor orders my hba1c which does give an average for the past 12 weeks. That is why it is important to keep a log of what your sugars are during the day so they can see if there is a pattern with you that may need some work on.

Are you also getting adequate rest at night? I feel better and my sugars do better if I am eating right, sleeping right and getting exercise.

I've never had any other glucose test but the hba1c -- so I can't help you there.

Hope this helps some -- post some daily's and we'll look at and see.

I have to agree with the other posts...it doesn't much sound like IR. I have hyperinsulinemia (too much insulin). For me, glucose levels can be normal but my insulin levels are high. There is a blood test for IR, but to be honest, most Docs I've talked to (I'm in healthcare) just brush it off by saying "diet & exercise". Well, duh!
I've had the best response from endocrinologists for actaully taking the time to diagnose.

Good Luck!