Jump to content

reactive hypoglycemia and W30


Recommended Posts

ok, i'm wanting to start an AIP W30 on January 2nd. I have a host of medical conditions, most of which are exacerbated by diet. PCOS, insulin resistance, pompholyx (dishydrotic eczema), reactive hypoglycemia, hyperinsulinemia, migraines, yadda yadda yadda. plus i'm 'morbidly obese' according to all those stupid charts - 6', ~300lbs).

 

I could honestly not care less about those numbers. i'm concerned about making myself feel better. the fatigue is debilitating, the pain in my hips from the extra weight is getting to the point where it hurts to do anything but lay on my stomach, the itching from the eczema is killing me... I could go on but you get the point. I need to do something about it.

 

my neurologist and allergist have both suggested an elimination diet to determine my migraine triggers and any food allergens that i'm not already aware of - i'm allergic to everything they did the skin tests for except sheep's sorrel, poplar trees, and mold. lucky me. I already know that I have a mild allergy to kiwi, pineapple, and pecans and a cross allergy with bananas (i have a systemic allergy to latex) and possibly pumpkins and cantaloupe. i also already know that at least some of my migraine triggers are high doses of tannins, msg, and ANY artificial sweeteners that aren't sugar alcohols.

 

so, i'm going to try the AIP Whole30 and see what i can find out. my problem, however, is this: i'm what my endocrinologist has dubbed one of the rare true reactive hypoglycemics. no matter what i eat, my sugar spikes and crashes in the span of about two-three hours. i'll go from a fasting 90 to over 200 in an hour, then drop into the 50s within another hour or so. this means i have to pretty much eat every 2 hours.

 

now, i'm not sure how the whole snacking thing works in here. i know you're not supposed to, but i don't really have a choice. so, is there anyone else out there in my boat? any suggestions? comments? help me! :-)

 

oh, and random side note that might be relevant - i'm vitamin D deficient and anemic, too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If you need to snack try to make it a mini meal instead of fruit. This should help to stabilize your blood glucose levels. Although 3 meals a day is ideal it can take a while to get to that point so if you need 5 meals a day then do that. Hopefully your blood glucose will stabilize while on the program. Good Luck!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Kiwi & Pineapple both have enzymes in them which are often used in marinades to make meat softer, just in case there's a common thread there.

 

For bananas & latex, beware the other members of the banana family such as plantains (some paleo products contain resistant starch made from bananas or banana flours, so watch out for these). Avocados are also in the latex family, which is a bummer. There are some AIP alternatives though :)

 

I hear you on the blood sugar rollercoaster, before Whole30, mine was all over the place, even my fasted blood sugar was unstable. Stick to the template as much as you can, if you have snacks, make it a template snack. This helps keep your blood sugar on an even keel and over time it does improve. A template snack or mini-meal is just like a template meal, only smaller. Don't be tempted to delete things from the template (protein or fat), it's the combo that makes it work. Avoid eating non-template snacks like plain fruit as these will mess with your blood sugar.

 

Eating as soon as you rise also helps you reset your body clock and stablise your blood sugar.

 

Keep a detailed food log and levels log, so you can see what works and what sends you into a spiral of spike-and-crash (too many dates still does it to me).

 

Re: Vitamin D & Anemia, have you ever been tested for MTHFR gene? I have two copies and it's linked to Vitamin D and Anemia, as well as B12 deficiency (although this last one usually shows up as fine in tests, as the test parameters are looking for the wrong thing for MTHFR B12 issues).

 

If you can, I'd have lots of liver (not just iron, but lots of nutritious essentials), bone broth and gelatin. Kombucha is good too, but you might need to ease into it slowly, as it could mess with your blood sugar (try a small shot glass size first - make sure it's a W30 compliant brew - no sugar added after second ferment). I found one brand didn't agree with me at all (I think they don't brew it long enough, it's quite flat, not naturally fizzy), but have found 3 others that are just fine.

 

If you haven't started yet, get some baseline tests done, you're probably going to see some improvements at the end of your 30 days :D I know I did!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd make some hashes or stews or similar items where every bite is balanced according to the Whole30 template.  That will make it easy for you to have balanced meals each time you eat (since no one wants to be in the kitchen every 2 hours!).  And it will take away the temptation to just grab a handful of nuts because they're easy.

 

I wonder if it would make more sense for you to just start out scheduling five or six similarly sized meals instead of doing 3 large meals & "snacking" with mini-meals.  I don't know which makes more sense hormonally.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...