I passed the 2-hour glucose tolerance test I took in January 2009. That’s over 4 years since I first failed a glucose tolerance test and was told my pancreas would be very, very, very, very unlikely to ever recover more function, and instead would be more likely to fail, since it was already stressed. In the chart, the 2009 test is the thick red line. The thinner, lighter lines are my 2005 glucose tolerance tests as a reference.
January 2009 2-Hour Glucose Tolerance Test
Fasting Blood Sugar: 80(normal)
1 hour blood sugar: 180 (impaired glucose tolerance)
2 hour blood sugar: 126 (considered normal)
I also paid to have my insulin levels measured, and here, the change was even more dramatic. In 2005, my insulin levels “red-lined” at 3 units. Output never went higher than this, even as my blood sugars were soaring higher and higher. This was an indication that my pancreas was stressed and damaged, and just normal, day to day living was likely to make it burn out further with each passing hour, day, week, month and year. But instead, in my 2009 insulin measurements, things seemed to be looking up! Or, to say it more technically, my insulin response rose with the sugar challenge. Maybe it wasn’t perfect in terms of timing or how much, but it was much better than it had been in the two glucose tolerance tests I failed four years ago. This is without using any medications or insulin injections. My main “therapies” have been eating a diet that is not recommended by the American Diabetic Association (in fact, a diabetes educator recommended AGAINST the way I eat), encouragement from my friends, seeing a Chinese acupuncturist about once a month, hiking, getting enough rest. Stuff like that.
Fasting insulin level: 2.1
1 hour insulin level: 20.2
2 hour insulin level: 30.1
