I passed my March 2010 2-hour glucose tolerance test. This is better than how I did in 2005, when I failed two glucose tolerance tests in a row. However, I did not pass as successfully in March 2010 as I did in 2009. Maybe it just is what it is. Or maybe it’s because I had the flu. When I went in to take the glucose tolerance test, I though I was over the flu, but then it curved back around and became the worst respiratory infection I’ve had in about 10 years. Not bad enough that I took medications, and I’m mostly over being sick now. But I had a fever, icky phlegm, a nasty cough, lost my voice (voice was still froggy when I interviewed Eric Westman. Oh well). It’s generally known that blood sugars go up, and insulin levels tend to go down, when a body’s stressed by illness. So this MIGHT have skewed the results. Still, I DID pass this year again, albeit barely. More interesting to me is that, despite the stress of being ill, my insulin levels were still much better than they were five years ago. Not as good as last year. But not red-lining as they did in 2005. I’m tempted to wait until I’m well several weeks away from the flu and then take the simple, sugar part of the glucose tolerance test again (Not ALL the other tests. They’re too expensive)
March 2010 2-hour glucose tolerance test
Fasting blood sugar: 64 (normal)
1-Hour blood sugar: 162 (impaired glucose tolerance)
2-Hour blood sugar: 188 (impaired glucose tolerance)
March 2010 Insulin levels
Fasting insulin: 2.2
1-hour insulin: 18.9
2-hour insulin: 21.8
March 2010 C-Peptide Levels
Some medical doctors have told me that they trust C-Peptide Levels more than Insulin Levels, when it comes to measuring pancreatic function. So, on this test, I paid to have C-Peptide levels taken, also, to see how they’d track with everything else. As a reference, in the few times I’ve had a fasting C-Peptide taken, it’s generally been around .6 or .8, which is either a low normal or just under normal, depending on the lab that does it. And my blood sugars have been normal then aslo, which indicates that as long as I’m fasting or else eating the way I do, it’s enough insulin and C-peptide to basically cover my needs. So, compare that to how they responded on the Glucose Tolerance Test:
Fasting C-Peptide: 1.0
1-hour C-Peptide: 5.7
2-hour C-Peptide: 7.9
So, the C-Peptides follow roughly the same arc, and ratio of rise, as the insulin levels. So, now I know.
Proinsulin Level
I also got my fasting proinsulin level checked. It was actually a little high — 3.5, and it looks like the ratio between my proinsulin and my insulin was a little high also, roughly 159%, which is another sign that at least during this test, my pancreas was at least a little stressed.
