Diabetes: 5 signs in the morning signify your blood sugar levels are too high; here's what to do about it
Key Highlights
- We know that TYPE 2 diabetes is a chronic condition characterised by rising blood sugar levels that threaten your body.
- A person suffering may be unaware of how their blood sugar levels can alter throughout the day.
- Doctors say that the dawn phenomenon is a natural rise in blood sugar which occurs in the early morning hours.
Diabetes is a health condition that demands management. It is important to keep your blood sugar levels in your target range as much as possible to help prevent or delay long-term, serious health problems, such as heart disease, vision loss, and kidney disease.
But many a time, sufferers have no clue how their blood sugar levels can alter throughout the day. Type 2 diabetes is the result of dysfunction in the way the body processes the hormone insulin which regulates blood sugar.
In the morning, there is a shift in blood sugar levels due to hormonal changes in the body.
According to Medical News Today, the five key symptoms to spot warning of the dawn phenomenon include:
- Faintness
- Nausea
- Blurry vision
- Disorientation
- Extreme thirst.
The dawn phenomenon can be problematic because the body isn’t able to naturally correct insulin changes during the night. This often creates consistently high blood glucose levels in the morning. Estimates show that the dawn phenomenon occurs in about 50 per cent of people who have type 2 diabetes.
Dr Sarah Brewer who is a GP, a health journalist and a specialist in Nutritional Medicine, is on the Editorial Advisory Board of the Diabetes Research and Wellness Foundation, UK.
Dr Brewer told Express.co.uk that “The main reason why everyone experiences a slightly a higher blood sugar level in the morning is known as the dawn phenomenon."
She told Express.co.uk: “The dawn phenomenon is due to our natural biorhythms in which production of insulin hormone (which lowers glucose) is suppressed during sleep, and levels of other hormones that raise glucose (growth hormone, glucagon and cortisol) increase.
“There is also a theory (known as the Somogyi effect) which suggests that, in people with diabetes who are on insulin, the rise in blood sugar in the morning could be a rebound effect of using too much or, conversely, too little insulin the evening before, but this is controversial.”
What are blood sugar targets?
A blood sugar target is a range you try to reach as much as possible. According to the US CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), these are typical targets:
- Before a meal: 80 to 130 mg/dL.
- Two hours after the start of a meal: Less than 180 mg/dL.
CDC also says that your blood sugar targets may be different depending on your age, any additional health problems you have, and other factors. Be sure to talk to your doctor about which targets are best for you.
How to manage morning spike in blood glucose:
- This is what you could possibly do to control the morning spike in glucose, suggests a Dr.
- Ask your doctor if you can take medication or insulin at bedtime instead of at dinnertime.
- Eat dinner earlier in the evening and take a stroll/light exercise after dinner.
- Avoid snacks that contain carbohydrates at bedtime or else your sugar levels will spike and make you hungrier soon – a bad idea if you wish to avoid a midnight crawl to the fridge.
- If your glucose levels are high in the morning talk to your doctor for individual diet and lifestyle advice, and a review of your current medication.
- Talk to your doctor, she/he may want to change your medicine or dosage.
- Drink sufficient fluids to maintain hydration.
- Don’t skip breakfast. Also, make it healthy and not empty calories.