Living with type 1 diabetes (T1D) can be incredibly frustrating. Over the course of a couple of days you can eat the same food, take the same amount of insulin and do the same amount of exercise, but your blood glucose levels (BGLs) can be completely different every day.
That unpredictability can feel confusing and even frustrating, especially when you’re doing everything “right” and still seeing different results.
While food and exercise are important factors in how much insulin your body needs each day, there are other things that play an important role. And not all these factors are completely understood or within your control – in fact, very few are!
For example, on some days injected insulin is less well absorbed. This means insulin will be less effective. Some women also report that their BGLs are higher several days before their period, and then drop once their period starts. This can be caused by high premenstrual oestrogen levels, which make the body more resistant to insulin.
You may also find that your BGLs run high for many hours after an episode of hypoglycaemia (also known as a ‘hypo’, or low blood glucose levels). This could be the result of overeating to correct the low blood glucose level.
However, if your blood glucose has been low for some time, your body will make and release stress hormones to try to protect you from having dangerously low blood glucose levels. These hormones can trigger a release of the stored glucose from your liver and interfere with the action of insulin. Stress hormones are also produced when you’re stressed or unwell, so this can also impact your levels.
It’s completely understandable that these unpredictable changes can make managing T1D feel challenging.
To help break this down, the following fact sheet outlines 42 different factors that can influence BGLs and how they may affect day-to-day management.
Diabetes treatments are much better than in years gone by, but they’re still not perfect. So until there’s a cure for diabetes, there will be times when your blood glucose level is too high, and other times it will be too low. It’s just the way it is!
Note: If your blood glucose is outside the normal range, try not to think of it as being ‘bad’. Have a look to see if there’s a pattern, and talk to your diabetes team about developing strategies to improve your blood glucose levels.
For more tips on managing T1D, download our free guide, Straight to the Point.
You can also find more information on these factors here.