6 Tips If Diabetic Considering Intermittent Fasting

As a diabetic, what do you need to know before considering intermittent fasting? Here we’ll review 6 tips if diabetic considering intermittent fasting.

First of all, if you’re a diabetic and considering intermittent fasting, you should always consult your doctor and review your medications and your fasting plan details before you initiate it.
I mean this goes for everyone, but especially for those with diabetes, and especially for diabetics on medications.

This article is simply for general informational purposes, and everyone may be different, so if you have a history of an eating disorder or have those tendencies intermittent fasting is not for you.

I just want to make that very clear because it can trigger the same thought and behavior patterns. So just don’t Go there. It’s, not worth it alright. So for everyone else here we go

Tip 1

Diabetics may need to be more patient with intermittent fasting, or they may require more stringent intermittent fasting versions initially, so the longer you’ve been overweight or the more severe the diabetes the longer it may take to down-regulate your insulin levels.

So if you start with the 16-8, it may take a little longer for it to kick in then let’s, say your neighbor or your friend who doesn’t, have diabetes or hasn’t been overweight for very long.

If you want to speed it up, you can extend the fasting times from 16 hours to either 18, which means you have a 6 hour eating window or 20, which means you have a 4-hour eating window or even 24 hours.
Now remember: 24 hours means one meal a day, not zero meals.

So if you select the 24 hour option, you may want to do the every other day and not daily.

Now, once you’ve reached your goal weight, you can actually back off and simply do a 16-8 several times a week.
Everyone’s different though so you’ll, have to keep a close eye on your weight along with your doctor, as you change your fasting plans along the way

Tip 2.

If you’re, taking certain medications like Sulfonylureas: like glipizide or glyburide, which are two examples of the most common generics in this group.

If you’re, taking insulin or other medications that actually decrease your blood glucose levels, you need to take extra hypoglycemic precautions because your blood glucose levels may dip, especially during fasting.
Hypoglycemia, can cause sudden onset of shaking sweating weakness, etc.

It can land people in the hospital and it can even be life-threatening. Most people who have experienced it once know what it tends to feel like so carry glucose tablets which are over-the-counter everywhere.

You go in case. You experience one of these episodes and make sure to report it to your doctor.

Now, if you’re, taking these medications multiple times a day, you should also ask your doctor when the best time to take it would be before you decide to initiate fasting.

For instance, if you’re on the 16/8 schedule, some twice-daily medications may be taken with your two meals during the eight hours, instead of having to take one of them during the fasting hours and the other one during the eating window.

But, of course you must run it through your doctor, first

Tip 3.

You may require more frequent doctor’s, visits like every one to two weeks to tweak your medications. As you lose weight note.

This may include other medications besides the ones for blood glucose, such as like the treatment that you may be taking for high blood pressure.

Your blood pressure may decrease with weight loss, so be careful check your blood sugar levels three to four times daily and also when you don’t, feel good, write them down and then bring your blood glucose log and your blood pressure log with you to your doctor’s visit.

Tip 4.

If you’re only on Metformin, and that’s it, metformin is a generic drug that decreases glucose production in the liver and doesn’t tend to cause hypoglycemic episodes and most people like other diabetes medicines do.

You still need to consult your doctor before initiating intermittent fasting, however, because it may increase gastrointestinal side effects like stomach upset, and diarrhea if taken without food in some people.

Like I mentioned prior, you can ask your doctor if you can take it during the eating Hours, if you’re, taking it twice a day and you’re on the sixteen eight.

So if you’re on the 16/8 method and you’re having lunch. and dinner, you may possibly be able to take one at lunch and one at dinner after you speak with your doctor, but there’s also extended release daily versions if that doesn’t work out either, and sometimes the GI side effects are a little bit less in those.

Another option to discuss with your doctor if the timing cannot be changed to simply take it with some leafy greens, as last resort.

Tip 5

You will still have to watch the carbs during your eating window. Sorry, there’s no way around that.

You cannot simply eat what you want as a diabetic.

Try to follow the tips of my hand out on the do’s and don’ts of the eating window.

I’ll place a link to my handout in the description down below and maintain a balanced diet during your eating hours.

Tip 6

Keep close contact with your doctor if getting frequent, hypoglycemic episodes don’t wait two weeks for your appointment to tell your doctor

Same goes for if your blood glucose level spike above your typical baseline, if your medications were adjusted or decreased during this entire process, you need to let them know and communicate with your doctor to let them know what’s going on.

Lastly, if your doctor, doesn’t, feel comfortable managing your diabetes, while on intermittent fasting, which is completely understandable.
Given us doctors, we don’t have a lot of guidelines right now on how to go about this, especially with diabetics.

Since there aren’t a lot of studies, then you can consider asking for a referral to an endocrinologist who specifically may be more familiar with intermittent and diabetics.

Now and I’m really fasting, the diabetics can be done, but it just takes a highly motivated diabetic, who can maintain great structure and close ties with your doctor during this time period.

Hopefully you like your doctor, because you’ll, be seeing her or him more frequently for a while.

If you found the information valuable, which is always my goal, please subscribe ring the bell like and consider sharing it with someone else.

Dr. Sanaz Majd, Board Certified Family Medicine

Because your calorie intake will be significantly restricted, it’s ideal to concentrate on nourishing, high protein foods, as well as low calorie vegetables. These will certainly make you feel full without lots of calories.

The bottom line

Hopefully you like your doctor, because you’ll, be seeing her or him more frequently for a while.