Diabetes Community

I don't have low blood sugar issues, but I do have dry skin. It's been a long winter and the dry air in most of our homes saps the moisture right out of our skin. I would try to use a good moisturizer. And if that doesn't work, you might want to check with a dermatologist.

Dee, I empathize with your plight having been there myself. Your doctors and diabetes specialists are correct in telling you that your blood sugar levels are well controlled. What you call morning "lows" are actually very healthy "norms" for non-diabetics. However, very often when one has diabetes, the higher blood sugar levels (e.g., the 125-145 range you specified) do make you feel better compared to the normal ranges. It just takes a while for your body to get readjusted to truly normal ranges.

Eating something just to raise your BG levels for a more comfortable feeling is definitely not recommended because glycation damage will harm your cellular proteins, blood vessel walls, and organ systems throughout your body anytime that your BG levels exceed 100 (some will argue that damage doesn't occur until after it exceeds 120 but that's splitting hairs; damage still occurs and wll lead to potentially serious complications as you get older).

It took me nearly four months to get readjusted to normal blood glucose levels after they had been elevated for an unknown period of time prior to diagnosis. I added a variety of nutritional supplements to my diet including a high quality multivitamin-mineral complex, CoQ10, alpha lipoic acid, vitamin D3 plus an additional high potency B-complex tablet to cover potential deficiencies in B12 and folic acid that the multivitamin alone does not cover adequately. I also increased my exercise level and notioced very slow, but gradual improvement. Four months later, I started to feel terrific instead of a chronic tired, always fatigued, type of feeling.

For the dry skin problem, I simply use Lubriderm and rub it all over my body after showering and repeat on exposed skin surfaces (hands, arms and legs) in the morning. This was after a visit to a dermatologist who made the original recommendations to me. I have continued to follow that advice for the past four years. Applying a moisturizing agent doesn't "cure" the problem but enables me to work around it. I should add that my target blood glucose levels are in the 70 to 85 range that you now consider to be "low."

I have some what the same problem, i'm on insulin though. I take Bitter Melon now and it seem to level my BG and i dont get the tried felling anymore. I dont now if it will work for u, but u can give it at try, It also lower my BG and i use less Insulin too.
Hue

If you have not had a complete physical in the last 12 months, I suggest you ask your doctor for one...

Comprehensive Metabolic and CBC panels, Chest X-rays, EKG, bone density, blood pressure, spirometry, etc...

Its fast, easy and relatively painless. If you're modest, you don't have to completely disrobe if you prefer. Results of your test are usually available in 7 to10 days.

Once you have your test results, in-hand, I'd suggest you identify every out-of-normal result and google search for a full explanation. If you have further questions, call your doctor and arrange a consult.

Its good that you test your blood sugar, often, but keep in mind that every symptom, be it dizzyness, fatigue or dry skin, can be caused by a multitude of conditions (including, weather) and a complete physical can reveal a far more complete picture than a BG meter.

Hope this helps.

Thank you so much for your response.

I was under the impression any level below 77 was considered too low; but that was a couple of years ago. I will make a point of search for a free diabetes education class so I can get to up-to-date information.

As for moisturizing my face, I use something different than I do over my whole body. I just may have to consult a dermatologist if I can not find something over the counter that works resolve the dry skin on my face.

Once again thanks for our response; I really appreciate the information.

Thanks for the suggestion.

I will check it out since I do shop and a health food store that would have something like that. I will let you know what happens.

I really appreciate your response.

I have had a comprehensive physical within the past 12 months and with the exception of the diabetes, I am doing fairly well for me. The feeling I have when I am experiencing the dizziness and fatigue are definitely related to the diabetes and mainly I have the problem with I wake up.

When I saw my primary care physical earlier this week, he gave me a suggestion on how the change around the Metformin so that I take more of it mid-day and less at night. I am going to try his suggestion for a while and let you know how I feel in about 2 weeks or so.

I am also going to look for a free diabetes education class in my area so that I can get some updated information. Hopefully, I will figure out a way to get things under control for my system.

Thanks for yoru response Michelle.

Any and all information is helpful to me at this point.

I also know that the long dry winter did not help my dry skin, but it just seems drier than normal. I will be traveling to my local health food store to see if they have something natural I can use on my face and if that doesn't work, then I guess I will have to add dermatologist to my list of specialist.

I understand now why that say this is an expensive disease - I have so many medical specialists now.

Dee, I don't think it's necessarily diabetes...since I hit 70 several years ago, I've acquired several new specialists. (And I can't do all the neat things I could before arthritis really took hold.) How about just aging? If we're lucky, we all do that!

Ceremides are plant-based topically applied molecules that have a beneficial effect for reviving and rehydrating skin. Life Extension has reported that an orally ingested ceremide extract provides similar beneficial effects. You can read the LEF article by clicking here . However, when I searched for user reviews on the oral product, they were somewhat disappointing. Amazon.com does carry the LEF product but the user reviews for it are sparse and mixed (mostly negative). One negative reviewer did state that CeraVe , a topical ceremide lotion, provided the results that the oral product only promised and she experienced noticeable improvement. Be sure to read the user reviews on the linked Amazon site but don't purchase it there. There's a better deal available on CereVe lotions from Drugstore.com (20% off beauty department products ) but their sale ends 03/29/2012.

Like Amazon.com, orders on Drugstore.com over $25 qualify for free shipping. Here are the links if you're interested:
CeraVe Facial Moisturizing Lotion AM
CeraVe Facial Moisturizing Lotion PM

Hope this helps ease your search a bit. [br>

I have extremely dry skin, getting worse with age.

After years of reading beauty magazines, I thought I knew it all but this slideshow has some good info to help clean - but not dry out - dry skin:

Slideshow: How to Clean Dry Skin

Please come back and report what works for you - the info can help guide other members to a product they might not have tried.

Haylen

As for your dry skin, at 65, I was noticing extremely dry skin, too, and have tried different things. Even my face was so dry.
I was watching Dr. Oz, and he mentioned something I didn't even think of....
For years I had oily skin. I had bought one of those soups for oily skin, and was using that. I was also taking "long" hot showers. Both these things were bad for dry skin. I went out and bought Dove soup for my face, and now, after 3 weeks, my face is normal again. I use the Dove for my body, too. This seems to have helped it more. I also don't take the long hot showers anymore, and modify the water temperature.

Hope this helps!