Hello Forum Go’ers,
This is my first post on this forum, and as such I will introduce myself here as some of the numbers might be relevant in my tracking and sharing for others.
A few years ago I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic and I reduced my sugar intake greatly. I was then told everything was fine again (of course, now I know it never was). Over the next 5 years or so, every one and a while I would get a call saying my blood sugars were creeping up and I would cut more sugar out of my diet and then I would be told I was fine again.
Just over two months ago I was told that my A1C was 10.5 and my doctor wanted to increase my Metformin. I realized then that my doctor was not really helping me, so I started doing research myself. After a week of research, I started tracking and reducing my carbs daily. I also got a glucose blood test kit. On June 10th, my morning fasting was 10.5 as well on my first day I started a full Keto diet (under 20g carbs a day if you do not include fiber - which I now have mostly eliminated from my diet). By June 17th my morning glucose was under 7 and I stopped taking all medications for diabetes and stopped the Statin all of which I will never take again. I also started time restricted eating at this point. Within another weak I was eating meals in the 18-6 up to 23-1 but usually hitting around 20-4 fasting-eating time periods.
On July 9th after my 51st birthday I started my first 3-day fast. I completed a second 3-day fast starting on July 19th. I also purchased and used a Dexcom 6 CGM monitor which showed the general trend of my blood glucose to be low overnight while sleeping, rise up in the morning and continue to rise up to a peak at around noonish before starting to fall again slowly until the evening. This is true when eating meals late in the evening, or during my fasting days (well, up to 72 hours anyway). Here is my trend
Today August 6th I am currently 37 hours into what I hope to be a 336 hour fast, or so. I am monitoring my glucose and keytones every hour during this second day to find out the typical keytone trend before my body starts overproducing due to starvation. I will post and use this data to determine which 2 or 3 times in the day are the best and worst times to take daily measurements of my highest and lowest GKI ratios. I intend to try and keep a GKI of less than one for the last 8 or 9 days for my fast. My hope with this fast I can greatly help my insulin resistance but also to help cure my current list of annoying issues:
- Diagnosed Type 2 diabetes with significant insulin resistance
- Skin flaps on middle of both feet (growing over past 2 years)
- Warts on thumb/finger for past 10+ years (and some on feet that needed multiple laser surgeries over many years.)
- Skin tags under armpits and on back of legs
- Patch of rough sore skin on left elbow (swollen/bumps, sore and red)
- Patch of skin on back is scaly and red
- Herpes/cold sores (on valacyclovir daily to control)
- Overweight at 168 cm (5’ 6”) and 80 kg (177 lbs) <-- Starting on June 10th. Today, starting this fast I was at 157 lbs. Weight is not a huge issue for me, so I will post, but it is a side benefit of the fast.
- High cholesterol and was on a Statin for few years
- Severe Irritable Bowel Syndrome/Gluten Intolerance for past 12 years – developed slowly over many months and got quite Severe after a few years. Tried a few ineffective medications and more recently one that was helpful and 10-15 tablets of Metamucil a day. Since Keto have stopped taking this aids, but still have IBS, just not as severe
- Hemorrhoids (fairly bad) for past 8 years – started a few years after development of sever IBS
- Recurring Cyst near anus due to IBS – had multiple visits to ER to puncture and drain + help from wife who has helped do same
- Recurring sties in eyes, suggested that I take and did take Omega 3, 2Xdose of 500mg daily to stop sties. Continued to have them even with omega 3 (but did improve in general). Have stopped taking Omega 3 capsules since Keto, no sties so far. (I do eat Wild Salmon more often as well now though)
- Hernia surgery continues to occasionally cause severe pain for months on end if I use my body to lift any weight over about 100 pounds (unable to use body after surgery to allow use of body……) – ultrasound said still hernia but specialists said no hernia, just pain and I should do pain management and physical therapy. Just to compare, at age 45 I could deadlift over 400 pounds before hernia surgery…supposedly to allow me to lift again.
- Pain in right testicle/tube after hernia surgery (3 years). Suggested cause was inflammation but nothing to be done.
- Cuts/bug bites/skin damage taking months or never to heal properly
As many probably already know, many of those issues were due to high insulin, so the Keto diet has fixed or helped in a few cases, but I still have some annoying health concerns which I am hoping to full on therapeutic autophagy will fix.
My fasting plan is water only with electrolyte additives. I have purchased (so far, many I purchased may not arrive in time 
. So far I have both sodium chloride (salt) and potassium chloride powder. I expect tri-calcium phosphate to arrive in a week. I was hoping that my orders of dipotassium phosphate and disodium phosphate would also arrive. Depending on what is available, I was hoping to drink fluids with a half teaspoon of all of those to in conjunction with magnesium sulfate baths and of course adding in thiamine and vitamin D as required. My only concern (maybe someone can help) is that the thiamine and vitamin D pills have additives that I do not want to be taking while fasting. I would hate to have some additive in the pill reduce my autophagy - thoughts on additives in pills???
I will keep the post updated with my progress for my benefit, and hopefully the information may be of benefit to another. Feel free to ask questions and post your thoughts - especially about the effects of additives in supplements on the deepest therapeutic levels of autophagy.
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