Bloody test results - HbA1c still increasing!

[parkrunUK]

Hi All,

I have been doing vegetarian LCHF for about 8 months. I am feeling great in terms of better sleep , lower inflammation , increased focus etc. However , my HbA1C has increased in my most recent blood test ! Also my HDL and LDL values are so high that they are out of scale !

My typical diet is :
Breakfast : Scrambled eggs with mushroom & tomato.
Lunch : 2 Boiled eggs with veggie soup.
Snacks : Nuts and dark choc ( 2 to 4 pieces of 90%), cheese slices.
Dinner : Veggie Burger with cheese, and Greek yoghurt
The last 2 results of my blood test are

Can the experienced guys pl advise me on how to lower my HbA1C and what to do about high Cholesterol levels ?

[David_Stilley]

[anon54735292]

How many carbs are you eating each day?

[PetaMarie]

Former vegetarian here. Would you be willing to add fish or poultry to your diet?

You might try less veg based things and replacing it with fattier things (heavy whipping cream, more cheese, oils, avocado, etc.)

[muffles]

Look at your carb and fat count. Vegetarian food is often high in carbs.

[EyesWideOpen]

Are you tracking your carbs? It does really help. I had been great for many months, so I stopped tracking macros feeling that ‘I had the hang of it now.’ I thought I had been below or at 20 carbs/day, when in fact I was more like 40. Carb creep is real.

[parkrunUK]

Thanks everyone and @EyesWideOpen . I am not tracking carbs but I do check regularly and ensure that I am in ketosis. Compared to my pre-lchf days where my diet was mostly rice, bread ,pasta, lentils etc, I thought my current diet is a big improvement and I was expecting atleast a small reduction in HBA1C.

Also not sure whats happening with my HDL and LDL as they are both out of scale. Perhaps @PaulL can explain ? Thanks in advance !

[ctviggen]

Your HbA1c is within a range of error, so that didn’t change. Your HDL went way up, and you have remarkably low fasting insulin. Really low. Ridiculously low. What is the “post prandial insulin”? Did they give you a glucose drink?

As for cholesterol values, those are wildly variable. I wouldn’t get too concerned. Have you lost weight?

[ctviggen]

And your trigs/HDL went down.

[PaulL]

Time for a reality check, here. First, your fasting insulin is ludicrously low. Look at the Normal Range column—do you see the values there? It would have to more than quadruple for you to start being at risk of diabetes.

Second, your post-prandial insulin is also at the low end of the normal range. Congratulations!

Third, your HbA_1C has not changed. They should really state the margin of error for these things. Yes, you are just at the top of the normal range, but give yourself some more time, for heaven’s sake.

Last, look at what’s happened to your triglyceride/HDL ratio—do you know how many people would kill to get their ratio down to 1.6? Your risk of cardiovascular disease is very low, and if they had done an NMR, it would have to be all Pattern A. Amazing!

So keep calm, and keto on.

I admire you for trying to do vegetarian LCHF. Good luck, and keep us posted. (And BTW, as others have said, I’d either lose that veggie burger or take a good hard look at what’s in it.)

[4dml]

I understand where you’re coming from. You’re trying to go from ok to optimal. I’m in a similar position. Although I have no weight to lose, I’m using fasting to improve my metabolic markers. I normally let my blood glucose determine my eating/fasting schedule.

My general rule of thumb is that on days when my morning BG > 85, I don’t eat. Thus, how much I fast depends on what and how much I’ve eaten.

[parkrunUK]

Many thanks @ctviggen. The fasting insulin test was done after a 12 hour fast. I then went for a carby breakfast and 2 hours later gave another blood sample for the post prandial insulin. I lost about 3 Kgs in the beginning but now stable at 70 kgs for the last couple of months.

[parkrunUK]

Many thanks @PaulL for your inputs. I’m pleased to see that you like my insulin numbers Its just that I badly wanted my HbA1c to go down as well. But will KCKO.
I will have a closer look at the veggie burger - I know it has 18g carbs but I remember being in ketosis after the burger as well. I do run atleast 4 times a week (20 miles /week). Will keep you posted. Thanks again.

[parkrunUK]

Thanks @4dml ! You are right - I’m trying to be the best I can be. I am also happy with my weight like you although I would like to improve on my 5k running time to less than 22 minutes.

Interesting to know your thumb rule of fasting based on BG levels. I have not tried that yet.

Cheers.

[KetoCancerMom]

Just remember that the HbA1C is a 2-3 month average. Being off by 0.1 isn’t a big deal. And as others have said, it’s within a margin of error, so don’t stress on it. Just try the above advice from other posters and see if it makes a change for your next one.