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Hammy8241
05-28-2010, 04:23 AM
As a newbie I have a more questions than answers so I hope you don’t mind me asking, but I would welcome your input into Diabetes.


As a lorry driver in the UK, should I develop insulin controlled diabetes then I would lose my licence and thus job and ability to support my family. My father had old age diabetes so should I worry? I’m currently on 20mg Pred but there is a chance of it increasing to 30mg soon as the current dose is not controlling some of the symptoms although as mentioned in my newbie post, this may be due to me doing to much. So I’m waiting a while to see if it calms down. Don’t want to increase unless I have to.

Anyway, back to the questions!

Is diabetes common amongst WG’ers?

Is Insulin controlled diabetes the exception or the norm?

Other than ditching the intake of doughnuts and chocolate, using sweetener rather than sugar and generally watching my diet, what else can I do to help myself prevent the potential onset?

Finally are there any other signs I should be looking out for other than the thirsty/ peeing a lot ones?

Many thanks in advance

elephant
05-28-2010, 04:32 AM
The prednisone causes the blood sugars to go up. Yes, I developed diabetes but...it went away once I dropped to 20 mg prednisone and really watched my sugars. Another thing that I did and this is when my Wegeners was very active and I had a wedge taken out of my lung ( severe pain)....I walked around my house ( inside) ...to the kitchen to the dining room and did that for ten minutes and then do that three times a day....my blood sugar did go down a little just by moving that much. Yes, if your thirsty and peeing all the time that can mean diabetes, kidney issues, bladder infection and others. Diabetes is awful! As you know it can make you blind, cause coronary heart disease... I have worked on a Diabetes unit and seen Amputees secondary from uncontrolled diabetes. So it is nothing to fool around with. Make sure you get your blood sugars checked often and take prescribed medicine. :)

Doug
05-28-2010, 01:47 PM
Hammy 8241 ~ I had to give myself insulin shots for a few weeks after I began treatment, and, like elephant's experience, I gradually improved as my Prednisone dosage dropped. I can't locate information about the specific point when I stopped giving myself insulin shots, but it was fairly soon after treatment began. I doubt I was on insulin even a month out of hospital, so that would have been about two months from the point treatment began.

Hammy8241
05-29-2010, 12:49 AM
Thanks for your replys. I had my blood sugars checked today and as they were only 5.6 I guess I'm ok for now. Will keep watching though. Now, where did i put that Snickers bar!! (joke.........honest!)

Sangye
05-29-2010, 01:00 AM
Hammy, I started on 1,000 mg IV pred (solumedrol) and my normally wonderful blood sugar went up to over 300 within a few hours. I had to get insulin shots for the first week while in the hospital. But once I got home, it dropped to my usual good level, even though I was on 60mg pred. I was hospitalized a lot in the first few months and every time my blood sugar went up while I was in, and back down once I got home. It's never been a problem since. For me it was the combination of high-dose pred and stress that elevated the blood sugar.

coffeelover
05-29-2010, 08:27 AM
Nice to know people. I have diabetes in the family so I need to be aware of this potential problem. Thanks for letting us all know.

Who can tell me the non benefits of antacids such as prilosec and zantac. since I started eating better I get less heartburn, but it is still there and my rhuemy was trying to explain that these antacids block something that make something else less effective. I should have paid closer attention at the time, but plan on getting off these if necessary. any thoughts?
coffeelover

elephant
05-29-2010, 11:41 AM
Coffeelover, I take Nexium 40 mg every other day...sometimes only twice a week. I can't remember either...

Sangye
05-29-2010, 11:46 AM
If you're on pred you need to take an acid-blocker. Pred causes increased acid in the stomach and without blocking some of it you can cause stomach bleeding.

If you're not on pred, acid blockers are terrible. They block HCl (stomach acid) which keeps you from digesting food properly. Food literally putrifies in the stomach.

wgrebel
05-31-2010, 01:17 AM
I was placed on 60 mg prednisone when released from the hospital after my WG diagnosis in October 2009. It caused me to be diabetic which I control with 30 units of Lantus insulin nightly. When I went down to forty mg of prednisone a day my blood sugar lowered and it seemed I was getting back to normal. I was not diabetic before the prednisone. I have had to go back up to 60 mg prednisone because my creatinine was elevated on my last blood test. My blood sugar has went up since back on the higher doses of prednisone. My docs have told me that once I am off the prednisone my diabetes will go away. Sangye is right about the acid blockers, you need it if you are on prednisone. I did not have one the first time I was out of the hospital while on preds and it was an awful experience. As far as the diabetes go. What does your blood sugar run? Exercise, moderate--walking, helps mine go down & watching useless sugar---soft drinks, cady bars. When I get alot of exercise like I did a few weeks ago before I developed shingles, another story, mine was at 86 even after eating sugar. It sounds like once you are off the preds you wong have to worry about diabetes.