Why Morning High Blood Sugar Happens In Diabetes ?
A high blood sugar reading first thing in the morning can throw off your whole day — and signal a chronic problem. Despite their best efforts to control their blood sugar levels, some people simply wake up with elevated blood sugar. Starting your day this way is not just alarming — if it becomes a pattern, high A.M. readings can make it difficult to achieve your long-term diabetes management goals. There are two reasons why your blood sugar levels may be high in the morning – the dawn phenomenon and the Somogyi effect.
- Dawn phenomenon. The dawn phenomenon is the end result of a combination of natural body changes that occur during the sleep cycle and can be explained as follows. Between 3 and 8 a.m., your body starts to increase the amounts of counter-regulatory hormones (growth hormone, cortisol, and catecholamines). These hormones work against insulin’s action to drop blood sugars. The increased release of these hormones, at a time when bedtime insulin is wearing out, results in an increase in blood sugars. These combined events cause your body’s blood sugar levels to rise in the morning.
- Somogyi effect. This condition is named after the doctor who first wrote about it. It is also called “rebound hyperglycemia.” Although the cascade of events and end result — high blood sugar levels in the morning — is the same as in the dawn phenomenon, the cause is more “man-made” in the Somogyi effect (a result of poor diabetes management). The term refers to pattern of high morning sugars preceded by an episode of hypoglycemia (usually with no symptoms, but night sweats can be a sign). Your blood sugar may drop too low in the middle of the night, so your body counters by releasing hormones to raise the sugar levels. This could happen if you took too much insulin earlier or if you did not have enough of a bedtime snack.
Which of the 2 Conditions Is Causing the High Blood Sugar Levels?
To determine which of the two above conditions is causing your high blood sugar level, your doctor will likely ask you to check your blood sugar levels between 2 and 3 a.m. for several consecutive nights. If your blood sugar is consistently low during this time, the Somogyi effect is suspected (too much nighttime insulin or too small of a bedtime snack for the insulin given). If the blood sugar is normal or high during this time period, the dawn phenomenon (increases in counter-regulatory hormone) is more likely to be the cause.
How Can Morning High Blood Sugar Be Corrected?
Once you and your doctor determine how your blood sugar levels are behaving during the nighttime hours, he or she can advise you about the changes you need to make to better control them. Options that your doctor may discuss include:
- Changing the time you take the long-acting insulin in the evening so that its peak action occurs when your blood sugars start rising
- Changing the type of insulin you take in the evening
- Taking extra insulin overnight if you find that overnight your blood sugars are progressively elevated. Here, the additional insulin would help lower high morning blood sugars.
- Switching to an insulin pump, which can be programmed to release additional insulin in the morning
- Eating a lighter breakfast
- Increasing your morning dose of insulin
Attribution: DailyHealthSolution.com, Popsugar.com Image, Huffingtonpost.com Image