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Dawn Phenomenon and Somogyi Effect

A very puzzling aspect of type 2 diabetes is the contradiction in everything. Glucose levels can bounce around and there doesn't seem to be a clear cut semblance of rhyme and reason to it all. Some people experience weight gain. Some drop pounds. I fit into that category. Sometimes, I'm satisfied with the food I eat. Other times, I cannot satiate my appetite, no matter how much I eat. I have to be very careful with that, too, not just with the types of foods I consume.

A friend of mine works for a bookstore. It was very nice and extremely appreciated when he gave me two books, Diabetes for Dummies and Cholesterol for Dummies. You can't beat good, caring souls. As I was leafing through the diabetes book, I stumbled upon Dawn Phenomenon in the glossary of terms and decided to explore it online. I have this problem and I know many other diabetics do, too.

My blood glucose level is always higher in the morning than it is at night. Why? It doesn't make any sense that an empty stomach (fasting) level would be higher. My mother, a diabetic for many years, has always said that it's a mystery what diabetes does and how the body reacts to it. Everything can flipflop around and doctors don't always seem to have the answers. My father has maintained that what you ate the day before will have an effect on you the next day. Sounds reasonable enough, but then I stumbled upon that phrase. Everyone experiences Dawn Phenomenon, whether diabetic or not. We all have a biological clock. Technically, this one is referred to as Circadian Rhythms and it is rather simple to explain. Your body uses carbohydrates, protein and fat to store energy and during sleep, you use that stored energy to help keep your chemicals balanced. These "macro-nutrients" are converted to glucose stored in the liver and muscles.

Overnight, your body releases some hormones. They come in the form of Growth Hormones from the anterior pituitary gland, cortisol from the adrenal cortex, glucagon from the pancreatic alpha-cells, and epinephrine, otherwise known as adrenalin. These hormones trigger an increase in insulin resistance and add stored or new glucose to your bloodstream. All of this adds up to higher blood glucose levels and a diabetic can have real problems with it. In non-diabetics, the body compensates.

This activity normally occurs during the hours from 4am - 11am and explains why my sugar is higher in the morning, but what can be done to resolve it? There are different

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