Yes the liver will produce all the glucose we need even if we eat zero carbohydrates. It is called gluconeogenesis and is demand driven. The higher morning readings is called the dawn effect where the brain causes the body to give us a dose of cortisol to jump start us in the morning to wake up. This induces the liver to up the glucose in anticipation of this activity.

But many people on ketogenic or carnivore diets will register blood glucose levels in the 70's with them rarely going above 100 and in some cases as low as 50 (without any symptoms of low blood sugar like a person used to eating a lot of carbs might experience). When the body is geared to fat burning instead of carbs many will maintain very low blood sugar levels.

Mine will be around 120-130 in the morning which is considered ok for a diabetic but not particularly a great reading. I would be a lot happier with 100-110. After meals I run anywhere from 120 to 145 but usually around 130 which is fantastic for a diabetic. That number I am perfectly happy with. For optimal health a blood sugar level never going above 110 would be ideal from my perspective which many metabolically healthy people on keto or carnivore regularly stay below.

I just don't understand why my fasting readings are staying up there, sometimes actually higher than my after meal readings. The only time I drop below 100 is right after exercise. I can drop it low pretty quickly, then it will bounce right back up around 130. Even after fasting for 16-18 hours. My liver seems to think that is where I need to be so maybe it is right.

It is not a big worry to me. Gosh compared to when I was eating a standard diabetic diet and taking 100 units of insulin a day in four different shots, my blood glucose levels now are golden. It just baffles me a bit. I would like to understand why it is where it is at. Being on insulin and having roller coaster blood sugar spikes for so many years maybe some of my beta cells are just burnt out and will never fully recover. I just don't know. Maybe over time as the cells are replaced it will improve. It takes several years for all the cells in the body to cycle and be replaced. They used to think the brain cells we were born with was all there was ever going to be. But that has been proven to be false. We grow new brain cells all the time and old ones are being recycled. Some cells like blood cells are short life cycle and other cells live for several years before being replaced. But I digress.

John