Cunning plan, or crazy idea? Fast to get glucose down

[first14808]

So it's been 10 days or so since T2 diagnosis, and I got my TRUEyou meter yesterday. Results at the GPs were 17.2mmol after having eaten a breakfast of 2 sarnies, so 4 slices wholewheat bread, one lo-fat pate, the other good'ol Marmite. So result was rather high.

I did my first solo pre-breakfast test this morning* and scored 9.8, so still high. Soo..

Should I fast, or semi-fast to get results down to 'normal'? I'm thinking doing that, then testing different foods/meals to figure out my carb limits? Something I forgot to ask at the GPs yesterday was how long glucose stays in the blood typically. I've been cutting carbs already and had a veggie shopping spree yesterday to replace my normal rice/pasta/bread with something lower carb.

*In which I learned that pressing on the Unistick 3 lancet's "Fire!" button while pulling out the guard was a bad idea. But then also learned how to dismantle and reset it, because it was the only lancet I had. Luckily, I should be picking up more later..

 

[Art Of Flowers]

You can have an omelette for breakfast instead of bread.

Best to avoid high carb foods such as breakfast cereals, bread, potatoes, rice and pasta. Also avoid fruit juice and fruit such as bananas and grapes. See https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb for some ideas on low carb meals and what to eat.

 

[ringi]

As you are just on Matformin you have little risk of Hypos, therefore a lot of freedom.

Some people test before each meal, then 2hr after starting the meal, decreasing the carbs in the meal until they never that an increase of more than 2 (under 1.5 is best). You are only looking at the change in your BG levels due to what you have eaten, not if they are “normal”. Hence each meal is a chance to improve on the meals before.

Some people do a formal low carb diet like “A New Akins for a New You” or “The Pioppi Diet”, they both take commitment, but after the first few weeks gets easier. (Use your meter to check when you are ready to move onto the next phase if dong the Akins.)

Other people learn about low carb form a site like dietdoctor, then plan their meals based on what they have learned.

Restricting food to a short time each day also helps, so try to have as long as possible after the last meal of one day before the first meal of the next day. A short walk after each meal also reduces BG.

One of the best methods to get fast results, is to limit your eating to one meal a day (with no sacks) and make the meal low carb. So for example have steak, eggs, and green veg, eating as much as you like, then don’t eat again until the same time the next day. You can put cream, butter, olive oil, coconut oil, in drinks between meals if needed.

Most people mix up the above, choosing what fits in best with their life each day.

 

[first14808]

Thanks for the tips.

I guess I'm in the experimental stage to find out what I can tolerate. The one-meal option is probably easiest for me as that's what I tend to do now, ie just eat once in the evening. Normally that would've involved bread, rice, potatoes or pasta so I'm cutting those out & replacing with low carb alternatives. Sliced cabbage is a bit like pasta.. kinda. Good enough for Eastern Europe, good enough for me!

 

[Daphne917]

Thanks for the tips.

I guess I'm in the experimental stage to find out what I can tolerate. The one-meal option is probably easiest for me as that's what I tend to do now, ie just eat once in the evening. Normally that would've involved bread, rice, potatoes or pasta so I'm cutting those out & replacing with low carb alternatives. Sliced cabbage is a bit like pasta.. kinda. Good enough for Eastern Europe, good enough for me!

I use courgettes instead of pasta either spirallised for courgetti or sliced for lasagne - remember to put salt them for about 30 mins beforehand as you will be amazed how much water comes out. Naked noodles are also ok for stir fries or as a substitute for pasta - a bit rubbery but not too bad however they do need a good rinse in cold water before using to get rid of their strange ‘aroma’!

 

[adibghattas]

My advice to all diabetics. Take one cup of green tea with atea spoon of cinnamon every day keep the diabetes away.

 

[first14808]

Hmm.. mixed memories! Naked noodles reminds me of fun times in Seoul, Courgettes... Being overfed them when they ripened. That time of year was courgettes with everything. I've tended to avoid them ever since..

But I hadn't thought about noodles. Naked's noodles seem much like the Japanese ones that go into sukiyaki, which also reminded me of bean sprouts.. Low carb, handy bulker & can grow'em in a fridge. Or I've got a couple of Chinese/Asian mini-marts in town. Joys of a multi-cultural society when it comes to finding ingredients!

 

[Bluetit1802]

@first14808

In your situation I would concentrate on the before and after meal testing (alongside a detailed food diary) and sort out which are your danger foods and which are OK, and learn a lot more about how our blood glucose works, what affects it, and how it is regulated by our pancreas, liver and hormones. Once your knowledge has increased and you know what you are doing, then think about fasting. Fasting isn't for everyone, but sorting out a suitable and sustainable diet certainly is.

 

[tubamanandy]

My advice to all diabetics. Take one cup of green tea with atea spoon of cinnamon every day keep the diabetes away.

Do we have any evidence this actually works ? I've heard it a few times before

 

[adibghattas]

I tried this in addition to the prescribed medicine and oat bread . It works good. My blood sugar drobbed between 100 mg/dl and 150 .

 

[adibghattas]

Dropped

 

[first14808]

So my experimenting continues.. I'd been reducing carbs over the last week, but still had BG in double digits. So carrying on with my one-meal a day routine (normal diet for me), I've been experimenting with carb replacements. So I may have had a chilli with rice, probably 100g dry. This time, experimented with using half a savoy cabbage instead of rice. Pre-meal BG was 8.2, and three hours later, down to 7.2 Yey!

And that filled me up, my stomach doesn't sound like a drum & bass gig, and I'm not afraid to light a match. So hunger-wise, thinking using sliced/diced veg instead of starchy, carb heavy stuff should work for both glucose level and losing a bit of weight. In my former life, I used to train & exercise a lot, so reasonable idea about GI foods, and safe weight management when I fought competitively.

 

[first14808]

Carbs.. they're everywhere! I'm taking more interest in food lables, and this morning noticed that a 'healthy' tortilla wrap is 30g of carbs..

So the morning reading was 8.4, which being higher than last night is I guess my liver trying to be helpful. Bad liver! I may also have lost about 1.5kg over the week, which is a bonus. No hunger pangs, and thinking some nice scrambled egg and smoked sausage later.

 

[first14808]

So maybe my liver and I need words..
Fasting reading was 8.4
Pre-meal was 9.7
Post-meal was 7.6

So a bit puzzled why it went up during the day. Main difference pre-meal was I'd walked to the shops, so maybe a glucose boost from doing a bit of exercise? Meal today though was 4 eggs scrambled, with a splash of semi-skimmed milk, about 75g of chopped smoked sausage, 2x tomatoes and bit of salt, pepper & smoked paprika. Also a couple of small handfuls of dry roasted peanuts. Low-carb snack! Yey!

(and I picked up a couple of jars of sauerkraut. Not had that in years, and may try making my own now I can't use pickled onion vinegar on chips..)

 

[Resurgam]

The semi skimmed milk is not really necessary, just a sugary liquid, - did you check the carb content of the sausages? Some are very high in carbs.
The peanuts are not actually nuts but a legume, like peas and beans, so higher in carbs than 'real' nuts.
There are a lot of small things you can do to keep the carbs at bay.

 

[first14808]

I was more puzzled by BG going up between fasting reading and pre-meal when I hadn't eaten anything. Using milk in my eggs is just a habit to lighten them a bit. The sausage is a Polish smoked/cured one and 0.7g/100g carb, and also pretty lean. And the peanuts are a relative thing. I've never been a big nut eater, and they're 7.2g/100g, so better than things I'd normally snack on. It's been a bit depressing seeing the carbs in foods, ie 10 cream crackers is 50g carb.

But my focus is on getting BG down to safer levels, and seeing what effects different foods have on me. I aim to find a sustainable low-carb diet so I don't get tempted to slip back into eating the wrong things.

 

[Bluetit1802]

I was more puzzled by BG going up between fasting reading and pre-meal when I hadn't eaten anything.

This is a perfectly normal reaction. It isn't just food that raises our levels. A normal daily routine can do this - rushing about, driving, shopping, walking, making the beds, showering, anxiety, stress, lots of things. The Dawn Phenomenon liver dumps can last all day under the right circumstances.

 

[Kristin251]

As @Resurgam said, there are small things you can do and at the end of the day they all add up. I eat macadamia or pecans rather than peanuts. Peanuts have carcinogens.

I use water instead of milk in eggs.

Don’t be afraid of fat. It’s satisfying and replaces carb calories. Yoindont have to gob it but don’t be afraid.

You’ve obviously made great progress so far. Yay. It’s now just a matter of finding meals you like. I always just think some protein, some veggies and some fat. I don’t get fancy anymore. Today’s lunch is cold rare lamb chop, avocado wedge and a few asparagus spears all drizzled with olive oil and some sage and oregano. Not a bad lunch!

You’re doing great! And YES! Carbs are everywhere. I stick with one ingredient foods. Lamb, asparagus, avocado, tuna, salmon, egg etc. Mayo and hot sauce is about the only thing I have with more than one ingred

 

[Bluetit1802]

I stick with one ingredient foods

Me too on the whole.

 

[letstalk1]

To many carbs- cut out the bread , eat eggs , meat , cheese.