What are the main things to eat to lower my HbA1c blood sugar levels?

[StanLau12744]

Hello,

I'm a diabetic Type 1 for about 20 years now.

Each time I go to do my yearly blood test my HbA1c levels come back really high (63 mmol/mol) – recommended 20-41.
I exercise every day and something tells me it's my diet as I do like my foods. I don't smoke and only drink 2-3 units a week.

I would like to know what people eat in their diets to help maintain good HbA1c levels?

Thanks,

Stan

 

[Ushthetaff]

I think as type 1 I can eat anything which is true I think that keeping your HbA1c at an acceptable level is knowing your eating habits and how you to use your insulin to keep your bs in range , I try to follow a “ healthy “ diet and I take things moderately , but I do know how foods affect my blood sugar and I can adjust my insulin to suit . This definitely hasn’t happened over night it’s taken time and effort , there are lots of advice everywhere about diets ! Low carb high fibre, no meat ! Veg , vegan etc etc etc but if you don’t know how your insulin works for you( cos what works for one doesn’t always work for others ) you can have an issue controlling blood sugars , I can remember a time when there were things which were totally taboo due to the way diabetes was treated at the time , so now that nothing is out of bounds it’s to my advantage to find out how my insulin affects the control of my bloud sugar

 

[Antje77]

I'm a diabetic Type 1 for about 20 years now.

Each time I go to do my yearly blood test my HbA1c levels come back really high (63 mmol/mol) – recommended 20-41.
I exercise every day and something tells me it's my diet as I do like my foods.

Hi @StanLau12744 , can you share what insulin(s) you are using?

How do you decide on dosing for your foods? Do you count carbs and adjust your doses according to the carbs?

 

[becca59]

As @Ushthetaff states it’s not what you eat but how you manage your insulin to match it. Amounts, timings, corrections etc. some people manage very well eating anything and succeed with a low HbA1c. Do you wear a CGM and have high and low alarms set so you can see patterns?

 

[Juicyj]

Hello Stan,

Could you ask about doing a DAFNE (Dose Adjustment for Normal Eating) course if you haven't already done one ? These courses are so useful as they cover off insulin/corrections/dosing/carb counting and although as an experienced type 1 we can all learn loads if we go back to basics, also they can help in changing your insulin if they can see it's not doing the job as well as it should do for you. Also just nice to meet other type 1's too, that was the best bit for me when I did it.

 

[EllieM]

Each time I go to do my yearly blood test my HbA1c levels come back really high (63 mmol/mol) – recommended 20-41.

Just a little puzzled by your "recommended" levels. I've always been told to aim for less than 48 if it doesn't cause too many hypos. If I went as low as 41 my team would be concerned that I was having too many hypos and I don't think I could achieve a level of 21.

While I agree that 63 is higher than I'd like, it corresponds to an average blood sugar of 10mmol/L , I've had higher levels in the past and lived to tell the tale.

Hopefully your diabetic team can advise you on an insulin regime that will improve your levels. ( That is what they are supposed to do.)

As the others have already said, it's not so much the diet as the knowledge to adjust your insulin to match that diet.

 

[jaywak]

I got a telling off by my team when my HbA1c came back at 44 and was told to try and get it up to 50 ! next time it was 49 so they were happy with that .

 

[Kasser]

Hello,

I'm a diabetic Type 1 for about 20 years now.

Each time I go to do my yearly blood test my HbA1c levels come back really high (63 mmol/mol) – recommended 20-41.
I exercise every day and something tells me it's my diet as I do like my foods. I don't smoke and only drink 2-3 units a week.

I would like to know what people eat in their diets to help maintain good HbA1c levels?

Thanks,

Stan

Hey,
I note you are exercising every day, are you adjusting your insulin and food intake according to the exercise ?

 

[McNark]

Hey,
I note you are exercising every day, are you adjusting your insulin and food intake according to the exercise ?

Keto. Drop your carbs, working to eliminate ALL processed packaged foods with hidden sugars and preservatives. There are enough carbs in vegatables for you to drop bread other than.keto, rice, potatoes, cookies. Cake, candy, cereals, pastas, and eat veggies, meat, high fat foods like avocado, bacon ( no preservative choice), cheeses, high fat yoghurt unflavored, berries. ...

 

[Patrick Herring]

Hey,
I note you are exercising every day, are you adjusting your insulin and food intake according to the exercise ?

I have been Type 1 for about 40 years and I always ask in the clinid (in St James, Leeds) what HbA1c stands for but no-one knows. I know what Hb means but not the A1c. Anyone?

 

[Nel 1980]

I got a telling off by my team when my HbA1c came back at 44 and was told to try and get it up to 50 ! next time it was 49 so we they were happy with that .

You can't win with them . I think they forget we are human and can't always make our bodies comply with their ideal levels.

 

[IanA123]

Your blood glucose will spike with exercise as the body attempts to fuel it with glucose, mine does it. Will initially drop then shoot back up without intervention.
Also a hba1c of 21? Mine is 57, t1 for 30yrs and clinic are happy with that, gp isn't but they aren't a qualified endocrinologist, so their opinion is of no concern.

 

[hope for cure]

Hello,

I'm a diabetic Type 1 for about 20 years now.

Each time I go to do my yearly blood test my HbA1c levels come back really high (63 mmol/mol) – recommended 20-41.
I exercise every day and something tells me it's my diet as I do like my foods. I don't smoke and only drink 2-3 units a week.

I would like to know what people eat in their diets to help maintain good HbA1c levels?

Thanks,

Stan

I can help you dear .
Lowcarb like salads , protein and stay away or have little from cakes , biscuits . Eat low carb and pray for me if you want more recipe I am happy to provide you with it

 

[Cumbrianjudith]

I am a type 3c , so ruined pancreas about 10 years ago, but only this Jan.got a Libre 2 and two different insulins ( Toujeo and Fiasp) so am still in that period when observing the BG levels regularly and recording what I eat/ drink, plus exercise religiously, then trying to tweak the insulin to cope. Have my first HbA1c test for new regime next week, the Libre is predicting estimated one of 45 6.3%. But I am very aware my old HbA1c was not bad in low 50s, but being telling diabetic nurse that I had lots of hypos in 3s in the morning, and highs ie the average combined to be ok. I am now generally getting ‘time in range’ in 90% plus so seemingly much better. However I do experience some odd BG levels: last week seemed the sensor was at fault ( and changed by Abbott as had got bent in use), this week lows seem to be from compression as finger pricks show big discrepancy, but then also get ‘ unexplained’ reactions. Yesterday went to a cafe and had homemade smoked mackerel pate, toast on granary and salads for lunch…my BG just kept going up and up for hours far beyond the possible ‘carb count’ of unfamiliar bread…and wondering about how protein converts to carb hours later.. just weird! At home I am much better controlled re BG and food, but still lots of fine tuning to do…currently trying to work out which nut is not behaving as low/ no carb for me, thought I’d cracked it with removing cashews from mixed nuts, but no: walnuts, hazel nuts or almonds are still pushing it high!

 

[EllieM]

Can I please remind the posters on this thread that @StanLau12744 is an insulin dependent T1 posting in the T1 forum, so please be aware of this when posting, as keto diets still require insulin and diets that may help a non insulin dependent T2 may not necessarily work for a T1. By all means give your own experience, but forum rules prohibit specific medical advice/instructions and cross posting rules will be applied if necessary.
https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/community-ethos-forum-rules.50278/

 

[Cumbrianjudith]

Can I please remind the posters on this thread that @StanLau12744 is an insulin dependent T1 posting in the T1 forum, so please be aware of this when posting, as keto diets still require insulin and diets that may help a non insulin dependent T2 may not necessarily work for a T1. By all means give your own experience, but forum rules prohibit specific medical advice/instructions and cross posting rules will be applied if necessary.
https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/community-ethos-forum-rules.50278/

Sorry bit of subject, but how do I get to change my type of diabetes on profile changed from type 2 to type 3c…can never find anything that works?

 

[EllieM]

Sorry bit of subject, but how do I get to change my type of diabetes on profile changed from type 2 to type 3c…can never find anything that works?

It should be in account details which you access via clicking on your name on the top right of the screen (assuming you are using a browser, and not the forum app).

 

[Cumbrianjudith]

Thought I’d changed it, said saved, but now don’t seem to get any info under avatar…!

 

[Cumbrianjudith]

No ignore last it has come up when posted.Thanks

 

[hyponilla]

Hi Stan,
I've had type 1 for six years now and for most of that time I've followed a low-carb diet so I'll share my experiences. My HbA1c has stayed between 30 and 42, and I don't wear a CGM anymore but when I did my time in range (4-8 mmol/l) was around 85 percent. I started following the Bernstein approach described in Dr. Bernstein's The Diabetes Solution after a few months because I couldn't control my blood sugar on a standard diet, but over time I've become more relaxed. One thing I'll say is that an HbA1c below 35 is not realistic for a type 1, if you follow a very low-carb diet you can achieve it but it comes with the caveat that you have to spend a lot of time in the low 4's so the risk for hypos goes up significantly. I'd rather see a 12 than a 3 on my meter, damage happens over time so it's questionable if spiking your blood sugar for shorter periods is that bad. Non-diabetics spike too and I think the average HbA1c in the population is closer to 40 than 30.

Over time I've found that what works for me is to eat max 30g of carbs in one hit. I also stay away from carbs in the morning when I'm insulin resistant, I find that if I spike my blood sugar in the morning it takes me hours to get it back into range. On 30g you can eat quite a lot but things like pizza, pasta, and mashed potatoes unfortunately have to go, you can still have snacks like chocolate bars and small bags of crisps though. There's a good book on diabetes management by Adam Brown, I read it a few years ago but if I remember right he puts the sweet spot for carbs at around 30g as well.
https://diatribe.org/bright-spots-and-landmines/
Low-carb is definitely not for everyone, it's not a diet I'd follow myself if I could manage my blood sugar better while eating more carbs because there might be other health implications, but lowering carbs is a method that works for many people so it's worth being aware of. Changing your breakfast could go a long way in improving your HbA1c so you don't necessarily have to radicalize your whole diet.