waiting to be officially diagnosed

[chrissyh]

Hi I am 70yr old over weight female and new to this forum but not yet been officially diagnosed for diabetes by the nurse yet
For the last year I have had bout after bout of bladder infections and treated with antibiotics Then in july this year
I fell and broke my leg which meant that I was not getting any exercise and back came the water infection and I went
on a diet to keep the weight off I see now that the diet I was on was making me worse with the overwhelming tiredness /blurry vision
headaches /itching /numb feet /unsteady on my feet /tingly hands Three weeks ago I went back for more antibiotics for bladder infection
and my daughter who was with me said to the doctor that her friend who had recurring bladder infections found that she had diabetes
and could that be mums problem So he sent me for a blood test I went to find out the blood result and the receptionist said I needed to make
a double appointment to discuss with the nurse treatment and diet So I asked if I had diabetes and she said yes I asked if I was type 1 or 2
but she said the nurse would tell me and because they are so busy the nearest she could get me in was feb 4th
I thought well till then I will try the type 2 diet which was a nightmare at the start to figure out what was good to have what measures to have
having to eat breakfast it all seems porridge I crave savoury At the moment I am playing safe with all other meals are green veg chicken breast
salmon pilchards fish very small portion of mash (just bought a sweet potato ) low fat natural yogurts with blue berries and rasberrys and
seeds on top seeded whole meal bread a smear of low fat cheese spread to hold things on the bread No sweets no sugar and have only drank water
I have been using my treadmill for exercise instead of a clothes horse I do feel lots better I am not tired the itching comes and goes still have difficulty passing water in the day but
am up most of the night when there I no problem passing it Can I ask one personal problem I have been taking water samples and when it settles there is a white
sediment at the bottom does any one else get this
I have read loads of books searched the internet frightened my self silly But I found this site today and found more info and less confusing reading from peoples personal experiences

 

[andcol]

Hello and welcome. It does sound like you have joined us. @daisy1 will be along shortly to provide basic information.

I am not sure what a type 2 diet is but if you are following the NHS advice you may find that you will end up of more and more tablets. Unfortunately this just seems to be the way. The issue with diet is that carbohydrates turn into glucose in the body. One of the worst culprits for raising our glucose levels is flour based products (including bread/pasta etc). All starchy vegetable can be troublesome for us (rice potatoes etc) and the degree of difficulty is very personal and the only way to find out if/how much you can tolerate is to test. The NHS is unlikely to provide you with a meter and will tell you not to test (money saving regiment) ignore them and get your own meter. The SD code free meter is cheap.

Have a look around the site and ask questions. There are many here that can provide you with their experience

 

[daddys1]

Hi & welcome to the forum you have definitely come to the right place for the help you need.

Daisy1 has been tagged, and usually she comes along in the morning with the very long list of useful information for all new members.

Hang in there, try not to worry too much everything will start to fall into place and I am sure you will be able to get all the information from here.

You need to stay away from porridge seems to send most peoples Blood sugars up. Lot of advice on here will be different to what your doctors or diabetic nurse will tell you.

I notice you mention low fat product, you really need the full fat versions, as you are low carbing you need to get some of your calories from Fat. Alos the low fat versions contain sweeteners and are not si good for you with diabetes. Many on here are Low Carb High Fat, see my signature I am having certainly moderate fat, eggs bacon butter, used to be spreads, but since moving to fats my cholesterol has come down. You can eat full fat cheese no carbs in that. As for the whole meal bread, you should look at Hovis Seed Sensation (green on the wrapper) only 13g carbs per slice or Burgen Soya & Linseed 12g carbs per slice.

You will need to get a meter and test just before eating and then 2 hours after that first test. the readings shouldn't really move more than 2mmol/L up on whatever your eating. Just take it slowly it will start to make sense.

Spend some time looking round the forum and ask as many questions as you want. I can't help you on the one question you posed but I'm sure someone will.

Neil

 

[daisy1]

Hello @chrissyh and welcome to the forum

You have had good replies from Andrew and Neil and now here is the information we give to new members which I hope you will find useful too. Ask as many questions as you need to and someone will be able to help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 130,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

• Reduce your carbohydrate intake
• Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)

• Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l

However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

• structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
• self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.

 

[monkehwife]

Hello and welcome to the forum x

 

[jack412]

Hello and welcome to the forum x

if you remember your old email address, the forum login [forgotten password link part] will send you out your old details
@anna29 or @daisy1 may help too

 

[anna29]

Can I ask one personal problem I have been taking water samples

No need to worry yourself unnecessarily .
Try taking one of your water samples to your GP .
They can test it and look into this for you.
This will help you and give some reassurance .

Any other questions - just ask here on the forum .
No question is a silly one either .

Warm welcome to us all too @chrissyh

 

[anna29]

if you remember your old email address, the forum login [forgotten password link part] will send you out your old details
@anna29 or @daisy1 may help too

Yep - if having difficulties with log in etc .
Try sending a PM to @Giverny (forum manager) request her help .
Let her know your details and she can assist you .