epilepsy and diabetes together

Fran13

Member
Messages
15
Hi all just been diagnosed with epilepsy. Started meds with a big improvement but I still have elevated fasting and postmeal numbers.blurry vision with carbs.not sure if diabetic just a suspicion.seeing endo soon.
Anyone else out there with confirmed epilepsy and type 2 , prediabetes or reactive hypo?
 

Indy51

Expert
Messages
5,540
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
I think you will find that the LCHF diet is helpful for both blood glucose control and neurological issues, so I'd seriously suggest you try adopting a lower carb diet and possibly investigate the ketogenic version - the ketogenic diet is widely used for seizure disorders, especially for children who don't respond to medication. You might find the books of neurologist Dr David Perlmutter worth a look-see.

Has @daisy1 posted the basic information for new members on another thread for you?
 
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Fran13

Member
Messages
15
Indy51 said:
I think you will find that the LCHF diet is helpful for both blood glucose control and neurological issues, so I'd seriously suggest you try adopting a lower carb diet and possibly investigate the ketogenic version - the ketogenic diet is widely used for seizure disorders, especially for children who don't respond to medication. You might find the books of neurologist Dr David Perlmutter worth a look-see.

Has @daisy1 posted the basic information for new members on another thread for you?
Hi thanks for your suggestion.i did try Lchf for a while And keto too.I felt great, blurry vision gone and seizures disappeared but then I developed a further problem.my gallbladder couldnt cope and I ended up in hospital for 3 days with cholecystitis. Ive had 2 more episodes in the past year.so all fats had to go.gallbladders getting better but still cant eat any fat s except avocado without pain and digestive probs.so started adding carbs bk in.mainly pumpkin but some rice and gf bread too.seizures r bk but now under control with meds...had to ive had enough after 12 yrs of misery.just need to keep bg under control now without fats.
May just have to stick to lean meats and veg.
 

daisy1

Legend
Messages
26,457
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Dislikes
Cruelty towards animals.
@Fran13

Hello Fran and welcome to the forum :)

Here is the information we give to new members which should help with the diabetes side of your problems and in particular with your diet including carbs. Ask as many questions as you like 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 140,000 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.
 

Indy51

Expert
Messages
5,540
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
If you are fine with avocado, it might be worthwhile trying out some other monounsaturated fats like avocado oil, macadamia, etc.

I have gallstones and used to get quite a lot of pain with it, but I found as I got my liver function back to normal (I had readings for fatty liver), plus using supplements like digestive/pancreatic enzymes, I was able to gradually tolerate more fat. The only fats that seem to give me problems now are things like fish oil/flax/evening primrose oil supplements - I think they're too concentrated for my gallbladder to handle in one hit. Seem fine with all kinds of dietary fats now though.
 

Fran13

Member
Messages
15
Thats good to know.i take probiotics and digestive enzymes too.they definitely help.mayb I just need to give it some more time.