1st post ... Hba1c at 48 ...

[Blaenbran]

Hello people I'm new here my 1st posting.

I found out a week ago following blood tests for other things and in discussion about non diabetic health concerns I was told that my hba1c is now 48 .. Doc advised to follow low sugar diet and be retested in 6 months.

From reading posts here I'm scared I am actually type 2 from the hba1c and doc has not picked up on it. I have dry mouth, can fall asleep suddenly after food, and feel totally whacked out at times.

From reading the posts here I feel I need to be more aware of my health and the foods I should be eating so I have been actively reducing carbs and eating much better ( or so I think ) .
I have been feeling totally whacked out at times, have a dry mouth most of the time, I can fall asleep after food in a click of a finger at times, not every meal.

I just feel I'm not doing as much as I should to help myself.

I'm 47 yrs old and need to lose a lot of weight, I had ovarian cancer 2 yrs ago and terrible trouble healing after my op and now have a large hernia that I need surgery for. I can't walk far because of this but I am now scared the surgery won't be done. I am quite worried by it.

What would you advise ?

Thank you for taking time to read this

 

[urbanracer]

Hello people I'm new here my 1st posting.

I found out a week ago following blood tests for other things and in discussion about non diabetic health concerns I was told that my hba1c is now 48 .. Doc advised to follow low sugar diet and be retested in 6 months.

From reading posts here I'm scared I am actually type 2 from the hba1c and doc has not picked up on it. I have dry mouth, can fall asleep suddenly after food, and feel totally whacked out at times.

From reading the posts here I feel I need to be more aware of my health and the foods I should be eating so I have been actively reducing carbs and eating much better ( or so I think ) .
I have been feeling totally whacked out at times, have a dry mouth most of the time, I can fall asleep after food in a click of a finger at times, not every meal.

I just feel I'm not doing as much as I should to help myself.

I'm 47 yrs old and need to lose a lot of weight, I had ovarian cancer 2 yrs ago and terrible trouble healing after my op and now have a large hernia that I need surgery for. I can't walk far because of this but I am now scared the surgery won't be done. I am quite worried by it.

What would you advise ?

Thank you for taking time to read this

Hi @Blaenbran ,

Your GP probably doesn't want to alarm you as your blood glucose levels are only right on the verge of where diabetes is typically diagnosed. By asking you to reduce your sugar intake he has in effect picked up on the fact that something is not quite right but maybe feels that it does not yet warrant medication?

But sugar is only part of the problem and carbohydrates generallly have a big effect on your blood glucose (sugar is a carbohydrate), If you are eating a lot of bread, rice, pasta and potato then it's going to push your glucose levels up so take a look at what your eating if you want to gt your a1c levels down,

@daisy1

 

[Alzebra]

Hi @Blaenbran and welcome to the forum. @urbanracer has tagged Daisy for her beginners guide which you'll find really helpful I'm sure.

If you want to try a low carb high(er) fat diet, have a look at the low carb forum on here and also check out http://www.dietdoctor.com/lchf for more detail. Once you've read these guides come back and ask loads of questions until you feel confident - we're a very friendly and helpful bunch

 

[Sibyl]

Hi Blaenbran, I can't give you any medical advice but wanted to let you know on my diabetic 3 months form (I'm still in my 1st year of being Type 1) it says that they aim for the hba1c to be 58 or lower. I'm not a lchf myself but eat moderate to low carbs. and my hba1c is 47. So I don't think your level of 48 is alarming. Keep to your diet of less carbs and increase your water intake. Keeping your weight down will be good for your all round health anyway - at least that's what we're always told! Big hugs!

 

[Robbity]

@Sybil the 58 figure is for type 1 diabetics as they are at greater risk of hypoglycemia - see our main diabetes.co.uk site for this information. It's not appropriate to pre- or type 2 diabetics, they have lower recommended HbA1c levels.

Robbity

 

[daisy1]

@Blaenbran

Hello and welcome to the forum As mentioned above, here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it helpful. You will get plenty of advice from other members too.


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 150,000 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.

 

[Blaenbran]

Thank you all for replying I really appreciate it. Can I ask you about the blood glucose meters ? Do you think it would be good for me to get one and check my levels? It would be good to know if my diet is having the right effect.

 

[Robbity]

It's an excellent idea to buy yourself a meter and start testing - it's the best way to find out how your body responds to different foods, and to adjust your diet accordingly. The meter most recommended because it has nice cheap test strips is the SD Codefree. Many brands of meter can be bought cheaply or even given away free, but most brands of strips can be very very pricey. The NHS will probably tell you not to test, but then they haven't got to live diabetes....

Robbity

 

[urbanracer]

Thank you all for replying I really appreciate it. Can I ask you about the blood glucose meters ? Do you think it would be good for me to get one and check my levels? It would be good to know if my diet is having the right effect.

Yes absolutely. The SD codefree is generally recommended amongst forum members because the test strips are usually the cheapest - you have to think about the ongoing costs.

Edited, Robbity must type a lot faster than me!

 

[Robbity]

@urbanracer - about three minutes faster I think!!

Robbity

 

[Blaenbran]

Ahh wonderful thank you. In a weird way knowing this , as in it "being real" , what is happening to my body, is making me want to give it the best shot possible. I've had cancer, touch wood it won't return, and if I can control this it will be a sense of achievement, a Big Pah ! To diabetes. Thank you again
Haha both of you are brill

 

[ButtterflyLady]

Hello people I'm new here my 1st posting.

I found out a week ago following blood tests for other things and in discussion about non diabetic health concerns I was told that my hba1c is now 48 .. Doc advised to follow low sugar diet and be retested in 6 months.

From reading posts here I'm scared I am actually type 2 from the hba1c and doc has not picked up on it. I have dry mouth, can fall asleep suddenly after food, and feel totally whacked out at times.

From reading the posts here I feel I need to be more aware of my health and the foods I should be eating so I have been actively reducing carbs and eating much better ( or so I think ) .
I have been feeling totally whacked out at times, have a dry mouth most of the time, I can fall asleep after food in a click of a finger at times, not every meal.

I just feel I'm not doing as much as I should to help myself.

I'm 47 yrs old and need to lose a lot of weight, I had ovarian cancer 2 yrs ago and terrible trouble healing after my op and now have a large hernia that I need surgery for. I can't walk far because of this but I am now scared the surgery won't be done. I am quite worried by it.

What would you advise ?

Thank you for taking time to read this

Welcome, I see others have given you a good start with info about diabetes and low carbing

First off, I think you should get another HbA1c in 3 months, not 6 months. I had prediabetes which progressed quickly to diabetes because I didn't understand that I should reduce carbs and get tested more frequently than 12 monthly. I don't think doctors take this seriously enough - they seem to just wait for it to get worse and then prescribe meds. Why wait until then when you can take control and return your blood sugar to a non diabetic level through low carbing.

I am sure you will lose weight through low carbing. However, in the meantime I wonder if there is a chance you could have sleep apnoea, as you have some of the risk factors and possible symptoms. (Raised blood sugars, overweight, daytime sleepiness, dry mouth). These are also classic diabetes symptoms though.

Have you ever been told you snore, or have breathing pauses in your sleep?

Try not to worry as I am probably going off on a tangent but I like to raise awareness of sleep apnoea because it's fairly common and often doctors don't consider it until it has progressed to a more severe level, like they also don't with diabetes. If you have it, it's easily treated.