Type 2 Help please totally confused

Tracy_McK

Member
Messages
7
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi everyone new to this forum and looking for some advice please.

Was diagnosed in 2009 with type 2 diabetes I am currently on 4 Metformin and 45mg of Pioglitazon blood sugar has never really came down in all the time I have been diagnosed despite having lost over a stone in weight and 12 inches since February and have went from a size 26 down to a 16. Was called yesterday from the diabetic nurse to tell me my sugar has went up again a reading of 101???? What's this in old terms i.e. 5 to 7 being pre diabetic etc all of my investigations suggest that 101 converts to 5.61 but if I am honest I really don't understand it all. Thanks in advance for any help given.
 

azure

Expert
Messages
9,780
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Hi Tracy and welcome :)

An HbA1C of 101 is 11.1 in the old system, I believe. Well done on your weight loss by the way - very impressive!
 
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Tracy_McK

Member
Messages
7
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi Tracy and welcome :)

An HbA1C of 101 is 11.1 in the old system, I believe. Well done on your weight loss by the way - very impressive!

Hi thank you for your response that makes sense why she was saying that its too high . Thanks for the encouragement re weight loss been going to the gym 5/6 times a week I just need to sort out my eating or lack of as my body rejects most of the food that I eat when I actually do eat that is
 
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catherinecherub

Guest
I'll tag @daisy1 to give you some basic information which should help.

Do you mean that you vomit when you try to eat? If this is the case then I would ask for a medication review from your G.P. and explain to him what is going on.
 
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Tracy_McK

Member
Messages
7
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
I'll tag @daisy1 to give you some basic information which should help.

Do you mean that you vomit when you try to eat? If this is the case then I would ask for a medication review from your G.P. and explain to him what is going on.

Hi Catherine no i don't vomit my body rejects the food after about half an hour if that, in the form of various bowel movements in a day so I am monitoring myself what I do eat when I manage to eat as the stomach cramps make eating such a chore
 
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catherinecherub

Guest
You could ask for the Slow Release Metformin which a lot of forum members find easier on the stomach.
 
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Tracy_McK

Member
Messages
7
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
You could ask for the Slow Release Metformin which a lot of forum members find easier on the stomach.

I was thinking about that Catherine thank you. I have no symptoms of diabetes and never have done and nothing else is wrong with me despite "High readings" since 2009
 
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catherinecherub

Guest
I was thinking about that Catherine thank you. I have no symptoms of diabetes and never have done and nothing else is wrong with me despite "High readings" since 2009


Don't ever get complacent about your lack of complications. This chronic condition is insidious and we do not know what is going on inside our bodies. It can affect all our organs and blood vessels over time. We have to try and manage it as the risk for complications is always there.
Do you get the health checks you are entitled to?

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/Documen...s/15-healthcare-essentials-checklist-0714.pdf
 
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Tracy_McK

Member
Messages
7
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Don't ever get complacent about your lack of complications. This chronic condition is insidious and we do not know what is going on inside our bodies. It can affect all our organs and blood vessels over time. We have to try and manage it as the risk for complications is always there.
Do you get the health checks you are entitled to?

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/Documen...s/15-healthcare-essentials-checklist-0714.pdf
Hi Catherine I wouldn't but I must admit it does puzzle me that everything else is perfectly fine kidney, liver, feet,eyes,cholesterol, blood pressure etc. They have never offered anything else they didn't want me self testing and in all honesty I am unsure if I am missing out on anything else
 

daisy1

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

Hello Tracy and welcome to the forum :) Here is the information we give to new members and I hope it will help you. Carry on asking questions and someone will be able to help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS

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.