Blood sugar levels and monitors

[ajbod]

When a non diabetic person eats their blood level spikes just like a diabetic, the difference is their system works properly and the spike reduces rapidly, ours doesn't so the spike continues for longer. Hence the raised HbA1c, the 3 month average is higher because we were out of range for longer than them. if our pre meal reading is within 2 mmol of our reading at 2 hours, then we are effectively nearly matching how non diabetics are. This obviously reduces our average reading.

 

[Dontknowwhattothink]

I have recently gone low carb to tackle both my blood sugars [and already had a good effect] and to hopefully reduce my triglycerides [which are very high at 8.9]. The Doctor has now told me I need to go low fat rather than low carb but to keep my carbs below 125g a day and fats below 50g a day. It's impossible unless I eat about 1000 calories a day. Totally confused to say the least, stressed out with all the carb and fat counting and feel totally lost in all the advice and counter advice the medical professionals are peddling.

This is the problem I have, I need to eat low carb to bring my blood glucose down but I can’t eat many fats becuase of gall bladder removal, no big fat steaks for me! I feel like I have no idea what to eat just a massive list of things I can’t eat

 

[HSSS]

This is the problem I have, I need to eat low carb to bring my blood glucose down but I can’t eat many fats becuase of gall bladder removal, no big fat steaks for me! I feel like I have no idea what to eat just a massive list of things I can’t eat

I have no gallbladder and love a big fat steak. Loads of us are perfectly capable of eating fats after the op. There are a fair few threads in here about it if you search.

We are told to avoid fats pre op as the squeezing of the bladder in response to fat (as it’s supposed to do to eject emulsifying bile) moves existing stones about and causes pain. After surgery we don’t store and concentrate the bile needed for fats. But we still make it! Given an initial recovery period most of us regulate the amount of bile we produce to meet demand based on what we eat. However for us it drip feeds rather than delivers shots. This means we need to increase demand slowly and ideally across the day and give production chance to catch up and then stay reasonable consistent with fat intake so we neither have an excess or deficit of bile being made. Most of us are good to go. Some of us even end up with enlarged ducts mimicking a kind of pseudo gallbladder! If you over do it you’ll get the typical diarrhoea result. So just step back a stage and go forward more slowly.

Yes there will always be a few people that don’t manage and can’t eat as much fat but making that assumption without even trying to increase fat digestive ability is just daft in my opinion. Especially if tying to control diabetes via diet. Protein is another option to replace carbs if you hit your fat limits before your hunger is sataired.

 

[saky]

I have no gallbladder and love a big fat steak. Loads of us are perfectly capable of eating fats after the op. There are a fair few threads in here about it if you search.

We are told to avoid fats pre op as the squeezing of the bladder in response to fat (as it’s supposed to do to eject emulsifying bile) moves existing stones about and causes pain. After surgery we don’t store and concentrate the bile needed for fats. But we still make it! Given an initial recovery period most of us regulate the amount of bile we produce to meet demand based on what we eat. However for us it drip feeds rather than delivers shots. This means we need to increase demand slowly and ideally across the day and give production chance to catch up and then stay reasonable consistent with fat intake so we neither have an excess or deficit of bile being made. Most of us are good to go. Some of us even end up with enlarged ducts mimicking a kind of pseudo gallbladder! If you over do it you’ll get the typical diarrhoea result. So just step back a stage and go forward more slowly.

Yes there will always be a few people that don’t manage and can’t eat as much fat but making that assumption without even trying to increase fat digestive ability is just daft in my opinion. Especially if tying to control diabetes via diet. Protein is another option to replace carbs if you hit your fat limits before your hunger is sataired.

Right. I too had cholecystectomy but I eat lots of nuts, avocado, eggs. Scared to eat saturated fats as my ldl is already high.

 

[HSSS]

Right. I too had cholecystectomy but I eat lots of nuts, avocado, eggs. Scared to eat saturated fats as my ldl is already high.

LDL and saturated fats are another entire debate outside of gallbladders and fats.

Almost everyone on low carb/keto improves triglycerides and HDL And their ratios overall. LDL is a bit more variable but there is a good and a bad type of that one too (rarely checked) and we tend to switch from the bad ldl to the good ldl. Look up bulkbiker‘s thread that has links to an enormous amount of evidence and debate on the subject.

 

[finzi1966]

Just as another data point I’ve also had a cholecystectomy and have no difficulty eating fats whatsoever (beyond the usual fact that fats are very satiating and there’s a limit to how much I can eat). IME it’s *before* you have the cholecystectomy that you have to avoid fat (I only had biliary colic for a day or two before they whipped it out and my god the pain! I thought I’d never eat again lol)

 

[HSSS]

Just as another data point I’ve also had a cholecystectomy and have no difficulty eating fats whatsoever (beyond the usual fact that fats are very satiating and there’s a limit to how much I can eat). IME it’s *before* you have the cholecystectomy that you have to avoid fat (I only had biliary colic for a day or two before they whipped it out and my god the pain! I thought I’d never eat again lol)

Mine was misdiagnosed for years and I have clear memories of rocking on the floor crying in pain waiting up to 8 hrs for an ambulance only for the attack to finally subside on their arrival, 2 A&E attendances outside of that event for the pain/suspected heart attacks plus numerous gp appointments. At one point it was diagnosed as a torn rotator cuff of all things.

 

[saky]

LDL and saturated fats are another entire debate outside of gallbladders and fats.

Almost everyone on low carb/keto improves triglycerides and HDL And their ratios overall. LDL is a bit more variable but there is a good and a bad type of that one too (rarely checked) and we tend to switch from the bad ldl to the good ldl. Look up bulkbiker‘s thread that has links to an enormous amount of evidence and debate on the subject.

Yes. My triglycerides dropped and HDL improved on low carb. But, only Ldl increased. I have always had elevated ldl (more than 100). I think it is familial. Been prescribed statin.

 

[finzi1966]

Mine was misdiagnosed for years and I have clear memories of rocking on the floor crying in pain waiting up to 8 hrs for an ambulance only for the attack to finally subside on their arrival, 2 A&E attendances outside of that event for the pain/suspected heart attacks plus numerous gp appointments. At one point it was diagnosed as a torn rotator cuff of all things.

I have every sympathy! I was lucky sort of in that I actually became septic and the stone wasn’t budging and I was very jaundiced and unwell, and so they had to operate as an emergency. I simply don’t know how I would have coped with what you describe. It was by far the worst pain I’ve ever experienced in my entire life. They were stuffing me full of morphine.

 

[KennyA]

Right. I too had cholecystectomy but I eat lots of nuts, avocado, eggs. Scared to eat saturated fats as my ldl is already high.

My lipid figures that were thought to be "high" pre-keto have fallen since going keto in late 2019. Things like trigs that were already in range haven't shifted from the previous low score. I would guess my sat fat intake has increased quite a bit in that time.

 

[plantae]

I have every sympathy! I was lucky sort of in that I actually became septic and the stone wasn’t budging and I was very jaundiced and unwell, and so they had to operate as an emergency. I simply don’t know how I would have coped with what you describe. It was by far the worst pain I’ve ever experienced in my entire life. They were stuffing me full of morphine.

The worst pain in my life was pancreatitis and I also had a stone blocking my common bile duct which affected my liver as well. I couldn't move it was so painful and morphine and fentanyl did nothing (nothing noticeable anyway). Their solution to my pain was to cut a hole in my neck, stick a tube through it and put me into a coma

I now have no gallbladder and can eat fat without complications, although I'm on Creon. But if I forget my Creon dose it doesn't seem to make much of a difference. I wasn't on creon for 3 years after my gallbladder removal with no problems so I suspect that it doesn't make a difference for me, except that without creon I wouldn't be getting sufficient essential nutrients due to impaired digestion

 

[plantae]

I should stress that I am not recommending skipping Creon. I'm just saying that if I forget it (which is rare these days) I don't stress about it for one meal. And forgetting it for one meal doesn't cause any uncomfortable or even noticeable symptoms for me. Forgetting it might mean I am missing out on essential nutrients though. Forgetting my proton pump inhibitor (PPI) pill though causes pain. Not pancreatitis level pain (no where near that), but very uncomfortable pain. PPIs are a different subject though

Edit: I should also add that when I talk about eating fat doesn't effect me, I'm talking moderate to high levels of fat. Extreme levels of fat might trigger my pancreatitis. E.g. pea and ham soup, which I love, but is very, very high in fat the way I prepare it did trigger a pancreatitis episode for me. But pea and ham soup, the way I prepare it, is basically solid when it's cooled hahaha. Solid fat. But, yes, stuff like bacon, sausages, lamb (high in trans fats and expensive here so I don't eat it much, but I do occasionally) etc do not effect me creon or not