Getting to grips

in2deep

Member
Messages
5
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi

I've just recently been diagnosed, suspected Type 2, and have been browsing the forums to see the sorts of things people are talking about. I'm amazed by the wealth of info and support on offer - fantastic!

So far, from a BG of over 30, I've got it down to low teens, and a few single figures - lowest so far is 6.2 (yippee!). Obviously it's early days, but I'm hoping that the ultimate result won't be Type 1, and I can control it via meds and diet.

Seen GP and Diabetic Team in hospital so far, and have some blood test follow ups with the same in a week or so, along with a chat with our local diabetic nurse shortly.

There's a way to go, and some major changes afoot for my lifestyle, etc, but it pays to be positive, and I have support from family, and there looks like a good community here :D

Thanks
Dave
 

daisy1

Legend
Messages
26,457
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Dislikes
Cruelty towards animals.
@in2deep

Hello Dave and welcome to the forum :)

It sounds as though you are already getting your levels down successfully, well done! To help you, here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find this useful. Ask as many questions as you want 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.
 
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in2deep

Member
Messages
5
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Thanks, that's very helpful :happy:

I think the trickiest part seems to be working out carbs & sugars in things, but hopefully I'll get some more advice when I see the diabetic nurses in a couple of weeks.

Cheers
 

daddys1

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,353
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi Dave & welcome to the forum, you will find the NHS will tell you the exact opposite to what people eat on here, I was diagnosed Pre was already & on a very healthy diet started eating fruit had cereal lots of good healthy brown bread and it all led to being Diagnosed diabetic even though I had lost weight. It was not until I came here and started on a LOW CARB HIGH FAT diet did I then really lose weight and get my numbers down. See my signature. Lots have done the same or better on here..............:)

The recommended diet by the NHS does not work. If you want a very good and simple book for seeing which foods have and how many carbs look up 'Carbs & Cals' it is really helpful and it's done solely by pictures.

Keep looking round the forum you will gets lots of useful tips and ask any questions you want, someone will always be there to answer.

Hope this helps,

Neil
 
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jack412

Expert
Messages
5,618
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
you are in for a shock when you find out what the NHS want you to eat..:)
 
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Daibell

Master
Messages
12,662
Type of diabetes
LADA
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi. Yes, beware most NHS diet advice unless you want to make your diabetes worse. If you are overweight then T2 is the most likely diagnosis and a low-carb diet should help a lot possibly with some tablets. Although some T2s go on to have insulin it is not because they are T1 (unless mis-diagnosed) but due to overall progression. If you are slim and possibly younger then late onset T1 is a possibility so bear this in mind when you see the nurse and come back for more support.
 

Paul59

Well-Known Member
Messages
954
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi & welcome.
Loads here to help your new journey.
You will be surprised how quickly things can change for the better when done correctly. As others have said the Nhs advice is not really the way to go, but hope fully with recent findings advice given to us will change for the better & will save the Nhs money in the long run, which is what is needed. Just ask if unsure of anything, there's always some one here to advice as we've all been through what you maybe going through. It,s a long haul but with the right control there are very few problems.
 
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in2deep

Member
Messages
5
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi. Yes, beware most NHS diet advice unless you want to make your diabetes worse. If you are overweight then T2 is the most likely diagnosis and a low-carb diet should help a lot possibly with some tablets. Although some T2s go on to have insulin it is not because they are T1 (unless mis-diagnosed) but due to overall progression. If you are slim and possibly younger then late onset T1 is a possibility so bear this in mind when you see the nurse and come back for more support.

I've already had a chat with a diabetic nurse, and she was very helpful, not bambarding me with dietary advice. The team near me seems fairly clued up, but I agree that it's a good idea to take it with a pinch of salt (although not too much as salt's bad too :rolleyes:).

From what I've seen so far, the best advice generally comes from those who're already experiencing and managing the condition, so as always it's a balancing act.

Looks like it's T2 with meds for now, as my insulin production is there but low, and my BS levels have come right down from their initial high