Have I been eating too much fruit?

[Libbaloo]

I've had my first day of Low carb high fat and haven't had hunger pangs between meals. I need to lose weight to lower my BMI and keep my cholesterol in normal limits (I am on Statins)

I haven't craved fruit but have just succumbed to a second nectarine (first one was at lunchtime but I ate in bowl with crème fraiche rather than whole and on the go.)

Its a pleasure to have egg and bacon on the mornings and this evening I had smoked mackerel with green salad ( a small amount of puy lentils and some feta and balsamic vinegar but having browsed through the 'Diabetes UK' www and NHS booklets handed to me by my GP, I still can't quite believe how the dietary advice contrasts with tips from members here online. They say to balance low fat and eat cereals for fibre and starchy carbs at meals but lowering sugar and carb intake... eat more fruit and veg etc. It takes some navigating.

Am I really going to lose weight and keep cholesterol down with LCHF? I'm trying not to over compensate with too much protein.

I used to sprinkle raw porridge oats into 0% crème fraiche with raspberries but now the 0% has gone. I didn't realise how much sugar it includes.

I really want the scales to start budging from the weight I've settled at.

 

[Bluetit1802]

Am I really going to lose weight and keep cholesterol down with LCHF? I'm trying not to over compensate with too much protein.

.

I did. 30% of body weight gone and significant improvement in my cholesterol and lipids.

 

[Donnadoobie]

I have lost 30lbs doing LCHF, I am now back into a healthy BMI range, something I have not been for at leas 15 years. It does work, feels wrong at first but you will get used to it.

 

[seadragon]

Was in healthy BMI range anyway but top end and I've lost 6kg on lchf while stuffing myself with lovely foods and never feeling hungry so yes it does work. And vegetables taste lovely when cooked with coconut oil or butter and creamy seasoning (throw a dollop of sour cream in to a green veggie stir fry (courgette. kale, cabbage etc) and add seasonings - yum) (you can forget the boring low fat steamed or boiled veg). Fasting BG down from 6.6 to getting 4.8's - 5.5's. Wont know about lipids until I can get a new set of tests done but am expecting them to be good too.

Full fat dairy has less carbs per volume and also contains good fats and lots of vitamins are fat soluble so you are likely to get more vitamins with it I think. Don't worry about the calories since as it's more satisfying you naturally tend to eat less of it. Hard to overeat on a higher fat diet while carbs are addictive and the BG roller coaster they can create can make you eat more as you feel hungrier.

 

[sanguine]

Am I really going to lose weight and keep cholesterol down with LCHF? I'm trying not to over compensate with too much protein.

Your total cholesterol might not change much, it might even go up slightly - what's important is the HDL and triglycerides (components of the total figure, which in itself is pretty meaningless).

There's a thread going on now http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/thr...ldl-how-has-your-ldl-changed-over-time.82461/ that refers.

 

[mekalu2k4]

Hi OP,

First off, what are your parameters / readings say? simply saying 'pre-diabetes'? that does not convey much.

I tried to look for your age, body weight, current BS levels, BMI, Blood pressure, measurements of waist, neck, hip etc. What all understood - you are a woman, currently on satins, have a 21 yr old son.

I am not sure how you can get some help without these basic parameters. Besides those, you need to provide your current diet and workout patterns too.

My apologies in advance if you have already provided those somewhere and I could not locate them!

 

[ButtterflyLady]

Hi OP,

First off, what are your parameters / readings say? simply saying 'pre-diabetes'? that does not convey much.

I tried to look for your age, body weight, current BS levels, BMI, Blood pressure, measurements of waist, neck, hip etc. What all understood - you are a woman, currently on satins, have a 21 yr old son.

I am not sure how you can get some help without these basic parameters. Besides those, you need to provide your current diet and workout patterns too.

My apologies in advance if you have already provided those somewhere and I could not locate them!

We've been able to provide quite a lot of help so far without knowing all these parameters.

Personally the only ones I usually like to know in order to give appropriate info are age, gender, weight/height, HbA1c/FBG, how long they have had pre-D or D, and if relevant, medications.

 

[mekalu2k4]

We've been able to provide quite a lot of help so far without knowing all these parameters.

Personally the only ones I usually like to know in order to give appropriate info are age, gender, weight/height, HbA1c/FBG, how long they have had pre-D or D, and if relevant, medications.

The parameters that I mentioned are basic and in fact way too less to advise. For example, body measurements [waist, neck, hip, body weight, height etc] indicate where the fat is deposited. In most cases, a simple workout over 8 weeks can get rid of 3 to 5% of body fat [yes, body fat] and thus the person can reduce / re-adjust the medication too. Please note that - spot reduction is impossible; but fat can be burnt off. Even simple vibration belt can improve the condition!

In some cases it is not possible to suggest any workout such as walking or jogging at all - especially for people with BMI exceeding 40.

Most people [from looking at our clients in our gym] however educated they are; do not even know that their current medication needs to be adjusted. When they join our gym, our resident doc will do simple tests and then checks the medications. In most cases the medications are under! the dosage has to go up. May be that is the reason they ended up seeking the help of gym. Then at the end of the month we mostly see new 'avatars', smiles on the faces, confidence etc. Older folks do not change much visibly; but BS is kept under control as the workout regimes help in improving the resistance.

Hence - to cut the story short; It is important that seniors here advise newer folks to provide all the info to the possible extent. Asking them to read a whole set of info is fine; but a specific advise to suit the individual with appropriate reason will do wonders. For instance, I provided most of my info and the advises I got on this very forum are very specific and worked perfectly to me.

It is up to the OP or anyone to provide info.

 

[ButtterflyLady]

The parameters that I mentioned are basic and in fact way too less to advise. For example, body measurements [waist, neck, hip, body weight, height etc] indicate where the fat is deposited. In most cases, a simple workout over 8 weeks can get rid of 3 to 5% of body fat [yes, body fat] and thus the person can reduce / re-adjust the medication too. Please note that - spot reduction is impossible; but fat can be burnt off. Even simple vibration belt can improve the condition!

In some cases it is not possible to suggest any workout such as walking or jogging at all - especially for people with BMI exceeding 40.

Most people [from looking at our clients in our gym] however educated they are; do not even know that their current medication needs to be adjusted. When they join our gym, our resident doc will do simple tests and then checks the medications. In most cases the medications are under! the dosage has to go up. May be that is the reason they ended up seeking the help of gym. Then at the end of the month we mostly see new 'avatars', smiles on the faces, confidence etc. Older folks do not change much visibly; but BS is kept under control as the workout regimes help in improving the resistance.

Hence - to cut the story short; It is important that seniors here advise newer folks to provide all the info to the possible extent. Asking them to read a whole set of info is fine; but a specific advise to suit the individual with appropriate reason will do wonders. For instance, I provided most of my info and the advises I got on this very forum are very specific and worked perfectly to me.

It is up to the OP or anyone to provide info.

Your parameters may be useful for clients who come to your gym and want advice on working out, but the OP was just asking about fruit and prediabetes. If she wants to ask you about workouts, cool, but I don't think that range of info is needed for advice about fruit and prediabetes.

A couple of other things... what sort of vibration belt are you talking about, and are you saying it can improve diabetes or weight issues or something else? I also think it's fine to suggest walking as exercise for people with BMI exceeding 40, because I have previously had a BMI of 46 and I was able to exercise by walking at that time. (It's in the 20s now). Perhaps a BMI of 50 is where it starts becoming too difficult... they could try aquajogging... I've also seen documentaries where super-obese people were doing an exercise in hospital where they had to pull themselves up from their wheelchair holding onto a rail. So being morbidly obese doesn't preclude exercise, it just needs to be carefully considered.

 

[Libbaloo]

Tha

I think it's probable that the doctor's view of statins was and is that the cardio-protective benefits outweigh the risk of diabetes developing. Not everyone on statins develops diabetes. I'm not saying I agree with this view, but it's basically what the doctors' guidelines say.

I'd recommend taking a cautious approach when discussing all this with your doctor, as she might see our ideas as controversial (at best). Our collected wisdom and the research we are aware of is placed up against their training, research, and guidelines. Doctors have a tendency to rely on the latter and shut out other ideas, which I think is understandable. It's their head on the block if something goes wrong.

Ultimately though, many of us have demonstrated to them with cold hard facts like lower blood glucose, cholesterol, BP and weight, and they then cannot ignore those facts. I think the smart approach is to mainly keep these ideas up your sleeve until you can show them the results of your hard work later. Some people start off by telling their doctor the wonderful things they have been learning here and are then shot down and treated like a naughty schoolchild. Your doctor sounds more professional than that but hey, I'm cautious I guess.

As you noted above, you have a few cardiovascular risk factors, so statins might be appropriate for you. And, who knows, you might have developed prediabetes anyway. A lot of this is speculation. To keep things simple, reducing carbs and weight should reduce blood sugar and cholesterol and cardiac risks... to a point where you may not need statins, or medication for diabetes. Probably something to put on the back burner for now, unless you are getting bad side effects from the statins, like muscle problems, for example.

I ran your weight and height through a BMI converter and the result was 31.5. 20-25 is "normal" and 25-30 is overweight. My own BMI was once 44 - yikes. Research shows that people start to see benefits after as little as 5-10% weight loss, which I think is about 1 and a half stone for you. I predict you will achieve this is in no time at all Once you've done that, you just keep on going until you reach your target. It's easier than you think.

You mentioned you've been on borderline BP meds? The recommended upper BP limit for people without diabetes or cardio-vascular disease is 140/85 and for those with diabetes or CVD it is 130/80. I would suggest with prediabetes and raised cholesterol and your family history the lower target is a good one to aim for. I'm on a low dose BP med and it keeps my BP well under control and it also protects my kidneys from damage. There is something about high BP, diabetes and high cholesterol that makes these 3 things go together and make each other worse. So we have to tackle them on all 3 fronts.

Managing slightly high BP is about the easiest part of all this, because the first-line drugs are usually well tolerated, and diet and weight loss aren't as important as they are with diabetes and high cholesterol.

thank you. I appreciate wise ad ice about conversations with doctor. One of the gps at practice is quite scary, looks like she does a lot of exercise and makes me feel a bit intimidated when I ask questions... Even though I have quite a good medical awareness due to my own job.... There is another doctor who is more approachable and might be more keen to explain things and answer my questions. I've never asked for print outs of blood tests but will start to request.

 

[Libbaloo]

Ba

Tha

thank you. I appreciate wise ad ice about conversations with doctor. One of the gps at practice is quite scary, looks like she does a lot of exercise and makes me feel a bit intimidated when I ask questions... Even though I have quite a good medical awareness due to my own job.... There is another doctor who is more approachable and might be more keen to explain things and answer my questions. I've never asked for print outs of blood tests but will start to request.

Tha

thank you. I appreciate wise ad ice about conversations with doctor. One of the gps at practice is quite scary, looks like she does a lot of exercise and makes me feel a bit intimidated when I ask questions... Even though I have quite a good medical awareness due to my own job.... There is another doctor who is more approachable and might be more keen to explain things and answer my questions. I've never asked for print outs of blood tests but will start to request.

Hi OP,

First off, what are your parameters / readings say? simply saying 'pre-diabetes'? that does not convey much.

I tried to look for your age, body weight, current BS levels, BMI, Blood pressure, measurements of waist, neck, hip etc. What all understood - you are a woman, currently on satins, have a 21 yr old son.

I am not sure how you can get some help without these basic parameters. Besides those, you need to provide your current diet and workout patterns too.

My apologies in advance if you have already provided those somewhere and I could not locate them!

thanks I haven't posted details yet but will do so when I have a few more details from GP. I am 51 and BMI is 31.5 . I am 5,9 and 15.4 stones. On BP medication for mild hypertension and on statins. Visceral fat ,at be an issue because whilst I am size 18, my height disguises the tummy fat somewhat. The weight had gradually increased over past ten years of more sedentary job and some comfort eating and snacking although I thought my diet was healthy low fat etc etc. lots of fruit.

 

[Libbaloo]

Ba



thanks I haven't posted details yet but will do so when I have a few more details from GP. I am 51 and BMI is 31.5 . I am 5,9 and 15.4 stones. On BP medication for mild hypertension and on statins. Visceral fat ,at be an issue because whilst I am size 18, my height disguises the tummy fat somewhat. The weight had gradually increased over past ten years of more sedentary job and some comfort eating and snacking although I thought my diet was healthy low fat etc etc. lots of fruit.

We've been able to provide quite a lot of help so far without knowing all these parameters.

Personally the only ones I usually like to know in order to give appropriate info are age, gender, weight/height, HbA1c/FBG, how long they have had pre-D or D, and if relevant, medications.

It is good to have a gentle intro to the site as there is so much to take n board n early stages if diagnosis and coming into online forum. Even just learning the abbreviations for terms and getting head round medical aspects is enough to cope with but browsing and having personal feedback is so helpful. I am grateful for the amazing support from all who have responded to me so far.

 

[Libbaloo]

Thank goodness the Kentish cherry season is over. No more roadside temptation from those delicious fruits as they beckon from their punnets!

 

[mekalu2k4]

I am 51 and BMI is 31.5 . I am 5,9 and 15.4 stones. On BP medication for mild hypertension and on statins.

I believe your condition can be reversed with a well planned strategy that combines diet, workouts and medication. Usually initial objective should be weight reduction + fat reduction [should know your current body fat percentage first], which means you do not worry about reducing your BS levels - this will be taken care by your current prescribed medication which you are expected to continue and of course to an extent by the efforts to reduce weight/ fat.

Usually after 8 to 12 weeks [or when you feel necessary] need to contact GP to do tests again and get help on adjusting medications. It should continue until you are taken of the drugs.

There are several ways of doing this [from lipo suc to basic belly fat belts]. But it is all up to your/ one's abilities to stick to a regime/strategy that is working for your body.

I visited a vast number of health clubs across the globe, that specialize T2D specifically. will write about that 'spread of strategies later'. Practically what I have seen - some clients follow the regime on their own, some need daily talk, assistance or company etc, some need supervision [to avoid getting injured], some need encouragement - so on and so forth. You are very young, as you are only 51. Have seen much older folks [sorry, but have to use these words to express the age] who needed serious help, who tried harder to get in shape. Have seen a few in Japan around 85+, regular in gym and got angry with me because I used the word 'old age'.

Start thinking about getting into shape right away....

 

[Libbaloo]

I believe your condition can be reversed with a well planned strategy that combines diet, workouts and medication. Usually initial objective should be weight reduction + fat reduction [should know your current body fat percentage first], which means you do not worry about reducing your BS levels - this will be taken care by your current prescribed medication which you are expected to continue and of course to an extent by the efforts to reduce weight/ fat.

Usually after 8 to 12 weeks [or when you feel necessary] need to contact GP to do tests again and get help on adjusting medications. It should continue until you are taken of the drugs.

There are several ways of doing this [from lipo suc to basic belly fat belts]. But it is all up to your/ one's abilities to stick to a regime/strategy that is working for your body.

I visited a vast number of health clubs across the globe, that specialize T2D specifically. will write about that 'spread of strategies later'. Practically what I have seen - some clients follow the regime on their own, some need daily talk, assistance or company etc, some need supervision [to avoid getting injured], some need encouragement - so on and so forth. You are very young, as you are only 51. Have seen much older folks [sorry, but have to use these words to express the age] who needed serious help, who tried harder to get in shape. Have seen a few in Japan around 85+, regular in gym and got angry with me because I used the word 'old age'.

Start thinking about getting into shape right away....

I'm afraid your advice and observations have rather sent me into a spin and confusion. I have only been on this forum for three days and as I said earlier, I was described by the GP as borderline which I now understand is prediabetes. I think I have been doing well coming to terms with info and advice which is all very new and I am still feeling a bit fragile as I get used to the idea of making lifestyle changes but I to feel rather overwhelmed right now. I am not on any diabetes medication only statins and moderate blood pressure. I know have to make significance body mass changes but I think I feel overloaded and under pressure to get down the gym this week. I'm glad there is hope though.

 

[Libbaloo]

I'm afraid your advice and observations have rather sent me into a spin and confusion. I have only been on this forum for three days and as I said earlier, I was described by the GP as borderline which I now understand is prediabetes. I think I have been doing well coming to terms with info and advice which is all very new and I am still feeling a bit fragile as I get used to the idea of making lifestyle changes but I to feel rather overwhelmed right now. I am not on any diabetes medication only statins and moderate blood pressure. I know have to make significance body mass changes but I think I feel overloaded and under pressure to get down the gym this week. I'm glad there is hope though.

Ps I am a size 18 dress size and by no means incapable of walking briskly and working up to a jog or using the exercise bike or normal bike, both of which I have here at home. The thought of liposuction when my thread was just about fruit in the first instance is rather frightening.

 

[mekalu2k4]

nothing to panic. What all I wrote '[from lipo suc to basic belly fat belts]' is general spread and nothing specific to you. Even my last sentence 'Start thinking about getting into shape right away....' is very generic that says 'start thinking' - not doing right away. I believe my post indicated 'consulting GP' as well - which means take necessary actions only after consulting professionals.

Nothing to panic - this only forum where people express their views.
Hope this helps.

 

[Libbaloo]

After a week of restricting fruit intake to blueberries / strawberries with crème fraiche (no helping myself to fruit bowl items on impulse!) I could not resist a nectarine this evening. Infact I had two and a square of 73% cocoa Lidl chocolate following my healthy chicken with leek and courgettes in crème fraiche this evening. BG went from 6.1 pre-meal to 8.6 two hours later. Then I took another check about 5 minutes afterwards and it had gone down to 5.5. I wonder whether the 8.6 was a genuine spike or if it was a dodgy result as I may have had nectarine juice left on my finger! 8.6 is the highest reading I have had since I first started monitoring. Perhaps I have witnessed my first drop from peak spike in action?