I have just been told that I am pre-diabetic, and have spent the last fortnight researching the condition. Diabetes UK pushes the low carb approach but the NHS guidelines are opposed to this, advocating eating wholemeal carbs whilst cutting back on fat. Please can someone advise me as I am thoroughly confused.
Pre-diabetic now
- Thread starter smithjohns
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- low carb pre diabetes
bulkbiker
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- Type of diabetes
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- Diet only
Check out some of the entries in this section for inspiration
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/category/success-stories-and-testimonials.43/
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/category/success-stories-and-testimonials.43/
13lizanne
Expert
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- Tablets (oral)
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- The Gym, + unkindness and rudeness
Hello @smithjohns and welcome to the forum. There is a lot of confusing information out there. I've tagged @daisy1 who will be along shortly with some excellent, trustworthy information for you which I'm sure will help you to decide on a course of action. Please look at the link that @bulkbiker has given to the success stories, they are inspirational. Good luck!
daisy1
Legend
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@smithjohns
Hello and welcome to the forum
Here is the basic information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. This contains a lot of advice about carbs as well as a link to the free Low Carb Program which you could join. Ask as many questions as you need to 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 well over 220,000 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:
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
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.
Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a free 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.
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
Access to blood glucose test strips
The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
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 blood glucose 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.
Hello and welcome to the forum
Here is the basic information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. This contains a lot of advice about carbs as well as a link to the free Low Carb Program which you could join. Ask as many questions as you need to 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 well over 220,000 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
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
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.
Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a free 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.
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
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
- Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
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 blood glucose 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.
Maggie/Magpie
Well-Known Member
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- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
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Hello SmithJohns and welcome to the forum,
I've been seeing a dietitian for weight loss, was diagnosed diabetic type 2 and the advise she gave me was the same. I mentioned the low carb high fat to the dietitian, she had heard of it because a colleague was using it on clients who are having problems controlling their blood sugars, so it was up to me what I followed. The diabetic nurse at my surgery said if I was going to do lchf then to add in butter but avoid the cream. So I agree opinions you get are conflicting but having been on every diet going I decided to give it ago, so I've reduced carbs but I am being cautious where it comes to the high fat section as with one diet or another I have been low fat for years. I have been doing lchf now for 3 months my Hba1c has gone down from 53 to 40, my blood sugars range between 5.5 and 7 and I have lost 1 stone 9 lbs in weight.
So I'm convinced its working for me. It's up to you but there's no harm in trialing lchf for yourself even if you decide to only do it for 3 months or until you have your next Hba1c blood test. Were all different and not every diet works for everyone so it's up to you but I'm convinced and will be continuing on the lchf diet as I have quite a lot of weight to loose and I want to control the diabetes rather than it controlling me.
Hope this help. Good luck
Maggie
I've been seeing a dietitian for weight loss, was diagnosed diabetic type 2 and the advise she gave me was the same. I mentioned the low carb high fat to the dietitian, she had heard of it because a colleague was using it on clients who are having problems controlling their blood sugars, so it was up to me what I followed. The diabetic nurse at my surgery said if I was going to do lchf then to add in butter but avoid the cream. So I agree opinions you get are conflicting but having been on every diet going I decided to give it ago, so I've reduced carbs but I am being cautious where it comes to the high fat section as with one diet or another I have been low fat for years. I have been doing lchf now for 3 months my Hba1c has gone down from 53 to 40, my blood sugars range between 5.5 and 7 and I have lost 1 stone 9 lbs in weight.
So I'm convinced its working for me. It's up to you but there's no harm in trialing lchf for yourself even if you decide to only do it for 3 months or until you have your next Hba1c blood test. Were all different and not every diet works for everyone so it's up to you but I'm convinced and will be continuing on the lchf diet as I have quite a lot of weight to loose and I want to control the diabetes rather than it controlling me.
Hope this help. Good luck
Maggie
CherryAA
Well-Known Member
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- 2,171
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Diet only
I've embraced the natural fats including cream and clotted cream,lard, butter and goose and duck fat. My diet tastes fantastic my weight is dropping, my blood sugars have been in the 4-5's most of the day today and my blood reports are excellent and improving consistently as per the signature below. Not sure why your nurse is bothered about the cream to be honest, but then again the seem to make a great deal about worrying about the wrong stuff in the NHS .
In five months i have gone from 90 (10.3%) -44 (6.2%) and my current daily average would give a reading of 34 ( 5.3%) if replicated over the long term HBa1C.
I have thoroughly enjoyed stealing the fat from other people's steak, pork chops and eating my pork scratchings !
In five months i have gone from 90 (10.3%) -44 (6.2%) and my current daily average would give a reading of 34 ( 5.3%) if replicated over the long term HBa1C.
I have thoroughly enjoyed stealing the fat from other people's steak, pork chops and eating my pork scratchings !
