I was recently diagnosed Type 2 last October. I was first prescribed 2 Metaformin daily. Since then my tablets have been increased to six 3 Metaformin, 2 Glycazide and 1 Sitaglippin. I have a couple of friends that are diabetic and as soon as they reached 3 tabs they were put on insulin. I am a bit worried because I am taking six, should I be on Insulin? Advice would be very much appreciated
Taking 6 tablets
- Thread starter quietlightning
- Start Date
Hi. I am also on the same three tablets max dose which have built up over the last 8 years. Yes, I'm afraid the next step if needed according to the NICE Diabetes Pathways doc is insulin. What is your last HBa1C? It's possible you are slightly over medicated which means you could stay on the tablets for a while yet; it all depends on your HBa1C. Are you low-carbing? It's vital to reduce your carb intake to reduce the need for meds. The NICE guideline show 7.5% as the upper limit at which you should go onto insulin.
Hi, thanks for your answer. I don't know what my Hb was have had it done twice since October and my diabetic nurse said that although still high it had gone down, She never told me how high it was. I didn't realise the importance of me knowing. My blood glucose before breakfast are usually between 7 and 10 . that is low considering I had it up to 30 at one point. I have been trying a low carb diet which I think is working. I try to do a bit of exercise but I am limited to what I can do because of back problems. I don't really want to to go onto insulin.
Hi. You should be able to ask your surgery reception for the HBa1C figures. You have a right to them but some receptionists can be stroppy. The newer figures will be in mmol whereas they used to be in %. See the Home page of this website for a units converter. Daisy should be along shortly to give you lots of links to diet and other info. It's best to keep your carbs at a max of 150gm/day'ish and low-GI to delay the need for insulin.
I am on four metformin and 3 gliclazide a day. Not that any of it is working, as I still have never had a reading below 13.
I was only diagnosed last august, so still quite a newbie. My diagnosis hba1c was 10.8 and after four months it had only gone down to 10.7, despite a total change in diet and all the meds. My nurse phones every week and just increases the glic a bit more (started on 40mg daily, now on 240mg daily) I feel awful for it too. I feel as bad, if not worse, than when I was diagnosed. I am only 32 but feel like 84.
I was only diagnosed last august, so still quite a newbie. My diagnosis hba1c was 10.8 and after four months it had only gone down to 10.7, despite a total change in diet and all the meds. My nurse phones every week and just increases the glic a bit more (started on 40mg daily, now on 240mg daily) I feel awful for it too. I feel as bad, if not worse, than when I was diagnosed. I am only 32 but feel like 84.
Hi Stephiesut. From what you say I would suspect you may be a Late onset Type 1(LADA) diabetic. If you are not overweight, and hence insulin resistant, then this is very likely and you must insist that your nurse does a GAD and c-peptide test. The former will check whether you have the most common antibody associated with LADA. The c-peptide will check your natural insulin level which I suspect is very low. Even a negative GAD doesn't prove you aren't a LADA. You stand a strong chance of producing ketones thru the burning of fat for energy (Ketosis) which when combined with high blood sugar can cause a state of Ketoacidosis which needs urgent A&E treatment with insulin. So, I don't want to scare you but at your HBa1c level which isn't moving down in my opinion you really do need to go onto insulin. So, have plenty of fluids, see the nurse and if she doesn't do the tests or move you to insulin then go to A&E for their opinion.
daisy1
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Hi quietlightening and welcome to the forum 
Here is the information which we give to new members which Daibell mentioned. Carry on asking questions and someone will 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 well over 30,000 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
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 ... rains.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
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.
Here is the information which we give to new members which Daibell mentioned. Carry on asking questions and someone will 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 well over 30,000 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
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 ... rains.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
- 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.
I understand about the tablet taking. I take 4 a day and boy does that tear up my stomach. I also take metoprolol for my heart, and a couple of blood pressure meds and thyroid the biggee besides metformin. Feel like a drug store.
