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recently diagnosed after ten years of pre diabetes

L

lambcolin

Member
Messages
7
Location
merseyside
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
After years of pre diabetes which I controlled with diet and exerciseIi was diagnosed and prescribed with metformin.I really do not want to start on this road so I started a low carb diet.I exercise quite a lot, mostly cycling and am not overweight so cutting down drastically on carbs was a real big effort and at first resulted in my losing weight that I could not afford to.I persevered and with eating more fats and proteins as described in the low carb diet am about normal in weight terms(for me).Before I was prescribes the medicine I was averaging about 7.6 first thing in the morning and about 8.8 two hours after meals in the daytime.These numbers have now changes to 7.1 and 8.0 respectively.I was expecting to see a much more dramatic change with cutting out carbs almost completely.Am I being realistic to expect a bigger improvement?
 
How long have you been low carbing?
What are your readings like at other times in the day?
And the six million dollar question.. how low carb are you? Do you know how many carb you eat per day?
 
have been on the low carb. for seven weeks now.....my readings are usually about 7.4 two hours or more after food and before sleeping.After exercise it will drop to the low sixes.As for my carb intake i have cut out rice and pasta,which were my staples,have only one slice of wholemeal bread per day,no potatoes at all.I am counting on average 120 grammes and never above 150.Have been filling up on green veg and meat with lighter meals of greek yoghurt and olives with boiled eggs.Just expected more for the effort!
 
Your body will still be adjusting from the insulin resistance, you may need longer to get your levels down anywhere near normal. Some never do!
Your results are not that bad, you have a good low carb diet, maybe drop your carbs a little bit more, or maybe eat a little less.

Individual readings are not that important, it is how you are doing later on and seeing trends, such as, a meal would have a reading after two hours would be 8.0 a month ago.
Same meal today, would be 7.6. So an improvement, in that month.

Being in normal levels is really hard core low carb, and only being just above normal levels after food and particularly exercise is really not that bad.

Do you feel better, have your symptoms eased?
 
lambcolin said:
have been on the low carb. for seven weeks now.....my readings are usually about 7.4 two hours or more after food and before sleeping.After exercise it will drop to the low sixes.As for my carb intake i have cut out rice and pasta,which were my staples,have only one slice of wholemeal bread per day,no potatoes at all.I am counting on average 120 grammes and never above 150.Have been filling up on green veg and meat with lighter meals of greek yoghurt and olives with boiled eggs.Just expected more for the effort!
Click to expand...
I got great results by going less than 20g of carbs per day.. personally I would say that 120-150g of carbs isn't especially low..
I often fast as well which has an even better impact on my sugars.
That's what works for me.
 
I have no idea how much carb you used to eat before, but I would have much worse readings than you if i ate that much carb.
Of course, exercise makes a huge difference, and you may be reaping those benefits, plus your meds.

You may find it interesting to eat your 120+g on a day you don't exercise, while testing rigorously, to see how much a part your exercise plays (i'm thinking of mapping the peaks and troughs, rather than just the usual pre and +2 hr tests). For me, exercise makes a big difference, by reducing my baseline levels, but unless it happens every day, with consistent effects, then my bg control deteriorates dramatically.

Have you read the www.bloodsugar101.com articles? I find that website very inspiring! :)
 
When I first started I was eating over 100g a day. I did lose weight (which I needed to) but my BS did not improve enough for my liking so I reduced the carbs, and then reduced them again, and then again. I have been on around 30g a day now for over a year, and that seems to be my limit, with absolutely no carbs for breakfast, a few at lunch time, the rest for evening meal, no snacks.

Perhaps you could try reducing your carb portion sizes, or eliminating the bread? If you are in the UK and have a Lidl near to you, try their high protein rolls. They are very low carb, high fat, high fibre and high protein. Many of us here swear by them.
 
nosher8355 said:
Your body will still be adjusting from the insulin resistance, you may need longer to get your levels down anywhere near normal. Some never do!
Your results are not that bad, you have a good low carb diet, maybe drop your carbs a little bit more, or maybe eat a little less.

Individual readings are not that important, it is how you are doing later on and seeing trends, such as, a meal would have a reading after two hours would be 8.0 a month ago.
Same meal today, would be 7.6. So an improvement, in that month.

Being in normal levels is really hard core low carb, and only being just above normal levels after food and particularly exercise is really not that bad.

Do you feel better, have your symptoms eased?
Click to expand...
 
I have always exercised quite a lot,these days mostly cycling, as a result i have always been slim.I am 5'10 and weigh 72kg...this does not leave much margin to lose weight so cutting down on food intake while retaining energy levels is quite a challenge. When i started the programme i was 76kg so losing 4kg is not a great thing for me.Thanks for the advice and i'll stick with it and hope to see enough improvement to give me the encouragement i need.
 
lambcolin said:
I have always exercised quite a lot,these days mostly cycling, as a result i have always been slim.I am 5'10 and weigh 72kg...this does not leave much margin to lose weight so cutting down on food intake while retaining energy levels is quite a challenge. When i started the programme i was 76kg so losing 4kg is not a great thing for me.Thanks for the advice and i'll stick with it and hope to see enough improvement to give me the encouragement i need.
Click to expand...

It is always about getting your individual needs and how you react to certain food groups. That's why testing is so important!
Exercise is a toughie because your liver will respond with extra glucose if you do too much. Some diabetics can't exercise strenuously and just walking is more healthy for them. It is always interesting to hear how people do after exercise, especially when they get a huge spike even though they haven't eaten anything.

Best wishes
 
You did well lasting 10 years as pre diabetic... Got to say if you still had pasta n rice in that time too, you did especially well.

To get better improvements, well, sorry, you really need to minimise the rest of the carbs....

Try looking round the forum at lchf and eating low carb veg, saying bye bye to potatoes... And cereal of any type... And taking 30 minutes walk every day.
 
bulkbiker said:
I got great results by going less than 20g of carbs per day.. personally I would say that 120-150g of carbs isn't especially low..
I often fast as well which has an even better impact on my sugars.
That's what works for me.
Click to expand...

(1) I agree - 120-150 grams of carb is a lot - it's not nearly low enough to do anything much. You need to try 30 grams carb, c. 0.75 gram protein per kilo of your bodyweight, and c. 180 grams fat.

(2) If after going true low carb you're still that high, then you may actually be late-onset Type 1. Press for a GAD test to check that.

Being Type 1 isn't so awful, particularly if you arrest the honeymoon so it doesn't ever really develop.

But don't stay at 8.0. It's much too high.
 
If you want to improve your fasting glucose level. Then consider eating your meals, especially carbs only during the day and nothing after sunset. A 12-14 hour fasting time.

That will give your body sufficient time to go into mild ketosis and helps to clear some fats from the liver.
 
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