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Type 2 Help needed please re:HbA1c readings

P

Perthperth

Member
Messages
11
Location
Yorkshire
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Was diagnosed with diabetes 2 around 8 weeks ago with HbA1c of 53 and tested 2 weeks later at 49. Since diagnosis I have lost 4 kilo putting myself on low carb diet. I have porridge for breakfast with milk, lunch usually consists of salad with sardines in a wrap. Mid afternoon I have a low calorie yogurt. My evening meal is 1/2 plate of salad, some fresh green veg, chicken breast or tinned salmon or like. I usually mix and match with other proteins. Just got results from HbA1c I had yesterday (8 weeks after original diagnosis) of 51. Anyone tell me where I am going wrong. PS trying to refrain off medication and lower levels.
 
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Porridge is not considered low carb and 'low calorie' foodstuffs often contain hidden carbs. Read labels carefully and set yourself a carb target of wherever you feel you may be comfortable. Good luck.
 
As @Guzzler has said, be careful with labels it's wise to read the details on the backs of packaging to check carb levels. Most breakfast cereals are high carb and the wrap you have is most likely high carb too. You can use lettuce leaves to construct a wrap.
Well done on your weight loss!!
 
I usually have Porridge Oats for breakfast as well as it keeps me full until lunch but this week I was taken off drugs and decided to see if I could keep readings low by trying for lower carbs and more protein and have switched to baked beans, eggs, plum tomatoes and quorn sausages for breakfast and so far all my last 8 readings are between 3.8 and 6.1 so perhaps that might help. If you do not have a finger pricking meter i suggest investing in one and then you can test bg levels before meals and two hours later and so by trial and error find out what foods your body tolerates and the ones to avoid. I am newly diagnosed too and perhaps somebody can provide better advice than my try it and see. Hope this help. Andrew Smith
 
miahara said:
As @Guzzler has said, be careful with labels it's wise to read the details on the backs of packaging to check carb levels. Most breakfast cereals are high carb and the wrap you have is most likely high carb too. You can use lettuce leaves to construct a wrap.
Well done on your weight loss!!
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I ordered pitta bread from Amazon 5 grams of carbs. They are really nice. They do not taste like your average pitta bread, but lighter and better. These have not made me gain any weight or spiked my BS levels. The price is not bad either. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Josephs-Ca...nav_hcs_bia_t_3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=1 I will have one once or twice a week
 
acs1951 said:
I usually have Porridge Oats for breakfast as well as it keeps me full until lunch but this week I was taken off drugs and decided to see if I could keep readings low by trying for lower carbs and more protein and have switched to baked beans, eggs, plum tomatoes and quorn sausages for breakfast and so far all my last 8 readings are between 3.8 and 6.1 so perhaps that might help. If you do not have a finger pricking meter i suggest investing in one and then you can test bg levels before meals and two hours later and so by trial and error find out what foods your body tolerates and the ones to avoid. I am newly diagnosed too and perhaps somebody can provide better advice than my try it and see. Hope this help. Andrew Smith
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Some members report higher bg readings when having baked beans from a tin, I am sure you have read the labels (if, indded, you are getting them from a tin) but if not why not try leaving them out a few times just to see if you get a lower reading? We are not all the same so, as you say, testing and experimenting with different combinations can throw up some surprising results. Well done on taking a proactive choice on your condition btw.
 
Took onboard all comments and will ditch the porridge and wrap. Not got a meter yet but have ordered one and will be here shortly as ordered through amazon. Any ideas are welcome regarding suitable low carb foods. Not as easy at it looks is it lol. Will keep trying........ thanks
 
Perthperth said:
Was diagnosed with diabetes 2 around 8 weeks ago with HbA1c of 53 and tested 2 weeks later at 49. Since diagnosis I have lost 4 kilo putting myself on low carb diet. I have porridge for breakfast with milk, lunch usually consists of salad with sardines in a wrap. Mid afternoon I have a low calorie yogurt. My evening meal is 1/2 plate of salad, some fresh green veg, chicken breast or tinned salmon or like. I usually mix and match with other proteins. Just got results from HbA1c I had yesterday (8 weeks after original diagnosis) of 51. Anyone tell me where I am going wrong. PS trying to refrain off medication and lower levels.
Click to expand...
Firstly, not a doctor, only speaking personal experience, HA1C are not always perfect, and there is a ratio of Error zone, my first A1C was error, so I would get second opinion if I were you to check this out.

Secondly, porridge is very high carb orientated, low calorie yogurt if it is a fruit style yogurt, again not good to each for spikes, should natural plain greek yogurt. Great to hear you have put yourself on low carb, try the keto eating plan, see diet doctor website its marvellous.

Also, as well as cutting carbs, its worthwhile to ensure you exercise more than what you may exercise normally. Its a combination of lifestyle change exercise, low carb eating, and intermittent fasting helps also greatly, that keep the control levels consistent.

If I were you I would double check the results, they had me down at 8.1 % with average sugars of 128mg/dl this was incorrect, as to have an A1C so high should have read 183mg/dl, the error was 8.1% it should have read 7.1% a typographical error was in place, if I Had not checked it out I would not have known....and was informed it was correct!!! that A1C tests rarely are wrong, this is not the case, they are very often wrong, it depends on the kit they use, if it was fasting test and how long it was after blood taken when lab finally tests, its worthwhile checking with doctor to get this information.

Hope this helps

mallorca
 
Well done on losing weight

8 weeks is a bit short between tests ( turnover of blood cells is usually deemed to be 3 months ) - as Hbac1 is an average you could have been a bit higher before diagnosed and you might be a little lower now .A meter will give you a guide to your current BS ( you will see from other forum threads that meter results can be a guide rather than gospel but are good indication of the direction of travel .
We are all different as others have said, porridge is OK for some and not others - only meter can tell if you spike with it . If you like it you could try making with water and then add a bit of full cream rather than making with/ adding milk . Low fat yogurt often has more carbs than you might expect , full fat may be better and more filling. .
I can only speak about my experience I found the food diary a really good idea and I was surprised what I was eating and in the diary I noted the carbs. I found I had to moderate protein as well so I try( not always succeeding ! ) to eat about 0.8 kilo protein of the weight I want to be - I do not eat any artificially low fat food as often made low fat by adding carbs. I did this all gradually moderating things as I went along - did not go ultra low carb and went gradually from 150 down to my current 50/60 carbs .

Good Luck on your journey
 
Just wanted to say a huge thank you to you guys for the help and support when I posted this thread. Latest HbA1c 36..... Lost 10kg in all, around 12%of my body weight. Did the LCHF, easier than I thought and once I got a few recipes together got even easier. Thank you once again.
 
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