A day of BG readings

Janedent

Member
Messages
10
I am type 2, diagnosed in Feb 2020. I've been on a wholefood plant-based low fat diet for 6 weeks now. I take my blood glucose readings about 6 - 8 times a day. I am very curious to know what other people's readings are, for the sake of comparison. So, if you wouldn't mind, could you give me yours for yesterday -just a set of numbers would be fine?
Here are mine:
6.2 (fasting BG)
4.6 (2 hrs after breakfast)
5.1
6
9 (2 hrs after lunch)
6.5
6.2
6.1 (2 hrs after a massive dinner of vegan bangers and mash - pleased with that one)
6.8 (bedtime).
 

JoKalsbeek

Expert
Messages
5,937
Type of diabetes
I reversed my Type 2
Treatment type
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I am type 2, diagnosed in Feb 2020. I've been on a wholefood plant-based low fat diet for 6 weeks now. I take my blood glucose readings about 6 - 8 times a day. I am very curious to know what other people's readings are, for the sake of comparison. So, if you wouldn't mind, could you give me yours for yesterday -just a set of numbers would be fine?
Here are mine:
6.2 (fasting BG)
4.6 (2 hrs after breakfast)
5.1
6
9 (2 hrs after lunch)
6.5
6.2
6.1 (2 hrs after a massive dinner of vegan bangers and mash - pleased with that one)
6.8 (bedtime).
Hello @Janedent , nice to meet you!

I can't give you yesterday's numbers, alas, because I haven't tested regularly in years... But as a ballpark, I'd say I'm hovering between 4.5 and 6.5 every day. The highest levels are usually in the morning, due to dawn phenomenon, the rest of the time it's fours and fives. I hate to do this to you, but can you please list exactly what foods you're eating right now? Because I have to say, with the general description, I would've expected higher blood sugars than that odd 9... Colour me fascinated! Also, just checking, are you feeling alright? No muscle weakness, fatigue and the like? Because this is not the kind of diet I'd go for personally, as deficiencies are right around the corner (especially if you're on metformin, B12 would be problematic) and it's hard to control blood sugars on a plant based diet, though some do it here, but far as I know, not in combination with low fat... Are you on any medications at the moment, or going diet-only? This is what I'm doing, (including foods with faces, sorry) for comparison: https://josekalsbeek.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-nutritional-thingy.html I think you'll be quite horrified by it, just as I am by what you're doing, haha! Seriously though... We might be able to learn from one another. We get quite a few vegans/vegetarians in here and I rarely know what to tell them.

Anyway, again, welcome!
Jo
 

Janedent

Member
Messages
10
Hello @Janedent , nice to meet you!

I can't give you yesterday's numbers, alas, because I haven't tested regularly in years... But as a ballpark, I'd say I'm hovering between 4.5 and 6.5 every day. The highest levels are usually in the morning, due to dawn phenomenon, the rest of the time it's fours and fives. I hate to do this to you, but can you please list exactly what foods you're eating right now? Because I have to say, with the general description, I would've expected higher blood sugars than that odd 9... Colour me fascinated! Also, just checking, are you feeling alright? No muscle weakness, fatigue and the like? Because this is not the kind of diet I'd go for personally, as deficiencies are right around the corner (especially if you're on metformin, B12 would be problematic) and it's hard to control blood sugars on a plant based diet, though some do it here, but far as I know, not in combination with low fat... Are you on any medications at the moment, or going diet-only? This is what I'm doing, (including foods with faces, sorry) for comparison: https://josekalsbeek.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-nutritional-thingy.html I think you'll be quite horrified by it, just as I am by what you're doing, haha! Seriously though... We might be able to learn from one another. We get quite a few vegans/vegetarians in here and I rarely know what to tell them.

Anyway, again, welcome!
Jo

Hi Jo
Thanks for your figures. Sounds like we have different approaches. Luckily both diets seem to work.
When I was first diagnosed with T2D, although I was one of the 10% who are not overweight, I did the weight loss thing (as per Dr Michael Mosley) and went on the low carb diet, but I was always hungry. I'm vegan anyway, so, fed up with feeling hungry, I decided to try Dr Neal Barnard's diet (I also read Mastering Diabetes, which is similar, so i kind of cherry pick from the 2). It's early days yet (day 48 to be precise), but I'm never hungry any more. And it's unusual to get a reading of 9, it's usually lower.
So, what do I eat?
For breakfast I always have (and LOVE) a huge bowl of overnight oats, with lots of berries (Tesco's summer fruits) from the freezer and Alpro soya yoghurt with coconut, on the top.
Lunch is usually soup or salad (and often both) or leftovers from last night's dinner. I make a big batch of vegetable soup once a week and it lasts a few days. I throw in any vegetables I find in the fridge, plus a lot of lentils, barley, beans, plus sometimes fake bacon or Linda McCartney sausages. Plus chilli and smoked paprika.
Evening meal is one of the following (always with LOADS of vegetables on the side):
Chickpea or lentil curry and brown rice (again, big batch lasts several days). With Alpro yoghurt with coconut.
Linda McCartney rosemary and onion bangers and mash with onions (fried in water, not oil - yes, it can be done!) and Bisto
Pasta (wholemeal) in tomato sauce (it was pasta that caused the 9 in my list - but it doesn't usually spike me, so it was a surprise)
Stir fry veg and noodles in soya sauce, ginger, chilli sauce, sometimes with tofu
Throughout the day, I eat several snacks, which are either:
Fruit salad with Alpro soya and coconut yoghurt (I eat loads of that)
Pumpernickel bread with banana and strawberries sliced on top (which I call 'fake cake')
Ryvita and humus.
Most evenings a gin and slimline tonic also makes an appearance....
I am a bit underweight (always been a bit thin) but feel very healthy and energetic. I'm not on meds.
Full disclosure: I do miss nuts! Also popadoms.
But, on the plus side, I've grown to love fruit (which I used to think was boring, till I discovered the simple trick of chopping it up and mashing in some Alpro yoghurt).
My 7, 14 and 30 day average scores on my BG monitor are 6.3, 6.5 and 6.6, but I know this is just a rough indication of how I'm doing. I'm really looking forward to my next Hb1Ac test. Then we will see how I'm really doing. I was 7.7% in Feb, so fingers crossed.
Anyway, sorry to ramble on. Food without faces is the future!
Jane
 

JoKalsbeek

Expert
Messages
5,937
Type of diabetes
I reversed my Type 2
Treatment type
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Hi Jo
Thanks for your figures. Sounds like we have different approaches. Luckily both diets seem to work.
When I was first diagnosed with T2D, although I was one of the 10% who are not overweight, I did the weight loss thing (as per Dr Michael Mosley) and went on the low carb diet, but I was always hungry. I'm vegan anyway, so, fed up with feeling hungry, I decided to try Dr Neal Barnard's diet (I also read Mastering Diabetes, which is similar, so i kind of cherry pick from the 2). It's early days yet (day 48 to be precise), but I'm never hungry any more. And it's unusual to get a reading of 9, it's usually lower.
So, what do I eat?
For breakfast I always have (and LOVE) a huge bowl of overnight oats, with lots of berries (Tesco's summer fruits) from the freezer and Alpro soya yoghurt with coconut, on the top.
Lunch is usually soup or salad (and often both) or leftovers from last night's dinner. I make a big batch of vegetable soup once a week and it lasts a few days. I throw in any vegetables I find in the fridge, plus a lot of lentils, barley, beans, plus sometimes fake bacon or Linda McCartney sausages. Plus chilli and smoked paprika.
Evening meal is one of the following (always with LOADS of vegetables on the side):
Chickpea or lentil curry and brown rice (again, big batch lasts several days). With Alpro yoghurt with coconut.
Linda McCartney rosemary and onion bangers and mash with onions (fried in water, not oil - yes, it can be done!) and Bisto
Pasta (wholemeal) in tomato sauce (it was pasta that caused the 9 in my list - but it doesn't usually spike me, so it was a surprise)
Stir fry veg and noodles in soya sauce, ginger, chilli sauce, sometimes with tofu
Throughout the day, I eat several snacks, which are either:
Fruit salad with Alpro soya and coconut yoghurt (I eat loads of that)
Pumpernickel bread with banana and strawberries sliced on top (which I call 'fake cake')
Ryvita and humus.
Most evenings a gin and slimline tonic also makes an appearance....
I am a bit underweight (always been a bit thin) but feel very healthy and energetic. I'm not on meds.
Full disclosure: I do miss nuts! Also popadoms.
But, on the plus side, I've grown to love fruit (which I used to think was boring, till I discovered the simple trick of chopping it up and mashing in some Alpro yoghurt).
My 7, 14 and 30 day average scores on my BG monitor are 6.3, 6.5 and 6.6, but I know this is just a rough indication of how I'm doing. I'm really looking forward to my next Hb1Ac test. Then we will see how I'm really doing. I was 7.7% in Feb, so fingers crossed.
Anyway, sorry to ramble on. Food without faces is the future!
Jane
Woa, Jane... I have no idea how you eat all that stuff and remain in such constantly more-than-decent numbers...! I spike when I have a tiny little bit of maki sushi, can't even look at a banana. Forget oats and any type of beans, pasta etc... And yeah, I've tested my blood sugars for a lot of the things you mention. I do believe I was diabetic for a couple of years before diagnosis, and spent a long time being prediabetic before that, so my insulin resistance is, or was, as the case may be, pretty bad... Just goes to show, once again, we're all different. And what works for one, may not work for another. I couldn't eat what you do without seeing 20's again. So hey, if it works for you, and it does when I look at your numbers, more power to you!

I'm gonna need a moment to digest this, haha. Too bad it's not a fit for me. But I am happy it is one for you. :)
Jo
 
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Redshank

Well-Known Member
Messages
132
Type of diabetes
Prediabetes
Treatment type
Diet only
I am not sure why you avoid nuts.
They are a good source of protein for vegans, and if you choose the right ones (e.g. walnut, Brazil, pecan, hazelnuts) they are pretty low in Carbohydrate. They are full of good fats and help to stop you feeling hungry.
 

Janedent

Member
Messages
10
Re nuts: the path I'm following is all about avoiding fat, the theory being that fat blocks the insulin receptors in cells. So I'm going with that - for now anyway. No nuts, no oil. But many more carbs than my previous (Dr Mosley) regime allowed. Good carbs though.
Funnily enough, after I'd posted my reply to you, I took a BS reading, 2 hours of my lunchtime bowl (OK, 2 bowls) of soup. And it was 11.6 - my highest reading by far in the whole 3 months since I was diagnosed. So that was weird. Maybe somebody up there's telling me to stop showing off...
 

bulkbiker

BANNED
Messages
19,576
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Good carbs though.
Hmmmm

Not wishing to pour cold water on your progress but there isn't a great deal of evidence for Dr Barnard's methods.
Even his own study didn't show much of an improvement of HbA1c over time. A slight improvement but not something to shout about.

Screenshot 2020-02-20 at 19.16.22.png
 

JoKalsbeek

Expert
Messages
5,937
Type of diabetes
I reversed my Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Re nuts: the path I'm following is all about avoiding fat, the theory being that fat blocks the insulin receptors in cells. So I'm going with that - for now anyway. No nuts, no oil. But many more carbs than my previous (Dr Mosley) regime allowed. Good carbs though.
Funnily enough, after I'd posted my reply to you, I took a BS reading, 2 hours of my lunchtime bowl (OK, 2 bowls) of soup. And it was 11.6 - my highest reading by far in the whole 3 months since I was diagnosed. So that was weird. Maybe somebody up there's telling me to stop showing off...
You're not showing off, you're trying to compare notes to learn something. Entirely different thing! ;)

Fat does actually inhibit insulin's effect, but it's present abdominal fat that does that, not fat you ingest. (And you may be TOFI: Thin Outside, Fat Inside, meaning there is fat stacked on the liver and pancreas, which you can only see with an ultrasound, not with the naked eye). All in all.... Should you ever want to return to nuts, they might well welcome you with open arms. ;)
 

Janedent

Member
Messages
10
Well it's my birthday in 3 weeks and a I have been fantasising about treating myself to a handful of peanuts. A girl's gotta dream, eh?
So, fat. The low carb way talks about the belly fat you need to lose (had it, lost it - waistline now 5 inches smaller than in Feb). The Barnard (and other people's) way talks about the fat in your blood blocking insulin receptors in cells. So, 2 different theories.
But at the end of the day, it's all about numbers and I'm keeping a close eye on (some would say I'm obsessed with :)) mine.
 
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JoKalsbeek

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5,937
Type of diabetes
I reversed my Type 2
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Well it's my birthday in 3 weeks and a I have been fantasising about treating myself to a handful of peanuts. A girl's gotta dream, eh?
So, fat. The low carb way talks about the belly fat you need to lose (had it, lost it - waistline now 5 inches smaller than in Feb). The Barnard (and other people's) way talks about the fat in your blood blocking insulin receptors in cells. So, 2 different theories.
But at the end of the day, it's all about numbers and I'm keeping a close eye on (some would say I'm obsessed with :)) mine.
Oh, a touch of obsession's fine if it helps you get healthy. ;) And hey, if you have a birthday coming up, there's keto/vegan cakes and cookies if you look for them. ;)
 
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Janedent

Member
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Hi Jo. Well... you asked what I eat. Here's tonight's dinner - chickpea curry. BG before was 5.8. 2 hours later it was 8.4. No oil, no faces!
20200610_212041.jpg
 

JoKalsbeek

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Messages
5,937
Type of diabetes
I reversed my Type 2
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Hi Jo. Well... you asked what I eat. Here's tonight's dinner - chickpea curry. BG before was 5.8. 2 hours later it was 8.4. No oil, no faces!
View attachment 41988
Yeah... Chickpeas only in moderation, (as in, a spoon of hummous) and no rice. I couldn't eat this, sorry. Looks great though.
 

ziggy_w

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Hi @Janedent,

Fascinating set of numbers and mostly looking very good. Ultimately, your way of eating has to work for you, given your personal preferences and experiences.

Just a question -- when you were eating low-carb, did you also calorie-restrict? It seems as if you were doing the Michael Mosley 800-calorie diet, or did I misread this? If this is true, no wonder you were hungry -- I certainly would be.

Like many T2s on this forum, I am personally on a low-carb, actually even ketogenic diet (though I seem to do pretty well with pulses, as long as the serving isn't huge -- goes to show that we are all different).

Here are my numbers for yesterday (though have to admit, that after five years I no longer have a certain pattern to my testing).

4.9 (9:50 a.m.)
4.8 (5:20 p.m.)
4.8 (9:20 p.m.)
4.9 (10:50 p.m.)
5.1 (11:30 p.m.)
4.9 (1:30 a.m.)
 

Mr_Pot

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4,573
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Hi Jo. Well... you asked what I eat. Here's tonight's dinner - chickpea curry. BG before was 5.8. 2 hours later it was 8.4. No oil, no faces!
View attachment 41988
I am not vegetarian so I would more likely have some sort of meat curry instead of chickpea but I would eat all that meal although definitely not the rice and make up the difference with more cauliflower. It would be interesting to see if your postprandial reading improved