How to tolerate hunger

Erin

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Hi,

I am often hungry when I try to keep my blood sugar within a recommended, safe range. But this feeling interferes in some ways: dizzy, lack of better concentration, fatigue, insomnia, malaise. How can I keep my blood sugar within a good range (4-12) and tolerate eating less to achieve this range?
 
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M

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If you’re hungry you should eat. Sorry to state the obvious but starving yourself won’t do you much good. Try a small fatty meal with a good amount of protein. An easy fallback option is a tin of mackerel fillets with some pitted olives and plenty of olive oil all over the lot. Glucose impact should be minimal. Don’t be afraid to eat more hearty meals and leave a longer gap between them. Going hungry in an attempt to lower blood glucose is just going to cause your metabolism to slow down and make everything worse. Larger meals will of course leave a bigger immediate footprint but your metabolism will thank you in the long term.

I feel your pain. Been there got the pyjamas. Nothing worse than being afraid of food and resenting what it does to your blood glucose. We are all different and find different solutions but please don’t go hungry. It’s not the answer. Good luck!
 

OB87

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334
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Tablets (oral)
I often have a small bit of cheese or a nut bar if I'm really hungry between meals or in evening.
 
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Erin

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If you’re hungry you should eat. Sorry to state the obvious but starving yourself won’t do you much good. Try a small fatty meal with a good amount of protein. An easy fallback option is a tin of mackerel fillets with some pitted olives and plenty of olive oil all over the lot. Glucose impact should be minimal. Don’t be afraid to eat more hearty meals and leave a longer gap between them. Going hungry in an attempt to lower blood glucose is just going to cause your metabolism to slow down and make everything worse. Larger meals will of course leave a bigger immediate footprint but your metabolism will thank you in the long term.

I feel your pain. Been there got the pyjamas. Nothing worse than being afraid of food and resenting what it does to your blood glucose. We are all different and find different solutions but please don’t go hungry. It’s not the answer. Good luck!

Thank you Jim Lahey,

You are a kind man - I like fish so that's good.

Cheers
 
M

Member496333

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Thank you Jim Lahey,

You are a kind man - I like fish so that's good.

Cheers

Well there you go. You’re winning already. If funds permit then use a really nice extra virgin olive oil. Tinned mackerel fillets are dirt cheap. Just make sure they’re not canned in some nasty sauce or vegetable/seed oil.
 

Resurgam

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There is always something you can eat if you are doing low carb - and the protein and fats you can eat are all very nourishing, so hunger isn't triggered in the same way it is when eating carbs at the usual level.
Controlling blood glucose is probably more difficult if you are trying to eat less than you need.
 

Iona May

Active Member
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On my x-pert course we were taught that so long as the snack was less that 10g carbs it wouldn't break the fast. This gives loads of options depending on what you fancy. Cheese, nuts, ham, olives are all delicious and should help to fill you up. However that said we were encouraged to eat enough for our meals so that we didnt have to snack inbetween.

What are you eating when trying to keep to a healthy range and maybe we can help further?
 
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Erin

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On my x-pert course we were taught that so long as the snack was less that 10g carbs it wouldn't break the fast. This gives loads of options depending on what you fancy. Cheese, nuts, ham, olives are all delicious and should help to fill you up. However that said we were encouraged to eat enough for our meals so that we didnt have to snack inbetween.

What are you eating when trying to keep to a healthy range and maybe we can help further?
Basically legumes, like the lentil soup I added to the recipe lists, soups, mussels, eggs, bacon, Quaker Oats, Saltine crackers, yoghurt, cottage cheese, fish fillets, and I confess, chips or Cheetos when absolutely necessary, which is less than necessary.
 

lucylocket61

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Basically legumes, like the lentil soup I added to the recipe lists, soups, mussels, eggs, bacon, Quaker Oats, Saltine crackers, yoghurt, cottage cheese, fish fillets, and I confess, chips or Cheetos when absolutely necessary, which is less than necessary.
I see you are an insulin user. In my limited understanding, doesnt insulin make you hungrier? I suggest more protein and fats to help with the hunger.
 

EllieM

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@Erin, your profile says you are on both insulin and gliclazide? Are your blood sugars much lower than they used to be? I am wondering if you could be suffering from hypoglycemia or symptoms of false hypoglycemia? If your levels are lower than they used to be then you could be getting hypo symptoms at non hypo levels... Personally, as a T1, when my bgs are hypo low I just want to eat the fridge and have to restrain myself from over correcting my low bg.
 

Erin

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I see you are an insulin user. In my limited understanding, doesnt insulin make you hungrier? I suggest more protein and fats to help with the hunger.
I see you are an insulin user. In my limited understanding, doesnt insulin make you hungrier? I suggest more protein and fats to help with the hunger.

Protein and fats... OK, a little less protein though as I am at Stage 3 (41) kidney function. Thank you.
 

Erin

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@Erin, your profile says you are on both insulin and gliclazide? Are your blood sugars much lower than they used to be? I am wondering if you could be suffering from hypoglycemia or symptoms of false hypoglycemia? If your levels are lower than they used to be then you could be getting hypo symptoms at non hypo levels... Personally, as a T1, when my bgs are hypo low I just want to eat the fridge and have to restrain myself from over correcting my low bg.

No, over the past 12 years of diabetes, bloods tend to get higher; insulin was started 3 or 4 yrs ago due to glybutride not attaining the right level. If I have hypoglycemia, it is pretty cryptic and contrary to my meter numbers. I do overcorrect like you though, because I suppose I am too lazy to weight every single bite I eat.
 

EllieM

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I do overcorrect like you though, because I suppose I am too lazy to weight every single bite I eat.
Well, if you are lazy then so am I. :)
 

ultradad

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I dont need alot of protein, 150 grams of protein and 100+ grams of fat daily will fill me up and i have never been hungry (eat three times a day). I find lamb and beef most filling, fish doesnt leave me feeling as satisfied. 4 eggs scrambled with some cheese in is filling as well :)
 
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Madisons

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Messages
63
Hi Erin,

I am also struggling with hunger all the time. I basically have two meals a day with a late afternoon snack only, but in the big two meals, I feel that I can eat and eat and still not feel full. For example, i only ate my first meal at 11:30 am (last meal the night before was late, like 9:30 pm), so started with lemon water. Then while prepping meal, ate three stalks of celery out of control, in a coriander-garlic-olive oil dip. Then it was a 2-egg omelette with mushrooms, onions, red peppers, greens, 1/2 measured cup of legumes, with 1 low-carb toast with cheese, tomato and avocado. Followed with dessert of a small chunk of cottage cheese, pumpkin seeds, with shavings of 80% lindt dark chocolate (although the shavings I think amounted to a full square piece), then more pumpkin seeds, and now hopefully the green matcha tea will suppress any more hunger cravings. Then I won't eat till about 6:00pm, which is 2 slices of apple with a babybel cheese and sometimes a cup of bone broth. Late supper is either salmon or chicken, big side of salad, and cauliflower rice fully dressed with more peppers and slivered almonds. finally dessert is greek yogurt, with chia seeds and coconut oil, mixed with a dozen raspberries. A cup of warm almond milk with cinnamon before bed. Now you would think this is ALOT of food, and it is...but I am always hungry, Am going through alot of stress apart from being newly diagnosed as pre-diabetic so that's probably why I'm eating so much. I guess when depression hits, that's when I won't be eating at all. Now, i'm still in the stress-stage, and I want to raid the fridge and pantry non-stop. I am probably the skinny diabetic T1 in the future (mother was)....My portion control right now is through the roof, it's crazy.
 

LaoDan

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Im trying the step down approach, cut really hard for a few weeks, then normalize for a few weeks. Progress is slow but I feel better letting my body stabilize
 

Erin

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I dont need alot of protein, about 200g will fill me up and i have never been hungry (eat three times a day). I find lamb and beef most filling, fish doesnt leave me feeling as satisfied. 4 eggs scrambled with some cheese in is filling as well :)
YES scrambled eggs and cheese, yum! I have a way of making omelette with potato slices or fries with eggs on top and cheese (optional). I hope that the potatoes are not a sin.
 

ultradad

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Messages
660
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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I know i only been at this for just over 3 months but i dont think i can go without breakfast unless its for fasting blood test. My liver just has a lie in now in the morning as it knows omlette is on the way :). I am just eating enough to not feel hungry and it dont take much. I find about 150 grams of protein and 100+ grams of fats a day is enough to help me lose weight and not be hungry

My diet is not the most exciting but due to being on benefits i try and get the best quality rather than quantity. So most of my stuff is frozen (Angus burgers, Small steaks, Duck legs, Lamb chump steaks) and a bit of fresh from butchers and morristons (100% pork sausages, chops, cheap serloin steaks). I make sure there is enough fat content in my food to keep me not feeling hungry. I try to average about upto 150 grams of fat a day thats why i eat 3 times a day and last meal is about 4-5 o clock and thats it till next day unless i have a baby bell in the night :)

This morning my bloods was 4.2 and my wieght is 13.10 stone so what i am doing is working for me. I gave up trying to find a work around for what i liked after the second week as the only thing that didnt raise my bloods over 2 points was a sad 6 grams of carbs which is basically a riveta :(. I be honest eating protein all the time is not fun but it works, just going to start doing bloods in the morning unless i try something different in my diet as they dont change at the moment

I hope what i am doing to manage my health is helpful to someone as cutting carbs out of my daily diet has made a massive difference to me and my health. I had a 5 min phone call with GP over 3 months ago and thats it. Thanks to this great community i have been able to sort myself out and learn what i need to do to improve my health.I hope everyone can find what works for them and get healthier for it :)
 
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Mr_Pot

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4,573
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I am just eating enough to not feel hungry and it dont take much, about 200+ gm of protein 3 times a day.
Did you mean 600g a day in total? If that was all in steak it would mean you were eating about 2.5kg a day.
 

Erin

Well-Known Member
Messages
748
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Type 2
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Hi Erin,

I am also struggling with hunger all the time. I basically have two meals a day with a late afternoon snack only, but in the big two meals, I feel that I can eat and eat and still not feel full. For example, i only ate my first meal at 11:30 am (last meal the night before was late, like 9:30 pm), so started with lemon water. Then while prepping meal, ate three stalks of celery out of control, in a coriander-garlic-olive oil dip. Then it was a 2-egg omelette with mushrooms, onions, red peppers, greens, 1/2 measured cup of legumes, with 1 low-carb toast with cheese, tomato and avocado. Followed with dessert of a small chunk of cottage cheese, pumpkin seeds, with shavings of 80% lindt dark chocolate (although the shavings I think amounted to a full square piece), then more pumpkin seeds, and now hopefully the green matcha tea will suppress any more hunger cravings. Then I won't eat till about 6:00pm, which is 2 slices of apple with a babybel cheese and sometimes a cup of bone broth. Late supper is either salmon or chicken, big side of salad, and cauliflower rice fully dressed with more peppers and slivered almonds. finally dessert is greek yogurt, with chia seeds and coconut oil, mixed with a dozen raspberries. A cup of warm almond milk with cinnamon before bed. Now you would think this is ALOT of food, and it is...but I am always hungry, Am going through alot of stress apart from being newly diagnosed as pre-diabetic so that's probably why I'm eating so much. I guess when depression hits, that's when I won't be eating at all. Now, i'm still in the stress-stage, and I want to raid the fridge and pantry non-stop. I am probably the skinny diabetic T1 in the future (mother was)....My portion control right now is through the roof, it's crazy.

You know, I would rather just have a pill or three a day containing nutrients. Maybe one of the billionaire techies can arrange it. "Just don't Eat"