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sjdad

Member
Messages
5
Hi. I'm type 2 on insulin, metformin and victosa. Diagnosed 15 years ago and still struggling with bs levels even after losing 10 stone in weight!!
 

River83

Active Member
Messages
33
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Hi. I'm type 2 on insulin, metformin and victosa. Diagnosed 15 years ago and still struggling with bs levels even after losing 10 stone in weight!!

Sorry to hear you’re struggling. What sort of diet are you following? If you haven’t already done so, cutting out carbs will help massively.
 
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sjdad

Member
Messages
5
Sorry to hear you’re struggling. What sort of diet are you following? If you haven’t already done so, cutting out carbs will help massively.
Hi. I aim for 40-60 carbs per meal to a maximum of 150 per day. Usually get nearer 100!! Since my tia's and not being able to drive, I walk minimum of 5 miles a day. January hba1c was 105, June was 81. Have been as low as 55. Bmi is 28. Grateful for any suggestions!!
 

River83

Active Member
Messages
33
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Hi. I aim for 40-60 carbs per meal to a maximum of 150 per day. Usually get nearer 100!! Since my tia's and not being able to drive, I walk minimum of 5 miles a day. January hba1c was 105, June was 81. Have been as low as 55. Bmi is 28. Grateful for any suggestions!!

I would suggest looking into the Keto diet. Carbs need to be around 20-30g per day, roughly 1g protein per 1lb of lean body mass, and the rest from fat. You could also consider intermittent fasting, with or without Keto (with would obviously be preferable).
 
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sjdad

Member
Messages
5
I would suggest looking into the Keto diet. Carbs need to be around 20-30g per day, roughly 1g protein per 1lb of lean body mass, and the rest from fat. You could also consider intermittent fasting, with or without Keto (with would obviously be preferable).
Being insulin controlled not sure about the fasting!!!
 

Alison Campbell

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,443
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi welcome to the forum, tagging @daisy1 for you to recieve a new member post.

Have your medical team ruled out type 1?
 

daisy1

Legend
Messages
26,457
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Dislikes
Cruelty towards animals.
@sjdad

Hello and welcome to the Forum :) Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you like and someone will be able to 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 235,000 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
Reduce your 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

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.

Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.

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
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)
  • Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

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.
Take part in Diabetes.co.uk digital education programs and improve your understanding. Most of these are free.

  • Low Carb Program - it's made front-page news of the New Scientist and The Times. Developed with 20,000 people with type 2 diabetes; 96% of people who take part recommend it... find out why

  • Hypo Program - improve your understanding of hypos. There's a version for people with diabetes, parents/guardians of children with type 1, children with type 1 diabetes, teachers and HCPs.
 

Tony337

Well-Known Member
Messages
727
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Dislikes
Not being on holiday....
Good morning and welcome.....

Have a top day

Tony
 

Crocodile

Well-Known Member
Messages
683
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Dislikes
I can't have it often
Because of the TIAs, some of your medications may be raising your blood sugars and kudos to you for the massive walking!

Maybe lower carbs to 60 a day, 20 per meal, get a solid 12 hours sometime or another while not eating, like making breakfast later? Have a teaspoon or two of MCT high fat, like coconut oil?

He's on insulin though. Good idea to lower carbs eventually but is the insulin dose matching the carb intake correctly.