How long before my sugar levels drop?

L

Lollypops

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Hello all.

This is my first post as a newly diagnosed T2 diabetic. I was diagnosed almost 2 weeks ago, and am taking 1000mg metformin a day, but blood sugar levels are between 18-22. I have made a drastic change to my diet, and am sticking to low carb, low sugar diet, but not seeing much change in my levels. Am I expecting too much? Feeling disheartened as I’m trying so hard!

Thanks for reading
 
Resurgam

Resurgam

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Well - there is the possibility that you are not type two at all - what are you eating and still seeing those levels?
 
L

Lollypops

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I had a very unhealthy diet before, takeaways, fizzy drinks, and lots of white bread, pasta and crisps.
Since being diagnosed, I’ve switched to whole meal bread, bulk dinners with lots of fresh vegetables, low fat spread, natural yoghurt, and snack on fresh fruit.
 
Resurgam

Resurgam

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Ah - so not low carb. I'm afraid what is touted as healthy is not good for type two diabetics.
Wholemeal bread is just as carby as white, you need to select low carb vegetables from all those available, yoghurt is OK if it is full fat, plain and unsweetened and you should not snack on fruit as many are high in sugar though many people can have a small amount of berries with cream as part of a meal. Eating fruit as a snack ensures maximum impact of the fructose.
Butter is a better option than low fat spread, though there isn't much to put it on, unless you bake your own low carb options.
 
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JoKalsbeek

JoKalsbeek

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Lollypops said:
Hello all.

This is my first post as a newly diagnosed T2 diabetic. I was diagnosed almost 2 weeks ago, and am taking 1000mg metformin a day, but blood sugar levels are between 18-22. I have made a drastic change to my diet, and am sticking to low carb, low sugar diet, but not seeing much change in my levels. Am I expecting too much? Feeling disheartened as I’m trying so hard!

Thanks for reading
Click to expand...
Hi @Lollypops , and welcome,

I'm afraid your dietary choices aren't exactly as good for your diabetes as you think they are. I see @Resurgam answered while I was starting to type here, and addressed your diet thoroughly... As well as correctly. It's a whole new world out there, and you're going to have to familiarise yourself with it. But rest assured, none of us got it all right overnight. You do have a moment to figure this out, you know. So breathe. https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/blog-entry/the-nutritional-thingy.2330/ is a bit of a quick-start-guide that'll help you along too. And you could check dietdoctor.com or this forum's website, diabetes.co.uk (not .org!) for meal ideas. You're going to be okay, you just made some beginners mistakes. Your numbers'll come down as you get the hang of this.
Hugs,
Jo
 
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Resurgam

Resurgam

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I had the advantage of knowing about Dr Howard's diet, way back in the 1970s when Allied Lyons did the pilot scheme mixing and packing. Some of the products are used in the Cambridge diet even now, though not all the elements were retained.
 
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xfieldok

xfieldok

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When you first start out it is a minefield. You will get used to things reasonably quickly.

If you miss your snacks Google keto snacks. In fact, google anything you fancy, just put keto first. Don't buy any recipe books, there is plenty of free stuff on the internet.

Read as much as you can and ask lots of questions.
 
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Rachox

Rachox

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Hi Lollypops

Welcome to the forum, you’ll get the hang of this low carb business, we often say here it’s a marathon not a sprint, just try to change a couple of things at a time. Get used to looking at the carb content on packets or look them up on supermarket websites. It’ll become automatic before long. Keep in touch with this forum and maybe have a look at the Success Stories sub forum here for some inspiration:
https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/category/success-stories-and-testimonials.43/
 
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D

Daibell

Master
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Hi. Yes, do follow the low-carb diet suggestions earlier. If you are slim and or have lost weight unexpectedly then being T1/LADA is always possible instead of T2. See how the BS goes with the low-carb diet.
 
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Alexandra100

Alexandra100

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Resurgam said:
Butter is a better option than low fat spread, though there isn't much to put it on
Click to expand...
For those of us who are already slim enough, or even, like me, too thin, butter melting on hot salmon or on vegetables is a treat that compensates some for the loss of carby, sugary ones.
 
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xfieldok

xfieldok

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Resurgam said:
Butter is a better option than low fat spread, though there isn't much to put it on,
Click to expand...

Butter goes on everything in this house! Scrambled eggs, vegies, fish, meat, you name it. If I have the occasional ryvita (I am always sorry after) every hole is filled with grass fed butter from the fridge and topped/heaped with cream cheese or similar.
 
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JoKalsbeek

JoKalsbeek

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Lollypops said:
Thank you both for replying, THIS IS SO HARD! Thanks for the suggestions. I’ll try again!
Click to expand...
You'll get the hang of it. There's these really elaborate meals and things to shove into the oven, with expensive ingredients you can only order online, bla bla bla.... And I just can't be bothered. I just stick with my eggs, salads, meats, fish and veggies. You can make it as difficult or as easy as you want. Just figure out what you like to eat that's low carb, and stick with that. I know I ended up buying a lot of things that were not just expensive but tasted absolutely horrible, and some gave me migraines or joint pain to boot... Tossed it all out. If you enjoy the food on your plate, mentally and physically, this is going to be a breeze to stick to, and that's a good thing because it's for life. So start there. What do you like. Is it do-able or do you need to find alternatives. Tailor this to your own needs and you''ll be fine. It takes a little while to figure it out, but you have that time. You'll be okay.
 
VashtiB

VashtiB

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hello and welcome

It can feel like a real minefield at first- we have all been there. The bad news is that the standard advice for a healthy diet doesn't work for us. The good news is that we know what does work

My suggestion similar to those above is to find a few meals that are made up of low/no carb food and just eat them for a few days and see what happens to your blood sugar levels.

Easy stuff to start off with is:
bacon and eggs (no toast)- no carbs
steak with cauliflower mash- low carbs- nothing for the steak.
fish with broccoli and/or spinach- low carbs
most cheese- low/no carbs
coffee with double cream not milk- almost no carbs

Contrary to everything you've every read fat is okay- well most fat- cream a definite good for you.

Good luck let us know how it goes.
 
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