Hi Folks

Hazmattmum

Member
Messages
22
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi everyone. I have been newly diagnosed (4 whole weeks now) as having Type 2 diabetes & have gone from being a happy asyptomatic person to being a bit of grump as I struggle with the very restrictive diet & blood sugar monitoring!I am an ex nurse & as such I need answers as to why my BS goes up & down with no apparent link to what I am eating ..or in my case not eating & at the moment I can see no relation to what I`m doing food wise at all. I find breakfasts & lunches really hard to get any variety into my diet - I love bread & although I didn`t eat vast quantities of it, I find that cutting it out is very hard. Loads of meat & eggs are not very palatable with out a bit of bread in my eyes. However i will persevere. I am finding it hard though
 

xfieldok

Well-Known Member
Messages
4,182
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Welcome to the forum.

What are you eating in a typical day, perhaps we can offer some suggestions?

What sort of numbers are you getting?
 

JoKalsbeek

Expert
Messages
5,937
Type of diabetes
I reversed my Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hi everyone. I have been newly diagnosed (4 whole weeks now) as having Type 2 diabetes & have gone from being a happy asyptomatic person to being a bit of grump as I struggle with the very restrictive diet & blood sugar monitoring!I am an ex nurse & as such I need answers as to why my BS goes up & down with no apparent link to what I am eating ..or in my case not eating & at the moment I can see no relation to what I`m doing food wise at all. I find breakfasts & lunches really hard to get any variety into my diet - I love bread & although I didn`t eat vast quantities of it, I find that cutting it out is very hard. Loads of meat & eggs are not very palatable with out a bit of bread in my eyes. However i will persevere. I am finding it hard though
There's a reason for everything, even fluctuating blood sugars. You'll want to read Dr. Jason Fung's the Diabetes Code, that should help explain "rogue" readings. In the meantime, possible culprits besides hidden carbs which I'll get to in a moment can be: Your liver dumping extra glucose because it thinks your should be higher. (If your blood sugars were high for a long time, it thinks that is what they should be. It's a busybody with a finger on the glucose-dump button, but it'll get used to lower values soon). If it's a matter of liver dumps, they'll usually occur in the morning only, after a while, or when you've done strenuous exercise. Otherwise, the liver could be triggered by stress, sleepless nights, an underlying infection/illness, medication like statins or steroids, that give you an unexpected rise.

If you really, really need bread.... I find Keto Mug Bread to be an excellent replacement. I'd gone without bread for 3 years, and I adored dipping it in my eggs....! :) Did really great with the chicken liver and gravy too. Yum. Sometimes I toss in other things to give it certain flavours too. Italian, chocolate, cinnamon... The varieties are endless. As it was passed on to me, put in a mug, or a ramakin:

15 g of melted butter, 22 g of almond flour and ½ a teaspoonful of baking powder. Mix. Then add an egg and mix. Microwave at highest W for 90 seconds. Done.

Anyway, all that said... What are you eating? The bread and spuds are obvious, but what are you currently eating when you see a spike? What's the usual daily fare? Like I said, there might be hidden carbs in what you're eating. https://josekalsbeek.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-nutritional-thingy.html could help suss out what might be causing rises?

If you have questions, always toss them out there, there's usually someone about with answers. :)
Good luck,
Jo
 

Hazmattmum

Member
Messages
22
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Ok...typical day breakfast either 1/2 grapefruit or few spoons of Greek yoghurt with a few strawberries or rasps. I slice of wholemeal /seeded toast cos I`m usually really hungry. Lunch either bacon, egg & mushrooms, home made veg soup or avacado with prawns. 1 bit of fruit (apple,pear,orange)
Evening meal...meat of some kind (lamb, pork chops, chicken...I like them all!) veg of some kind (spinach,swede,asparagus,etc) cauliflower rice sometimes or a very small salad potato. Strawberries or raspberries for dessert with a small shot of squirty cream. My big problem is the lack of pasta &potatos ...I never feel full on this diet! And also I have to avoid stuff with a lot of fibre as it upsets my gut.
Bs levels vary wildly atm but are usually 7s-8s in the morning (fasting) & anything from 10s(highest) to 5.6 yesterday before evening meal. None of this show any patterns to what I`m eating! I have halved the levels since diagnosis...it was 16+ then) so i know I`m going in the right direction but I am finding the diet very hard. lots of info on what NOT to eat but not much on enjoyable stuff you can eat. I miss pasta & potatos big style & also my milky coffees
 

xfieldok

Well-Known Member
Messages
4,182
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
You need to test before you eat and again 2 hours after the first bite. You are looking for a rise of no more than two. If higher then you had too many carbs.

We have a saying, eat to your meter.

Watching your meter tells you the effects your food has on your glucose.

I wouldn't eat the bread or the fruit. Berries with double cream or full fat yoghurt is ok.

When I was first diagnosed I went keto, less than 20g carbs per day. After 4 weeks I broke the carb addiction and had no appetite. I had to be reminded to eat.

It's a lot to get your head around. Read through the forum and ask questions.

Look at dietdoctor.com for ideas. Google anything you fancy, just put keto first.
 

JoKalsbeek

Expert
Messages
5,937
Type of diabetes
I reversed my Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Ok...typical day breakfast either 1/2 grapefruit or few spoons of Greek yoghurt with a few strawberries or rasps. I slice of wholemeal /seeded toast cos I`m usually really hungry. Lunch either bacon, egg & mushrooms, home made veg soup or avacado with prawns. 1 bit of fruit (apple,pear,orange)
Evening meal...meat of some kind (lamb, pork chops, chicken...I like them all!) veg of some kind (spinach,swede,asparagus,etc) cauliflower rice sometimes or a very small salad potato. Strawberries or raspberries for dessert with a small shot of squirty cream. My big problem is the lack of pasta &potatos ...I never feel full on this diet! And also I have to avoid stuff with a lot of fibre as it upsets my gut.
Bs levels vary wildly atm but are usually 7s-8s in the morning (fasting) & anything from 10s(highest) to 5.6 yesterday before evening meal. None of this show any patterns to what I`m eating! I have halved the levels since diagnosis...it was 16+ then) so i know I`m going in the right direction but I am finding the diet very hard. lots of info on what NOT to eat but not much on enjoyable stuff you can eat. I miss pasta & potatos big style & also my milky coffees
Point one: Coffee's not a problem! Toss in some proper heavy cream though, (unsweetened), it's better than milk, less carby, more filling, and very tasty. (You might also want to google Bulletproof coffee. It's surprisingly good!). You're still eating a lot of fruit. Berries are okay, but you do need something fatty to go with them, so the greek yoghurt or some cream is fine. A medium sized apple contains something like 21 grams of sugar. Not the best choice. (Fruit yea and nay's: https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/fruits ). The wholemeal/seeded toast: 12 grams per slice. That's almost 3 teaspoons of sugar. It adds up, so yeah, there is an actual relation to what you're eating and the spikes you're seeing. (I eat less than 20 grams of carbs a day, usually hovering around 9... Bread used to spike me into the 20 mmol/l's.). Swede is a little high in carbs, but the rest sounds good. More do's and don'ts: https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/vegetables <-- focus on the do's. ;) And the website is jam-packed with meal suggestions. Knock yourself out.

Thing is, if you're hungry all the time... You should eat until you're full, and that's easier if you add in more fats. Extra avocado, no lean cuts of meat (Fatty ones are cheaper and tastier anyway, so yay), proper butter, heavy cream, cheese, olives/olive oil, fatty fish like salmon or tuna, mayonnaise, walnuts, pecans, extra dark chocolate, bacon... I bulk up my cauliflower rice with bacon and grated goat's cheese (and a bunch of herbs/spices so we never eat the same thing twice in a row), and there's actually a few types of pasta you might be interested in.... They take a little getting used to because the texture is different, but could well be worth it. https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=konjac+pasta&i=grocery&ref=nb_sb_noss_2 (basically it'll be available as Konjac or Shirataki pasta, if I spelled that correctly). No excess of fibre in there either, so shouldn't be a problem. Otherwise you might want to look into Courgetti? (Spiralised courgette)

There's a lot of "you can't have that" 's, but if you want to find replacements for food you love, just google them with keto added in the search bar. You'll be inundated with options. There's loads of alternatives, some admittedly tastier than others, but they are out there. (Heck, I never thought I'd come to love cauliflower as much as I am! And bacon, every day!). I mean, there's even recipes for low carb chocolate lava cake available online, so.... If there's a will, there's a way. Oh, one more thing, you might want to check out Chaffles.... They could maybe replace bread too. I never had them myself, but I've heard good things about them. (There's entire cults for them on facebook, haha).

Don't give up. This will get easier.
Jo
 

xfieldok

Well-Known Member
Messages
4,182
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Google keto pasta.
I couldn't cope without coffee and double cream.

When I first started, I couldn't be in the same room as a loaf. Once I got my numbers under control I can now tolerate a slice of hovis lower carb, 9g per slice. It all comes off my carb allowance.

Ignore your morning numbers for the time being, due to the dawn phenomenon. When you see how your food is affecting you, it may give you the motivation you need.
 

Hazmattmum

Member
Messages
22
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Thank you all so much that is the first good advice I`ve had so far...good practical ideas too. Much appreciated :)
 

VashtiB

Moderator
Staff Member
Messages
2,283
Type of diabetes
Type 2 (in remission!)
Treatment type
Diet only
Hello and welcome,

You've had some excellent advice so I will just stick to welcome.

Read around-there is lots of good advice here and support.

For me I find it is easier to stick to food with no or very low carbs- meat, fish, hard cheese, double cream, eggs and the like.

Good luck and welcome.
 

Resurgam

Expert
Messages
9,849
Type of diabetes
Type 2 (in remission!)
Treatment type
Diet only
I have salads and stirfries, I roast swede and turnip or cabbage, there are so many tasty low carb veges, and fruits such as tomato, courgette, cucumber - they are botanically fruits and are just as good for you, but far lower carb, than the tropical fruits full of fructose.
I used to carry around a notebook with low carb foods listed, and I have a couple of shopping lists which I used alternately for variety.
It is possible to grow mustard and cress at home, also beansprouts, which is fun to do.
After a while things such as bread will become uninteresting - I have been known to remove the filling from sandwiches, much to the consternation of the providers, or peel off the topping from pizzas - and potatoes are boring too.