A Wider Perspective ?

Well I have checked out the websites for Swiss/German and Austrian diabetes orgs and all advise pretty much the same on bg, diet, exercise, treatments etc as in the UK, including a diet high in complex carbs - generally supplements/complementary medicine is encouraged.

A couple of forums show that there is an uprising against this advice and people are low carbing, others are still struggling with bg control and reluctant to do low carbing as they are still thinking doctor knows best.
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

I think it's arrogance of the highest order to dismiss people who are following the so-called "high carb" diet as relying on a "doctor knows best" mindset.

Nobody is dismissing high carb, but at least give me options instead of insisting that high carb is the only way to go.....?!

All the best

Karen

lionrampant said:

I think it's arrogance of the highest order to dismiss people who are following the so-called "high carb" diet as relying on a "doctor knows best" mindset.

Click to expand...

Hi Lion,
I don't see your point - if you simply accept what you are told without challenging it then you accept the whoever is telling you knows better than you do what is good for you and you will do what you are told. I know many people, mostly from an older generation, who will accept as gospel whatever they are told by a doctor. That is what they were brought up to believe and to do. Similarly there are many who did not have the educational advantages that you and I had and will accept instructions or opinion from a higher or more learned authority. I don't think Karen was being intentionally arrogant in saying that this happens - she was just stating the fact.

Quite!
And thank you Dennis for your intervention.

Lion, I just feel that the medics should not just push the (in My opinion outdated advice) high carb diet as only option, they should give information on low carb/GI/reducing carb too, that is what I meant, I didnt mean to annoy you or anyone else at all, I didnt express myself very well.

All the best

Karen

I have a diabetic cousin in Germany and have asked her if the dietary advice is similar to that here. she told me that most people get sent on courses to learn what to eat. and she can get as many strips as she needs. She's type 1.
One different thing she told me about was thwat they actually confirmed by testing that she has no insulin left. She first presented with gestational diabetes and gave birth to a record baby 12 pounds or thereabouts. He's in his 20s now, married with 3 children of his own, so he's done well.
I noticed last time we had a family get-together that she still uses a syringe and vials and not a pen. I haven't asked if that is her choice.
Also she's entitled to be treated as disabled if she wants to. She does get reduced price tickets for things.And goes Nordic Walking ( so is far from disabled.)

I'm registered as a disabled work and I walk to work and back three days a week. I also take part in plenty of sports too. Without the type 1 diabetes being accepted as a life changing disabilty we are left open to being stuffed by anyone.

There are several European bodies which formulate guidelines for diabetes which are in turn incorporated into national policies so its not surprising that treatment regimes are similar.
For diet see http://www.dnsg.org/info/general/Home/get/0/0/ and . Its quite a dense document but it does describe the evidence base used for conventional dietary recommendations.

Personally,I have excellent treatment (though it comes at a large cost from taxation of various kinds and still runs at a defecit) .
People do defer to doctors, but only if they agree with them! Until 2 years ago one of the expensive problems was that there was no enforced gatekeeper (GP) people couuld go straight to as many specialists as they liked and get reimbursed. So they did, resulting in huge overprescription. They now have to be referred through their GP or get a lower reimbursement.
Somehow I think there is a greater emphasis on getting the person fit again, hence the inpatient treatment to bring BS levels down, in hospital if necessary and a lot of therapeutic education for diabetics. There is a emphasis on exercise, the elderly, whether or not they have health problems, are told to walk 3km a day and I often see octogenarians walking with their sticks (not easy as its a very hilly area) for their afternoon exercise. On both the diabetes courses I went on there was an exercise bike available and at least 2 organised walks. When they learnt I was running they brought in a sports dietician to talk to me. I'm also planning to walk to Compostella (about 1400km door to door) next year and have been promised support.