Advice for a newbie needed.

[cdspeed]

Hi

I was recently diagnosed with Diabetes Type 2, I have been put on Metformin 500g tablets twice daily. Trying to figure out this eating thing, but my BS are still reading from 8.1-13.8, there seems to be logic or reasons as to why. I have been given no advice by the doctor, just told not to eat any sugar.
I have switched to semi skimmed milk with a whole grain cereal, whole grain roll for lunch with ham, sensible dinner with a look out for any hidden sugar and snacking on fruits. I have sugar free or virtually sugar free soft drinks or flavoured waters.
I have been reading every website I can and they all seem to say cut down sugar and fat, which I have, low sugar (under 5g per 100g) foods/drinks.

I really don't know what I am doing or what I should be doing in order to get my BS down. Can anyone help, advice gratefully received!

Chris

 

[mo53]

Hello Chris. Welcome. Im glad you have joined us. I think someone will be posting some information to help you shortly

 

[cdspeed]

Thanks

Meant to say the earliest appointment for the Diabetic Nurse has been booked for 9th Oct.

 

[jack412]

it's good you have a meter ..this is what helped me

http://www.dietdoctor.com/lchf a read and video
testing
http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes/14045524.php
dreaming of carbs
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/lowcarbliving/a/Food-Cravings.htm
a carb counter
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/

 

[cdspeed]

The doctor said nothing about lowering carbs, just sugar. I need a high fibre diet due to bowel issues so made the switch to whole grain cereal and rolls a couple of weeks ago.

 

[Daibell]

Hi. Your GP gave you the usual poor diabetic diet advice. You need to try to cut down all carbs and have low-GI ones when you can which are usually high-fibre. Fat is OK as well as protein. Veg, of course, is good. Can you let us know how old you are and whether your BMI is roughly normal. Sometimes T2 is wrongly diagnosed instead of Late onset T1.

 

[cdspeed]

I am 36 and have a high BMI it's 34

So is the whole grain cereal (keeping sugar guide below 5g per 100g) and a whole grain roll ok? What can I have in place of fruit? Or are some fruits allowed?
I am really struggling with this, I was told last week that it was a possibility that I had T2, on Monday I had to go to the GP and they said it was and gave me the monitor etc and said cut down sugar, that was it. I went in today for a fasting BS test, nothing was said today.

 

[jack412]

it's a learning curve so don't worry too much, but the sugar amount on packaging is part of the total carbohydrate and cereal I guess is about 60-70g per 100g

have some bacon, eggs, mushroom and tomato or plain high fat greek yoghurt and some fresh or frozen berries

 

[cdspeed]

Thank you for the replies. What sort of carb amounts should I be aiming for?
Do I need to excluded cereals and fruits totally?


Sorry for all the questions!

 

[bernie.freeman]

Hi CDSPEED,

Welcome to this lovely forum, it is important that you find a way of controlling your carbohydrate intake. You will need to test before you eat and again 2hours after to see what effect the food you have eaten has effected your blood sugars The reading should be similar. We have a moderator named Daisy she will be along with advice that is given to newly diagnosed diabetics.
It will take a while for you to find out which foods effect your blood sugars, it is wise to reduce your carb intake, remember that diet is a personal thing and what suits you may not suit everyone. Good luck You are in the right place here to get lots of tips and valuable help

 

[jack412]

until you get your blood glucose BG back to normal levels and your weight within range, I would restrict my carbs. I cut all grain, grain product, potato
I ate lots of non starch veg, normal protein and topped my energy up with quality fats/oils

have a read of the links I put up and a read around the forum and other diabetic forums, LCHF or similar is one way but you will find that fats aren't that bad, it's the carbs.
you wont find many saying high carb low fat is good

 

[NoCrbs4Me]

Personally, I cut out all sugar and fruits. As for carbs, you can really cut them to zero with no harm as long as you are healthy other than the diabetes. Low carb/high fat sounds bad due to the "high fat" part, but really it's just replacing the calories you previously got from carbs with calories from good natural fat (i.e. no margarine/processed vegetable oils, but rather olive oil, avocados, fish, cream, butter, cheese, full fat milk, etc). For most people the reduction of carbs results in improved cholesterol numbers despite increased fat intake. It sure worked for me.

It's great you have a blood glucose meter. Testing to see what different meals do to your blood glucose levels is key. Personally I test about an hour after I eat as that's when my BG seems to peak, but it could be earlier or later. I didn't get a blood glucose meter until more than a year after I had diabetes and the first day my readings made me cut severely down on carbs (even whole grain food) and eventually to almost no carbs.

Good luck.

 

[douglas99]

The doctor said nothing about lowering carbs, just sugar. I need a high fibre diet due to bowel issues so made the switch to whole grain cereal and rolls a couple of weeks ago.

You need to use the BS meter, then you can decide which foods spike you, and which don't. I went for low GI/GL which meant I could eat some carbs, keep my BS down, and keep the fibre up. But he important thing is the BS.

 

[Bluetit1802]

Hi and welcome.

As the others have said, low carb is the way to go. Read the labels on food but ignore the "of which sugars". It is not important. The important figure is the total carbohydrate amount (the sugars are included in this). All carbs turn to sugar once in the system. Wholegrains turn a bit slower, but none the less, they still turn. You have been told about fruits, but we must also be careful with milk as that also is full of sugar. Skimmed and semi skimmed have more sugar than whole milk.

Test out all your meals for a few weeks, record what you eat and drink every meal and snack, and record your levels alongside (before and 2hrs after your first bite), then you will see patterns emerging. If you spike more than 2 or 2.5mmol/l there is something in that meal causing it. Decide what it is and try again with a smaller portion, and keep going until you realise you either have the right portion or you need to avoid it in future.

Cutting carbs and increasing your good fats enough to replace the lost energy will lower your BS and also your weight.

 

[douglas99]

Hi and welcome.

As the others have said, low carb is the way to go. Read the labels on food but ignore the "of which sugars". It is not important. The important figure is the total carbohydrate amount (the sugars are included in this). All carbs turn to sugar once in the system. Wholegrains turn a bit slower, but none the less, they still turn. You have been told about fruits, but we must also be careful with milk as that also is full of sugar. Skimmed and semi skimmed have more sugar than whole milk.

Test out all your meals for a few weeks, record what you eat and drink every meal and snack, and record your levels alongside (before and 2hrs after your first bite), then you will see patterns emerging. If you spike more than 2 or 2.5mmol/l there is something in that meal causing it. Decide what it is and try again with a smaller portion, and keep going until you realise you either have the right portion or you need to avoid it in future.

Cutting carbs and increasing your good fats enough to replace the lost energy will lower your BS and also your weight.

What low carbs are good for high fibre?
Flaxseed?

 

[mo53]

Chia seeds added to yoghurt are low carb and high fibre.

 

[Daibell]

Hi. With regard to a sensible amount of carbs per day, perhaps start with 150gm and see how you go. Many have much less but let your meter and body weight decide. Carbs are not banned but just keep the total down and low-GI. As your BMI is high, the T2 diagnosis would not be in doubt. As your weight comes down so should the blood sugar; just keep at it.

 

[Bluetit1802]

What low carbs are good for high fibre?
Flaxseed?

I said low carb, not no carb, and I advised about testing all his meals to find suitable portions of the carbs he eats. I consider myself to be low carb on 60 to 65g a day, but I still manage a slice of heavily seeded high fibre bread (14 carbs, 6g fibre) plus a few spuds, carrots and peas. Portion controlled of course, and tested with my meter.

 

[douglas99]

I said low carb, not no carb, and I advised about testing all his meals to find suitable portions of the carbs he eats. I consider myself to be low carb on 60 to 65g a day, but I still manage a slice of heavily seeded high fibre bread (14 carbs, 6g fibre) plus a few spuds, carrots and peas. Portion controlled of course, and tested with my meter.

I still think flaxseed is a good option for the op.
Quinoa is another one I eat, but I can't comment on the carbs in it as I haven't checked.

 

[jack412]

fibre is a carb that's not normally counted, there are a lot of stuff that's nondigestible fibre, bran would be the most common with a digestible 8-18g per 100g and 50-80g nondigestible fibre per 100g

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bran