Advice please

Nige1006 said:

Hello Everyone,
This is my first time on the forum, I was diagnosed with type 2 about 5 years ago and to be honest I have not looked after myself at all. I always describe myself as a Egyptian Diabetic...... In de Nile. I have continued to eat and drink everything that I shouldn’t have and up to recently haven’t noticed any problems doing this.
However this weekend I did not feel well and I measured my blood sugars. I had a reading of 30 and even I know that this is not good. (It is now down to 18.) I have been to my GP and am now waiting for the results of the blood tests.( nervously) I have been ill this week and have taken some time off work because I have felt wiped out, blurred vision etc. I have been feeling guilty taking the time off just because I’m feeling a little tired and have an headache so I am going to return to work tomorrow. Does anyone else take time away from work because of similar symptoms ?
I have just been reading some posts on here which have been really helpful I know that I have so much to learn and I suppose a long way to go. One thing that I have noticed though is that many people talk about loosing weight. Does a diabetic diet mean that you will lose the weight ? to be honest I want to put the weight on, like I said I am new to all of this so I might be over complicating things as there is a lot of information to take on board. Like I said before I have lots to learn but hopefully I am not to late.

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Welcome. Not sure if you meant to or not but you’ve posted this comment in another thread not started a new one. A moderator may be able to move it for you if that’s what you need.

It’s never to late to make improvements. A low carb diet does often result in weight loss but increasing carbs and fats (as people do when they wish to maintain their weight having lost what they want to) can solve that issue. Importantly if you end up on new medications and possibly existing ones then be aware if they can cause a hypo. Low carb is still possibles on those but must be monitored more carefully. Type 1s and insulin dependant 2’s can advise you more if that’s the case.

Hello and welcome @Nige1006

I've started a new thread for you so it doesn't get confused with the other members responses and to help give your query better visibility, also tagging @daisy1 for our new members information.

@Nige1006
Hello Nige 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 need to 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.
  

Nige1006 said:

Hello Everyone,
This is my first time on the forum, I was diagnosed with type 2 about 5 years ago and to be honest I have not looked after myself at all. I always describe myself as a Egyptian Diabetic...... In de Nile. I have continued to eat and drink everything that I shouldn’t have and up to recently haven’t noticed any problems doing this.
However this weekend I did not feel well and I measured my blood sugars. I had a reading of 30 and even I know that this is not good. (It is now down to 18.) I have been to my GP and am now waiting for the results of the blood tests.( nervously) I have been ill this week and have taken some time off work because I have felt wiped out, blurred vision etc. I have been feeling guilty taking the time off just because I’m feeling a little tired and have an headache so I am going to return to work tomorrow. Does anyone else take time away from work because of similar symptoms ?
I have just been reading some posts on here which have been really helpful I know that I have so much to learn and I suppose a long way to go. One thing that I have noticed though is that many people talk about loosing weight. Does a diabetic diet mean that you will lose the weight ? to be honest I want to put the weight on, like I said I am new to all of this so I might be over complicating things as there is a lot of information to take on board. Like I said before I have lots to learn but hopefully I am not to late.

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Hey @Nige1006 , and welcome,

Could your numbers be better? Yeah. But you don't seem to be drowning in a certain Egyptian river anymore, so wahey, there's hope for you yet! I never have taken a day off work myself, but I'm cheating: I don't have a job. Too many issues, so I've been on disability from the moment I had to quit school. (Long, long before T2 reared its ugly head). I have been so fatigued, and so weak in my muscles though, that my husband had to cut my meat for me on my plate, because I just couldn't get through it. Which was frustrating and humiliating, I can tell you! I was diabetic then and didn't know it. That's the thing with other issues: You think that's the cause, and don't look for something new. In your case, you pretty much know what's causing this, though maybe a touch of vitamin D deficiency might be at play as well, as us T2's seem to be susseptable to that (worth a check, ask your doc). A lot of what you mention can be fixed with a low carb, high fat diet.... But I think you've already gathered that on the site already, as you've been reading for a bit here. Care to tell us what your meals look like, should you want help in tweaking them? Just an idea, only if you want to of course.

Again, welcome. Only way is up, now! (Except for your bloodsugars. They'll be doing down!)
Jo

Nige1006 said:

Thanks Jo. I’ve been doing lots of reading today. Too much information to take in. I never even thought about carbs I just thought it was the sugar I had to cut out. Thanks again for taking the time to reply Nige

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My pleasure. It is an awful lot, but you don't have to know and remember everything overnight. Taking notes helps though.