Advice

[Jc3131]

Hello I have recently been diagnosed with diabetes. They don't know if im type one or two. Im 42 and not overweight and 3 months ago I came off long-term nightshift.

After getting off nights and into a settled routine I noticed the tiredness etc was still with me. Last week I think everything came to a head. I was constantly drinking, urinating and my vision was blurred. Also the feeling of been hungover in the morning got more regular.

After a blood test on friday I received a call from Dr's saying I had to see then asap. I was told that my blood sugar was 18.7 and this all came as a huge shock, even though in the back of my mind I knew something was up.

I habe been prick testing my finger 4 times a day. Before breakfast, dinner, tea and then bed. My first test was 21.5 before bed on monday, and before I took my medication. The next day after taking one gliclazide tablet my readings were 14.7 - 17.1. Then yesterday 13.3- 16.3. The Dr rang me and he said my levels are what he expected and doubled my dose of gliclazide. Today ive been 12.5 and just there 13.2.

Sorry if its confusing, but this is all I really know about my condition. I keep losing weight because I don't know what to eat. I have reduced sugar and carbs but im hungry within 2 hours of food and don't want to eat anything wrong.

I would be really grateful if anyone could pass on any advice. I've read up on a lot of things but it's too much to take in and I may end up doing things wrong.

I read these gliclazide tablets are for type 2 Diabetes am I right?

Cheers John

 

[novorapidboi26]

It sounds like type 2 to me, maybe 1.5......

Its clear your medication is having some effect on lowering your levels, which is good.......

if your were type 1 I wouldn't expect oral meds to be as successful.....even with residual insulin production...

a lot of type 2 on here who can get you started...

 

[serenity648]

paging @daisy1 who has a lot of very good advice.

 

[Resurgam]

Yes,medication associated with type 2 so you need to test your blood glucose as it can drop low.
The good news is that if you have type 2 you could reduce your carb intake then you should drop your glucose levels too and start to feel better - though you could go a bit wobbly as it might be a bit of a shock to your brain to have the sugary bath taken away.
I used my knowledge of the Atkins diet to reduce my levels to normal. Being me I did it in 80 days with no medication.
It is the old fashioned Atkins from New Diet Revolution, not the Atkins Corporation version.
On Atkins there is always something you can eat.
I have found the Lidl protein rolls very handy, they are the only breadlike things which don't spike my blood glucose levels.
The usual testing is just before and then two hours after starting to eat and looking for under 2 mmol/l increase.
If you are hungry then a steak and mushrooms or chicken and cauliflower might fill the gap.

 

[Prem51]

Sorry if its confusing, but this is all I really know about my condition. I keep losing weight because I don't know what to eat. I have reduced sugar and carbs but im hungry within 2 hours of food and don't want to eat anything wrong.

Hi John (@Jc3131 ) and welcome to the forum. It is a shock when you get that diagnosis and takes a bit of time to get your head around it all.
I didn't know what I could eat when i was first diagnosed and just ate tinned salmon/mayonnaise wholemeal bread sandwiches for about 3 weeks. But finding this forum helped me to learn about foods I could eat. There is a section on low carb recipes, and a thread called 'Type 2s what have you eaten today?' which will give you some ideas.
A lot of us have found that adopting a Low Carbohydrate High Fat (LCHF) approach to eating has reduced our blood sugar readings.
The High Fat part means eating more healthy fats like oily fish, dairy produce, avocadoes, nuts and olive oil. The fats replace the energy you would have got from the starchy carbohydrates. They also make you feel full, and not hungry.
Have a read round the threads to see how LCHF works, and ask any questions you want to. The people on here are friendly and supportive and you will get a lot of good advice.

 

[Alison Campbell]

I have reduced sugar and carbs but im hungry within 2 hours of food and don't want to eat anything wrong.

Hi Welcome to the forum, if you do not want to lose weight try eating a little fat with every meal to replace the energy from carbs and sugar. Mayo, olive oil, butter on veg, olives, nuts, oily fish, eggs, dairy what ever you prefer coupled with lots of fresh veg stops me feeling hungry.

 

[Mark_1]

Try diet doctor.com for their 2 weeks starter diet. That will give you some ideas.

 

[azure]

Hi @Jc3131

You mention that you keep losing weight and attribute this to not being sure what to eat, but weight loss can also be a symptom of Type 1 diabetes.

There are tests that can help determine your diabetes type, and, if there's any uncertainty, it might be best to ask for further investigation. Type 1 can come on more slowly in adults. Don't let assumptions be made about your type, if there's any doubt at all.

 

[Jc3131]

Thanks for the replies. Ive just been to lidl and bought some high protein rolls, nuts wholeweat pasta, blueberries and these low sugar rice cakes. I will look into everything that you have said and take my time researching things.

I had two grilled burgers from a pizza shop, no bread just the burgers with salad. I thought it would push levels up but i checked two hours after ans its dropped slightly to 13.0. Hopefully it will keep dropping and i will start to loose this strange sickly feeling that comes and goes.

The weight loss is probably down to the fact i was drinking and liberally 10 mins later i was going to the toilet and double was coming out. Also before the diagnosis I had cut down on eating a lot of things that weren't great. Hopefully now the weight will stabilise.

My main worry is my eyes. They are blurry and a few weeks ago I had a normal eye test and found out i needed specs for short sightness and an astigmatism in one eye. I noticed one day last week my sight was a lot better but at moment it is a bit off especially in one eye. Everything seems strange when i look at things in the distance.

Cheers John

 

[Jc3131]

Also sorry for the predictive text errors. Its either that or my eyes.

 

[Resurgam]

Be aware that the rice cakes and pasta are high carb and you'll need to watch the amounts - low sugar and wholemeal do not mean that they are safe to eat.

 

[daisy1]

@Jc3131

Hello John and welcome to the Forum Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it helps you. Ask as many questions as you want and someone will be able to answer.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

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 free 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. They're all 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.

 

[Jc3131]

Be aware that the rice cakes and pasta are high carb and you'll need to watch the amounts - low sugar and wholemeal do not mean that they are safe to eat.

I checked the back of the packets and the rice cakes are quite low. The pasta has carbs but not as much as normal. I was just going to have them now and again. The kids may eat the rice cakes, but then again I got the hot spicy ones.

 

[Jc3131]

Cheers for the info Daisy. Plenty for me to look through.

 

[Jc3131]

Be aware that the rice cakes and pasta are high carb and you'll need to watch the amounts - low sugar and wholemeal do not mean that they are safe to eat.

Ive just looked properly and per biscuit/cake it seems low but overall they are quite full of carbs.

 

[lessci]

Your feeling "Sicky" could be due to a "False Hypo". Your body has become used to running at high BG (Blood Glucose) levels, and as you reduce them down to "normal" levels it will try and con you into thinking that your having a "hypo" (BG level below 4) they're not pleasant, but will pass as you get used to running at lower levels

 

[azure]

The weight loss is probably down to the fact i was drinking and liberally 10 mins later i was going to the toilet and double was coming out. Also before the diagnosis I had cut down on eating a lot of things that weren't great. Hopefully now the weight will stabilise

Hopefully, but do mention it to your doctor if it doesn't, and push for further tests to check your type.

Tagging @Daibell as I think he might be able to contribute.

 

[Jc3131]

Once again thanks for all the advice. I had a call from dr today. They are upping my Gliclazide to 3 times a day. 3x 40mg tablets. I asked about what type I was and she said going off age etc probably type 2, but they are waiting for the results of another test to rule out type 1.

My latest reading this morning was 10.2 the lowest yet. I can tell its lowered as my eyes have settled.

Cheers John

 

[azure]

Thanks for the update @Jc3131

It's promising they've done an additional test to rule out Type 1. Is it a GAD test? There are a surprising number of Type 1s here who were diagnosed after 30, so it's great you're being investigated properly.

 

[Jc3131]

Im not sure what test it is. Dr just said this blood test takes longer.