Alcohol???

The liver is forced to deal with alcohol before it can then go on to tackle other stuff. This is why you see skewed bg. Try to see if you can get low carb beer or have a short instead. Shorts seem to be acceptable to a lot of T2s as is red wine. Have a good time.

Probably anxious but testing and witnessing the numbers is important. Most (well, many) T2s have reactions but some don't. Have not heard of it lowering the figures with "additional" alcohol. Carb loaded

Tie the beer to the tests ... you'll soon know

After diagnosis I went tee-total for the first 2.5 months and adopted a low-carb diet forever. When the HbA1c result came back showing I had fully "reversed" my diabetes, I resumed drinking alcohol. The difference is that I used to be an immoderate beer drinker (and also wine). Nowadays, I drink almost entirely wine and in smaller amounts -- 180ml per day during the week (quarter of a bottle), 360ml per day (half a bottle) at weekends. Maybe once a week I drink a pint of beer (on average, over time).

My doctor is not happy about this (he tut-tuts about "empty calories" and "the sugars in wine") but the proof is in the (low-carb) pudding (see numbers in signature below). Wine is low-carb! Beer seems to be OK for me but in extreme moderation, so when I drink beer, it is occasional so I get the really good stuff and don't worry about the carbs in that one pint! (No "lite" beer for me.)

Beer is liquid carbs....

I used to be a beer monster, but the carbs are a real problem. And its surprising how much beers vary, and how hard it is to find out how much they contain. So now I limit myself to one pils that I know is almost half the carbs of a stella.

lowedb said:

And its surprising how much beers vary, and how hard it is to find out how much they contain.

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I am with you there, information is non-existent nor unreliable. How come they don't have to put the nutritional information on the bottle/can?

Mr_Pot said:

I am with you there, information is non-existent nor unreliable. How come they don't have to put the nutritional information on the bottle/can?

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Here in America, the reasons are complex, but it started post-Prohibition when regulation of alcohol was entrusted to a different agency -- not the same agency that regulates food.

The good news is that the big U.S. brewers agreed a year or two back to start listing nutritional information (including carbs and caolries) on beer bottles and cans, on a voluntary basis (https://www.npr.org/sections/thesal...-soon-include-a-reality-check-a-calorie-count). I am not sure whether that has happened yet (I do not drink American beer, on the whole).

During the Obama administration, there was also a proposed rule that restaurants must provide some nutritional information for everything on the menu, including booze. I am not sure what happened to that (and have not noticed any change in the menus). Even if it was enacted, chances are the current administration will reverse it!

When first 'branded' I thought ... that's it - another part of my life over , and I too daaaarent touch drink for about 4 months ... however - and I've said this before....

I used to have a long standing and strong marriage to Stella, however now I've divorced Stella, but have a nice relationship with Gordon and a few Beefeaters! I do occasionally have the occasional 'tryst' with Stella ... just for old times sake, but now keep her at arms length!

To put it in English .... I'm now a convert to G&Ts. I have the odd Lager or two and it seems to be ok. I really wouldn't want to go back (and shudder) at how many Lagers I used to drink far tooo regularly.... probably part of the reason I ended up where I was!

In my very humble opinion (and experience) if you're on top of it, the odd night out with the lads won't hurt .... a mans gotta live!

Hope you had a good night out! .... a curry AND a kebab would be well beyond me now! - hic!

For one diabetes cannot rule your life as a type 1 for 36 years i have found lager puts your sugar high but them drops low. Alcopops are a no no the best thing to drink is wine with soda which is ok. If you want to keep a good BS level then white spirits and diet pop does not have much effect on BS but remember to check your BS when you get home and always take something out with you in case your BS go low. It is trial and error before you find out what is best for you.

Heretic1 said:

When first 'branded' I thought ... that's it - another part of my life over , and I too daaaarent touch drink for about 4 months ... however - and I've said this before....

I used to have a long standing and strong marriage to Stella, however now I've divorced Stella, but have a nice relationship with Gordon and a few Beefeaters! I do occasionally have the occasional 'tryst' with Stella ... just for old times sake, but now keep her at arms length!

To put it in English .... I'm now a convert to G&Ts. I have the odd Lager or two and it seems to be ok. I really wouldn't want to go back (and shudder) at how many Lagers I used to drink far tooo regularly.... probably part of the reason I ended up where I was!

In my very humble opinion (and experience) if you're on top of it, the odd night out with the lads won't hurt .... a mans gotta live!

Hope you had a good night out! .... a curry AND a kebab would be well beyond me now! - hic!

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You met Shiraz? Quite a babe I gather.

I tried the Newcastle brown diet but it was a passing fad for me

I am insulin dependent T2 or T1.5 - 4-years ago, I was diagnosed and was not drinking. About 2-years ago I went to a pub and had Imperial Stout Craft Beer about 9.2% alcohol. Besides getting a very nice buzz my BG dropped dramatically.

Over time I tried many different craft beers and wines - not considering the calories - only looking at the alcohol percents. All had a BG lowering affect when the alcohol content was >5% or so. I found the following on this link:

"Alcohol also affects blood sugar levels each time it’s consumed, which means occasional drinkers can also be negatively impacted. Alcohol consumption causes an increase in insulin secretion, which leads to low blood sugar (otherwise known as hypoglycemia). This causes light headedness and fatigue, and is also responsible for a host of longer-term alcohol-related health problems."

Though I followed a very low carb diet, my nightly pint or two, caused me to over eat cheeses and meats. I put on some lbs and my overall insulin requirements went up along with my A1C. The most notable was my BG was high in the am where it never had been before.

About 4-weeks ago, I stopped with the pints and wine and lost about 7-lbs. My appetite has decreased and my morning BG has decreased a bit too - but not too pre-drinking.

The problem, I see is that perhaps, the drinking stimulated the beta cells and put pressure on them and so more died or became tired out.

It is difficult to tell as it seems that diabetes is not only a very complex disease but really far more sub diseases within the T1, T2 T1.5 designations not factoring in the individual variabilities.

Would I have started drinking if I was aware that it might burn out the limited number of functioning beta cells. Probably yes, as I rationalize that they would have burned out eventually albeit at a slower rate - perhaps.

After these 4-years, I've come to a couple of conclusions:

1. Each individual is unique when it comes to food that increase ones BG levels and you have to test to find out what is what
2. The disease changes over time - so you have to continue a regiment of testing
3. Each of us has to determine what therapeutic level we want to be at - for some an A1C <6.5 is Ok for other it is <5.6
4. Don't be afraid to take the meds that will get you to your therapeutic range.
5. Most important - IMO, the Base Metabolic Rate BMR estimates are way to high for the majority of us - and this is a major part of our problems. It is more important to realize this and deal with it than to struggle with VLCHF diets etc.

In my case my BMR is about 1,880 but in truth I believe I am really in the 1,400 range. If you look at and discuss with Dr. Ornish and Dr. R. Bernstein - both diets very different - as to how many calories they eat - they are under 1,600 daily and to some that would be a VLC diet.