Another new member

Welcome Carolyn! I was caught on the annual BP meds blood test too, a bit of a shock! You’ve certainly come to the right place. Firstly I’ll tag in @daisy1 who’ll post loads of useful info for you. I was diagnosed in May and chose the low carb diet and self monitoring route. With that I’ve lost nearly 5 stone and got my HbA1c to a non diabetic level down from 70.

Hi Caroline, welcome, lots of bedtime reading here. Also lots of motivation, encouragement, praise and say it how it is (if that is what you want - lol) I find walking for about 45mins (about 1 1/2 miles) a day is enough on top of walking to work and back (which is an extra 30 mins).
Ask whatever questions you may need to know the answer to as there is a lot of knowledge on here. Good luck on your journey.
Tracy

Hi and welcome to the forum, you are in the right place to get yourself on track, there are many helpful and knowledgeable members.

Carolyn171 said:

I am finding getting sufficient exercise is even harder

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If you scroll down to the "Fitness, Exercise & Sport" section you can find a sub-section "Regular Moderate Exercise Log". This was started with the idea of encouraging people who are not athletes to write about the exercise they manage to do. You might find a home there, and also perhaps in "Weight Loss & Dieting" as well as "Food Nutrition & Recipes". Lots to explore, and it's not all deadly serious either. Good luck!

Carolyn171 said:

Hello, I am here because I was called back to the GP after my annual blood test (because of being on high BP medication) and told that my blood sugar levels are borderline high. I believe they said 43 mmol/mol, and they said it is in the pre-diabetes range. I am now waiting to join my local NHS programme for help with this.

I am aged 74 and lost my husband six years ago, and had been eating far too much 'comfort food', so now have to lose weight. It's a struggle (not made any easier by well meaning friends who gave chocolates and shortbread as Christmas presents!) but I am determined. Because of my blood pressure and family history I am at some risk of heart disease, not to mention diabetes, so really need to work to reduce the risk. Dieting is a struggle, but I will get there, but I am finding getting sufficient exercise is even harder as I am quite lazy, so I have bought a stepping machine and try to walk more. I don't drive, so have to walk quite a bit anyway, but it isn't enough. This site looks amazing and the forums are so interesting and friendly that I am sure I will find a lot of help and encouragement here.

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Hello Carolyn, I'm sure you will find answers to your questions here. Everyone is so very friendly and helpful and will answer your questions so ask away. The information given also is brilliant and there is just so much of it. Like you I too was found to have borderline diabetes with my annual hypertension blood test. In my case I was just told to see the nurse who tried to give me the usual NHS mantra of the 'eatwell plate' aka the low fat/high carb way of eating. Don't go there as your HbA1c numbers will likely rise if you do! Have a good look at the low carb way of eating on this site or the 8 week blood sugar diet by Michael Mosely.

Good thinking re low carbing. Interesting to hear you say that diabetes may have been your father's problem, my grandmother had it, probably for a lot longer than we knew, back in the 1950's. She had dreadful ulcers on her legs I remember and eventually died of a stroke, aged 90. Much less was known then I think.
My own wake up call was 5 years ago when told I had high blood pressure; I was in shock and disbelief and I determined to do all I could to lower it naturally but sadly I still needed medication . However I did adopt the 5.2 diet which actually worked for me, having yo-yo'd for 40 years on Weight Watchers. I lost lbs and lbs with them but always the same ones! the 5.2 wasn't especially low carb though so I rather think my blood sugar was rising without me realising. I really do feel that the low fat/high carb way of eating which is now largely being discredited, at least on this site, does have a lot to answer for.
Unfortunately the NHS has to comply with NICE recommendations and dish out the dodgy advice. They ought to realise that after 40+ years the problem is worse not better.

Carolyn171 said:

Thank you all so much for your kind words and encouragement plus all the really helpful advice. Gosh, I am going to be busy - so much to learn, or rather re-learn. I have played with the traditional 'low fat diets all my life, usually lost weight for a while then, in common with so many people, sadly put it back on again. I have never tried going down the low carb route, so must investigate. My sister, who was a nurse before she retired, actually told me this is the best way to go and she sent me a very handy low carb reference book for Christmas. Unfortunately, I am rather too fond of bread and potatoes to pay it very much attention, but have now got it out and in my kitchen, and am all set to give low carb eating a serious try. As I said in my original post, I am determined to succeed this time - my father had all kinds of vascular problems, including having a leg amputated, and while in hospital I remember he was diagnosed with diabetes. At the time (this is nearly 30 years ago) he had so many problems we never gave it much thought, but he may have had it for years and it may have been the cause rather than the consequence of his poor health so obviously it makes me think. Thanks once again.

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You will likely find your cravings for breads/rice/pasta disappearing after a few days on low carb. That happens to many people who've switched over. Definitely have a read of the book your wonderfully smart sister gave you.

@Carolyn171

Hello Carolyn and welcome to the Forum Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it both interesting and useful. Ask as many questions as you want and someone will help.


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 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.