Back to Dr?

Mummyofthree said:

Hi all, just wondered if you would go back to GP if your BG levels were constantly between 12-18 two hours after meals. I luckily still have my meter from when I was pregnant, I only test a couple of times a week but the lowest reading i can manage is 8.7 (& that was before breakfast). Sometimes I get so exhausted I fall asleep during the day & I get really grumpy at the flick of a switch. I overheard the children telling my mum that I was 'shouty' & always in a bad mood. Does this sound normal? Thanks in advance.

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It sounds normal behaviour for someone with BGs in the 12-18 range Yes definitely see your doctor. Are you reducing your carb intake?

Also have a look at your previous thread as I'm not sure whether you saw the later responses. Do you still have tummy pain?
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/newly-diagnosed-confused.83127/

Mummyofthree said:

Yes, I've reduced it quite a bit, no pasta, bread or rice & only a couple of new potatoes with dinner. Leafy veg & proteins for evening meal. If I have carbs it will be an ounce of all bran for breakfast & maybe a warburtons thin for lunch. Compared to the thick white bread, jkt spuds (oh I miss them), crisps & rice etc I used to have! I do eat apples & pears & yoghurt tho.

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You might need to reduce your carbs further. Have you been testing before meals and two hours after to see what effect each food has on your BG?

Also, I added something to my post above so please check it again.

Potatoes are not a good idea. I found after I cut the starcy carbs right back to near zero for a couple of months IIcould re-introduce them in moderation.
Yoghurts need very careful reading of the nutritional info on the label.
Apples and pears are OK for me but stick to kids fun sized fruit and not too often.

exercise will help to bring it down.

I went on a very low calorie diet (800kcal) for several months and normalised my blood sugars within a couple of weeks.

Mummyofthree said:

Tummy pain has completely gone! Almost overnight when I cut down the carbs. my DN said my BG should be between 4-6 before meals, I've tested a couple of times & it's usually 9ish. The only decent reading I get is in the morning when I can get a 7. Gosh this carbs thing is hard, what do you substitute them with? I wasn't keen on cauliflower rice & I'm not a fan of salad. I can now tell when my levels are on the rise as I'm dreadfully grumpy & tired. How can you bring it down tho? I've grabbed the dog & gone out for a walk but that's impossible when I'm at work. I've only been prescribed one pot of strips as they wont give me any more

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Most of we T2s have ended up self-funding our testing regimes. There's no point discussing how wrong that is, because I think, for now, we're stuck with it, unless you can persuade your practise otherwise. Some have managed it.

Initially, in my view, we need to test a lot, so that we can understand which foods to what to our blood scores. Whilst it's fair to make bold statements like, "no pasta, bread etc", the reality is we each have different tolerances and what impacts me worst may not cause you a problem, or vice versa. So, the testing is as much about finding out what you can eat as what you can't.

Most of us have bought the SD Codefree meter from Homehealth: http://www.homehealth-uk.com/medical/blood_glucose_monitor_testing.htm . The strips are significantly cheaper than anything else I've found, reliably (i.e. not buying the odd cheapo pot from eBay). My own research was that the big name meter strips are c£20+ for a pot of 50, whereas the Codefree strips work out at just over £5 a pot, provided you buy 5 or 10 pots in a single order. So, realistically, the order of 5 pots is about the same cost as one pot of the big brands.

Initially, we usually find we test a lot, then, once we have a good sense of our no-no foods, we can rein it back a bit. I consider it to be an investment in my health.

The discount codes for the Codefree are:
5 pots - 264086
10 pots - 975833

The code goes in at the checkout.

Mummyofthree said:

Yes, I've reduced it quite a bit, no pasta, bread or rice & only a couple of new potatoes with dinner. Leafy veg & proteins for evening meal. If I have carbs it will be an ounce of all bran for breakfast & maybe a warburtons thin for lunch. Compared to the thick white bread, jkt spuds (oh I miss them), crisps & rice etc I used to have! I do eat apples & pears & yoghurt tho.

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When I started testing on the LCHF route, Warburton Thins sent my blood glucose high.

Thought you'd like to know!

Hi. To make up for lower carbs have enough proteins and fats to keep you feeling full. Are you one any meds? It sounds like you may need to start some diabetes meds if the low-carbing doesn't work for you. Yes, make a non-urgent appointment with the GP.

Mummyofthree said:

Not on any meds although at my diagnosis he said I would be on metformin. Don't know why he didn't prescribe it tho. Interesting about the thins Lynne, there's not much of them! I'll have 1 at lunch with chicken & see what happens.

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But they are 17.4 grms each. Way too high.

No problem. That's what we've all had to do.

As I understand it, you need to keep carbs under 10 grms per portion - lower if possible.

@Mummyofthree - Where you set the bar in terms of your food items is absolutely up to you; and that's the sort of information and feedback you get from your meter when you test before and after food. As @Lynn1 says, many people tend to set themselves a ceiling on the carb content of foods, just to make it easy to decide how likely it is to be a problem, with the 10gr per 100gr being quite usual.

For condiments, or other foods where your portion size is very much less than 100gr, it makes sense to apply a certain amount of sense when deciding on those. If a teaspoonful of something with a high carb content transforms the meal, it could (subject to testing) be worth it. When I was first diagnosed, my taste buds became much more sensitive over a period of months, as I simplified my foods. I'm not, and never have been a smoker, so my taste buds are generally OK, but I think they got a bit more highly tunes as I was eating fewer packaged foods, and therefore, in my mind, fewer additives.

It's an interesting journey.

Scary, isn't it, how little good advice you get from your GP?

These are the foods I was advised to eat from the wonderful people on this site:

All meats
Processed meat (hams, bacon etc.)
Cheese
Butter
Eggs
Cream
Coleslaws
Full fat yogurt (low fat = added sugar)
Above ground vegetables. Below have higher carbs = sugar.
Berries (strawberries, blackberries, blueberries etc.)

For snacks I go for peanuts and 9 Bars. Occasionally a piece of cheese.

Be careful with crispbreads. I love them, but they are quite carby.

I would urge you to have a really good read around this site. It has helped me enormously.