carbohydrates blurry vision

webboy

Member
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10
Hi all , I am a fresh type 2 , and what to know can anybody recommend some good foods to help my vision. Its not to bad but just want to know has anybody got some experience on what foods that can help and trigger off things

I read the post about the carbohydrates, why dont people just post what is a good or bad level for carbohydrates like over X on the food packet so we can go out and stop getting them.

I have lost over 1 stone since i was diagnosed 1 1/2 ago on my secret diet plan (no excises at all ) that i am going to be down to 9 stone by November that my goal,

Thanks
 

daisy1

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Hi webboy and welcome to the forum :) You can help your vision by gradually reducing your carbohydrate intake and generally looking after your diabetes to achieve good BG levels. Here is a link to a site that gives you an idea of foods to eat that are good for your eyes:

protect-your-eyesight.com/feeding-your-eyes.html

To help you control your diabetes and look after your eyesight, try following this information which the Forum Monitors have prepared for new members. If you have any questions after reading, please ask and someone will know the answer.

Here is the advice that Ken and I, as Forum Monitors, usually give to newly diagnosed Diabetics. We hope that these few ideas gained through experience help you to gain control and give you some understanding of Diabetes. This forum doesn't always follow the recommended dietary advice, you have to work out what works for you as we are all different.

It's not just 'sugars' you need to avoid, diabetes is an inability to process glucose properly. Carbohydrate converts, in the body, to glucose. So it makes sense to reduce the amount of carbohydrate that you eat which includes sugars.

For more information on CARBOHYDRATE see here:

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=20306

This is NOT a low carb diet suggestion, just a reduction in your intake of carbohydrate. You have to decide yourself how much of a reduction will keep your blood glucose levels in control.

The main carbs to avoid OR reduce are the complex or starchy carbohydrates such as bread, potatoes, pasta, rice, starchy root veg and also any flour based products. The starchy carbs all convert 100% to glucose in the body and raise the blood sugar levels significantly.

If you are on Insulin you may find that reducing the carb intake also means that you can reduce your dose of insulin. This can help you to keep weight gain down as Insulin tends to make you put on weight and eventually cause insulin resistance. This should be done slowly so as not to cause hypos.

The way to find out how different foods affect you is to do regular daily testing and keep a food diary for a couple of weeks. If you test just before eating, then two hours after eating, you will see the effect of certain foods on your blood glucose levels. Some foods, which are slow acting carbohydrates, are absorbed more slowly so you may need to test three or even four hours later to see the effect that these have on your blood glucose levels.

Buy yourself a carb counter book (you can get these on-line) and you will be able to work out how much carbs you are eating, when you test, the reading two hours after should be roughly the same as the before eating reading, if it is then that meal was fine, if it isn’t then you need to check what you have eaten and think about reducing the portion size of carbs.

When you are buying products check the total carbohydrate content, this includes the sugar content. Do not just go by the amount of sugar on the packaging as this is misleading to a diabetic.


As for a tester, try asking the nurse/doctor and explain that you want to be proactive in managing your own diabetes and therefore need to test so that you can see just how foods affect your blood sugar levels. Hopefully this will work ! Sometimes they are not keen to give Type 2’s the strips on prescription, (in the UK) but you can but try!!

For TIPS FOR STRIPS see here:

viewtopic.php?f=20&t=19002#p173253

If you are an Insulin user in theory you should have no problem getting test strips.

The latest 2011 NICE guidelines for Bg levels are as follows:
Fasting (waking and before meals).......between 4 - 7 mmol/l...(Type 1 & 2)
2 hrs after meals........................no more than 8.5 mmol/l.....( Type 2)

2hrs after meals......................... no more than 9 mmol/l ......(Type 1)

If you are able to keep the post meal numbers lower, so much the better.

It also helps if you can do at least 30 minutes moderate exercise a day, it can be split into 10 min sessions to start with. It doesn't have to be strenuous.

The above is just general advice and it is recommended that you discuss with your HCP before making any changes. You can also ask questions on the forum on anything that is not clear.

Finally a few QUESTIONS TO ASK AT DIABETES CLINIC.

viewtopic.php?f=20&t=17091



Sue/Ken.
 

JUSTFOCUS

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Hi weboy
The blurry vision could be a side affect of your meds . Do you test your bg's? as for the answer reffering to the diet everybody reacts differently to certain foods . If your looking for a rough guide there is a diet called "Vivs diet to look at" before you chop and change your diet always consult with your Dr or HCP :D
Welcome to the forum JF 8)
 

webboy

Member
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10
The blurry vision could be a side affect of your meds .

Sorry NO MEDS, that's a doctors paradise for paid for life!!!


Thank i will take a look at the book , I know its down to foods as i dont get the blurry vision all the time

JUSTFOCUS said:
Hi weboy
The blurry vision could be a side affect of your meds . Do you test your bg's? as for the answer reffering to the diet everybody reacts differently to certain foods . If your looking for a rough guide there is a diet called "Vivs diet to look at" before you chop and change your diet always consult with your Dr or HCP :D
Welcome to the forum JF 8)
 

jaykay

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Do you test your blood glucose levels? A general recommendation at the beginning is to try various foods and test your bg levels to see what those foods do to you ( everyone tends to be slightly different as to what they can process well ). My friend told me a story though about a newly diagnosed diabetic friend of hers, who over Xmas thought she would be good and not drink any alcohol or fizzy drinks but just orange juice, because orange juice is good for you right!? :shock: Her vision went totally blurry and she thought she was going blind but once she stopped the juice and brought her sugar levels down, her eyesight went back to normal.
 

viviennem

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Hi Webboy

It's not a book, it's a 'sticky thread' on here called "Viv's Modified Atkins Diet". It works for me, but is very low-carb - though you can add extra carbs very easily if you want to.

Reading labels - as a rule of thumb I try to stick to 5g of carb per 100g of food; certainly no more than 10g, and that's only occasionally. Don't forget it's total carbs, not just sugars. Get yourself a carb counter book - Collins do a pocket-sized one called Carb Counter, or there's the Calorie, Carb and Fat Bible 2011 which is more accurate but certainly not pocket-sized. Both available from Amazon, and all good bookshops everywhere! :lol:

It's worth checking out the carb values for all your favourite foods.

Good luck!

Viv 8)
 

Sid Bonkers

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Hi Webboy and welcome to the forum.

I agree with a lot of Vivs views but I do not follow the advice she gives below, if I did I would surely starve :wink:
viviennem said:
Reading labels - as a rule of thumb I try to stick to 5g of carb per 100g of food; certainly no more than 10g

I dont care how many carbs per 100g its the amount of carbs I eat that matters to me. Heres an example.
Breakfast this morning I had 20g of cornflakes with around 80ml of semi skimmed milk. A total carb count of just over 20g. 16.8g for the cornflakes and 3.8g for the milk.

Now cornflakes come in at 84g per 100g but as I said that doesn't interest me its the amount that I eat that matters, by testing my blood glucose before and 2 hours after eating the above breakfast I know that I can tolerate this breakfast and my bg will have returned to near pre meal levels after 2 hours.

So rather than deny myself so many food stuffs I just test, test, test and test again until I find out what amount of every food type I can safely eat and stay within the NICE recommendations.

I would stress however that what I can eat and what you can eat will probably not be the same so if you follow this route you would need to test, test, and test again until you find your own limits. IMHO only by lots of bg testing can you find out what you can eat, that testing doesn't have to last forever either as once you know your limits you need only test occasionally to ensure all is OK.

Viv's very low carb diet will and does work but as with most things in life there are alternatives
thumbsup.gif
 

viviennem

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There most certainly are alternatives, and my diet doesn't suit everyone, but if I ate Sid's breakfast I too would "surely starve" - probably by lunch-time :lol:

I have a 2-egg omelette for breakfast every day, and don't have any need to eat until about 13:30 - even if I go out for a coffee and my friends are scoffing home-made cakes all round me :shock:

Everyone is different - occasionally I eat a granola breakfast cereal designed to have a low Glycaemic Load - which means it affects your blood sugar slowly and gently - called 'Lizi's' - available at some supermarkets. A 50g serving plus semi-skimmed milk contains about 26g carbohydrate. If you're not a very low carber like me (I aim for less than 50g in the whole day) that might be quite acceptable. It's all to do with reading labels, which I didn't make clear on my original post. Eg, if I'm in a hurry and grabbing a ready meal, I go for the ones in the 5 - 10g carb per 100g range.

Have a look at the 'how much carbohydrate do you eat?' thread and you'll get some idea of what other people eat in a day. Many people cope very well on more carb than I eat.

If you do try my version of Atkins - as you eat more carbs you should cut down your fat intake. Carbs + fat = weight gain, in my case!

But as Sid says - test, test test, particularly in these early days. It's the only way you'll find out what affects you, and if you do that you'll soon learn what to avoid, and what you have to reserve for special treats.

Diabetes is not the end of the world, and we're all here to help. I'm lucky, in that I don't have blurry vision problems, but I'm sure someone else will be along soon who understands more about it.

Good luck with your weight loss! I have so much to lose I daredn't set a target, except for half-a-stone at a time! :roll:

Viv 8)
 

Daibell

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Hi

I had blurry vision and all the other classic symptoms at my diagnosis. I think you will find your blood sugar has to be quite high to induce blurry vision so it really is essential for you to test yourself or have regular tests via your GP; the best solution is get your own meter and strips. Meters can be free if you hassle a meter manufacturer and you can buy test strips on the web cheaper than a chemist. As for NO MEDS if you manage to have a good diet, testing to check results and plenty of exercise you may manage to avoid meds at least initially but be prepared to have meds at some point. Good diet is the key to keeping meds at a minimum if they are needed. Yes GPs do tend to favour an NHS diet (usually not good advice) and then medicate to manage blood sugar. Keep in touch with this forum and all the advice on diet and you can't do any better.
 

noblehead

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webboy,

Blurry vision can be a result of both hypo and hyperglycemia and is often seen in those who are newly diagnosed and have yet to stabilise their bg control, as with most things if you are concerned it may be something else or the condition gets worse then seek expert advice from your gp or ophthalmologist.

As for foods that may help, well a balanced diet including ample fresh fruit and vegetables is a starter, the darker the colour the better it is said to help eye health and other organs of the body, you will find plenty of choice regardless if you low-carb or not.

Best wishes

Nigel
 

Patch

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Sid said:
Now cornflakes come in at 84g per 100g but as I said that doesn't interest me its the amount that I eat that matters

I hear heroin is GREAT in moderation! :twisted:

Back on topic, though - FLUCTUATING (not necessarily HIGH) BG levels DO effect your vision. So what can you do to stop your BG level fluctuating? Stop eating the foods that CAUSE the BG fluctuations. And what foods are they?

Fat? Protein? Fibre?

No.

CARBOHYDRATES (again...)
 

webboy

Member
Messages
10
wow so much info , Test Test test,,

Just to update you all i dont have the burred vision any more yippee, i have lost 2 stone since i was diagnosed and totally changed my diet 100%, Yes i agree i will look a the labels more and sick with the guide you all i had said.

Thanks again !!!
 

daisy1

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Hi webboy :) I'm so glad your vision is now back to normal and well done with your weight loss. Congratulations and keep up your efforts. What are your levels like now? This forum is an excellent place to come for advice as so many people want to help so don't hesitate to ask if you need to know something else :)
 

webboy

Member
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First reading today at 22mmol/l (i have never had a reading on this machine for a while)
it was as low as 15 when i first was diagnosed
 

MegaMan

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your blurry vision is because your readings are WAY high. You need help with your control and you say your not on any med. can I ask why ? I thought type 2's took tablets