Type 2 Carbs v Sugars

Oldvatr said:

I have to point out that absolutely nothing in my plan came recommended by any of the dieticians I was referred to. All they offered was Eatwell# 1 (version 2 came later that year)

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yes it is the same **** in Denmark recomending eating about 70% carbs a day...
I am so happy I found this forum and was very inspired right away from the fantastic results people have...

I Wonder how many years it will take before these recomendations will be changed..

we should really make a kind of union worldwide to promote knowledge and statistics of our common results..

When diagnosed my BG reading was 17.1.
Metformin is not my friend so I just can't take it every day.
After 18 days of low carb my BG reading when I got up today was 7.7 mmol/l

malcr99 said:

I am type 2 and was diagnosed approximately 7 months ago and put on 4 x 500mg of metformin a day, looking at the advice given on the forums I seem to be doing things wrong, I have always liked my carbs and have not massively reduced them. I have been really strict on my sugar sugar intake if that makes sense, as regards to other sources of carbs I have switched to wholemeal/wholegrain bread and rice and still have boiled or baked potato on occasion but I have cut out pasta and have reduced my portion sizes somewhat. I have increased exercise - mainly walking but luckily I walk a lot at work and do a lot of stair climbing which helps. I have got a blood sugar monitor but have not really do much testing with regards to before and after meals my morning reading at present are in the range 5.0 to 6.5mmol/L. So far my hba1c has dropped from 111 at diagnosis to 45 at my last check a week ago and have lost a smidge over 2 stone. So it would appear what I am doing is working upto a point, so if I was much stricter on my carbs as many above are doing would I be likely to be able to drop my medication levels ?

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You are doing very well and I would suggest you keep going. Yes checking if any of your foods spike you might be a good idea. We are all different so it is quite likely you can cope with more carbs than some others.

bulkbiker said:

[QUOTE="malcr99, post: 1323252, member: 326088" So far my hba1c has dropped from 111 at diagnosis to 45 at my last check a week ago and have lost a smidge over 2 stone. So it would appear what I am doing is working upto a point, so if I was much stricter on my carbs as many above are doing would I be likely to be able to drop my medication levels ?

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As you rightly say what you have done so far is working well..the answer to your question is probably but the best way is to try. I gave up on metformin after 3 weeks as it did horrible things to me... since then I have just relied on intermittent fasting and diet. Seems to have worked ok so far. Some here may consider me a bit extreme but I took my diagnosis as a wake up call and as I'm quite attached to my vision and toes I thought I'd better get a grip. I would suggest trying an even lower carb diet ( I probably have less than 20g per day) and see how it works. You have nothing to lose.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the reply. It seems quite a few people have issues with metformin - I did have a few bouts of unpleasantness during the first couple of months or so and the nurse did offer to switch me to the slow release version at my 3 monthly check although I said I would see if it continued. I seem to have settled down and have had no issues for a while although there were a couple of foods I removed from my diet that seemed to initiate things, I may well try a lower carb diet as it would be nice to rely less on the medication.

Oldvatr said:

I agree that the traffic light system is inadequate for those of us carb counting,

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That's why I thought it was worth mentioning on a thread called Carbs vs Sugars.

LinziC78 said:

I'm have posted once before as I have only been diagnosed a couple of months. I am confused about the advise given by the nurse and wonder if anyone can help me clarify it. She said anything under 5gs of sugar per 100gs would be the best thing to look at as far as diet goes. So am I looking at grams of carbs, or grams of carbs that are sugars? If it's the second one then pasta, bread and crisps seem to be OK, but this can't be surely?! Can anyone help, as I have been healthy eating, lost half a stone in the last month but bs seems to not move from between 13 to 16. Help please x

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HELLO I guess you are type 2 diabetic ?
My own visit with the ' diabetic nurse ' was MOST unsatisfactory. After waiting weeks, I then was rushed through the half hour appointment as she was ''running late '' and I could hardly absorb the info she was shovelling at me. This after researching my own condition [ I am a retired dentist with more than average medical knowledge ] She then offered me statins [ typical NHS blanket treatment ] as my total cholesterol was ' high ' . I had been taking note of my own results the last few years .When I pointed out that the total/ HDL ratio was fine and showed no problem she didn't seem to know what I was talking about. My advice to you ? DEMAND to see the GP and get it all straight. If they won't do that, threaten to complain . Diabetes is a serious disease and they should treat it seriously, not in an offhand manner. As for carbs, count the total and keep em low : quite easy to do. Research on line for VLCHF diets and check out the latest from Newcastle University , cut out bread pasta rice potatoes etc [ quite easy to do look it up ] good luck.

Resurgam said:

When diagnosed my BG reading was 17.1.
Metformin is not my friend so I just can't take it every day.
After 18 days of low carb my BG reading when I got up today was 7.7 mmol/l

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I read somewhere that the problem with METFORMIN is starting at too high a dose. Start with about a quarter of the recommended dose , then increase gradually over several weeks.. i think it is then tolerated better, fewer side effects.
This is just from memory so you could research that yourself for more accurate details.

hooha said:

I read somewhere that the problem with METFORMIN is starting at too high a dose. Start with about a quarter of the recommended dose , then increase gradually over several weeks.. i think it is then tolerated better, fewer side effects.
This is just from memory so you could research that yourself for more accurate details.

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The instruction was to start at one tablet and then increase it in stages, up to three - but I could not tolerate even one tablet - plus I had severe side effects, either from the Metformin or the statin I was prescribed at the same time. Memory was gone, unable to learn anything, I still can't concentrate, muscle pain still in one lower leg, my gut is a lot better but it is not quite right after a month or more.

Resurgam said:

The instruction was to start at one tablet and then increase it in stages, up to three - but I could not tolerate even one tablet - plus I had severe side effects, either from the Metformin or the statin I was prescribed at the same time. Memory was gone, unable to learn anything, I still can't concentrate, muscle pain still in one lower leg, my gut is a lot better but it is not quite right after a month or more.

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Brain Fog and muscle pain is a well documented and often reported side effect of statin use. Metformin is generally associaed with stomach problems and inability to venture far from the little room in the house. In the army we called it Confined to Bog. Metformin is often called Metfartin because of this trait.