Confused about carbs + exercise and fertility

[Munkki]

Hi all,

I am going to write an introduction soon, but right now I signed up, because I just read the 'eye-opener' section in a book I bought yesterday. Oh my God, I hardly knew anything about diabetes before and now I am scared....

I try to get my head around things. I have never been overweight, but had a bulgy middle section all my life. I have had high blood pressure and followed a quite strict low-salt diet for a while, thinking that sweet food is 'safe'. After a few years, when my blood sugar was high I soon bought the 'I quit sugar' book by Sarah Wilson and within a few months got off all cakes, sweets, etc. Over time I cut down on carbs as well, so much that I became quite thin. I also did a lot of exercise. My sugar levels went down to the lower end of the pre-diabetic range. My GP told me my weight was okay, but I soon found out that my fertility didn't think so. My period wouldn't show up. I reintroduced carbs slowly and my period came back, sometimes more, sometimes less. My blood sugar is high again. I am talking about the HBA1C measure. I feel like I am in-between diabetes and starvation/infertility. Has anyone else been in the same situation?

I am 31 and type 2.

Have a good Sunday night x

Munkki

 

[Safi]

Prior to a neck injury I was very athletic & often times too thin - this combo always resulted in the loss of my period. I'm currently quite thin due to low carbing for the sake of my blood sugars but do much less exercise than I used to & I still have my period. Whether it is due to the reduced exercise (cardio in particular) or because I eat a lot more fat than I used to I couldn't say but I suspect it's a combo of both.

Can you give us an idea of what/how much you were eating & exercising?

 

[Daibell]

Hi. Having T2 at age 31 is unusual if you are slim. I would hazard a guess that you may be Late on set T1 (LADA). If so this would explain the high blood sugar despite quite low-carbing. I suggest you need to have enough carbs to keep your fertility up and also have enough protein & fats to feel full. Can you let us know how many carbs per day you are currently having. LADA normally requires some medication, but the optimum tablets will be different from those with T2 as T1s have lower than normal insulin output. You may want to suggest the LADA possibility with the GP and there are two tests to help confirm it. Many GPs don't understand the differences, but it's important anyway that you have some medication and the right type. I had to suggest Gliclazide to my diabetes GP and he agreed. This is the more common tablet for LADA. I guessing of course but hopefully it gives you some guidance for further discussion with the GP.

 

[4ratbags]

I have been doing LCHF and I have been experiencing problems with my periods as well, sometimes getting them twice a month, yay. Its a bit of a balancing act, you think you are doing everything right and then something else pops up.

 

[Munkki]

Good morning

Thanks for your replies. Phew, I am tired today, as I had a very bad night's sleep.

Let me answer your questions. Last autumn I often had meals without any added carbs, so for example I would have cauliflower instead of rice, or swap potatoes with an extra portion of steamed veggies. As I got less and less hungry I reduced my portions and also experimented with vegan food, leaving dairy out etc. I did about an hour of exercise every day, lots of cardio. With all these lifestyle changes my HBA1C went from the upper end of pre-diabetes to the lower end of pre-diabetes. I was super energetic and strong.

The absent period really confused me, so I added some carbs back in. Actually, Christmas time was a part-relapse time. I ate healthily and did some exercise, but I had the occasional treat. This Spring I had normal carb portions I guess, e.g. a large potato for dinner, porridge for breakfast etc. I have had a few stressful months at work and skipped exercise sometimes most days a week. I felt less strong and less energetic, but very hungry at times. I tried to snack on cheese, nuts and hummus, sometimes lots, and gained some weight. During Easter I was in Germany and got a bit too excited about bread

Now I try to eat a small amount of carbs with every meal, maybe half a sweet potato or one large slice of bread, ideally rye sourdough, and lots of veggies and reasonable amounts of fats and proteins. I eat neither sweets nor fruits at the moment. I try to do some exercise every day, a mix of cardio, yoga, indoor climbing, cycling, running, walks in national parks, weights. I already feel better, less hungry, can sleep better (usually).

I haven't yet seen anyone else except for my GP, but I have a hospital appointment scheduled for September. I am worried that my GP will just prescribe medications. I am definitely going to ask about LADA. I have had normal fasting blood sugar levels by the way and a normal result for a glucose tolerance test.

I am travelling next week and need to sort out my nutrition for the trip as well as the stay in US. If you have any recommendations now, please let me know. Otherwise I am sure there are some relevant threads already in this forum.

Many thanks again.

Munkki

 

[Safi]

First of all I recommend you use this http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes/DietMakeupCalc.php to make sure you're getting enough calories & to help you work out your carb/fat/protein ratios. Next, if you haven't got one then I would pick up a blood glucose monitor so you can check the impact of your meals on your blood sugars as well as the impact of your chosen exercise - some people see a big spike with cardio but some do OK. Lastly, when you increased your carbs over x'mas and continued to snack on fats like nuts & cheese you were bound to put on some weight. When you're low carbing you need the extra fat but when you're not low carbing then you don't.

Work out your ratios using the above link then pop into the low carb forum for some meal ideas - the people there are on varying levels of carbs so you should find a few ideas that suit you.

Having your period is important for health reasons (including blood sugar management) other than just fertility so try not to let it go awol again if you can

safi

 

[Munkki]

Thank you for the link, Safi. I am trying to make sense of the results, but I am unsure about the amount of carbs I eat. Still, I am just getting afraid I haven't eaten enough today. My GP told too little food may have been the problem with my low carb approach. I definitely need to count my fats, proteins and carbs. Do you know a convenient website or so? How do you calculate all these values?

Today I had 4.3 mmol/l before dinner! Now I know why I am getting so hungry and shaky in the late afternoon. However, somehow this doesn't make sense with my diabetes type 2, does it?

 

[Safi]

I'm prediabetic & frequently get numbers in the low fours & even high threes as do other members here who are diagnosed type 2 so nothing particularly unusual there. What is unusual, at least as far as I am aware, is that you mention passing a glucose tolerance test. I posted a reply to your thread in the intro section suggesting you look into other possible reasons for an elevated Hba1c.

Regarding carb/fat/protein figures you can just google the food in question (eg: how many carbs in sweet potato) & plenty of nutritional info sites will come up.