Denial and Despair

[Grace04]

Three months ago I had my second Ac1 reading of 42 mmol bit as I had one of 40 mmol in between I wasn’t diagnosed as prediabetic. I’ve been trying really hard to get it back below 42 mmol. Following advice on here I cut out bread, pasta and rice and as a result my weight has gone by 10 pounds.
As I stand I’m female, 5’6”, about 8 stone 7 and in my early 60s.

I had my A1c re done last Friday and today found out it’s gone up to 44 mmol, which makes me predibetic. I can’t believe it or understand it. How has it gone up when I’ve cut out so many carbs! And where do I go from here!

Part of me says if I can’t get get it down, or even maintain it, with the diet I’ve been eating all it’s going to do is keep going up.

I brought a blood monitor and checked six times a day for over a month, before and after food. Once I cut down the carbs my reads were fine. I’ve have them noted down but I’m not at home at the moment so not able look at them to relate what they were.

I’ll have to go back to testing, but if the readings look fine, I’m not sure where that will get me.

The only thing that’s niggling in my mind is ‘have I been eating too much fruit”? I have a few blueberries and a third of a banana with breakfast, a satsuma for an afternoon snack and mango or some such with crème fraiche after my evening l. Is that too much fruit? And even if it is would the low carb not have still swung the result the other way?

I’ve got an appointment to see a practice nurse at the beginning of July. I don’t know how much help they’ll be as they didn’t offer many pearls of wisdom after my previous result. I’m also starting at the gym next month. Well for three months anyway. I’m not inactive generally with walking and gardening. Still it might help.

Any advice as to where I go from here would be very much appreciated.

 

[lovinglife]

Don’t be so hard on yourself, there are many many things that affect our blood sugar, stress being one of them, so chill a bit .
You mention the fruit you are eating and whilst the a few blueberries sound ok they are still on the higher end of carbs for berries but the banana and the mango are very carby and it’s possible they can be too much for you.

Maybe try dropping the banana and adding a couple of strawberries or 3 or 4 raspberries for your breakfast, cut out the satsuma and the mango, if you want to snack try having a bit of cheese or a boiled egg or a few nuts in place of the satsuma. You can still have your evening treat but try full fat Greek yogurt again with strawberries or raspberries, maybe that will be enough to bring your carbs down a bit.

 

[becca59]

The trouble is @Grace04 banana and mango are not low carb at all. Satsumas are 5-10 carbs a piece and as a type 1 they are very good for getting my levels up if I’m a little low. They show up on my Libre going up like a rocket. 40g blueberries and 100g FF Greek yoghurt gives me a 10 carb breakfast. Manageable with the help of my insulin dose. Are you testing before and 2 hours after to see how these fruits affect you?

 

[Grace04]

Don’t be so hard on yourself, there are many many things that affect our blood sugar, stress being one of them, so chill a bit .
You mention the fruit you are eating and whilst the a few blueberries sound ok they are still on the higher end of carbs for berries but the banana and the mango are very carby and it’s possible they can be too much for you.

Maybe try dropping the banana and adding a couple of strawberries or 3 or 4 raspberries for your breakfast, cut out the satsuma and the mango, if you want to snack try having a bit of cheese or a boiled egg or a few nuts in place of the satsuma. You can still have your evening treat but try full fat Greek yogurt again with strawberries or raspberries, maybe that will be enough to bring your carbs down a bit.

Hi and thank you so much for your reply. I was really expecting the A1c to be down so getting the result came as a bit of a shock. I will try to take your advice and ‘chill’, sometimes easier said than done for me

I’ll also take your advice on the fruit and afternoon snack and the type of fruit I eat. I’m away on holiday at the moment so it’s a bit more difficult to eat as I should, but as soon as I’m home I’ll get on to it.

 

[Grace04]

The trouble is @Grace04 banana and mango are not low carb at all. Satsumas are 5-10 carbs a piece and as a type 1 they are very good for getting my levels up if I’m a little low. They show up on my Libre going up like a rocket. 40g blueberries and 100g FF Greek yoghurt gives me a 10 carb breakfast. Manageable with the help of my insulin dose. Are you testing before and 2 hours after to see how these fruits affect you?

Hi and thank you for your reply. I know fruits contact sugar but I had know idea some contain so many carbs! I’ll have to review what I eat and when in the fruit line.

I was testing before a meal and then 2 hours after, but I haven’t really been testing for last month at least, and I think during that time I might have upped the amount of fruit I eat without realising how bad it can be. It’s so difficult to get your head around the things you always thought were good for you but now aren’t.
I’m on holiday at the moment and stupidly don’t have my meter with me but I’ll get back to test as soon as I’m home.

 

[mh234]

Don't be so hard on yourself. You could go for gentle to moderate-intensity exercise.

 

[mh234]

You are doing great.

 

[mh234]

It's good idea to know your feelings.

 

[ianf0ster]

Exercise as a means to control Blood Glucose is over-rated. You can't out-run a poor diet, in fact the best form of exercise for T2 Diabetes control is muscle building because that provides a bigger container for the energy from the Glucose.

 

[mh234]

I have not been visiting this website. However coming on the website is good for blood sugars.

 

[mh234]

I wouldn't start a sentence with over-rated. Both calorie control, and physical activity is required for management.

 

[mh234]

However we have our personal preferences. I was never a fan of exercise. Any exercise is okay. Fitness is okay. Fitness Pal is a good website,

 

[mh234]

Muscle building is a form of exercise.

 

[mh234]

Might be anaerobic exercise.

 

[lovinglife]

Hi and thank you so much for your reply. I was really expecting the A1c to be down so getting the result came as a bit of a shock. I will try to take your advice and ‘chill’, sometimes easier said than done for me

I’ll also take your advice on the fruit and afternoon snack and the type of fruit I eat. I’m away on holiday at the moment so it’s a bit more difficult to eat as I should, but as soon as I’m home I’ll get on to it.

Just enjoy your holiday with an eye on the carbs, holidays are for fun, yes carb creep is very easy to get into and we all do it now and then, fruit is deceiving and what we once thought good for us isn’t always true now.

 

[ianf0ster]

I wouldn't start a sentence with over-rated. Both calorie control, and physical activity is required for management.

I disagree, As Dr Xand van Tullekan said a few weeks ago on his morning show on BBC1 TV. Studies have show that people who exercise to lose weight over a reasonable period (30days) actually eat more and so end up the same weight as before.
So any exercise above the standard NHS recommendation for everyone )Not obese or T2D) is not required.
Neither (for T2D control) is calorie control, since Low Carb makes most people lose weight in a nice steady controlled way ( 1lb to 2lbs per week) with no conscious calorie control.

 

[MrsA2]

@Grace04
Perhaps look at timing of eating, I think I read somewhere that fruit on its own is worse than fruit with fats ie with cream as part of a meal. Try not to have anything between meals but eat good filling meals, don't get too hungry of you cut a lot out, it needs replacing with satiating fats and protein and you are no way overweight. You could think about going down to 2 meals a day rather than 3, but eating same amount overall. Fancy name for it is time restricted eating or intermittent fasting, more simply known as skipping a meal but not skipping nutrients.
You're not in a bad situation, it's just a matter of finding the tweak that works for you and your body

 

[Grace04]

@Grace04
Perhaps look at timing of eating, I think I read somewhere that fruit on its own is worse than fruit with fats ie with cream as part of a meal. Try not to have anything between meals but eat good filling meals, don't get too hungry of you cut a lot out, it needs replacing with satiating fats and protein and you are no way overweight. You could think about going down to 2 meals a day rather than 3, but eating same amount overall. Fancy name for it is time restricted eating or intermittent fasting, more simply known as skipping a meal but not skipping nutrients.
You're not in a bad situation, it's just a matter of finding the tweak that works for you and your body

Hello and thank you for your response.

I think I need to re look at fruit and my thoughts on it being good for us. It would seem I’ve been eat more than is good for me with things as they are now.

I‘ve always snacked in the afternoon. It’s a habit I will try to get out of, or at the very least have just a few nuts.

I would never have thought of fats being good. I’ve always gone for low fat yogurt etc. Something else I need to re asses… I’ll also look at trying two meals rather than three once I’m home. Thank you for that information and everything else.

 

[timbo_dolman]

I went on a very heavy fruit diet and my HbA1c was elevated quite a lot as a result. I didn’t realise there was so much sugar in fruit! The main thing is not to beat yourself up about it. These blips happen and I’m sure you’ll be able to get back to where you want to be in a few months. Good luck and stay positive

 

[Robbity]

I would never have thought of fats being good. I’ve always gone for low fat yogurt etc. Something else I need to re asses… I’ll also look at trying two meals rather than three once I’m home. Thank you for that information and everything else.

@Grace04
Fat is perfectly good for you - both carbs and fats are normal sources of fuel for energy. So if you cut down on carbs, which you need to do to improve your glucose levels, you'll generally need to replace them with more fat, which has the added benefits that it has no effect on glucose levels, and as it's a slower release form of fuel, you should hopefully end up less hungry and may probably feel less need for frequent eating.

And don't be too hard on yourself over your HbA1c results - some people may manage to maintain "perfect" figures, but if you vary slightly either way at the bottom end of pre-diabetic,, IMO that's still being well under control! But be aware too that it's not only what we eat that can affect glucose levels, things like health, stress, exercise, some medications, etc , can also cause some variations - and we may not have much control over these.