bitchcuddle
Newbie
Cannot exercise due to M.E. and makes diet awkward. Any suggestions on losing weight and coping with my diabetes?
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diabetes and M.E.
- Thread starter bitchcuddle
- Start Date
C
catherinecherub
Guest
Hi and welcome to the forum.
I don't know much about M.E. but there are posters here who suffer with this.
Have you read the advice for newly diagnosed that Daisy posts?
Are there any foods that you cannot eat due to your condition?
If you give us more information then hopefully someone will be able to help.
Take care,
CC.
I don't know much about M.E. but there are posters here who suffer with this.
Have you read the advice for newly diagnosed that Daisy posts?
Are there any foods that you cannot eat due to your condition?
If you give us more information then hopefully someone will be able to help.
Take care,
CC.
daisy1
Legend
catherinecherub said:
Hi and welcome to the forum
Here is the information that Catherine is talking about which I hope you will find helpful. Ask all the questions you need to and someone will help.
BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS
Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.
A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find well over 30,000 people who are demonstrating this.
On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.
The role of carbohydrate
Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.
If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.
The bad news
Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.
The good news
People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.
Controlling your carbs
The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:
- Reduce your carbohydrate intake
- Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates
A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.
The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.
Choosing better carbohydrates
Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes ... rains.html
The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.
Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes
Eating what works for you
Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.
To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.
The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:
Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
- Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
Access to blood glucose test strips
The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
- structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
- self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education
Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to blood glucose testing supplies.
You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic
Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
bitchcuddle
Newbie
I would like to thank you all for making me so wellcome the other day what lovely people you all are thank you so much thank you once again Angela.
N
NicolaB70
Guest
Hi Angela,
Like you I find it very difficult to exercise as i am disabled with a motor neurone disease and it affects my balance as well. I have brought myself a portable pedal exerciser which I find easy to use as you can use it sitting in any chair and it it is easier then getting on/off a exercise bike. It seems to work for me and being small it's easy to store when not in use. I got mine from amazon and they range in prices.
Hope this is some help to you. Best wishes
Nicola
Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
Like you I find it very difficult to exercise as i am disabled with a motor neurone disease and it affects my balance as well. I have brought myself a portable pedal exerciser which I find easy to use as you can use it sitting in any chair and it it is easier then getting on/off a exercise bike. It seems to work for me and being small it's easy to store when not in use. I got mine from amazon and they range in prices.
Hope this is some help to you. Best wishes
Nicola
Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
Angela, I also have ME and I am severely affected, housebound and unable to exercise. I'm low-normal weight so weight loss is not an issue for me. My only option is to control my diet, so I've spent the past 3 months learning how to 'eat to the meter' by doing my own readings before meals and 2 hours after the start of every meal. My diet wasn't bad to begin with so it wasn't a case of giving up junk food or sugar or biscuits—I didn't eat that stuff. Most people with ME don't, as you probably know already. Many of us are low sugar/sugar-free and avoid refined carbs.
So, I've had to drastically cut my carbs. I have small (and I mean VERY small!) portions of brown rice, wholewheat pasta and good quality real porridge. Sometimes I have a couple of ryvita with a meal in lieu of potatoes or bread. I've had to cut out bananas, apples, potatoes and be very sparing with peas and carrots. I've also found that beans and legumes increase my BG levels, so I eat them only occasionally in much smaller quantities, and view them as a carb rather than protein source. Previously I was eating fairly modest quantities of whole grains, pulses and 2-3 potions of fruit a day, but I can't do that any more.
I've known many people with ME to lose weight despite not being able to exercise by eating fewer calories overall, so if you can't exercise and you need to lose weight, it can be done by eating less. I know that sounds simplistic but if you can't exercise, what's the alternative?
If you have a specialist ME/CFS clinic in your area I would suggest getting a referral with a view to working with a trained ME-aware physio or Occupational Therapist with a view to increasing your activity levels slowly and gradually. Despite well-meaning advice from people who genuinely want to help, this situation requires specialist help from someone who understands the unpredictable, relapsing nature of the condition and your own individual tolerance of physical activity.
So, I've had to drastically cut my carbs. I have small (and I mean VERY small!) portions of brown rice, wholewheat pasta and good quality real porridge. Sometimes I have a couple of ryvita with a meal in lieu of potatoes or bread. I've had to cut out bananas, apples, potatoes and be very sparing with peas and carrots. I've also found that beans and legumes increase my BG levels, so I eat them only occasionally in much smaller quantities, and view them as a carb rather than protein source. Previously I was eating fairly modest quantities of whole grains, pulses and 2-3 potions of fruit a day, but I can't do that any more.
I've known many people with ME to lose weight despite not being able to exercise by eating fewer calories overall, so if you can't exercise and you need to lose weight, it can be done by eating less. I know that sounds simplistic but if you can't exercise, what's the alternative?
If you have a specialist ME/CFS clinic in your area I would suggest getting a referral with a view to working with a trained ME-aware physio or Occupational Therapist with a view to increasing your activity levels slowly and gradually. Despite well-meaning advice from people who genuinely want to help, this situation requires specialist help from someone who understands the unpredictable, relapsing nature of the condition and your own individual tolerance of physical activity.
Nicola, thanks for your advice on the portable pedal exerciser. I can see how it can help with exercise in many conditions. With ME, it's not so much having difficulty doing certain movements that prevents exercise, but the debilitating baseline levels of indescribable fatigue that can be exacerbated by all activity, even a short walk from the bedroom to the bathroom can be too much for some severely affected patients. However, the pedal exerciser might be helpful for people who are more towards the less severe/moderately affected part of the ME spectrum but who still find it difficult to walk out of doors most days of the week. I've checked it out and I'm giving it some consideration for when I hopefully become more able.
PS wishing you well with your own health issues, Nicola
PS wishing you well with your own health issues, Nicola
Etty
Well-Known Member
I've just been reading Dr. Sofie Hexeberg's book "Getting Healthy with Low Carb", and she describes two women patients with ME who both improved significantly on a low carb diet. One reduced their carbs to 60 grams a day, and the other cut out bread, potatoes, rice, pasta and sugar. It's not just about junk food and sugar, but also about starchy carbs (even the lo GI ones) and the total amount of carbohydrate in your diet.
About exercise, the research so far has shown that exercise is not generally useful for weightloss. It's a healthy thing to do, but won't bring about weightloss unless you seriously change your diet as well. If you are seriously overweight, it's easier to lose some weight first and then begin to exercise when you are more capable.
It's worth reading Hexeberg's book, which describes many women who suffer from a wide range of conditions, which share symptoms with ME and Diabetes. She describes how to go about reducing carbs etc.
About exercise, the research so far has shown that exercise is not generally useful for weightloss. It's a healthy thing to do, but won't bring about weightloss unless you seriously change your diet as well. If you are seriously overweight, it's easier to lose some weight first and then begin to exercise when you are more capable.
It's worth reading Hexeberg's book, which describes many women who suffer from a wide range of conditions, which share symptoms with ME and Diabetes. She describes how to go about reducing carbs etc.
Etty, there are many diets which people choose to follow in the world of ME, the most popular being the anti-candida diet which is a carb restricted diet which goes beyond 'sugar free', and many people with ME choose to avoid foods associated with intolerances eg wheat and dairy. Another popular diet for people with ME is that recommended by Dr Sarah Myhill. Most people do well on these various diets but some say they make little difference to their fatigue levels. I'm referring specifically to people with ME who are assumed to be normoglycaemic, and not to people with the additional problems of pre/diabetes, which makes the situation far more complicated. It's a matter of finding what works for the individual, which isn't easy, especially as ME is often confused in alt health literature with conditions such as fibromyalgia, prolonged recovery from illnesses such as glandular fever, and generalised 'chronic fatigue', all of which have symptoms that overlap with ME but aren't the same thing.
ME is a complicated condition with a range of symptoms and severities, and unfortunately there isn't a cure on the shelves of Holland & Barrett or WH Smith. If it was that simple we'd all be cured long ago and getting on with our lives.
A lot of misleading information arises out of well-meaning people not knowing the difference between ME and other fatiguing conditions—hence the stories about one or two people doing well on one particular regime, be it diet or supplements, and many other people saying that it helps a little bit or it makes no difference at all.
My advice to the OP is to seek a specialist referral to a CFS clinic and to work one-to-one with an OT, physio, specialist nurse, or whoever is employed to look at all aspects of living with ME, especially as she is now pre/diabetic and has difficulty exercising, as many people with ME do, but needs to look at increasing her activity levels—which will help with diabetes management—without exacerbating her ME symptoms. It's not easy, and it's not really advice that can be found online from well-meaning people, despite the best of intentions.
Lack of physical activity as a consequence of having ME undoubtedly contributes to peripheral insulin resistance in the muscles, and increasing physical activity can help address this, although most people with ME cannot 'exercise' in the way that most people understand it. There is a very delicate balance between increasing activity levels in a way that is sustainable, and exacerbating symptoms and making the condition worse. That's why specialist supervision from a suitably qualified and experienced OT or physio is necessary. It's got nothing to do with weight loss, and everything to do with increasing insulin sensitivity in the muscles.
Dietary advice is a minefield at the best of times but ultimately it all comes down to the numbers on the meter and what is sustainable in the long term, and once again, that's a highly individual thing. Some people like the structure and 'rules' of a particular dietary regime and a lot of people find that it helps them get to where they want to go, be it weight loss or blood sugar control, and some people need the support and camaraderie of other folk doing the same thing, so if that approach works for you then go for it.
I will bow out now, and hopefully other people with ME might respond with their experiences of living with both conditions and say what has helped them.
Good luck.
Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
ME is a complicated condition with a range of symptoms and severities, and unfortunately there isn't a cure on the shelves of Holland & Barrett or WH Smith. If it was that simple we'd all be cured long ago and getting on with our lives.
A lot of misleading information arises out of well-meaning people not knowing the difference between ME and other fatiguing conditions—hence the stories about one or two people doing well on one particular regime, be it diet or supplements, and many other people saying that it helps a little bit or it makes no difference at all.
My advice to the OP is to seek a specialist referral to a CFS clinic and to work one-to-one with an OT, physio, specialist nurse, or whoever is employed to look at all aspects of living with ME, especially as she is now pre/diabetic and has difficulty exercising, as many people with ME do, but needs to look at increasing her activity levels—which will help with diabetes management—without exacerbating her ME symptoms. It's not easy, and it's not really advice that can be found online from well-meaning people, despite the best of intentions.
Lack of physical activity as a consequence of having ME undoubtedly contributes to peripheral insulin resistance in the muscles, and increasing physical activity can help address this, although most people with ME cannot 'exercise' in the way that most people understand it. There is a very delicate balance between increasing activity levels in a way that is sustainable, and exacerbating symptoms and making the condition worse. That's why specialist supervision from a suitably qualified and experienced OT or physio is necessary. It's got nothing to do with weight loss, and everything to do with increasing insulin sensitivity in the muscles.
Dietary advice is a minefield at the best of times but ultimately it all comes down to the numbers on the meter and what is sustainable in the long term, and once again, that's a highly individual thing. Some people like the structure and 'rules' of a particular dietary regime and a lot of people find that it helps them get to where they want to go, be it weight loss or blood sugar control, and some people need the support and camaraderie of other folk doing the same thing, so if that approach works for you then go for it.
I will bow out now, and hopefully other people with ME might respond with their experiences of living with both conditions and say what has helped them.
Good luck.
Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
