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Diabetic or not?

S

spruceldge

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A quick post to ask for advice please from people who will know better than me. In February the diabetes nurse confirmed that I was T2 diabetic, following 2 successive fasting tests over 8.0 and an average of 8.5. She told me I would need medication over the long-term (presumably life). I reacted very badly to Metformin, and then also to the slow release version. Back to the surgery. The nurse prescribed a new tablet, the prescription for which I still have, but haven't used yet. It's women that usually have intuition rather than us men, but I decided to hold off. Using 2 different testing meters, my last 10 self-administered tests have shown 4 readings under 5.0. Of the others, none have been over 7.2. Admitedly, I have lost about 14 lbs since the initial diagnosis and radically changed the diet, but according to what I have seen, these readings do not seem consistent with a need for medication, considering I still have about 20 lbs to lose to get down to normal weight. Do I have good cause to go back to the surgery and politely suggest they try again, or should I be good and take the tablets as instructed? With readings that I am getting, my perhaps naive view is that there is a good reason why I reacted so badly to medication.
 
I'm type 1 rather than type 2 and no doubt some type-2-ers will respond with specific advice, but in general it sounds to me that you have very good cause to go back and raise the issue. It's always ok to ask for more info and explanation about any medication before you make the decision whether or not to take it. It's your body!

Good luck.
 
Thanks Snodger,

The booklet they gave me said there was a 20% chance of control by diet, so I wondered why they wnt for the pills so readily. No harm in asking again! All very confusing, which seems to be a common problem hereabouts!
 
It is possible to control your diabetes with diet and exercise. You would need to reduce your carbohydrate intake to do this and also you will need a blood glucose test meter to be able to find out what the foods you eat are doing to your blood sugar levels.

Here is the advice we give to newly diagnosed Type 2's, maybe some of it will be of help.

Here is the advice we usually give to newly diagnosed type 2 diabetics.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.

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.

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 affect 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 !!

As a Type 2 the latest 2010 NICE guidelines for Bg levels are as follows:
Fasting (waking).......between 4 - 7 mmol/l.
2 hrs after meals......no more than 8.5 mmol/l.
If you are able to keep the post meal numbers lower, so much the better.

It also helps if you can do 30 minutes moderate exercise a day. It doesn't have to be strenuous.

Sue/Ken.
Click to expand...
 
Thanks Sue,

Thank you, your advice is really useful. The temptation is to look at sugar content on the packaging, so I get it, I need to look at carbs, not just sugar. I have REALLY radically changed my diet, which is a pain as I love chocolate and sweet things generally. I've also decided to walk more, like avoiding the metro if it's only 1-2 stops - this results in at least 30-45 mins exercise. The numbers I am showing when testing before and after meals seem to be within ranges. I think I'll talk to the nurse again. Not straightforward, is it?
 
Hi
I was like you and given metformin and then the slow release but neither were suitable so I was given diamicron. Apparently our dr gives pills to anyone with an Hb1AC of 8.5 or over. However, I didn't take the diamicron and with diet (cut out the starchy filler carbs totally) have a fasting level of under 6. I plucked up courage to admit that I hadn't taken the pills and he said he was more than happy for me to go with diet and exercise for now (working up to the exercise bit) especially as I am a drug induced diabetic. Result!
 
Thank you Rae_ j,

I think I will present the figures to the nurse next week and risk her wrath. I held off taking the tablets because I had a long haul coming up to Hong Kong (where I am now) just after the appointment with the nurse, and as I was warned about 'hypos' being a possible consequence of taking the tablets, I chickened out of taking the prescription to the pharmacy. Today I had a late afternoon blood sugar reading of 5.2 without meds, so I figure that if I had taken anything to lower it I would be seriously into hypo territory. Which would be no fun for the flight back tomorrow...12 hours of pure joy, I don't think.
 
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