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Dianosed 9 weeks ago but still confused!

P

peterpiper70

Newbie
Messages
2
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Non-insulin injectable medication (incretin mimetics)
As the title said I had the greatest Xmas present ever being diagnosed type 2 on the 30th Dec last year. Anyway since then I have been pricking/testing, pricking/testing just trying to get to grips with what I can and cant eat and the amounts I can eat, when to exercise etc etc.
I have been posting on another forum (USA based) and have had some good advice but have recently found this one so I thought this might be better for me as I am in the UK too.
So here goes,
I am on Metformin (2 x 500mg/day) and was told by the Doctor that I could eat what I want as long as I avoided foods with added sugar and salt. I was told the Metformin would adjust my BG level on its own. Ideally I should try to have 3 meals a day (60 - 70g carbs each meal) spread out evenly and 3 or 4 snacks (15-20g carbs each) a day.
This I did and having tested extensively I found that my morning tolerance seems much lower than later in the day so yesterday I reduced to 30g carbs for breakfast (from the 60 I had been sticking to) but still didn't keep me below 8 after an hour (I'm told that's the magic figure?). This morning I measured and was 5.0 at waking. I had the same amount of bran flakes as yesterday but with Almond milk at 8:15 am, done 15mins of stationery cycling at 9:15 and hey presto tested at 9:35 and was only 5.9!! Now to my reckoning that sounds pretty good does it not?
So far so good, at 10:45 I was a bit peckish so thought id grab a snack, however the forever curious in me decided I would go for gold and see what happened if I ate something real `bad` to see what effect it had on my BG level. I therefore grabbed a choccy bar (a galaxy ripple for the record) which is 19.8 g carbs and it says its all sugars. Tested at 12:15 having done no exercise and was 6.2! Can someone try and explain what im doing wrong?
Don't get me wrong im happy to eat loads of choccy bars in pursuit of my goal but somehow I don't think that's the way forward on this journey is it?
Thanks in advance for any help
Regards
Pete
 
Hi Pete and welcome. I can only offer my best guess but here goes. First, metformin doesn't automatically adjust BG levels. Your docs advice should also mention trying to lower carbs as well as sugar and salt. That's not to say deprive yourself but if you can cut out some of the snacks etc it would help. The reason why your levels didn't go high after you ate it was probably still reaping the benefits of the exercise. Any more questions please ask. Others will hopefully add their opinions too.


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
 
Hi. Your GP's advice wasn't the best I'm afraid and he doesn't show a good understanding of the best diet for diabetes. It isn't just sugar you need to be concerned with but all carbs. Don't worry about salt or fats; salt has little to do with diabetes. Most diabetics find that going over 200gm/day may cause weight or blood sugar gain, so set yourself a carb target of 200gm/day or less; my target is 150gm even though I'm on insulin. As Mo says, Metformin only has a small effect on blood sugar and is at it's best reducing insulin resistance in overweight T2s. Diet and exercise are the way to manage diabetes. I can't explain your blood sugar drop after the choccy bar other than if it contains a lot of fat it will slow the absorption rate of the carbs?
 
Hello Pete

All carbohydrates except fibre eventually convert to glucose. The sugars convert quicker but the other carbs (save fibre) will end up as glucose.

30g of Bran flakes has about 5g of fibre, so your brekkie would have had 25g of effective carbs converting to glucose. Your naughty choccy bar would have had 19.8g of carbs (all sugars) so your breakfast would give you 20% more glucose than your choccy bar.

You don't say what the 10.45 BG reading was, so we don't know by how much the level was increased due to the chocolate.

Syd
 
Syd said:
30g of Bran flakes has about 5g of fibre, so your brekkie would have had 25g of effective carbs converting to glucose. Your naughty choccy bar would have had 19.8g of carbs (all sugars) so your breakfast would give you 20% more glucose than your choccy bar.
Syd
Click to expand...

I have just been reading up on carb counting as regards the fibre content. In the UK the amount of fibre has already been deducted from the amount of carbs shown on labels. Therefore it is the total carb amounts that we have to count.
In the USA food labels are not the same as the UK. In the USA the carb amounts include the fibre, so they have to deduct the fibre from the total carbs.

So if these are UK Bran Flakes it is 30g of carbs that must be counted.
 
Bluetit1802 said:
I have just been reading up on carb counting as regards the fibre content. In the UK the amount of fibre has already been deducted from the amount of carbs shown on labels. Therefore it is the total carb amounts that we have to count.
In the USA food labels are not the same as the UK. In the USA the carb amounts include the fibre, so they have to deduct the fibre from the total carbs.

So if these are UK Bran Flakes it is 30g of carbs that must be counted.
Click to expand...
In which case the breakfast would produce 50% more glucose than the choccy bar.
 
Well this is even more confusing now. Weds I attended a DESMOND group day and was told a few things that contradict what I'm reading here. Firstly I was told I didn't need to test unless I'm not feeling well (Ive never felt unwell even when my BG was sky high) as the important reading is my 3 month test! And secondly that I only need to look at sugar content and can eat anything with 10% or less sugar but obviously in moderation.
I was also told that sweeteners will have no effect at all on BG levels and if something is labelled as sugar free I can eat it in copious amounts, not withstanding any other side effects such as diarrhea, etc.
 
peterpiper70 said:
Well this is even more confusing now. Weds I attended a DESMOND group day and was told a few things that contradict what I'm reading here. Firstly I was told I didn't need to test unless I'm not feeling well (Ive never felt unwell even when my BG was sky high) as the important reading is my 3 month test! And secondly that I only need to look at sugar content and can eat anything with 10% or less sugar but obviously in moderation.
I was also told that sweeteners will have no effect at all on BG levels and if something is labelled as sugar free I can eat it in copious amounts, not withstanding any other side effects such as diarrhea, etc.
Click to expand...
Most of us on here would advice you do the opposite of what you have been told.

Test frequently to learn what effect different foods have on your bg. Cut down on carbs in general, bread for example and other things with grain in it is common to send bg high.

Every single carb you eat will turn to glucose, regardless of if it is sugar or starch.
 
Hi Pete and welcome to the forum:)

You have received a lot of information already but here is some more! This is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it 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 70,000 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

Reduce your 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-and-whole-grains.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
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)
  • Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

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 bloodglucose 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.
 
Tested at 12:15 having done no exercise and was 6.2! Can someone try and explain
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Chocolate, like ice cream, doesn't get into my blood stream straight away due to the fat and I find they don't raise my bg levels until about the 2 hour point. Tested it several times to confirm. You may have found you had a similar reaction to the chocolate and therefore your levels hadn't peaked yet.
 
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