Encouragement, Please!

Hi @GrannyG , welcome to the forum. You are one of the people who break all the rules, how dare you be slim, very active and on the way to diabetes. Diabetics are all fat and lazy!!! (This is all said tongue in cheek, so no poison pen letters, please.)

I wonder if, during your searches of the internet, you found Dr Malcolm Kendrick. https://drmalcolmkendrick.org/ He has a lot to say about cholesterol and has written at least one book on it. Could be worth looking up to put that in context before the doctor puts his/her two penny worth in.

You have already worked out that your doctor's take on diabetes is plain wrong, ill informed and out of date, but, what should you do? It sounds like you are doing all the right things, but we all make mistakes and react differently to things. Do you have a meter to test your blood sugars? Your doctor will come up with lots of reasons why you shouldn't, but you are working blind without one. Can I suggest that you buy your own and find out how foods are affecting you. There may just be something that is tipping you into the over 40's as far as HbA1c is concerned. Test immediately before meals, then two hours after first bite. Keep a food/blood sugar diary, perhaps also note times of serious exercise. The answer may begin to appear.

Having said all the above, your levels are really not that terrible, but now is the time to deal with them.
Sally

Your lifestyle seems very good. Are you on medication for your thyroid? I would suggest cutting the carbs even further and see what effect it has. Do you test your glucose several times a day? If not it might be a good idea to start doing so and see what is sending your glucose up so that you can change your diet to get it better. I usually only have breakfast and lunch as I find if I eat a third meal my glucose stays high overnigt and is high in the morning.

I am sure others will have ideas for you to try. Good luck.

Hi Granny G,
I have had longstanding hypothyroidism. Over 10 years. It's pretty well controlled now. My mother's sister also had it. She also, along with my mum, Developed type 2 diabetese in herr later years. I'm 58 and my blood glucose has also been going into pre diabetic naughty levels apparently. I have found my self feeling angry with this "diagnosis" and it can be very hard to come to terms with the threat that everyone says is hanging over us, find a way to deal with it mentally and stay happy and hopeful . Sending being you a big hug . Always here for a chat if you feel like it xx

Hi @GrannyG it may not be just carbs that are affecting your bg levels, some of us find that if we eat something that contains grain flour our bg spikes. Use your meter to check on what you are eating that is causing a spike, also be aware that the heat may also be affecting your bg.

I find stress, being ill (with a virus) and steroids all put my HbA1c up. I had a reading of 42 after a bad winter, but the next one was 38 after I'd rebalanced. I find it's not just what I eat, but whether I am OK emotionally, and sleeping enough etc that affect my levels x

We are all different and thus can react differently to food . For example I find that if I have too much protein that it can increase my blood sugar. I try and and keep to to 0.8 gm per kilo of the weight I want to be so look at carbs and protein combined in . Has taken me about a bit of time to work this out with the meter and a food diary and then I could see a positive correlation between blood sugar and intake . If you have a meter it helps to see how your blood sugar reacts to various foods.

Hey Granny G,
Our body chances constantly and sometimes it is hard to pinpoint what has changed in our habits and diet. It sounds like you are very well taking care of yourself. Dont be to hard on yourself and track chances in your diet as good as possible can.

GrannyG said:

Should I cut carbs to an extremely low level? To give some background, I am 63years old, have a heart defect (left atrial isomerism), underactive thyroid, raised blood pressure and glaucoma. Apart from all that I am really healthy (honestly!) and do not need any more health issues in my life! Any advice/encouragement would be very gratefully received, I feel pretty frustrated at the moment.

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Hello Granny G, I sympathise with your frustration as I am 76 with multiple health problems, but also a healthy, active lifestyle. Nonetheless I discovered abut a year ago that I had raised bg. My worst A1c was 41, so I thought a few minor adjustments to my diet (a bit less fruit and chocolate) would bring my numbers safely below the pre-diabetic level. No such thing! I had to cut and cut carbs, and have ended up on 20-30g carbs daily. And, rather like you, I was discouraged to see my A1c fall to 37 only to go up again to my latest 38 despite lower carb intake.

It seems to me that eating out in other people's houses would be impossible unless one decided to let the diet slip for once, which is not something I'm willing to do. Or maybe one could take one's own food??? Eating out in cafés / restaurants I find also so difficult as to not be worth the trouble, though many Forum members manage it and have shared tips and suggestions. Luckily it is not something I am required to do often. Sometimes I prefer just to have a black coffee (with the double cream plus a few nuts and chunks of cheese I have brought with me).

Are you taking Metformin? I persuaded my GP to give me the maximum dose of slow release Glucophage (said by Dr Bernstein to work twice as well as generic Metformin), and I think it does help. My other suggestion is that you get hold of one of Jenny Ruhl's books: "Your Diabetes Questions Answered" or "Blood Sugar 101" https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=sr_a...ch-Books-Submit.x=0&Adv-Srch-Books-Submit.y=0
I find her a sane and extremely well-informed, as well as comforting writer, who has herself survived as a T2 to be over 70 and in reasonably good health. She also offers a lot of useful advice on her site: https://www.bloodsugar101.com