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Fussy Eater With Type 2

tiby

tiby

Member
Messages
5
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Non-insulin injectable medication (incretin mimetics)
Hi, Thankyou for letting me join.
I was diagnosed about 15 years ago after having gestational diabetes, and for the first few years the docs had major problems keeping my levels right with medication, Eventually got referred to the hospital who managed to sort things out and for the last year things have been ok.. (I hit a bad patch with depression 2 years ago and was put back on my meds which stopped me from eating so I lost around 4 stone which helped control my levels even better) Now ive gained around a stone as my appetite has returned. I have tried eating healthy but my diet is mainly carbs which I know dont help,
This list of foods I do eat
50/50 bread, some fruit, lettuce, cucumber, celery, potatoes, rice, pasta, I do eat scampi but thats the only sort of fish I eat,, I do not eat meat or vegetables, (not from the want of trying).
Today I have closely monitered what I have eaten making sure everything was low in sugar yet come tea time my blood levels were 12.0. I feel so deflated over it all now, its taking over my life. any help or advice much appreciated.. Sorry if it's long winded.
 
for breakfast I had one piece of brown bread with bovril, I then had a packet of rice crisps, I had a paste sandwich for lunch, some low fat crisps and 2 special k bars as a snack.. I only have to check my bloods in the evening before tea and taking my meds and it was 12.0
 
tiby said:
for breakfast I had one piece of brown bread with bovril, I then had a packet of rice crisps, I had a paste sandwich for lunch, some low fat crisps and 2 special k bars as a snack.. I only have to check my bloods in the evening before tea and taking my meds and it was 12.0
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do you understand the relationship between carbohydrates and blood sugar levels? what proteins do you like to eat? what meds are you on?

not being nosy, but if we know this stuff we can make useful suggestions for you. Welcome.
 
I understand that carbs take longer to absorb in the system, thats about it, My meds are Empagliflozin 25mg tablet once daily,liragludtide 1.2 mg daily, Pramipexole 180 mg one daily, Ramipril 10 mg daily and sukkarto sr 500mg 2 x twice a day, also tramadol as required and fluoxetine 20mg 2 daily.
My main diet consists of potatoes, bread, salad, some fruit pasta and rice, I also like eggs and cheese but I do not eat meat, fish or vegetables. I do try to look at the amount of sugar in each thing I eat and I was advised as long as it was under 12% it was ok in moderation.
 
tiby said:
I understand that carbs take longer to absorb in the system, thats about it, My meds are Empagliflozin 25mg tablet once daily,liragludtide 1.2 mg daily, Pramipexole 180 mg one daily, Ramipril 10 mg daily and sukkarto sr 500mg 2 x twice a day, also tramadol as required and fluoxetine 20mg 2 daily.
My main diet consists of potatoes, bread, salad, some fruit pasta and rice, I also like eggs and cheese but I do not eat meat, fish or vegetables. I do try to look at the amount of sugar in each thing I eat and I was advised as long as it was under 12% it was ok in moderation.
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Hi there and welcome. Your diet does sound pretty restricted and you may be missing out on some useful nutrients that are keeping you from feeling as well as you could be/ Its real bonus that you like eggs and cheese though because a cheese omlette will not raise your blood sugars much!
Seriously though have you ever been diagnosed as being more that a fussy eater i.e. are you phobic of meats and veggies i.e want to try something but literally can't touch or swallow it? You say you have tried very hard so I am thinking you may need some help with this particularly if you are anxious/depressed (this is implied by your meds btw). Many people here find a low carb diet is really helpful with their diabetic control, blood pressure and weight management but I think that will leave you with very little to eat! A dietician will be used to working with someone like you if you can explain to him/her that you have some issues around certain foods. I;ve also seen some useful stuff on YouTube (FelixEcoPsych) showing people facing these fears with support. This may not be you so apologies if you are in fact just fussy!
 
I dont like the taste of veg and the consistancy of meat does make me gag, its something from when I was younger, it would make me sick
 
Actually carbs are the first things to be digested - as soon as you chew them the enzyme in saliva converts starch to sugar, and that will elevate your blood glucose as soon as it is absorbed.
Potatoes, pasta, rice, bread - anything made with flour all elevate blood glucose - it is not just sugar - and 12 percent is fairly high. I set a limit of 10 percent, but only in small amounts, and that is starches and sugars.
 
Salad is vegetables... Is it just that you don't like them cooked? You can make a meal out of, say, grated cheese, lettuce, other salad vegetables...
 
tiby said:
I dont like the taste of veg and the consistancy of meat does make me gag, its something from when I was younger, it would make me sick
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I am the same with some meat...are you any better with meat that has been minced? I can't chew it much, that's what makes me gag.
 
"We" have disagreements about what causes diabetes, but we do know once you have the Type 2 diagnosis sugar and carbs will need to be restricted for good control. As you have lost 4 stone you have the capability to achieve what you set your mind to.

The numbers you are currently getting look in line with the carb types being eaten unfortunately. In the short term to mitigate the numbers you might want to consider some changes such as:

Changing regular pasta for say one of these https://www.explorecuisine.com/uk/products/bean-pastas.html, has around 4 times less carbs per serving, with a similar taste (this is made of soy, so if you have a thyroid condition use sparingly). You could also cook the pasta the day before, allow to cool, place in the fridge and re-heat the next day - this reduces the available starch in the pasta, thereby limiting the blood sugar rise (a similar trick can be performed with rice, but you should Google or Bing this to ensure you do this perfectly).

You could swap potatoes for either sweet potatoes cooked in a good fat such as butter or coconut oil, or replace with butternut squash. Fruit could be swapped for anything ending in berry, as these contain less sugar than apple, bananas, oranges, pineapple etc. Bread can be lower carb such as Livlife at many supermarkets, bread made with sour dough or an almost bread like pancake https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/bread-alternative.155360/#post-1860406

The above are lower carb options or variations on what you already do, I am just putting forward some alternatives with a lower carb burden so that your numbers can reduce a bit more (walking after each meal will also lower the overall spikes), but this is not in my view a medium or long term option unless you are doing something extreme to drive down your numbers like biggest loser workouts, or alternatively ramping up the medication.

Seems that you are closer to a vegetarian in your dietary choices. Some options I am sure can be found in this part of the forum:
https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/category/vegetarian-diet-forum.71/
 
Hi @tiby and welcome to the forum :)

Lots of good advice above re the importance of being careful with eating too many carbs.

As you say you don't eat meat or vegetables a warning bell started ringing in my mind. Although you eat dairy (eggs, cheese, milk etc) are you aware that you may be at risk of being/becoming deficient in Vitamin B12 and/or Folate? This is something vegetarians and, in particular, vegans are, hopefully, aware of and take supplements.

Vit B12 is usually absorbed through a complicated process from meat, fish and dairy and is the only source. If an insufficient amount of these foods are eaten (or factors affecting the process) one can become deficient. This deficient is usually quite slow and insidious so difficult to spot. Certainly the medical profession don't seem to appreciate/recognise/consider Vit B12 / Folate deficiency symptoms and also often don't interpret blood results correctly even when B12 and Folate is tested.

Might I suggest you check out signs and symptoms, perhaps ask your GP for these to be checked and perhaps consider supplements (but not before any blood tests ? Invariably, Medical staff/GPs will say 'normal' but it's always good to get a copy of your results and, if symptomatic, check out a forum re Pernicious Anaemia/B12 deficiency to assertain whether you need supplements etc.

Wishing you all the best and do hope you are soon able to better control your glucose levels and feel better in general
{{{Hugs}}}
 
@tiby

Hello Tiby and welcome to the Forum :) Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you want and someone will help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS

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 235,000 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

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.

Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.

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 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.
Take part in Diabetes.co.uk digital education programs and improve your understanding. Most of these are free.

  • Low Carb Program - it's made front-page news of the New Scientist and The Times. Developed with 20,000 people with type 2 diabetes; 96% of people who take part recommend it... find out why

  • Hypo Program - improve your understanding of hypos. There's a version for people with diabetes, parents/guardians of children with type 1, children with type 1 diabetes, teachers and HCPs.
 
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