HBA1C results. cinnamon and chromuim

[lizmartin]

Am I high with 7.0 being the result of my HBA1C, I have had diabetes 2 for 6 years now and have managed without medication so far. I was 6.9 when diagnosed, and this last time I got it down from 7.1 and am now on a mission to get it own another point if I can. I have started taking cinnamon and chromium which I feel has helped. Anyone else taking these?

 

[daisy1]

Hi Liz and welcome to the forum I would be very interested to hear how cinnamon and chromium have helped you. I have never tried chromium but I do like cinnamon on my yoghurts although I don't know how much my level would have been if I hadn't eaten it :lol: It's very difficult to tell..... You might make more progress if you follow the advice in this information which we give to new members. If you've got any more questions, just ask.

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 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

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 ... 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

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.
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Please sign our e-petition for free testing for all type 2's; here's the link:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/petition/

Do get your friends and colleagues to sign as well.

 

[xyzzy]

Hi Liz and welcome to the forum.

Yes I take Cinnamon and Chromium and Bitter Melon and Banaba and they all help (not sure about the Chromium). I also take Metformin as well which is even better at helping but by far the best thing, I would say ten times as effective as any drug or supplement, is getting the right diet and that to me and many others on the forum that means reducing carbohydrates. So not only try and cut down or out anything with sugar but cut down on starchy foods like rice, pasta, potatoes, bread, cereals and anything else made from flour and replace with meat, fish, cheese, eggs and especially vegetables. vegetables that grow above ground are the best, small amounts of fruit are fine and many find the best are the ones that end in "berry"

If you know about carb counting try and aim for a diet that contains around 120 to 150 grams of carbs per day. You can get the info off the backs of packets. If you're not sure ask! At that level you would be on a low to moderate regime in line with what would be recommended in enlightenned countries like Sweden and Germany and similar levels to what many forum members have found works well. Most of us would also recommend you test your own sugar levels and then use those readings to further adjust how many carbs you should eat. Once you have your own meter it is pretty easy to see what foods and how much are safe for you to eat. Blood sugar level wise when testing with your own meter the NHS NICE guidelines say to aim for less than 8.5 two hours after eating. Many of us and many other countries and organisations recommend to aim a bit lower at 7.8 as that level is where those nasty problems can start from if regularly exceeded. Some of us even aim for stricter than that for example I pick 6.5 which is what 19 out of 20 non diabetics achieve. Remember the levels I'm talking about are finger prick readings not HBA1c numbers.

Just keep asking questions. Its what I did and now nearly 4 months after diagnosis I now have levels of an average non diabetic person and have lost nearly 3 stone in weight. Take care!