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My name is Dave, and I would like to take this opportunity to say "Hi" to everyone.

I was diagnosed Type 2 about two years ago now, and I've found it hard going. My experiences of diabetes care in the UK have been very negative and I arrive here feeling fed up and utterly confused and angry.

The one thing that has been missing from the situation since my diagnosis is clarity! Clarity and a sense of perspective are both lacking, making it difficult for me to manage the condition. Often I receive conflicting advice about what I should be eating and this worries me, as I haven't a clue what I'm doing most of the time.

I have a GP Practice where the staff are so rude and intimidating that often I don't bother to go and see my GP or Nurse to get the information that I need, and the diatetic service at the local Hospital (the Luton and Dunstable) is so unprofessional that I refuse to go and see them as a recent complaint wasn't resolved to my satisfaction.

I have no support, nobody to talk to, and nowhere to go for advice. In fact, this forum and diabetes.co.uk is the first place I've been to where anything makes sense as Diabetes UK was of no help at all.

I am confused about all the options available to me and am just looking for a dose of common sense. I am on Metformin and my HBAIC has fluctuated from 7.6 at diagnosis, down to 6.4, then back up to 7.2 again.

Any help and support would be much appreciated and look forward to making some new friends here.

Dave
 
Welcome and well done for finding this forum, cant recommend it highly enough, you will soon get sorted, Daisy will be along shortly to offer you much needed guidance.
But for now I would suggest that you avoid all the white ****, that would be spuds, pasta, rice, sugar - obviously, biscuits, pastry. I would suggest if you haven't got one a meter with strips. google to find the cheapest strips.
I was 11.1 when diagnosed and I'm diet only, its now 7ish. I low carb as do quite a few on here, loads of recipes and good food, so don't despair, you are in the right place.
 
Hi Dave and welcome to the forum :)
I'm glad you found your way here where you will get all the advice you need, and if you ask questions you will get useful answers. Here is the information we give to new members and this should be helpful to you.

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.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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.
Click to expand...
 
Hi Daisy, and Dawn and TreePeony.

Indeed, I have already read this on another part of the forum and what a breath of fresh air it is too. Well-written and clear, I've learned more from reading stuff on here than I ever learned on two days of the DESMOND course.

I don't actually have a BG meter but am thinking of buying one and seeing how different foods affect me. The strips are expensive though.

I am trying to come to a conclusion as to what approach will work and protect my health in the longer term. I've just passed my 50th birthday and want to live long enough to have a good retirement - we want to buy a campervan and go to all the fesitvals!
 
ursus262 said:
My name is Dave, and I would like to take this opportunity to say "Hi" to everyone.

I was diagnosed Type 2 about two years ago now, and I've found it hard going. My experiences of diabetes care in the UK have been very negative and I arrive here feeling fed up and utterly confused and angry.

The one thing that has been missing from the situation since my diagnosis is clarity! Clarity and a sense of perspective are both lacking, making it difficult for me to manage the condition. Often I receive conflicting advice about what I should be eating and this worries me, as I haven't a clue what I'm doing most of the time.

I have a GP Practice where the staff are so rude and intimidating that often I don't bother to go and see my GP or Nurse to get the information that I need, and the diatetic service at the local Hospital (the Luton and Dunstable) is so unprofessional that I refuse to go and see them as a recent complaint wasn't resolved to my satisfaction.

I have no support, nobody to talk to, and nowhere to go for advice. In fact, this forum and diabetes.co.uk is the first place I've been to where anything makes sense as Diabetes UK was of no help at all.

I am confused about all the options available to me and am just looking for a dose of common sense. I am on Metformin and my HBAIC has fluctuated from 7.6 at diagnosis, down to 6.4, then back up to 7.2 again.

Any help and support would be much appreciated and look forward to making some new friends here.

Dave
Click to expand...

A big hello and welcome Dave :thumbup:
 
Welcome Dave

It's a great forum, isn't it?

For me and many here the meter is really the most vital part of your armoury against db. That and a desire to change things for the better.

I use the Accu check aviva meter - you can get strips on ebay for around £20 for 50 ive got 100 for £30 a few times. Many on here recommend the SD codefree meter as they are the cheapest re the strips around £5 for 50 from memory but sure if I'm wrong someone will advise.

Mary x
 
Hello Dave and welcome to the forum.

Your story is far to a regular occurrence but don't get down you've arrived at the right place. :)

Here's what I did. I was diagnosed in December last year and using the advice I found on this site I got my blood sugar levels back to normal within around a couple of months or so and I have also normalised my cholesterol levels and blood pressure as well. I have now lost over 3 stone in weight too. My doctor is very pleased how I am getting on and has advised me to keep doing what I have been doing since it's obviously working really well. I have normalised everything and just take Metformin to help a bit. Not a cure as I still have to be very careful what I eat but I feel loads better than I did.

Diet wise its really easy. Just drastically cut down or better cut out all things with plain sugar, so biscuits, cakes, sugar in tea and coffee, pure fruit juices, non diet versions of soft drinks. Next and really importantly try halving starchy foods like rice, pasta, potatoes, bread, cereals and any other flour based products. Replace what's now missing with extra meat, fish, eggs, cheese and especially vegetables. Vegetables that grow above ground are best although most of us find carrots fine. Things like yoghurt are fine as is a small amount of fresh fruit. I find the ones that end in "berry" are the best. If you don't mind artificial sweeteners things like Diet Coke are fine to drink. On the starchy foods that are left swap try brown basmati rice instead of white and brown or tri-colour pasta. The bread that most recommend is actually Bergen soya bread but some do ok with wholemeal as well.

The above diet is close to one you would be one recommended to try by the Swedish Health service. It was introduced in that country last year and the American health service and several other countries health services recommend something very similar for Type 2 diabetics. In the UK the diet guidelines are now over 30 years old and are only gradually being updated. As the UK is lagging behind you have already seen what I and other forum members recommend is different to what your are told is a good diet for you follow.

I assume your doctor hasn't prescribed a blood meter and strips by the sounds of things as it's a bit of a post code lottery and we find the progressive surgeries are pro testing and others anti. I'll warn you the anti ones can sometimes be very vocally anti! It might be worth asking but if you find your surgery is really anti then many of us would recommend getting a meter and strips yourself. If that turns out to be the case then just ask and lots of members can help.

The reason testing is important is you should try and keep your blood sugars below 8ish two hours after eating any meal. Above the 8 value is where the dangers of complications do begin to occur according to diabetic experts. So if you can't test how will you now if what you are eating is keeping you safe? The problem is every diabetic is different so my earlier advice to halve starchy foods is just a rough guide. You may find you need to eat less than half (like me) or that you can eat more than half like others.

As you get into it all and read around the forum you may see people talking about carb counting. If you want to understand what that is just ask. It is a powerful weapon that a diabetic can use to control their condition and one that many of us use to great effect.

Good luck and keep asking questions.

Regards

Steve

PS Here's two good links about what's good to eat.

First is the lady doctor who's low carb / low GI recommendations seem to form the basis of what's recommended in Sweden

http://blogg.passagen.se/dahlqvistannika/?anchor=my_lowcarb_dietary_programe_in

Second is a good beginners guide to low carb regimes that are excellent for reducing blood sugar levels and losing weight.

http://www.dietdoctor.com/lchf
 
Thank you so much for that. This is exactly the sort of information and clarity that I have craved for so long, and in only a few days I have learned more about my condition than I ever could have learned from the educators, the PCT or my Primary Care Practitioners.

I shall shortly be getting a meter and strips to assist with my understanding of how foods affect by BG levels and, with a bit of persistence, could lower my HBA1C levels to about 6.2 by "eating to the meter".

Once again, many thanks and I am grateful to all of you for your support and encouragement.

Dave x
 
No problem Dave. The knack is to keep asking questions. What many new people do is post up some sample meals they are having as that will get you a load of advice. In my opinion I think what people find a good Type 2 diet to be quite close what they use to eat when they were young. For me that's what my parents fed me in the 60's and 70's.

You may worry that it contains a bit more fat than you're use to nowadays but don't worry too much about that. I was diagnosed with an HbA1c of 11.3% and reduced that to 5.3% in 3 months by adopting quite a strict low carbohydrate regime. To be honest I didn't have much choice about the "low" as my meter soon told me I had hardly any tolerance to starchy foods at all so pretty soon I gave most starchy carbs up. Not all T2's end up having to do that as we all have different tolerances to stuff. I was quite concerned that my 3 month post cholesterol test would be bad because you have to replace what you take out of your diet with something or else you'll just be hungry all the while. It's recommended you don't up your protein intake to high levels as that can lead to putting stress on your kidneys so by default you end up eating more eggs, cheese and "fatty" things. I needn't have worried as despite upping the amount of fat I actually normalised my levels for the first time in around 5 years and actually significantly increased my good cholesterol. If you need to lose some weight then again loads of studies show a low carb diet is just as effective if not more so than a low fat one especially in the short term.

Once you get the meter then your mantra should be eat, test and adjust.
 
Hi Dave

Welcome, in the words of Rob Schneider "You can do it" :lol:

The SD Codefree is a great option if you are after cheap strips and on a budget.
 
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