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Hello, new Type 2 Diabetic

Meady74

Meady74

Active Member
Messages
35
Location
St Leonards on Sea
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Dislikes
Tablets
Evening all,

My name is Allen and I have recently been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. Well, I say recently, it was approximately 5 months ago by accident.

I have a few other health issues, mainly high blood pressure, Asthma and Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnoea. As part of the medication I take for the blood pressure, I also take a water tablet and additional water tablets as I get water retention. My Dr phoned me after a blood test to say my potassium levels were really low, no mention of the diabetes at this point and I should stop taking the water tablets.

Anyway, I made an appointment to see the practice nurse and it was brought up in conversation in a "oh and don't forget you need to be careful because of your diabetes". I was like what diabetes?????:mad::mad::mad:

Anyway it turns out my HbA1c was 49.

My practice is normally pretty good, but not s much on this occasion. However, I have had my retinal scan, all ok, a standard eye test, apparently better than 20/20 vision and have had my first session with the dietician at the local hospital.

The second HbA1c I have had has dropped to 42 so all in the right direction and my cholesterol is 3.5.

I'm not quite resigned to eating food that tastes like it has just been swept out of a pigeon loft and have picked myself up a bit since first diagnosis.

So, here I am :)
 
@Meady74 - Allen, Hello and Welcome to the Forum. I will tag @daisy1 who will provide you with some basic information that all new members receive. :) You had no symptoms of excessive thirst and constant visits to the loo? Your HBA1C of 42 puts you in the category of just on the edge.
HBA1C range:
Normal: below 42.
Prediabetic: 42 to 47.
Diabetic: 48 or over.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hi @liam1955 Yes, I did have those symptoms. I wasn't too concerned about it as I have always been like that for years and have had several blood tests that would have flagged it up previously.

This is also complicated by me being a smoker as well for the last 23 years which has always made me thirsty.

Although I have managed to lower my HbA1c, my GP's practice see me as diabetic and so do I. I have read a number of storeys where people have 'reveresed' their diabetes but, for how long? I have not seen anything yet that has proven this to be for the rest of their lives.
 
What are you eating that tastes like pigeon loft sweepings? If you check out the LCHF diet you'll find lots of great things to eat. Have a look around the forum.. the "what have you eaten today?" thread and some of the success stories threads. The reversal part is a knotty problem but a lot of us find that by controlling what we eat we can reduce out blood glucose levels and so effectively don't have any diabetes symptoms..Maybe remission is a better word but it seems to be achievable.
Welcome and regards
Mark
 
@Meady74

Hello Allen and welcome to the forum :) Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Try to restrict the carby foods in your diet and replace with some fat. This will keep your levels under control. Ask as many questions as you need to and someone will be able to 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 over 150,000 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

LOW CARB PROGRAM:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/low carb program


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.
 
hi @bulkbiker it was a sarcastic pre-form assumption of any type of food diet or not that is supposed to be good for you :) A bit of a personal joke for me :p

I have been having a look around particularly on here about food types, fat types, sugars etc. and everything in between.

Thanks for the information @daisy1 very much appreciated will have a good read.

Thanks for the welcome @urbanracer
 
This happens to be the kind of food I eat regularly after discovering I am diabetic. 150-200g pork belly, braised, roasted, boiled etc.

13164323_10154238450524445_7967038762647034583_n.jpg
 
LOL pork belly in any form sends chivers down my spines. I can never stomach this food, just too much saturated fat. Sorry.


Sent from my iPad using DCUK Forum
 
Hi Allen. I'm sure the more you use the site, the more you'll be in control. There's a lot of helpful and informative people here..so don't hesitate to ask anything.
 
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