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Fiona I

Well-Known Member
Messages
89
Hi there,
Just decided to join was diagnosed type 2 about a year ago and have been fine did not make many lifestyle changes at all, however my last review has worried me. Nurse wants to put me on tablets I ant to try and control with diet and exercise, heres the hard bit I have never had to diet so have no idea where to start, what can and can't I eat. Whats the best way to lower my sugar levels. I have bought myself a moniter bloods last night before tea was 12.9 this morning they are on 9.0.
Exercise well being a full time working mum this is hard I leave home at 7-30 for work returning at 6-00pm I then have to do tea, housework, sort out the kids etc etc. I just do not have time to go to the gym I live out of town and cannot drive so there is no gym nearby.
I guess I am looking for reassurance and any advice that anyone can possibly offer please.
Oh and how do I combat this extreme tiredness ??
Thankyou for reading and please reply with any tips no matter how small
 
The four horsemen of the Apocalypse are sugar, flour, potato, rice. One or all of them need to be cut down in your diet. You can never tell whether it is one of them or all of them giving you high sugar levels which is why the use of a meter is so important. You write down what you had at your meal and do a test 2 hours afterwards. A process of elimination is gone through until you find the problem(s).

Quite a lot of people take the No Carbs route which although will certainly work may not be necessary. It's for you and your meter to find out.

In the meantime serve smaller portions of anything containing the above ingredients. One tip is to use smaller plates so it looks like there is more food.

There is no need to starve yourself. If you have less carbohydrates then have more veg or meat. Do not eat processed foods they often contain flour.

Good luck
 
Oh Gosh,
Big changes for me then, I have potatoes with most meals.
Here is my typical day.
Bottle of pro biotic drink 7-00am
Yoghurt and fruit 8-30M
Salad with Meat 1-00ish
Potatoes, veg and meat 6-30ish.
Crisps to snack on.
Is it really that bad??????
 
Hi Fiona and welcome to the forum :)
I think you will find it useful to read this information that we give to new members, then ask all the questions you like as someone will always be able to answer 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.
 
Fiona I said:
Oh Gosh,
Big changes for me then, I have potatoes with most meals.
Here is my typical day.
Bottle of pro biotic drink 7-00am
Yoghurt and fruit 8-30M
Salad with Meat 1-00ish
Potatoes, veg and meat 6-30ish.
Crisps to snack on.
Is it really that bad??????
Click to expand...

There doesn't seem to be too many changes to be made but as I said earlier the answer might lie in the quantities. The salad with meat lunch is fine, the potatoes in the evening may need attention and the crisps are an unknown quantity. My cholesterol diet sheet says don't eat crisps because they are all fried potato with no other kind of potato present. In diabetes terms they seem ok for me but in moderation. Bread may prove to be a problem.

No, it really isn't that bad. There are lots of really nice meals out there that you haven't tried yet and will not harm you.
 
Hi Fiona and welcome to the forum. :)

Thought I'd let you know 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 nearly 4 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. 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 may find what I and other forum members recommend is different to what your are told is a good diet for you follow.

It's great that you've got a meter as most members would recommend you test your levels. 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. 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
 
Hi Fiona, the tiredness is because of your high blood sugar, if you take the advice that has been posted above and cut back on your carbs the tiredness will get better. If you can fit exercise in too, that will also help I try to go out for a fast walk or on my bike after the kids have gone to bed (ok while its light but you might need a walking buddy as it gets darker in the evenings) Honestly the exercise will make you feel loads better, even if you don't feel like you have the energy to spare right now.

Keep checking here for tips and advice, good luck!
 
P.S. Feeling great is much better than needing to keep up with Eastenders etc, not sure if you are a watcher but its worth giving up a little TV to feel fab!
 
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