Hello!

@MrXile - Hello Michael and Welcome to the Forum . Other Type 1's will be along soon to Welcome You. Tagging @daisy1 for some useful information provided for new members to the Forum.

Welcome to the forum @MrXile! It seems that you are getting to grips with your condition. No need to lurk and read other's questions, ask anything you want to yourself, there are lots of Type 1s who can give you helpful advice and support on here.

@MrXile

Hello and welcome to the forum Here is the basic information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask more questions when 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 well over 147,000 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 free 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. They're all 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.

Hello and welcome @MrXile

Hi and welcome. Although DKA can be dangerous and best avoided at least you got thru it and have a firm T1 diagnosis with the insulins to manage it. Do ask any questions on the T1 forum. Do ask the specialist about carb counting if you haven't already been given guidance. This means adjusting your rapid insulin dose to the carbs in the meal. Be aware that NHS dieticians may offer the standard bad government diet advice (Eatwell Guide etc); follow the diet advice on these forums if in doubt. Even T1s need to keep carbs down to avoid weight gain and excessive insulin usage. Proteins and fats are fine for us.

welcome here MrXile

Welcome @MrXile!

It is quite a sweeping change to your life as I too found out a few months ago but you seem to be coping well in the short time you've been diagnosed. As others have said ask away if there's any questions you have.

@MrXile . Welcome to the gang. The biggest pain in the ar*e around here is usually the basal injections so keep asking and posting I'm sure you won't be a pain in anyone's proverbial.

Welcome @MrXile I am new here on the forum, although a Type 2 on Insulin, I have found so far everyone here to be friendly!

@_flynny74 - Hello Michael and Welcome to the Forum . Other Type 1's will be along soon to Welcome You.

Hi pal
I was in the pub on December 30th when I got a phone call from my son telling me there was a doctor at our house looking for me and that I should call this telephone number immediately, guessing it was something to do with my blood test I had earlier that day I began to poo myself.
I had gone to the doctors earlier that day to drop a urine sample off as requested by him to rule out diabetes from my symptoms of a thirst I couldn't quench and weeing all of the time any way a short while later I received a call asking me to call back to do some blood test as there were abnormalities in my previous test.
As I called the number the guy on the other end of the phone told me to get an overnight bag and get to hospital straight away as my sugar levels were over 50, not knowing how bad they were I asked how bad is that? And his reply was they are the highest sugar levels he's ever seen and that is where my life has changed forever