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Helping my Dad with diabetes

Helping_hand_

Helping_hand_

Well-Known Member
Messages
47
Hi everyone,

I don't have diabetes but I am caring for my Dad (72) who has. He has had type 2 for 6 or 7 years but never managed it properly. He has been taking Metforim all that time but didn't stick to a sugar restricted diet. Last year we was diagnosed with PAD, and 2 weeks again he has vascular surgery to bypass the blood in both legs.

The day he went into hospital his blood sugar was 26 !
He only gave up smoking before surgery, and didn't monitor of control his sugar intake. I have tried for many years to get him to take his health seriously, but he never listened and continued to drink alcohol.

So now he is out of hospital and I think finally he is ready to take diabetes seriously, he already had to have a toe removed. My mum eats a healthy diet and cooks heathy food but we discovered my Dad was getting ugh sugar foods when he was out, even discovered he was drinking Lucozade and it wasn't because he levels were low!!

The day he left hospital his blood sugar was 19, I have made some dietary changes for him and yesterday it was 13.6 so it is coming down. He is still very weak after the operation so I am looking for healthy nutritious food that won't raise his blood sugar too much.

Any help or advice welcome, thank you
 
He needs to have a blood glucose meter and start to eat less carbs (breakfast cereals, bread, potatoes, rice and pasta) and avoid high sugar things like fruit juice and fruit like bananas and grapes.
 
Hi @Helping_hand_ .. and welcome
So spof you to commit to caring for your Dad .. and you have made a good move coming here. Since joining this forum the folks here have given me so much info, advice and support that I am now much more confident about the journey ahead. So ask your questions and be assured that you will receive the answers that you need .. It's still early for me but, in my experience, it gets easier .. very quickly ..

Managing and controlling diabetes through exercise, diet and testing your Blood Glucose seems to be the best way forward. For me, committing to an LCHF (Low Carb High Fat) lifestyle and testing 3-5 times a day seems to be working and you'll find that there is a wealth of info, relevant advice and positive support about LCHF on the forum ..

I have tagged @daisy1 for you and I would suggest that you read up on the Low Carb Program in the information that she will soon be sending you. You might also find the discussion on the Low Carb Diet forum helpful .. and the following websites ...
Low Carb Intro and Information
Low Carbs in 60 Seconds

It sounds as though you have already organised a test meter but if not, try the website at: https://homehealth-uk.com/product-category/blood-glucose/ for the SD Codefree meter or: http://spirit-healthcare.co.uk/product/tee2-blood-glucose-meter/ who distribute the TEE 2 meter, which is free. If your surgery does not provide test strips on prescription, the costs of testing comes down to the ongoing charges for test strips and lancets. I'm testing 3-4 times a day which works out at around £10 to £12 per month for the two packages above but, more importantly, I now know what my BG levels are .. and I will be able to manage them
Hope this helps
 
Thanks Art of Flowers,

The hospital have given him a One Touch Select Plus, the district nurse showed me how to use it. Hopefully he will start self testing when he feels better. Fasting blood sugar today was 14.9 I don't really understand the what it should be at different times but this was before breakfast and medication.

Diet is a struggle, he used to eat a lot of bread. He doesn't like vegetables and the nurse said to stay off fruit until things settle down.
 
Thanks AM,

I am also trying to education myself to make better choices for my husband and myself. I have seen what damage an unhealthy diet can do and I want to prevent health problems before they start.

Unfortunately my Dad's couldn't care less attitude has caused him to be really suffering now. He's very stubborn and doesn't like change, so it's an uphill battle. He is in recovery for 6 weeks, so hopefully I can get him to learn to look after himself, and hopefully if he feels better he realise the benefits.
 
@Helping_hand_

Hello and welcome to the Forum :) Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful and helps you to help your Dad. Ask questions when you need to and someone will 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 235,000 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.
 
Helping_hand_ said:
Thanks Art of Flowers,

Diet is a struggle, he used to eat a lot of bread. He doesn't like vegetables and the nurse said to stay off fruit until things settle down.
Click to expand...

I've been using LivLife Low Carbs Seriously Seeded Loaf from Waitrose it's about £1.50 for a small loaf and each slice is 3.4g of carbs (they are small slices) or there are many low carb recipes about. I have it toasted with plenty of butter, bacon, eggs, quality sausages and mushrooms for breakfast. Maybe try him on this and see how he likes it. I also have a coffee with cream in. Not a bad start to the day. If you can limit him to a few slices a time that would be a step in the right direction.
 
Hi Helping Hand and welcome. As @Art Of Flowers suggest you need to get the carbs in his diet reduced, the sooner you can do this the sooner his numbers will start to fall and are controlled. You'd be surprised how quickly some people that have been here have seen there glucose levels drop
 
Thanks Mark,

We don't have Waitrose here but I will look for something similar.
Tonight he had grilled bacon, mushrooms, tomatoes, black pudding and poached egg.
He seemed happy enough, I think I will have to make small changes and not just totally transform his diet.
The hospital gave him pancakes and sandwiches, they didn't seem to pay too much attention.
 
Hi Johnjoe,

I am trying to find a balance with low carbs and not over doing the fat. I don't know where I am supposed to get fibre from as he doesn't eat vegetables. Although it seems root veg are high carb
 
Helping_hand_ said:
Hi Johnjoe,

I am trying to find a balance with low carbs and not over doing the fat. I don't know where I am supposed to get fibre from as he doesn't eat vegetables. Although it seems root veg are high carb
Click to expand...
The fat can provide the satiety (feeling of fullness) that controls appetite I wouldn't worry about it too much when starting out.
Carbs are more damaging in the short and longer term. I also don't worry too much about fibre.
 
If your looking at cutting down on carbs. There are other options for the bread. Burgen do one that's 10g a slice which I've seen in a few supermarkets. Lidl do high protein rolls again about 10g each. I wouldn't worry too much about the fat. Fry the bacon and eggs add a few quality sausages. Cream in coffee instead of milk. It will help on a low fibre diet and should make the "diet" easier to convert to. Have a look at www.dietdoctor.com for some menu idea's. Nuts can be a good source of fibre and so is dark chocolate. 90% dark chocolate and a few nuts is quite low in carbs and a high fibre treat. Broccoli cauliflower etc can be hidden in curry's, stews, chilli, etc. Done in a slow cooker they break down into nothing. I can do without the rice when I'm getting a double portion of curry instead but you can make an alternative from cauliflower. A poppadom is about 4g of carbs each. They are high carb per 100g but don't weigh much.
There's loads of alternatives to things he likes its just a case of finding them.
 
I think the key is to find a handful of things he likes and can eat as much of as he wants. That's how I manage. Have been on low carb diet since long before I had diabetes.
Granted, everyone is different, but snacks were most important to me. If I didn't snack I'd get "the hunger" at meal time and have a massive carb binge when I slipped up. By snacking with good things, it wouldn't necessarily solve my hunger, but it prevented me from losing all control!
 
He's suffering a bit from post surgery depression, I think he thought the operation would solve all his problems, but obviously the diabetes is hard work. Sometimes older people have a harder time adapting to change, and he has lost his appetite a bit too. When he you ask him what he does like, you don't get much of a reply. Bacon, eggs and mushrooms are working though. Going to try and get him out for a short walk today, fresh and sunshine might lift his spirits.
 
one glass of red wine in the evening is not that bad... (good for the heart and lowers blood glucose a bit, but only the one glass and it must be red wine)

one can buy some totally sugarfree chokolade , it taste of a lot just not of sugar...;
http://www.bulkpowders.co.uk/organic-cacao-liquor-buttons.html?sqr=cacoa&

if one dip these in oli and then afterwards in sucralose , then they´ll taste much more like normal sugar


and this tastes like sugar I think at least , it is great on strawberries with cream :
http://www.bulkpowders.co.uk/sucralose.html
 
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