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T

townie 1962

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hi I'm townie and been diagnosed for 12 years.I started off diet controlled and then onto metaformin and glicicide. Now I am on Lantus 60 units evenings and 3 lots of 15 unitsof apidra daily.I take metaformin and have just this week been told to increase that to 2x500mg at lunchtime and evening meal.I also have cardiomyopathy so mobility is limited.I am 49 and a stay at home carer for my son who has special needs..and recently divorced.
I am putting on weight since being on insulin and desperate for some kind of hope that I wont continue putting on weight until i burst:) and that i can keep my blood sugars low.I am getting depressed about my diabetes and also feel at my wits end with trying to control it.I am interested in getting support to help me with this as my diabetic nurse is no help, and also what to eat,when to eat it so that I can loose some weight.I am unsure what to eat and when to eat it anymore.I seem to have a peak in blood sugars at least once a day and because i am getting so fed up with it all am turning to food to comforst myself.. I have had problems with comfort eating prior to my health problems.
 
Hi Townie and welcome to the forum :) You need help to lose some weight and get your blood levels down. This is some basic information which the Forum Monitors have written. I know you are not newly diagnosed as it says in the advice but you seem to need the type of help that this advice can give you. I personally have found this advice is helping me. When you see results you will start to feel better about your diabetes. We will all support you as long as you keep in touch with us and tell us how you are getting on. All friends here.... :)

Here is the advice we usually give to newly diagnosed diabetics. We hope that these few ideas gained through experience help you to gain control and give you some understanding of Diabetes. This forum doesn't always follow the recommended dietary advice, you have to work out what works for you as we are all different.

It's not just 'sugars' you need to avoid, diabetes is an inability to process glucose properly. Carbohydrate converts, in the body, to glucose. So it makes sense to reduce the amount of carbohydrate that you eat which includes sugars.

This is NOT a low carb diet suggestion, just a reduction in your intake of carbohydrate. You have to decide yourself how much of a reduction will keep your blood glucose levels in control.

The main carbs to avoid OR reduce are the complex or starchy carbohydrates such as bread, potatoes, pasta, rice, starchy root veg and also any flour based products. The starchy carbs all convert 100% to glucose in the body and raise the blood sugar levels significantly.

If you are on Insulin you may find that reducing the carb intake also means that you can reduce your dose of insulin. This can help you to keep weight gain down as Insulin tends to make you put on weight and eventually cause insulin resistance. This should be done slowly so as not to cause hypos.

The way to find out how different foods affect you is to do regular daily testing and keep a food diary for a couple of weeks. If you test just before eating, then two hours after eating, you will see the effect of certain foods on your blood glucose levels. Some foods, which are slow acting carbohydrates, are absorbed more slowly so you may need to test three or even four hours later to see the effect that these have on your blood glucose levels.

Buy yourself a carb counter book (you can get these on-line) and you will be able to work out how much carbs you are eating, when you test, the reading two hours after should be roughly the same as the before eating reading, if it is then that meal was fine, if it isn’t then you need to check what you have eaten and think about reducing the portion size of carbs.

When you are buying products check the total carbohydrate content, this includes the sugar content. Do not just go by the amount of sugar on the packaging as this is misleading to a diabetic.


As for a tester, try asking the nurse/doctor and explain that you want to be proactive in managing your own diabetes and therefore need to test so that you can see just how foods affect your blood sugar levels. Hopefully this will work ! Sometimes they are not keen to give Type 2’s the strips on prescription, (in the UK) but you can but try!!

If you are an Insulin user in theory you should have no problem getting test strips.

The latest 2010 NICE guidelines for Bg levels are as follows:
Fasting (waking).......between 4 - 7 mmol/l........(Type 1 & 2)
2 hrs after meals......no more than 8.5 mmol/l.....( Type 2)

2hrs after meals....... no more than 9 mmol/l ......(Type 1)

If you are able to keep the post meal numbers lower, so much the better.

It also helps if you can do 30 minutes moderate exercise a day. It doesn't have to be strenuous.

The above is just general advice and it is recommended that you discuss with your HCP before making any changes. You can also ask questions on the forum on anything that is not clear.

Sue/Ken.
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Salutations fellow diabetics and carers-of. I have been a type 1 diabetic for thirty long years, that works out at 33,000++ insulin jabs! God my arms ache :lol: I look forward to reading about others experiences and writing about my own.
Regards and good health to all, Ricky
 
Hi Townie,
Best advice i can give is to speak with the Doctor and ask to be taken off the Lantus.
There are numerous complaints similar to your's, medical staff are aware of the issues with analogue insulins and do change you if you ask.
 
thanks for the warm welcome and advice.So from today I am testing myself as advised more and cutting back on those pesky carbs,and keeping a food diary.What would be a good amount of carbs to have daily?
I have also walked for 30 mins today as well.
 
Hi again townie :) The important thing about cutting carbs is to reduce them slowly testing as you go so you don't get a false hypo from reducing your BG levels too fast. From your results I think you will be able to see when you have reached the right level for you - as everybody is different. Here are examples of levels you can try out:

Low carb (ketogenic) 0-50g carbohydrate per day
Typical low carb 50-90g
Liberal low carb 90-130g
Moderate carbs 130-170g
High carb 170g plus a day

Hope this answers your question :)

Well done for the exercising - you will soon see the benefits :)
 
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