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Hi - new to the forum

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palas

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Hi everyone

My name's Carolynn, nearly 58 years old and diagnosed with type 2 a couple of weeks ago. Following a bg blood test level of 15 I was called back to the doctor for a test - albeit about an hour after breakfast - and had readings of 23. Was put on Metformin 1 x 1 and this was quickly upped to 2 + 2 over the course of 4 days.

Two weeks on I've got levels of around 5-7 and my eyes are giving me a lot of trouble. Normally I used to wear my reading glasses for computer work - did this for over 10 years. About 4 weeks ago I discovered I couldn't read with my reading glasses and had to wear my varifocals for the pc. This was before I was diagnosed. Distance vision was also blurry.

However, now that my levels have dropped down I've started having the same problem. Eyes briefly returned to normal at the end of last week, but I've noticed again that I can't read with my reading glasses - nor with my varifocals! Having to use a magnifing glass for figure work. Also the TV is blurry exept through the reading part of my varifocals. All a bit bizarre.

How long might it take for my eyes to settle down?

Thanks
Carolynn
 
Hi Carolynn

Welcome to the forum :)

I think as your sugar levels come down, your eyes should become less blurry. I noticed that my eyesight was better once my levels started to drop, but everyone is different.

Daisy will be along with her welcome post in a bit and Xyzzy with his post which contains lots dietary information amongst other things.
 
Hi Carolynn and welcome to the forum :) You have made a lot of progress and I hope your eye problems will get sorted out soon. Better BG levels should help.

To help you, this is the information we give to new members and I'm sure you will find it useful. Don't hesitate to ask any other questions as there is always someone here to answer you.

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 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.
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Hi Carolynn and welcome to the forum.

Here's the info that Didie mentioned. It worked for me and got my blood sugar levels back to normal within around a couple of months or so. Not a cure as I still have to be very careful what I eat but am now feeling great! I am really happy that I have minimised the risk of all those nasty complications. I was diagnosed in early December last year so just 4 months ago and have now lost 3 stone in weight as well.

A quick bit on Metformin. Most newly diagnosed are put on Metformin. It is an effective and safe medication but you shouldn't treat it as a magic bullet. It will help with your sugar levels but nothing like as much as getting what you eat sorted out. Some people find it has some sides effects (running to the loo, stomach cramps and such like) but in most this goes away after a few days. If it doesn't for you then go back and ask for the Slow Release (SR) version instead. If your doctor or nurse only prescribed you Metformin then you don't need to worry about telling the DVLA about having diabetes as the way Metformin works means it doesn't cause hypo's so you run the same risks as a non diabetic.

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 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. You may find it conflicts with advice currently given to you in this country as we have yet to update and still use older dietary recommendations. In fact we use diet guidelines that are over 30 years old. If you want to read more about this kind of diet and other stuff there is a thread discussing it with some useful links here http://www.diabetes.co.uk/diabetes-forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=28402

Next most members would recommend you test your own blood sugar levels. Did your doctor give you a meter and strips? Some do and some don't. It's a bit of a post code lottery and we find some progressive surgeries are pro testing and others anti. I'll warn you the anti ones can sometimes be very vocally anti!

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. So if you can't test how will you now if what you are eating is keeping you safe? 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.
 
So sorry to hear that not only you got the diagnosis but also that your eyes are playing you up... but on a positive note knowledge is power and this forum should help you a lot, it was a boon to me.
That said.... my reaction is this, I presume your vision was OK up until shortly after your diagnosis? The conclusion is that it is either the fact that your levels are coming down OR the meds are affecting the vision. It strikes me that you, like me and many others, were "carrying" diabetes for some time before your diagnosis and suffered no vision impairment. Ironically it is what they have done to you since then that has caused this imho.
My presumption is that your vision was "stable" while you unwittingly had diabetes and the higher blood sugar levels. You have now quite drastically dropped those levels and inevitably your vision has changed.
My doc told me to leave getting my prescription for spex checked for a few months as a course of met (and new lower sugar levels) will change your vision. It did but not too drastically for too long. Diabetes affects everyone in different ways as do the meds.
Also, I am surprised you have not complained about the usual side-effects of metformin.... I can still recall those!
Get an appt and attend the retinopathy check as well....
Best of luck!
 
They upped my metformin from 1 x 1 to 2 x 1 to 2 x 2 within 4 days, which was fun. I feel sick every morning about an hour after taking the tablets for about an hour. Also having occasional runs. So I'm afraid I do have the side effects of metformin. Currently still on 2 x 2

I'm very confused on diet at the moment. I've had one meeting with the diabetes practice nurse and she told me to eat carbs with EVERY meal, no more than 3 eggs a week + 3 x fruit/day. I've pretty much kept to my normal diet, without all the cakes and biscuits and sweet stuff. Writing down everything that I eat at the moment. I've read on the internet that carbs can cause these vision disturbances because they're metabolised fast so am I eating too many carbs, or when I do eat them are they the wrong ones, i.e. oatcakes, the odd baked potato, wholemeal bread, rye crispbread.

Would I be better with protein and f + veg and no carbs?

She also pretty much said there WOULD be complications at some point. I've got a meter, but only 50 test strips a month and advised to test 2 x day, before breakfast and before dinner. Funny, that makes 60 or 62 strips by my calculation. I've bought some more strips and am testing before those meals and 2 hrs afterwards. She was anti testing because she said I might become obsessive.

Also advised to get bg levels under 10 post meal (how I'm supposed to do that without testing I'm not sure?) but I thought that over 8 was still too high? Since last Wednesday every reading has been under 10 with the lowest at 4.8. Currently testing as above.

No chiropody treatment unless I fit certain criteria - but she wouldn't tell me what the criteria was, so I paid for a chiropodist appointment on Saturday and got a baseline check for my feet.

Eyewise I did have glasses and noticed that my vision was changing a about 3 months ago. Went to get an eye test and was told that my prescription had not changed. However, at moment I can see perfectly well for long distance from my usually blurry reading glasses, and I can't read except with a magnifying glass. I'm wondering if this is what my eyes should be and the "not changed" reading was a false reading because of high sugar levels. Just not sure how long to leave it before I get another eye test, as vision seems to be changing day to day.

Sorry, so many questions.
Carolynn
 
Hi Carolynn

Sounds like you're doing really well if you care getting under 10's already! Well done :clap:

Looks like you've got one of the old guard like me and a many others, what with the starchy carbs with every meal and the testing WILL SEND YOU MAD :lol: Don't want to disparage your DSN too much but did you realise a lot of diabetic nurses are just practice nurses who have been told to be the practice diabetic nurse. Ask to see her certificates.

The NICE UK guidelines state under 8.5 two hours after eating look here http://www.diabetes.co.uk/diabetes_care/blood-sugar-level-ranges.html that is actually seen as a bit high nowadays and many on the forum will tell you to aim for under 7.8 after two hours. There is a lot of modern research been done to show that its regularly going above 7.8 that does cause complications to begin.

See you got the "It IS progressive and you WILL get complications" message. Sorry not the case according to the majority of forum members. There are 36000 of us but hey what do we all know. Really not a very inspiring message to be telling people is it?

What target you aim for is entirely up to you but do it from an informed view. Who's eyes and feet are they? Yours! They are not your nurses or gp's.

The honest answer is if you want to manage by diet + metformin only the vast majority of us have cut starchy carbs until our meters start telling us we're safe. Like I said in my earlier post the info you are told in this country is viewed by many to be very out of date and other countries would be telling you to cut the starchy carbs.

Of course the easiest way for you to see IS to cut your starchy carbs and see what happens to your readings. In some new people it can take a few weeks for levels to drop and in some others normal levels have been restored in days.

Keep asking questions as everyone here wants to help!
 
palas said:
Would I be better with protein and f + veg and no carbs?
Click to expand...

Here's a bit more detail on what your statement implies. Many of us would agree with what you just wrote.

Our differences would simply be how much carbohydrate to leave in your diet. Some members say very little, some more, hardly any would recommend "starchy carbs with every meal". What many think is you just have to reduce to the point your levels are safe which seems pretty obvious to me and is my standpoint. If you want to reduce further then that's an option and there are expert posters who can advise you on that. Likewise there is a system called GI which simplistically is a measure of how FAST foods raise your levels so if you can eat foods that take a long time to process they might still have some carbs in them. Again there are expert posters who will help you with that method, or combine both, that's what I do! What both "sides" agree is that eating so that you are safe after two hours is the important thing to do.

Here's a idea towards the diet your statement would imply. Its a low carb, high fat approach (LCHF). Don't worry too much about the "fat" bit as it doesn't contain the nasty dangerous fats. It's the diet I've been following and I've lost 3 stones in 4 months, normalised my blood levels and REDUCED my cholesterol levels back to normal. The forum has hundreds of low carb recipes which are absolutely lovely.

You may eat:

Dairy products. Milk, yoghurt, cheese, Feta cheese, cottage cheese, Creme Fraiche, cream cheese, butter, mayonnaise etc.

Do not choose low fat products or sugar-added products.

Beef, pork, lamb, chicken fish, shellfish. Don't remove the fat.

Ham, sausage and other processed meats (make sure the carbohydrate content doesen't exceed 5g per 100g)

Eggs (choose organic - ordinary eggs have too much omega-6)

Herbs, spices, stock, salt and peppar according to taste.

Sauces with low carbohydrate content.

Vegetables. Olives. Linseed

Dressings with oil and vinager or mayonnaise.

Cold pressed oils. Olive-, rapeseed-, linseed-, coconut- and palmoil (just remember the body cannot use the omega-3 from vegetable oils)



Unless your diet contains a good supply of fish with a high fat content you may need a supplement of the essential polyunsaturated fatty acid omega-3, eg in fish oil.



Foods to limit or avoid:

Potato and potato based products.eg.chips and crisps.

Rice and rice products.

Corn and corn products. eg. Cornflakes.

Grain based products. Eg.pasta, bread, biscuits, breakfast cereals, porridge.

Sweets, cakes, Danish pastries, fizzy drinks, juice .

All sugar and sugary products.

Margarine (chemically processed vegetable oils) and omega-6 rich oils are not suited for our bodies. They contribute to an increased risk for heart and artery problems, diabetes, overweight, cancer, allergies etc.

Oils with a high omega-6 content. Eg. corn oil, sunflower oil, soya oil, peanut oil.



If you feel that you cannot give up bread and potatoes then try to reduce them gradually.



You may eat a little of these foods:

Beans, lentils, nuts, sunflower seeds.

Fresh fruit (dried fruit has a too high sugar content)

Small amounts of chocolate with high cacao content, 65-70%.



These foods contain a small amount of slowburning carbohydrates.

Leave them out while reducing your weight. Try to include them again when you have reached your goal.

Drink only small amounts of alcohol, it increases overweight and disturbs the sugar balance.

(Beer contains maltose which is a very fast carbohydrate.)



Suggested menu:

Breakfast: Yoghurt with 1-2 tablespoons of flaxseed or sunflower seed and wheat bran if you have a problem with digestion.

Egg, sausage, bacon, ham.

Or a small real lowcarb meal.

Coffee or tea with or without cream or milk.



Lunch and supper: meat, fish or chicken with vegetables. Stews, soups or gratins with the same ingredients.

You can follow most recipes, just avoid carbohydrates.

Drink water with the meal.



More suggestions:

Lightly cooked cauliflower or broccoli is an excellent replacement for potatoes.

With some cheese on top they taste even better.

Cauliflower cooked in cream, then mixed with some salt and pepper, is better tasting than mashed potatoes!

A good inexpensive sallad: ½kg each of roughly grated carrot and cabbage with oil and vinager dressing alternatively a mayonnaise and yoghurt dressing (use the 10% fat yoghurt)

It will keep in the fridge for several days.

Sallads are a good way to compensate for the starchy foods.

If you get hungry or have "cravings" take 1-2 slices of cheese, a slice of sausage or ham, a glass of milk or yoghurt, a few nuts, some olives, or something else lowcarb.

A roll of ham and cheese, perhaps with a little butter on, to a cup of coffee or tea.

If you really want a sandwich take a thin crisp bread with plenty of butter and cheese or ham.

Eating out or going to a party should not be a problem. Just avoid the part of the meal heavy in carbohydrate and do not overeat. Forget the old adage "eat what you take"

You can't get bloated on a lowcarb meal.



Fruit is certainly nutritious, but due to its high carbohydrate content it raises bloodsugar levels. (Especially bananas and grapes)

The risk is that the fructose will be converted to fat, and stored up in the fat issue.



If weight loss is slow you should remove fruits, bread and nuts completely from your diet.



Physical training:

It is good for health, strength and loss of weight. The body gets a signal it must not break down muscle, but only take energi from fat deposits.

An overweight person will have difficulty losing weight by training, while continuing to eat food with high content of carbohydrates.

It is a lot easier to train when you get less overweight.



Carbohydrates:

They are perhaps needed for heavy physical work and hard training, so you have to test what your needs are (But I have heard of elite sportsmen who have competed on a fat based diet)

With low energy activity like walking you do not need carbohydrates, it is sufficient with energy from fat.



There are many programs on internet where you can check the nutritional content of our most common foods. It is good to have this information when choosing the food for your diet.

If your goal is to lose weight, then 5g carbohydrate per 100g food intake is suggested. When you have reached your goal you can reintroduce carbohydrates gradually and see which level is comfortable for maintaining chosen weight.



G.I. Glycemic index gives an idea of how quickly the starch in food converts to blood sugar. The slow carbohydrates are to be preferred and the fast ones avoided. This will reduce the need for insulin production. If you eat a diet low in carbohydrates you will reduce your weight because you avoid the cravings caused by low blood sugar. A meal high in carbohydrates forces the release of insulin to regulate the high levels of blood sugar. The result is the opposite - low blood sugar. This is the "catch 22" you have to avoid. The answer is to eat food that does not make you hungry.



Weight reduction will depend on how much you eat, and above all how low you can reduce your carbohydrate intake. You have to test how much and how often you need to eat without becoming hungry. You do not need to increase your intake of protein(eg.meat), but you will probably need to increase your intake of fat, as you have most likely been eating an intensely low fat diet.

If you follow this program strictly you can reduce your weight with ½-2kg per week.

If you fall for the temptation to eat something high in carbohydrate, you will automatically get a feeling of hunger, craving, after about an hour when the high blood sugar level begins to sink.

Just take a lowcarbohydrate snack until blood sugar and insulin levels have returned to normal. Then you can continue as before. Nothing worse has happened than a slight slowing down of the weight loss process.



Why does it work?

Because a low carbohydrate diet does not increase blood sugar levels, you avoid the release of excess insulin. Insulin lowers the blood sugar level quickly causing you to soon feel hungry again. Insulin is responsible for storing fat and blocking its use as an energy source.

It also converts excess carbohydrates to fat.

The body can convert the blood sugar it needs from the protein and fat in food. This releases a steady level of blood sugar instead of the highs and lows caused by carbohydrates.

Muscular activity and the brain can also get their energy needs from fat. (Ketones)

Research shows that it is not dangerous to increase the amount of fat and protein in the diet.



A low carbohydrate diet is perfect for people with type 2 diabetes, because blood sugar is stabilised and variations limited.

Please note that if you are on medication for your diabetes the change should be made gradually, in order to avoid low blood sugar, checking blood sugar levels and reducing medication accordingly. It is recommended that you do this in consultation with your doctor or nurse.



Most overweight people today have tried to diet by lowering the fat content in their foods without succeeding.

These people could try the low carbohydrate diet.
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Thank you so much for the advice, particularly the low carb diet. If you eat carbs at all - would hate to cut out toast and marmite completely, what would you consider acceptable to still stay within the low carb diet. Would one carb meal or snack a day be acceptable for example?

Also sometimes I've tested 2 hrs after a meal and my BG has been less than before the meal. Is that good?

Sorry for all the questions.

Carolynn
 
Poor you.... and here we go again with the eating carbs with every meal etc. It is up to the recipient of this advice to take it or leave it. You do not have to do what they say. One of the essentials of DM is control and self-management. Too often I found this advice was conflicting. Plus it does not suit everyone.
When I was diagnosed the nurse wrote down on a scrap of paper the regimen for reaching the target dosage for met and this was over a month. Plus you should not take them on an empty stomach she said. You have read the instructions in the packet I presume? Lotsa fun.
Your meter is your friend of course. But it is early days so do not worry too much about anomalies. A few weeks and you will get a much better understanding but early on it is all daunting and confusing. But nothing is going to happen to you overnight. You are allowed some mistakes and treats. As they show here try out some foods and do the meter but do not overdo it and get paranoid. The obvious things should apply. For example it is probably not a good idea to help yourself to a curry along with lotsa rice and whatnot, most of those are highly processed carbs which you should eat less of. Of course you should eat some carbs with every meal, without them it would impractical and boring.
Experiment and try your faves. If the meter reading is a little high then next time eat half the first amount and recheck. You will soon see what your body can cope with.
Personally, I try to mix them and for instance would have a fry up every morning - egg, bacon, tomato, mushroom, onion, green pepper etc. Plus one slice of toast and then chuck the lot on a plate maybe with some sauce. Within an hour I go for a half hour bike ride. Meter readings for me are ok seldom over 6. My only reservation is the fat and salt.
As to your eyes I would probably go for an eye test anyway, I think they are free for us. You do not have to act upon it.
One thing also puzzles me and that is why your optician did not pick up on your DM.
All in all, take it easy, I got into quite a state in the early days. Now I see that while it is a life-changer it is not a life-threatener. One step at a time and keep coming back here - no matter how dumb or trivial you might think your questions might be, someone will answer.... this is the best place on the planet for DM folk! 8)
 
Hi I am no 'expert' as I am nearly diagnosed as well but with regards to your eyes I too had changes.

I went to the optician with blurry eyes that I had noticed for a while , up until then had no known problems with my eyes. Was given my first pair of glasses for distance.

Fast forward a few weeks and had a blood sugar reading of 18.8 started diet and a few weeks later my distance sight came back but a few days later I couldnt read small print, so got a magnifying glass for reading, especially the food labels. A week later I can now see close up and distance.

I have spoken to the optician and told me that changes do happen to eyes when the blood sugar is high, my GP also said the same.

Hope things settle for you soon :D
 
Hi Carolyn

Many people have said similar things to you about their eyes. It is all to do with your sugar levels changing. Given you seem to be getting really good safe levels at the moment then so long as you continue to keep get them I would hope your eyes begin to stabilise soon. Try not to worry too much it looks like you really are doing great.
 
Hi everyone my name Christine face book chrriss88

New comer much appreciating the info on site. I will be getting my eyes tested my vision is blurry and I feel dizzy alot of the time!
 
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