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hi newbie here. Type2.
- Thread starter mandyhare
- Start Date
Daibell
Master
Hi and welcome. Let us know whether you have the next appointment setup and whether you have been prescribed any meds yet? Have you been given any diet advice? What is your BMI like? Do let us know a bit more with any questions and we can then see how we can help.
Hiitsme
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 2,986
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Diet only
HI @mandyhare and welcome.
I will tag @daisy1 who will post some helpful information for newcomers.
You might like to consider reducing your carb intake, particularly things like rice, potato, bread and pasta as those are the foods that seem to push our blood sugars up. There is lots of information on the Low Carb Forum. Do ask question and people will try and help. I have found using a meter very helpful, testing before a meal and 2 hours after to see what that particular meal did to my blood sugars. If the spike was less than 2 I was happy if more then I needed to look again at what might have caused the spike. I also found gentle exercise like walking helpful.
I will tag @daisy1 who will post some helpful information for newcomers.
You might like to consider reducing your carb intake, particularly things like rice, potato, bread and pasta as those are the foods that seem to push our blood sugars up. There is lots of information on the Low Carb Forum. Do ask question and people will try and help. I have found using a meter very helpful, testing before a meal and 2 hours after to see what that particular meal did to my blood sugars. If the spike was less than 2 I was happy if more then I needed to look again at what might have caused the spike. I also found gentle exercise like walking helpful.
Redsnapper
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 257
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
Hi Mandy.
Stick around here with us.Have a good read around this forum.It is an excellent resource of information and personal experience to draw on.
If you don't mind sharing, give us more of a steer on your diagnosis, BMI etc.Then we will be able to give you better advice.More than likely there will be several who have been or are in your situation.
An hb1Ac of 55 is in diabetic range, but is not disastrous.So do not worry, just be sure to keep looking here,and ask away,no question is silly.
Stick around here with us.Have a good read around this forum.It is an excellent resource of information and personal experience to draw on.
If you don't mind sharing, give us more of a steer on your diagnosis, BMI etc.Then we will be able to give you better advice.More than likely there will be several who have been or are in your situation.
An hb1Ac of 55 is in diabetic range, but is not disastrous.So do not worry, just be sure to keep looking here,and ask away,no question is silly.
daisy1
Legend
- Messages
- 26,457
- Location
- Switzerland
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
- Dislikes
- Cruelty towards animals.
@mandyhare
Hello Mandy and welcome to the forum
To help you to get started, here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful, especially the advice on diet. Ask as many questions as 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 over 150,000 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 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-and-whole-grains.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
LOW CARB PROGRAM:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/low carb program
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
Access to blood glucose test strips
The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
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 bloodglucose 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.
Hello Mandy and welcome to the forum
To help you to get started, here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful, especially the advice on diet. Ask as many questions as 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 over 150,000 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-and-whole-grains.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
LOW CARB PROGRAM:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/low carb program
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
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
- Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
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 bloodglucose 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.
Prem51
Expert
Welcome to the forum from me too @mandyhare! There's a lot of good advice and support on here. Your HbAic isn't that high and with some exercise and diet you should be able to lower it before your 3 month retest.
Patricia21
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 1,764
- Location
- Rochester Kent
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
- Dislikes
- Animal crualty
Hi Mandy and welcome.
My BS levels were higher than yours,but now down to 44.Its realy all about what you eat and getting into a different way of eating,I dont call it a diet as the word diet sounds like starvation.
I eat as much as I want of the right things.
All the best,stay with us.
My BS levels were higher than yours,but now down to 44.Its realy all about what you eat and getting into a different way of eating,I dont call it a diet as the word diet sounds like starvation.
I eat as much as I want of the right things.
All the best,stay with us.
4ratbags
Well-Known Member
Hi and welcome to the forum.
