• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Hi newbie joining

K

Kuriff

Newbie
Messages
1
Location
UK
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hi My name is John and I,m 67 years old ( did well to dodge the bullets this long?). Just diagnosed as Type 2 after about 3 years prediabetic.
Hb1ac 51.
The problem I have at the moment is a crisis of confidence given my surgeries approach. I was aware of the Newcastle Uni research on weight loss and after a week or so of feeling pretty depressed became fired up that I could beat this by achieving the necessary weight loss and lifestyle changes. To be frank it was the wake up call that I ignored when told I was prediabetic.
The problem I have is that my surgery handle this through the practice nurse ( you dont get to talk to a GP) and he was pretty dismissive and keen to get me on Metformin and some other cardio tablet straight away. I finally negotiated a 3 month period when I would progress the weight loss route then redo my bloods and if they had not come down significantly I would start the pills.
Problem is that having beem confident that I was carrying out the right plan my confidence has been rattled a bit by the surgeries attitude and desire to jump to medication straight away. Is this a typical experience and are ther any weight loss successes out there?
thanks
John
 
Welcome to the forum John
Congratulations for wanting to be proactive and taking responsibility for your own health
Your HbA1c has only just tipped over into the T2 range, it shouldn't be too difficult to get it back down to pre D levels or even lower. We have many members who have managed to do just that from a much higher starting point.
The Newcastle diet was popular quite a few years ago and was successful for some but by no means all.
Here's an old thread about the ND you might find useful
https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/newcastle-diet-survivors-where-are-they-now.56235/
The problem we have as T2's is that our insulin is no longer as effective as it should be. We have trouble dealing with the glucose that comes from the carbohydrates in our diets. So reducing the amount of carbs will reduce your sugar levels. In my opinion much preferable to a starvation diet that may or may not work.
While weight loss is of course a worthwhile goal, it's not necessarily going to mean you can " beat this"
Some 10% of T2's are underweight and can't afford to lose more and the vast majority of overweight people do not have T2 diabetes. So clearly there are other factors at play, it's not just about the weight no matter what you read in our wonderful newspapers
Have a look at the nutritional thingy, the link is at the bottom of my post.
Here's a few other links that should help
https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/
https://www.ditchthecarbs.com/howtostart/
https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb
 
Hello @Kuriff and welcome to the forum.
The problem is all to do with carbohydrates - nothing to do with a need for tablets or weightloss - your surgery has obviously got on the wrong track and they'll be telling you it is progressive before too long.
To reverse the increasing numbers, just reduce your intake of carbs.
A blood glucose meter can help a lot as it can show you how you are dealing with the choices you make for your meals.
The high carb foods are often touted as 'healthy' so you can get some stick for going against accepted wisdom even after doing the impossible thing or getting back into normal numbers.
There is a lot of advice about eating low carb, it has worked for a lot of people.
 
Hi, welcome. We're not too different in age and BG level at diagnosis. Normally I'd direct you to my blog - but they're still missing - so here's the highlights:

I started a very low carb regime straight away - about 20g carb/day max. No medication.
My BG fell to 36 (ie low normal) in four months
I have lost around 25kg over the last three years and still losing
I started playing football again this year and feel better than I have done for 15-20 years.

I know I've been lucky because I responded well and quickly to cutting carbs. Not everyone does, but a good many here have had success. I'd strongly suggest giving it a good go.

Best of luck.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn More.…