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High Post Meal Blood Levels

lucylocket61

Expert
Messages
6,394
Location
Wrexham
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
I have another question:

My post-meal bs levels are around 8.5- 9. This is after eating usually 25-30g carbs in my meal. How do I get the post-meal level down to under 8 please?

Without going hunger I mean. I am so cold when I dont have some carbs and green veg doesnt fill me. And they have 5 - 10 carbs per meal when I substitute them for potatoes, rice and pasta anyway.

I am fed up of feeling so cold. I am controlled by diet only and have 50kg to lose in weight still so I have to watch my calories.

I have lost 6 kg this year so far.

Thanks for all the answers in my other thread.
 
Hi lucylocket,

I have certainly found that I'm colder now that I've lost a bit of weight - I can't tell if this is just the weight loss or a lack of carbs.

I haven't found that I'm hungry, though there is still an urge to snack sometimes and I usually use salted peanuts or pre-cooked meatballs to cope with this. You may be finding that 25-30 carbs per meal is still too high on diet-only - are they low-GI carbs and are you taking in any fat with them?

Are you restricting your fat intake because of your weight loss target? Have you tried some of the more filling alternatives like aubergines or mushrooms instead of spuds, rice etc? It's a bit of a double-edged sword if you're trying to low carb and low fat at the same time.
 
that would be hard to do when it's cold :crazy: Fibre rich foods are supposed to help you feel full for longer. So perhaps just pump up your plate with more fibre rich vegies? When you have carbs make sure they are low GI... grain carbs I find better than vegetable carbs for this purpose. If you're trying to lose weight adding more fat to your diet will just increase your calorie intake which is not what you want. I used to manage on diet alone when I was first diagnosed. I basically microwaved everything almost and ate simply without too much added fat. I lost 20 kgs in a year from doing this. I monitored what I ate too. These days I'm on insulin so it's different for me. Wishing you the best... it's definitely a trial and error thing.
 

Perhaps if you gave us some examples of typical meals we may be able to help. You have to find something that works for you and is sustainable long term so if you are cold and hungry then it will fail because you will not be able to stick to it.
 
Typical meal:

2 eggs, tinned tomatoes, 2 sm.pickled onions, slice bread.

bread roll with tuna, mayonnaise and cucumber

portion of salmon, steamed and 200g green veg and butter.

slice toast, butter, marmite

big bowl salad with mayonnaise and drained tuna or sliced ham or cooked chicken

chicken breast, 200g salad, and butter

rice (2 tablespoons cooked) with home made chicken korma.

pasta (3 tablespoon) with chicken and tomato homemade sauce

chicken, beef or pork casseroles made with packet casserole mix, green veg. No pasta, potato or rice with them.

ham and salad rolls with mayo.

I do seem to eat bread though. 3-4 slices or equivalent in rolls a day.
 
Why don`t you take your prescribed metformin Lucy? It will only lower your BS slightly, but does go a little way in helping control your appetite. At first I thought I wanted to get off them as soon as possible, but the health benefits seem worth popping a couple of pills a day. Get out you packet and look at what it does.

If it was me I would stop eating the bread for a while. See what that does to your levels x
 
I dont take it as my health was ruined years ago by drugs, prescription drugs, which have since been withdrawn.

so I will only take drugs if my life depends on it.

And I am scared of metformin particularly as everyone seems to get nausea and bowel problems, and I dont want that to happen to me.

I also read on the packet about kidney problems and I am waiting for the tests I had on Friday to come back to me about my kidneys working as I have had kidney problems in the past. For some reason the doctor prescribe the Metformin before checking my kidney and liver function. So I had to ask for tests.
 

Not everyone does Lucy. I certainly haven`t. The only side effect I have had is a reduction in appetite, but like you, I need to lose a lot of weight, so I am pleased.

Because of my other health problems, and the damage that can be done taking the medication to control them, I have a battery of blood tests every three months, so I am in a better position than you in that regard. I didn`t realise that everyone didn`t have checks to see how the drugs affected them.
 
I have never had any problems with Metformin either and I have taken 2 regular 500mg a day for nearly 18 months now.
Reduced appetite so that at times I eat because it is meal times rather than feeling hungry.
Give them a try, you can always stop them if they upset you.
Angie
 
Hello Lucy

What might help you a bit apart from having mind over matter, is to drink some ice cold water before you eat your meals. Apparently it curbs the apetite. Also drinking a tsp of marmite or an oxo cube dissolved in a mug of hot water works to curb hunger.

Years ago when I was a kid my carb intake was fairly restricted and my mum regularly cooked me some cauliflower and mashed it up with a dsp of instant mashed potatoe to make it look as though I was able to eat potatoe. It did work to some extent so you could use that idea and see how you feel.

Also, go for a walk after you eat your meals as that will lower your bg levels and at the same time, keep the circulation going.
 
Hi. Metformin is a very safe and well proven drug. The bowel problems can usually be prevented by taking the SR (Slow Release) version. Other than that it has very few side effects so I really would give it a try.
 
Yep take 1500mg (3 tabs) a day without a problem. Really safe and good for the heart as well. Most people have no problems on low carb. Get the SR version at the first sign of side effects and you always have the option to stop taking them. It will be a lot harder to get them in a few months time if the doc see's your HbA1c come down through low carbing alone. Remember he's most likely going to tell you that you're doing great with any HbA1c less than 7.5%. Why deny yourself some useful and safe help?
 
I take 2x500mg of Metformin and the only time I have a problem is if I take it on an empty stomach. I have really lost my appetite since I started it, but plan to ask my GP for the SR.
 

I personally couldn't eat the amount of bread you do, I can sometimes manage one slice of Burgen bread, and that's it. Being as we are all different, I wish I could eat a little more, but sadly my body won't allow it. I couldn't eat pasta, potato's or rice either, so perhaps you have better pancreatic function than I do, as I am on Metformin and still couldn't eat those.
 
Thought I had better mention that I only have 2 of those meals listed a day, that is not a days food!!! :lol:
 
I could only do about half the rice or pasta you listed when I started. A BIT better now. Have you tried swapping to brown basmati rice and brown, green or the tri colour ones?. The lowest carb wise we've come across are ASDA own brand stuff. Even though the carbs look a cheat as they list it when cooked if you work back the uncooked values they are lower than most others. No idea why. I could manage your two tablespoons of brown basmati. Trouble is at those kind of amounts you soon start to thinkwhat's the point! Use those valuable carbs on far nicer things. After a few weeks I just gave them all up. Now I'll take them or leave them, no longer crave for them or potatoes. Have recently gone back to having a slice of toasted Burgen but that's about it.
 
Rice and Pasta are at the top of my "carbs I don't miss" list. It's only after you haven't eaten them for a while that you see them for what they really are: a plate full of sugar masquerading as tasteless stodge.

I'd much rather have twice the amount of bolognaise / curry / chilli and dump the rice and pasta.
 
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