Hello All
New to Diabetes type two and was diagnosed at the end of February.. I am not overweight only weigh 9 and a half stone and am 5 foot 4 inches tall.. I exercise a lot and do not eat unhealthy foods that much.. but I had gestational diabetes three times and Diabetes runs in the family. So I don't need to lose much weight if any.. I have started by cutting carbs and cutting all the puds cakes etc but not sure how low I can go. with the starchy carbs.. I have read the David Cavan book and am trying to only eat 30g of carbs at each meal.. mostly this is working as I am testing after my main meal to see how my BS is and most of the time its under 9 sometimes lower nearer 7.. however at times it is 10 or ll.. so not sure if I am doing ok or not. But if I go lower I run out of steam and don't have the energy I need for my exercise ( Aqua classes swimming and walking .. and not just to the shops .. usually 2 to 4 mile walks.
Thanks
Good morning
@Cinderella56 I was gone all day yesterday so just now getting back on the forum.
Again, apologies for misreading your post which resulted in a lot of push back against the ketogenic diet. Not what I intended.
Now that I understand that you're eating 90 carbs a day, not 30, my advice will be different. I'm in the US so I'm going to convert your numbers here so I don't make further mistakes...
Weight 9.5 stone (133 pounds); height 5'4"; BMI 22.8 (normal)
Post meal glucose levels: most of the time it's 9 mmol/L (163 mg/dL), sometimes lower, nearer 7 mmol/L (126 mg/dL), however at times it is 10 mmol/L (180 mg/dL) or 11 mmol/L ( 198 mg/dL). If I go lower, I run out of steam and don't have energy I need for my exercise - (aqua classes, swimming, walking; usually walks 2 to 4 miles).
I have a few questions for you...
What was your A1c at or following your diagnosis? And how long have you been eating 90 carbs a day?
It's hard to know if you're doing okay or not at 90 carbs a day. If you've been eating low carb for a month or longer, you likely will benefit from reducing your carbs further.
I agree with everyone here. We're all so individual. "Eat to your meter" is excellent advice. And there are many with type 2 diabetes who have restored their glucose levels to non-diabetic status without doing the low carbohydrate ketogenic diet (50 carbs or less). Perhaps you can too.
Sugar, grains, starchy legumes and root vegetables, and sugary fruits all convert to glucose very quickly, as does protein in excess of what your body needs at any meal.
I encourage you to log what you're eating with your 2-hour glucose level so over time you can begin learning how carbs and protein affect your glucose levels and begin making adjustments. To begin, eliminate any sugary beverages if you haven't already. Let me know if you'd like a recipe for a low carb lemonade; it's wonderful.
Include healthy fats with all meals to slow the absorption of the carbs and to replace the calories lost by cutting back on the carbs: butter from grass fed cows, ghee, extra virgin olive oil, organic, virgin coconut oil, raw nuts, green olives, avocado, free range chicken with skin on, pastured, grass fed beef with fat. If you are able to eat dairy, heavy cream (not sure what it's called in the UK), plain, full fat yogurt, hard cheeses.
If you're still eating sandwiches, try eating your sandwich contents with one piece of bread instead of two, or better yet, eat your sandwich contents as a salad without the bread. If you're still eating pasta, try eating what you eat on top of the pasta with only 1/2 or 1/4 of the pasta you'd normally eat, or better yet, replace the pasta with spiralized or cubed courgettes (zucchini) or yellow squash (yellow crookneck squash). If you're still eating root vegetables or legumes, eat no more than a quarter cup at a time with your meal. If you're still eating fruit, eat smaller amounts instead - (I cut an orange in half and eat one 1/2" slice at a time after meals for a treat, then store the remaining orange in a covered bowl in the refrigerator) - or replace with low carb berries such as blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and black berries; lemon and lime can be juiced and used to make beverages with
pure stevia - (liquid or powder) - and water or sparkling water.
And again, watch the protein intake. I'm similar in size to you so only have one egg for breakfast, usually with lots of vegetables, butter, and a small amount of cheddar cheese made from raw milk from pastured cows. I rarely eat more than 3 ounces serving of poultry or meat for lunch or dinner.
If you eat grains for breakfast, try eating eggs instead every other morning and see what happens.
Fiber intake is important too to feed our gut flora (or microbiome) and to slow the absorption of carbs, though likely not by much. Fiber also binds with toxins and eliminates them from the body - (also keeps things moving through the digestive tract). These are the primary reasons I eat a variety of raw and/or cooked vegetables with all meals.
If you drink alcohol, try switching from beer to a glass of one of the dryer red wines, or drink spirits with water.
One of the barriers of glucose monitoring regularly and frequently is cost. When I first started testing, I went out and bought the highest quality meter I could find. At the store, the test strips cost 88 cents each, online 68 cents! Then someone suggested I buy the cheapest strips I could find and the meter to go with it. My cost now is only 18 cents. As a result, I now test upon awakening, pre- and post meal, and before bed...guilt free.
You also mentioned the energy problem. If you choose to try the ketogenic diet, and I'm not suggesting you do, one of the benefits is increased energy after you transition from "carb burning" to "fat burning". But you can also make this work on a low carb diet too. Not sure how to do that, but I'd suggest eating a whole food, like a half or whole apple or some type of small root vegetable - (I love yams) - 30 to 60 minutes before you begin your exercise. That will supply you with plenty of glucose.
Let us know how you're coming along. And again, welcome to the forum.