How to go forward ....

[Jacqui_Jay]

I began following a LCHF diet just over 2.5 months ago. I have been T2 for 9 years and, like many others, was eating carbs at every meal and my numbers were going up and my weight wasn't going down. Last week, I had my hbA1c and I was 47, having been 67 when I started the LCHF. My weight has come down by 20 lbs, my cholesterol is slightly better than it was and my blood pressure is just about spot on. I have begun exercise classes and am trying to increase that.
But, the doctor was absolutely horrified when I told him I had bacon and eggs for breakfast and said I should be having porridge as it's "good carbs". I might add that I have been taking gliclazide for a few years and had never been told it could make me prone to hypos, if I didn't eat carbs. I have now stopped taking it. It has shaken my confidence a bit and my questions are:

1. How do I balance how much fat I should be eating in relation to protein?
2. If I want to lose further weight, do I just decrease my portion size, keeping the fat protein ratio?
3. Is a low level dose of metformin (the doctor's suggestion) a good idea?
4. Now I am not taking gliclazide, should I alter what I am doing?

A typical day's food for me is probably bacon and eggs for breakfast, chicken and starry for lunch, apple and cheese or corned beef and tomatoes for tea. I sometimes eat half a large potato with meat and vegetables, or six oatcakes with peanut butter. I also have 150 gms full fat greek yoghurt with a mix of berries after my main meal every day.

Sorry if this is information overload. I am anxious to be able to carry on with the LCHF, but feeling a little unsure at the moment.

 

[Alzebra]

There will be others who can advise you on your specific questions, but I wanted to say a hearty WELL DONE on your results so far. Many GPs don't know about LCHF yet and are still pushing the NHS diet advice. Your results speak for themselves, everything is moving in the right direction and your HbA1c is particularly good news.

 

[britishpub]

If you want to lose weight, probably reducing the amount of Fat is the way to go. I try to keep protein to somewhere between 1g/1.5 g per Kg of body weight.

Overall it sounds like what you are doing recently is working brilliantly, so well done.

 

[superwoman1964]

It's amazing how even in the face of the evidence they stick to the same old story.

I personally find if my weight loss stalls it is reducing the protein slightly that gets it going again.

I made the mistake of thinking I needed to eat plenty of protein to fill me up and was eating protein at breakfast lunch and dinner.

I now try to eat a moderate amount of protein and and lots of fat on my vegetables.

This change has made me lose again. Don't forget diabetics tend to turn protein into glucose quite easily. I have noticed that I will have a lower BG reading after eg cauliflower cheese with 20g carbs in that after a large chicken breast which has no carbs.

Or maybe it's just me!

 

[uart]

. Last week, I had my hbA1c and I was 47, having been 67 when I started the LCHF. My weight has come down by 20 lbs, my cholesterol is slightly better than it was and my blood pressure is just about spot on.

And the Doctor is still not happy. Jacqui, it sounds like your new diet is working just beautifully for you.

I find that making sure I include plenty of low carb vegetables (still with plenty of fat though, cheese, butter, sour cream etc) helps with my weight management. It's probably due to the fibre and extra bulk it provides.

Re your stopping of gliclazide. This medicine stimulates your pancreas to release more insulin, so if you can maintain good BG levels and stop the gliclazide then that is a very good thing. Be careful though, it may take a little while for the effects to be noticed, so if your BG levels do rise too much over the next week or two then you may need to resume the glic at a reduced dosage.

If however you really can come off the gliclazide completely then that is a good result. I found weight loss extremely difficult while taking that drug.

 

[Chook]

Your doctor sounds like mine. He's totally against low carving and I think he's annoyed that I'm thriving on it instead of coming down with something awful as predicted by home when he found out what I'm doing.

You are doing wonderfully, ignore him.

 

[Celeriac]

Metformin has quite a few positive health benefits - it's about the only diabetes drug that does - but often gives people gastric issues. It may be good however, if you're a snacker, as it can depress appetite.

Well done on the improvements ! Unfortunately, you will come across HCPs who stick to the outmoded low fat theories however. You can either give them proper studies and hope to persuade them, or just ignore them.

 

[Jacqui_Jay]

Thank you very much for all the replies and support. I think I was just a bit rattled after talking to the doctor. I get so much help and information from this forum, everyone is so positive. Thank you once again.

 

[LinsT]

Hi @Jacqui_Jay. If it helps, my GP told me a very different story to yours, suggesting that I drastically reduce carb content. Also, in a recent TV docu - Doctor in the House - the Dr in question was working with a gentleman with T2 and he eradicated ALL carbs except veg from the guys diet! Your GP is simply out of touch and you're doing the absolute right thing. Your HbA1c is great, which just proves the point