in shock but coping

bulkbiker said:

Which is what gives so many T2 in the first place? so doesn't make it any better either...

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I should clarify - by "traditional Western diet", my emphasis was on the "traditional" part which my parents and grandparents ate without getting diabetes: I meant meat and veg type diet rather than a heavily processed diet.

Curran said:

Hello all. Got my diagnosis about a two weeks ago with a reading of 87 HBa1c...so the Doc. put me straight on Metaformin 500 2 daily with an increase after two weeks and another after three weeks which will mean 2000 per day...still reeling but coming to terms slowly...I have been a vegetarian for over twenty years so couldn't believe this diagnosis.

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Hello @Curran - welcome to the forum. I hope you are tolerating the Metformin - it can be rather unpleasant in its consequences. There is a section of the forum for vegetarians, but it is one of the more problematic ways of eating, as the main sources of foods without carbs are from animals, but there are other options as vegetarian is pretty main stream these days.
Many people have found that reducing the carbs they eat results in a reduction in blood glucose, and many can get down to normal - I eat a lot of salads and stirfries, avoiding heavy starches. I have found a really low carb bread stocked in Asda - protein bread, with under 8 percent carbs. It looks like a brown brick, but I can eat it and not feel bleugh.
Like most type twos I substitute cauliflower for grain and potatoes, avoid high carb fruit, but do eat berries and cream from time to time.
I'm afraid that lots of things considered healthy confer no protection and can actually be bad for a type two diabetic, but there are a lot who have got it under control and are here to cheer you on.
There are small squabbles, but they are not meant to be nasty - we are all heading the same way, just jostling a little as we go.

@Curran welcome to the forum.
Many people who receive such a diagnosis are shocked, and it does take time to adjust mentally.

There are many inspiring post on the forum from people who have started with HBa1c at similar levels to yours (and much higher) who have dramatically improved their situation (search "successes"), and brought their blood sugars down. SO why not you?

I think you will find the forum generally friendly and very helpful. In my reading of the forum, most people who have been diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes (Vegetarian, Meat eater, Pescetarian, Vegan) have been eating more Carbohydrates than their body can deal with. Many (most?) people have tackled this by reducing the amount of carbohydrate in their diet. Most people then see an improvement in their blood sugars.

As you read round the forum, you will see that many aspect ts of Official Healthy Eating advice are not healthy for diabetics. All of the carbohydrate you eat is turned into sugar by your body, so eating a lot of Carbohydrate is likely to raise your blood sugar.

Most people on the forum find that using a Meter to measure blood sugars is very helpful in finding what foods have a bad effect on blood sugars, and what foods do not. There are a number of threads on the forum on choosing a meter (use the search function). The cost of the testing strips is the major ongoing expense.

Best wishes for your journey

Generally vegetarians, especially longer term vegetarians eat healthy and are not as likely to develop type 2 diabetes.
Study
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2671114/
But it's important to note that it was a "healthy" vegetarian diet, more on that on the next link.
"A shift to a dietary pattern higher in healthful plant-based foods, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds, and lower in animal-based foods, especially red and processed meats, can confer substantial health benefits in reducing risk of type 2 diabetes."
Study
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/310953.php

So it might just be some tweaks that are needed to change what you eat. It might be genetics played a part. maybe you will have to get even stricter by how you eat. You will have to experiment and see what works for you. I suggest one of the most important things is a CGM so you can tell what your blood sugars are doing..
.
My husband is a vegetarian and with metformin enjoys whatever fruit he wants to eat, still eats bread, just switched from white to whole wheat, he now will sit and eat veggies as a snack, one of his favorite is dipping baby carrots in dressing, tangerines, or just a bowlful of cherry tomatoes. he just pays more attention to what he eats now and while he still eats some "junk" food, he limits what he eats now. He is 6.2 A1C and has been, they only do an A1C once a year now to make sure it's okay.

I was vegetarian too when I got type 2. I don't like fake meats, or Quorn, sietan etc. It was only once I got a meter, and began testing that I found all the healthy low gi stuff like pulses really shot my levels. I was starving, and really upset but I had to begin eating meat.

Marie 2 said:

lower in animal-based foods, especially red and processed meats

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Completely unproven of course.. otherwise how can carnivores reverse T2?

dawnmc said:

I was vegetarian too when I got type 2. I don't like fake meats, or Quorn, sietan etc. It was only once I got a meter, and began testing that I found all the healthy low gi stuff like pulses really shot my levels. I was starving, and really upset but I had to begin eating meat.

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I was mostly vegetarian when I was first diagnosed and also switched to eating meat and dairy with every meal in order to stabilise my blood sugars.

Welcome to the forum! The shock really hit me hard too. It's a bit much to take in when you've eaten healthily much of your adult life.

There's at least one book out their for those interested in doing a vegan ketogenic diet. I have a friend who has type 1 diabetes, is vegan/vegetarian, and is familiar with the ketogenic diet. She reviewed the book Ketotarian: The (Mostly) Plant-based Plan to Burn Fat, Boost Energy, Crush Cravings and Calm Inflammation by Will Cole (2018) last year and found it to be excellent. I've been sampling sections of the book over the last year and agree. It's one of the best books out there. The ketogenic diet is very helpful for putting type 2 diabetes into remission. There's also a good vegan/vegatarian forum here. Let us know if you can't find it.

If you're in the UK, here's a link to the book where you can learn more...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ketotarian...ords=ketotarian&qid=1558385066&s=books&sr=1-1

In this case he was wondering why after 20 years of being a vegetarian how he got type 2. And while your odds are lower (the studies) it doesn't mean you can't. How people deal with it is up to them. Some people might not do well staying a vegetarian and some people will do just fine. I have a tendency to think if you have been a vegetarian for 20 years you want totry to stay that way if you can. So hearing from both sides is always a good thing. He will pick a path that works for him.

And because the odds are he was eating healthier, I still want to make sure he knows how many people are misdiagnosed as type 2 that might be type 1. It is something to keep an eye out for.

@bulkbiker, I know you can't stand it when anyone says anything good about being a vegan or vegetarian. But I quoted the studies to show him that you are not as likely being a vegetarian to get type 2, so to say there is no studies doesn't make sense. And in this case the study is not saying you can't reverse type 2 with being a carnivore, it is just saying you are more likely to not develop type 2 if you are a vegan or vegetarian. I know low carb diets work for many people, carnivore or not.

Jim Lahey said:

Respectfully, that seems a little like a straw man argument. No one has told the OP, or anyone else, to start eating meat.

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Agreed it was not said they should start eating meat just that it has been shown on this thread that being a diabetic vegan and vegetarian and eating low carb is perfectly possible which I think some people can't understand.

Marie 2 said:

I quoted the studies to show him that you are not as likely being a vegetarian to get type 2

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Possibly not that helpful when the OP has just been diagnosed?

Like you, I was surprised with a diabetes diagnosis two years ago. I was a health and fitness fanatic, an athlete, the last person in the world who would possibly get diabetes. I didn't believe the GP when I received the phone call, having gone to the surgery with stomach cramps (caused by sky-high blood sugars), and sent off for blood tests. But it's a lot more complicated than that. There's more going on with diabetes than simply a lifestyle.