It's not about more (& more) pills ... lose the weight T2s!

[Ailidh]

CatLadyNZ - I asked her at my 2nd appointment with her (seeing her monthly at the moment) if she was Sure I needed the metformin, given that I can only take a tiny dose. Plus I'm sure I've heard of others being given a few months to try and address things by diet and exercise alone. She said that if it wasn't metformin, it would have to be one of the other non-insulin medications, and that the others had worse side effects, like weight gain. I will ask again on Tuesday, at the HbA1c test, whether I can come off it, assuming my results are good. Please let them be good!

BTW, I'm interested in your signature saying that your on a lowER carb, highER fat, which is what I'm trying at the moment. Your HbA1c is very good! Would you mind sharing a couple of ideas about what you eat? I know that LCHF is very popular here but I've tried that before for weight loss and just got constipation and bad breath!. thanks.

 

[graj0]

*The DN is happy with the way I'm losing weight (due to check myself next week but roughly 3 stone gone since June 1st) - reduced but not low carb, very healthy carb choices, low GI, 1200 calories; increasing my fruit and veg intake; plenty water.

Well done on the weight loss, careful with the fruit, 10% - 14 % carbohydrate roughly.

I have my next (2nd) HbA1C next week, and hope to see a big improvement. The team are pretty sure that weightloss Will be the key for me, given that I've still got 4 stone to lose...... I hope they're right.

Don't forget that an HbA1c only reflects a sort of average BG measurement for the previous 8 - 12 weeks and doesn't reflect any of the peaks that may have occurred. You can only do that by testing your BG regularly. Weight loss will make a difference and hopefully the body will start dealing with insulin properly as your weight drops. There seems to be a fair amount of discussion on that point because although the Newcastle University Diet trials have had some very good results, it's not 100%.

I also hope I'll be able to come off the metformin. I'm only on 500mg slow release, and even that shoots my breakfast straight out of me! (tmi), I'm fairly sure it's impacting my sleep negatively, I'd like to be rid.....

I suffered that for years, it didn't really calm down until I reduced my carb intake substantially. Don't forget that Metformin's affect is accumulative, it helps to lower blood glucose levels by reducing the amount of glucose produced and released by the liver, and by increasing insulin sensitivity. I consume a lot of vegetable matter so a fair amount of fibre without too much carb. I use vitamin C powder if things slow down a bit.

All the best with your future losses.

 

[JulesTheMan]

How long have you been stable at your new weight and HbA1c, Jules?

Hi, I've only been stable a few months so early days still for me, however I am determined to reduce HbA1c even further next three months, which should be easier as the fat around the belly has reduced - it is THAT causing my T2 diabetes, as it implies fat around the pancreas and liver so they cannot perform. Let's see ... (wish me well!).

 

[JulesTheMan]

Well sadly I'm one of those who cant lose weight. I've been low carbing for 3 years. Now I'm on a keto diet and have been for 3 wks, with less than 15 grams of carb a day. I do a half hour kettlebell workout daily, and I still cant lose weight. So its not that easy.
I'm 60, hysterectomy and then menopause after which I put on 2 stone to take me to 12 st. I'm 5ft 7. So when I hear 'just lose weight' it p****s me off. Folk can just assume you pig out, I never did.
We are all different.

I understand your concern, and sure my situation is not universal, but I do feel it is the majority of cases; we simply enjoy our food too much and stuff the consequences, until a complication hits; it's human nature, it seems. I would recommend meditation and yoga though, they seem to affect metabolism and blood pressure and quite quickly, did in my case at least. Best (& simplest) of all .. a 30-45 min walk each day without fail (which the docs did tell me in the early days ..!). I wish you well.

 

[JulesTheMan]

I also find that taking cinnamon, fenugreek, bitter gourd and turmeric (as capsules .. they taste horrid otherwise) every so often really helps lower my glucose levels (and as antioxidants); again not for everyone perhaps but I found huge benefit in taking them (though I stay on Metformin tablets, to be sure for now, but have been able to stop the other diabetic meds, thankfully).

 

[JulesTheMan]

If you take Turmeric then do remember to add pepper to it, which makes it absorbable by the body; also available as capsules (Amazon).

 

[JulesTheMan]

For me, all these lifestyle changes were necessary but I am grateful for it as I feel so much better and I have been able to make them a daily part of my life. We (as humans) were never meant to be couch potatoes, grazing on what we like (and lots of it), plus I blame marketing and greedy, unbridled corporatism for pushing people to excess on all things unhealthy (using classical conditioning techniques slyly - we are trained what to think, do & spend on); even 30 years ago it was never as bad. The revolution towards better health has to start with the individual and then as a group of people to help others. (NB: I am referring only to T2's situation where this disease is seen as lifestyle, in the main, but clearly not all).

 

[mickey blue eyes]

For me, all these lifestyle changes were necessary but I am grateful for it as I feel so much better and I have been able to make them a daily part of my life. We (as humans) were never meant to be couch potatoes, grazing on what we like (and lots of it), plus I blame marketing and greedy, unbridled corporatism for pushing people to excess on all things unhealthy (using classical conditioning techniques slyly - we are trained what to think, do & spend on); even 30 years ago it was never as bad. The revolution towards better health has to start with the individual and then as a group of people to help others. (NB: I am referring only to T2's situation where this disease is seen as lifestyle, in the main, but clearly not all).

Hi, I'm new here, just discovered that there are forums and have been reading your thread with awe and amazement.
I spent five years trying to get a lot of the different symptoms of diabetes diagnosed and in the end the doctors I was sent to see (one of whom is the head of the diabetic clinic) failed to diagnose it, by then I was suffering from peripheral neuropathy, blurred vision, the onset of a cataract in my left eye, erectile disfunction etc, etc,
Everyone who hears the word diabetes immediately seems to think overweight and too many sweets, you've done it to yourself, however I am not obese, my diet has been very good in general according to the dietician and I am convinced that the cause of my diabetes is somewhat hereditary and mostly brought on by stress.
In trying to contain the forward march of the symptoms the doctors have prescribed an array of drugs, most of which have had horrific side effects causing me to lose another couple of years lying on the settee feeling too ill and dizzy to move a lot of the time, pills to control my blood pressure, lyrica for the neuropathy pains etc, recently I stopped taking all the medication and allowed my system to clear for a week and then started again by taking just the metformin and the diaglic this seemed to stabelize my blood sugar at around 12 on my pre breakfast check then someone told me about L-arginine and I have been taking 3 1000mg tabs/ day and am beginning to think it may be the answer to my prayers, my eyesight is improved, my leg pains have ceased, my feet are warm for the first time in years, my bp is normal, I can think and function like a normal person for the first time in years, my doctor has no comment apart from the fact that he's heard of it, why aren't we told about it instead of being blamed for eating wrongly and being brainwashed by the imposed advertising?

 

[mickey blue eyes]

Hi, I'm new here, just discovered that there are forums and have been reading your thread with awe and amazement.
I spent five years trying to get a lot of the different symptoms of diabetes diagnosed and in the end the doctors I was sent to see (one of whom is the head of the diabetic clinic) failed to diagnose it, by then I was suffering from peripheral neuropathy, blurred vision, the onset of a cataract in my left eye, erectile disfunction etc, etc,
Everyone who hears the word diabetes immediately seems to think overweight and too many sweets, you've done it to yourself, however I am not obese, my diet has been very good in general according to the dietician and I am convinced that the cause of my diabetes is somewhat hereditary and mostly brought on by stress.
In trying to contain the forward march of the symptoms the doctors have prescribed an array of drugs, most of which have had horrific side effects causing me to lose another couple of years lying on the settee feeling too ill and dizzy to move a lot of the time, pills to control my blood pressure, lyrica for the neuropathy pains etc, recently I stopped taking all the medication and allowed my system to clear for a week and then started again by taking just the metformin and the diaglic this seemed to stabelize my blood sugar at around 12 on my pre breakfast check then someone told me about L-arginine and I have been taking 3 1000mg tabs/ day and am beginning to think it may be the answer to my prayers, my eyesight is improved, my leg pains have ceased, my feet are warm for the first time in years, my bp is normal, I can think and function like a normal person for the first time in years, my doctor has no comment apart from the fact that he's heard of it, why aren't we told about it instead of being blamed for eating wrongly and being brainwashed by the imposed advertising?

p.s. with no other changes my blood was 7.6 this morning,

 

[ButtterflyLady]

CatLadyNZ - I asked her at my 2nd appointment with her (seeing her monthly at the moment) if she was Sure I needed the metformin, given that I can only take a tiny dose. Plus I'm sure I've heard of others being given a few months to try and address things by diet and exercise alone. She said that if it wasn't metformin, it would have to be one of the other non-insulin medications, and that the others had worse side effects, like weight gain. I will ask again on Tuesday, at the HbA1c test, whether I can come off it, assuming my results are good. Please let them be good!

BTW, I'm interested in your signature saying that your on a lowER carb, highER fat, which is what I'm trying at the moment. Your HbA1c is very good! Would you mind sharing a couple of ideas about what you eat? I know that LCHF is very popular here but I've tried that before for weight loss and just got constipation and bad breath!. thanks.

Hi, sorry for the delay in replying I only saw your post now. You can alert a member to a question by typing @ before their name.

Your HCP is incorrect in saying you have to take metformin or one the other meds. You don't have to do anything, lol. It's your choice. Many people here control their BGs without meds. But don't stop taking any drug without discussing it with a HCP first.

Thanks for mentioning my HbA1c, yes it blew me away when I got the result, as I was expecting it to be around the early 40s. You can read about what people eat on LCHF in the low carb diet subforum and in a couple of threads called "what have you eaten today". I eat full fat greek yoghurt, slivered almonds and berries for breakfast, coleslaw with cheese for lunch, and meat/chicken with veges for dinner. thickened cream or cheese for snacks. There are so many options, the possibilities are endless.

You don't need to cut carbs down to 20g if you don't want to - even 100-150g is better than say 400g. I eat about 50g a day I think. Eating the fat helps you feel full and replaces the energy you are not getting from carbs. Constipation can be treated with fibre such as psyllium. Not sure what was causing the bad breath but I'm sure there is something you can tweak to avoid that.

 

[ButtterflyLady]

Hi, I'm new here, just discovered that there are forums and have been reading your thread with awe and amazement.
I spent five years trying to get a lot of the different symptoms of diabetes diagnosed and in the end the doctors I was sent to see (one of whom is the head of the diabetic clinic) failed to diagnose it, by then I was suffering from peripheral neuropathy, blurred vision, the onset of a cataract in my left eye, erectile disfunction etc, etc,
Everyone who hears the word diabetes immediately seems to think overweight and too many sweets, you've done it to yourself, however I am not obese, my diet has been very good in general according to the dietician and I am convinced that the cause of my diabetes is somewhat hereditary and mostly brought on by stress.
In trying to contain the forward march of the symptoms the doctors have prescribed an array of drugs, most of which have had horrific side effects causing me to lose another couple of years lying on the settee feeling too ill and dizzy to move a lot of the time, pills to control my blood pressure, lyrica for the neuropathy pains etc, recently I stopped taking all the medication and allowed my system to clear for a week and then started again by taking just the metformin and the diaglic this seemed to stabelize my blood sugar at around 12 on my pre breakfast check then someone told me about L-arginine and I have been taking 3 1000mg tabs/ day and am beginning to think it may be the answer to my prayers, my eyesight is improved, my leg pains have ceased, my feet are warm for the first time in years, my bp is normal, I can think and function like a normal person for the first time in years, my doctor has no comment apart from the fact that he's heard of it, why aren't we told about it instead of being blamed for eating wrongly and being brainwashed by the imposed advertising?

We aren't being told about supplements like arginine because there haven't been large scale scientific studies to show they are effective and safe in humans. It's great that it has helped you, but it is not known whether it would do the same for others.

 

[graj0]

Your HCP is incorrect in saying you have to take metformin or one the other meds. You don't have to do anything, lol. It's your choice. Many people here control their BGs without meds. But don't stop taking any drug without discussing it with a HCP first.

Is the underlined bit a joke? I'm getting confused these days. It seems to me that once you have lowered your carb and increased your exercise, if BG control is still a problem then medication is required. You don't have to anything, depends on how long you want to live without the complications of increased BG levels.

 

[ButtterflyLady]

Is the underlined bit a joke? I'm getting confused these days. It seems to me that once you have lowered your carb and increased your exercise, if BG control is still a problem then medication is required. You don't have to anything, depends on how long you want to live without the complications of increased BG levels.

I agree that if your BGs are still high despite low carbing and exercise then you need meds. But in this case the nurse wasn't seeing it like that: she assumed everyone needs meds no matter what.

 

[emineedwards]

I can answer that as a personal question.
Why should I have done?
I like(d) food.
No incentive to lose weight. It would have been very hard work.
Then I was diagnosed, did a lot of research, and realised the best chance of remission was to lose the fat.
So, I now had incentive.
And did a lot of very hard work.

No reflection on anyone else, just answering why I didn't bother before.

I agree with you, I loved my food and I was abit lazy, now I have an incentive ..I feel better than ever yet although Ive cut out carbs by 90% I still take metformin and 20 units of levermir daily