just been diagnoised type 2

Welcome

Can you advise your diet? Also need your readings if you were given them. That's for starters. You'll also need to get a meter to test your blood sugars.

Expect @daisy1 to come long with some advice for you and good luck

Mike

Hiya, yes as Mike says we need more info. You have presumably been given a re-test on your blood results to confirm them. I'm on simvastatin and aspirin (keeps the blood a-flowin'), quite normal as meds go.
Your symptoms are classic and glad to have you aboard. Things will surely start getting better if you stick around
Don't know victoza, sorry, but seen it mentioned on here.

I think T2 is 80% diet and 20% drugs and exercise. as was said you need a meter this works out the cheapest ..SD codefree meter
http://www.homehealth-uk.com/medical/blood_glucose_monitor_testing.htm
if you buy extra boxes of strips there is a discount code ..5 packs 264086

For me, the more carbs we eat the more carbs we want. they don’t give up easy
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/lowcarb101/a/firstweek.htm

without a meter I would cut the major carbs, grain [porridge rice etc] grain product, bread pasta .... starchy veg and sugars including fruit juice
it’s a long page and a few good video’s
http://www.dietdoctor.com/lchf

OK, thanks. Sorry about your job situation and so forth. A meter is a hugely good investment, about 12 quid plus the strips and the NHS doesn't fund us type 2s but give it a go. Then you'll see after every meal how much your food is spiking you and you'll be able to smooth out those peaks and troughs. Also your vision problems, fatigue and aches etc should ease.

What bread is in that sandwich ?? The HBA1C is not great but neither is it tragic so that's what you need to control along with weight and exercise.

Which vegetables by the way? Some are OK, but root veg (many of them) are not so good.

Mike

Metformin for many results in a loss of appetite so that might help once it kicks in. Know nothing about orlistat but I would suggest you ease into some exercise ... walking to a schedule might be a good start

ask dr...orlistat is a fat blocker, with LC you use fat for fuel..you may want a carb blocker as a last resort in my opinion

newtype22015 said:

i know my HBA1C was 7.5 i think 3 times during fasting bloods

new diet is porridge for breakfast lunch will be ham salad sandwich and dinner will veg and meat ( chicken beef) that sort of thing i only use sweetner r now instead of sugar and drink fizzy water or plain water with sugar free cordial

i will get a meter shortly i cant afford one at the moment as i lost my job recently and am struggling with bills and everything at the moment

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Let me be the first of many to suggest that your diet is way too high in carbohydrates, although there's no doubt that it conforms to the "healthy" plate dietary recommendation.

Cutting out sugar is just one step in changing your diet. A year ago I was diagnosed with type 2. Now my blood glucose levels are normal - i.e. below prediabetic levels with no meds. And I have lost 3.5 stone and now have normal BMI, although I still feel a bit chubby.

I did it by cutting down on carbs - a little at first, then less and less carbs until now I eat less than 50 g a day. Carbs turn into glucose very quickly and raise your blood sugar levels. No grains (i.e. bread, pasta, etc), no rice, no starchy veg, and no sugar. I feel great. I don't worry about counting calories and my weight is stable. I eat fresh vegetables, beef, pork, pountry, fish, full fat cheese/yogurt, and the occasional 85% chocolate. My cholesterol levels are fine and my blood pressure is fine as well. Not long after you cut the carbs you stop craving them and you eat normally without much thought.

This website gives a good introduction into this new, healthy way of eating: http://www.dietdoctor.com/lchf

This is a good website that has a lot of info about type 2 diabetes, written by someone who had type 2, but managed to reverse it: http://www.phlaunt.com/ It's not the fanciest website, but the best one I've found so far for answering lots of basic questions you might have.

I just read up on orlistat - sounds horrific!

NoCrbs4Me said:

I just read up on orlistat - sounds horrific!

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It bothered me too !! I'd be trying diet and exercise first if it were me.

@newtype22015

Hello and welcome to the forum You have got some good advice here from members. Here is some more advice to get you started which we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask all the questions you want and someone will be able to help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 130,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

• Reduce your carbohydrate intake
• Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)

• Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l

However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

• structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
• self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.

welcome @newtype22015. The low energy is your bodies inability to process the glucose in your cells. You therefore crave more and more putting on weight as your insulin levels are high and you are in a viscous cycle until your body just gives up.

You have a few choices in front of you:

1. Carry on as you are popping the NHS pills where everything will progress further down the stronger and stronger pills until insulin with complications along the way because your insulin resistance will not improve.
2. Try a low carb high fat diet as mentioned above. Without the carbs your body switches to usinf fat as a fuel and you do not need the insulin. Over time your insulin resistance will fall as you lose weight. You can combine this with drugs but you will find you need less and less.
3. Try a very low calorie diet (like the newcastle diet) for 2 months and attempt to reverse the diabetes. I followed a very low calorie diet and I am in this position now. There are a few of us. you can read my story in this thread
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/got-my-first-3-month-hba1c-results-this-morning.55719/
There are others currently undertaking this approached currently so you will get advice and encouragement

Good luck with whatever approach you take.

Good morning and welcome to the forum

Best wishes RRB

Not ver

NoCrbs4Me said:

Let me be the first of many to suggest that your diet is way too high in carbohydrates, although there's no doubt that it conforms to the "healthy" plate dietary recommendation.

Cutting out sugar is just one step in changing your diet. A year ago I was diagnosed with type 2. Now my blood glucose levels are normal - i.e. below prediabetic levels with no meds. And I have lost 3.5 stone and now have normal BMI, although I still feel a bit chubby.

I did it by cutting down on carbs - a little at first, then less and less carbs until now I eat less than 50 g a day. Carbs turn into glucose very quickly and raise your blood sugar levels. No grains (i.e. bread, pasta, etc), no rice, no starchy veg, and no sugar. I feel great. I don't worry about counting calories and my weight is stable. I eat fresh vegetables, beef, pork, pountry, fish, full fat cheese/yogurt, and the occasional 85% chocolate. My cholesterol levels are fine and my blood pressure is fine as well. Not long after you cut the carbs you stop craving them and you eat normally without much thought.

This website gives a good introduction into this new, healthy way of eating: http://www.dietdoctor.com/lchf

This is a good website that has a lot of info about type 2 diabetes, written by someone who had type 2, but managed to reverse it: http://www.phlaunt.com/ It's not the fanciest website, but the best one I've found so far for answering lots of basic questions you might have.

I just read up on orlistat - sounds horrific!

Click to expand...

Not very helpful Nocribs trying to fighten someone off a medication that their GP has suggested by saying it sounds horrific That is not our role on this forum we are not medically trained so medication is something between a patient and their GP only

Hi. As others have said, a low-carb diet will be of most help. Do take the Metformin if offered. It is a very safe drug and does reduce the appetite and insulin resistance which you will have thru the excess weight. Victoza is sometimes prescribed for T2s with excess weight so may be worth discussing with the GP. Yes, an HBa1C of 7.5% is too high but not seriously so and I suspect the right diet will bring it below 7. Anything below 6.5 is very acceptable. Note that a low-carb diet should help a bit with cholesterol and the statin will increase the blood sugar a bit, so it is a trade-off. Do discuss the lowest statin dose with the GP.

Hello and welcome,

I agree with the others about diet. This is the key to controlling blood sugars. Metformin is usually the first medication. This will help a little, but only a little. It is an appetite suppressant, so that should help in that respect. PLEASE have a good think about your diet. The NHS "Eatwell Plate" that says eat carbs with every meal, plenty of wholemeal stuff, and low fat may be fine for non-diabetics but is not at all good for Type 2's.

Bread, cereals, potatoes, pasta, rice and anything made with flour will just raise your levels. All carbs turn to glucose once inside the system, and glucose is what we don't want. Have a good read round, take some deep breaths, and please buy a meter. It will be the best investment ever.

Good luck

AnnieC said:

Not ver


Not very helpful Nocribs trying to fighten someone off a medication that their GP has suggested by saying it sounds horrific That is not our role on this forum we are not medically trained so medication is something between a patient and their GP only

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have you seen a statin thread? opinions are opinions