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Just diagnosed with diabetes

As Daibell said, if you are normal weight, diagnosing you may be more complex than the doctor just deciding you are type 2. A lot will depend on how your BG reacts to a lower carb diet. If your BG stays high, it's possible that you may be a late onset Type 1 or 1.5.

Many people who have to buy their own meters use the SD Codefree as their strips are the cheapest.
 
Its possible that you are not type 2 - you need to have it clarified as to what type because if you are T1 then you'll need to get on insulin likely sooner than later (I was told I was T1 at 26 y/o - 20% body fat on target for weight and a marathoner at the time plus a veggie vegetarian to boot).

For some there is no history until you turn up with it then there is, my mom is T2 n until her no history of it on her family side same goes for my dad's side going back 10 generation that we know about. But somehow my mom developed T2 and I got dealt the cards for T1.
 
BETH@RGU said:
Hi,
I need to ask a Question,
For months I have had high fasting blood glucose results, between 7.4 and 11.4. I take 500mgs of metformin twice a day and also eat very little carbs during the day , That is until last night when I said hang it all it's gonna still be high no matter what I eat so I pigged out on 4 slices of seeded bread and a good handful of chicken, This morning my reading was 5.5 I was shocked but very pleased, the time of the pig out was 10pm so no excercise. My HBA1c has been 8.1, 7.4. And then this week I got a 6.7 all thanks to a low carb diet I still can not believe this and my bg at this moment is 5.6 although I have eaten very little today as I did not want to bump it up and destroy the pleasure I felt at that awesome number.What I'm asking is how come as on other days weeks and months I have never had such a low number at any time of the day
Beth.
Click to expand...

Hi,

I noticed a similar thing. If one day I eat higher carbs than usual, then the next morning, my waking BG is lower than usual. I try not to read too much into it, but I have a sneaking suspicion that it is my pancreas kicking up a gear, in response to the extra carbs.

But the problem with that (remember, this is just my unscientific idle speculation) is that for me, low carbing is a lot about preserving my remaining beta function. So I really want my pancreas resting and recouperating, rather than getting regular workouts... ;) Of course, we are all different!
 
Thanks,
I tried the same thing last night and woke up to a 6.4 but I think that I will go back to eating less carbs at night, and eat a bit more during the day as I think I was kinda forceing it to happen, but it was still awesome (lol)
 
Hi and thanks
I done the same thing yesterday and was a 6.4 this morning but after reading what you said I quess I was kinda trying to make it happen ,
So a lesson learned and I will go back to as you say to giving my beta cells a rest (whatever they are)
Thanks again
Beth x
 
thank you so much for all the guidance and info. i am still trying to come to terms with the situation i now face for the rest of my life. since it was only friday i got to know i had a slice of pizza on friday night and some fish and salad dint have anything to eat. yesterday breakfast was eggs and 2 wholemeal toast and in afternoon some nuts and in the night 2bread i made put of chick pea flour with some chicken and salad.
as per the doc she said take half metamorfin twice a day as it can effect your stomach but i cant feel if there has been anything like this till now so might take one tonight.

My biggest worry is travelling and i am starting my travel in 15 days so really hoping i can find right things to eat. Is ryvita multigrain ok to eat, also should i make yogurt in full fat milk as i saw a video here showing how to make it.
 
Lots of people use Ryvita rather than bread (yes, I think it is lower carb). You can always check on the nutrition list on the label. An average slice of bread is about 15g carbs. Burgen bread (all major supermarkets) is about 11 or 12g, I think). If Ryvita is lower than that, then it's a good ' un. :)

Same with full fat yog.

Sometimes, if I can only get low fat plain yog, then I tip cream on it :woot:

You're making great choices so far.
 
i have blood test in a week and i want to see what i get it to from 16 as its a figure thats just too high. have planned the day for today as well with some sprouts lentils chicken fish spinach. i dnt know how much this figure will come down by but lower the better for now.

any ideas of how to make fish coz i hate fish so dont even know how to make it.
 
Hi,
People in work call me a numpty, which means twit.
As I am newish to diabetes and computers please excuse me for not knowing what a status is or a signature,
Could someone out there help this numpty out
Beth
 
[
BETH@RGU said:
Hi,
People in work call me a numpty, which means twit.
As I am newish to diabetes and computers please excuse me for not knowing what a status is or a signature,
Could someone out there help this numpty out
Beth
Click to expand...


I absolutely LOVE @Brunneria's signature! Bravo Brunneria:)

You can add a signature in your profile, @BETH@RGU. Go to your profile and its the second tab down under Personal Details.

Good luck!
 
Hi Everyone

So after quite a depressing weekend muching on salads and proteins I am trying to get on with my life, and I thank all of you to give me tips for what to eat and all. I ordered my codefree machine and strip and I should get them tomorrow, as I had previously said on my post, I was always a healthy eater just stopped rice and changed flour from white to wholemeal and have stopped fruits for now and swapped them with raw vegetables, read somewhere that tomatoes are good so having 2 in a day but my worry is since I dont have my strips yet I am so confused if what i am doing is right or no, I will probably find it out tomorrow once I have the machine on hand. I just want to know how much time would it take considering I have cut down on carbs a lot and swapped them with proteins and no fruits either, to get my blood sugar level down to close to normal, I know each body behaves differently to different foods and I am not able to monitor them either but just generally how much time as I just want to see it go to about 6 or 7 sooner rather than later.
One more question that comes to my mind is I had been traveling just before I got my test done and only ate pasta there and certainly 2 to 3 apples and 2 bananas with berries and all would have all added up, so how long back does the blood retains all the sugar. I am just thinking may be coz my diet was so bad few days before my test, that my BG was so bad as well. Since I was working about 15 hours a day I was having some fizzy apple juice as well not sure if it was concentrate or what but again that was only to keep me sort of going while i was working for long hours. I could have had coke but since I dont like it I might have only had it once in 2 weeks.
But coz of my love for some fizz without sugar I sometimes do have sparkling water, Is that ok to have.
 
Hi,
It was good that you ate normal before your test so that you where able to get a true result,
When you get your meter that's when your new way of eating comes into play,
Don't worry too much if you get high readings as this is a learning curb and you will soon get to know what's good for your blood sugar and what is not ,There is a lot of information on here and elsewhere about when to test, also a lot of people have higher readings first thing in the morning, so you will not be alone in that if you do,
Another thing is instead of eating out, why not take a packed healthy lunch and a few healthy snacks, these too can be found in the website but by checking with your meter you will soon find what suits you and how much,
When I first got my meter, I was 11.4, and I was afraid to eat that day, I think if I had of I would have seen it come down a lot quicker than what it did,
I got home from work after 6pm and it had only went down to 6.4 Silly me, but then you live and learn and you will too
Good luck and happy readings
Beth xx
 
Hi,

The HbA1c test is an average of the previous 3 months, weighted towards the end of that period. On a random or fasting test it is a measure of the moment the test was taken. It is possible that what you ate in the couple of weeks beforehand may have made a difference, but to be honest, that's exactly what I told myself when I was diagnosed. I had my test on 4th January - immediately after the excesses of Christmas and New Year, and also a holiday. I was telling myself anything to convince myself it was a one-off and I wasn't really diabetic! I was wrong!

Have patience until your meter arrives. Then you can start learning.
 
Hi,

When we are newly diagnosed, we are usually 'running high'. And we may have been doing so for weeks, months or even years.

So it may take a while to get down to our best levels. Especially as there's a learning curve, and we make a few educational mistakes on the way!

But if you are making sensible food choices and don't have 'hidden carbs' sneaking in somewhere, you should see reducing blood glucose levels within a few days. (The hidden carbs thing happens often. With me, I couldn't twig why coleslaw was sending me high. Turned out it was the sugar in the mayo. Now I make my own).

Doctors tend to give you the opportunity to tackle things with diet and exercise. If that doesn't bring your BG levels down enough, they start talking about medication. But you should get time to settle in and adjust before that happens. Although we are all different.

Some of us actually reduce our medication, if we get our diet sorted.
 
You are right brunneria, I am just thinking of a life ahead of restrictions to eat and all when I was always a healthy eater but whats past is past, hopefully with my new diet of cutting carbs and have more of protiens will get the sugar levels better, I dont think there is anything that is going to get rid of diabetes but its just that I can control it. I cant wait to get my hands on the blood test meter so i can start monitoring.
My diet today was a slice of brown bread with tea no sugar in morning
a ryvita mutligrain with coffee no sugar
then lunch of chicken and salad and some sprouts and 1 slice of bread
then some sprouts at about 5
now waiting to get home and will have some fish chicken salad
Then comes my medicine
I am hoping I am not doing anything wrong with hidden carbs
I like your websites section, going through that now
Only time i have sugar was in my cuppa tea which is now out of window
I miss it and I have tried it previously having it without sugar but hated it but now have no option but to love it and get on with it
similarly i hate fish I cant stand the smell of it but now :) have to eat it so trying it as much as i can
 
You know you are doing great, don't you?

It is such a huge adjustment to make, and your feeling miserable over the weekend is perfectly natural!

And (I always say this) there will come a day (sooner rather than later, I hope) when you will stop focusing on what you can't eat, and start thinking about what you can!

The penny dropped with me when I realised that I could eat cheese. That terrible-saturated-fat-daemonic-antithesis-of-all-healthy-diets. Well, it's actually great for diabetics. No carbs. No impact on your blood glucose.

I mean, how ****** wonderful is that? And by having fewer carbs (@ 4.5 cals a gramme) you can squidge in a bit (a bit!) of lovely cheese (at 9ish cals/gramme).

So how about an oz or two of really nice cheddar, or Roquefort, or Brie, with some celery, or red currants, as a dessert?

Or, if cheese isn't your thing, then how about a square of dark chocolate? Or a cup of coffee with a teasp of cream in it?

It's kind of decadent, isn't it? And they all have minimal effect on your BG.

Please note, I'm not suggesting you start bathing in butter and lard. Its all about finding a balance that works for you. But you need to enjoy it. And you need to be able to stick with it.

Incidentally, I've been eating like this for years now, and my cholesterol is great (I was told 'nothing wrong there!' Last time I had a test), so please don't start stressing about that! It is all about balance and finding out what works for you.
 
I am just confused with one thing
Can i have full fat milk or no
I have got myself semi skimmed since I knew about the diabetes
but I have started making yogurt at home with full fat milk
can i have that or no
I know it will depend on my levels of sugar how they react but is it ok to have it or no
 
Anything is OK if your meter says so! In general, whole milk has marginally less sugar than skimmed or semi-skimmed because there is no added sugar, but milk is full of lactose - in other words, sugar.
 
brettsza said:
I am just confused with one thing
Can i have full fat milk or no
I have got myself semi skimmed since I knew about the diabetes
but I have started making yogurt at home with full fat milk
can i have that or no
I know it will depend on my levels of sugar how they react but is it ok to have it or no
Click to expand...

Have a look in the nutritional info on the carton.
From memory, normal milk is about 4? 5? G carbs per 100ml, yes?
So that's not bad - it really depends on how your body reacts. And portion size.
The yogurt is much better with full milk.

We buy Lactofree milk, semi skimmed. The lactofree ness means it is 3g carbs/100g, so that is a 1% improvement. Big whoop.

Basically, with milk, it always comes down to portion size.
I would love to switch to full fat lactofree (if it exists), but Mr B mutters darkly about having to remortgage to pay for it, and promises divorce if anyone ever tries to make him drink full fat. Both ridiculous arguments, I think you will agree.
 
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