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LOW CARB SUCCESS STORIES

Hi Everyone,

I'm totally confused by all the conflicting advice that's been given to me.

I was diagnosed with type 2 about 4 weeks ago. A friend of mine was diagnosed last year and he has re-searched through the internet and given me a lot of information. So when I was diagnosed, I immediately started low carbing (which I find really difficult as I'm not a fan of salad or vegetables)

Last week I had my first visit at the Diabetic nurse at the local health centre. Well, I came out of there feeling worse that I did when first diagnosed! Firstly, she told me that the reason I have diabetes is because I'm obese (I'm about 1 stone overweight) - so that did little for my confidence. Secondly, she discarded my "diary" that I had kept showing what I'd been eating and what my bg results were. What a let down! I wasn't looking for a pat on the back, but a little re-assurance that I'm heading in the right direction.

When I got home, I read the leaflets she'd given me which says you should eat "starchy carbs" with every meal. This is confusing. But I believe the low carbing has helped.

The first week of doing my bg testing the daily average was about 9-10. Now my daily average is about 7-8, so I think I'm doing something right.

Although, is it normal to have days where your bg is a lot higher than normal even although you haven't eaten any carbs? Today by reading after lunch (scrambled eggs and tuna) was up at 9.7 which is high compared to the past week or so.

Any advice gratefully received roblem:

Thanks

Snow-white
 
snow-white said:
I'm totally confused by all the conflicting advice that's been given to me.
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I sympathise completely, it's something that we all have to go through.


Well done. Controlling your carb intake is the key to controlling your diabetes. You'll have to find out for yourself exactly how much carbohydrate you can tolerate (by eating and testing), but it sounds like you've made a great start. Low-carbing isn't all about salad and vegetables (although actually I've learned to enjoy both much more than I did before), it's a bit of a journey in the first few months trying to find what you can and can't eat.


Well firstly you don't get diabetes because you are obese, and it doesn't sound like you are obese anyway. Some of us got obese because we were glucose intolerant, which eventually led to us getting diabetes.


Most of us (but not all) think that the NHS dietry advice is completely wrong. You might eventually find out that you can tolerate small amounts of starchy carbs but you certainly don't need to include them in every meal. In fact many of us do very well without ever eating them at all. The key is eating and testing, reduce or cut out anything that obviously spiking your blood.

snow-white said:
Although, is it normal to have days where your bg is a lot higher than normal even although you haven't eaten any carbs? Today by reading after lunch (scrambled eggs and tuna) was up at 9.7 which is high compared to the past week or so.
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It usually takes a few weeks before your BG settles down completely. You certainly shouldn't have got a spike off tuna and eggs. Exercise, stress and illness can all play a role, but sometimes your BG just does its own thing.

Thanks
Snow-white
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Give my love to the seven height-restricted-individuals!
 
Ok here's my success story.

I was diagnosed pre diabetic in Dec 2010 and advised to swap to the normal NHS dietary guidelines as a means of getting healthier. By March 2011 by HBA1c had risen to 8.3% and by December 2011 it had risen further to 11.3%. I then found this site with all its wonderful low carb and self testing advice.

In April 2012 just 4 months later and after following a lower carb high fat diet similar to that recommended by many forum members and other countries health services I had reduced my HBA1c back to 5.3% (35 mmol/mol), lost just under 20kg so that my BMI is now in the normal weight range.

My blood sugar levels started out the 20's but nowadays run in the range of around 4 to 6.5 meaning they have been normalised back to those of an average non diabetic. I am not cured as I will have to continue being careful what I eat.

All the best!
 
Hi All,

I have not posted much so far as I did not have anything to share that I thought would contribute to the forum. Today I however have.

I was diagnosed with Diabetes in 1996 at 26 years old while I lived in France. When I arrived in the UK in 1999, I was automatically classed as a Type 2 (did not mean anything to me at the time). I use to check my blood level in mg/l (so 0.7 to 1.1 was normal) rather than mmol/l so it took me a while to adjust to the UK system.

When I was diagnosed, my sugar level was 3.6 mg/l (4mg and you go into coma, and your body shut down), and my Hba1C was around 13% at the time so it was kind of dramatic. They put me on a drastic diet and all sorts of medication (I think I was only allowed vegetables, and 100gr of chicken once a day) to bring my sugar level down which mean that I went from a size 12 to a size 6 in three months. Not pretty.

When my Dr was happy with the level of blood sugar, I went back to eating normally.

Gradually I put some weight back on to a size 10 and stabilized with an Hba1C around 10%.

In 2000, when I was back in France for Christmas, my granddad died while with me, and the shock/stress of the situation meant that my blood sugar shot up and I had to be switch form tablets to insulin.

With the insulin regime, my Hba1C came down to around 8.5/9% but the weight gradually crept on to the point where I was a size 14/16. Last year for some obscure reason my weight went up a notch and I found myself buying a size 18 more often than a size 16.

My Hba1C was 8.4% at my last review. I was taking 32 units of Lantus at night, between 4 and 6 unites of Humalog at breakfast, between 6 and 10 units at lunch and the same at dinner. I did not like much what I saw in the mirror in the morning - it was time to take actions.

After Christmas, I bought the book about the Dukan diet. I read it from cover to cover, made notes, did some research and I decided that IN MY OPINION the benefits of the diet were outweighing the fact that everyone was saying it was not a suitable diet for diabetic people.

I therefore embarked on the diet on the 5th February with a starting weight of 79kg (I am 5ft 4 so quit on the heavy side), a Hba1C of 8.4%, average reading in the morning of 7, lunch 9 and dinner 12. I was a size 16/18 with a waist of 38 inches.

Today I am 70kg (still a bit to go as my target is 62 kg), a size small 14 and my waist is 34 inches. I take only 26 units of Lantus at night, between 0-3 of Humalog at breakfast, between 2-4 at lunch and between 2-4 at dinner. My readings have never been so good with an average of 4/5 in the morning, 6/7 before lunch and 6/7 before dinner. But most importantly, my Hba1C is now 7.5% - The first time EVER I am below 8%.

Low Carb is definitely the way to go - whether you chose do reduce them or cut them all together.

Since I have started the diet, I am no longer bloated or sluggish after meal. I am not hungry and I am not snacking where as before, I was always hungry and was having a snack mid morning and mid afternoon to keep me going until meal time.

I feel more energized, the pain in my joints has nearly disappeared and I feel great.

Basically, I am very happy with the way things are going right now and I wanted to share it with you.
 

Really enjoyed your story, Celmacmat

You're living proof that a low carb diet can work wonders
Isn't the Dukan low-fat ?
Fat is being recognised as not being the villain it's long been made out to be.
Might be worth researching.

Be well
Geoff
 

Brilliant! You must be so happy :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:
 
Hi there I was diagosed with Type 2 diabetes in 2007 by chance as I had none of the standard symptoms. I was put on Metformin and Aspirin within a week of diagnosis followed by Glimperide. By 2010 my Hb1Ac was 13%, and my GP was worried. I was on the max dose of Metformin plus Glimeperide and Sitagliptin and low GI wasn't doing it for me. I would constantly tell the nurse-practitioner that the only things that made my BG go down were not eating and red wine. Whenever I asked questions of her or other nurses I saw, whingeing that the so-called healthy carbs were putting my BG up they would just threaten me with more drugs.

I dug out an old edition of Manual of Nutrition and read about carbs then started Googling. I hit gold with Gary Taubes' 'What If It's All A Big Fat Lie ?' for the New York Times followed by 'Sugar: The Bitter Truth' by Dr. Robert H Lustig MD of UCSF. (I'd recommend his current series on YouTube, 'The Skinny on Obesity'). I borrowed Gary Taubes' book The Diet Delusion from the library and was convinced.

I didn't follow any particular diet therefore, just photocopied recipes that were 10g of carbs per serving or less from low carb cookbooks and low carb diet books at the library which included books by Amanda Cross, Celia Brooks Brown, Dana Carpender, Rose Elliot, Linda Gassenheimer, Dr Arthur Agatson MD and of course Dr Robert Atkins MD. I allowed myself 100g carbs per day max and off I went.

I hadn't eaten sugar or whole milk since 1985 and kept artificial sweeteners and skimmed milk. Out went the wholemeal bread, crackers, Ryvita, quinoa, spelt, polenta, couscous, wholewheat pasta and brown rice that I had been eating along with corn on the cob, sweet corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes and parsnips. I didn't eat sweets, biscuits, cakes or puddings but I didn't like giving up Kettle Chips and Bombay mix I hadn't ever drunk anything but the diet versions of fizzy drinks so kept those.

After three months my Hb1Ac was down to 8.5% and my cholesterol was excellent as was blood pressure.

I coasted along like that until December 2011 when I decided I wanted to lose more weight. I reduced my carbs to 50g per day. I discovered last week when I went to buy new trousers that I had lost four inches off my waist. Further good news came when my GP told me that my Hb1Ac is now 6.5% and my kidney function test is now normal. I've also lost the anaemia (supposedly 14% of people with diabetes have this).

I'm not out of the woods completely as my liver enzymes should be lower (are decreasing) and I have to visit the hospital about some retinopathy (not causing probs) but I have been able to ditch two drugs and my GP is pleased with the Hb1Ac.

I still don't follow any particular plan. After finding out last month that Tesco pork loin chops contain dried glucose syrup, sodium acetate and 11% added water I freaked a bit and decided to go organic as much as poss and not eat anything with additives.

My diet is basically meat, fish, poultry, game, vegetables, dairy ( Total Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, creme fraiche, clotted and double creams , fromage frais and cheeses of all types) I have Lactofree semi-skimmed milk and kefir from a local Polish shop. The only fruits I eat are strawberries, cherries and melon as others spike me. I cook with beef dripping, lard, unsalted butter, pure butter ghee (without ethyl butyrate), Extra Virgin olive oil and rapeseed oil and use cider vinegar and sesame oil in dressings. I make my own houmous and stock and have given up both Diet Pepsi and artificial sweeteners. I don't eat sausages (fillers) or bacon (nitrates). I have found Prosciutto di Parma without preservatives though for 1.99 in Lidl

My indulgence is Lindt Excellence 90% cocoa chocolate

So that's me hello to all !
 
That is a brilliant success story Artichoke. :clap: :clap: :clap:
 
Thank you catza I'm the only person with diabetes low carbing at my GP's surgery. He told me that none of his other diabetes patients had Hb1Acs as bad as mine used to be so I just don't have any comparisons. I am quite pleased though because he was really grinning so I think I did quite well.
 
I think you did really well to. Quite a lot of us on here follow a very similar diet to you but we have each other for support. You did it on your own knowing you were going against the dietary advise of your GP and Nurse, that took a lot of courage. :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:
 

I remember reading "What if it's All Been a Big fat Lie?" for the first time, and it literally shaking my world. I'd already read Bernstein at that stage, but the way that Taubes destroyed the lipid-hypothesis in a single article was a life changing experience. Pick all the holes you like in the carbohydrate-insulin hypothesis, Taubes almost single handedly moved the deabate away from the false lipid-hypothesis and started a much bigger conversation.


Excellent results, excellent diet (sounds kinda like mine, although I can't give up the diet coke). Did you work out this diet by yourself, or have you been reading the Paleo stuff? Kurt Harris would give your diet a big tick I reckon (well perhaps a small red cross for the dairy).

Good work. Welcome to the mad-house!

Stephen
 
Thanks catza. Not so much brave as stubborn I just wasn't going to roll over and shoot up insulin and stuff drugs.

Hi Stephen and thank you. Yep, still remember my excitement at finding Gary Taubes article, I was buzzing. :lol:

I worked it out myself and gradually got more confident about adding in more fats. I have heard of Paleo but haven't read any of the books, no. Dairy is a good source of fat for me and I don't have any trouble digesting it.

I had horrible caffeine withdrawal for a week with nasty headaches when I gave up diet Pepsi but GP said taking Paracetamol was OK. I feel much calmer now.
 
Hi all,

Diagnosed on 26th Jan T1D Fasting BG 16, A1c 9.2 83.5kg 174cm and was fairly fit - ran an 8min mile, swam, cycled etc....or did up until about last October which was when things started to go wrong.....

Read what you all had to say here, read Bernstien, read Scheiner, read everything I could find.

Went low carb immediately.

A1c 3 weeks ago was 5.

Still the same height, weight now 79.4kg, fasting BG 5.2 am now on Levemir 10u morning 10u bedtime and NovaRapid 1u to 10g carbs.

This weeks numbers:

Monday - avg BG 5.8, total insulin 33u, total carbs 111g
Tuesday - avg BG 6.3, total insulin 25.5u, total carbs 25g
Wednesday - avg BG 6.3, total insulin 27.5u, total carbs 61g
Thursday - avg BG 5.7, total insulin 23.5u, total carbs 26g
Friday - avg BG 5.6, total insulin 24u, total carbs 35g
Saturday - avg BG 6.1, total insulin 37u, total carbs 154g

Have gotten my BP down from a worrying 154/98 to avg 98/60 by increased exercise - now running nearly every day a couple of miles with longer runs once or twice a week and am planning a 10k this month.

On the weight loss, have lost 6kg of fat mass and gained 2kg of lean mass, net/net lost 4kg!

Low carb really does work, my sense of smell has improved, my sense of taste has improved and the quality of the food I now eat is so much better than the processed, packaged 'convenience' rubbish that I used to chomp my way through!

Thank you all for this forum and your support!

Bucco
 
:clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :mrgreen: Well Blo@dy done you!! A great success story indeed!
 
Yes well done Bucco :clap:



I find your results above interesting in that you need 25.5 units of insulin for 25g of carbs but only another 11.5 units for 154g of carbs, it mirrors my own experience when eating few carbs and protein based foods.
 
Hi all,
I was diagnosed type 2 in Jan after GTT of 15! My GP said try diet & exercise first , before going diwn the medication route. The dieticians advice was much along the NHS lines- carbs with every meal,& I was told to get some sort of exercise everyday for 30 mins.( easier said than done as I suffer from vertigo)anyway to cut a long story short, I found this website & read everything I could about Type2,& diet..and thanks to the wealth of advice given on low Carbing,'eating to your meter', & a daily 30 min walk( even when its 36 outside after dark)my first HB1ac came back today at 5.4! I am pleased too that my GP says to carry on doing what I'm doing as it obviously works!
 
Hi, me again.

Why is it that some days everything just sings along in perfect harmony and then the very next day your BG is all over the place? I tweet my results @T1HbA1c
 
I held back until I got my HbA1c results today, so I was certain I was a low carb success, and yes, I am. I was diagnosed as a T2 on March 5th with a HbA1c of 7. I hit the new lifestyle running and began to low carb immediately. I saw good figures almost from the get go, then I decided to do the Newcastle diet. I went out there and exercised, drank what felt like a swimming pool worth of water a day, the weight just like my BG's fell sharply.

After the Newcastle diet, I did have some rollercoaster days until I realised that along with low carb, high fat and absence of all wheat, grain and milk, I still needed to exercise and drink a swimming pool worth of water a day. I started that back up, and my levels stabilised.

I got my HbA1c today, and I made the 4% club, by the skin of my teeth I grant you, but I made it 4.9 made all the hard work worth it. My cholesterol results were the icing on the very low carb, smothered in lashings of double cream cake. They were total 3.4 LDL 1 HDL 1.2 Trigs 2.6.

I call that a success... :thumbup:
 
Defren said:
I call that a success... :thumbup:
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Me too - I told you that you wouldn't need luck. I., on the other hand, probably will need luck. I'll be (sort of) happy if my HBA1C is lower than last time and ecstatic if its 6.0 or lower.

Congratulations, you are an inspiration to all. I just wish I had your will power.

Andrew
 

Thank you Andrew, I am very touched by your words.

My daughters said they remembered as children, special paintings and art work always went on the fridge, so they have put my print off on the fridge. :lol:

Just come back from youngest's parents evening, I am bushed.
 
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