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Lower blood sugars, broken nose dislocated shoulder , cautionary tale .

I suspect that vegans are probably much more conscious of what is going in their bodies than the rest of the general population, not least because a good few processed products have to go simply because no-one really has much of a clue what is in them. it therefore seems quite likely that its the same old control of sugar and carbs that is the issue that still explains why fewer vegans get diabetes and probably nothing at all to do with whether they eat meat or not. When one is being assailed from all sides that fat is bad and animal fat worse, its no wonder that any statistics regarding vegan rates of diabesity are put down to the animal fat content regardless of the facts.

Who once said there are lies damned lies and statistics ?

In fact, a meal with some healthy greens, a reasonable but not excessive portino of meat and some nuts or seeds quite easily makes 60% fat.
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One of the reasons a low fat diet is so hard to stick to, is that actually keeping fats at the kind of levels they recommend is much, much harder logistically than keeping carbs down to 10 or 20%. For example my breakfast today - poached duck egg on a bed of fresh spinach dressed with 15 g of mixed seeds and a little balsamic vinegar and olive oil - only 240 calories and still 70% fat and thus totally unacceptable to a low fat diet, yet quite obviously packed with good stuff.
 
I was vegetarian for 12 years but never vegan. I have always eaten eggs, cheese and milk. I tried no fat briefly in the 1980's after a gallbladder flair. It did help heal the gallbladder problems but it irritated my stomach-I found I needed some fat to allow me to keep things in my stomach long enough to start digesting them. I developed an esophageal ulcer before I gave it up. The GI doctor advised me to start eating some fat again. I have never been able to tolerate artificial sweeteners-everyone I have tried has given me diarrhea even when eaten in small quantities. I have always had multiple food allergies and spent half my childhood on some version of the allergy elimination diet. It's a really good thing that I like turkey, brown rice and cranberry juice because that is basically the diet we kept going to to get food allergies under control.

Where did you find duck eggs? Do you have ducks?
 
Waitrose and ocado both do them. Not looked in other supermarkets. I might be utterly complacent in.thnkng that the ducks are not kept in battery cages. They are a bit bigger than hens eggs and very rich
One is quite enough!
 
Yes, our neighbor kept ducks in a pond in their backyard and gave us some when they were trying to sort out if I have allergies to chicken eggs. I actually prefer them to chicken eggs.
 
WHO says that vegans are low fat ? I´m not sure vegans are really in general low fat or very low fat... it is a statistical fact though that they do not become diabetic in the rate the rest of the population is when looked upon foodstyle...

I don´t know what is the reason why vegans do not easily become diabetics, but I´m sure it has to do with something they don´t eat .... or something they do eat in a different way or amount than non vegans...

it can be that it is just refined sugars and refined flour. but do vegans not eat those 2 kinds of foods... some vegans are vegans not because of healthy eating ambitions but just because they do not want to contribute to killing animals, and I guess these vegans might possibly eat just as much sugar and white flour than the rest of the populations...
actually it is about time to look on this in a scientific way and try to find out why vegans do not become as easily diabetic, because the diabetes spread is actually a pandemic killing more and more people in the whole world now, and that ought not be ignored....
 
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WHO says that vegans are low fat ? I´m not sure vegans are really in general low fat or very low fat... it is a statistical fact though that they do not become diabetic in the rate the rest of the population is when looked upon foodstyle...

I don´t know what is the reason why vegans do not easily become diabetics, but I´m sure it has to do with something they don´t eat .... or something they do eat in a different way or amount than non vegans...

it can be that it is just refined sugars and refined flour. but do vegans not eat those 2 kinds of foods... some vegans are vegans not because of healthy eating ambitions but just because they do not want to contribute to killing animals, and I guess these vegans might possibly eat just as much sugar and white flour than the rest of the populations...
actually it is about time to look on this in a scientific way and try to find out why vegans do not become as easily diabetic, because the diabetes spread is actually a pandemic killing more and more people in the whole world now, and that ought now be ignored....
I think that there are two different things which people often mix up (not you, Freema). Veganism and eating a plant-based diet = not necessarily the same thing.

People who follow a plant-based diet eat plants but may not necessarily be aligned with the vegan philosophy which spreads much wider than just diet. A person following a plant-based diet would not eat an Oreo for example as it bears no resemblance to a plant. A vegan might eat it though as it contains no animal. One thing they have in common though is they do not eat any food containing cholesterol, but people here say that is irrelevant, so I don't know the answer. I am vegan rather than a plant-eater and don't eat low fat, but sadly can't have an oreo due to diabetes lol

@CherryAA sorry if I have gone off topic. Hope you are feeling better now. I think that stress and trauma can raise bg levels as can any inflammation caused by having a torn ligament. You numbers may normalise when you have healed :)
 
Sorry to hear about your fall, I hope you feel better soon. What is LCHF, please? I am really struggling with my blood glucose levels and desperately need to find a healthy diet. ☘️☘️
 
Thank you for the information indy51. Low carb sounds the way to go. So I will try and find a suitable low carb diet and try that.

Welcome @SHELLEB -Looks like Indy51 has already got you started on the right path. I will also tag @daisy1 for you. She will send you a little extra information that we provide for newcomers to the forum.
 
Yes, our neighbor kept ducks in a pond in their backyard and gave us some when they were trying to sort out if I have allergies to chicken eggs. I actually prefer them to chicken eggs.
...and goose eggs, when you can get 'em!! They take about 10 minutes to boil but really, really nice! :hungry:
 
@CherryAA

Hello and welcome to the forum :) I hope you are feeling better now. To help you on the diabetes side, here is the basic information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. It includes advice about carbs, levels etc and a link to the Low Carb Program. Ask as many questions as you need to and someone will be able to help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS

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 well over 220,000 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

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.

Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a free 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.

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 blood glucose 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.
 
Thanks Daisy,

I did wonder why I never got one of those, I probably just launched into commenting and reading and never got round to actually saying hello I'm new :) typical me !
 
Thanks Daisy,

I did wonder why I never got one of those, I probably just launched into commenting and reading and never got round to actually saying hello I'm new :) typical me !
So sorry we did not send you one earlier.
 
So sorry we did not send you one earlier.

I wouldn't get too sorry, it will be my own fault - and in any event I read the contents of someone else's immediately - nice to become an "official" member though :)
 
Well after a few days relaxation ( see Analysing Xmas post) I am back on track, the Xmas extra weight has pretty much gone and yesterday my fasting blood sugar stayed between 3.6 and 5.2 , Average 4.9 . for 10 hours - which is a remarkable turn round from where I began and indeed shows how fast the xmas binge can be reversed with just a few days of proper low carbing.

According to the quack my torn ligament, dislocated shoulder is now " frozen" necessitating extensive physio - yet another tiny hurdle .

Hopefully by the end of 2017 I will have lost another 15 kilos and have a fully functioning shoulder - my new year resolution !
 
Shoulder rehab can happen-mine has been pretty good for several years after recovering from torn ligaments although I had a week of recurrent bursitis last week. It is fine this week.
 
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