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Met up with Doc this morning to discuss results of Bloods

NannyP 2

NannyP 2

Active Member
Messages
38
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Diet only
Since the 14th March this year i have had various HBA1c test (4 in total) for diagnostic purposes up until today I was aware that they came back abnormal. I now have some figures which i am not surprised at.

Oct 2017 HBA1c came in at 47
March /April 2018 HBA1C came in at 58

Doctor and I discussed diet/family history etc and ways forward and said it looks like I have diabetes and stated we have two choices on moving forward.

1=diet
2=medication

Following a discussion on my blood sugar levels since i began testing on 14th April (8.4) and todays 2nd May (5.9 1st time) these are UPON WAKING around 6.00am to 7.30am.

My levels before food have ranged from 5.6 to 7.1

After food 5.3 to 11.1 (7.1, 11.1, 8.7. 6.9, 6.4, 5.9, 6.8) these are lunch and tea tests.

I explained that i have looked at what i was eating and began to adjust accordingly IE 14/4/18 to 25/4/18 ate "normally" though No cakes, sweets etc

26/4/18 and currently REDUCED CARBOHYDRATES, I still have a long way to go but Blood sugar levels are dropping.

He wants me to attend Diabetic clinic at our practice for monitoring/checking purposes, have another HBA1c in 3 months, I believe if HBA1c go higher than we will begin medication though hopefully HBA1c levels will have dropped via diet.

Doctor also told me that there is a lot of information on the internet and mentioned that Diabetic UK has lots of information.

Many thanks I have scoured the forums since joining and have found lots of useful, relevant information and some good recipes.
 
Hi and welcome,

This forum is the best place to be, and the main website is full of excellent information. You have arrived at the right place. (Diabetes.co.uk or DCUK for short)

Diet is absolutely the right way to tackle this, even if you had medication, it still requires a suitable way of eating. Reducing carbs will certainly help you to control or even reverse this. You have a meter, so use it to guide you with your food choices. Test before you eat and again 2 hours after first bite, and look at the difference between the two readings. If it is more than 2mmol/l there were too many carbs in that meal. 2mmol/l is the maximum. It is preferable to be less. The foods likely to give you the most problems are bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, breakfast cereals and fruit. (in addition to sugar of course!)

I will tag @daisy1 so she can post her very useful guide. Meanwhile, read round and ask as many questions as you like.
 
Hi and I hope you succeed in staying off the meds now that you can see that your bgs are dropping. Well ddon on that! Glad to hear that your GP is in the know too.
Re testing, are you doing that 2 hours afterwards to give a clear indication of how well your blood sugars are being cleared?
Another option is to add or do more of brisk walking/gardening/ which will make you more inisulin sensitive and clear excess glucose following a meal.
 
@NannyP 2
A warm welcome from down under. It is good to control diet. Unfortunately it is only half the battle. May I ask if you are overweight. If so, lose it. It makes a big difference.
Glenn
 
NicoleC1971 said:
Hi and I hope you succeed in staying off the meds now that you can see that your bgs are dropping. Well ddon on that! Glad to hear that your GP is in the know too.
Re testing, are you doing that 2 hours afterwards to give a clear indication of how well your blood sugars are being cleared?
Another option is to add or do more of brisk walking/gardening/ which will make you more inisulin sensitive and clear excess glucose following a meal.
Click to expand...

Yes i have started to test 2hrs after i have eaten. I am looking to have main meal around 1pm as I go to work at 3pm, pretty busy then for next couple of hours. many thanks
 
Crocodile said:
@NannyP 2
A warm welcome from down under. It is good to control diet. Unfortunately it is only half the battle. May I ask if you are overweight. If so, lose it. It makes a big difference.
Glenn
Click to expand...


well good evening to down under. yes you are quite right, I do need to lose a few stone.
 
@NannyP 2

Hello NannyP 2 and welcome to the Forum :) Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask questions when you need to 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 well over 235,000 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 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.
Take part in Diabetes.co.uk digital education programs and improve your understanding. Most of these are free.

  • Low Carb Program - it's made front-page news of the New Scientist and The Times. Developed with 20,000 people with type 2 diabetes; 96% of people who take part recommend it... find out why

  • Hypo Program - improve your understanding of hypos. There's a version for people with diabetes, parents/guardians of children with type 1, children with type 1 diabetes, teachers and HCPs.
 
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