Need to Increase my Calories - Loosing too Much weight - Type 2 Diabetic and now scared to eat

FGHoop

Newbie
Messages
3
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Help please, whilst not newly diagnosed, focus has been reset in recent months. I have stopped all Alcohol and change my diet mainly Chicken or Fish and Brown Rice with Some Veg for Dinner. Breakfast has been either 2/3 Wheatabix or Shredded Wheat with Skimmed Milk and a handful of berries for a good few months but now reading that this is not good for you. Lunch would normally be a Chicken Salad on Brown Rolls or Brown Bread. The occasional Bannana and Apple- I don’t seem to be eating enough calories, hence probably the reason for dropping circa 7 to 9K in that perioid, but now cant seem to stop. Any ideas on what I could do to boost the calories ad not risk Blood Sugar Spikes
 

HSSS

Expert
Messages
7,673
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
You need to reset the eating plan. brown bread, brown rice, weetabix, shredded wheat and bananas all have loads of carbs in them, as many as the white versions. And carbs is what matters. The brown ones may have a little more fibre and may digest a little slower but it still goes through your system all the same. It doesn’t matter much where they come from they all become glucose during digestion even if they are promoted as”healthy“. your body doesn’t know it white or brown, fruit or cake.

So I’d cut the carbs out to protect blood levels and increase the naturally occurring fats and proteins that haven’t been messed with in factories or coated in stuff unless you know exactly what to fill you up and maintain your weight.

Do you know your hba1c? Do you test? Are you actually skinny or just not longer big and comparing yourself to big people ?

Also have a read of these to explain it all more

Low carb info
Intro to T2 and low carb. https://josekalsbeek.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-nutritional-thingy.html
All the things I wish I’d been told earlier https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/th...ish-i’d-been-told-at-type-2-diagnosis.173817/
 

niblue

Well-Known Member
Messages
145
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
The stuff you're eating is similar to the mistakes I made when I was first diagnosed a few weeks back and thinking that stopping snacking and using sugar in my diet and eating what I thought of as healthy stuff like fruit, brown rice, brown bread, fruit juice and semi-skimmed milk was the answer (it wasn't - my blood sugar readings actually went up!).

You have to through away much of what you'd learned (or indeed even been advised by a medical professional) as healthy eating as now it's stuff like "cheese good, banana bad" or "cream is better than skimmed milk". At the moment (as I'm still new to this) I'm using myfitnesspal to track what I'm eating and trying to maintain my carb levels at the 50 to 100g level each day, which seems to be having an impact.
 
D

Deleted member 475901

Guest
Some ideas for a better diet for T2s who aren't on insulin:
breakfast is protein plus fats, eg eggs, cheese, meat, fish - although I have a seed and nuts porridge instead as I struggle to cook and can't tolerate eggs first thing, I add plenty of cinnamon and some coconut milk.
lunch - miss it out or have salad and eggs/cheese/cold meats
dinner - chicken, or turkey mince or fish with green veg and either cauliflower rice of courgette. I often have lower carb curry sauce or a spag bol type sauce with lots of mushrooms or just add lemon juice over fish or chicken.
then full fat greek yogurt with fresh berries.
add oily dressing for salads and butter on the veg to up the calories, have full fat milk or cream in coffee

Most of my carbs are the veg and fruit plus milky coffees, and some dark chocolate at bedtime, although I do make low carb cake sometimes.
 

FGHoop

Newbie
Messages
3
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi Thanks for the response. I was 34 inch waist and now down to 30 inch in 2 months - Whilst I am now 70Kg at a height of 5ft 7, there is literally skin and bone hence looking at how to increase calories etc as any exercise was burning most of what I was eating. I am waiting for the doctor to provide my latest HBA1c - Nevertheless wanted some guidance.
 

catinahat

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,446
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Reality tv
You are focusing on the wrong foods, Weetabix, shredded wheat, bread (the colour is unimportant) banana, apple.
Thing is your diet seems very low in the essential macronutrients of protein and fat, and very high in the non essential one of carbohydrates.
Not great for a T2 who will have trouble using the glucose from all those carbs.
 

catinahat

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,446
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Reality tv
there is literally skin and bone hence looking at how to increase calories
You need to increase your calories by eating food that will not increase your blood sugar.
Meat. Fish, eggs, cheese, olive oil, cream in your coffee, butter on your veg, full fat yogurt with a few berries for desert. Just eat real food and avoid carbohydrates.
 
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Circuspony

Well-Known Member
Messages
971
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi Thanks for the response. I was 34 inch waist and now down to 30 inch in 2 months - Whilst I am now 70Kg at a height of 5ft 7, there is literally skin and bone hence looking at how to increase calories etc as any exercise was burning most of what I was eating. I am waiting for the doctor to provide my latest HBA1c - Nevertheless wanted some guidance.
Are you definitely T2? Rapid weight loss is a sign of T1
 

HSSS

Expert
Messages
7,673
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hi Thanks for the response. I was 34 inch waist and now down to 30 inch in 2 months - Whilst I am now 70Kg at a height of 5ft 7, there is literally skin and bone hence looking at how to increase calories etc as any exercise was burning most of what I was eating. I am waiting for the doctor to provide my latest HBA1c - Nevertheless wanted some guidance.
As a 5’7” female 70kg leaves me a fair bit of spare to lose still and a long way from skin and bones. Though a 30” waist if you’re male sounds quite reasonable I understand not wanting it to be less.

How long have you been diagnosed? 4” in 2months. How many kg in that time? It does indeed sound like either you simply aren’t eating enough or there is something else going on. Eat more as guided above and see what happens over the next few weeks.

Do you have a meter? Any idea of levels or what they were previously? The Nhs can provide all your test results online once the surgery activates that part of it for you. In the meantime ask the surgery for the numerical results (not just an opinion in words) as you are entitled to them.
 

niblue

Well-Known Member
Messages
145
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
The stuff you're eating is similar to the mistakes I made when I was first diagnosed a few weeks back and thinking that stopping snacking and using sugar in my diet and eating what I thought of as healthy stuff like fruit, brown rice, brown bread, fruit juice and semi-skimmed milk was the answer (it wasn't - my blood sugar readings actually went up!).

You have to through away much of what you'd learned (or indeed even been advised by a medical professional) as healthy eating as now it's stuff like "cheese good, banana bad" or "cream is better than skimmed milk". At the moment (as I'm still new to this) I'm using myfitnesspal to track what I'm eating and trying to maintain my carb levels at the 50 to 100g level each day, which seems to be having an impact.
 

Daibell

Master
Messages
12,674
Type of diabetes
LADA
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi. Rather than thinking Calories think Carbs together with the other main food groups. If you are losing weight you may not be T2 but T1/LADA where the body doesn't produce enough insulin to metabolise the carbs you eat. Have plenty of proteins and fats and keep the carbs down where needed to to control blood sugar. Yes, your diet has been quite high in carbs which is not good if your BS runs high. Eggs & bacon is good for breakfast for example.
 

Cabbaged

Member
Messages
11
FG Hoop Im pretty much the same as you but diagnosed type 2 over 10 years ago. I followed all the health advice given and it got me nowhere, i would even go has far as saying my diabetes got worse even though ive very rarely consumed alcohol

Ive lost quite a bit of weight, probably 28lb, Im now 5’10 and weigh 145lb at the moment, my wife says im starting to look like a bag of bones. What i have noticed is if i gain weight my glucose levels go up so

Best advice i can give is to cut out all the processed food, eat plenty of fat and protein and keep your carbs down. Yes you will lose weight BUT once you have your t2 under control then you can address your weight issues