New to Diabetes.co.uk and need help with a few things!!!

[Jillybob]

Hi everyone.

My name is Jill, my friends call me Jillybob or JB for short. I am 37 years old and I am a single mother of two children aged 8 & 10.

I have been diagnosed diabetic for 2.5 years and have been diagnosed as a 'modi' diabetic, which apparently means I'm in the middle of being a type 1 and type 2 diabetic. I take 4 metformin, 4 gliclazide and 1 pioglitazole a day (split into two doses in the day, morning and evening). My diabetes is still not under control and my blood sugars are constantly at 10+, so my doctor is looking at putting me on insulin, which I'm not overly concerned about as I used it when I had pregnacy diabetes some 8 years ago... He has also referred me to a diabetic clinic as he is concerned that my diabetes is rather 'agressive' (his words, not mine!) and he mentioned that i could have a type of diabetes whereby antibodies are 'attacking' the insulin my body produces naturally rather than my pancreas not producing enough?? (Never heard of that!!) But apparently this is the reason that I am constantly losing weight even though I eat like food is going out of fashion!! (All good stuff mind you!... I am sensible!) But in the two and a half years I have been diabetic I have gone from being 9 1/2 stone to 8 stones!... I have recently started exercising again as the doctor thinks that this will help my circulation as I am starting to lose some sensation in my left foot.

Here's where I could do with some help!!!

Although I am extremely happy with the treatment I have received from my doctor I was only given slight dietary info... Everytime I ask them for dietary advice, they tell me to come on here and ask you lot!!! :shock: So..... here goes... Brace yourselves! I have a few! But I'll keep to just a few for now!...
1) I always look at the sugars on food packets and very rarely do I buy in processed food so I know where I stand and what I'm putting in my mouth! But I need a break sometimes!! What treats can I have?? If I eat out, what can I eat?! for example.... I LOVE Indian and chinese food, what dishes are suitable for me?...
2) What (if any) alcohol can I drink?
3) I am going on holiday in a few weeks to Turkey... what food can I eat there and what precautions do I have to take whilst I'm away??

I know there are a few of questions there, and I'm sounding like quite high maintenance (lol!) but I would really appreciate your help and advice. I have two little girlies who are my world and who are dependant on me and I don't want to let them down by allowing myself to get ill... I have thought for the last two years that I could handle this diabetes by myself... But you know what... I can't!... And as stubborn as I am, I admit that i need some help!

Thank you for reading! JB

 

[cugila]

Welcome to the Forum, although not newly diagnosed the information here can help you especially the Bg levels that you are experiencing. Have read and pick out what you need. Take particular note about carbs and sugars ! I will leave some of your other questions for others to answer.

Here is the advice we usually give to newly diagnosed type 2 diabetics.This forum doesn't always follow the recommended dietary advice, you have to work out what works for you as we are all different.

It's not just 'sugars' you need to avoid, diabetes is an inability to process glucose properly. Carbohydrate converts, in the body, to glucose. So it makes sense to reduce the amount of carbohydrate that you eat which includes sugars.

The main carbs to avoid or reduce are the complex or starchy carbohydrates such as bread, potatoes, pasta, rice, starchy root veg and also any flour based products. The starchy carbs all convert 100% to glucose in the body and raise the blood sugar levels significantly.

The way to find out how different foods affect you is to do regular daily testing and keep a food diary for a couple of weeks. If you test just before eating then two hours after eating you will see the effect of certain foods on your blood glucose levels. Some foods, which are slow acting carbohydrates, are absorbed more slowly so you may need to test three or even four hours later to see the affect that these have on your blood glucose levels.

Buy yourself a carb counter book (you can get these on-line) and you will be able to work out how much carbs you are eating, when you test, the reading two hours after should be roughly the same as the before eating reading, if it is then that meal was fine, if it isn’t then you need to check what you have eaten and think about reducing the portion size of carbs.

When you are buying products check the total carbohydrate content, this includes the sugar content. Do not just go by the amount of sugar on the packaging as this is misleading to a diabetic.As for a tester, try asking the nurse/doctor and explain that you want to be proactive in managing your own diabetes and therefore need to test so that you can see just how foods affect your blood sugar levels. Hopefully this will work ! Sometimes they are not keen to give Type 2’s the strips on prescription, (in the UK) but you can but try !!

As a Type 2 the latest 2010 NICE guidelines for Bg levels are as follows:
Fasting (waking).......between 4 - 7 mmol/l.
2 hrs after meals......no more than 8.5 mmol/l.
If you are able to keep the post meal numbers lower, so much the better.

It also helps if you can do 30 minutes moderate exercise a day. It doesn't have to be strenuous.

Ken/Sue.

 

[Jillybob]

Thank you for your advice... I shall look into it. My friend recently bought me a carb counter book, so I will have a look at it!

My doctor did give me some blood testing strips, and I do test... But I didn't really know what I was looking for, apart from my blood sugars being below 8.5.... which they never are!!! Now I know pasta is a baddy, I'll stay away from that. I did tell my diabetic nurse that I was cooking spag bol... but she seemed more concerned with the fat content in the meat than the pasta!! I eat a lot of salad and fish as a rule, and I'm not a potato and bread fan anyway, so I tend to eat little of those... But pasta and rice is a shock!! Thank you so much, you've definately given me something to work with.