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John Pye

Member
Messages
7
Location
Newcastle Upon Tyne
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
DIABETES!!!!!!!!!!!
Hi Everyone, I have recently been diagnosed with type2 after suffering a heart attack. I am finding the diet change OK but i am struggling with the up and down with some foods I eat. Yesterday I had what I considered a very healthy diet but my BS still stayed in the 11 range does this struggle get any easier??? hope I don't sound crazy once it hits inter-web but i am feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment. I have never drank full fat coke I do drink diet coke or should i say did but mostly water but i am cleaning my teeth about 20 times a day to get some minty feeling instead of bland distaste.
Also i used to chew Orbit sugarfree gum is that still ok or is that maybe going to have an effect on me.
 
What did you eat?
Are you on any meds for the diabetes.
 
Hi John and welcome to the forum. I don't have type 2 so can't really comment on that but what i would say is to look at the carbohydrates in the foods you eat. If you can lower the amount if carbs this should make a difference to your bg. It is a struggle, for instance milk shoots my bg right up even just a small cappucino. Bur don't despair there are lots of people on this site to give you advice and have a look at the recipes...low carb doesn't mean low taste. Good Luck!

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Hi. Thanks for the reply I am on 1 metformin tablet for 1st week then goes up to 2.
For my beakfast I had 2 weetabix with semi skimmed milk small amount I must add and no suga/sweetner.

Lunch. Pasta spirals with grilled chicken and peppers

Dinner. Brown rice with a tomatoe sauce (recipe I got off diabetic website all fresh ingredients no added salt sugar).


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2 Weetabix is a heavy carb load, not many can manage 2 Weetabix, some are ok with porridge though.
Again, pasta can be ok, wholemeal is always a better choice, as it's a lower GL.
Basmati rice is a better GL than normal brown rice.

It's worth buying a bs meter, and testing each food to see what your bs is like afterwards, as some carbs can cause a large spike, others are better. It also varies from person to person.

Have a search on here, and google, for low GI, that's always a good start.
You also have to balance your diet between the advice for your cardiac care, as well as your diabetes, so the meter is a good guide to find what isn't good for your bs.
 
Google 'blood sugar 101' lots of good advice on there as to what you can and can't eat. A meter is advisable, before meals and 2 hours after.
Personally I can't eat rice, pasta or bread or even Weetabix or porridge for that matter, I eat eggs for breakfast, as omelettes scrambled etc.
 
Thank you dawn it may be the way I go too once I get used to the testing routine I should be in but am probably not. I like eggs and can't oh wrong there


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Hi John

You'll see lots of us on this forum have tried to cut back on Carbohydrates and got good results.

Carbs can raise your blood sugar in the same way sugar can.

If you are tempted to cut back on carsb then have a look at the book Carbs and Cals as this shows photos of real food and gives carbs, calories, fat and fibre. Along with portion sizes. I found it really helpful.

If you need to lose weight then that will help and if you can increase exercise that helps too.

Any questions please shout, it's a great friendly group

Cara
 
I looked at your profile and saw your age. It's a scarily young age for a heart attack so I put back the banana muffin I'd been planning to eat!

So you've already helped someone else!

Cara
 
I am young and as you can imagine though invincible(wrong). I am overweight but muscly too so I think I talked myself into saying stupidly "I am fat with muscle" how bl**dy stupid was I.
Glad I helped a bit cara

John.


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Hi John, and welcome to the forum. I'm sure Daisy will be along soon with her post full of useful information.
 
Hi John, and welcome to the forum. I'm sure Daisy will be along soon with her post full of useful information.
Hi John and welcome to the forum

Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you need to and someone will 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 70,000 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

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

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

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.
 
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