New Type 2

Hi Vivienne, just checking in to see if you would like your username changed as currently it is the same as your e-mail address and is somewhat of a privacy concern.

Hi Vivienne and welcome to the forum

I think this information which we give to new members will answer some of your questions. Ask all the questions you need to and someone will come along and 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 30,000 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 ... rains.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.

vivienne3@virginmedia.com said:

Can anyone tell me if its ok to use the slim fast milkshake as a type 2 diabetic. I have used the internet to get information but cant get any straight answers

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Slimfast (strawberries and cream) has about 35g of sugar per serving. Most people on this forum would wish to avoid those sort of sugar levels in meal. Out of a total carbohydrate of 40 g, 5 g is dietary fibre, ie carbohydrates that you don't digest and 35 g sugar, which enters your bloodstream quickly. It's not unlike eating six spoonfulls of sugar and will almost certainly make its presence noted in your BG levels. It's not even as if these slimming shakes are cheap to buy.

Some people choose to avoid all carbohydrates, some just eat a few and some, like me, go for low GI carbohydrates, ie carbohydrates which take a long time to be digested, things like brown rice, wholewheat pasta, wholegrain rye bread.

It takes a bit of experimentation to discover what suits you personally but I'd rather have a smoked mackerel in spicy tomato sauce, a slice of pumpernickel rye bread and a fresh tomato and red onion salad to a single milk shake type drink. For me it's better for the blood glucose level and I feel that I have eaten a proper meal. Most of the fat is beneficial, omega in the fish and the carbohydrate in the bread is high in fibre and the rest, slow to release into the bloodstream. Another favourite of mine is again a slice of pumpernickel but with a thin layer of a low fat cheese like Philly with a slice of smoked salmon and with some mixed leaves like rocket and spinach.

Welcome to the forum
Hope you have a lovely wedding


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

Hi Everyone
I am new to the forum, my name is Sandy I am 57 years old, I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in January this year I went to the doctors not feeling well I throught it was my thyroids playing up was I wrong, my doctor took blood tests I went back the following week and was hit hard with the facts I was told that I have type 2, high blood pressure and high cholesterol and need to go on to medication, my head was spinning, I did ask if I could start off slowly with meds, but was told that I needed them right away to stop me having a heart attack, I was put on Statins, Ramipril and Trajenta as I could not have Metformin as I have other problems, I also take Levothyroxine for my thyriods as you all can imagine what this is like, it is also much to take in at first, I was only on the Statins for 2 weeks when I had terrible leg and hip pains I was in agony I contacted my doctor he said come off them for 2 weeks and than go back on them, after looking at this forum and seeing your postings I was very reluctant to start taking them again. Sorry for the long first posting, I was introducing myself and would like to thank you all for this forum keep up the great work.
Sandy

success said:

I was only on the Statins for 2 weeks when I had terrible leg and hip pains I was in agony I contacted my doctor he said come off them for 2 weeks and than go back on them, after looking at this forum and seeing your postings I was very reluctant to start taking them again.

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Simvastatin seems to be the worst for muscle and joint side effects. maybe your GP could prescribe an alternative statin? If you are careful with what you eat, you can get your cholesterol levels down anyway and so may not need them. Same with the ramipril, if you get yuor weight down and your blood pressure drops as a result, you should be able to come off those too.