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Newbie Diagnosed Type 2

T

Threeandeasy

Member
Messages
9
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Good afternoon all.

My name is George and i have been diagnosed with diabetes type 2 two weeks ago. I am 32 and at time of diagnosis was 20 stone 1 lb. the reason i joined the forum and am posting is that i find it difficult to speak to anyone about being diagnosed and the forum will offer a means of release.

Im worried those around me arent taking this seriously albeit im still trying to get my head around it myself. Im unsure how serious this condition is myself to be honest. I am waiting on an appointment with the eye clinic, podiatrist, dietician and nurse again for checkups and the likes. Podiatrist cancelled yesterday which was very frustrating as my foot has been sore for over a year and ive always put it down to my weight. Possibly it is related to being diabetic.

Every lunch and dinner im standing unsure what to buy and eat for food. Being very frustrated in asda as i dont understand the food labels and also i dont know what it is to cut back on. Carbs. Fat. Sugar content, calroies?? I just dont know.

I was given metrormin to take to begin with but it was leaving a very sore burning sensation on my behind which the nurse changed to metabet and has taken this away thankfully. Im on one a day with breakfast which now consists of an asda tub of watermelon.

Any advice on anything above i would greatly appreciate.

Many thanks, George.
 
@Threeandeasy - Hello George and Welcome to the Forum. I will tag @daisy1 who will provide you with some basic information that all new members receive. Have a read around the threads on the Forum and ask as many questions as you want.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Welcome to the forums. Diabetes is serious but its also managable. @daisy1 info really helped so be sure to read it a few times. Im also somewhat new (diagnosed about 4.5 months ago) and this site has been invaluable. Read everything you can. Then ask as many questions as you want. Its a great community and very supportive.

Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Diabetes.co.uk Forum mobile app
 
Welcome, I remember only too well feeling like you when I was diagnosed and waiting for appointments not knowing what to expect. As for the food shopping it has proved to be a real learning curve but there are plenty of people here to help and support.
As a type 2 diabetic there are things that relate only to ourselves - for myself I have learned by buying my own testing kit and my doctor is against my testing all together - but I brought as suggested to me on this site a SD Codefree kit.
It has taken me a year of trial and error - this is because we each react differently to the carbohydrates - so I have spent a year testing and learning and most recently I seem to have come up with a plan that appears to finally be working and bringing down my blood sugar readings.
So my only advice is read as much as you can and learn about what it is that you need to do and do not feel bad when you or if you struggle - because I for one have struggled a great deal over the past year, felt bad about not making a difference and being made to feel worse by doctor and diabetic nurse because I will not attend a slimming club and I feel they do not believe me when I say I do walk to work and use the stairs and I do eat sensibly - now I have to eat mostly carb free, only allowing myself a couple of pieces of potato in my evening meal - this works for me you may well be different. So if you can afford to buy a testing kit I would say do so - it is only my opinion and I am not qualified.
 
Hi George,
It's tough at first to know what the hell to eat. Be reassured - Type 2 is definitely controllable and many of us here manage to keep what were high levels down to the normal range purely though diet; other with meds or a combination of both meds and diet. It's important I don't beat you to death with loads of detail, but good I think to know some basics as early as possible (so you can get a handle on it all and be relaxed with it.

1] LEVELS. What are your blood sugar levels like? The doctor will probably have had an HbA1c blood test done on you. It establishes the average level of your blood sugar over the preceding 3 month period (and is pretty accurate). Tests done with a little meter instead just give the level at a given point (and while less accurate, can be used to let you know when something is good or bad for your blood sugar level).

2] METERS.Do you have a self-testing meter? It's important to test regularly...more than the doctors advise (they don't want us getting stressed by readings). I strongly advise you keep a diary of what you eat and when, and that you record readings before eating and 2.5 hours after eating. That way you will quickly figure out what works. The post meal reading should be very similar to the premeal; if not the grub has too many carbs in it. if you haven't been given one, ask, but not all Type 2s are given one. In which case - buy one (check them out blood sugar self testing meters on the Amazon site). A meter (and testing strips..very easy to use - honestly) along with the record you keep is your greatest weapon next to being focused.

3] CARBS. There are other opinions, obviously, but lots of us are on a low carb high fat diet (LCHF) and cutting carbohydrates will lower your blood sugar a swell as assist with weight loss. High or "simple" carbs turn into sugar in the blood and have the same impact as sugar. Personally, I do not eat bread, pasta, rice or spuds...no biccies, no cakes...etc. No cereal - it's brutal! But, seeing for yourself using a meter will inform you more (eg. my level will jump ridiculously after just one bit of toast!).Check the labels for what's in every 100g -.if the carbs are 10g or less per 100g - it's low carb....enjoy it!

4] FOOD. I eat: slices of smoked cheese (no carbs at all) and dried bacon slices for brekkie; boiled eggs or omelettes are good too. The odd fry up is fine. I often have 5 or 6 strawberries with an avocado and mayo for lunch.. For dinner, I eat steak, bacon, pork, chicken, 90% meat sausages, or fish (without batter). Salmon and tuna are good for you - oily fish has the good fat you need. All low or complex carb veg is ok. As a rule, if veg grows above ground its cool. I eat broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, lettuce, cabbage etc. Note that asparagus can lower the blood sugar level a bit.
I even have a beer with dinner. Red wine works for some people. A wee glass of whisky is good too. the liver copes with alcohol as a priority, so this delays it dealing with glucose.
Coffee and tea are fine - avoid too much milk. 90% cocoa dark chocolate (Lindt) is good. Nuts (particularly brazil nuts, hazelnuts and a few others) are fine in moderation and again help with right kind of fat.
As an afterthought - I allow myself an ice lolly after dinner if my pre-meal level is ok (ok..so its 2 lollies!). And, recently, I am having the odd croissant.

Explore the low carb info on this site. If you have any questions - you will get a response. It's all much more basic than it seems at first. best advice is - meter, test, record, cut carbs, persist. Good luck. Paul
 
Hi and welcome. As others have said, you need to follow a low-carb diet. Forget calories as they have no useful meaning. Look at the rear of food packaging (not the front) and look at the total carbs figure. It's this that you need to keep low'ish. Proteins and fats are fine. I'm afraid watermelon is not good as it is high in sugar; have eggs and bacon or similar if you have the time to cook. Be aware that some dieticians preach out-of-date dietary advice, so be guided by this forum
 
Threeandeasy said:
i dont know what it is to cut back on. Carbs. Fat. Sugar content, calroies?? I just dont know.

breakfast which now consists of an asda tub of watermelon.
Click to expand...
Hi @Threeandeasy and welcome to the forum. It is difficult to get your head around it all when you are first diagnosed. Have a look round the threads and you will see that a lot of people have controlled their diabetes and improved or eliminated foot and eye problems by adopting a Low Carbohydrate High Fat approach to eating.
You need to reduce or avoid sugars and carbohydrates which turn to sugar in your body. When looking at food labels it is best to avoid foods with more than 10g of carbs per 100g. Less than 5g carbs per 100g is best.
Fruits and fruit juice contain a lot of fructose, which despite being 'natural' is still sugar, and tropical fruit like watermelon has higher sugar levels.
 
@Threeandeasy

Hello George and welcome to the forum :) Here is the information, mentioned above, which we give to new members and I hope it will be useful to you. Have a good read of the advice above from members and ask as many questions as you want.


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 over 150,000 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

LOW CARB PROGRAM:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/low carb program


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 bloodglucose 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.
 
Thank you all for the replies. There is a lot to take in and i appreciate you all for taking the time to replyto my message. I will continue to self educate until my appointments with the clinic. Thanks again.
 
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