Newcastle diet in response to new diagnosis

Cheers Catza, yes thats my one hope regarding my bg levels, that they are reluctant to get much below ten because of my weight... I am starting from a much higher weight than most. Fingers crossed as it comes off the numbers start responding better.

Thanks though, it's been a long long time since I've been at the 5 stone off mark, it feels good lol

Hi Defren,

that is very good to hear, I think I have read that regular eating through the day is good for stabilising bg but I have read so much recently I can't keep track of everything and its all a haze lol. It is always good to have someone verify, especially if you are prone to doubting yourself and your ideas etc.

Fingers crossed I can get into a set routine and stabilise things a bit, bg and my routine.

Thanks for the kind words about weight loss, next target 5 stone off for christmas :mrgreen:

Hi Defren,

yes when i used to go to the gym I tried to have several "micro" meals through the day, but that is many moons ago and I just got out of it when I started in education, plus with depression my sleep patterns aren't conducive to an organised routine... it's a battle for sure but the diagnosis kinda steps up a notch to make sure you pull out the big guns to win the war... im waffling now aren't I lol

I managed a walk in the early hours of yesterday morning in the middle of nowhere, so thats a good start too... couldn't go today though as I am aching like buggery lol usually though once the aches have subsided after initial exercise I am usually good to go so fingers crossed. :mrgreen:

WOW 1100-1500 calories... you don't know how much I wished i used to have that... i "may" have never got this blasted thing then lol

Good luck with your fast, but tbh, after reading your blog and seeing you own the diet for 8 weeks I don't think it will be an issue at all for you lol I am getting close to the end of week 2 and have a slowly rising feeling that it is doable... the longer I go, the closer the end point, the better it feels... obviously I suppose lol

Regarding your weight loss stalling, as i know you know, the less weight you have to lose the harder it is to shift, so i'd take that stalling as quite a good sign of your overall levels lol

as for blood readings, I am doing this whole thing to get down to 5's and 6's a 4 would be insanely dreamlike lol

Hi Superchip,

wow, seriously, thank you for that, what a really lovely post, thank you very much.

Had a bit of a shocker with my liver test results today so its been a bit of an escape this forum and the nice posts I keep getting...and obviously the info that gives me hope for the future and helps with the desire in managing my health, without readings people's experiences and successes I know for a fact id have drowned my sorrows in pizza and chips etc.

Ok I am back, my head has been melting recently as i have learned more and more about my condition(s)

Apparently it's referred to as metabolic syndrome, diabetes, high cholestrol (7 hdl of 1) triglycerides are 6.2 (I know :cry: ) I have insane fatty liver ALT readings and i suspect my kidneys are damaged. I also reckon my blood pressure is high too but they can't take it as they always bring the normal sized cuff, despite them knowing otherwise.

Anyway, in response to this where I am now essentially waiting at any given moment for one of my internal organs to fail I decided to take metformin. I took 1 for a day and then went onto 2 (nurse said take 2, but have been prescribed 3 a day and states take 3 a day, so am sticking with 2 fo the time being). Metformin makes me feel pretty rough but the diarrhea has ceased and the woozy nausea seems to have stopped also, certainly greatly reduced at any rate.

Today i noticed what may be the beginnings of another leg ulcer... I am sick, thoroughly sick to my back teeth of receiving bad news about my health, I am depressed and suffer from anxiety and stuff at the best of times, it's like one constant anxious state at the moment. Thats part of why I had to take a break from the forum, I was drowning in a sea of information and incoming stimulus all revolving around my deteriorating health and i needed a breather.

Back to the Newcastle diet, I am not sure you can say I am following it, pedantically speaking. However, I have been following the basic principle behind it re emulating a post bariatric surgery diet. I have been sticking to anything between 400 and 700 calories and consuming water.

After my research into diets and lowering cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and seeing a few tv shows, one of which covered metabolic syndrome specifically, I am slowly introducing food into my diet.

I replaced my morning shake or bar with an apple, primarily for the viscous fibre. (calculated at circa 100 cals)

Sometimes I will skip dinner or tea (or lunch and dinner if a softy southerner lol) however I have been sticking to 250g of broccoli, cauliflower, red pepper, or I would have a salad of salad leaves, onion, cucumber, black peppet and sherry vinegar or lemon juice.

For the first few days I was still having the odd bar as a meal (and will continue to if i feel like it)

Yes Gary Taubes book, bought it, currently reading it, also bought the china study, watched knives over forks (or vice versa?) and a couple of recorded episodes of the food hospital I had on the sky box... as well as plenty of reading online about different foods etc.... in addition to much more reading i have yet to do.

Basically, the upshot is, i will be pretty close to a vegetarian diet once i am back eating fully (albeit still with a mind to losing weight) I plan to focus on stir fry's, soups, salads and apples and berries for my fruit.

Most protein will be from soya products and nuts, although I will be having 10g each per day of almonds, walnuts and pumpkin seeds which totals circa 200 cals (these quantities will be increased after the 12 week 600 cal period)

I will be using tofu, tempeh, soya mince and frozen soya beans, again, primarily in stir fry's, salads and soups.

I have tried a pre prandial and +2hr post prandial readings after 1 slice of hovis malted granary, burgen soya and linseed and an apple (separate occasions for each food type).

The hovis spiked by 3 points, the burgen 1 point, and the apple 1 point (red delicious, so perhaps less sweet varieties will have less of an effect?)

I am happy with the 1 point spike +2hr so apple's will stay, and probably not bother with bread again even though the burgen seemed fine I think i would rather cut out the stuff I find too easy to over eat.

Readings have been what i would call rubbish, but with a couple of caveats. First, I have taken them as and when through the day whenever the mood has struck, and second, they do appear to still be coming down. With that in mind i will record below the somewhat haphazard readings from the past couple of days:

5th september:
10.9
8.6
10.5
11.2

6th
9.4
8.2
9.0
10.9
10.9

7th
8.2
8.1
8.5
8.2
7.7
8.1

god knows what I was doing on the 7th but I couldn't leave the meter alone

8th
9.2
7.6
8.4

9th
7.4
8.4
6.8

10th
9.4
8.8
6.9

11th (today)
8.7
6.5

This is with 1000mg of metformin

Lost 5.5lb this week

Thanks everyone,

been in a bit of pain since last night but I am hoping it is constipation, definitely could be, so we will see, in my usual catastrophic way I am trying to battle the idea it is my appendix or some kidney issue or other multi organ failure lol I am such a worrier.

Definitely a struggle to take everything in and deal with it and accept it all, its just a blur really, and of course every new ache and ill feeling or whatever I immediately attribute it to diabetes or the start (or advanced stage) of one of the many complications.

I am also having severe stress from other areas in my life so things are a massive struggle at the minute, although thankfully the diet/lifestyle/food situation is the one thing I seem to easily control at the minute, partly because I just cant face food and partly because of fear of eating. I am wondering how I will manage to eat much more than 600 calories a day when the 12 week period ends.

Anyway, another sleepless night, I don't know if this sort of thought is common, although I do tend to anxiety, panic and worry but half the time I am waiting for my last heart beat, which I am sure isn't helping matters as it just builds the stress.

p.s. PHEW, just hit send, but i had been logged out, so I had to log back in and the post i have just written wasn't there, so hit back a few times and still didn't appear, so I had resigned myself to having to write it out again, hit reply and my post was there ready to go... yay lol

Hi Catza,

Thanks for that, have been trying to have lots of water but the amount has definitely tailed off the last few days... still ONLY drinking water, but definitely probable it's not enough lately.

lol I know, I may calm down one day and relax a bit :roll: :lol:

Hi Defren,

thanks for the support, it feels a pretty lonely place where i am at the moment so its nice to come here and share kinda thing and know everyone knows what you're going through and can relate etc.

Pre-diagnosis (with the constant thirst thing) I was on bottles of water which I always added some sugar free cordial too, but since diagnosis I cut out everything really so just have water "straight" now. If it is ok though I will have a bit now and again to mix it up and make a bit of a change...I haven't actually read the ingredients or nutrition info since, but I only ever had sugar free cordial so fingers crossed then.

My water has probably dropped to 2ish litres a day which for me isn't really enough, I can definitely feel more "dry" generally than when i was on 5litres or so. I will make a concerted effort to up it again.


Thanks again for your help , advice, support and encouragement.