Newly diagnosed, 82 HbA1c 82 MMOL/MOL

[Ian090]

Yup I get it, hence why i wont have it, just wondering if anyone else uses Huel

One last silly question, I used to have a flat white semi skimmed milk daily from Costa coffee, its going to be once a week treat now. Best to have with Oat Milk/Dairy or Almond to minimise any spikes?

Full fat milk has less sugar than reduced fat
I've discovered anything that is labelled low fat, low sugar or vegan is highly processed and full of carbs
Oat milk is an absolute no no
I have one coffee a day with full fat milk it makes a small spike of around 1.0 then it down

 

[0110]

6.4 on fasting today, what do people on this thread get on their fasting? How to I nudge this into the 5s

 

[KennyA]

6.4 on fasting today, what do people on this thread get on their fasting? How to I nudge this into the 5s

Well, for me it meant reducing my carb intakes consistently. The fasting (morning) reading stayed in the high sixes for some months (6? 8?) after my A1c was normal and pre and post meals more than acceptable. I'm three and a half years into low carb now, and did a week of fasting tests last month as a check. Results clustered around 5.2 with very little variation.

It's about your system slowly learning and adapting to less glucose, so your liver doesn't feel the need to try to maintain you at the higher glucose level it had become used to. The more you feed it carbs the longer it will take to adjust to less glucose. I was on about 20g carb/day and it still took a while.

So - on my experience this isn't "nudgeable" - it's a longer term thing. It will happen if you keep the low carb intake going and it could take a bit of time - it might respond sooner, who knows.

 

[0110]

Well, for me it meant reducing my carb intakes consistently. The fasting (morning) reading stayed in the high sixes for some months (6? 8?) after my A1c was normal and pre and post meals more than acceptable. I'm three and a half years into low carb now, and did a week of fasting tests last month as a check. Results clustered around 5.2 with very little variation.

It's about your system slowly learning and adapting to less glucose, so your liver doesn't feel the need to try to maintain you at the higher glucose level it had become used to. The more you feed it carbs the longer it will take to adjust to less glucose. I was on about 20g carb/day and it still took a while.

So - on my experience this isn't "nudgeable" - it's a longer term thing. It will happen if you keep the low carb intake going and it could take a bit of time - it might respond sooner, who knows.

Thnaks Kenny, I apreciate your input. So morning one is last to move. Kenny do you excercise much or would you say yours is all diet controlled?

 

[KennyA]

Thnaks Kenny, I apreciate your input. So morning one is last to move. Kenny do you excercise much or would you say yours is all diet controlled?

I did not exercise at all for my first two years of low-carbing. Reason was partly lockdown, and partly the same reason I had given up some years back - I was too heavy and was constantly injuring myself in new and interesting ways. In the last year I've been playing football once or twice a week plus a pilates session as well as the odd stroll around and gardening.

My weight loss has stalled in the last year, although I'm getting steadily smaller: eg from >36 waist this time in 2022 to <34 now. I'm building muscle again and that's offsetting the fat loss. In my case exercise had/has precisely nothing to do with getting my blood glucose levels under control - I do it because I enjoy doing it.

 

[0110]

I did not exercise at all for my first two years of low-carbing. Reason was partly lockdown, and partly the same reason I had given up some years back - I was too heavy and was constantly injuring myself in new and interesting ways. In the last year I've been playing football once or twice a week plus a pilates session as well as the odd stroll around and gardening.

My weight loss has stalled in the last year, although I'm getting steadily smaller: eg from >36 waist this time in 2022 to <34 now. I'm building muscle again and that's offsetting the fat loss. In my case exercise had/has precisely nothing to do with getting my blood glucose levels under control - I do it because I enjoy doing it.

Do you ever allow yourself an occasional treat? wine, whisky, choclate maybe some rice or bread?

 

[KennyA]

Do you ever allow yourself an occasional treat? wine, whisky, choclate maybe some rice or bread?

I was about to type that I drink wine and whisky all the time - it isn't strictly true. I have however pretty much stopped drinking beer other than Salute zero carb.

Whisky is zero carb (as are all spirits) - it's certain mixers that would cause a carb problem. Wine (red) you can expect in the region of 20g carb a bottle, so a glass or two when I've had next to no carbs from other sources isn't a problem in this context. Neither therefore have any impact on my low carb pattern.

I have never been a chocolate eater so it wouldn't be a treat for me. I very occasionally will have some bread but only if it's worth it - the last time was on holiday in Italy September 2022, with a lunch in Greve. Had pasta at the same time. Yes, right off the wagon for that meal. The pasta was going to blow my glucose anyway, so bread was neither here nor there. Took me out of ketosis for three days and +2 hr post-meal reading went to 8.6.


I set myself my treat day well in advance - so I will again go off the wagon once or twice on holiday in late June, and we have a planned special event meal out in May where I will still be carb conscious but not to my usual degree. The real problem with the "treat" thinking to my mind is the temptation to treat yourself more and more often - a bad day, some good news, a day with a "Y" in it - it can creep up.

 

[0110]

I was about to type that I drink wine and whisky all the time - it isn't strictly true. I have however pretty much stopped drinking beer other than Salute zero carb.

Whisky is zero carb (as are all spirits) - it's certain mixers that would cause a carb problem. Wine (red) you can expect in the region of 20g carb a bottle, so a glass or two when I've had next to no carbs from other sources isn't a problem in this context. Neither therefore have any impact on my low carb pattern.

I have never been a chocolate eater so it wouldn't be a treat for me. I very occasionally will have some bread but only if it's worth it - the last time was on holiday in Italy September 2022, with a lunch in Greve. Had pasta at the same time. Yes, right off the wagon for that meal. The pasta was going to blow my glucose anyway, so bread was neither here nor there. Took me out of ketosis for three days and +2 hr post-meal reading went to 8.6.


I set myself my treat day well in advance - so I will again go off the wagon once or twice on holiday in late June, and we have a planned special event meal out in May where I will still be carb conscious but not to my usual degree. The real problem with the "treat" thinking to my mind is the temptation to treat yourself more and more often - a bad day, some good news, a day with a "Y" in it - it can creep up.

Very nice post, thank you. U use to drink whisky twice a week, although last 3-4 weeks I have been scared and just gettign my head around it. So knowing whiskey is zero carb is great news, I drink the single malt stuff with water only no mixers.

When you had bread and pasta on holiday your +2 hr post-meal reading went to 8.6, is that really a disaster?

 

[ajbod]

That is not a disaster, but if he did it more often, the results would slip upwards. due to abstinence, Insulin resistance recovers slightly, so the odd thing is reacted to very well. But continued pushing the limit, will see that resistance increase again.

 

[KennyA]

Very nice post, thank you. U use to drink whisky twice a week, although last 3-4 weeks I have been scared and just gettign my head around it. So knowing whiskey is zero carb is great news, I drink the single malt stuff with water only no mixers.

When you had bread and pasta on holiday your +2 hr post-meal reading went to 8.6, is that really a disaster?

On the 8.6 - no, not as a one-off in the big scheme of things. Up from 4.7 before the meal. So getting on for a doubling in blood glucose level after a lunch.

It's a clear sign that if I ate that sort of food more frequently I would not see my usual fours and fives again.

Couple of things on alcohol: if you're low carbing it seems to pack a bigger punch, so watch out for that: you can make bad decisions under the influence - such as deciding chips are a good thing; processing alcohol will tie up your liver for a while so you may see artificially deflated BG readings.

 

[0110]

On the 8.6 - no, not as a one-off in the big scheme of things. Up from 4.7 before the meal. So getting on for a doubling in blood glucose level after a lunch.

It's a clear sign that if I ate that sort of food more frequently I would not see my usual fours and fives again.

Couple of things on alcohol: if you're low carbing it seems to pack a bigger punch, so watch out for that: you can make bad decisions under the influence - such as deciding chips are a good thing; processing alcohol will tie up your liver for a while so you may see artificially deflated BG readings.

So whisky once a week not going to cause great harm, I'm not talking bottles I mean 3-4 doubles with water?

 

[Florriew]

After talking to the doctor I started shaking, little confused and I did a quick test and sugar was 10. From 7.1 this morning after a skinny flat white. I had to have some porridge with semi skimmed milk. Why is it fluctuating so much? I sit because I am newly diagnosed and making to many changes at once?

I read recently that instant oatmeal is not good for blood sugar and that old-fashioned oats is better. I wondered what type of porridge you had eaten. I've never done the comparison myself.

 

[KennyA]

So whisky once a week not going to cause great harm, I'm not talking bottles I mean 3-4 doubles with water?

Speaking strictly in terms of carbs, whisky with water is zero carbs and won't hit your BG.

Quantity of alcohol and the associated risk of tripping over the cat or deciding it would be a good idea to have fried banana sandwiches is entirely for your own judgement.

 

[catinahat]

I read recently that instant oatmeal is not good for blood sugar and that old-fashioned oats is better

Instant oatmeal is bad, old fashioned oats are slightly less bad, they both have carbs which when digested release glucose. For your blood sugar, no oats or cereal of any sort is better

 

[0110]

Instant oatmeal is bad, old fashioned oats are slightly less bad, they both have carbs which when digested release glucose. For your blood sugar, no oats or cereal of any sort is better

How about Weetabix? Limiting it to one biscuit or two max

 

[0110]

Anyone get spiked on fruit, had one pear loads of cashew nuts and a few Quorn sausages for dinner abit mix and match. 2 hours latter 8.5 from a pre dinner test of 5.5

 

[catinahat]

How about Weetabix? Limiting it to one biscuit or two max

Well if you were to eat the Weetabix dry 2 biscuits would be 26g of carbs, I would think they are impossible eat like that so you would need to add the carbs in the milk. So depending on how much milk, you would be looking at over 30g of carbs.
a teaspoon of sugar is 4g of carbs so you would be having the equivalent of around 8 teaspoons of sugar.
Add that to the fact that Weetabix is so nutritionally poor that they have to fortify it with vitamins just to give it a little nutritional value.
Personally I would rather eat real food, it comes with all the nutrients we need and if you choose wisely not so many unnecessary carbs.

 

[catinahat]

Anyone get spiked on fruit, had one pear loads of cashew nuts and a few Quorn sausages for dinner abit mix and match. 2 hours latter 8.5 from a pre dinner test of 5.5

We all get spiked on fruit, it's full of sugar(nature's candy) that's why it tastes so sweet.

 

[KennyA]

Anyone get spiked on fruit, had one pear loads of cashew nuts and a few Quorn sausages for dinner abit mix and match. 2 hours latter 8.5 from a pre dinner test of 5.5

Oatmeal and weetabix are both carb-rich. Fruit has fructose, but pears are probably not as bad sugars-wise as (eg) pineapples. I don't eat fruit very much, only a few berries now and then.

Cashews are pretty high in carb (I think 18g/100g - they're not actually nuts) and you would get a lower carb load from almonds or hazelnuts. Quorn is claimed to be 11% carb - it's a bit puzzling because when you add up the Quorn ingredients the percentage figures only come to about 40% - no idea what the unaccounted for 60% is made up of?

So quite a carby meal and I should expect that sort of a rise from that sort of a meal.

 

[Outlier]

As well as the foregoing good advice, I would add caution about seeing diabetic-unfriendly food as "treats", not only for the tendency to carb creep, but also because it gives mixed messages to non-diabetics who then, in kind ignorance, think they can pressurise you into having something unsuitable because they noticed you having it at another time. People think they are being kind, whereas to us, they are very much doing the opposite.