Not overweight

[Susie1804]

Hi, my husband has recently been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. He is 58 and has never been overweight, BMI is 21.4. Good diet, non smoker, gym 3 X weekly. No other medical problems. He started Metformin which made him nauseated and he had no appetite. Weight dropped a stone so he was actually underweight. Now on slow release Metformin twice daily and blood sugars still ranging 6.5 to 10. Any advice

 

[KennyA]

Hi, and welcome to the forums. When you say "good diet" what exactly do you mean? Many of us with T2 found that it was getting shot of the officially endorsed "good" high carbohydrate diet that opened the door to getting blood sugars back to normal.

 

[catinahat]

Welcome @Susie1804
We have all had to rethink what we consider a healthy diet, if your hubby is eating lots of healthy wholemeal bread, brown pasta and rice, heart healthy cereal's, fruit and low fat this that and the other, then he is going to need more and more meds as his diabetes progresses.
No matter what anyone says is good for T2s (most of them don't have diabetes)
Carbohydrates when digested are converted to glucose and will cause blood sugar to rise.
Your body can't tell the difference between a banana and a doughnut, they will both cause high blood sugar.
Have a look at the nutritional thingy link below my post for some ideas how to change things

 

[Deleted member 527103]

Has your husband been tested for Type 1?
Losing weight is a classic Type 1 symptom.
Unfortunately, there are still many GPs who think Type 1 is a childhood disease. However, more than half of people with Type 1 are diagnosed over the age of 20. I have heard of someone aged 91 being diagnosed with Type 1.

No dietary change or metformin can manage Type 1 diabetes. You need insulin and a doctor who understands Type 1.

 

[Bcgirl]

I’m not overweight, never have been and I was diagnosed in October….even while eating low carb (no grains in five years, zero sugar). I believe mine was aggravated by tamoxifen (just because I never wanted to take it..) but really it’s likely due to either LADA or pancreatic diabetes(I suffered severe, acute pancreatitis case fifteen years ago). Believe it or not I can’t get the antibody test here in Canada…omg…so annoyed. I eat zero to maybe five carbs a day now and last A1C was 6.0 and I’m thinking it was that high because of a recent trip to India where it was hard to stay carb free.
please let us know what your hubby eats, this will shine a light on the situation.

 

[Cabbaged]

Ive been type 2 for over 10 years, im a 60 yr old male, 5’10 and weigh 145lb. Never smoked and not touched alcohol in over30yrs, always taken care of myself fitness wise and always ate healthy ... or so i thought!
5 days ago i stopped carbs almost completely (still have yoghurt, avacado and eggs) ive just done my blood test two hrs after my last meal and my blood sugar has dropped to 5.8 from usually over the 8 mark

So for the last 5days ive been eating for lunch yoghurt, tablespoon of flax seed and two tablespoons of chia seeds, smooth peanut butter and a avacado. Blended to make a drink
For my evening meal ive been having a steak and four boiled eggs
I know longer get the munchies at anytime because i feel full, oh and my blood pressure has dropped to 130/75

I know this might not be the healthiest diet long term but its all trial and error, at the moment it appears to be working for me

HTH

 

[KennyA]

Ive been type 2 for over 10 years, im a 60 yr old male, 5’10 and weigh 145lb. Never smoked and not touched alcohol in over30yrs, always taken care of myself fitness wise and always ate healthy ... or so i thought!
5 days ago i stopped carbs almost completely (still have yoghurt, avacado and eggs) ive just done my blood test two hrs after my last meal and my blood sugar has dropped to 5.8 from usually over the 8 mark

So for the last 5days ive been eating for lunch yoghurt, tablespoon of flax seed and two tablespoons of chia seeds, smooth peanut butter and a avacado. Blended to make a drink
For my evening meal ive been having a steak and four boiled eggs
I know longer get the munchies at anytime because i feel full, oh and my blood pressure has dropped to 130/75

I know this might not be the healthiest diet long term but its all trial and error, at the moment it appears to be working for me

HTH

Why do you think what you're eating might not be a healthy diet? And there are very few carbs in yoghurt, avocado and eggs.

 

[Mrs HJG]

No dietary change or metformin can manage Type 1 diabetes. You need insulin and a doctor who understands Type 1.

In the early days of T1/LADA it may be presenting and controlled with low carb diet, exercise, and metformin like a T2, so it can be complicated for doctors who are not familiar with the complexities and non-textbook presentation, so @Susie1804 I think your husband should ask to be tested for T1 antibodies and c-peptide, if this has not been done already, (results usually take at least a couple of weeks to come back), so at least he knows what he is dealing with for sure, and will get the advice and monitoring he needs.

 

[MrsA2]

I know this might not be the healthiest diet long term

Just add in some vegetables that grow above ground, e.g. cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli ( but not sweetcorn or too many tomatoes) and you'll be fine for life

 

[AloeSvea]

Yeah, I agree with those above - make sure his own production of insulin is being tested, the easiest and cheapest I believe is the C-peptide test route, and that can be pretty quick - as quick as your lab is with blood lipid tests. Get your doctor to explain the results to you. (It's about numbers and thresholds and so on.)

As your husband, @Susie1804 , is very physically active, make sure he is getting plenty of protein and healthy fats in his new low-carb diet, if he has in fact lowered his carbs, so he has enough fuel to keep active. He may go through a rough adjustment period if he has been consuming a lot of carbs previously (which is the modern norm), and his diabetes is in fact type 2 insulin resistance based diabetes. But your medical professionals should be following up/properly checkng him for anti bodies or failing producing his own insulin (which would mean he is a type 1 or type of type 1).

He, and you, will be going through a steep learning curve about different types of diabetes, and finding out which one he is, and working your way through the dietary advice - all really big things, imho. And he is probably in some kind of shock? Many of us have been there, so we understand.

Tell us when you know what type he is, and we can suggest great websites and books, apart from this wonderful organisation.

 

[Daibell]

It is quite possible your husband is T1/LADA and not T2. Mis-diagnosis is very common. Do ask for the two tests for T1/LADA if his blood sugar keeps rising. He may need more meds than Metformin.

 

[Cabbaged]

Why do you think what you're eating might not be a healthy diet? And there are very few carbs in yoghurt, avocado and eggs.

Because your brain washed from childhood on what you should eat

 

[Cabbaged]

Just add in some vegetables that grow above ground, e.g. cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli ( but not sweetcorn or too many tomatoes) and you'll be fine for life

 

[KennyA]

Because your brain washed from childhood on what you should eat

See what you mean. I have friends that are completely convinced my eating pattern, particularly eating fat, is going to kill me, and can't quite accept that I'm in remission and have lost weight - because I'm not eating " the healthy diet" that the media goes on about.