It started 3rd Oct with Lymphodema in my leg that erupted like a waterfall! Leg now settled down and bandaged. Following two separate fasting blood tests the Doctor gave the good news last week that I am diabetic. I await the result of a third non fasting blood test and am seeing the Diabetic Nurse at the surgery 5th Jan. Then last Friday I get put on blood pressure medication. Great start to Xmas. I have not been told if I will need medication for diabetes yet and I assume that comes after the results of the 3rd blood test. Currently I have started a diet as am 27 stone to reduce blood pressure and help with diabetes. I started low salt diet last Oct as I read that could be the cause of lymphodemia so that should help with the blood pressure. One piece of good news from the blood results was l have low cholesterol. As to the diet, I am going to try the 5:2 diet to shift the excess weight.
-
Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »
Recently diagnosed diabetic.
- Thread starter Duncan57
- Start Date
Juicyjan53
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 86
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
Hello and welcome Duncan, you've come to the right place for friendly advice. Good news about your cholesterol. If you're going to do 5:2 diet just be aware of starchy and high carbohydrates. There's loads of info on this site about the benefits to diabetics following a low carb diet. I wish you all of the best. Jan
Clivethedrive
Well-Known Member
Hi @Duncan,this forum ad the wonderful posters on it are worthy of a cdm( cadburys dairy medal,...other medals are aailable) glad your hee keep posting and Big welcome to you,clive
I'm becoming a bit sceptical about the accuracy of the weighing machines in Boots. You know the ones where you get your height and weight for 50p. I weighed myself last week and again this week. The machine claims I am 6ft 7in, I am 6ft. This week the machine claimed I have lost over a stone!! I think I broke the machine.
Had my first meet with the diabetic nurse at my local surgery. She said I would be in the diet controlled diabetic categorie. She said I will be sent details of a local Desmond course to attend. Blood pressure going down thankfully. Lymphodemia improving and I started walking more each day for exercise. Started with 20 minute walk each this week and will gradually increase each week. Eventually I hope to be walking the couple of miles into work each day instead of catching the bus. I don 't know yet if it would be wise to join a gym with my high blood pressure at present. I will check with the doctor next time I am at the surgery.
ladybird64
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 1,731
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
- Dislikes
- Dishonesty, selfishness and lack of empathy.
Hi Duncan. I had a quick look back through your posts and I don't think you have had the welcome info yet, so am tagging @daisy1 who can provide that for you. Many of us find the diet advocated by the Diabetic nurses/NHS to be unsuitable for our diabetes due to the advice that we need to eat starchy carbs. For most diabetics this really isn't a good thing as they all turn to glucose in the blood.
So..that's cereals, bread, pasta, rice, potatoes. Brown/wholemeal varieties are often suggested but they still turn to glucose too - only slower. Anyway, I'm sure daisy will be along soon, so a belated welcome from me.
So..that's cereals, bread, pasta, rice, potatoes. Brown/wholemeal varieties are often suggested but they still turn to glucose too - only slower. Anyway, I'm sure daisy will be along soon, so a belated welcome from me.
daisy1
Legend
- Messages
- 26,457
- Location
- Switzerland
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
- Dislikes
- Cruelty towards animals.
@Duncan57
Hello Duncan and welcome to the forum Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you need to and someone will help.
BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS
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 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
Access to blood glucose test strips
The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
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.
Hello Duncan and welcome to the forum
Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you need to and someone will help.BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS
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
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
- Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
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.
No Chips!!!Hi Duncan. I had a quick look back through your posts and I don't think you have had the welcome info yet, so am tagging @daisy1 who can provide that for you. Many of us find the diet advocated by the Diabetic nurses/NHS to be unsuitable for our diabetes due to the advice that we need to eat starchy carbs. For most diabetics this really isn't a good thing as they all turn to glucose in the blood.
So..that's cereals, bread, pasta, rice, potatoes. Brown/wholemeal varieties are often suggested but they still turn to glucose too - only slower. Anyway, I'm sure daisy will be along soon, so a belated welcome from me.
OMG!Thanks.@Duncan57
Hello Duncan and welcome to the forum
BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS
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
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.
- Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
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.
ladybird64
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 1,731
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
- Dislikes
- Dishonesty, selfishness and lack of empathy.
No Chips!!!
I'm afraid not! Joking aside Duncan, the best advice I can give you is to purchase a meter (doubtful your nurse will provide one but you could ask!) and start testing, before and two hours after meals. We are all affected differently and you may be like me, able to tolerate small amounts of certain carbs - for example, I can't touch bread but can eat spuds (small amounts!!).
You may be advised against testing but it's honestly the best way to empower yourself, you will be able to manage your diet much better.
Saw the diabetic nurse last week. She said I will need to book to have an diabetic eye check and that I would be sent details of booking a Desmond course. Gave me a standard sheet of food To eat and foods to avoid. Gave me feet a tickle! (Not sure what she was checking for) and finished by telling me to se her in a years time. This week at the surgery I get told I am starting Metformin one a day for the first week rising to two a day next week. Nothing said by the diabetic nurse about being prescribe this. Nothing said about doing blood sugar checks so I assume I do not need to. I assume I get more information at the Desmond course. Still on the blood pressure pills and have started walking half an hour each morning before starting work.
ladybird64
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 1,731
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
- Dislikes
- Dishonesty, selfishness and lack of empathy.
Duncan, |I'm afraid this is the all too often kind of scenario encountered with diabetic nurse appts. Patients are mostly told ther is no need to self monitor with type 2 because it will worry them, why make your fingers sore, what could you do with the info etc. If there is one thing I would advise you to do, it's that - check your own blood glucose levels. Metformin is a standard treatment but in reality, although a good med for it's cardiovascular protective properties, it doesn't lower bg levels by very much at all. Unless you test, even if it's for a couple of months, there is no way you will know what food affect your bg, causing what we call spikes - high levels. If you do not see the nurse for a year, you could be walking around with high levels that cause damage over time, and you won't know it.
The best way to keep levels under control is to self monitor and find out what foods you can eat, and what spike you and should be avoided. The usual dietary advice given by the NHS to type 2's, the "healthy" diet may be healthy for the general population but it doesn't do us any favours unfortunately, this is why so many end up with added complications - I know this may seem hard to believe but it really is the case. If that diet sheet advises that you should eat plenty of starchy carbs for energy, they will push your levels up. It is also becoming more obvious (with increasing studies to back it up), that the current dietary advice is outdated, particularly around the issue of carbs and healthy fats, such as butter. Cereal, bread, potatoes, pasta and rice are the usual culprits - even the "healthy" versions. You may be one of those who can eat a level of carbohydrate but the only way to find out is to test. A cheap meter is the SD Codefree, available on Amazon. It's the test strips themselves that are very expensive usually, and one of the reasons the NHS doesn't like us to test! Test strips for this meter are cheap also.
Maybe give that a go? You may even be able to get away with some chips occasionally!
The best way to keep levels under control is to self monitor and find out what foods you can eat, and what spike you and should be avoided. The usual dietary advice given by the NHS to type 2's, the "healthy" diet may be healthy for the general population but it doesn't do us any favours unfortunately, this is why so many end up with added complications - I know this may seem hard to believe but it really is the case. If that diet sheet advises that you should eat plenty of starchy carbs for energy, they will push your levels up. It is also becoming more obvious (with increasing studies to back it up), that the current dietary advice is outdated, particularly around the issue of carbs and healthy fats, such as butter. Cereal, bread, potatoes, pasta and rice are the usual culprits - even the "healthy" versions. You may be one of those who can eat a level of carbohydrate but the only way to find out is to test. A cheap meter is the SD Codefree, available on Amazon. It's the test strips themselves that are very expensive usually, and one of the reasons the NHS doesn't like us to test! Test strips for this meter are cheap also.
Maybe give that a go? You may even be able to get away with some chips occasionally!
