Recently diagnosed type 1 and rapidly gaining weight

[SueJB]

Im a recently diagnosed type 1 diabetic and i have noticed that i have been gaining a significant amount of weight. In the space of 3 months i have went from eleven stone to 13 stone and my BMI is now overweight. I am aware of the consequences of being type 1 and overweight and i am wondering what is the best way for a type 1 diabetic to lose weight.

Hi
I know how you feel. It's easy to say don't worry about your weight but I did and I think it's natural that you'll be wondering about the change in your body including the weight and how to regain control. I'd start this as soon as possible and not wait until your BG stabalizes. I went low carb. Losing weight is much harder than putting it on so be extremely patient. Keep a food diary, you can't cheat then and it really focuses you on how many carbs and cals you eat. I feel really chuffed when I tot up these at the end of the day and they're low, get up the next morning to find I've lost 0.1 of a kilo, it's tiny but they all add to a growing weight loss. Good luck, you can do it, you're the boss of your body!!

 

[Circuspony]

Exercise, exercise, exercise! Even a 10 min power walk around the block helps. It will also increase your insulin sensitivity. I tend to find in the days I don't exercise my insulin requirements almost double. It's easy to blame the extra insulin for the weight gain, but actually it's the lack of movement.

 

[Robinredbreast]

Here's a useful link :-

http://www.diabetesincontrol.com/losing-weight-with-diabetes/

 

[Deleted Account]

Until I joined this forum, I had never heard of type 1s gaining weight because of insulin. Every time it is raised, someone debunks this theory.

There are a few things to consider in this area:

• As others have said, when we are first diagnosed, it is likely that we have lost weight: this is one of the symptoms of undiagnosed diabetes. This is caused my our bodies not being able to gain energy from glucose so break down protein (muscle and/or fat) instead. One our BG is reduced, our weight it likely to return.
• Insulin resistance is associated with weight gain. With type 2, insulin resistance may increase with insulin injections. It is unusual to have insulin resistance with controlled type 1. Therefore, unlikely to experience weight gain with insulin.
• Withholding insulin leads to weight loss. This is caused by very high BG which is not advised. This is a serious problem sometimes called diabulimia.

If your diabetes is well managed, weight gain and loss techniques should be along the same lines as not having diabetes: exercise and diet control.