Recently Diagnosed

Welcome to the forum @Wilkinson12
I will tag @daisy1 who will pop up later with her very useful message.

Regarding asking for a glucose meter, I know many people on this forum with type 2 (I have type 1 which is a different condition) find a meter very useful for working out what food raises their blood sugar level and for tracking their progress.
However, if you are on no medication, you are no more likely to suffer from a hypo (very low blood sugar level) than someone without any form of diabetes. This argument will not motivate your GP to provide a meter and test strips.
By all means ask for a meter to manage your condition but be prepared to have to fund one yourself. I have read it is rare (but not unknown) for someone managing their diabetes with diet alone to be prescribed a meter and test strips.

I am sure some very friendly and helpful members with type 2 will be along soon with personal experience and advice.

Do you know what your HbA1c number is? It is important to have this information so you know your starting point. Always ask for a printout of any test results and keep them as part of your records.

A lot of us self fund. Check the cost of the strips as they are your running costs. Bank on using around 200 per month. Testing is not forever. Ask here if you want advice on meters.

And welcome to the forum. Read around and ask questions.

Hi Wilkinson and welcome.
Diabetes is a condition that causes high blood sugars or hyperglycaemia not low blood sugars or ‘hypo’ glycaemia. Only diabetics on some types of medication will suffer hypos. Your work place is showing their lack of understanding of the condition by asking you to have a meter.
On the other hand you might like to get a meter to determine which foods suit you and which don’t. We can provide info if you decide to buy one, which I highly recommend. After you’ve had a read of daisy1’s info post we can also help with dietary choices.

Wilkinson12 said:

Any help is appreciated I'm in the dark at the moment I'm willing to purchase a meter if it helps with dietary changes.
I agree regarding work just think they are playing on the safe side and are new to this like myself.

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I am sure that the request is being made out of ignorance.
Type two diabetics are far more likely to have elevated blood glucose at diagnosis and they lower it with any luck, by eating fewer carbs.
They then return to normal, except for continuing to eat fewer carbs than the average.

@Wilkinson12
Hello and welcome to the Forum Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it both interesting and helpful.

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 well over 600,000 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

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.

Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.

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

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)

• Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l

However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

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 blood glucose 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.

Welcome to the forum @Wilkinson12. Does your work involve driving? If so your employer does need to know that you won't drive if your bg is lower than 5.0 mmol/L. Also if you are operating machinery it might be a safety risk.

Having a blood glucose meter is useful for Type 2 diabetics to check how different foods affect their bg levels, so they can be avoided or limited. But the NHS doesn't usually prescribe bg meters or testing strips for Type 2s unless they are on insulin or similar meds. It's due to the cost involved.
You can get free bg meters from most manufacturers, but the ongoing cost of the test strips is the more important consideration.
I use the TEE2+ meter which costs £9.99, but if you ring the supplier Spirit Healthcare and tell them you are Type 2 they might send you a free meter. The test strips are about the cheapest at £7.75 for 50. Tick the box to say you are Type 2 as you will be exempt from VAT.

This is where you can order the TEE2+ online:
http://spirit-healthcare.co.uk/product/tee2-plus-blood-glucose-meter/
and the test strips can be ordered online here:
http://spirit-healthcare.co.uk/product/tee2-testing-strips/

Prem51 said:

Does your work involve driving? If so your employer does need to know that you won't drive if your bg is lower than 5.0 mmol/L.

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Sorry but the OP is trying diet only. The don't drive if under 5 is for people taking insulin or other hypo causing medication so is not relevant to them. Otherwise every car would come equipped with a blood sugar meter.

@bulkbiker I know T2s would not get hypos unless they are on insulin, but @Wilkinson12 's employer might not know that, especially if it is a small business.

Wilkinson12 said:

Hi I have recently been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and asked to control it with diet.
Is it wrong for work to ask me to have a glucose meter in case I have a hypo.

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I would tell work that your doctor has not said that you need to test but you will let them know in the unlikely event that this changes.
If however, you want to self fund and test before and after meals etc. that is a personal choice maybe at home rather than at work.

Wilkinson12 said:

That's brilliant thanks daisy1.
I am going on a day course for diabetes but not offered any test device.

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I don't know why but @daisy1 keeps referring to the old NICE guidelines about self testing.

The new guidelines currently in force from 2015 provide that GPs :

Do not routinely offer self-monitoring of blood glucose levels for adults with type 2 diabetes unless

• the person is on insulin or
• there is evidence of hypoglycaemic episodes
• or the person is on oral medication that may increase their risk of hypoglycaemia while driving or operating machinery
• or the person is pregnant, or is planning to become pregnant. For more information, see the NICE guideline on diabetes in pregnancy.

See https://www.nice.org.uk/donotdo/do-...that-may-increase-their-risk-of-hypoglycaemia