That's why many T2's buy a meter and test strips. With that you can simply check if a particular meal gives you high numbers or not. Very useful!
That's why many T2's buy a meter and test strips. With that you can simply check if a particular meal gives you high numbers or not. Very useful!The proof will be in the readings when I next go back for my appointment with the diabetic nurse. The only problem is that it's not until mid-August.
That's why many T2's buy a meter and test strips. With that you can simply check if a particular meal gives you high numbers or not. Very useful!
@JoKalsbeek , I know you're from the Netherlands as well, but I'm pretty sure you remember where to find the useful information about buying a meter and strips in the UK. I forgot who always shares it...Dear Antje77
Thank you so much for telling me about this. I didn't even know that there was such a thing I could buy. It sounds very useful indeed. I will explore that.
Thanks
Sheila
@JoKalsbeek , I know you're from the Netherlands as well, but I'm pretty sure you remember where to find the useful information about buying a meter and strips in the UK. I forgot who always shares it...
Ah, I 'tagged' JoKalsbeek, her name in red means she'll get an alert to have a look here. All glucose meters work pretty good, but there's a big difference in the cost of teststrips so I wanted her to find you some advise as to which meter to buy to save you some moneyThanks. I am not from the Netherlands - always lived in England! However, I've looked on Amazon and they sell them.
Thanks
Sheila
Hi, Mike
Thanks for your reply. Yes, you are right - my diet did need some serious attention. I have cut out all the sweet drinks, cake, puddings, pies and pastry and replaced them with additional vegetables and lean meat with smaller portions.
Fruits include strawberries, cherries, banana, nectarines, melon, raspberries, plums, oranges etc. I know some of these fruits are high in sugar so I keep them to small portions.
I used to have fruit and fibre for breakfast, with grapes on the top. My diabetic nurse told me not to have this so I now have porridge with blueberries on top! I have to get my sugar levels down before I go back to see her or she said I will have to go on insulin.
Kind regards
Sheila
Ah, I 'tagged' JoKalsbeek, her name in red means she'll get an alert to have a look here. All glucose meters work pretty good, but there's a big difference in the cost of teststrips so I wanted her to find you some advise as to which meter to buy to save you some money
She'll pop up on this thread for that!
Sheila
Take your advice from here, not just some potentially outdated course. The gathered experts (and there's more than quite a few) will guide you. Lean meat? Nope. Fatty meat believe it or not.
Stick around, you'll be stunned !!
Mike
That'd be @Bluetit1802. i found one, hope it's up-to-date:@JoKalsbeek , I know you're from the Netherlands as well, but I'm pretty sure you remember where to find the useful information about buying a meter and strips in the UK. I forgot who always shares it...
However, I've looked on Amazon and they sell them.
Thanks
Sheila
Thanks very much for your advice.@JoKalsbeek gave you some information above. If I may explain. You only need one blood glucose meter but you need many thousands of test strips, so it is the test strips where the expense comes from. This is why we self funding Type 2s look for reasonably priced strips rather than cheap meters. Some manufacturers give away meters because they know they will recoup their money from selling the strips. Strips are not interchangeable between meters. If you browse round Amazon or the internet, make sure you check the cost of the strips before you buy the meter. They vary from about £8 for 50 to about £30 for 50, so a huge difference. As Jo said in her post above, the Codefree and the Tee2+ have the cheapest strips that we know of.
Contrary to cartridges though, there are no cheap off-brand alternative/compatible stips. Now there's an idea, haha!Thanks very much for your advice.
It's obviously like buying printers. The printer is reasonably-priced and the ink cartridges cost a bomb. We've just had to replace our HP cartridges and were astounded to find that for the black ink & the 3 colour it cost just short of £100. The diabetic meters will use the same principle.
Thanks very much.
Sheila
Thank you very much, Jo for all this information. I'm sorry if my reply is late - I'm still trying to find my way round this App. I've only just spotted your reply.That'd be @Bluetit1802. i found one, hope it's up-to-date:
There are two meters that have cheap strips and both are popular on this forum for self funding T2s.
The Codefree and the Tee2. You can't normally buy these in pharmacies.
Try here for the Codefree meter
http://homehealth-uk.com/product-category/blood-glucose/blood-glucose-monitor/
and here for the extra strips
http://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/sd-codefree-test-strips-to-be-used-only-with-the-sd-monitor/
There are discount codes if you buy in bulk. (applied at the check out stage)
5 packs 264086
10 packs 975833
The Tee2+ is here
http://spirit-healthcare.co.uk/product-category/shop/tee2/
Don’t forget to check the box that you have diabetes so you can buy VAT free. (for either meter)
I can't tell you, as I don't know a lot about this whole internet thing and I have never used the app, as the forum works just fine on my browser. But I asked about this in the moderator team. One of us will get back to you, hopefully with an answerIt's very strange that I've had an email today saying that the App is out of date and no longer works. It wanted me to log in via an intermediary. It's working fine on my Samsung phone (android) but I haven't tried it on my iPad (ios) yet. I'm wondering if it is a scam.
Thank you very much, Jo for all this information. I'm sorry if my reply is late - I'm still trying to find my way round this App. I've only just spotted your reply.
It is very kind of you to go to so much trouble. I appreciate the details and links which you've sent me. Thank you also for telling me that diabetes sufferers don't have to pay VAT. I certainly didn't know that!
It's very strange that I've had an email today saying that the App is out of date and no longer works. It wanted me to log in via an intermediary. It's working fine on my Samsung phone (android) but I haven't tried it on my iPad (ios) yet. I'm wondering if it is a scam.
With kind regards
Sheila
Good evening, PavlosHi Sheila and welcome to our forum
I hope you are not finding all the advice too confusing given that it probably contradicts what you have read in the diabetes UK site and been told in the workshop you have attended.
Basically there are two schools of thought with regards to managing diabetes and bringing glucose levels down.
Both agree that effective treatment is through a combination of lifestyle changes to a healthier diet and more exercise and if necessary medication.
Where the two disagree is on what constitute a healthy diet for a diabetic.
Now all our food consists of a combination of three main macronutrients fats (eg butter, cream, oil), protein (eg meat, fish, poultry) and carbohydrates ( pasta, bread, sugar, rice, potatoes).
It is important to realise that foods high in carbohydrates ( not just sugar) are the ones that cause our blood glucose levels to rise the most. Carbohydrates are the go to substances for our body to obtain a quick source of energy by converting them to glucose which enters our bloodstream following digestion. Glucose is necessary fuel for our body cells but for the glucose to leave our blood and enter the cells insulin, a hormone secreted by the beta cells in our pancreas when high blood glucose levels are detected is needed. In diabetics though this self regulating mechanism does not work properly, either because the pancreas does not produce enough insulin (type 1 diabetes) or insulin is produced but the body is resistant to it and does not use it properly to get the glucose into our cells (type 2 diabetes).
Foods rich in fats and proteins do not get converted to glucose quite as fast or to the same extent.
So in order to control glucose levels it is important to control consumption not just of sugar but of all carbohydrate rich food.
Where the two approaches differ is the extent that this carb restriction should take.
Most doctors ask diabetics to still eat plenty of "healthy" carbohydrates such as brown bread rice etc.
The approach promoted by many on this forum based on their own experiences is that all carbohydrates should be greatly restricted or in some cases almost eliminated from our diet. As the calories one gets from this food group have to be replaced from somewhere in order to have the necessary energy to carry on with the business of living foods high in fat and to a lesser extent protein are substituted for the carb rich food, hence the suggestion for bacon and eggs instead of porridge for breakfast. Your reaction to this was to say that this was too much of the wrong type of fat. A sensible reaction based on what doctors/nutritionists have been telling us. Experience has shown though that this is not the case. Faced with a lack of carbohydrates to provide us with energy the body turns to burning fat for its needs, instead of storing it that it would have done otherwise. The result is a surprising improvement in cholesterol and triglyceride counts following adoption of a low carb diet.
But how much does one need to restrict carb intake to manage his/her levels?
As you correctly pointed out the only way to answer this is through trial and error. But relying on the glucose count carried out by your doctor/nurse will not provide feedback to you that is frequent enough to allow you to do so. As you say if you do not lower your levels by your next visit you may be put on insulin. Why risk it if you do not need it?
The answer has already been suggested to you by another poster.
You need to buy yourself a glucose monitor and self test. Ideally you should test before and two hours after each meal. If the after count is more than 2 mmol more than the before count, then that meal contained too many carbs for you. Next time you have it you should reduce whatever part of the meal was rich in carbs.
Don't worry about how high your counts are at first. Concentrst on consistently getting the 2 mmol rule right and you will soon see a drop in your overall levels.
I hope I was able to help somewhat.
Regards
Pavlos
Thank you very much for your reply. I'm sorry if I'm late in answering your post. I'm still trying to work out how this App works. I've only just spotted your reply.Hi Sheila,
Whatever you did worked! I can see everything now.
Fruit is very difficult for T2s I'm afraid. It is the fructose. Fructose is dealt with by the liver, which regards it as toxic, a bit like alcohol. The liver turns the fructose into fat, which it stores around itself and leads to fatty liver. Fatty liver is just what we T2s do not need because it is part and parcel of insulin resistance - the reason most of us become T2 in the first place. Strawberries and raspberries are the best fruits to eat, with something fatty such as a full fat Greek yogurt or double cream. Blueberries are higher in sugar, and tropical fruits are very high in sugar. Bananas and grapes are the worst.
Sorry to say, but porridge is also a very difficult food for us because it is very carb heavy. This is especially so if made with milk. Look on the packet at the nutritional information and take note of the total carb amount. Anything above 10% is not a wise choice, and most of us prefer it to be under 5%. This applies to all packaged foods apart from the odd ones you may only have a tiny portion of.
What you need is a blood glucose meter. You can then test immediately before you eat and again one and two hours after first bite. This will show you instantly what that food has done to your levels. If the rise from before eating is 2mmol/l or more at the 2 hour mark there are definitely too many carbs in that meal. It is preferable for the rise to be a lot less than 2mmol/l.
Thanks very much for your reply.I can't tell you, as I don't know a lot about this whole internet thing and I have never used the app, as the forum works just fine on my browser. But I asked about this in the moderator team. One of us will get back to you, hopefully with an answer
Thanks very much for your reply.
I appreciate you asking the moderator about the strange email I had saying the App was no longer working. It is certainly working on my phone.
Kind regards
Sheila
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