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Red Wine

Patch

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,981
Location
Bristol
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Insulin
Can someone give me some advice re: Red Wine? I've been laying off the alcohol completely recently (got a hospital appointement in the beginning of March - and I MUST get my Trigs down...), and plan on not drinking until then. When I do start drinking again I was gonna lay off the Lager, and drink only vodka/gin with sugar free mixers.

Would it be a better idea to drink Red Wine? I don't mean drink with my meals (I only drink on a weekend) I mean drinking maybe the equivalent of 2 or 2 1/2 bottles in an evening (over the course of maybe 6 hours) when I'm out with the boys after football. Maybe I could have a large glass of Red Wine mixed with soda water in a pint glass? (!)

I know I shouldn't "binge" drink - but if I am gonna drink on a weekend, I'd like to know that what I'm drinking isn't gonna hit me in the Trigs...
 
Hi Patch,
There is a discussion entiled "Wine?" on the General Chat board. You will see by reading this that red wine lowers blood sugar. Considering the amount you intend to drink I would be concerned about how much your blood sugar is going to drop. I am sure that you are aware that binge drinking does your liver no favours so there is quite a lot for you to consider here.
Hope this helps,
Catherine.
 
Well I have had a couple of occasions when I have drunk rather more red wine than I should have,tested and my BG has been 4.2 and 4.3! Now I only have impaired fasting BG not yet diabetes, by low carbing my fasting BG's are around 5.
With regard to your trigs, I did't know they were connected with booze, I have a glass of red wine most nights and when we go out a little more, although then I don't drink for a couple of nights, my trigs were 0.9 on my blood test. I take a high epa fish oil everyday these are supposed to be good for trigs.
Hope this helps
 
I've been told that Trigs are directly linked to alcohol intake. Maybe I was misinformed. I'm Type 2, so if drinking Red Wine at meal times will lower by BG levels then goddamn it I'll do it! (In the name of good health, you understand!)

Thanks for the replys - I really appreciate it.

[EDIT: Do you think that it would be worth my time drinking Red Wine before my hospital appointment in March? If Red Wine lowers BG, that's a definite reason to take some. But I'm laying off the alcohol in order to try to reduce my trigs. Would the alcohol in the wine have an effect on my trigs?]
 
Patch

The reason why drinks such a wine, spirits lower the BG is to do with the liver, because the liver can not muliti task, so why it is processing the alcohol it can not produce or store any gluegon in your liver, this stops any glucose going into the blood stream from the liver hence the drop in BG... For T1 this increases the dangers of having a hypo..

As to weather to drink red wine before your hospital appointment, well if you do there is a good chance that they might suggest that you pay a visit to a AA meeting!
 
Thanks for the responses - that's really helpful.

I can't help but believe conventional thinking is holding treatment of diabetes back. First I find out that fat is good, then I find out that alcohol is good!

There's just too much money in medicine for them to explore the alternatives...
 
Patch,
I am certainly no expert on alcohol and trigs, just because my trigs are low and I have a glass of wine most evenings may have no bearing on you. I would hate to think of you starting drinking in earnest on my say so!!
My husband has highish trigs, he started taking fish oil tablets and his have come down to normal levels now. Perhaps they might be worth a try.
Jo
 
Thanks Jo. I'll give it a try! Can you recomend some high quality fish oil?
 
I use Morepa, they are expensive but I heard a doctor recommend them on the radio, they are pharmaceutical grade which means they have been purified to make sure there are no heavy metal residuals, apparently when the Food Standards Agency analysed some of the cheaper brands in the past they have sometimes had higher levels of mercury than they should do. You only need one a day.
I get mine from the nutricentre via the tesco website.

If you are having oily fish such as mackerel or salmon three times a week then you wouldn't need to take them as you would be getting enough anyway.
 
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