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Reversing symptoms of Diabetes 2

S

sylvie1

Newbie
Hi everybody I am currently appearing on GMTV on Lorraine Kelly's feature "Drop a Dress Size Before Christmas" and through adjusting portion sizes and tweaks to my diet including regular excercise everyday of about 40 mins to an hour my sugar levels have dropped below 5 for the first time since being diagnosed about 18 months ago The nutritionist Phil says that it is possible to reverse the symptoms over time and this has been confirmed by my nhs doctor last week so come on you guys we can beat this thing!!!!!

Sylvia Stoner

Star of stage screen and Radio ha ha lol!!!
 
Hi Sylvia.
Welcome to forum, even if is a bit belated...... :?
You seem to be getting on well. Are the readings of 5mmol/l 2 hrs after meals by any chance ?
 
sylvie1 said:
...........The nutritionist Phil says that it is possible to reverse the symptoms over time and this has been confirmed by my nhs doctor last week so come on you guys we can beat this thing!!!!!...........
Click to expand...
Hi Sylvia - Welcome!

You will find many stories of Type 2 reversal on these diabetes forums. In the main, largely achieved by cutting back on starchy carbohydrates such as cereals, bread, potatoes, pasta and rice etc.

Best wishes - John
 
Hi Sylvia

I am totally new to this forum but your post really inspired me and I am delighted at the results you have achieved. I am currently reading books by Dr Neal Barnard, Dr Joel Fuhrman and Dr Gabriel Cousens on the marvellous results they have seen in reversing diabetes in thousands of their patients. It can be done and I am beginning a journey to try and reverse mine too.

Could you advise me on what your methods are to date and what would a typical menu be for you

Thanks and I wish you every success!

Please keep us posted

Arlene
 
Hi Sylvie
It's possible, by careful diet, to control T2 to non-diabetic levels
Several of us on this forum do so, however, should we eat a large portion of carbs, our blood glucose would go up. This is control, NOT cure.
I'm in the non-diabetic range almost all the time, but If I ate a whole baked potato, or a portion of rice or pasta, I wouldn't be.
Hana
 
Hi Arlene,

It was the book by Dr Neil Barnard that got me into my improvement programme - I found it inspirational. However, the most important way to get control of blood glucose control is by managing carbohydrates - particularly the starchy carbohydrates such as cereals, bread, potatoes, pasta and rice. Dr Barnard didn't really take that approach but I still think that it is a great book because it told me that reversal of Type 2 was possible. Before that everyone else had told me that progression of my diabetes - i.e. deterioration - was inevitable. Over the last twelve months, I have come to realise that progression need not take place with well controlled blood glucose levels.

Yes - I can confirm that reversal is possible and you'll get there in the end if you stay committed to working at it.

Good luck and best wishes - John
 
HI John

Thanks for that encouragement. I really have never been told properly how I should eat and I am struggling to get an eating programme together that works for me.
Yesterday I ate out and ate things I likely shouldn't have and yet at bedtime my bs was nearly normal. Today I ate potatoes with just beans and peas and my bs was way up. I am so confused what a typical menu plan would be.

Today I am so downhearted I could sit and cry. I would love to get an eating regimen together that really works.

What would a typical day's eating for you consist of?

So weary.

Arlene
 
Hi Arlene,

Please don't get down because I can tell from what little you have written so far that you have already taken the first steps in getting your diabetes under control. Just keep doing what you are doing and coming to this forum and I'll take a bet now that you will quickly improve your situation.

Really the main thing to learn quickly is that you need to cut back on starchy carbohydrates - i.e. cereals, bread, potatoes, pasta and rice. It would seem that you learnt that lesson today with your meal of potatoes. Cutting back on these foods usually leads to a very significant reduction in blood glucose levels - and that process generally happens very quickly. You don't need to wait until you have lost a lot of weight or started some exercise programme. The introduction of weight loss and exercise might very well help your overall health situation and even your diabetic situation but, in my experience at least, the improvement in blood glucose levels will come before any of that has taken place.

Dr Barnard's book is inspirational because it does tell the diabetic that reversal is possible through diet. However, where it falls dow as far as I am concerned is that it doesn't recognise the absolute importance of cutting back on the starchy carbohydrates - it concentrates on reducing the patient's fat intake.

I have posted a fairly recent day from my food diary on other forums and, since you have asked, I will post it here also in a few minutes. I hope that you will find it useful. If you want to ask more questions then just feel free to ask away. I'm certain that others will help too. Basically, it is grilled bacon, tomatoes or mushrooms for breakfast - with egg if you want. Most often lunch is a salad with added fruit. My evening meal varies a lot but is basically meat or fish with plenty of vegetables - but with only small amounts of potaoes, rice, or pasta. Snacks are largely pieces of fruit and a small amount of nuts - I limit the nuts to 20-25g per day because of the high calorie content. These days I don't drink very much alcohol - just the odd glass of red wine and very occasionally a beer - about ten units a week.

Just remember that this is a long-term situation and you will need to just keep working at it. Doing that should steer you clear of the quite nasty complications that can come a diabetics way.

Cheer up! When is your programme due to be shown? I'd like to watch if I haven't missed it.

Best wishes - John
 
nuway2health said:
............What would a typical day's eating for you consist of?.........
Click to expand...
My food diary and testing records show me that on this particular day, I ate 181.6 grams of carbohydrate in a daily total of 1383 calories - i.e. at 4 cals per gram of carbohydrate more than 50% of that diet was taken as carbohydrates.

4.1 - On rising

Breakfast
Vogel's Soya & Linseed Bran (45g) - Carb 20.4g
Skimmed Milk - Creamfields 0.75% fat (150ml) - Carb 7.4g
8.6 - one hour after finishing eating
6.8 - 90 mins after finishing eating
(Note this isn't my usual breakfast and gave a relatively poor result as far as I'm concerned because it took me higher than my target of 8. My usual breakfast is grilled lean bacon (2 rashers) with tomatoes - total carbs 4.6g which hardly does anything to my blood glucose levels.

Lunch - A popular and common choice these days - sometimes with ham, chicken, sardines, mackerel or other types of cheese.
Cottage Cheese with pineapple - Carb 4.5g
Salad - Grapes, lettuce, celery, cucumber, radishes, red pepper, tomatoes, spring onions, flax seeds & dressing - Carb 18.2g

Light Teatime Meal
Yoghurt - Muller Light - Mandarin (200g) - Carb 15.0g
Tesco Oatcakes (2) - Carb 10.8g
Orange (85g) - carb 7.0g

5.7 - one hour after finishing eating

I took my grandson to cricket nets in Leeds which is one hour drive each way and two hours at the venue. These days, in such situations, I take fruit along and eat it at approximately one hour intervals. I do the same when I go to a football or cricket match etc.

Apple (125g) - Carb 11.0g

Pear (100g) - Carb 10.0g

Orange (85g) - Carb 7.0g

Late Evening Meal
Veggie Mince Chilli - Carb 38g
Cabbage - Carb 8.2g

6.1 - one hour after finishing eating

Tesco Luxury Mixed Nuts & Dried fruit (20g) - Carb 9.0g

Supper
Ryvita Multi-Seeded Thins (2) - Carb 11.4g
Tesco Light Soured Cream Dip - Carb 3.7g

5.1 - one hour after finishing eating

Cereal for breakfast for a change but no bread, potatoes, rice or pasta at all throughout the day!

I do eat very different to that on other days - often including more meat and fish - but not much of that these days.

I hope that this information might be of interest to you and possibly others!

John
 

John thank you soooooooo much for those helpful replies you are a real inspiration! I really do appreciate your comments and food diary suggestions so much. Nobody ever explained this to me, i just was expected to get on with it because I am diet controlled and not on any meds.

I do find that if I eat sausages or fish fingers for example or processed foods that my bs is raised. I am finding raised levels in the morning too and that is a fasting reading. I am trying to cut out meat products or at least keep them to a minimum but at the minute there is no pattern to my readings and I have got rather disheartened.

Have you read the book by Dr Joel Fuhrman called 'Eat to Live' it is very helpful and his website and blogs are very informative as well. You can google him and see him on YouTube.

You must be delighted with your results I certainly would be ecstatic at those readings!

I think you have got me mixed up with another lady on the forum called Sylvia, it is her that is appearing on tv not me!

Thanks for the links I am going to read them now and I really appreciate your help and encouragement

Arlene
 
Hi Arlene

Can I ask why you are trying to eliminate meat products from your diet? Is it because of the diabetes? Are you substituting other forms of protein for them?

Regards

Pavlos
 
pavlosn said:
Hi Arlene

Can I ask why you are trying to eliminate meat products from your diet? Is it because of the diabetes? Are you substituting other forms of protein for them?

Regards

Pavlos
Click to expand...

I am currently reading Dr Fuhrman's book Eat to Live and he strongly recommends as does Dr Barnard that you cut out or reduce animal protein and stick to plant based proteins. Also I have found that meat and processed meat products seem to send my bs v high. I am new to this all so really I am confused what to do and trying to experiment with foods to see how they affect my bs readings.

Have you any helpful advise Pavlos?

Arlene
 
I eat all sorts of proteins, animal and vegetable. Makes no difference. I have found that reducing the carbohydrates and obvious sugars together with good portion control is the main factor in getting excellent blood glucose control and also losing weight.

Eat a healthy 'balanced' diet with a variety of proteins, some small amount of fats, plenty of fruit and vegetables. You won't go far wrong. I have never subscribed to 'fad' diets.....it is just a change of lifestyle, a way of eating that will prolong your life and eliminate the complications caused by out of control Diabetes.
 
Hi Arlene

Welcome to the forum.

I am not familiar with the particular authors or their books so can not comment on them. I will make a note to obtain copies and read through them soon.

I am sure that we would all love it if diabetes could be reveresed.

Hoever, current medical thinking is that diabetes can not be reversed and that is in fact a degenerative disease that inevitably causes the patients' condition to progressively deteriorate until finally he or she suffers the dreaded long term diabetic complications of cardiovascular disease, kidney failure, blindness, gangrene etc. All very depressing staff. :cry:

The increased risk of diabetics developing these extreemly unpleasant conditions is unfortunately a reality. All is not doom and gloom however.

Evidence shows that with better glycaemic control this risk is significantly reduced; by as much as 35-40% for each percentage point reduction in HbA1C score.

Also it is importand to realise that many of the adverse statistics quoted regarding diabetics and long term complications, reflect the "average" diabetic and, again unfortunately, the latest statistical evidence, indicates that the average diabetic in the UK is not very good at his glyceamic control; only about 50% of UK diabetics achieve the current HbA1c guideline score of at least 7.5%. There is no reason why you or any other diabetic, should not be significantly better than average, a lot of the people on this site certainly are.

In fact, a lot of the people on the site are aiming for significantly lower HbA1c scores than the 7.5% guideline aiming for scores much closer to the non diabetic 5%. We hope that at this level diabetes stops getting progressively worse and the increased risk of long term complications is eliminated.

I believe that as a newly diagnosed diabetic, rather than trying to reverse your condition and running the risk of being disappointed and giving up, if, as predicted by current medical thinking, you do not succed, you should adopt a more stepped approach:

First concentrate on achieving control of your blood glucose to within current gudeline levels. According to the latest UK guidelines, T2 diabetics should aim for a maximum HbA1C score of 7.5% and blood glucose levels between 4 - 7 mmol/l. for any reading taken first thing in the morning before any food is taken (fasting blood glucose level), and blood glucose levels of no more than 8.5 mmol/l for any reading taken two hours after any meal.

Then, if you wish try to aim for non diabetic scores: a maximum HbA1C score of 5% and blood glucose levels between 4 - 7 mmol/l. for any reading taken first thing in the morning before any food is taken (fasting blood glucose level), and blood glucose levels of no more than 6 mmol/l for any reading taken two hours after any meal.

Then you can try experimenting further to reverse the diabetes.

So what should you do to achieve the guideline scores?

You need to adopt lifestyle changes that will assist you in the long term to gain control over your diabetes i.e. you need new healthy habits that you can maintain for life if necessary.

What you eat,how much you eat and how often you eat will have a direct bearing over your blood glucose levels. In particular the quantity and type of carbohydrates you eat will be particularly relevant. Carbohydrates are divided into sugars and starches such as rice, pasta, potatoes, and cereals. Both types of carbs are converted into glucose when consumed. You should try to avoid sugars (only have sugar as a rear treat not as a regular indulgunce) and limit your intake of starches to quantities that will keep your blood glucose levels within the above limits.

In order to limit your carbs effectively you will need to learn how to count them and you will also need to start self monitoring your blood glucose level and keep a food diary. By testing before and two hours after a meal you will be able to educate yourself on what foods you should avoid or restrict in order to keep your glucose under control.

You should increase your level of physical activity. Walking is very good in this respect and you should aim for about half an hour per day.

If overweight, you should aim to lose weight. Fat is much more insuline resistant than muscle so reducing weight and increasing body muscle has a beneficial effect on glyceamic control.

You should also try to avoid highly stressful situations as stress also causes glucose levels to rise.

With regards to drink, this should not be taken in excess as alcohol lowers blood glucose and in excess could cause hypocglycaemia. I believe that a couple of glasses of red wine per day, especially if taken with food, is meant to be an antioxidant and good for you.

I hope you do not find my reply too dispiriting. I would love for you to prove me wrong and reverse your condition.

Once again welcome to the forum .

Pavlos
 

Thanks Pavlos I am really confused by all I have read and listened. Nobody ever told me exactly what to do when diagnosed and I have started testing my bs on my own initiative. As yet I cannot get a handle on what is really improving my bs or making it worse and it fluctuates so much at times.

If i could get a good regimen going for daily menus which keep my bs steady I could persevere from there.

Thanks for your advice

Arlene
 
Dear Arlene

Here is the basic diet recommended to me by my doctor when I was first diagnosed. It is by no means low carb but it worked for me and I like it because it was easy to remember and did not require me to weigh anything.

Breakfast:
One or two slices of bread.
Either 5 olives or small slice of low fat cheese.
Small glass of skimmed milk.

Snack (11 o clock)
One fruit: Apple, pear, orange or 15 strawberries or 15 rasberries or 10 grapes.
Or One Crispbread.

Lunch:
One small piece (size of deck of cards) of len meat or chicken or fish. Not fried.
Either two small potatoes (walnut size) or two tablespoons of rice or two tablespoons of pasta or six tablespoons of cooked bulghur wheat or six tablespoons of cooked pulses.
Salad or non starchy vegetables with olive oil based dressing.
One slice of bread.
One fruit.

To visualize: Imagine your plate cut in half by a line drawn down the middle and fill one half of your plate with salad or green vegatables. Imagine the remaining half cut again into two quarters: one quarter should have meat or fish or chicken and one quarter rice or pasta or other starch

Snack (4p.m.)
One fruit: Apple, pear, orange or 15 strawberries or 15 rasberries or 10 grapes.
Or One Crispbread.

Dinner:
As lunch

Before going to bed:
Ong small glass of skimmed milk

Also allowed two cups of tea with skimmed milk and no sugar during the day and as many diet soft drinks as I like.

Try it for a week. If you find your readings are still high reduce the amount of carbohydrate by eliminating one slice of bread from each of the three main meals.

Hope it helps. For best results combine with some exercise say walking for half an hour per day.

Pavlos
 
Hi again Arlene,

If you are still confused then why not tell us what you are eating together with your test results. People on this forum will soon be able to tell you what is causing your blood glucose to rise.

However, I can tell you now that it will be sugar and carbohydrate and not meat that is the problem.

John
 
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