• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Some advice needed

A

astroboy3546

Newbie
Messages
2
Hello
Last thursday I had my annual health checkup done and on friday my doctor called me and said my sugar levels are rather high (5.7% Hb1Ac). I did some searching online and it seems like in the US (where I am based) the prediabetes levels start from 5.7% to 6.4%.

My doctor was not too bothered and suggested that i try to lose some 15-20 pounds over the next 6-8 months and we can do a check and see what my sugar levels are. He did say my blood sugar (non fasting was 99 - I had breakfast before i went to meet him) which he said was within normal parameters.

I spent a lot of time reading the forums and it seems like the focus is on reducing carbs which I have started to (I am not sure if i can hit the 50gm limit but i am starting with 100grams and seeing how i can reduce it further). I also dusted out a old fitbit and I am going to focus on increasing my physical activity.

That said i do have a few questions

1. Does anyone know why the US has a different standard range for prediabetes versus the rest of the world. That said, even if i go by the UK standard, i do not consider it a get out of jail card and I am going to actively work towards reducing it but this was confusing to me.

2. There is a lot of emphasis on reducing carbs which makes sense since carbs get converted to sugar. However whats the take on reducing good carbs which have low glycemic indexes and take time to get converted to sugar. I do get things like chocolate and other sweet things are bad and i am going to focus on getting them out strongly out of my eating habits.

3. Little confused about how Hb1Ac works. The reason i ask is i understand its the averege over the last 3 months and I am wondering if my high Hb1Ac is due to all the chocolate binging i did due to halloween and the holidays.

These are the main questions i have and I would really appreciate it if someone could help me get some answers. This came as a bit of a shock and I am so glad there is a forum where there is a lot of hope in terms of how people have beaten this.
 
Hi @astroboy3546 and welcome

First a link to some useful information for newbies: https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/basic-information-for-newly-diagnosed-diabetics.17088/ have a good read and ask as many questions as you like.

In response to some of your points above:

1) not sure of the reasons for the US having different diagnosis levels (pretty sure they’re different in a number of places). Really I think it’s an indication that much of this is a judgement call, and actually I’m not sure that A1C is the best measure. Looking at insulin production and insulin sensitivity would be a much better measure and provide an early warning system.

2) I don’t buy into the whole glycaemic index thing. All carbs turn to glucose in the blood stream and those promoted as ‘good’ often have just as much impact on BG as those classified as ‘bad’. The only way to know for sure how individual foods affect you is to test your levels before and after food,

3) A1C measures the amount of glucose that binds to Haemoglobin in your blood. It looks at the past 8-12 weeks, but with a bit of a bias towards more recent weeks. Here are a couple of links: https://labtestsonline.org.uk/tests/hba1c-test https://www.diabetes.co.uk/what-is-hba1c.html it is quite a sensitive test and paying attention to what you eat over a couple of months can have a clear impact (in either direction).
 
astroboy3546 said:
whats the take on reducing good carbs which have low glycemic indexes and take time to get converted to sugar
Click to expand...
Hi Astroboy,

There are more than a few people on here who eat a Low Glycemic diet and do perfectly well managing there condition and there thous on the opposite side of the scale who can't have any carbs no matter the Glycimic rating.
It simply effects people differently.

A good rule of thumb if you are trying to loose weight is loose the weight and then see what you can introduce back into your diet that has no adverse effects for you.

Why loose the weight?
  • There is a strong possibility that your blood sugar reading could be because your Liver is not processing sugar effectively (this can be because the liver is clogged with fat. )
  • Unclogging you're liver of fat (loosing weight) should drop your blood sugar levels down because you can process sugar more efficiently/ effectively again.

That would be a good time to try Low GI food if that's your choice, as you said it takes longer to break down into sugar and less workload for your liver. On the opposite side of that if Fruit the sugar in fruit Fructose puts an extra demand on your liver.

Strange as it seems a little less fruit in your diet can help keep you healthy.
 
Thank you everyone for all the responses, I do appreciate the time you took to respond to my questions.

Just to clarify

1. I am not proposing that i cut down on sugars and other stuff and instead stuff up on say legumes. I do plan to reduce them but in moderation since i am not sure if i could handle a meal without some carbs. The 20-50gm recommendation seems really hard to me and i am planning to try to be about 100 grams a day to see how it helps. Its also slightly challenging since i am vegetarian and it seems the low carb high fat is more vegetarian focussed.

2. With regards to fruit, as i said, i'll try to do it in moderation. While i'll miss my love for mangos,i am currently focussing on fruits such as berries, oranges and kiwis. I do get the fructose could be a cause for more overwork for the liver but i am not even sure if my liver is a problem

Thank you.
 
One obvious thing to cut out first, which could make a big difference if you consume a lot :

fruit juice - this is just lethal, pretty well pure carbs and in the form of fructose. Likewise other sugary sweet drinks, but I'm mentioning fruit juice because people tend to think that that is healthy.

Consider buying a blood testing meter. By testing before and two hours (some people say 1 hour) after meals you can tell which foods are causing you issues, if any. It may well be that a very moderate reduction in carbs will be enough, you can't tell without testing.

Be aware that weight gain is a very common symptom of emerging T2 diabetes, reducing your carbs is likely to lead to a drop in weight to your pre-D levels....
 
Hi astronomy, your idea if cutting carbs to about a hundred a day is a good one.
As a fellow Prediabetic it's what I aim for. To help you count, there are apps and books available. There is also a vegetarian What did you eat today? thread on this site., which may give you sone ideas.
It's a bit daunting at first, but you have decided to change your way of eating and take control of your health. Researching the differing options is an excellent way to start.
Don't forget the beneficial effects of exercise. Which can also help lower cholesterol levels, as well as BG.

Edited for typos.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn More.…