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Specialist nutritionist to help weight gain?

J

JulieL

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My adult brother was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes about 6 months ago. He has never been overweight in his life & had always been fit and active but now he is wasting away to skin & bones as well as getting quite exhausted. He's on medication and is getting some very conflicting advice about diet & what he can and can't eat.
He has some info about low GI diets & some supplements but he'd really like to see a specialist dietician or nutritionist who could give him some personalised, specific advice, particularly related to how to put weight on rather than off.
Can anyone recommend someone within reasonable reach of North London?
Otherwise any suggestions for weight and energy gain would be most welcome, if possible.
Thank you.
 
Hi JulieL,
I wonder if your brother has been misdiagnosed? He may have Type 1.5, LADA.
Here is an explanation, it does tell you about the diagnostic tests needed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latent_autoimmune_diabetes

With regard to weight gain, most people here find that adding oils, oily fish, nuts, butter and cheeses do help with the weight gain.

There is a site which has a locator for nutritionists and dietitians in any area,

http://www.nutripeople.co.uk/index.asp

Catherine.
 
Hi Juliet
I also have problems trying to put weight on,I asked my diabetes nurse to refer me to a dietician . She was very helpful encouraging me to eat more calories by adding cream to soups having full fat butter cheese yoghurt etc, not always easy as everone seems to buy the low fat version of every thing.The second time I went I had not gained weight ,but at least had not lost anymore :D She then recomended a product called Calogen and wrote to my GP to ask for a prescription for me.I have been taking this for about 8 weeks and I have gained 2k so I am very pleased.Hope this helps your brotherI would definately try to get to see a dietician on NHS first .
CAROL
 
Hi

I am a dietitian - it is a diabetes dietitian your brother needs to see and you should be able to see one on the NHS. You need to speak to his GP - some have practice based dietitians but you may need a referral to the local hospital. Calogen should only be used if prescribed by the way!

If you want a private dietitian try - dietitiansunlimited.co.uk - there is a Uk wide data base on there.

Ally
 
Sorry if I didnt make it clear that I got Calogen on prescription from my GP :( I have been for blood test today so I will see if has had any effect on cholesterol, it hasnt effected BGs according to my testing.
CAROL
 
Thanks, I did understand about the Calogen being prescription only. I think we need to look down a few alternative avenues first but it's good to know there may be a product out there if all else fails.
Julie.
 
Hi - must admit I havent prescribed it for years but did not find it affected blood lipids.

I think the first thing is an assessment of your brothers diet so the dietitian can see exactly what he is eating.

Ally
 
Thanks, I will have a more detailed discussion with him about what exactly has happened so far and we'll take it from there. I'm glad to have discovered this forum, seems like there's a lot of good support here, thank you.
 
Hi,

you say he was diagnosed 6 months ago, but what treatment is he having, is he testing regularly and are his blood sugars under good control.

I say this because in the few weeks prior to my diagnosis, I lost about 1 1/2 stone and was initially put on metformin. My weight continued to drop but my blood sugars did not and things only stabilised when I was put on insulin and the blood sugars came down.

So far as I understand things, when the blood sugars are high the sugar is passed out in the urine rather than being made available to the body. If I am wrong here, one of the more experienced members will quickly put me right (I hope) :)

hope you get to the bottom of things soon

be good and be lucky

Dave
 
Just an update & a thank you to all who offered me advice when I first posted...
My brother has finally been seen at a proper diabetic clinic and has (as some suggested he might) now been diagnosed with LADA (Type 1.5). He's been put on insulin and hopefully will now be able to begin getting some proper control over his sugar levels.
Many thanks to all, it was a great help.
Julie L.
 
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