So. Four years ago at 47, following a chance encounter with a study on hypertension, I was diagnosed with T2 diabetes. No symptoms but I wasn't altogether surprised. I was 19 stones, (5' 10") hypertensive, following a low-fat diet as recommended by 'them' and had two generations of T2 in my family.
I shall comment on my diet further as this is important.
I didn't often have breakfast, just couldn't face it. Instead I would have an early lunch which was nearly always a sandwich (love tuna and salmon) a packet of crisps, a bar of chocolate and a bit of fruit. I have been a single parent all of my childrens lives and I can cook so our evening meal was always done from scratch. This was nearly always things like meat and three veg, spag bol, macaroni cheese, lots of vegetables and fruit. I would always choose low-fat options, artisan, wholegrain bread. Cereals were never the sugary, chocolate ones, milk was always skimmed and I used to drain and cut the fat from meat. We love chicken and one of our favourite dishes was chicken breasts cooked in a sauce of mango chutney, garlic and ginger, served with lots of vegetables and new potatoes.
I am a carb addict. I didn't know that then but I do now. So sitting in front of the box at night, I'd make my way through the sort of food that is no good for any human. Crisps and chocolate, ice-cream, sweet biscuits, cheese and crackers or the families favourite treat, white toast with butter and marmite. Take-outs were rare as I simply couldn't afford them. I craved carbs and would even fish food out of the bin if there was nothing in the house. I have written about it here.
The first thing I did was Google diabetes and up came Diabetes.co.uk. The very first thread I came upon was a conversation between, amongst others, Fergus, a T1 and Fasteddie a recently diagnosed T2, just like me. Fergus was telling his story and I was listening. Everything he, and others were saying made perfect sense. I'm an HCP, I know all about carbs so that day, my new diet started. No more low or fat free options, rice, pasta or potatoes or the rubbish stuff. I ate Nimble bread at 9g per slice but only two slices a day. I loved nuts and seeds and made flax crackers to crunch on. This was easy! The weight was falling off, sometimes so quickly that my colleagues thought I was seriously ill. My HbA1c's were always in the low 5's.
From June to December that year, I normalised my BG's and lost 4 stones. Then it stalled, so I dropped the bread and reduced things like the low-carb baking and tightened up on the odd carby thing that kept creeping in because I am and will always be, addicted. My weight dropped further and by November last year I had lost almost 7 stones. Then it all went horribly wrong. My Dad died on the 28th. He was 88 and I had watched him rot away for 30 years with very badly controlled T2. He followed his HCP's advice TO THE LETTER all it did was to make his inevitable death very long and extremely painful. I had to hold it all together because I live on my own and support myself. Going back to work after a fortnight was a blessing but I ended up in self destruct mode. By New Years Eve I was over a stone heavier and had stopped testing.
On January 1st this year, I made myself a promise to crack this thing so for the first time, I dropped my intake of carbs to 30g or less a day and became a woman possessed. This is my diet now. Coffee with double cream and occasionally a knob of butter. Eggs, cheese, more butter. Home made pork scratchings using sheets of pork skin and fat from the butchers. Fatty cuts of meat, particularly Lamb, I love it. I try to find the fattiest mince so I can make lovely cheesy aubergine lasagne (no pasta of course). One of my favourite meals is antipasti. Bratwurst sausage and mayo, celery smothered in butter and pate and cheese crisps are a staple as are green vegetables, home-made soup (chicken and leek anyone) and salads. I don't eat anything that grows underground, apart from leeks nor do I eat fruit, tomatoes, onions, nuts or seeds. I go through at least a litre of cream a week. I choose fattier cuts of meat for casseroles and cauliflower rice is now a staple of many of my friends. Avocados, asparagus, beef dripping and coconut oil are in there too. I eat one meal a day with the occasional nibble of a bit of cheese or a slice of ham and I shall continue to do this until I have lost the last 18 pounds or so that will bring me down to the weight I deem to be normal for me. When that happens, I shall slowly re-introduce the things on that list, hopefully maintaining my weight and BG's. I no longer crave and the thought of potentially being hungry is simply not an issue.
Last week, I had my bloods done, and here are the results
Total Cholesterol 4.6
Triglycerides 0.76
HDL 1.5
LDL 2.8
All that gives me a ratio of 3.0 lower than the recommended NICE guidelines.
U&E's & LFT's normal
But best of all, with only an occasional metformin (I keep forgetting to take them), my HbA1c is
.
.
.
4.8%
I shall continue with my ULC, high fat diet because, quite simply, it works.
wiflib