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Told not to do low carb!


Ha ha. Did you have fun travelling back to the 1990s with that nurse. She is just wrong and outdated. Low carb is an option that is allowed under NHS guidance and is also an option in the American guidelines. NICE says that patient care should be based on individual choices too so it is unprofessional and inappropriate of her to diss your choices for no valid medical reason!
If you feel better eating this way keep going, monitor your weight and blood sugars and educate your nurse. Public Health Consortium has listed the evidence here and has some very useful visual guides by David Unwin that are NICE approved:
https://phcuk.org/t2d/
 
gale1960 said:
I'll have to go on meds.
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There is no issue with taking Metformin and also following a Low Carb diet, so there should be no need to worry. In fact adding metformin to the mix will most likely help as it is meant to help with insulin resistance plus a whole host of other benefits.

However, as most of us are well aware, it is what you eat that will have the most affect on your health.
 

Brilliant analogy!
 
Jim Lahey said:
Sometimes I think DSNs should be outlawed. I’m convinced many of them do more harm than good.
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I think we should point out that there is a big difference between a DSN and an in house or GP surgery DN.
The OP doesn’t mention a DSN just a nurse at a diabetic check up.
My own experiences with GP diabetic nurses prove they know next to nothing about Type 1 diabetes and can only offer very basic advice.
DSN’ s on the other hand tend to have a wealth of knowledge and understanding of the condition, in my case type 1. These people are in my opinion better qualified to deal with diabetes as opposed to the weighing, BP checkers and diet advisors found I local GP surgeries .
 

As a T2 it's pretty unlikely the OP would have seen a Specialist Diabetes Nurse of the sort you refer to.

My surgery has someone they refer to as the "Diabetes Nurse" who is far less well informed than most T2 forum members here.
 
I did only see a diabetic nurse not a specialist nurse. She's already told me she isn't a specialist just the gp surgery based nurse who deals with diabetes check ups.
 
Good luck with low carb, it has been the best thing ever for so many of us.

When I was diagnosed my GP agreed to hold off until I tried low carb but the very first time I saw the practice 'diabetic nurse' (like other T2's I never see a fully qualified DN) she said the GP had forgotten to prescribe my metformin and statins and reached for the phone. No, I explained, we agreed to try low carb.
She was not happy.
At the 3 month point not only was my HbA1c down into the normal range but my slightly raised triglycerides had also fallen well into normal, and my full and ration cholesterol numbers were still fine - confounding her expectations about a 'high fat' diet.

(I did not want to go on metformin, it rarely helps long term which is why received medical wisdom was that T2 is usually progressive, also my mother did very badly on it.)
 

Somewhat agree with the Metformin comment. It can be helpful as an adjunct to dietary reform, but on its own it’s pretty much a fa*t in a hurricane.
 
Jim Lahey said:
Somewhat agree with the Metformin comment. It can be helpful as an adjunct to dietary reform, but on its own it’s pretty much a fa*t in a hurricane.
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It is beneficial for other conditions besides Type 2. Along with low carb it can help with the symptoms of PCOS.
 
gale1960 said:
I did only see a diabetic nurse not a specialist nurse. She's already told me she isn't a specialist just the gp surgery based nurse who deals with diabetes check ups.
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Unfortunately these nurses can just be information gathers and offer very basic advice as you are probably aware by now.
Good luck going forward.
 
bulkbiker said:
As a T2 it's pretty unlikely the OP would have seen a Specialist Diabetes Nurse of the sort you refer to.

My surgery has someone they refer to as the "Diabetes Nurse" who is far less well informed than most T2 forum members here.
Click to expand...
I agree the OP was very unlikely to see a DSN . I just felt the need to clarify the difference between the two nurses available for the benefit of the less informed.
 
I notice that the GP can be fully behind LCHF on the one hand, but the nurse can still have both feet planted in the Eatwell Plate.
 
When I went to my first diabetes meeting as a newbie, the photocopied handouts were so copied and copied they were blurred. I did, however read the date at the bottom of the original. It was in the 90's! I sat on my hands and didn't speak- even when they gave out tea and biscuits. No sweeteners were available.
Since then I resolved to ignore the HCP views.
Four years on and my lovely DN has told her T2 hubby about LCHF and about my story.
Nuff said.
 
Listlad said:
I notice that the GP can be fully behind LCHF on the one hand, but the nurse can still have both feet planted in the Eatwell Plate.
Click to expand...
In my case the total reverse. Well sort of. Nurse sort of encouraged low carb. Dr told me moderation in all things.
 
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