Trying to help my wife

Martin_ said:

I'm overwhelmed by the support I've received on this forum, truly and honestly! A big thank you to everyone who has posted on this thread and encouraged myself and my wife.
I read Ian Foster's post to her (4 posts or so above this one) when she came back from her walk. She went quiet for a while but I think she's beginning to see that it's not just me being cynical or anti-medical profession,

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I wonder if she might feel better if she came on the forum with you and read around.

Martin please get your wife to watch any videos online by Dr David Unwin. He was at the point of retiring, because he thought he was failing his diabetic patients. Enter one patient who'd lost so much weight and reversed her diabetes, he didn't recognise her. His story should help to change your wifes feelings on the everyday health care professional. They are not gods, and do fall behind more modern thinking, even though low carb was the gold standard treatment for diabetes for about 200 years, prior to the low fat travesty.
If you could get her to join in the forum, she'll realise that we may be a load of internet nutters, but we care, and have walked in her shoes, and we don't preach, just give advice that has worked for us. There are many fantastic doctors out there, unfortunately it's a lottery whether you get one.

I reuse my lancets, and don't try to clean them. But I do wipe the first drop of blood off with a clean tissue before bringing the test strip/meter to the second drop.

Martin_ said:

I've ordered a Nexus GlucoRx,100 test strips, finger lance and 200 lancets, I just have to hope she comes round to being tested!

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I suggest you take a look at the AccuChek FastClix pen which is so much more user friendly than ordinary lancets. You load cartridges of 6 lancets so you don’t actually see the blades which you can reuse many times. You also get a comfort setting between 1-5 for the sharpness.

Martin_ said:

Here is another reason I'm struggling to change Mr Ms diet; She has just bought a diabetic cook book which is endorsed by a major UK diabetes charity. Chapter 1 lays out eating guidelines for people with diabetes, "Eat regularly throughout the day and base your meals on starchy carbohydrate foods such as bread, potatoes, rice, pasta and cereals." And, "Eat fewer foods that are rich in saturated fat such as fatty meats, butter,cheese, cream and all full-fat dairy foods."

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Seriously - burn that book.
I watched my father's mother slowly dying from the complications of type 2 diabetes and it still reduces me to tears to think about it.
It was horrible beyond words.
A type 2 diabetic cannot cope with carbohydrate - at best it will kill them, at the worst they will develop complications which will take years to kill them.
Please show your wife this forum - she needs some serious straight information about her condition as things could end very very badly.
How people get away with publishing advice such as that given in that book I just do not understand.

We buried my mother in law in February. 25 years of good diabetic control as laid out by doctors, at death virtually blind, minus one foot, kidney failure, heart failure, but good control according to the medics. this is not a disease to play with, only medics who are themselves diabetic, truly get it.

Resurgam said:

Seriously - burn that book.
I watched my father's mother slowly dying from the complications of type 2 diabetes and it still reduces me to tears to think about it.
It was horrible beyond words.
A type 2 diabetic cannot cope with carbohydrate - at best it will kill them, at the worst they will develop complications which will take years to kill them.
Please show your wife this forum - she needs some serious straight information about her condition as things could end very very badly.
How people get away with publishing advice such as that given in that book I just do not understand.

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If it is the book I am thinking of, it was produced by DUK (the other site, not this one)and it was done in collaboration with Tesco, who paid for it to be distributed free to anyone with diabetes. BURN IT! Seriously.

Oldvatr said:

If it is the book I am thinking of, it was produced by DUK (the other site, not this one)and it was done in collaboration with Tesco, who paid for it to be distributed free to anyone with diabetes. BURN IT! Seriously.

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The following is only my POV based on life experiences of mine.
As part of their fundraising activities, DUK would set up stall in the front foyer of the large supermarkets (mainly Tesco or Safeway who were DUK sponsors at the time) and they had a stand where their sales/ marketing staff would offer advice and leaflets, and then they would shake their collection tins in your face for any contributions you might gratefully give them in exchange. They ran a weekly prize draw from the stand, and from memory a strip of 10 cloakroom tickets cost £1 and gave 5 entries to the draw. The main prize was an Xmas Hamper or other stash of goodies that were entirely inappropriate for anyone struggling to get their sugar under control. But hey, it made money and the kids with their mums can be quite persuasive. And their excuse is that there were probably more non diabetics that clients pasing the door so their fund raising was from the general public.

I have to admit that the one good thing they did on these stands was to offer a free fingerprick test on the stand. I got mine done, and started Metformin a couple of weeks later. So I blame my diabetes on them(not really, I suspect it was already there lurking)

So there has been a long association between the diabetes charity and food and not necessarily in a healthy way for us diabetics. I am going back some 20 to 30 years here. Have things changed since then? The jury is still out. One change is that the percentage of the passing trade now is different and has a higher percentage of dx'ed and undeclared diabetics in the population than then.

But that dietary advice in that book is not advisable for anyone with T2D

If anyone thinks I am exaggerating

Martin_ said:

Here is another reason I'm struggling to change Mr Ms diet; She has just bought a diabetic cook book which is endorsed by a major UK diabetes charity. Chapter 1 lays out eating guidelines for people with diabetes, "Eat regularly throughout the day and base your meals on starchy carbohydrate foods such as bread, potatoes, rice, pasta and cereals." And, "Eat fewer foods that are rich in saturated fat such as fatty meats, butter,cheese, cream and all full-fat dairy foods."

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If your wife likes Italian/Mediterranean style food, try any of the cookbooks by Katie & Giancarlo Caldesi. They're both professional chefs and Giancarlo put his diabetes into remission by adapting traditional foods to a low(er) carb version. I got both of mine The Reverse you Diabetes cookbook and The Low carb weight loss cookbook from the works - so they weren't particularly expensive

To prove the point on carbs. Pet foods now have vegetables and grains added, and guess what diabetes in cats and dogs, is rising far faster than in humans.

Just want to say that your wife must know that she is very lucky to have you. Change is difficult, but it is happening to all of us all of the time. She’s in a really good position - even though it may not feel like it. It’s great that you have asked for help and I hope that your wife might come on here too. This forum was indispensable to me when I was first diagnosed. Our natural craving for carbohydrate is powerful and the breakfast cereal pull is so strongly embedded, but when you see the evidence on the meter, you know it just isn’t ok.
You mentioned a food diary and I think that’s a wonderful idea. I did It myself, for many years. Coupled with a meter, it will help your wife find out what she can and cannot tolerate. We’re all different. Please tell your wife that there’s hope - and she’s got your support, which is really empowering. Go for it!