Type 2 and scared

aprtylittlemess said:

I got my diagnosis at the end of last year, I've been on metformin since December and my blood tests last week are saying that even with taking 4 metformin a day my blood sugar is still quite high. They are now wanting to put me on Lipitor, I've been researching it and I really don't want to go on yet another tablet. The phone call from the nurse today has given me the kick I need to try and lose some more weight, have lost a stone in the last seven weeks which has taken me to 13 stone but clearly I need to lose more. Does the low carb diet really work? just watched a documentary called Cereal Killers which suggests it does.

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I'm very new to this too, diagnosed mid May. I've eaten no more than 100g of carbohydrate a day since 10th May and have lost over a stone! I'm on Metformin as well 500 mgs x 3 per day, which I gather helps with weight loss. Well worth cutting carbs IMO.

welcome @aprtylittlemess to the club you did not want to join. I hate to be evangelical about anything. That said a low carb way of life seems to have helped me (see my sig) Don't be scared, take control! If you don't have a blood glucose meter, get one. It was the single most important piece of help I got from this forum. Don't worry about each reading but look for trends. @liam will, I am sure post details of the cheapest strips and meters. Low carb food is very tasty! (www.dietdoctor.com) You problem will be in believing that Fat is your friend!
Finally @daisy1 will post some very useful info for you. Ask as many questions as you like, we were all where you are once.

PS if you can tolerate the metformin, keep going, they are an appetite supresant

Hi @aprtylittlemess
Yes the low carb diet really works to get those sugar levels down, any weight loss is a happy bonus.
https://www.dietdoctor.com/diabetes have a look here for more info

Metformin lowers blood sugar only slightly. To make a significant difference you need to reduce the amount of carbs you eat. That means cut down or cut out breakfast cereals, bread, rice, potatoes and pasta. Avoid fruit juice as it is high in sugar also avoid fruit like bananas and grapes. See https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb

From my own experience, weightloss has little to do with controlling blood glucose, cut out the densely carb foods and a typical type two should see their numbers going down seek by week until they become normal.
With low levels of glucose in the blood your pancreas stops being hysterical and putting out lots of insulin, insulin resistance reduces as you have all the necessary protein and fat to live on whilst your metabolism sorts itself out.
You might well lose some body fat, possibly some 'water weight'.
I was diagnosed in mid November last year and by early February I had dropped below the diagnostic level of Hba1c for diabetes. Low carb is very effective in lowering blood glucose, so you might want to drop your levels and use a meter to chart your progress rather than stopping them abruptly. I think it is quite a shock to a diabetic metabolism to go 'cold turkey' with carbs.

Rachox said:

I'm very new to this too, diagnosed mid May. I've eaten no more than 100g of carbohydrate a day since 10th May and have lost over a stone! I'm on Metformin as well 500 mgs x 3 per day, which I gather helps with weight loss. Well worth cutting carbs IMO.

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Well done on that weight loss great results in a short time!

Hi @aprtylittlemess .. and welcome
Two things .. first, you have made a good move coming here and, second .. yes, low carb works

Managing and controlling your diabetes through exercise, diet and testing your Blood Glucose seems to be the best way forward. For me, committing to an LCHF (Low Carb High Fat) lifestyle and testing 3-5 times a day seems to be working and you'll find that there is a wealth of info, relevant advice and positive support about LCHF on the forum ..

I see that @daisy1 has already been tagged for you and I would suggest that you read up on the Low Carb Program in the information that she will soon be sending you. You might also find the discussion on the Low Carb Diet forum helpful .. and the following Diet Doctor websites ...
Low Carb Intro and Information
Low Carbs in 60 Seconds

For testing, try the website at: https://homehealth-uk.com/product-category/blood-glucose/ for the SD Codefree meter or: http://spirit-healthcare.co.uk/product/tee2-blood-glucose-meter/ who distribute the TEE 2 meter, which is free. The costs of testing comes down to the ongoing charges for test strips and lancets. I'm testing 3-4 times a day which works out at around £10 to £12 per month for the two packages above but, more importantly, I now know what my BG levels are .. and I will be able to manage them
Hope this helps

I have nothing to add to the above posts, except to say it worked for me and continues to do so. I lost over a third of my weight which I have maintained since 2014, and brought my glucose levels down to normal fairly quickly.

low carb works.... so well please try doing it.

A lot of us here have found that low carb works - in my case low carbing has reduced my blood glucose to a point where I was able to come off insulin and reduce/stop other meds. I now eat a low carb healthy fats diet to keep my blood glucose at a level that is below even pre-diabetes level. That is not to say that I am no longer diabetic - I have to be careful with what I eat and I know that if I went back to eating the way I used to I'd be back to injecting insulin within a couple of days.

It might seem a bit confusing at first but it is really surprising how quickly it becomes automatic to choose low carb foods and it really has made me feel so much better.

Unfortunately I am not one of the lucky ones to automatically lose weight on it - I lost five stones during the first eight months but have put some of that back on.

Oddly enough my husband used to look enviously at my low carb foods and has decided to join me eating this way even though he is far from being diabetic.

Give it a try - you've got nothing to lose.

Another advocate for Low Carb - reduced my BG by 70% and weight-loss by nearly six stones in as many months. My wife is not a diabetic but has also adopted low carb and she has lost two stones in same period. What have you got to lose by giving it a try? Take seriously is my recommendation and reduce carb intake as low as you can manage - at least until you're happy with the results.

Yup, me too for the benefits of LowCarb.
Cod, cream, lemon, garlic, Parmesan cheese, pawns, mussels and side of slaw.... lovely.
Lost weight and then plateaued for the last two years
Good luck.

It's working for me too ... and the food is delicious

Hi and Welcome to you both = @aprtylittlemess and @Rachox

aprtylittlemess said:

Thankyou for making me so welcome and for your advice. Its all a bit daunting, to be honest I've been burying my head in the sand since the diagnosis and still eating a lot of ****. Today I had scrambled eggs and 2 sausages for lunch, snacking on oranges and peaches, for dinner I had a steak with mushrooms and spinach. All of that only came to 600 calories and I wouldnt say I am hungry but definitely missing the sugar i have a horrible headache. My weight lost up to now has been a stone in the last 7 weeks and purely accidental, I have developed a bowel condition which without getting into too much detail food doesnt stay in my body for too long which, i am sure is messing up my blood sugar levels.

@Rachox Well done on the weight lost x

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Thank you!

@aprtylittlemess - Have you got a Blood Glucose Meter and testing throughout the day? Or were you told by the Practise Diabetic Nurse that you didn't need to test?

Hi @aprtylittlemess your reaction to diagnosis is normal, what is super is that you have decided to do something about it and to try something new. There are a lot of people who have found that low carb works for them. I don't count calories or points any longer but I am aware of the carb content of what I eat and my need to take exercise. At work I prefer to stand than sit, walk than stand and fit in a walk in my lunch hour. Do you have your own bg meter? If not then please buy one if possible. Then start a food diary with the bg results 2 hours after eating. You will soon see what foods are causing your high levels. It is not just sugar but often grains and grain products, sugar in all forms - including in fruit in addition to known carb heavy foods - bread, pasta, potato. This sounds restrictive but in practice there is plenty of variety, lots of tasty meals to enjoy, weight loss at a steady rate, so your skin shrinks with you, even reduction in medication sometimes. The headaches and sugar craving are normal but do fade after a few days, your body gets enough carbs from your new diet but takes time to adjust. Read around the forum, take a look at the diet doctor website, then make a change. You will have need a new wardrobe by the autumn!

Hi @aprtylittlemess and welcome!

Another vote for low carb from me. Took a little while for carb cravings to go away, but once they did, both blood sugar levels and weight have fallen significantly. My meter is my friend, telling me what I can and can't eat.