uncontrolled diabetes

Welcome to the forum,Kim.there really is only one way to get your levels down and that is to not eat a lot of carbohydrate.Keep a food diary for a week and write down everything(yes everything!) that you eat and drink.Also keep a note of your blood test levels every morning and you will see which foods put up your sugar levels.Type 2 is for life,I'm afraid but you can learn to control it and still have the occasional 'naughty' snack! Have a good look round the forum and you will find lots of tips for coping.Ask questions,there's always someone who knows the answer!

i've had mega mood swings alot sinse dxd 2 years ago.

I think fluctuating blood sugars can be a cause of mood swings, and despression.
Have you tried a low carb diet? Do you snack before bed at all? If you are snacking before bed then that could be causing high numbers in the mornings. Or it could just be that dawn phenominon!

Hi there. I'm recently diagnosed Type 2, dietary control as well. I have recently stopped smoking, two weeks after stopping I had a heart attack, but my resolve hasn't been shaken and I'm still off the weed.
I can't get the desire to be sensible with food though and I have put on about 1stone since stopping smoking back in March.
Any tips as to how to program myself towards dietary control of the dreaded type 2 ? I wish there were patches to help that problem, as the nicotine supplement certainly helped me when I stopped the weed.

A hairy man's a happy man, a hairy wife's a witch!

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I was diagnosed with type two diabetes about seven months ago .I also take metforum,I have problems with mood swings and with keeping ,my sugar levels steady.I have tried keeping to a diet.I do have other medical problems and taking a lot of other medication,I can not walk very far so I cannot exercise, It helps to know that others have the same problems,and we can talk to each other on this forum.I would like to hear from anyone who have any advise.

I thought one had to eat enough carbs to ward of hunger pangs twixt meals...I eat some carbs at each meal...no more than the average helping...for example...for breakfast muesli which has carbs..lunch wholemeal granary bread...dinner spuds or rice or pasta..Mind you am trying to lose weight and no yet on any medication as pretty new to this condition...

Hi AmberAnn, from what you describe you are having quite a high amount of carbs with every meal, which won't help you at all in reducing your blood sugar level or keeping it under control.

For breakfast try a couple or boiled or scrambled eggs with a slice of wholemeal bread. Thats around half the carbs you will get in muesli.

For lunch have a salad instead of the granary bread.

In the evening try having half your usual portion of potato and instead have more of the other veg. All vegetables contain carbs but they are also rich in vitamins and fibre.

The bread, pasta and potato in your diet are all "empty" carbs. In other words they contain very little other than starch and the only thing they will do for you is to raise your blood sugar levels. Why not try a gradual reduction, a meal at a time, and see for yourself the impact it has on your blood sugars. If you get the munchies between meals then have a handfull of nuts (but not peanuts). Nuts are high protein and low carb so they will fill the void without spiking your sugars.

hi

this is my first time on this site - so useful to hear what others say. Just been diagnosed as type 2 a few weeks back - hence the name (what I'd do for a cool beer!!) I'm eating very low carb diet - hardly any spuds or rice but some rye bread and oat cakes. But i'm going crazy on the nuts - brazils, walnuts and almonds - what else can I snak on at work? I'm sure i'm eating too many - cheese doesnt sounds too good either for a snack.

I'm getting so hungry but loosing weight. I'm worried about taking tablets - what's it like on Metformin?

Lots of different questions here.

Any ideas, responses?

What a silly usersname -sorry!!

I'll sign off as Freda!!

OK - here are a few ideas for low carb snacks (in no particular order):

• Apples
• Sunflower seeds
• Pumpkin seeds
• Diet yoghurt (NB there is a lot of sugar added to most non-diet yoghurts)
• Mini peperami sticks
• Beef jerky
• Babybell light cheese
• Hard boiled eggs
• Deviled eggs
• Atkins low carb breakfast bars
• Raw vegetables - sweet peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes, celery
• Lettuce leaves rolled around a protein filling (meat, eggs etc.)

Hi Freda
I'm new to diabetes and this forum too. (T2, low-carb, metformin)

Since low-carbing and not eating the **** I used to eat between my otherwise healthy diet, I have found that any cravings have actually mean I'm hungry, so I eat something else instead. Because I'm not spending money on **** food, I now buy all the meats I considered expensive such as continental sliced hams. Pig out on a massive salad of mixed leaves, grated carrot, cress, mixed seeds, ham and crumbled feta with a nice dressing and you may not need to snack.

If I need to, I snack on nuts, Munchy Seeds http://www.munchyseeds.co.uk (no guys and gals, I don't work for them) cheese, cooked meats, oat cakes, berries, bananas and veggies with dips. But mostly, since reducing the carbs, I'm really not as hungry as I thought I'd be and this from a sturdy bird who has NEVER considered what she eats and has been the same weight for over ten years.

I got an order from the megastore yesterday, the low-carb bread is great as are the parmesan wafers, the same oily, crispy crunch as crisps but no carbs. I have not reduced my fat intake and enjoy a bowl of berries and cream, melted cheese on oatcakes, butter and cream in my scrambled eggs, fried crispy bacon and my fave salad dressing of EVOO and a small amount of a really good quality balsamic vinegar. I continue to loose weight. My cholesterol level is 3.8 and HDL and LDL both well within healthy limits and it's the first time in my life that I have ever lost weight. My BS are now in the 5 range.

I've only just started on metformin and the nurse I saw today said it is best to increase the dose v e r y s l o w l y as there is no benefit in rushing things. I plan to increase my dose to two a day in 3-4 weeks. I reckon that way I will definitely know of any side effects.
How are others doing on metformin?

Good luck with the new lifestyle Freda.

I'm just heading into my third week on Metformin, upping to 3 tablets a day tomorrow.

So far not too bad, had a few tummy problems early on, but nothing like having to run too the loo (sorry too much detail!)

To get your sugars down, carb-counting is definitely the way to go. How many carbs is the real question, and that's really down to each individual and what works for them , for what it's worth I am having 60g of carbs a day, 20g per meal.

I also like a few sweets and am searching high and low for what's available, as and when I find them I'll post a tip on the Food Forum.

Sainsburys do a low sugar chocolate (their own make) which my wife just told me actually isn't too bad (she's a Green and Blacks fan) and is 5g carbs per 10g (1 square), it's based on polyols so the sugar reaction isn't the same as a normal sugar.

I would pick a value of carbs and start there, then work up to what you can comfortably control, you'll find even 20g is a lot of carbs when you start to count them!

The Governor said:

So far not too bad, had a few tummy problems early on, but nothing like having to run too the loo (sorry too much detail!)

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Hi again Gov,
The standard version of metformin is notorious for giving you the runs and for flatulence (it has been referred to as metfartin more than once!). As your dose increases, if you do find it has an effect on you then you can ask your GP if he can switch you to the slow-release version, Glucophage SR. Because it works more slowly it is a great deal gentler on the stomach and with fewer unpleasant side-effects.

This may not work for you but when im driving a sip water every 10 mins this keeps my tummy working and my numbers down. Stupid i know but it works for me.