Greetings to everyone! Please bear with a slightly lengthy history. I am 62, female, and was diagnosed with Type 2 last November. My Hb1ac was around 102, and my self test around 27. Over the previous 18 months I had gradually, intentionally, lost weight to go from being about a stone overweight to reaching a BMI of 25 (using the 5:2 diet, but not religiously!); and usually reach the 10000 strides a day target. So it was a big shock. I was started on Gliclazide straight away, with metformin added a month or so later. Blood sugar came down slowly; I had to switch to slow release metformin as the gastric side effects were not settling down; it has taken at least 3 months since I switched for the side effects to settle. 3 months ago my Hb1ac was 70, and daily early morning tests consistently around 9. 2 weeks ago my latest Hb1ac was back to 100, and self test back in the 20s. I am now on maximum gliclazide, only 2 metformin because of my tolerance difficulties, and self testing ranges between 16 - 17 early morning to 23 - 24 before bed - seems stable but obviously far too high. My diabetic nurse is referring me to the local specialist unit. I eat a generally healthy diet (of course not perfect) and have not yet made any major changes. I am confused as to why my blood sugars have suddenly headed back in the wrong direction, somewhat depressed, and a bit concerned that I am going on a strenuous birdwatching trip in 1 week's time, probably before I've seen the specialists... Comments?!
Very confused..
- Thread starter janeridal
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NoCrbs4Me
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Welcome to the forum! If you are eating to the NHS dietary guidelines, you are most likely eating way too much carbs. Reducing carbs can really improve your blood glucose levels.
What do you generally eat on a typical day?
What do you generally eat on a typical day?
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Daffodils1
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Hi there,
What kind of food are you eating, if you wanted to post a typical day, that might help people offer suggestions.
Sure you'll find lots of helpful ideas on the forum.
Kind regards
What kind of food are you eating, if you wanted to post a typical day, that might help people offer suggestions.
Sure you'll find lots of helpful ideas on the forum.
Kind regards
Breakfast is yogurt and muesli, lunch wholemeal bread with a little cheese and/or cold meat, and fruit, supper meat with vegetables and potatoes or rice, and fruit. Plenty of fluids and moderate alcohol. Much reduced overall on low calorie days, obviously. The same diet that I have followed for many years, and that I was consuming while my blood sugar was coming down.
Typicaltwo
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Get yourself on a low/no carb, high fat diet (LCHF). Doctors treat the symptoms (high blood sugar) not the cause (insulin resistance), probably on the advice of the pharma industry...I wonder why? You CURE diabetes by deleting the cause of insulin resistance (sugar) in all its nefarious forms: potatoes, bread, rice, pasta, cakes, sweet drinks, alcohol, processed foods and meals. Doing the LCHF is not easy but worth it. My previous two HbA1c readings were 144 mg/dl (8 mmol/L) on full meds. The latest reading following 2 months on the LCHF diet is 44 mg/dl (2.4 mmol/L) on full meds. You need the fat for energy as you're replacing carbs as your energy source. Eating fat is good for you not bad, I've lost a few pounds on this diet with very little exercise. Stress plays a major role in raising blood sugar levels so stay calm and think of cheese....
There's plenty of info on line. The Swedish Health Service is now recommending the LCHF lifestyle.
There's plenty of info on line. The Swedish Health Service is now recommending the LCHF lifestyle.
Typicaltwo
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Muesli could be bad - wholemeal bread bad - fruit bad - potatoes and rice bad - alcohol bad.
You can't beat a healthy bacon and eggs for breakfast (eggs are great!). A lamb chop or salmon fillet with green veg for lunch. Steer clear of beans and root veggies (full of carbs). Cheese and cold meat salad for an evening meal. Also avoid milk - very high in sugar. I drink unsweetened Almond milk for a calcium boost.
You can't beat a healthy bacon and eggs for breakfast (eggs are great!). A lamb chop or salmon fillet with green veg for lunch. Steer clear of beans and root veggies (full of carbs). Cheese and cold meat salad for an evening meal. Also avoid milk - very high in sugar. I drink unsweetened Almond milk for a calcium boost.
I note what you say. I can only comment that there do seem to be a lot of diabetics in this country who manage their condition very successfully without turning to such an extreme diet. And I am not looking to, or needing to, lose weight. However, I am grateful for your comments, which were what I asked for.
Hi. Everyone has a different 'degree' of diabetes and it may be that a low-carb diet is essential for you regardless of weight. It is always possible that you are actually a late onset T1 and will need to go onto insulin as I did. If your HBa1C is above something like 7.5% and you are low-carbing then do ask to move to insulin.
Hi and welcome. Worth giving a low carb diet a try. You don't need to lose weight which is great but you could enjoy the results if it reduces your levels and you feel better. Need to make sure you get enough calories to maintain your weight and there are some great things most other diets try to avoid like cheese.
It takes a while to get your head round but self testing will help you to know what foods are good for diabetes and can be enjoyed freely, what needs to be moderated and what is best to avoid.
Basic principle is that carbs break down into sugar which is what we are struggling to process. Nothing to lose giving it a try and potentially everything to gain, if it's not for you then fair enough.
Hope you have a good trip away and your levels are back under control soon
It takes a while to get your head round but self testing will help you to know what foods are good for diabetes and can be enjoyed freely, what needs to be moderated and what is best to avoid.
Basic principle is that carbs break down into sugar which is what we are struggling to process. Nothing to lose giving it a try and potentially everything to gain, if it's not for you then fair enough.
Hope you have a good trip away and your levels are back under control soon
I take your point - part of my difficulty at the moment is trying to separate the dietary advice aimed at losing weight, from the advice aimed at helping to control blood sugars. As I'm going to Sumatra and Java I suspect that my diet for the next three weeks will be whatever we're given! but I'm very willing to try cutting back on carbs when I have the opportunity. I do not understand why I had considerable success with the pills at first, followed by a recurrence of high blood levels... Noone ever said life was fair!
Enjoy your hols,and looking on the bright side, coffee itself is carb free - Sumatran is my personal favourite. Life is for living so have an awesome time
JAY1JAY1
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Hi and welcome
I see nobody as tagged @daisy1 to give you the info for new members she will be along shortly.
Cutting carbs is not about loosing weight carbs turn to sugar so the more carbs the higher your blood sugar .i promise if you cut down on the carbs and I say cut down not out then your BG numbers will come down also
Keep well stay safe JJ
I see nobody as tagged @daisy1 to give you the info for new members she will be along shortly.
Cutting carbs is not about loosing weight carbs turn to sugar so the more carbs the higher your blood sugar .i promise if you cut down on the carbs and I say cut down not out then your BG numbers will come down also
Keep well stay safe JJ
daisy1
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@janeridal
Hello Jane and welcome to the forum
As other members have said, you need to reduce carby foods as much as you can. Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask all the questions you need to and someone will help.
BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS
Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.
A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 150,000 people who are demonstrating this.
On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.
The role of carbohydrate
Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.
If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.
The bad news
Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.
The good news
People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.
Controlling your carbs
The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:
Reduce your carbohydrates
A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.
The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.
Choosing better carbohydrates
Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html
The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.
Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes
Eating what works for you
Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.
To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.
The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:
Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
Access to blood glucose test strips
The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.
You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic
Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
Hello Jane and welcome to the forum
As other members have said, you need to reduce carby foods as much as you can. Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask all the questions you need to and someone will help.
BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS
Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.
A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 150,000 people who are demonstrating this.
On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.
The role of carbohydrate
Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.
If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.
The bad news
Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.
The good news
People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.
Controlling your carbs
The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:
- Reduce your carbohydrate intake
- Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates
Reduce your carbohydrates
A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.
The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.
Choosing better carbohydrates
Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html
The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.
Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes
Eating what works for you
Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.
To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.
The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:
Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
- Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
Access to blood glucose test strips
The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
- structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
- self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education
Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.
You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic
Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
Thank you for all the responses. I am of course aware of the low carb approach, and when I can I shall be trying it. As I've said, for three weeks in fairly remote Sumatra and Java I shall mainly have to eat what I'm given - there won't be many options! Meanwhile I'm awaiting my referral to my local specialist unit on my return. My main puzzle is why, after responding well (if not perfectly) to the basic pills for several months, my blood glucose has rapidly shot up again - with no discernible change in diet or exercise levels. I guess that's probably going to remain just one of those things.
Typicaltwo
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The reason the medical profession call diabetes a progressive disease is that they attempt to treat just the symptom of diabetes (high blood sugar) with drugs. These don't work in the long run.... after going up the scale from a low metformin dosage to a higher metformin, dose...then another drug is added and then another drug... then eventually you reach insulin injections.
Until you treat the disease itself (insulin resistance) your drug regime will continue to fail over time. You CURE diabetes by changing your lifestyle and removing as much sugar out of your diet as needed to bring your BG down to normal levels.
Enjoy Sumatra and Java.
Until you treat the disease itself (insulin resistance) your drug regime will continue to fail over time. You CURE diabetes by changing your lifestyle and removing as much sugar out of your diet as needed to bring your BG down to normal levels.
Enjoy Sumatra and Java.
