• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

what am i doing wrong

Pinkorchid said:
We do tend sometimes to talk on here about the LCHF way of eating forgetting that not everyone can afford to do it if they are on a low income. As the OP said they are living on £140 a week. Rice pasta bread and potatoes are usually the go to foods when shopping on a low budget. The low carb higher fat way of eating is definitely more expensive as often people here have said and has been difficult for some to maintain it when on a low income
Click to expand...

I thought this for a long time too, but it's not strictly true. LCHF is more expensive if you are buying ready prepared food, but buying everyday "make it yourself" food isn't expensive. I do a weekly shop for 2 adults (and a dog!) for £35 to 40 max. I buy most of my veg from a farm, where it's dirt cheap, and I buy meat and everything else mostly from Lidl or Aldi. I also pop in to my local sainsbury's after work as that's when they reduce the meat for that day, so I can usually pick something up reasonably cheaply if I need to.
I could do it in £25 if my husband didn't insist on a cupboard full of goodies for his own consumption!
 
Bluetit1802 said:
The low carb diet can consist of a great amount of vegetable eating. Fresh veg are cheap. Shopping at the discount supermarkets such as Lidl cuts the cost of just about everything by large amounts. Cheap cuts of meat are cheap enough and nutritious. Not buying biscuits, cakes and sweets saves money. A low carb diet can work out cheaper than the NHS Eatwell Plate with a bit of organisation.
Click to expand...
Not everyone has a Lidl or Aldi near them or a butchers where they could get the cheaper cuts of meat and the other supermarkets do not really do much in the cheaper cuts of meats. Supermarkets only stock what sells and that is really not the cheaper cuts of meat.
 
Pinkorchid said:
As the OP said they are living on £140 a week. Rice pasta bread and potatoes are usually the go to foods when shopping on a low budget.
Click to expand...

Technically, vegetables will cost more per kg than staples like bread, potato, rice and pasta but I'm hoping that most people are eating vegetables along with the staples mentioned.

Courgette 1.89 kg
Broccoli 1.29 kg
Cauliflower 1.65 kg
White Cabbage 79p each (1kg?)
Mushrooms 2.26 kg
Onion 75p kg
Leeks 1.75 kg
Peppers 52 each
Lettuce 40p each
Tomatoes 1.54 kg

White potato 60p kg
Rice 45p kg
Pasta 98p kg
Bread 1.70 kg

That's come from the Tesco website and I tried to pick the cheapest option because it's amazing the difference in price of the same commodity. I always go for loose rather than pay for packaging. I eat a lot of vegetables, sometimes I even have Aubergine (whoopee). If I was to buy 1 kg of the top ten listed I think that comes to just under a tenner, I'd be getting my five a day alright. LOL

Does anybody grow vegetables? My neighbour grows courgettes the size of marrows, costs nothing (ish) and the last one was used in 3 separate meals. I'm told they are the easiest to grow, even an idiot like me could do it.

I haven't even explored the local farmer's markets that must exist in certain towns. I'm not convinced that living on a small income precludes the ability to eat all sorts of vegetables rather than the 4 staples.
 
Hi @hill4332

I eat low carb myself, and find it very good at controlling blood glucose, so you may find the same (basically that means I avoid rice, bread, potato, pasta, sugar, sweet fruits and fruit juices).

but I do want to suggest that if you want to try reducing those foods, that you do it gradually.

Since you are on insulin, you may risk having too low blood glucose if you cut too many carbs out too quickly.

Maybe start off with reducing your portion sizes a bit, see what happens, and then reduce them a bit more, once you have seen your levels dropping a bit.

Hope you find this helpful - and please let us know how you get on?
 
Frozen veg can often be cheaper. Cheap meat works well in a slow cooker so saving the cost of running an oven.
 
@hill4332

Hello and welcome to the Forum :) Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope it will be useful to you. Have a look at the link to the Low Carb Program which could help you. Ask as many questions as you want and someone will be able to 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 well over 245,000 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

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.

Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a free 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.

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
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)
  • Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

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 blood glucose 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.

Take part in Diabetes.co.uk digital education programs and improve your understanding. They're all free.
  • Low Carb Program - it's made front-page news of the New Scientist and The Times. Developed with 20,000 people with type 2 diabetes; 96% of people who take part recommend it... find out why
  • Hypo Program - improve your understanding of hypos. There's a version for people with diabetes, parents/guardians of children with type 1, children with type 1 diabetes, teachers and HCPs.
 
Back
Top