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What now?

Flamingo74

Well-Known Member
Messages
63
Hi all,

I’ve had another great Hba1c result and I am just thinking ‘what next’?

April - 106
July - 43
Yesterday - 38

I’ve followed strict low carb and been on Metformin 500mg daily. I completely get that any lifestyle change has to be sustained but how strict will I have to be to sustain the improvements I have made?

Am I always going to be susceptible to high sugar levels?

I know this is really early days still and I am not looking for an easy option or to ‘cheat’. I just want to be fully informed.
 
Well done on a stunning reduction in HbA1c, keep doing what you’re doing as it’s working
 
Im hoping there is a little flexibility in that to be honest. There is evidence to suggest that weight loss and increased muscle mass significantly improve your ability to process glucose.


So if you achieved results purely through diet and meds with no associated uptake in exercise and significant weight loss its unlikely to stick if you change your diet.


If you have also changed your general life style and weight then you may be able to reintroduce things in moderation as part of a more balanced life style.


Worst case eating and testing will tell you. The trick is to carry on testing so you don’t get a nasty surprise in an annual HBA1C test.

As a note, im speaking from the "im hopeful to be contemplating what your discussing in a years time" type position rather then i have done this position. Then again i havnt gone super low carb,
 

I have been exercising and have lost 2 and a half stone since April.
 
Flamingo74 said:
Am I always going to be susceptible to high sugar levels?
Click to expand...

At least as susceptible as you always were, and now that you’ve had diabetes, probably a little more so. The mechanism that brought about the diabetes can bring it about again, but now it will probably take less time than it did before. In my opinion you’d be wise to stick with what’s working and don’t ever take your eye off the ball.

Great work on the HbA1c by the way
 
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I also recommend you get a fasting insulin and/or c-peptide test if you are able. It will tell you how easily your body is maintaining that glucose level.
 
I want to see how it all turns out - these times are a bit too interesting, but if it does all go pear shaped, I have useful skills which I'd like to teach my descendants.
I have no plans to change anything very much at all - except the size of the clothes I make for myself.
 
@Flamingo74 well done on your results and reduction in your hba1c. I have managed to maintain my hba1c at non diabetic levels for approx 6 years on between 100 - 130g carbs per day. However I still test regularly and know what I can and should not eat.
 
I've been low carbing - mainly under 50g a day sometimes much less - for nearly six years now, and have kept to bottom end of pre diabetic and have reduced & kept my weight stable, and as a clapped out OAP, managed to do so with very little exercise at all. I don't consider my current diet is particularly "strict" and I eat a wide range of low carb food. It was definitely too many higher carbs that caused both my weight gain and higher glucose levels - and keeping those carbs right down does the same for both my weight and glucose levels. However I also believe that what finally triggered my diabetes is still lurking should I go back to scoffing carbs again, and I'm not prepared to tempt providence now I've got things back under control.

Just keep up you good work and use your meter and scales (and maybe a bit of common sense!) to monitor how you're doing in the future as "one size doesn't fit all" - our diabetes is unique to us.

Robbity
 
Thanks everyone - I appreciate the honest responses and support.

I had a call with my diabetes nurse on Friday and she is really chuffed with my progress. I am still on metformin which is a bit disappointing but I am going with it. I have asked to be retested in 3 months as I have a holiday, birthday and Christmas to navigate and having the test booked for January will be a good stick for me.
 
I make things too! Loving making new clothes for my changing size and altering old ones I have rescued from the wardrobe!
 
That is a good result - as for next steps, is your DN hoping to help you get off metformin in the longer term?

I had my first low carb holidays last year, and planned fairly carefully for treats. I loved mince pies and christmas cake & pud so tried to find alternatives in advance. I never did find any really good cake recipes but I made a ginger cake (coconut flour), and almost-mince pies to have with real egg custard or cream or to take to events where everyone else would be eating my old favourites. (Although chocolate nut butter balls, or even pumpkin spice nut butter balls, are easier to carry!)
Plus a chocolate mousse made from 90% choc, cream and stevia.
The main course included roasted cauliflower instead of potatoes, and meat juices instead of gravy. And I made an almond based sage & onion stuffing.
 
Diabetes is related to lifestyle. There are two reasons for diabetes, including environmental factors, so it is important to stick to a healthy lifestyle. The change of lifestyle is the basis of drug treatment. Without changing the lifestyle, the efficacy of drugs will be greatly reduced. Mild people with diabetes may not need medication if they change their lifestyle.
 

Environmental factors? Where do you come up with this stuff? Do you know anything about diabetes at all?. And when will you post evidence about your other preposterous claims; i.e. paralysis and metformin?
 

Diabetes is not always lifestyle, in some cases it’s genetic or age. In some cases lifestyle changes doesn’t always work and other methods should be considered.
 

Hi,

Have you set yourself up as some sort of "educator" on diabetes in general?

I would genuinely love to know. Thanks in advance...
 
Not necessarily - as far as I am aware T1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition and other types such as T2 and T3 can be caused by having to use steroids for other conditions or pancreatic problems/removal etc.
 
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