Hi I am new ,recently been diagnosed type t2 what I would like to know is if i should be using strips and keeping a diary of things my Dr told me i don't need to as he put me on slow release Metformin what should I do because reading this forum it seems like everyone is recording levels .
What to expect at the Doctors ?
- Thread starter Sever
- Start Date
izzzi
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 4,207
- Type of diabetes
- Treatment type
- Diet only
Hi Sever, 
I know it is so stupid why Doctors and NHS do not recommend Type 2, to control there Diabetes with test strips.
How else can we control our Diabetes.
If it was not for this Forum I would be exactly as I was 6 months ago. I have improved a great deal and using strips is the only guide I have.
Good luck.
Also you may find the Codefree meter and strips the most economical type. ( there on Amazon post free ).
Roy.
I know it is so stupid why Doctors and NHS do not recommend Type 2, to control there Diabetes with test strips.
How else can we control our Diabetes.
If it was not for this Forum I would be exactly as I was 6 months ago. I have improved a great deal and using strips is the only guide I have.
Good luck.
Also you may find the Codefree meter and strips the most economical type. ( there on Amazon post free ).
Roy.
Most GPs say that T2 don't need to test, but lots of us have found that it is the only way that we can find out what puts our levels up. My own GP admitted that it was a cost cutting decision, very short sighted as in the long run it will cost the NHS more in treating complications. I'm very relieved that I found this forum and decided to test myself, I feel really sorry for the folks who take their GPs 'advice' and don't test, finishing up on the drug escalator as they can't get control unless their drugs are increased time after time.
Ann
Ann
Hi Sever ...
BS stands for Blood Sugar and it also stands for B*** S***.
I completely agree with Ann19 so I won't reiterate. But the majority of us on this forum test ourselves because then we can see what happens AFTER we eat a particular type of food and only then can we KNOW whether we can eat it again or leave it off our menu in future. I would still be eating potatoes and bread if I hadn't tested myself before and after a meal containing one or the other. One slice of bread had my BS almost 4.0 higher 2hrs after eating and the same for potatoes. Plus I felt terribly bloated after eating them and have done for years. So my body has been telling me, I just didn't listen carefully enough to it.
Please get yourself a meter and start testing and remember you don't have to even tell your doctor or DN that you're testing, it's entirely up to YOU how you manage your diabetes in CONJUNCTION with your clinicians.
To the NHS it's all about budgets and costs, to us it's about THE QUALITY OF OUR LIVES.
BS stands for Blood Sugar and it also stands for B*** S***.
I completely agree with Ann19 so I won't reiterate. But the majority of us on this forum test ourselves because then we can see what happens AFTER we eat a particular type of food and only then can we KNOW whether we can eat it again or leave it off our menu in future. I would still be eating potatoes and bread if I hadn't tested myself before and after a meal containing one or the other. One slice of bread had my BS almost 4.0 higher 2hrs after eating and the same for potatoes. Plus I felt terribly bloated after eating them and have done for years. So my body has been telling me, I just didn't listen carefully enough to it.
Please get yourself a meter and start testing and remember you don't have to even tell your doctor or DN that you're testing, it's entirely up to YOU how you manage your diabetes in CONJUNCTION with your clinicians.
To the NHS it's all about budgets and costs, to us it's about THE QUALITY OF OUR LIVES.
Hi. Yes, I agree with the others. Apart from the high cost to the NHS my diabetes GP and I think many others don't understand that food greatly affects your blood sugar. They just assume it's an illness you have and the solution is prescribing tablets until insulin becomes inevitable. We all know that food affects us greatly and although medication may be needed as well, the right diet is vital.
Grazer
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 3,115
Hi and welcome!
Here is some info which hopefully might help you get to grips with your Diabetes, including testing AND diet.
In general terms you will need to reduce the total number of carbohydrates you eat per day. All carbohydrates turn to sugar when we eat them, and no type 2 diabetic on diet only, or on diet and metformin only, can control their blood sugars (BGs) without controlling their carb intake. Even those on strong medication normally choose to control their carb intake to keep the level of medication they take down. The total number of carbs per day you can eat depends on how advanced your diabetes is. It’s perhaps worth starting at about 50% of normal levels for a non-diabetic then adjusting up or down according to how you get on. So that means eating 150 grams of carbs per day for a man, 125 for a woman. You can read the total carb content of food under “nutritional info” on the packet or wrapping, or look it up on the internet for loose food. Just google “carb content..”
You also need to stop or reduce the bad carbs; that is the starchy ones that make your BG go up quickly.
So obviously no sugar or glucose! But also no white bread, white rice, pasta, flour products like pastry, cake and batter. You can eat a little basmati rice, wholewheat pasta or the tri-color pasta fusilli ones in small quantities. Boiled new potatos (again not too many) are OK but not old pots mashed, boiled or in their jackets. (Roast is not so bad, the fat slows their absorption and conversion to glucose in the blood) Amongst other veg, parsnips are about the worst for BG, and carrots not great but ok in smaller amounts.
Multi grain bread (not wholemeal) is not SO bad, but lots of us eat Burgen soya and linseed bread from tescos and sainsburys, although all bread should be in limited amounts.
All fruit has carbohydrates, and needs to be included in the amounts of carbs you eat in a day. For most people, bananas are about the worst for pushing our BG up and berries (like strawberries, raspberries etc) are the least bad.
No sweeties!
Exercise is important. I tend to exercise about an hour after eating when I know my BG will be peaking. This helps to bring it down quicker and further. I do ten minutes hard work on an exercise machine, but you could run up and down stairs for ten minutes or go for a brisk walk.
Returning to types of food and quantities of carbs - you can only find out how many you can eat by testing. Most type 2’s are not given access to testing equipment, so you should get your own – although try arguing with your Doc that you want to manage to NICE guideline blood sugar levels, and can’t do that without testing! If you have to buy a meter, they are cheap and most manufacturers will give them away for free. They make their money on the strips you have to use! So go for the meter with the cheapest testing strips. The SD Codefree available on the internet is about the cheapest at the moment. Some people test before and after eating, on waking (fasting test) and before bed. But if you have limited strips because of cost, the key to me is testing 2 hours after eating. If your BG is above, say, 7.8 at that stage, you need to cut down on the carb content the next time you have that meal. Test after various different meals and you soon get to see a pattern of what you can and can’t eat, and in what quantities. Keep careful records of what you ate and when, together with the result, so you can refer back at a later date. You can then reduce your testing. I said “below, say, 7.8” because NICE guidelines are below 8.5 but most of us think that’s a little high. 7.8 is the max. level at 2 hours after eating that a non-diabetic normally gets to so is perhaps a better target. Some then set progressively lower targets.
Do ask lots of questions; there is normally an answer on here. The more you get to learn about your diabetes, the better it will be.
Good luck!
Here is some info which hopefully might help you get to grips with your Diabetes, including testing AND diet.
In general terms you will need to reduce the total number of carbohydrates you eat per day. All carbohydrates turn to sugar when we eat them, and no type 2 diabetic on diet only, or on diet and metformin only, can control their blood sugars (BGs) without controlling their carb intake. Even those on strong medication normally choose to control their carb intake to keep the level of medication they take down. The total number of carbs per day you can eat depends on how advanced your diabetes is. It’s perhaps worth starting at about 50% of normal levels for a non-diabetic then adjusting up or down according to how you get on. So that means eating 150 grams of carbs per day for a man, 125 for a woman. You can read the total carb content of food under “nutritional info” on the packet or wrapping, or look it up on the internet for loose food. Just google “carb content..”
You also need to stop or reduce the bad carbs; that is the starchy ones that make your BG go up quickly.
So obviously no sugar or glucose! But also no white bread, white rice, pasta, flour products like pastry, cake and batter. You can eat a little basmati rice, wholewheat pasta or the tri-color pasta fusilli ones in small quantities. Boiled new potatos (again not too many) are OK but not old pots mashed, boiled or in their jackets. (Roast is not so bad, the fat slows their absorption and conversion to glucose in the blood) Amongst other veg, parsnips are about the worst for BG, and carrots not great but ok in smaller amounts.
Multi grain bread (not wholemeal) is not SO bad, but lots of us eat Burgen soya and linseed bread from tescos and sainsburys, although all bread should be in limited amounts.
All fruit has carbohydrates, and needs to be included in the amounts of carbs you eat in a day. For most people, bananas are about the worst for pushing our BG up and berries (like strawberries, raspberries etc) are the least bad.
No sweeties!
Exercise is important. I tend to exercise about an hour after eating when I know my BG will be peaking. This helps to bring it down quicker and further. I do ten minutes hard work on an exercise machine, but you could run up and down stairs for ten minutes or go for a brisk walk.
Returning to types of food and quantities of carbs - you can only find out how many you can eat by testing. Most type 2’s are not given access to testing equipment, so you should get your own – although try arguing with your Doc that you want to manage to NICE guideline blood sugar levels, and can’t do that without testing! If you have to buy a meter, they are cheap and most manufacturers will give them away for free. They make their money on the strips you have to use! So go for the meter with the cheapest testing strips. The SD Codefree available on the internet is about the cheapest at the moment. Some people test before and after eating, on waking (fasting test) and before bed. But if you have limited strips because of cost, the key to me is testing 2 hours after eating. If your BG is above, say, 7.8 at that stage, you need to cut down on the carb content the next time you have that meal. Test after various different meals and you soon get to see a pattern of what you can and can’t eat, and in what quantities. Keep careful records of what you ate and when, together with the result, so you can refer back at a later date. You can then reduce your testing. I said “below, say, 7.8” because NICE guidelines are below 8.5 but most of us think that’s a little high. 7.8 is the max. level at 2 hours after eating that a non-diabetic normally gets to so is perhaps a better target. Some then set progressively lower targets.
Do ask lots of questions; there is normally an answer on here. The more you get to learn about your diabetes, the better it will be.
Good luck!
Ann19 said:
Agree. We do need to test, and for the majority of us that means self funding. It is only by testing can you possibly know what foods will cause a spike. An example Grazer ^^ can eat all bran in the morning, I can't look at any cereal any time of the day, but it really is all about testing and seeing your own reactions. Each of us is very different and have different reactions to all kinds of things, especially food.
Good luck.
daisy1
Legend
- Messages
- 26,457
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
- Dislikes
- Cruelty towards animals.
Hi Sever and welcome to the forum
This is the information that we give to new members and I think you will find it helpful. Ask as many questions as you like as there is always someone who can help.
BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS
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 30,000 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 ... rains.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 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.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please sign our e-petition for free testing for all type 2's; here's the link:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/petition/
Do get your friends and colleagues to sign as well.
This is the information that we give to new members and I think you will find it helpful. Ask as many questions as you like as there is always someone who can help.
BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS
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 30,000 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 ... rains.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 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.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please sign our e-petition for free testing for all type 2's; here's the link:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/petition/
Do get your friends and colleagues to sign as well.
Wow I am really touched at the help full responses I appreciate the advice also thank you for making things clear to me , I think I will be changing doctor because he has left me with no advice and just stuck me on medication without really telling me anything about how to look after myself I got more advice here , this forum is great thank you to those who responded you have made me so welcome :wave:
:wave:Sever said:Wow I am really touched at the help full responses I appreciate the advice also thank you for making things clear to me , I think I will be changing doctor because he has left me with no advice and just stuck me on medication without really telling me anything about how to look after myself I got more advice here , this forum is great thank you to those who responded you have made me so welcome
If I were you I wouldn't rush into changing your doctor right now, because you need the stability of just having a doctor at the moment without a new one having to learn all about you at the moment etc. It's quite common for doctors to just give the diagnosis and the medication but not much else. Mine was exactly the same. I was referred to the DN who wasn't much better - I came out with a book and that's about it. Stick with your forum and your GP for now so that you at least get your blood tests done and get used to your meds, then if you're still not happy when you've learned some more from here, change your GP. You don't need the added stress of all that at the moment I would think.
