Where to start!

[BeccaJu]

Diagnosed last Monday with type 2. Feel I was given no real advice. I want to monitor my blood sugar but am so confused over the monitors etc.

Got myself into a state of worry that I am now up at nearly 5am still looking at diets and monitors.

 

[JoKalsbeek]

Diagnosed last Monday with type 2. Feel I was given no real advice. I want to monitor my blood sugar but am so confused over the monitors etc.

Got myself into a state of worry that I am now up at nearly 5am still looking at diets and monitors.

Good on you for wanting to get a glucose monitor. They're invaluable on this journey. Without it, you don't know whether the changes you're making are actually having an impact, and what type of impact. Mind you, at the start, there's a LOT of testing, and thus a massive amount of strips required. So you want the cheap, yet still reliable strips.

This is the info on meters and strips Rachox usually shares, but with her permission:

Here’s some info on UK meters, and to be clear I have no commercial connections with any of the companies mentioned. For a meter with cheap strips go for the Tee2 + found here:

http://spirit-healthcare.co.uk/product/tee2-plus-blood-glucose-meter/ with the strips found here:

http://spirit-healthcare.co.uk/product/tee2-testing-strips/

Some members have got a free Tee2 by phoning up to order, with a large order of strips they often throw the meter in for free:

Phone number 0800 8815423

With more expensive strips is the Caresens Dual which I currently use, this one has the advantage of glucose and ketone testing in one machine, it’s to be found here:

https://shop.spirit-health.co.uk/collections/caresens-dual

And to be totally transparent I used to use the SD Code Free from Home Health which has the cheapest strips available. However I found it to be becoming less and less reliable. Here it is for anyone wanting to give it a go, just bear in mind it seems they are replacing it with the Navii, details below.

http://homehealth-uk.com/product-category/blood-glucose/blood-glucose-monitor/

and here for the extra strips

http://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/sd-codefree-test-strips-to-be-used-only-with-the-sd-monitor/

There are discount codes if you buy in bulk.

5 packs 264086

10 packs 975833

Home Health have recently bought out this one too, but I haven’t heard any reviews yet, links to strips and the meter:

https://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/glucose-navii-blood-glucose-test-strips-50-strip-pack/

https://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/gluconavii-blood-sugar-meter-glucose-monitor-starter-kit/

Don’t forget to check the box if you have pre diabetes or diabetes so you can buy VAT free. (for all meters and strips)

​

As for diet, and how to actually use the meter, check this out: https://josekalsbeek.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-nutritional-thingy.html It's basically everything I wish someone'd told me when I was first diagnosed and just about scared out of my mind, with no reliable information whatsoever. If you're interested in more along the same line, try Dr. Jason Fung's the Diabetes Code, dietdoctor.com and this forum's website, diabetes.co.uk (not .org!), and just soak up as much as you can.

The bottom line though: If you're a diabetic T2, you cannot process carbs. Practically all carbs turn to glucose once ingested. So that's bread, spuds, most fruit (save for berries, starfruit, avocado and tomatoes), corn, cereals, rice, pasta.... Anything made with regular flour, starchy/underground veggies... Those'll all raise blood sugars. That's the one basic thing to understand about T2. It's not just sugars, it's starches too. And your meter'll tell you as much, once you have it.

Good news being: T2 is ONLY a progressive condition if you don't change your diet. That means that you can stop it in its tracks.You'll always be a T2, even when your blood sugars are back into the normal range, but you don't have to suffer from complications if you tackle this now, and could even reverse some damage which has already been done.

Good on you for wanting to be proactive here!
Jo

 

[Geordie_P]

It's a bit overwhelming at first, but you can get the hang of it quite quickly, so don't worry.
Honestly, if you just follow JoKal's links and advice above, you should be more or less set.

 

[Geordie_P]

"The bottom line though: If you're a diabetic T2, you cannot process carbs. Practically all carbs turn to glucose once ingested. So that's bread, spuds, most fruit (save for berries, starfruit, avocado and tomatoes), corn, cereals, rice, pasta.... Anything made with regular flour, starchy/underground veggies... Those'll all raise blood sugars. That's the one basic thing to understand about T2. It's not just sugars, it's starches too. And your meter'll tell you as much, once you have it."

This, in particular, is EXCELLENT. Keep to this.