Will losing weight help?

[lorib64]

Saw endocrinologist to go over bloodwork. Fasting glucose 142 mg/dl or 7.9 mmol/L. A1C 5.7 % I have been cutting carbs but gained 7 lbs in 6 months. I take 1500 mg metformin daily. 500 am 1000 pm

Everything else, chemistries, lipids were fine, I also take a statin,

She told me to lose weight. That even 5 lbs can help insulin resistance. I am overweight close to obese. She gave me the option to increase metformin but I want to try to lose weight first.

I am eating a lot less sugar and starchy foods but more fat, probably too many calories. I walk the dog 30 min daily.

My sleep is awful. I have trouble falling asleep and it is not restful. I have sleep apnea and wear a dental appliance that is being adjusted. I will have a repeat sleep study once the adjustments are complete. I also have schizophrenia and my dr prescribed a medicine, trazodone, to help me sleep. It is in the mail on its way.

I have a food tracking app, but have been focusing on carbs.

I saw a video on sugar addiction and it has me questioning things. I feel like the only thing that keeps me low carb is artificial sweeteners. I don’t know if it would be helpful to give up even more. The video considered sweeteners part of sugar.

 

[AndBreathe]

The thing about diabetes, and to an extent insulin resistance is that no two people are exactly the same, so it is important we sort of work things out for ourselves.

I don't mean that to sound unhelpful or rude, but for me, I wasn't particularly large at diagnosis (of T2), but did have love handles and any excess was definitely in my trunk area.

I decided to track my blood sugars, rather than my weight, but I lost weight along the way, to become very trim. In my instance it is difficult to be absolutely sure whether avoiding the foods that sent my blood sugars higher than desirable, or the incidental weight loss was pivotal for me, but my blood sugares remain good and I remain trim.

If you are carrying excess weight, it would likely be overall helpful to lose at least some of that. If nothing else, your joints will thank you in later years!

When I cut the carbs, I didn't concentrate on increasing my fats. I just kept the carbs lower, eat plenty of protein then had incidental fats along the way. My fats generally came, and still do come from fattier cuts of meat, like belly pork, pork in general and chicken always comes with skin (unless cooked in a sauce, when skin can be unpleasant). My steaks generally are well marbled and have a decent fatty edge.

I wonderif maybe tweaking things to have a bit more protein might help fill you up, without leading to a weight gain?

Some of the meds you take may not help your plight, in terms of weight loss, but that would be something to discuss with your relevant doctor. You should not go tweaking your own meds, without their explicit go-ahead and guidance. That could lead to unpleasant outcomes.

 

[Robbity]

If you need sweet, erythritol, stevia or the two in combination are both fine as they contain non-digestible carbs, so won't affect glucose levels. But check very carefully for any fillers as these can be an issue, and this applies particularly to stevia which super sweet. (I've used these for over nine years, and don't crave or actually like the taste of real sugar any more! )

Regarding weight, when cutting carbs it's worth remembering that your body will resort to using body fat for fuel if it doesn't get enough from your diet, so there's no actual need to go overboard with eating fatty food.

 

[HSSS]

Poor sleep which is obviously a problem for you can raise bgl. So hopefully getting that sorted will help. Statins raise glucose too and are being questioned a lot these days as to their true benefit to individuals. It’s possible other medications have an effect so maybe a discussion there with your drs.

It is still possible to overeat on keto but much harder if done right. I’d be swapping the sweetener for erythritol (buy online) or stevia or a blend too for where you can’t ditch the sweet completely. And as Robbity says check for bulking agents like maltodextrin and dextrose etc as these are basically sugar. I personally don’t use the artificial ones because of the effect they have on the gut micro biome. Rather than eat high fat just avoid low fat unless you’re actually hungry and maybe increase protein a bit more too. You want to burn body fat for fuel rather than rely on dietary fat entirely.

 

[Ronancastled]

I am overweight close to obese.

Then weight loss will work wonders for you, I'd make it priority in your case. Upping the meds wont tackle the underlying cause, weight loss & carb control will.

My sleep is awful. I have trouble falling asleep and it is not restful. I have sleep apnea and wear a dental appliance that is being adjusted. I will have a repeat sleep study once the adjustments are complete.

I too had sleep apnea at diagnosis, completely disappeared once the weight fell off