KatherineK
Full Member
Hello everyone,
I came across this site while looking for recipe's and am delighted to see a section for Diabetes. I have titled my thread for T2 as that is what I am, and am not knowledgeable the insulin requirements for T1 or T1.5.
All the advice I give is based on years of experience and more importantly testing. The first and most important advice I can give is get a meter. Few Doctors will give them to T2 so we must buy our own, and testing strips. Testing strips are very expensive, and can make testing become expensive. However, there is an answer. There is a meter called the SD codefree meter. It is quite new, but is perfect as a meter you can use often. Just make sure when you buy it that it measures in the UK's mmol/l. You can buy the meter which comes with a small supply of test strips and lancets on E-bay and Amazon. Test strips tend to run at around £4.99 - £6.99 for 50, which is bargain basement prices, yet the meter is as good as any other. It is basic so does not have all the 'bells and whistles' that some gadget people like. It tests BG's and that is what you want.
Now you have your meter, use it. Test your fasting level as soon as you wake up, before eating or drinking anything. Make sure you wash your hands first, or you could contaminate the reading. [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]For a FBG you are aiming for around the 7.5mmol/l but if you are higher, read the rest of this post, and don't panic. I will give advice on reducing levels. Test before every meal, and then 2 hours later. Keep a diary of your food, and your BG readings. It is by testing you determine which foods you can eat, which will spike you, and which spike for a long time.
T2 diabetics can't control their blood glucose with insulin, as we have impaired pancreatic function. There is one school of thought that says that impaired pancreatic function is genetic, and I can go along with that. If it were due to being overweight, then all overweight people would be diabetic, and thin people not at all. This is clearly not the case. If we can't control our BG with insulin, then what do we do? There is diet or medication and diet. Not everyone wants to go the route of medication, but in the case of Metformin, it is a very safe drug, and it also acts as a protector against heart and liver problems, added to which it is also a mild appetite suppressant. This is usually the first line of defence and I would advise that if you are offered Metformin, take it! It does have some side effects, the major one being tummy upset. The remedy is to ask your doctor for slow release, and always take with food. Most newly diagnosed diabetics are also offered Statins, usually Simvastatin. While Statins are not a drug we want to be on, I do recommend you take them until you have your cholesterol under control with diet.
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Diet. This is contentious to say the least, but as I say this is my experience. The one major thing to remember is we are all different, so what is fine for one person, may not be for you - eat to your meter, it's the only way to learn. Foods and what you need to know. The NHS advises that you eat starchy carbs at each meal in reduced quantities. That diet advise is wrong, very wrong. You need to cut carbs from your diet drastically. How low you reduce your carbs will be shown by your meter. Cut out all starchy carbs especially white carbs, potato's, rice, pasta, bread and flour. Don't panic at this point, there are alternatives. Old starchy potato's will spike any diabetic, even in small quantities, as will pasta and rice. You can try a couple of small new potato's try them and test. Obviously you must cut out sugar, but what a lot of people don't realise is, carbs turn to glucose in the blood. Your body will use what you eat for fuel, and store the rest as fat. I advise you start carbs at not more than 150g per day. This for me, would be massively to many, but you must start somewhere. If you post meal 2 hour readings are above 7.8 then that is the point where the excess sugar in your blood begins to do harm. If you have say 2 spoonful's of rice, and get a high 2 hour reading, next time try one spoonful. If you still spike, rice is best avoided. The lowest carb rice and one some diabetics can manage is basmati rice. The next thing is with low carbs you need fuel for your body. If you go very low carb, under 50g a day, your body will go into a state called ketosis. Being in ketosis means your body is getting it's fuel from stored fat. This is a much more efficient way to run the body. Top class sports men and woman have low carb diets because if you are fueled by the carbs you eat, then when you run out of fuel ie carbs, your body stalls. When in ketosis, the body keeps going as it has stored fat to use, so is more efficient. Also buy making your body use stored fat, it will use the visceral fat around the organs, this is very important to diabetics as it allows us who have impaired pancreatic function a chance to allow our pancreas to work a little better, which in turn helps us achieve better blood glucose. So how to fuel our efficient ketotonic bodies. The best thing is a high protein medium fat diet. This means you can eat lots of meat, fish, eggs, dairy, along with lots of veg and salad. The best veg is that which grows above the ground, and things like swede, turnip, carrots and parsnips are higher in carbs. With a high protein, medium fat and low carb diet, the weight will fall off. Again, this will help your glucose control. Fruit is not an easy food as it will spike you. The best fruit are the ones that end in berry. Strawberry, blackberry, raspberry, blueberry etc. They are lower in carbs. You can try an apple, but test after an hour then two hours, some people can manage an apple, others can't. Sadly I can't, so make up for it with berry's. Bananna's, grapes and melons are a no-no to every diabetic I have ever met, but again, you must try (I have not met every diabetic in the world). Your diet can include nuts and seeds as well. All in all for people who are T2 diabetics the best diet of all is Atkins. You can modify it as long as you test and eat to your meter. Don't be afraid to try foods you like, just make sure that you keep a food diary and - eat to your meter.
Diabetes is a whole new lifestyle, it's not simply a diet. The advantage is, cut carbs and you can drastically reduce the chances of retinopathy, neuropathy, liver and kidney failure, and all the other complications associated with diabetes. With a new lifestyle there is no reason why you shouldn't live to a ripe old age with your feet and your sight. Blindness in this country is made up of around 80% diabetics. If you google diabetes and blindness, you will be shocked at the results you find.
Hb1Ac tests. These are supposed to be done every three months. NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellence) recommends a level of 8.5 is where other measures may have to be introduced to control BG. 7 mmol/l and below is recommended, I consider this to be still too high, to avoid complications. You may like to read the NICE guidelines for diabetics. http://www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/pdf/CG66NICEGuideline.pdf
At this point there sadly is no cure for diabets. It can be managed very effectively, with a lifestyle change including diet. I can't stress strongly enough that carbs are in many ways poison to a diabetic, and must be reduced to a sensible level. Low carb diets 50g a day or less seems to be the best range for us T2, but as you have probably guessed my mantra was and still is, eat to your meter and test - always, especially just before eating, and 2 hours after. I also advise one hour testing if you are trying a new food.
One last point, infact two actually, almost all diabetics, infact almost the entire UK population is Vitamin D deficient, we simply don't get enough sunshine here. Your doctor may test you for this and prescribe Vit D and a calcium mix (remember, if you are on diabetic medications, you should be entitled to free prescriptions). If your doctor won't test, then buy a good quality Vit D supplement, but remember you also need calcium with it. Secondly, when you begin to low carb, for around 3-4 days you may feel like you have the flu and a headache. This will pass, but drink as much water as you can, and try not to give in. Your body is in effect screaching at having to change what it knows. Going from burning what you are eating to fat is much better for the body, but when it has been used to using carbs for fuel, it will kick up at having to change. These symptoms are often called the Atkins flu, but they do pass quite quickly.
If you have any questions I will try to help, but please remember I am not quallified to give medical advise.
T2 need not be scary or life changing. Knowledge is power, get yourself armed, and you can live side by side with diabetes very easily.
Good luck all.
I came across this site while looking for recipe's and am delighted to see a section for Diabetes. I have titled my thread for T2 as that is what I am, and am not knowledgeable the insulin requirements for T1 or T1.5.
All the advice I give is based on years of experience and more importantly testing. The first and most important advice I can give is get a meter. Few Doctors will give them to T2 so we must buy our own, and testing strips. Testing strips are very expensive, and can make testing become expensive. However, there is an answer. There is a meter called the SD codefree meter. It is quite new, but is perfect as a meter you can use often. Just make sure when you buy it that it measures in the UK's mmol/l. You can buy the meter which comes with a small supply of test strips and lancets on E-bay and Amazon. Test strips tend to run at around £4.99 - £6.99 for 50, which is bargain basement prices, yet the meter is as good as any other. It is basic so does not have all the 'bells and whistles' that some gadget people like. It tests BG's and that is what you want.
Now you have your meter, use it. Test your fasting level as soon as you wake up, before eating or drinking anything. Make sure you wash your hands first, or you could contaminate the reading. [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]For a FBG you are aiming for around the 7.5mmol/l but if you are higher, read the rest of this post, and don't panic. I will give advice on reducing levels. Test before every meal, and then 2 hours later. Keep a diary of your food, and your BG readings. It is by testing you determine which foods you can eat, which will spike you, and which spike for a long time.
T2 diabetics can't control their blood glucose with insulin, as we have impaired pancreatic function. There is one school of thought that says that impaired pancreatic function is genetic, and I can go along with that. If it were due to being overweight, then all overweight people would be diabetic, and thin people not at all. This is clearly not the case. If we can't control our BG with insulin, then what do we do? There is diet or medication and diet. Not everyone wants to go the route of medication, but in the case of Metformin, it is a very safe drug, and it also acts as a protector against heart and liver problems, added to which it is also a mild appetite suppressant. This is usually the first line of defence and I would advise that if you are offered Metformin, take it! It does have some side effects, the major one being tummy upset. The remedy is to ask your doctor for slow release, and always take with food. Most newly diagnosed diabetics are also offered Statins, usually Simvastatin. While Statins are not a drug we want to be on, I do recommend you take them until you have your cholesterol under control with diet.
[/FONT]
Diet. This is contentious to say the least, but as I say this is my experience. The one major thing to remember is we are all different, so what is fine for one person, may not be for you - eat to your meter, it's the only way to learn. Foods and what you need to know. The NHS advises that you eat starchy carbs at each meal in reduced quantities. That diet advise is wrong, very wrong. You need to cut carbs from your diet drastically. How low you reduce your carbs will be shown by your meter. Cut out all starchy carbs especially white carbs, potato's, rice, pasta, bread and flour. Don't panic at this point, there are alternatives. Old starchy potato's will spike any diabetic, even in small quantities, as will pasta and rice. You can try a couple of small new potato's try them and test. Obviously you must cut out sugar, but what a lot of people don't realise is, carbs turn to glucose in the blood. Your body will use what you eat for fuel, and store the rest as fat. I advise you start carbs at not more than 150g per day. This for me, would be massively to many, but you must start somewhere. If you post meal 2 hour readings are above 7.8 then that is the point where the excess sugar in your blood begins to do harm. If you have say 2 spoonful's of rice, and get a high 2 hour reading, next time try one spoonful. If you still spike, rice is best avoided. The lowest carb rice and one some diabetics can manage is basmati rice. The next thing is with low carbs you need fuel for your body. If you go very low carb, under 50g a day, your body will go into a state called ketosis. Being in ketosis means your body is getting it's fuel from stored fat. This is a much more efficient way to run the body. Top class sports men and woman have low carb diets because if you are fueled by the carbs you eat, then when you run out of fuel ie carbs, your body stalls. When in ketosis, the body keeps going as it has stored fat to use, so is more efficient. Also buy making your body use stored fat, it will use the visceral fat around the organs, this is very important to diabetics as it allows us who have impaired pancreatic function a chance to allow our pancreas to work a little better, which in turn helps us achieve better blood glucose. So how to fuel our efficient ketotonic bodies. The best thing is a high protein medium fat diet. This means you can eat lots of meat, fish, eggs, dairy, along with lots of veg and salad. The best veg is that which grows above the ground, and things like swede, turnip, carrots and parsnips are higher in carbs. With a high protein, medium fat and low carb diet, the weight will fall off. Again, this will help your glucose control. Fruit is not an easy food as it will spike you. The best fruit are the ones that end in berry. Strawberry, blackberry, raspberry, blueberry etc. They are lower in carbs. You can try an apple, but test after an hour then two hours, some people can manage an apple, others can't. Sadly I can't, so make up for it with berry's. Bananna's, grapes and melons are a no-no to every diabetic I have ever met, but again, you must try (I have not met every diabetic in the world). Your diet can include nuts and seeds as well. All in all for people who are T2 diabetics the best diet of all is Atkins. You can modify it as long as you test and eat to your meter. Don't be afraid to try foods you like, just make sure that you keep a food diary and - eat to your meter.
Diabetes is a whole new lifestyle, it's not simply a diet. The advantage is, cut carbs and you can drastically reduce the chances of retinopathy, neuropathy, liver and kidney failure, and all the other complications associated with diabetes. With a new lifestyle there is no reason why you shouldn't live to a ripe old age with your feet and your sight. Blindness in this country is made up of around 80% diabetics. If you google diabetes and blindness, you will be shocked at the results you find.
Hb1Ac tests. These are supposed to be done every three months. NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellence) recommends a level of 8.5 is where other measures may have to be introduced to control BG. 7 mmol/l and below is recommended, I consider this to be still too high, to avoid complications. You may like to read the NICE guidelines for diabetics. http://www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/pdf/CG66NICEGuideline.pdf
At this point there sadly is no cure for diabets. It can be managed very effectively, with a lifestyle change including diet. I can't stress strongly enough that carbs are in many ways poison to a diabetic, and must be reduced to a sensible level. Low carb diets 50g a day or less seems to be the best range for us T2, but as you have probably guessed my mantra was and still is, eat to your meter and test - always, especially just before eating, and 2 hours after. I also advise one hour testing if you are trying a new food.
One last point, infact two actually, almost all diabetics, infact almost the entire UK population is Vitamin D deficient, we simply don't get enough sunshine here. Your doctor may test you for this and prescribe Vit D and a calcium mix (remember, if you are on diabetic medications, you should be entitled to free prescriptions). If your doctor won't test, then buy a good quality Vit D supplement, but remember you also need calcium with it. Secondly, when you begin to low carb, for around 3-4 days you may feel like you have the flu and a headache. This will pass, but drink as much water as you can, and try not to give in. Your body is in effect screaching at having to change what it knows. Going from burning what you are eating to fat is much better for the body, but when it has been used to using carbs for fuel, it will kick up at having to change. These symptoms are often called the Atkins flu, but they do pass quite quickly.
If you have any questions I will try to help, but please remember I am not quallified to give medical advise.
T2 need not be scary or life changing. Knowledge is power, get yourself armed, and you can live side by side with diabetes very easily.
Good luck all.
