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Been on very low carb, now told to eat bread - arrgh! :/

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Melwest

Melwest

Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
I have been on low carb for quite a while, I guess the only carbs I have eaten is what is in two dessert spoons of powdered potato and that is not every day, my sugars have ranged between maybe 9 and 28mmol due to having Radiotherapy for Lymphoma, that stopped some 4-5 weeks ago but i still feel rubbish.

I went to a diabetic meeting the other day and was told to have carbs again,i.e. bread, i refuse to eat porridge due to it making my sugars rise to 28+ mmol, i have had egg on toast for breakfast today and I am up to 17.9mmol and now trembling and sweating.

I do not really wish for carbs as it raises my levels horrendously and makes me feel bad, I am told they are good carbs- I do not believe it at all, I can only go by feeling utterly rubbish after having them in any larger amount than that of the powdered mash portion and two dessert spoons does not have so much in them.

Another site on the internet would vouch for carb free and one user saying she got a massive rush after going free after a few weeks- i kind of think that is BS because I just feel c**p. excuse that but i do. I have no idea what feeling good is all about for the last 3 or so years, i am currently taking humulin kwikpen 60 units per day and i am type II. The insulin makes very little difference. If i take Metformin it does seem to work better than the insulin but makes me really ill, i also have issues if i take Gliclizide.

Not sure what way to go now or even who to believe.. help please?!
 
Well done for keeping the carbs down. More than 52yrs of being T1 diabetic & carbs do the damage to GB. Less carbs & its easier to control. Good luck & welcome. 🙂
 
Good grief, bread is just the worst thing imho!
 
HOBIE said:
Sticky Toffee pudding is bad . Bread I find is ok. Everything in moderation. No wonder your mixed up. Good luck 😉
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I found millionaire shortbread was worse than sticky toffee pudding
 
I can’t even eat porridge, let alone bread.

I fantasise about stuff like millionaires shortbread.
 
Porridge I have nearly every day & then off to work. Nothing at all till 1ish. BG fine cos active job🙂
 
As you are type two, like me, bread, or any grain is going to increase your blood glucose levels - so will potatoes and other starchy veges, and so will fruit, fruit juice, or sugary foods.
As far as I know there are no good carbs, but there are no essential carbs either, so you do not need to eat them - I don't know why you are eating potato, but I doubt that you need to.
I have salads and stir fries all the time, selecting foods which are 10 percent carbs or lower, and eat meat, fish, shellfish, eggs and cheese - I eat twice a day, as I don't need to eat more than that, have cream in my coffee, also a couple of times a day.
My Hba1c is at the top end of normal, and has been for 18 months now - I was diagnosed two years ago. I can cope with small amounts of low carb bread which I make myself, as there isn't much available to buy - and it is really expensive too. I try to stay below 7 mmol/l at the 2 hour tests, though I don't test very often now - as there is very little reason to do so. I know what foods to eat and stick to them.
 
I had not eaten bread for a year and my diet is somewhat similar to yours @Drummer but my HB1AC are always over 70mmol for the last year anyhow, I have been checking labels of all the food i buy and if something does have carbs I also tend to see if I can keep it as low as possible. I do not have fresh potato, only the powdered stuff occasionally due to it taking moments to make. I had tried the low carb bread but it is expensive and tastes far too sweet for me.

The diabetic centre team say i must have an awful existence and little energy and I am exhausted most of the time but I am still putting that down to the radiotherapy, prior to that I can only manage little and often. She has said she is going to make it her aim his year to get me eating bread, I mentioned the low-zero carbs which has been spoken about on here too and she said she did look at it.... and that was that, again, she says these results are from personal experiences and not from people that have studied for years and years and are professionals so I should take all of what any of you say with a pinch of salt and listen to her / them.... Maybe they are trying to kill me off, this is why I am so frustrated.

I also eat twice per day, this morning I got up and am at 14.2 mmol and I have not injected yet only i just got up due my sedatives/antihistamines. I cannot remember when I was below 8.9mmol, it has been a while.
 
Sorry to learn of your health issues and radiotherapy. :( I have no idea what effect that could be having on your system.

When I went extremely low carb I was miserable and lacking in energy. What I do now is measure my blood. Some foods spike me and I avoid them. Others like sourdough bread and high protein pasta don’t. Eating a little of those satiate me and help me avoid lots of nuts and cheese, keeping a close eye on overall carb intake. Maybe it’s worth getting a self test kit? Just a thought

I hope you get some help from the medics to manage both conditions and wish you best of luck with future radiotherapy.
 
Hi, yes i have eaten sweet potato but not very often, in my other post today the Radiotherapist told me it would affect my sugar levels so now I have finished they should start returning to a better level though my Hba1c came back at 93 today, my cholesterol at 8 and they are trying to get me to take statins...no. not after last time.

I do eat some nuts here and there and cheese, sadly any carb spikes me for some reason so i try my hardest to go without but i am extremely lethargic and advised that is down to the radiotherapy, my diet is mainly fat so that does not help the cholesterol but is it really that bad only I have managed to lose over a stone now over the last 6 or so weeks, this puzzles me as to how anyone can lose weight on a high fat diet!
 
Melwest said:
Hi, yes i have eaten sweet potato but not very often, in my other post today the Radiotherapist told me it would affect my sugar levels so now I have finished they should start returning to a better level though my Hba1c came back at 93 today, my cholesterol at 8 and they are trying to get me to take statins...no. not after last time.

I do eat some nuts here and there and cheese, sadly any carb spikes me for some reason so i try my hardest to go without but i am extremely lethargic and advised that is down to the radiotherapy, my diet is mainly fat so that does not help the cholesterol but is it really that bad only I have managed to lose over a stone now over the last 6 or so weeks, this puzzles me as to how anyone can lose weight on a high fat diet!
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I never could lose weight on a high fat diet.
Cheese, well, any saturated fat pushed my cholesterol through the ceiling as well.
Low healthy fat, Mediterranean diet for me.
 
Would you go to a diabetes consultant to find out about Radiotherapy, or an ENT one to enquire about your waterworks? I am baffled as to why your diabetes is anything to do with Radiology. If you need more help with it and you most likely do because ANY concurrent illness condition and certain drugs can all have an effect on the blood glucose levels - in fact longterm use of some drugs can even cause diabetes!

Do you actually see an expert about your D or is your advice solely from your GP surgery where there are NO experts - that's exactly why their name is General practice. I don't deny they know one hell of a lot about all sorts of things - but just aren't experts and are not even supposed to be.

Whoever you happen to see about your D - or anything else - you are 100% entitled to request a second opinion.
 
Melwest said:
Hi, yes i have eaten sweet potato but not very often, in my other post today the Radiotherapist told me it would affect my sugar levels so now I have finished they should start returning to a better level though my Hba1c came back at 93 today, my cholesterol at 8 and they are trying to get me to take statins...no. not after last time.

I do eat some nuts here and there and cheese, sadly any carb spikes me for some reason so i try my hardest to go without but i am extremely lethargic and advised that is down to the radiotherapy, my diet is mainly fat so that does not help the cholesterol but is it really that bad only I have managed to lose over a stone now over the last 6 or so weeks, this puzzles me as to how anyone can lose weight on a high fat diet!
Click to expand...
You really do have to avoid eating high carb foods -sweet potato - the clue is in the name - and all that 'information' about fat in the diet was - as far as can be ascertained, based on highly suspect 'data'
 
Drummer said:
You really do have to avoid eating high carb foods -sweet potato - the clue is in the name - and all that 'information' about fat in the diet was - as far as can be ascertained, based on highly suspect 'data'
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Ah.
Looking at the name.
It seems it may be bad.
But the reality?
"Sweet potato" is a very high fibre, very high GI food.
High GI means it can be to a great many of us, a good food, we can eat it, without a spike.
(Problem with low carb is it accentuates them)

Now, we have to look at the amount of carbs, and the way people react to them.
So a few carbs, that we absorb slowly, like a "sweet potato" can be ok to many.
Don't write it off us for the rest of us.

Many of us aren't committed to missing out on these foods.

(Fat, really bad, saturated fat spikes my cholesterol like a erm, bad thing)

I find moderation is the key for me.

Lose weight, Mediterranean diet, choose the middle path for everything, and its all good, the mainstream way seems to work.
 
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When I was in my youth I used to race Catamarans & the min weight was 10st 10. A few competitors said I was cheating & I was forced to carry bricks on my boat. I still beat them & have not been much heavier ALL my life. The bricks helped to keep the boat down in the wind. Speed.😉
 
HOBIE said:
When I was in my youth I used to race Catamarans & the min weight was 10st 10. A few competitors said I was cheating & I was forced to carry bricks on my boat. I still beat them & have not been much heavier ALL my life. The bricks helped to keep the boat down in the wind. Speed.😉
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Very true.
The op is type 2

Lose weight is the key for type 2!
Totally support where you are coming from.
What do you think about the Newcastle Diet for that?
 
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