Hello I’m new here

[saladsadventure]

Hi my name is Charlotte. I just had blood test last week and am told by my GP that I have prediabetes (6.5%). I have family history, that my mum and grandma passed away due to serious complications.

I am 36 years old, new to the UK as I have moved from Hong Kong last year. So everything is quite new to me. The fear and anxiety is overwhelming. ‍ Fortunately I found many useful information on diabetes.uk, and have been reading threads here which I feel support from all of you.

So, hello, and thank you

 

[HayleyR]

Hello Charlotte and welcome 🙂. Just wondered what support you have been given re diet etc.? Please just ask away about any worries etc. you have; there are so many of us with experience and support to give that I'm sure we can allay your fears🙂

 

[Sweetmadriana]

hello from a fellow newbie!

 

[Felinia]

Hello and welcome. Initial diagnosis is always overwhelming but you are in the right place here. As you are pre-diabetic this is the right time to make simple changes and return your blood glucose back into normal levels.
Many of us have reduced our daily carb intake to below 130gm a day. This is not NO carbs, as our bodies do need some carbs. Each of us is different and it can take some experimentation to find out what suits you best. After experimenting I settled on 75gm - 90gm a day. I got an app to help measure my daily carbs and simply reduced portion sizes of carbs and increased my veggies and protein. I also looked for substitutes like cauliflower for potato, and cauliflower rice or beansprouts instead of rice, edamame bean pasta.
I personally believe in moderation, not abstinence, and have the occasional small slice of no added sugar wholemeal bread (Warburtons) but there are other low carb breads. I also have the occasional couple of new potatoes, but I avoid rice and wheat pasta. I also avoid processed food, and of course sweets, cakes, biscuits, pastries (unless it fits within my daily allowance). That way I don't feel deprived and it's sustainable.
This is my menu today, for 86gm carbs: Breakfast was blueberries with Greek yogurt; Lunch will be crustless vegetable quiche with salad; Dinner will be roast pork, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, peas. I also have a cholesterol lowering drink, 2 cups of coffee then peppermint tea and lots of water.

 

[Mark72]

Hello and welcome from another relative newbie. It sounds like you're managing things to try and reduce blood sugar by food and lifestyle change, I hope things go well and you can turn it around. A low carb diet has helped me a lot having been diagnosed with a Hb1Ac just short of 100. I'm not as strict as Felinia, aiming for 120-130g per day but it's definitely made a difference.

 

[mashedupmatt]

Hi @saladsadventure and welcome to the forum - ask away with any questions you may have - nothing is considered "silly" here - we're all here to help each other

 

[Leadinglights]

As you are in the pre diabetic zone though I think with that % you are quite near the top so it would be wise to make some changes to your diet.
You may find that there will be foods you have been used to having whilst in Hong Kong may not be all that diabetic friendly but I sure there will still be plenty of foods you can eat and still enjoy.
It all depends on what foods you like but a few swaps for some of the high carb ones should be easy to make.

 

[CoolShot44]

hello and welcome to the forum

 

[Ieva DUK]

Hi @saladsadventure and welcome to the forum!
As Leadinglights has mentioned, you might find it useful to look at what you usually eat, identify any high carb foods in there and make changes where possible. Food often goes hand in hand with exercise (or movement in general), but everything's dependant on your day-to-day and what's viable for you to stick to in the long run. Do know that you can ask any questions you might have here freely - everyone's always eager to help.

 

[Lucyr]

Welcome. Was this test done inside or outside of the UK? It’s unusual to be given an a1c as a % here in the UK now, and 6.5% or 48 and higher is a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. However it could be that your GP has diagnosed as prediabetes for now and will diagnose as type 2 diabetes if you have a second a1c that is high.

 

[saladsadventure]

Hello Charlotte and welcome 🙂. Just wondered what support you have been given re diet etc.? Please just ask away about any worries etc. you have; there are so many of us with experience and support to give that I'm sure we can allay your

Hello Charlotte and welcome 🙂. Just wondered what support you have been given re diet etc.? Please just ask away about any worries etc. you have; there are so many of us with experience and support to give that I'm sure we can allay your fears🙂

Hi Hayley ☺️ thank you for your welcoming message. I have been researching about diet, understanding that i need to reduce the amount of carbohydrates. I also wore Dexcom CGM last month to find out what food affects my blood sugar levels. Not sure how long it would take to get my glucose levels down

 

[saladsadventure]

Hello and welcome. Initial diagnosis is always overwhelming but you are in the right place here. As you are pre-diabetic this is the right time to make simple changes and return your blood glucose back into normal levels.
Many of us have reduced our daily carb intake to below 130gm a day. This is not NO carbs, as our bodies do need some carbs. Each of us is different and it can take some experimentation to find out what suits you best. After experimenting I settled on 75gm - 90gm a day. I got an app to help measure my daily carbs and simply reduced portion sizes of carbs and increased my veggies and protein. I also looked for substitutes like cauliflower for potato, and cauliflower rice or beansprouts instead of rice, edamame bean pasta.
I personally believe in moderation, not abstinence, and have the occasional small slice of no added sugar wholemeal bread (Warburtons) but there are other low carb breads. I also have the occasional couple of new potatoes, but I avoid rice and wheat pasta. I also avoid processed food, and of course sweets, cakes, biscuits, pastries (unless it fits within my daily allowance). That way I don't feel deprived and it's sustainable.
This is my menu today, for 86gm carbs: Breakfast was blueberries with Greek yogurt; Lunch will be crustless vegetable quiche with salad; Dinner will be roast pork, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, peas. I also have a cholesterol lowering drink, 2 cups of coffee then peppermint tea and lots of water.

Hello Felinia that’s very kind of you to share your insights. My current menu is very similar to yours: more veggies and protein, and less carbs. I still have some cravings for bread and pasta though, I’m trying my best to limit it. I might get some whole meal bread like you suggested. how long did it take to get your blood glucose down?

 

[saladsadventure]

As you are in the pre diabetic zone though I think with that % you are quite near the top so it would be wise to make some changes to your diet.
You may find that there will be foods you have been used to having whilst in Hong Kong may not be all that diabetic friendly but I sure there will still be plenty of foods you can eat and still enjoy.
It all depends on what foods you like but a few swaps for some of the high carb ones should be easy to make.

Hello you’re right, some food that I used to have like rice, stir fries (with many sauces and sugar) and noodles are like enemies to me now luckily I enjoy egg, meat and fat a lot, so I still find the joy to make high protein meals.

 

[Leadinglights]

Hello you’re right, some food that I used to have like rice, stir fries (with many sauces and sugar) and noodles are like enemies to me now luckily I enjoy egg, meat and fat a lot, so I still find the joy to make high protein meals.

Many people find cauliflower rice an acceptable substitute and you can get noodles made from black bean of edamame bean which are low carb (Holland and Barret have them), you can easily make your own stir fry sauces which will not have the added sugar, I make a satay sauce from peanut butter, soy sauce and a bit of chilli and water to get the consistency right.

 

[saladsadventure]

Welcome. Was this test done inside or outside of the UK? It’s unusual to be given an a1c as a % here in the UK now, and 6.5% or 48 and higher is a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. However it could be that your GP has diagnosed as prediabetes for now and will diagnose as type 2 diabetes if you have a second a1c that is high.

Hello Lucy the blood test is done in the UK. As I understand mine is 6.5% and 47mmol, so close to the diagnosis… I’m given some suggestions to change my diet and lifestyle to see if it helps.
I am also frustrated if I’m T1 or T2. As I saw your profile mentioning mistreated T2 before, Would you mind I ask how you found out your T1 instead of T2? Did you ask GP to carry out some test? Both my mum and I have a skinny figure, which is not common in T2. so I wondered if I should further consult my GP.

 

[Felinia]

Hello Felinia that’s very kind of you to share your insights. My current menu is very similar to yours: more veggies and protein, and less carbs. I still have some cravings for bread and pasta though, I’m trying my best to limit it. I might get some whole meal bread like you suggested. how long did it take to get your blood glucose down?

It's still a work in progress. At my highest my HbA1c was 88. I hover now between 57 and 61, but have been given a target of 53. I am on high medication, but can't tolerate more than 1 Metformin.

 

[Lucyr]

As I understand mine is 6.5% and 47mmol, so close to the diagnosis

6.5% is 48 not 47 though. Maybe the test was 47 and it was translated to % and rounded for you.

Would you mind I ask how you found out your T1 instead of T2? Did you ask GP to carry out some test?

The GP can’t do the tests usually, the hospital would do them. They wouldn’t do them on a prediabetic, only if diabetic and needing insulin fairly quickly after diagnosis

 

[HayleyR]

Hi Hayley ☺️ thank you for your welcoming message. I have been researching about diet, understanding that i need to reduce the amount of carbohydrates. I also wore Dexcom CGM last month to find out what food affects my blood sugar levels. Not sure how long it would take to get my glucose levels down

Hiya 🙂, I find foods like pasta, noodles, bread, rice increase my blood sugar significantly but interestingly basmati rice is much better but I tend to only have small amounts. It may take a while for you to learn how certain types of food affect your blood sugar and then you can either avoid or cut back, however certainly cutting back on starchy carbs will be very beneficial. You mention that you wore a monitor last month, what sort of readings did you get , before and after food?

 

[JimmyBlue]

Hi @saladsadventure /Charlotte, welcome to the Forums. I can back the recommendation from @Leadinglights in terms of the edamame and black bean noodles. I eat both although have a preference for the latter. I find 50g fills me and does not give me a material major spike in my BG. For when I have a desire for pasta, I have found red lentil pasta from most major supermarkets is a good option. However, I do need to keep my intake down to 50g as above that my BG does go up.

You can also find lots of recipes for low carb breads on both the forums and the wider internet. These often use things like almond flour and milled flax seed (linseed). I have had some good experiences with some of the recipes.