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Please Remember: Members are only permitted to share their own experiences. Members are not qualified to give medical advice. Additionally, everyone manages their health differently. Please be respectful of other people's opinions about their own diabetes management.
Hello Everybody. Newbie here
- Thread starter Gisma
- Start date
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Toucan
Forum Host
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Hello @Gisma and welcome to the forum to you and your partner.
It certainly can feel scary at first, but although Diabetes is a serious disease there is a great deal of help available, and much that can be done by self-help.
It does often mean making some changes though, but many of us find that it leads to a healthier lifestyle.
Some links that may help are:
Type 2 diabetes | What it is and what causes it | Diabetes UK
(2) Useful links for people new to diabetes | Diabetes UK - this is a forum link
Learning Zone - orange TAB at top of this page
You can also find out a lot by following the many conversation threads on this forum.
Finally most importantly, come back and ask any questions that you have, and we will always try to help.
It certainly can feel scary at first, but although Diabetes is a serious disease there is a great deal of help available, and much that can be done by self-help.
It does often mean making some changes though, but many of us find that it leads to a healthier lifestyle.
Some links that may help are:
Type 2 diabetes | What it is and what causes it | Diabetes UK
(2) Useful links for people new to diabetes | Diabetes UK - this is a forum link
Learning Zone - orange TAB at top of this page
You can also find out a lot by following the many conversation threads on this forum.
Finally most importantly, come back and ask any questions that you have, and we will always try to help.
Hello Martin, Thank you for taking the time and trouble to reply to me. At the moment my partner takes tablets to help control T2 and we are slowly making changes to our diet, but it's a bit of a learning curve at the moment. He also takes Apple Cider Vinegar before meals as we read that this has many health benefits and helps to reduce blood sugar levels. It seems that the blood sugar level is always quite a bit higher in the morning and reduces during the day which reading various articles does seem to be the norm. Perhaps certain foods affect different people in different ways and it's a case of trial and error! It's comforting to know that we are not alone! Thanks again for your offer of help.
Thank you for your reply Toucan. I see that I have a lot of Reading to do, and very much appreciate your help. It's good to know we are not alone and help is at hand if needed!
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Hi and welcome from me too
I am a proponent of Apple Cider Vinegar but it is not a silver bullet and I would not use it more than once a day, unless your partner enjoys it more frequently and hopefully he is having it in water and not neat 😱 as I read of someone doing and finding it horrid but kept persevering. A splash in a glass of water is fine and it is best if you can get the cloudy stuff "with the mother" as that has active good bacteria I believe. I tend to have a glass of water with it first thing before I have breakfast.
We certainly do respond to foods differently, so testing before and 2 hours after eating will show how an individual responded to the food they ate rather than going off what someone else found caused them problems. This is one of the things most universally advocated on the forum, so that a BG friendly diet can be tailored to a persons individual response to carbs as well as their tastes.
It sounds like your partner has made a good start with managing their diabetes, but it is important not to make changes too radically. Slow and steady progress is the name of the game with diabetes.
I am a proponent of Apple Cider Vinegar but it is not a silver bullet and I would not use it more than once a day, unless your partner enjoys it more frequently and hopefully he is having it in water and not neat 😱 as I read of someone doing and finding it horrid but kept persevering. A splash in a glass of water is fine and it is best if you can get the cloudy stuff "with the mother" as that has active good bacteria I believe. I tend to have a glass of water with it first thing before I have breakfast.
We certainly do respond to foods differently, so testing before and 2 hours after eating will show how an individual responded to the food they ate rather than going off what someone else found caused them problems. This is one of the things most universally advocated on the forum, so that a BG friendly diet can be tailored to a persons individual response to carbs as well as their tastes.
It sounds like your partner has made a good start with managing their diabetes, but it is important not to make changes too radically. Slow and steady progress is the name of the game with diabetes.
Hello Barbara, Thank you for your welcome message. We do take the vinegar with water (I take it too for health benefits but just once a day) and agree it is an acquired taste! Our doctor told us to do a test half an hour after meals although most of the information says 2 hours ... so not sure why that would be? I am pleased to read that reducing blood sugar levels is something that takes time to make progress with as I was worried that results were taking too long to achieve. Thank you again.
Elaine
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
It is odd that the doctor would advise testing after just 30 mins. Most advise against testing at all for Type 2s unless they are prescribed medication which can significantly lower BG like Gliclazide or insulin. Has the testing kit been supplied by the GP and if so, what medication has your partner been prescribed for his diabetes and what was his HbA1c reading?.... This is the blood test result which is used to diagnose diabetes and will usually be a number of 48 or above.
This information might give us a little more insight into your partner's situation, so that we can perhaps give more tailored advice/suggestions. It would also be useful to know if he has gained or lost weight recently and an idea of his BMI if he doesn't mind sharing that info.
This information might give us a little more insight into your partner's situation, so that we can perhaps give more tailored advice/suggestions. It would also be useful to know if he has gained or lost weight recently and an idea of his BMI if he doesn't mind sharing that info.
Thank you Ditto!
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- He/Him
The old UK guidelines used to suggest blood glucose targets to aim for were 4-7 before meals, and no higher than 8.5 by 2hrs after meals.
Sometimes in T2 diabetes the ’first phase’ insulin response can be impaired, so BG levels can rise rapidly soon after eating, but then BGs begin to fall after the second phase insulin arrives.
This may mean that BG is highest at some point between 30-60 minutes (which may explain the Dr’s suggestion?) though depending on the meal, 30 minutes may be a bit early to see the peak of the meal rise?
Good morning.
Thank you for explaining the phases of insulin secretion, which we were not aware of. It all makes better sense now!
🙂
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