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Newbie

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H

Honey

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Hi thankyou for the warm welcome, I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes at the end of February this year and have found Diabetes UK to be a great source of information.
Ive been advised to change my lifestyle and have 6 months to try and control my diabetes through diet or I will be given medication to control it. I don't want to be on medication so I'm trying really hard to eat well, subsequently I have lost weight which is also a requirement.
I am eating lots of fruit n veg but I am definately confused about portions of protein, how many potatoes I should eat etc. Also I've read that honey is sweeter than sugar but that honey is better for insulin control. So should I eat it or not and if so how much and would I have it every day or once a week
Should I not eat after my evening meal or can I have a snack later on.
Thankyou x
 
Hi, thanks for your reply. I've been told by my diabetic nurse not to check my BG although I have a BG machine and testing strips... So I do sometimes check them and my levels have been better, reading just below or just over 5...
Im eating red peppers, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, courgettes, small amount of sweet potato, usually roasted with ev olive oil, size equivelant to one small potatoe. Sometimes I have white and sweet potatoe mixed but I have cut it down to around 2 tablespoons. Mushrooms, Aubergine but not too keen on it, tomatoes, green beans, onions, salad veg. I eat baked salmon with herbs and chicken but try to have a veggie meal or two to cut back on animal protein.
I usually like porridge with berries and a small amount of honey and sunflower seeds. I had a veggie omelette with no added sugar baked beans this morning instead for a change. Sometimes I have weetabix and banana.
Lunch is usually just some fresh fruit and 30g of mixed nuts or I'll have lentil soup and have nuts as an afternoon snack, and then it's usually chicken curry for evening meal without rice and a home made naan made with wholewheat flour or meat or fish n two veg.
I'll definately look at my meat and potatoe portions.
Any more tips would be greatly appreciated
 
Honey said:
Hi, thanks for your reply. I've been told by my diabetic nurse not to check my BG although I have a BG machine and testing strips... So I do sometimes check them and my levels have been better, reading just below or just over 5...
Im eating red peppers, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, courgettes, small amount of sweet potato, usually roasted with ev olive oil, size equivelant to one small potatoe. Sometimes I have white and sweet potatoe mixed but I have cut it down to around 2 tablespoons. Mushrooms, Aubergine but not too keen on it, tomatoes, green beans, onions, salad veg. I eat baked salmon with herbs and chicken but try to have a veggie meal or two to cut back on animal protein.
I usually like porridge with berries and a small amount of honey and sunflower seeds. I had a veggie omelette with no added sugar baked beans this morning instead for a change. Sometimes I have weetabix and banana.
Lunch is usually just some fresh fruit and 30g of mixed nuts or I'll have lentil soup and have nuts as an afternoon snack, and then it's usually chicken curry for evening meal without rice and a home made naan made with wholewheat flour or meat or fish n two veg.
I'll definately look at my meat and potatoe portions.
Any more tips would be greatly appreciated
Click to expand...
I also walk alot and still have abiut 3 stone to lose
 
Hi Honey, welcome to the forum.

There's a bit of a divide when it comes to testing. Some professionals say not to test and others advise to test in the morning before food and 2 hours after food during the day.

I find that testing, especially in the early stages helps to understand the impact that my meals are having on me and then I can choose accordingly.

It sounds as though you're making good food choices so I hope that your numbers reflect this.
 
Anitram said:
Actually that all looks pretty reasonable, although Weetabix and banana is a pretty carb-heavy combination. As it happens I usually have Weetabix for breakfast, but only one, and I have it with strawberries as they are one of the lowest carb fruits. Have you tried riced cauliflower? It works well as a substitute for rice. Likewise cauli mash for mashed potato.

I would ignore what your DN says about testing. It's your diabetes and if testing helps you manage it then what's the problem?
Click to expand...
Yes I thought the same about testing so I've been testing but not often. I had to buy the strips which cost over £10 so I use them sparingly lol
I have been having two weetabix so perhaps should cut down to one. Thankyou
 
B
Cherrelle DUK said:
Hi Honey, welcome to the forum.

There's a bit of a divide when it comes to testing. Some professionals say not to test and others advise to test in the morning before food and 2 hours after food during the day.

I find that testing, especially in the early stages helps to understand the impact that my meals are having on me and then I can choose accordingly.

It sounds as though you're making good food choices so I hope that your numbers reflect this.
Click to expand...
hi Cherelle, Thank you I'm trying really hard and constantly looking at the best food for diabetes. I've always had a big apetite so struggle with portion sizes and getting them right. Anitram was saying just one wearable but I always though two was a reasonable portion. I usually have 27g of porridge is that too much ?
 
Honey said:
B

hi Cherelle, Thank you I'm trying really hard and constantly looking at the best food for diabetes. I've always had a big apetite so struggle with portion sizes and getting them right. Anitram was saying just one wearable but I always though two was a reasonable portion. I usually have 27g of porridge is that too much ?
Click to expand...
Weetabix not wearable lol
 
Anitram said:
Actually that all looks pretty reasonable, although Weetabix and banana is a pretty carb-heavy combination. As it happens I usually have Weetabix for breakfast, but only one, and I have it with strawberries as they are one of the lowest carb fruits. Have you tried riced cauliflower? It works well as a substitute for rice. Likewise cauli mash for mashed potato.

I would ignore what your DN says about testing. It's your diabetes and if testing helps you manage it then what's the problem?
Click to expand...
What is cauli mash
 
Cauliflower is low carb so it is often a substitute for potato or rice - sweet potato is, by the way, higher carb than ordinary, so that is a good reason to test after eating.
I seem to be sensitive to carbs and stick to under 40 grams a day to get normal levels, so no grain, no potato or other starchy veges, no high sugar fruits. I do eat a lot of stir fry and salad, and once in a while I have berries, frozen in winter and fresh when freely available.
If you test your blood glucose two hours after starting to eat you should soon see how things affect you. Once that is sorted out there is little need to test the same foods.
 
Normally boiled/steamed cauli - mashed.
 
Try roasting cauli for a change...I cannot eat sweet pots nor white pots I spike high on any carbs. It took me ages to find that sweet pots were not advisable as they filled me up...and I liked them. The info online for sweet pots was so contrary so I tested. I tested regularly in the beginning to find out where my spikes were. I gave a years hard copy of the testing results to my doctor who was happy to receive them but recommended I come in for an official NHS test again too...trial and error.
 
Drummer said:
Cauliflower is low carb so it is often a substitute for potato or rice - sweet potato is, by the way, higher carb than ordinary, so that is a good reason to test after eating.
I seem to be sensitive to carbs and stick to under 40 grams a day to get normal levels, so no grain, no potato or other starchy veges, no high sugar fruits. I do eat a lot of stir fry and salad, and once in a while I have berries, frozen in winter and fresh when freely available.
If you test your blood glucose two hours after starting to eat you should soon see how things affect you. Once that is sorted out there is little need to test the same foods.
Thankyou, I will start testing
Click to expand...
 
Hello and welcome if I didn't say that already. 🙂
 
Welcome to the forum @Honey

Sounds like you have made some great progress so far, and congratulations on the weight loss 🙂

If you already have a BG meter, rather than making wholesale changes straight off, you might want to start with what you’ve already been eating, but use your BG meter to check immediately before eating and again 2hrs later. If you see a rise of 2-3 or less between the before and after BG checks, then the meal is suiting your diabetes well.

If you get a more significant ‘spike’, then consider tweaking the meal, reduce the carb portion, or switch the carbs, to aim for a lower rise next time.

Good luck, and keep us updated with your experiments 🙂
 
Anitram said:
Two Weetabix = 26g carb and your average banana would be around 20g, which is why I thought that your breakfast might be a little carb-heavy. My one Weetabix and strawberries comes to about half that. I try and keep breakfast, lunch and evening meal to around 25g carb each, leaving me a little room for a snack in between meals if I feel like one.

I don't eat porridge but I know that some members do, but 27g doesn't seem unreasonable to me. Have you ever tested 2 hours later to see what effect it has?

Martin
Click to expand...
Yes I had one weetabix with ss milk and my BG was 6.2 2 hours later. I prefer it to be around 5 so I've cut weetabix out. I tested again after eating 27g porridge with raspberries and it was around 5.2 so happy with that
 
Honey said:
Yes, thankyou for the advice. I wonder if I ask my gp for testing strips if they will give me th as the diabetic nurse was adament I didn't need them
Click to expand...
Hi Honey, They may do but my GP will only prescribe 50 strips a month. I was advised to test twice a day. I burned through mine in a few days! As I have not gone on meds, I'm not eligible for a medical exemption on paying prescriptions. The equation was easy - buy strips on prescription at £10 a go or self fund and get 100 for £13 and test to the amount I need. No contest.
 
Sounds like you are using the results of your BG checks very effectively @Honey

Great to hear!
 
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