Carbs of less than 20g at a meal

[helli]

Thats great thankyou, ive been in tears so much worrying about it all and am i going to keel over or pass out. Today ive had yoghurt with berries, a salad and now some nuts and thats it, i tested mid morning and my blood was 10!

Consider 10 to be your starting point and something you can improve upon.
However, testing mid morning gives you little data on where you can make changes.
This is why is recommended to test just before you eat and 2 hours later. Take a note of the difference - if it is less than 3, your body can tolerate that meal. If it is more than 3, it could be worth giving the meal a second chance before giving up on it: food is not the only thing that can affect our BG. Stress can have a big impact, as can illness, bad night's sleep, exercise and more.
Good luck with your diabetes journey - it is often said that it is a marathon not a sprint so do not feel too disheartened if it seems to take ages for your BG to start coming down.

 

[R0b]

When you (all contributors) say you “test” to measure your BG 2 hours after eating….can I ask what you’re using? I’ve not started actual testing yet as was only diagnosed with Type 2 about 5 weeks ago. I’m in mid 3 month cycle before the local diabetic nurse will once again test my A1C levels. So I’ve lost 2 stone, eating rabbit food, bloody starving and yet have no idea of the impact on my diabetes status!!

I appreciate one can buy for about £70 a state of the art CGM sensor but there must be a “regular old manual” way of sampling blood and home testing. What is that tried and tested method and where do you get the kits from please?

 

[Lucyr]

If the mugshot weighs 48.8grams then it's about half the carbs of 100g. Therefore it's about 9g of carb per sachet. Not too bad in my humble opinion. I know it isn't always possible to make your own soups etc.

But it doesn’t. It weighs about 250g when prepared.

 

[Robin]

When you (all contributors) say you “test” to measure your BG 2 hours after eating….can I ask what you’re using? I’ve not started actual testing yet as was only diagnosed with Type 2 about 5 weeks ago. I’m in mid 3 month cycle before the local diabetic nurse will once again test my A1C levels. So I’ve lost 2 stone, eating rabbit food, bloody starving and yet have no idea of the impact on my diabetes status!!

I appreciate one can buy for about £70 a state of the art CGM sensor but there must be a “regular old manual” way of sampling blood and home testing. What is that tried and tested method and where do you get the kits from please?

If you look at post #4 on this thread, it has a lot of useful info about testing generally, testing on a budget, and recommendations for the lowest priced but reliable equipment.

Useful links for people new to diabetes

These links provide useful information, particularly to those newly-diagnosed. You can also browse the Recommended Books and Links sections for further information :) Contents: Type 1 Section Insulin Pumps Section Type 2 Section General Help and Information Section Complications and screening...

forum.diabetes.org.uk

 

[Leadinglights]

If the mugshot weighs 48.8grams then it's about half the carbs of 100g. Therefore it's about 9g of carb per sachet. Not too bad in my humble opinion. I know it isn't always possible to make your own soups etc.

I think it worked out as 48.8g carbs per portion.

 

[Leadinglights]

When you (all contributors) say you “test” to measure your BG 2 hours after eating….can I ask what you’re using? I’ve not started actual testing yet as was only diagnosed with Type 2 about 5 weeks ago. I’m in mid 3 month cycle before the local diabetic nurse will once again test my A1C levels. So I’ve lost 2 stone, eating rabbit food, bloody starving and yet have no idea of the impact on my diabetes status!!

I appreciate one can buy for about £70 a state of the art CGM sensor but there must be a “regular old manual” way of sampling blood and home testing. What is that tried and tested method and where do you get the kits from please?

There is manual home testing blood glucose monitors which can be bought on line, the GlucoNavii, TEE2 and Contour Blue are a few with the cheaper test strips. They measure your blood glucose at 'a moment in time' from a finger prick blood sample which you produce using a lancet.
There is no need to just eat 'rabbit food' nice as it it or be starving as there are plenty of filling meals you can have based on protein, healthy fats together veg and salads with small portions of higher carb foods. Some ideas in this link that migh help you see there are lots of options. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/

 

[Dragon queen]

There is manual home testing blood glucose monitors which can be bought on line, the GlucoNavii, TEE2 and Contour Blue are a few with the cheaper test strips. They measure your blood glucose at 'a moment in time' from a finger prick blood sample which you produce using a lancet.
There is no need to just eat 'rabbit food' nice as it it or be starving as there are plenty of filling meals you can have based on protein, healthy fats together veg and salads with small portions of higher carb foods. Some ideas in this link that migh help you see there are lots of options. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/

Contour blue plus strips are on NHS list as well

 

[Leadinglights]

Contour blue plus strips are on NHS list as well

They may be but many Type 2s will not get a monitor and strips on prescription unless they are lucky.

 

[Franthepotter]

Hi LizziR, Im in a similar boat to you, and am 6 months in with loads and loads of support from this forum. It has taken me quite a while to work out what i can and cannot eat and it has been a real reeducation. I have included walking and some gentle exercise as that seems to help me post meals. You mentioned ribbons of cabbage i think ... i have been eating really nice finely sliced veg such as sweetheart cabbage and others, mixed with an egg and then fried something like a spanish omelette without the potato. My husband even eats some and hes not a veg eater.
I bought a continous monitor for 2 weeks when i was off work so i could work out what was going on, but i reckon a finger prick is just the same really. What i have found strange, and echoes everything said here is that some things i thought would be stable for my blood sugar are not (porridge) and some things i thought were not good for blood sugar are fine (full fat 'sweet' tasting cheese like mozarella and halloumi). So its really trial and error for your own body. I have changed to really low carb eating, and as long as I eat large portions of green veg (which i think have some carbs) with every meal then i feel ok.
It really does take some time and its really doable so good luck. I get recipies from any source ... and often use standard recipies and omit the carby ingredients for others.
I have changed the way i think about the food i buy and i have saved shed loads of money. I actually only buy shop food now that has not been prepared by other people, and if i am treated to a restaurant meal, i ask for a meal with their lowest sugar - the issue is usually the sauce which can always be put on the side. So now i dont eat in mac D's or 5 guys, but buy really nice veg and make interesting recipies. its actually really nice.
I did go away camping with a nice group of potters (I make ceramics for a living) and sometimes find it a little easier to eat veggie as meat sometimes gets slathered with sauce. But in the big scheme of things thats ok.
I have type 2, very likely genetic and its not perfect, but if you lose 10% of your weight there is a chance you may be able to tolerate carbs somewhat. This hasnt really happenned to me, but after weight loss and reducing almost all carbs, my blood sugars seem stable. Hope thats a little helpful and not too long winded. Fran

 

[Franthepotter]

ps Lizzie, my body wont tolerate berries sadly. But yogurt with nuts can work well.

 

[Lucyr]

They may be but many Type 2s will not get a monitor and strips on prescription unless they are lucky.

And even then for those who do get test strips many GP practices will only prescribe certain strips eg mine only offer wavesense jazz

 

[Dragon queen]

They may be but many Type 2s will not get a monitor and strips on prescription unless they are lucky.

You can get vat relief in shop on this website helps keep costs down. Before I started insulin I was self funded on contour blue plus. I loved how could link to my phone

 

[Dragon queen]

And even then for those who do get test strips many GP practices will only prescribe certain strips eg mine only offer wavesense jazz

That’s crazy as contour plus are cheaper than wavesense as bigger tubs.

 

[Lucyr]

That’s crazy as contour plus are cheaper than wavesense as bigger tubs.

I get two pots of 25 strips per box, so 50 which is standard

 

[Drummer]

Hi, I am still new to being type 2 diagnosed just over two weeks ago. I have been testing fairly consistently before I eat and then 2hrs after I finish eating. I am finding that I can tolerate about 20 grams of carbs in a meal. Is this sustainable? Are other people this low in their tolerance? I am not taking meds, just diet controlled.

I just noticed that your test timing is not the usual one - it is 2 hours after starting to eat.

 

[snowball12]

But it doesn’t. It weighs about 250g when prepared.

Well now I'm confused!! So the packet should give the carbs for prepared weight??? Also I struggle to believe that 48g of mugshot prepared weighs a quarter of a pound!!!! No wonder people struggle with carbs

 

[Leadinglights]

Well now I'm confused!! So the packet should give the carbs for prepared weight??? Also I struggle to believe that 48g of mugshot prepared weighs a quarter of a pound!!!! No wonder people struggle with carbs

It is that same confusion as with things like the raw weight as in the packet and cooked weight for things like pasta which absorb water when cooked. You do need to read the product detail with a fine tooth comb armed with a calculator to make sense of it and be careful you are reading it correctly.

 

[helli]

Well now I'm confused!! So the packet should give the carbs for prepared weight??? Also I struggle to believe that 48g of mugshot prepared weighs a quarter of a pound!!!! No wonder people struggle with carbs

I think your confusion maybe about the way it is expressed. This is how the nutrition is presented on the Sainsbury's website

 

[snowball12]

I think your confusion maybe about the way it is expressed. This is how the nutrition is presented on the Sainsbury's website
View attachment 30349

Ah I see, I don't eat them myself as I have the time to prepare food. Just goes to show you do indeed to read packets!! Thanks for the clarification 🙂

 

[Lucyr]

Well now I'm confused!! So the packet should give the carbs for prepared weight??? Also I struggle to believe that 48g of mugshot prepared weighs a quarter of a pound!!!! No wonder people struggle with carbs

The nutritional information says as prepared, and you add 200ml of water to it.