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Hi, another newbie. Some advice would be appreciated thx

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This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
TheTrooper

TheTrooper

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Hi I was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes with a hba1c reading of 54. I am 44 years old, 6'1" Tall, Big built and weighed just under 19 stone. My ideal weight should probably be 14 stone but I would look like a bag of bones so I am aiming for 15 stone.
I'm not on any medicine, Dr gave me the option of trying to reverse it in 3 months.

I drank too much beer, wine etc and now realise I ate way too many carbs. I have lost 10 kg in the last 4 weeks by diet (low Carb) and exercise. I now weigh 17 stone 5lbs so still have a long way to go.

However i'm not due a blood test for a couple of months and I do not want to visit a hospital right now for obvious reasons. Do I need to self isolate? Has my hba1c reading likely to have reduced? could I buy something to measure my blood sugar levels myself?

I live with my wife and 2 kids. I work in a factory, my children are now off school and we are not mixing with anyone other than at work
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
 
Hi and welcome @TheTrooper - Nice to have you here. There is a help section full of information and links to help newly diagnosed people .... Useful links for people new to diabetes Make your way through that and cherry pick what is specific to you. There is a fair bit of reading to do - so make a cupper (without sugar) and pull up a chair....

You will need to make adjustments to your diet. Restricting all obvious sugars and the not so obvious too, such as ketchup/sauces. You will have to get into the habit of reading labels for 'TOTAL carbs' - the lower the better. Restrictions will have to be made regarding Rice, pasta, potatoes, flour based products like pastry, pies, cakes biscuits etc. This is a life long condition, though manageable, with some care and dedication you can quickly make good improvements. However dont go all gusto at it through fright. Its better to lower your levels steadily, give the body a chance to acclimatise to this new way of eating.

We have a nice forum on foods/recipes. Gives a lots of alternative to things like mash and rice, using cauliflower instead (your new best friend vegetable!) Its amazing to me how inventive diabetic can be. Ask any questions you wish, someones always around to answer them and give their thoughts.
 
Thank you, will have a good read!
 
Welcome to the forum @TheTrooper

Congratulations on your brilliant weight loss so far! And good luck with your next phases.

The current advice for people with diabetes is to be extra careful with ‘social distancing’, it‘s not yet to opt for full ‘isolation’.

Sorry it looks like you will have a bit of a wait for your next appointment... but forum experience suggests there is a lot you can do In the meantime.

One of the biggest questions when newly diagnosed is often ‘what can I eat’ and while there are obvious things like cakes, biscuits, sweets and sugary drinks that you will be wanting to cut out straight away, you might be surprised how much *all* carbohydrate affects your BG levels, including rice, pasta, bread, pastry, grains, cereals and many fruits.

The really tricky thing is that blood glucose responses to food are highly individual, and it can be impossible to say which forms and amounts of carbohydrate will ‘spike’ your BG without checking for yourself. But the good news is that it is possible to check this for yourself and tailor your own ideal way of eating that suits you and your BG levels.

You can use a BG meter, checking before and after meals, and noting the differences, to try to find foods and meal choices that suit your diabetes, your taste buds and your BG levels. That way you experiment with different amounts and sources of carbohydrate, and try some meals without a carb ‘filler’ (sometimes just having things at a different time of day makes a difference)

If you are interested in using a BG meter to find out how different foods affect you, you may find test-review-adjust by Alan S is a helpful and systematic framework.

One of the most affordable meters members here have found is from SD, and has been recently updated to the SD Gluco Navii which has test strips at around £8 for 50

Good luck, and keep asking questions 🙂
 
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If you see on the bottom of my text - there are my 'stats' (you can add these on your profile page, -optional- using 'signature box'. It saves you repeating stats to everyone in future)......I was told last April im diabetic, like you given 3 months to improve by cutting out 'obvious sugar and watching portion control'. Just by doing that i got my levels down to pre-diabetic (just under the 48 threshold). Was then give 6 months to further this....but i messed up over Xmas, got sloppy over what i was supposed to be doing and Jan re-test showed it crept up......But now i have cut carbs and upped exercise and increased veg on the plate, i think im doing ok. My point is - you can get results fairly quickly if you apply yourself. I feel much better in myself. Going for re-test April. fingers crossed.
 
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everydayupsanddowns said:
Welcome to the forum @TheTrooper

Congratulations on your brilliant weight loss so far! And good luck with your next phases.

The current advice for people with diabetes is to be extra careful with ‘social distancing’, it not yet to opt for full ‘isolation’.

Sorry it looks like you will have a bit of a wait for your next appointment... but forum experience suggests there is a lot you can do In the meantime.

One of the biggest questions when newly diagnosed is often ‘what can I eat’ and while there are obvious things like cakes, biscuits, sweets and sugary drinks that you will be wanting to cut out straight away, you might be surprised how much *all* carbohydrate affects your BG levels, including rice, pasta, bread, pastry, grains, cereals and many fruits.

The really tricky thing is that blood glucose responses to food are highly individual, and it can be impossible to say which forms and amounts of carbohydrate will ‘spike’ your BG without checking for yourself. But the good news is that it is possible to check this for yourself and tailor your own ideal way of eating that suits you and your BG levels.

You can use a BG meter, checking before and after meals, and noting the differences, to try to find foods and meal choices that suit your diabetes, your taste buds and your BG levels. That way you experiment with different amounts and sources of carbohydrate, and try some meals without a carb ‘filler’ (sometimes just having things at a different time of day makes a difference)

If you are interested in using a BG meter to find out how different foods affect you, you may find test-review-adjust by Alan S is a helpful and systematic framework.

One of the most affordable meters members here have found is from SD, and has been recently updated to the SD Gluco Navii which has test strips at around £8 for 50

Good luck, and keep asking questions 🙂
Click to expand...
Thank you for your advice, I will look into BG metre and test strips. ASAP thanks.
 
Tee G said:
If you see on the bottom of my text - there are my 'stats' (you can at these on your profile page, -optional- using 'signature box'. It saves you repeating stats to everyone in future)......I was told last April im diabetic, like you given 3 months to improve by cutting out 'obvious sugar and watching portion control'. Just by doing that i got my levels down to pre-diabetic (just under the 48 threshold). Was then give 6 months to further this....but i messed up over Xmas, got sloppy over what i was supposed to be doing and Jan re-test showed it crept up......But now i have cut carbs and upped exercise and increased veg on the plate, i think im doing ok. My point is - you can get results fairly quickly if you apply yourself. I feel much better in myself. Going for re-test April. fingers crossed.
Click to expand...
Thanks for your reply, I do feel really driven to do this. Probably more so due to the situation we are in. Good luck with your test in April. Keep it up! Thanks again.
 
Welcome to the forum @Trooper

You have had all the useful info that I can think of, but just wanted to say well done on such a good star. Glad you have found the forum. Ask any questions that you have.
 
everydayupsanddowns said:
Welcome to the forum @TheTrooper

Congratulations on your brilliant weight loss so far! And good luck with your next phases.

The current advice for people with diabetes is to be extra careful with ‘social distancing’, it‘s not yet to opt for full ‘isolation’.

Sorry it looks like you will have a bit of a wait for your next appointment... but forum experience suggests there is a lot you can do In the meantime.

One of the biggest questions when newly diagnosed is often ‘what can I eat’ and while there are obvious things like cakes, biscuits, sweets and sugary drinks that you will be wanting to cut out straight away, you might be surprised how much *all* carbohydrate affects your BG levels, including rice, pasta, bread, pastry, grains, cereals and many fruits.

The really tricky thing is that blood glucose responses to food are highly individual, and it can be impossible to say which forms and amounts of carbohydrate will ‘spike’ your BG without checking for yourself. But the good news is that it is possible to check this for yourself and tailor your own ideal way of eating that suits you and your BG levels.

You can use a BG meter, checking before and after meals, and noting the differences, to try to find foods and meal choices that suit your diabetes, your taste buds and your BG levels. That way you experiment with different amounts and sources of carbohydrate, and try some meals without a carb ‘filler’ (sometimes just having things at a different time of day makes a difference)

If you are interested in using a BG meter to find out how different foods affect you, you may find test-review-adjust by Alan S is a helpful and systematic framework.

One of the most affordable meters members here have found is from SD, and has been recently updated to the SD Gluco Navii which has test strips at around £8 for 50

Good luck, and keep asking questions 🙂
Click to expand...
everydayupsanddowns said:
Welcome to the forum @TheTrooper

Congratulations on your brilliant weight loss so far! And good luck with your next phases.

The current advice for people with diabetes is to be extra careful with ‘social distancing’, it‘s not yet to opt for full ‘isolation’.

Sorry it looks like you will have a bit of a wait for your next appointment... but forum experience suggests there is a lot you can do In the meantime.

One of the biggest questions when newly diagnosed is often ‘what can I eat’ and while there are obvious things like cakes, biscuits, sweets and sugary drinks that you will be wanting to cut out straight away, you might be surprised how much *all* carbohydrate affects your BG levels, including rice, pasta, bread, pastry, grains, cereals and many fruits.

The really tricky thing is that blood glucose responses to food are highly individual, and it can be impossible to say which forms and amounts of carbohydrate will ‘spike’ your BG without checking for yourself. But the good news is that it is possible to check this for yourself and tailor your own ideal way of eating that suits you and your BG levels.

You can use a BG meter, checking before and after meals, and noting the differences, to try to find foods and meal choices that suit your diabetes, your taste buds and your BG levels. That way you experiment with different amounts and sources of carbohydrate, and try some meals without a carb ‘filler’ (sometimes just having things at a different time of day makes a difference)

If you are interested in using a BG meter to find out how different foods affect you, you may find test-review-adjust by Alan S is a helpful and systematic framework.

One of the most affordable meters members here have found is from SD, and has been recently updated to the SD Gluco Navii which has test strips at around £8 for 50

Good luck, and keep asking questions 🙂
Click to expand...

Hi, thanks again for your advice. I have received Gluco Navii and just done my first test at 0930 this morning. I last eat at about 8pm last night. I have had a 3 cups of tea with milk and no sugar this morning. my reading was 5.8 mmol/L. I,ve just had 2 shredded wheat with skimmed milk for breakfast and will take my readings again at 1200. What range should I be aiming for? I am still following a low carb diet as I still have quiet a lot of weight to lose. Thanks for taking the time to help me.
 
TheTrooper said:
Hi, thanks again for your advice. I have received Gluco Navii and just done my first test at 0930 this morning. I last eat at about 8pm last night. I have had a 3 cups of tea with milk and no sugar this morning. my reading was 5.8 mmol/L. I,ve just had 2 shredded wheat with skimmed milk for breakfast and will take my readings again at 1200. What range should I be aiming for? I am still following a low carb diet as I still have quiet a lot of weight to lose. Thanks for taking the time to help me.
Click to expand...
About 7.8 .
 
It's great! You are looking for the reading to read no more than 2 or 3, above what it was pre meal.
 
Thanks, what range would a high score be? I thought shredded wheat would be a good choice.thanks.
 
The score score is alright, but suprisingly so for what you had eaten.
 
trophywench said:
It's great! You are looking for the reading to read no more than 2 or 3, above what it was pre meal.
Thanks, That gives me something to aim for.
Click to expand...
 
Hello and welcome to the forum @TheTrooper 🙂

My brother-in-law's Dad used to work unloading foodstuffs and he said that the only thing the rats wouldn't eat was Shredded Wheat. Dunno if he was having them on or what!? :D
 
My kids won't touch them, they're that plain and boring,(shredded wheat that is) how can they be bad for you??
 
TheTrooper said:
My kids won't touch them, they're that plain and boring,(shredded wheat that is) how can they be bad for you??
Click to expand...
With regard to the rats the only thing I can think of is exactly that, plain and boring, they probably don't have the nutrients the rats need! They could be bad for us type 2s if they make our bg rise, cereal often does that, it's why I've had to give up my beloved Weetabix. :D
 
What do you have for breakfast instead?
 
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