advice on my levels

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traceycat

traceycat

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
ive been testing now for nearly 2 weeks but still not sure if my levels are getting better or not, im thinking they are still to high even though ive been eating healthy (i think) and ive lost a few pounds, 14st 5 down to 13st 11 in 8days so that must be good right? my levels over the last 5 days have been
10.6 on waking 6.8 before lunch 6.9 after, 8.8 before tea 8.1 after, 7.1 bedtime.
6.4 waking, 8.8, 7.4, 10.3
7.2 waking, 7.6, 7.9, 7.8,
9.7 waking,7.9, 6.5, 7.8, 8.1, 7.8
and today so far 7.9 waking, 7.4, 7.7

this is to high isnt it. im also on metformin 850 twice a day xxx
 
Don't be too hard on yourself, the results are definitely going in the right direction! I have some days when I dream of levels that good...

Yes, they're not all within range yet, but bearing in mind you have been at this such a short time you are doing pretty well. When do you next have an appointment to see your GP or nurse? Take those results along and maybe they'll have some suggestions on food or changing your medication.

Well done on your progress so far, and the weight loss is fantastic!
 
thanks for the advice pigeon. i got a letter today to see dieition, i have to ring tomorrow to make my appointment so hopefully they will see me in a week or so, not sure how they work. i had gammon, 3 baby potatoes, 2tablespoons of parsely sauce an veg for tea tonite an just tested 2hrs later, i was 7.7 before an 7.9 after, also had a weightwatchers yougart, im thinking maybe thats not to bad?
 
Sounds good to me! That's great to be only 0.2 increased after eating, that will probably come down further before bed.

Have you tried any healthy eating cook books? Some come with weekly diet plans etc, or there are low GI cookbooks which can help to give ideas on foods that have little impact on BG levels. Just an idea in case you run out of inspiration!
 
Those levels look pretty good to me Tracey! 🙂 The thing is that your levels hardly fluctuate, which is really good - they are not spiking up into the teens! Plus, your fasting levels will come down more slowly, but then you'll have a lower base to start from so all your levels will look better. Excellent weight loss too!

You are doing great! 🙂
 
Hi traceycat,

Great news about the weight loss - that will help to some degree. However, I think that it's what you eat that is most important in controlling blood glucose levels.

One or two points that I'd make are as follows:

a) Your waking and pre-meal levels are still a little on the high side.

b) The difference between your before-meal and after-meal readings are quite small. At what time after finishing eating your meal are you testing - two hours after finishing eating?

c) You say that you think that you are eating healthily. Why not tell us what you are eating and perhaps people will be able to give you some advice on how to lower your blood glucose levels.

Just stick with it and keep making small changes and you'll get to where you want to be.

Good luck and best wishes - John
 
Pigeon said:
Sounds good to me! That's great to be only 0.2 increased after eating, that will probably come down further before bed.

Have you tried any healthy eating cook books? Some come with weekly diet plans etc, or there are low GI cookbooks which can help to give ideas on foods that have little impact on BG levels. Just an idea in case you run out of inspiration!
Click to expand...

i have went to my library and the lady there is going to order a few of the books mentioned to me on here which will be great as im not sure of things to eat an not eat. you should have saw me in supermarket today, took me an hour just to get a few bits, i was reading everything to check for carbs an sugar, im getting abit better at it but all still very confusing xxx
 
traceycat said:
i have went to my library and the lady there is going to order a few of the books mentioned to me on here which will be great as im not sure of things to eat an not eat. you should have saw me in supermarket today, took me an hour just to get a few bits, i was reading everything to check for carbs an sugar, im getting abit better at it but all still very confusing xxx
Click to expand...

It will get better, just takes a while as you probably never needed to do it before - I know I never did!
 
wallycorker said:
Hi traceycat,

Great news about the weight loss - that will help to some degree. However, I think that it's what you eat that is most important in controlling blood glucose levels.

One or two points that I'd make are as follows:

a) Your waking and pre-meal levels are still a little on the high side.

b) The difference between your before-meal and after-meal readings are quite small. At what time after finishing eating your meal are you testing - two hours after finishing eating?

c) You say that you think that you are eating healthily. Why not tell us what you are eating and perhaps people will be able to give you some advice on how to lower your blood glucose levels.

Just stick with it and keep making small changes and you'll get to where you want to be.

Good luck and best wishes - John
Click to expand...

yeah im testing 2hrs after my meals john, im thinking this is right?
i usaly have shredded wheat in mornings or wholemeal toast an boiled egg
lunch would be something like a wholemeal roll with ham or 2 wholemeal sandwiches with tuna, onion an teaspoon of salad cream, or maybe just some soup.
my tea would be something similar to what i had tonight or maybe chicken stirfry, beans on toast.
im not snaking alot, sometimes 2 richtea biscuits or a pk of tayto advantage crisps or 2 squares of dark chocolate that i keep in freezer that someone sugested on forum to me.
the thing i still cant understand is fiquering out how much carbs an sugar im aloud to have each day, its all very confusing.
will it get easier as time goes on, im so afraid of giving up. it just feels like everything i do now is about food.
 
Northerner said:
Those levels look pretty good to me Tracey! 🙂 The thing is that your levels hardly fluctuate, which is really good - they are not spiking up into the teens! Plus, your fasting levels will come down more slowly, but then you'll have a lower base to start from so all your levels will look better. Excellent weight loss too!

You are doing great! 🙂
Click to expand...

thanks northener, sorry for having to ask for reasurance on everything, this is the only place i can realy ask questions, i do ask alot of questions but its the only way i lean things an everyone has been great at giving me advice. i realy appreiate it xxx
 
Tracey, there is no fixed amount of carbs you should aim for each day. Some people eat very few carbs, others find they can tolerate more. You're doing things the right way by testing and seeing what the food you are eating does to your levels. Some people find they get other problems if they reduce their carbs too much, or find it unsustainable because it requires too big a change to their lifestyle and quality of life.

A good idea is to tot up how many carbs you are eating on a daily basis, so that you have something that you can talk to the dietician about.
 
Northerner said:
Tracey, there is no fixed amount of carbs you should aim for each day. Some people eat very few carbs, others find they can tolerate more. You're doing things the right way by testing and seeing what the food you are eating does to your levels. Some people find they get other problems if they reduce their carbs too much, or find it unsustainable because it requires too big a change to their lifestyle and quality of life.

A good idea is to tot up how many carbs you are eating on a daily basis, so that you have something that you can talk to the dietician about.
Click to expand...

can i ask, how do i count carbs, if i had a richtea bikkie for example an the pk said 5.6g per bikkie of which are sugars 1.5g then do i write down 5.6g?
and how many carbs is healthy each day?
 
Tracey - it is the total carbs you need to watch not the "of which sugars" so it is the 5.6 you write down.
 
Hi again tracecat,

Don't get worried about things and definitely don't give up!

Testing two hours after finishing eating is OK at the stage you are at and those readings are quite good. However, since your two hour readings are OK (i.e. basically back to where they were before you started eating) then why not consider doing some testing one hour after finishing eating when your readings are likely to be at their highest? Then try to figure out what caused any high readings and either cut that food out or cut back on it next time.

It's up to you as to how much carbohydrate you can eat in a day. However, you do seem to be eating quite a lot - e.g. shredded wheat, wholemeal toast, wholemeal roll, 2 wholemeal sandwiches, soup, beans on toast, 2 richtea biscuits, a pk of tayto advantage crisps, 2 squares of dark chocolate. I'd try eating less carbohydrate and I'd expect you fasting levels to improve quickly if you do that. Mainly you sound to be eating a lot of bread. Also, why not try a bacon and egg type breakfast (without any toast)?

Here are details of the diet that I've adopted in sorting out my blood glucose levels - which are almost always between 4 and 7 these days including one hour after finishing eating levels:

http://www.diabetessupport.co.uk/boards/showthread.php?t=6435

Whatever you do - just keep going!!!!!

Good luck and best wishes - John
 
thanks john, wow your diet plan sounds great, its given me some good idea. well done on the weight loss.
i have noticed that when i do eat bread the my levels would be higher, maybe ill try cutting it out some more, i only have bread every other day now. the shedded wheat i thought would have been good but hadnt thought about the carbs first thing in the morning, i take it cereals not the best thing to have? i bought quiche lorrine (sorry about my spelling) which i was going to have a slice of for lunch tomorrow along with plenty of salad, lettuce, tomatoe, onion and some coleslaw, would that be a bad idea because of the pastry? thanks again for yours an everyones elses advice, dont know how id manage if i couldnt come here for support xxx
 
Tracey,
You're doing great! I know how hard the carb issue is - for me I find it hard to have a no carb meal, so I work around it as best I can. In terms of your quiche, if you want to reduce the carb content, just cut off the pastry. This will leave you with a very low carb lunch, or just take off the thick crust at the edge. You will find you get used to finding ways of adapting your diet. I had got so used to doing this when I was on meds (gliclazide and metformin) that I had hypos on insulin cos I found I could eat 2 whole weetabix, instead of one!! That doesnt make it right tho!! So had to adjust my insulin to my new found healthy - ish diet.
Dont give up, it gets easier and easier the more you keep at it!
G
 
thanks goldee, i will take the crust of the quiche, im not to fussed on the crust anyway so that wont be a problem for me xxx
 
Hi again traceycat,

Great advice there already from glodee!

Basically, pastry is not a great idea. However, a quiche salad is quite a good meal and shouldn't do you too much harm. If you want then eat the meal and test what happens - then adjust the meal the next time if you don't like the result. Better still if you can cut off or leave some of the pastry!

I found through testing that just about all cereals sent my blood glucose levels into double figures so I don't eat them these days.

Keep on track - you'll do just fine!

Best wishes - John
 
Hi Tracey,
How did the quiche go? Did it work out OK in terms of your numbers ?Hope you enjoyed it - that sounded a delicious lunch!!:D
G
 
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