blood sugars 20 - how to reduce

[Steve/Ch]

Hello. Sorry that you are feeling confused. There is a lot of information out there and sadly a lot of misinformation. Feeling anxious and not being entirely well are things that can affect your BG readings, so may even have made them higher than they should be. COVID has negatively affected diabetes care in some practices in that people have had to wait longer for their tests. Clearly your GP and nurse are reasonably satisfied with your results and your figures are not bad although you do not say when you did the tests e.g. before a meal, first thing in the morning, after a meal etc. If you can manage to do the tests that will give you a snapshot of how you are doing. I am at present trying to control my diabetes through diet and exercise. I do test but not as much as I did at first. Some people are keen on fasting as being helpful to get control. I kept a food diary of what I ate and my BGs. This gave me the information that I needed. We are individuals and what adversely affects one person will not do so with another, e.g. oat porridge sends my BG up, others can eat it with little of no ill effect.
Many of the people on here are very knowledgeable and will be able to offer superior advice to me. I do not think not eating is the most sensible plan, maybe find out which foods you can tolerate and stick to those. We can do so much to help ourselves. Please ask questions on this forum as the people here helped me so much and continue to do so. Take care. You can and you will improve your BG levels. Good luck 🙂

Hi, i am type 2 diabetic, my sugar readings are very high, up to 20 and often over, how can i get these down to what they should be?

 

[Nick Cliff]

Hi, i am type 2 diabetic, my sugar readings are very high, up to 20 and often over, how can i get these down to what they should be?

Hi @Steve/Ch - it's the remedy of diet and exercise... reducing the foods that can cause elevated blood glucose levels (foods with high sugar content, eating too much starchy food) and getting regular daily exercise. There's loads of info on the Diabetes UK website and in posts to this forum. However, if your blood sugar readings are consistently that high it's the GP you need to be speaking to, especially if you are already controlling your diet and getting exercise. Hope this helps.. Nick

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

I’ve split your post into it’s own thread so as not to get the answers all mixed up @Steve/Ch

How long have you been living with diabetes, and are you on any medications?

Do you aim for a moderate or low carb eating plan?

 

[Steve/Ch]

Hi, sorry i am very late in replying but i have not been online for a while but yes i am on metformin, gliclazide, sitagliptin, still my readings are high. I am going to start at the gym from tomorrow and hope to start a moderate low carb diet and beware of what i am eating, i really struggle with all this but i keep trying

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

All the best for your renewed efforts @Steve/Ch Hope the gym works well for you.

How are you currently structuring your BG checks? You can use a BG meter, taking a reading before and again 2hrs after eating, to see what the differences are, to identify any carbs that seem to be spiking BG (initially in a way the numbers themselves matter less than the differences between them). You can also see the effect of introducing some moderate activity in the hour or two after eating, eg a brisk walk.

Once you can see how your body responds to different meals/carbs you can begin experimenting with reducing portion sizes and trying different types of carbs (sometimes just having things at a different time of day makes a difference). And by a process of experimentation, gradually tweak and tailor your menu to find one that suits your tastebuds, your waistline and your BG levels 🙂

If you are interested in this approach you may find test-review-adjust by Alan S a helpful framework.