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Please Remember: Members are only permitted to share their own experiences. Members are not qualified to give medical advice. Additionally, everyone manages their health differently. Please be respectful of other people's opinions about their own diabetes management.
Has the cost-of-living crisis had an impact on how you manage your diabetes day to day? Maybe you're worrying about the cost of food increasing, or how it will affect your stress levels.
Has the cost-of-living crisis had an impact on how you manage your diabetes day to day? Maybe you're worrying about the cost of food increasing, or how it will affect your stress levels.
Yes the potential increases in fuel and energy costs are scary aren’t they.
I do wonder whether rising inflation and foods costs might have an impact on some members though.
As an example, the sugar tax halved the strength of Lucozade which I have used for several years to treat hypos as quickly as possible. Then the £2 or £2.50 (depending on the week) packs of 6 bottles became packs of 4 for the same price. Which is almost doubling the cost again. I switched to bigger bottles and decanted i to smaller bottles for convenience, but now those have risen so much in price (up approx 20%) that I’ve switched to full-sugar cola instead (of the 2 main brands that still have a reasonable carb/100ml recipe ).
It’s a complex example, and part of it predates the current pressures, but things have certainly escalated over the past month or two.
Yes, at one point was having to feed both of us on £12 a week because I can no longer work, my family are now helping and getting better at batch cooking and planning, also have pancreatitis so am cutting back things that flare that up which is helping with costs and finally got free prescriptions.
For the very reasons you state I no longer use Lucozade, which has been my go to treatment for 20+ years. I don't really like sweets but am currently using Jelly Babies as a cheaper option.
Well I can see an advantage in it, in that the first thing to cut out will be the luxuries like alcohol.....that should do me some good..... not that I drink huge amounts but drinking less is almost certainly beneficial.
I think, because the garden is producing at the moment I am managing quite well but I imagine it may be more noticeable in the winter. So far my fuel bill hasn't risen but I am consciously not using the oven very much at all. More slow cooker, frying pan and microwave. I don't have a problem with any of that as I am happy using those forms of cooking and it suits the food I buy.
I was brought up to "save for a rainy day" so I have a bit of a buffer in savings and very rarely eat out and never go on holiday, so I can afford to spend a little more on food if need be.
I must admit to being worried. Hubby usually does the food shop on his way home from work but while its school holidays i've taken it over. The only luxury i bought today was a small pot of cream to have with my coffee, all the rest was ingredients for the weeks meals. It still came to £60 for the two of us and it was mainly fruit, veg, bread and cheese.
I do a menu every week for the week ahead then buy just what i need thats not in the cupboard. We rarely have any waste, any veg left over goes in a ratatouille or soup. Any meat is bought in bigger packs then split up and frozen.
For hypos i used to use branded jelly babies. When these went up to £1.50 per bag, i found ASDA do their own brand for 50p per bag so now stock up on these.
I'm worried about the cost of gas and electric as well. I taught myself (basic) crochet for something to do during the lockdowns. I'd better get busy making blankets and throws to wrap up in!
We already do most of our food shopping at lidl. Go to the farm shop for huge trays of eggs and sacks of potatoes, and treat meat, the eggs and potatoes are better and way cheaper. I don't know how we can spend less.
For hypos I am on lidl fizzy worms, big bag cheaper than the 40p jelly babies. My local m&S did have theirs for 50p for a while so I did use those, very nice.
We have no waste at all, maybe a mouthful on a plate we don't want to eat.
We bought a ninja cooker, only use the hob occasionally and the grill not even once a week. Haven't used the the oven in weeks, maybe 2 or 3.
Also I work from home pretty much now, fine in summer, but I think I might be going into Manchester more in winter ... well not if the strikes keep up!
Well I can see an advantage in it, in that the first thing to cut out will be the luxuries like alcohol.....that should do me some good..... not that I drink huge amounts but drinking less is almost certainly beneficial.
I think, because the garden is producing at the moment I am managing quite well but I imagine it may be more noticeable in the winter. So far my fuel bill hasn't risen but I am consciously not using the oven very much at all. More slow cooker, frying pan and microwave. I don't have a problem with any of that as I am happy using those forms of cooking and it suits the food I buy.
I was brought up to "save for a rainy day" so I have a bit of a buffer in savings and very rarely eat out and never go on holiday, so I can afford to spend a little more on food if need be.
We already do most of our food shopping at lidl. Go to the farm shop for huge trays of eggs and sacks of potatoes, and treat meat, the eggs and potatoes are better and way cheaper. I don't know how we can spend less.
For hypos I am on lidl fizzy worms, big bag cheaper than the 40p jelly babies. My local m&S did have theirs for 50p for a while so I did use those, very nice.
We have no waste at all, maybe a mouthful on a plate we don't want to eat.
We bought a ninja cooker, only use the hob occasionally and the grill not even once a week. Haven't used the the oven in weeks, maybe 2 or 3.
They tend to come with a lot of mud on. Keep them cool and dry and they last. But we only get half a sack as there’s only 3 of us. We run out before they go bad.
I would say seek out your local farm with a shop, not all farm shops are responsibly priced so are flashy, and buy a smaller bag and see how you get on.
Same with the eggs. They last 3 - 4 weeks. As they are even fresher than the super markets they last ages, well we eat them quickly but they should do
They tend to come with a lot of mud on. Keep them cool and dry and they last. But we only get half a sack as there’s only 3 of us. We run out before they go bad.
I would say seek out your local farm with a shop, not all farm shops are responsibly priced so are flashy, and buy a smaller bag and see how you get on.
Same with the eggs. They last 3 - 4 weeks. As they are even fresher than the super markets they last ages, well we eat them quickly but they should do
It depends on what you throw out.
I've cooked ones with feelers growing out of the bag.
Just chopped out the usable bits, mashed, fried, baked, it's all good.
Last year I planted 6 charlotte potatoes that had sprouted in a bed about 4ft x 4ft and it yielded 20kg of potatoes which stored really well in the shed and lasted us until March.
I find all the price increases scary, as my savings diminish. Energy alone is now almost 50% of my State pension. I used to happily pay for exercise classes with my favourite instructor, but now look for locations which do offers - I pay between 30% and 50% less now. For my dietary needs I now use the local farm veg-in-a-box service, which provides enough vegetables for 3-4 weeks for less than £30, and great eggs. I use batch cooking and freeze into individual portions. I also shop for own brands now rather than brand names. My last trip to the supermarket the shelves had mostly been stripped clean, with many items unavailable. I used to have 2+ holidays a year, but my trip last May was the first, and only trip in 3 years. But I work round things and make do. I don't go hungry, and come the winter I have warm jumpers.
