Diagnosed type 2. Confused.com!!!

[Reg]

Hi, I am 69 years old with reading of 51 and have been told to control my diabetes with diet.
I am not overweight and eat a healthy diet. Having spoken to the diabetic nurse I can identify a few things I should cut out like soft mints, wine gums, twix, sticky toffee puddings, meringues, and marmalade. (All of which I have occasionally.)
I will reduce portions of potatoes, pasta and rice too. I have bought the book Carbs and Cals by Chris Cheyette.
I am confused because everything I read seems to be towards loosing weight which I don’t need to do. So should I be watching/counting calories or carbohydrates?
Thanks!

 

[Ljc]

Hello @Reg welcome to the forum.
You are on the right track on lowering carbohydrates.

With an Hb1ac of 51 you really have only just crossed over the threshold into diabetes , 42 to 47 is pre diabetes 48 and above is diabetes. So fingers crossed you will soon be able to put it into remission
I was over100 when diagnosed back in 94 .

Though many who are diagnosed with T2 are overweight their are a number people like yourself who are not who eat healthy and do lots of exercise. I know one who has been skinny all his life who developed it.
Their is some proof that we can be thin on the outside but have fat round our organs though this won’t apply to all who are not overweight. Many who go on a low carb diet find that they lose weight easily even if they don’t need to.

We have no problems with protein nor unless you have a medical condition where you need to lower it, good fats , so dairy is fine .

Ask all the questions you need to about diabetes, we’ll do our best to help.

Have a read through this thread, which for future reference you’ll find at the top of the newbies forum .
useful-links-for-people-new-to-diabetes
Scroll down to the T2 section.
I suggest you start with
Maggie Davies letter.
Test review adjust .
Their is also a link to one of the cheapest glucose meters we know of to self fund the ongoing cost cost of the testing strips there, the SD Codefree meter.

Please let us know how you get on

 

[Felinia]

Hi, I too am 69 and was diagnosed with an HbA1c of 57. I too was told to control my diabetes by diet, moderate exercise at least 180 minutes pw and losing weight. The last bit does not apply to you, but certainly the first, and possible the second will do. I went from no exercise to 225min of Aquafit each week, but it could be something simple like more walking, or cycling, ordinary swimming.
So, you should be primarily counting carbs. I belong to a website with app that has the carb and sugar values of literally thousands of foods, with their measured portion sizes - great when going shopping. It also counts other things like cals, fats, protein as it caters for various dietary needs. It measures by meal, day and week so I know exactly where I stand. In 3 months I reduced my HbA1c to 48 and am currently working towards getting it below 42.
It is surprising just how many carbs are in some foods - even veggies and salads, and just how small some portion sizes are!! If you cut back on the carbs, you can add more protein into your diet and some people add full fat rather than low fat - depends on if you have any other medical conditions. You might lose a few kg, but if you increase your non-carb intake you may balance out.
If you must have bread, pasta or rice, it should be wholegrain, not white, and half portions. If you can, go without and use substitutes, such as cauliflower or broccoli rice, cauliflower mash with cheese, carrot and swede mash, Bare Naked carb free noodles, courgetti, squash sheets. You already know to avoid pastries, cakes, biscuits, but there are things you might not think of which have added flour, such as sauces/gravies, breakfast cereals (many are loaded with carbs), and stick to just one 80gm portion of fruit per day as a snack.
Hopefully within a few months your HbA1c should come down, so I suggest you ask to be re-tested in 3 months, just to see how you are doing. When mine came down, my diabetic nurse said I was allowed the occasional treat, so I do have the odd indulgence now. Hopefully your partner will be on board with eating changes, and may also benefit!! Best wishes.

 

[Toucan]

Hello Reg, and welcome to the forum.
There is already some good advice here for you from Felina and Lin.
I would also agree that you need to focus on reducing carbs rather than calories. As you do not need to loose weight, it is likely that carb reduction that will lower your blood sugar levels.
It will help if you can monitor your levels and there is information on how to do this on the link that Lin mentioned.
A basic way of testing is to note what you have eaten at each meal, then test blood sugars around 2 hours after. If you do this over a few days, you should soon see a pattern of what foods do or don't increase your levels.
I hope it goes well for you, and please ask the forum on anything you are not sure about.

 

[Drummer]

You could always ditch the potatoes pasta and rice and have limited amounts of sweets and puddings - carbs are carbs and once digested there is no difference between the glucose from a Twix and a slice of wholemeal bread.
As long as you are eating enough your wight should remain stable, but you might need to avoid low fat options and lean meats - we do actually require fat in our diet, and can use it as fuel when we don't need to get rid of glucose.
You might find your waistline reducing though - that is happening to me even though my weight is stable.

 

[Reg]

Thank you so much all of you for your replies. They are so helpful. I have been ill over the past year with four chest infections and two ear infections which I am told could be a sign of the diabetes. I did feel quite despondent when I left the nurse yesterday because of all I could no longer eat!! My wife is very supportive and is preparing some good meals. It’s just a case if getting my head round it all. Thanks again.

 

[ianf0ster]

Hi, At my highest ever weight (when diagnosed last year) I was only 2lbs into the 'overweight' range of BMI.
If you are truly a Type 2 , some are misdiagnosed, the you are likely to be Thin Outside Fat Inside (TOFI) like me.
But don't deceive yourself about weight, you probably do need to lose some weight - namely the internal fat in and around your organs!
However the best way (for most) to do this is NOT by dieting! Don't restrict your Calories since it can make things worse by lowering your metabolic rate. This is the reason why most 'crash diets' fail for people.

Instead reduce your carbohydrates and if possible cut out any snacks. Count Carbs not Calories.
I bought a Blood Glucose meter and tested before and then 2hrs after (first bite) of every meal until I know which foods in which portions suited me.
Carbs raise Blood Glucose, which in turn for those who aren't a Type 1 raises Insulin which forces the Blood Glucose out of the blood stream into muscle and fat cells.
There is no problem with glucose going into muscle cells, but as a Type 2 diabetic you don't want it going into fat cells since this (in and around your Liver, pancreas, kidneys) is what drives your 'insulin resistance'.
Insulin is the fat storage hormone, it prevents excess body fat being used for energy - why would the body want to deplete it's existing store while it is actively soring more from glucose in the bloodstream?
Thus it is almost impossible to lose weight in the form of excess fat, while Insulin is high.

It took only a few weeks to get my Blood Glucose down to 'pre-diabetic' levels though I had to wait for the next HbA1C test to confirm that, by which time I had lost 23lbs (weight 147lbs down from 170lbs).
I never counted calories and I never went hungry either during that time or since, even though I have currently not eaten breakfast for over 4 weeks - I'm 'fat adapted' so I'm just not hungry.
P.S. Even tough I've had a 3x Coronary Bypass (long before my T2D diagnosis), I decided to believe the medical studies which say that Fat and even saturated fat doesn't cause heart disease. So my current Way Of Eating is very Low Carbs plus slightly more Protein and quite a lot more traditional fats - fatty cuts of Meat and Fish, Avocados, Nuts, Eggs, Full-Fat Dairy including Cream and hard Cheeses.

I found my new way of eating to be more enjoyable than the high carb low fat one that my doctors had scared me into over 10yrs earlier!

 

[Reg]

Hi, At my highest ever weight (when diagnosed last year) I was only 2lbs into the 'overweight' range of BMI.
If you are truly a Type 2 , some are misdiagnosed, the you are likely to be Thin Outside Fat Inside (TOFI) like me.
But don't deceive yourself about weight, you probably do need to lose some weight - namely the internal fat in and around your organs!
However the best way (for most) to do this is NOT by dieting! Don't restrict your Calories since it can make things worse by lowering your metabolic rate. This is the reason why most 'crash diets' fail for people.

Instead reduce your carbohydrates and if possible cut out any snacks. Count Carbs not Calories.
I bought a Blood Glucose meter and tested before and then 2hrs after (first bite) of every meal until I know which foods in which portions suited me.
Carbs raise Blood Glucose, which in turn for those who aren't a Type 1 raises Insulin which forces the Blood Glucose out of the blood stream into muscle and fat cells.
There is no problem with glucose going into muscle cells, but as a Type 2 diabetic you don't want it going into fat cells since this (in and around your Liver, pancreas, kidneys) is what drives your 'insulin resistance'.
Insulin is the fat storage hormone, it prevents excess body fat being used for energy - why would the body want to deplete it's existing store while it is actively soring more from glucose in the bloodstream?
Thus it is almost impossible to lose weight in the form of excess fat, while Insulin is high.

It took only a few weeks to get my Blood Glucose down to 'pre-diabetic' levels though I had to wait for the next HbA1C test to confirm that, by which time I had lost 23lbs (weight 147lbs down from 170lbs).
I never counted calories and I never went hungry either during that time or since, even though I have currently not eaten breakfast for over 4 weeks - I'm 'fat adapted' so I'm just not hungry.
P.S. Even tough I've had a 3x Coronary Bypass (long before my T2D diagnosis), I decided to believe the medical studies which say that Fat and even saturated fat doesn't cause heart disease. So my current Way Of Eating is very Low Carbs plus slightly more Protein and quite a lot more traditional fats - fatty cuts of Meat and Fish, Avocados, Nuts, Eggs, Full-Fat Dairy including Cream and hard Cheeses.

I found my new way of eating to be more enjoyable than the high carb low fat one that my doctors had scared me into over 10yrs earlier!

It makes sense what you are saying. I will get a meter because I would like to know if I am going in the right direction rather than wait for 3 months.
I do have belly fat even though my legs and arms are skinny as anything so I do have something I can lose for sure!!! Thank you for taking the time to reply with such good detail. I’m pleased I have found this forum.

 

[SueEK]

Hi @Reg and welcome to the site. I see you have had lots of good advice already which I don’t need to add to. Just wanted to say I also am a slim diabetic but was diagnosed at 90. I did lose 20lb which didn’t feel I needed to but actually it has been fine and prob more necessary than I thought. I reduced my carbs considerably and upped my fats and surprisingly my cholesterol levels are better than they’ve even been. I have stabilised my weight and my levels are now in the pre-diabetic range, normal cholesterol and blood pressure. It is a shock when we are diagnosed for sure but certainly a wake up call for us all. Good luck with your new way of eating and ask any questions you may have at all. Sue

 

[Reg]

Hi @Reg and welcome to the site. I see you have had lots of good advice already which I don’t need to add to. Just wanted to say I also am a slim diabetic but was diagnosed at 90. I did lose 20lb which didn’t feel I needed to but actually it has been fine and prob more necessary than I thought. I reduced my carbs considerably and upped my fats and surprisingly my cholesterol levels are better than they’ve even been. I have stabilised my weight and my levels are now in the pre-diabetic range, normal cholesterol and blood pressure. It is a shock when we are diagnosed for sure but certainly a wake up call for us all. Good luck with your new way of eating and ask any questions you may have at all. Sue

Thank you Sue! Well done for getting all those levels under control!

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

It makes sense what you are saying. I will get a meter because I would like to know if I am going in the right direction rather than wait for 3 months.
I do have belly fat even though my legs and arms are skinny as anything so I do have something I can lose for sure!!! Thank you for taking the time to reply with such good detail. I’m pleased I have found this forum.

sounds like a meter is a good way forward for you Reg.

Welcome to the forum!