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Sienna

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Type 2
Whew what a struggle to register. Hope I am not as dumb at following the diabetes rules! maybe its hunger - I seem to think of nothing but eating since being told I must avoid so many edibles.
Anyone any good snack ideas? Are raw carrots ok?
 
Hi Sienna and a warm welcome to the forum carrott is good also celery is good to, nuts as well. Theres no need to starve even with diabetes still loads for us to snack on..
Have a look and the food and recipe section it will give you loads of good ideas as to what to eat etc
 
Hi Sienna, welcome to the forum 🙂 Have you been recently diagnosed then? Are you on any medication for your diabetes? Don't worry, things aren't quite as restrictive as you may think they are at the moment. The key to controlling your diabetes well is to discover what effect different foods have on your blood sugar levels. The main things to watch out for are carbohydrates - bread, rice, pasta, potatoes etc. All of these will raise your blood sugar levels, but ideally you need a testing meter so you can see what you can tolerate and in what quantities.

A good place to start is by reading Jennifer's Advice and Maggie Davey's letter, and I would also recommend getting a copy of Type 2 Diabetes: The First Year by Gretchen Becker - these will all give you a good grounding in how to tackle your diabetes.

If you have any questions, please do ask! In answer to your first question, yes - carrot sticks are fine! 🙂 Have a look in the Food section for more ideas and recipes 🙂
 
Hi Sienna, welcome. If you let us know what you've been given by way of treatment, a bit of background to your diagnosis, some idea about likes/dislikes and whether you have been told to lose/gain weight we can offer suggestions about things that have helped us.
 
Welcome to the forum Sienna. As Steff says, you may not have to be as restrictive food-wise as you may think. The trick is to be able to test which foods affect you badly and which don't. Unfortunately this requires a meter (which you can get free) and test strips for the meter (which aren't free and GP's are usually reluctant to prescribe them for monetary reasons).

Anyway, don't let anyone tell you that diabetes is a 'death sentence'. There is much you can do for yourself and you can even look forward to a healthier, happier you! My diagnosis led me to turn my lifestyle around and I am now hunky dorey!!

Andy 🙂
 
Welcome to the forum Sienna 🙂

Carrots are good, but get boring after a while 😉
 
thank you all for a nice welcome. Yes, 10 days ago told I'm type 2 with a fasting blood test score just under 9. So far no medication, the doctor wants me to try eating differently and losing weight for three months,- theres quite a lot to lose,- then he will decide. I'm old but not ancient (I believe) and I know I dont excercise enough but but . . its so braindamagingly boring and its hard work too!
Wont miss sweet food much, would/will miss savoury food cheese, salt and chocolate. On the bright side, coffee is ok I think?
Im sorry for banging on too long, but it is lovely of you to offer advice. Thank you
 
Has your doctor or nurse given you any suggestions re: losing weight? Some PCTs will fund the first 12 weeks with Slimming World or Weightwatchers because there is real evidence that they are effective for many people, and losing weight, especially if you add a bit more exercise, can have a dramatic effect on blood glucose levels.

There are several of us on this forum who follow the SW Original plan because it's lower carb (and therefore more diabetes-friendly) than most diets/healthy eating plans. There are others who have gone with WW. Slimming clubs are great if you like to have moral support, i.e. applause for successes and support/advice when things go a bit wrong.
 
Why not do something interesting with your exercise? I took up Geocaching (thanks for the idea Copepod) precisely because I couldn't fact just going out for a pointless walk or cycle ride (and my wallet won't stand a gym membership).

Some of the savouries are not so bad - nuts are usually fairly low in carbohydrates but contain essential oils and minerals. The downside is that there calorie content is fairly high which can be a hindrance to loosing a few lb/kg.
 
Sienna said:
Wont miss sweet food much, would/will miss savoury food cheese, salt and chocolate. On the bright side, coffee is ok I think?
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Coffee is largely Ok, but it can cause your BG levels to rise (due to the caffiene, I believe). However, I didn't have any problems with it ...... except I think I drank too much of the stuff and had really bad leg cramps at night (the kind that almost left my crying with agony!). Reducing my coffee intake (or replacing it with decaff) seems to have sorted that particular problem. But, on the other hand, I am no longer losing quite so much weight either so it could be down to that too!

I can't help with the exercise because I am quite happy to go walking around the local park (or along the canal where I used to live). I quite enjoy looking at the local wildlife, trees etc etc (my needs are quite small really!).

Andy 🙂
 
Thanks Andy, (I quite enjoy looking at the local wildlife,. . . ) I was wondering where you'd found that splendid antique duck! People here have great avatars, Northerner's pig walks off with the charm prize, and is Mark's a dragon??

Was wondering, after reading the sites suggested here, if I shd get a self-test kit and papers from the chemist. I went and asked (Boots). They said "not at this stage . . . " Do I want to get to a later stage tho? I dont look forward to sticking needles in but if I oughta, then maybe I better ? My GP didnt mention it but Ive had widely differing advice on diet.
 
Yes Mark, I'll just have to get motivated, the dogs should help. My husband usually walks them up to now.
 
Sienna said:
Thanks Andy, (I quite enjoy looking at the local wildlife,. . . ) I was wondering where you'd found that splendid antique duck! People here have great avatars, Northerner's pig walks off with the charm prize, and is Mark's a dragon??

Was wondering, after reading the sites suggested here, if I shd get a self-test kit and papers from the chemist. I went and asked (Boots). They said "not at this stage . . . " Do I want to get to a later stage tho? I dont look forward to sticking needles in but if I oughta, then maybe I better ? My GP didnt mention it but Ive had widely differing advice on diet.
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My duck is a couple of thousand years old! It is a Roman mosaic which can be found in the R?misch-Germanisches Museum in Cologne. Well worth a visit. 🙂

I can only say that the meter was really useful for me when I was diagnosed. But then, I had the support of the medical types so was able to get the test strips prescribed. If you don't have that support then you will need to purchase the test strips yourself (they're little strips of plastic by the way with a little chip on .... erm not of potato I hasten to add!). My test strips (for a Bayer Contour meter) worked out at ?25 for a pot of 50 (if self-bought). Other meters have cheaper strips (?7 for 50 springs to mind, but I'm not sure).

Regarding diet, that is a bit of a minefield (especially if you can't self-test). You may find some of the courses run by the NHS of use here. I was able to attend one called Diabetes X-Pert which was a six week, one afternoon a week job for a couple of hours or so. This covered quite a lot about diet and what to look out for.

Diet does end up being pretty individual though. What sends some people sky high barely registers for others. For example, I regularly have porage with a splash of honey and a banana for breakfast. I find that I am back in the 4's and 5's 2hrs after eating that. Others may find that they're in double figures!

Andy 🙂
 
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