Hello all

[Supersaint]

I’m a type 2 diabetic but also have sight issues not related to diabetes. I have had diabetes for 7 years. My struggles are being underweight and high hba1c since giving up cycling due to sight loss. I am reaching out to anyone who struggles to maintain a healthy weight (I need to put it on not lose it)

 

[Ditto]

Hello and welcome to the forum. 🙂 Can't even imagine having your problem, my weight is killing me, slow but sure. I hope you can find some answers.

 

[Supersaint]

Hi, and welcome to the forum.

I've managed to maintain my weight at 12st after losing a couple since Xmas. I'm on a low carb diet so I increased the amount of fat and protein through adding nuts, cream and full-fat Greek yogurt. As a result I've halted my weight loss and am a healthier BMI.

Where is your Hba1c at the moment if you don't mind me asking?

Martin

Hi MARTIN

Funnily enough I have just had a mid afternoon snack of full fat yoghurt with nuts and apple so hopefully I’m heading in right direction.

Hbc1c was around 50 mark until I had to stop cycling but last test was 91. Go back in a fortnight for follow up after being put on my 4th tablet!

Weight is usually 11-11.5st but have just dipped below 10st for first time since school

 

[Supersaint]

Hello and welcome to the forum. 🙂 Can't even imagine having your problem, my weight is killing me, slow but sure. I hope you can find some answers.

Thank you Ditto

 

[rebrascora]

Hi and welcome

Like Martin I have stabilised my weight by adding fat to my diet. Nuts and olives and cheese are my staple snacks. I have cream in my coffee on a morning and creamy Greek natural yoghurt with a few raspberries as a dessert. I cook quite a lot of my veg with a knob of butter or add a dollop of cream cheese before serving things like spinach leeks and cabbage. Cauliflower cheese made by smearing under cooked cauli with cream cheese and then sprinkling grated Red Leicester over the top and browning off in the oven/grill is anther favourite. Courgette and Aubergine sautéed in olive oil etc. These are all ways of adding extra fat to your diet.

91 is quite a high reading. Can I ask what an average daily food intake is for you...ie what do you have for breakfast, lunch and dinner? Just wondering if your carb intake is still too high or that you may possibly be LADA. which is a sort of slow onset Type 1 or some other variant. Your weight loss also suggests this may be the issue. It would be worth asking for Type 1 diabetes testing.

 

[Eddy Edson]

Hi MARTIN

Funnily enough I have just had a mid afternoon snack of full fat yoghurt with nuts and apple so hopefully I’m heading in right direction.

Hbc1c was around 50 mark until I had to stop cycling but last test was 91. Go back in a fortnight for follow up after being put on my 4th tablet!

Weight is usually 11-11.5st but have just dipped below 10st for first time since school

These days I have to consciously eat more sometimes to keep from dropping below 63kg, so around 10st. Nuts and avocado & varying the number of soy flat white coffees I drink are my standbys.

Does yr doc have anything to say about the weight loss?

 

[Supersaint]

Hi and welcome

Like Martin I have stabilised my weight by adding fat to my diet. Nuts and olives and cheese are my staple snacks. I have cream in my coffee on a morning and creamy Greek natural yoghurt with a few raspberries as a dessert. I cook quite a lot of my veg with a knob of butter or add a dollop of cream cheese before serving things like spinach leeks and cabbage. Cauliflower cheese made by smearing under cooked cauli with cream cheese and then sprinkling grated Red Leicester over the top and browning off in the oven/grill is anther favourite. Courgette and Aubergine sautéed in olive oil etc. These are all ways of adding extra fat to your diet.

91 is quite a high reading. Can I ask what an average daily food intake is for you...ie what do you have for breakfast, lunch and dinner? Just wondering if your carb intake is still too high or that you may possibly be LADA. which is a sort of slow onset Type 1 or some other variant.

Hi Barbara

Some great ideas there. Thank you so much. A lot of those I have started to introduce to my diet so encouraging to see I am along the right lines.

Normal breakfast for me is overnight oats in soya milk with mixed nuts mixed in and a couple of spoons of full fat yoghurt.

Lunch is now ham, cottage cheese, olives, celery, cheese, mini pork pies and mini sausages and an avocado occasionally.

Dinner is now more meat based with cheese toppings for instance last night was sausage casserole home made by my lovely wife with a jacket spud. Cheese and butter on spud and sprinkled over casserole.

It’s work in progress and once I’ve shaken this cold I’ll be back in my gym and on my WattBike which is the substitute for the real bike now lost.

I really appreciate the extra ideas from everyone. Thank you

 

[Supersaint]

I’m 5

91 is pretty high so hope your medication is working on bringing it down. As for the weight loss, how tall are you? I'm just under 6ft so 12st is a pretty good place to be and it's only a little under where I was when I met my wife 30 years ago.

Unfortunately I have a wardrobe full of things that don't fit any more......!

Martin

Im 5’8” and have always been active. I walk everywhere as I cannot drive due to unrelated sight loss but used to cycle 80-100 miles a week until last year. Sometimes 60 miles in a single ride at weekends as well.

This was a huge factor in controlling the diabetes. Sadly those days are gone but despite having the gym and now a wattbike it doesn’t replace the cycling entirely so need to help the old body out a bit more

 

[Supersaint]

These days I have to consciously eat more sometimes to keep from dropping below 63kg, so around 10st. Nuts and avocado & varying the number of soy flat white coffees I drink are my standbys.

Does yr doc have anything to say about the weight loss?

You are where I am now Eddy. Trying to find ways to put the weight back on without blowing the sugars. Relearning it all again. Had it licked when I was cycling.

Diabetic nurse is more concerned about lowering hba1c to start with. Tackle weight once it’s coming down. Saw her last week. Go back on 14th October as latest drug has side effect of weight loss

 

[rebrascora]

Oats can be tricky. They are very carby but slow release. My breakfast porridge was the last thing I gave up before my BG started to come down into the normal range. How about a mushroom omelette for breakfast instead?
Those mini pork pies have more pastry than filling, so they are not a good choice in my opinion and sausages can be higher in carbs than you would expect, especially cheaper ones. I buy the 80% meat content sausages or ideally even higher percentage meat. They are more expensive but I think they are worth it both from a taste point of view and also the lower carbs.
The jacket potato may be causing you an issue too. Potatoes are very easily broken down into glucose and whilst I appreciate you are having cheese and butter with it which should slow it down a bit, you may need to rethink spuds as well.
All that said, I do wonder if you might be a late onset Type 1. They tend to assume everyone is Type 2 unless you develop diabetes as a child or young adult. There is no specific testing for Type 2, so it tends to be the default diagnosis when HbA1c is high and only specific testing for Type 1 (anti body and c-peptide tests) will identify you as Type 1. Many GPs don't even know that adults can develop Type 1 and LADA (Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults) is less well known still. It is not uncommon for adults to be successfully treated as Type 2 for several years and then their reading just suddenly spikes If the Metformin is not having a positive effect on your BG levels, it may well be that you fall into this category.

 

[Martin9]

Wonder if he’s a real type 2, but haven’t enough knowledge to discuss, he was a high cyclist, and obviously still high levels ,

 

[Supersaint]

Oats can be tricky. They are very carby but slow release. My breakfast porridge was the last thing I gave up before my BG started to come down into the normal range. How about a mushroom omelette for breakfast instead?
Those mini pork pies have more pastry than filling, so they are not a good choice in my opinion and sausages can be higher in carbs than you would expect, especially cheaper ones. I buy the 80% meat content sausages or ideally even higher percentage meat. They are more expensive but I think they are worth it both from a taste point of view and also the lower carbs.
The jacket potato may be causing you an issue too. Potatoes are very easily broken down into glucose and whilst I appreciate you are having cheese and butter with it which should slow it down a bit, you may need to rethink spuds as well.
All that said, I do wonder if you might be a late onset Type 1. They tend to assume everyone is Type 2 unless you develop diabetes as a child or young adult. There is no specific testing for Type 2, so it tends to be the default diagnosis when HbA1c is high and only specific testing for Type 1 (anti body and c-peptide tests) will identify you as Type 1. Many GPs don't even know that adults can develop Type 1 and LADA (Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults) is less well known still. It is not uncommon for adults to be successfully treated as Type 2 for several years and then their reading just suddenly spikes If the Metformin is not having a positive effect on your BG levels, it may well be that you fall into this category.

I do get your point about the spuds, mini pork pies and sausages however I had to reintroduce some carbs as I was finding I had no energy at all. The spuds might be a bit much and will try smaller ones. The sausages are almost carb free (1.7g per 100g) and the pork pies are about 12gs each (I only have 1)

The porridge oats seemed to be a good recommendation as a replacement for cereal which I used to have (according to diabetes UK) but I do alternate with scrambled egg if I have time before work

 

[Supersaint]

Wonder if he’s a real type 2, but haven’t enough knowledge to discuss, he was a high cyclist, and obviously still high levels ,

In the early days my GP did mention I might not be a typical Type 2 and possibly bordering Type 1 in some way. He was a brilliant doc but has since retired. My local surgery is now overrun and appointments can be weeks away to see one, all of which are rotating locums and have little idea of me as a person

 

[Drummer]

Those high carb foods will not be helping your Hba1c, nor your BG levels after eating.
I eat under 40 gm of carbs a day, but I eat fats and get my energy from those - I was out eight days in a row not long ago, Border morris practice Thursday, going to sing at a folk club of the Friday, playing for morris dancing Saturday and Sunday with session playing afterwards, longsword practice, longsword dance out, cotswold practice, Border practice again on Thursday - I am 68 years old and some of the younger ones have trouble keeping up.

 

[Supersaint]

Those high carb foods will not be helping your Hba1c, nor your BG levels after eating.
I eat under 40 gm of carbs a day, but I eat fats and get my energy from those - I was out eight days in a row not long ago, Border morris practice Thursday, going to sing at a folk club of the Friday, playing for morris dancing Saturday and Sunday with session playing afterwards, longsword practice, longsword dance out, cotswold practice, Border practice again on Thursday - I am 68 years old and some of the younger ones have trouble keeping up.

I think being under 10st at the moment is not helping me at the moment as I have literally no reserves whatsoever. I’m over a stone underweight to my normal level. I feel it too. I look skeletal . Trying to balance gaining weight, keeping energy levels and keeping sugars down is proving to be a fine balance to achieve. On my side is good blood pressure and cholesterol plus general fitness which I don’t want to compromise if I can help it by loading too much fat. I’m only a week into the new regime and learning (or should I say RE-learning) so hopefully I will see some improvement when I go back in a couple of weeks. Once it’s back in check managing the status quo should hopefully become a little easier.

 

[Eddy Edson]

In the early days my GP did mention I might not be a typical Type 2 and possibly bordering Type 1 in some way. He was a brilliant doc but has since retired. My local surgery is now overrun and appointments can be weeks away to see one, all of which are rotating locums and have little idea of me as a person

Don't claim to be an expert, but FWIW to me you don't look like a Type 2, rather like the a late/slow onset Type 1. It's a very common misdiagnosis - a big proportion of T1's start out being misdiagnosed, including a bunch of people on this forum - partly because a lot of GP's just don't realise that it's not just young people who develop T1.

Hopefully somebody with more of a clue will add their comments, but I'd be looking for ways to have this investigated.