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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.
Hello, I was diagnosed Type 2 in February this year. I’m not on medication, the nurse recommending dieting and more exercise. I’ve had blood tests this week so anxiously awaiting results. Should I get a diabetes monitor? I’m very much in the dark about what foods could be raising blood sugar. I have been following low carb, no added sugar diet with the odd treat every once in a while.
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A diabetes monitor would help you identify the foods that raise your blood sugar. But it sounds to me like you have been following a sensible eating plan. If your results this week show your HbA1c has reduced, then you know you have been doing the right things. If not, then a monitor is a good idea. In fact I'm sure some people would recommend it anyway. But you would have to fund it yourself.
See what your results are like and if not as good as you expect or wish for then you may be misinterpreting the 'no added sugar' as being low carb and not taking account of foods like rice, pasta, potatoes which have no added sugar but because they are starchy are high carb.
Have a look at this link and compare to what you are doing ad it may give you some new ideas https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
A diabetes monitor would help you identify the foods that raise your blood sugar. But it sounds to me like you have been following a sensible eating plan. If your results this week show your HbA1c has reduced, then you know you have been doing the right things. If not, then a monitor is a good idea. In fact I'm sure some people would recommend it anyway. But you would have to fund it yourself.
See what your results are like and if not as good as you expect or wish for then you may be misinterpreting the 'no added sugar' as being low carb and not taking account of foods like rice, pasta, potatoes which have no added sugar but because they are starchy are high carb.
Have a look at this link and compare to what you are doing ad it may give you some new ideas https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
HbA1C was 50 and second test 49. I have lost nearly 2 stone since then so hope this weeks blood test will see a drop. Bit confused looking at these diabetes monitors, so many on the market and no idea what the readings mean.
A standard fingerstick BG meter is all you’d need really. Standard units in the UK are mmol/L (not md/dl).
It’s the strip cost you need to pat close attention to, the most affordable meters members here have found are the SD Gluco Navii or the Spirit Tee2 or the Contour Blue which all have test strips at around £10 for 50. Some brands cost 3x that!
You can take a reading immediately before a meal, and again 2hrs after the first bite, to see what the differences are (initially in a way you could argue that the numbers themselves matter less than the differences between them).
Ideally you would want to see a rise of no more than 2-3mmol/L at the 2hr mark. Once you can see how you respond to different meals/ sources of carbs you can begin experimenting with reducing portion sizes of the carbs where you see bigger rises. You might find that you are particularly sensitive to carbohydrate from one source (eg bread), but have more liberty with others (eg oats or basmati rice) - It’s all very individual! You might even find that just having things at a different time of day makes a difference - with breakfast time being the trickiest.
HbA1C was 50 and second test 49. I have lost nearly 2 stone since then so hope this weeks blood test will see a drop. Bit confused looking at these diabetes monitors, so many on the market and no idea what the readings mean.
OK that is only just over the threshold of 48mmol/mol that would give you the diagnosis so I would imagine that the changes you have made will have brought it down, maybe not quite to normal of below 42mmol/mol. The HbA1C is basically an average of blood glucose over the previous 3 months.
The home testing blood glucose monitors that use a finger prick sample which give a moment in time blood glucose and they give the result in mmol/l. The level to aim at from that is 4-7 fasting/morning and before meals and no more than 8-8.5 2 hours post meal.
The two tests are representing different things so one cannot be converted to the other, other than to say the higher the finger prick readings are the more likely the HbA1C will be high.
OK that is only just over the threshold of 48mmol/mol that would give you the diagnosis so I would imagine that the changes you have made will have brought it down, maybe not quite to normal of below 42mmol/mol. The HbA1C is basically an average of blood glucose over the previous 3 months.
The home testing blood glucose monitors that use a finger prick sample which give a moment in time blood glucose and they give the result in mmol/l. The level to aim at from that is 4-7 fasting/morning and before meals and no more than 8-8.5 2 hours post meal.
The two tests are representing different things so one cannot be converted to the other, other than to say the higher the finger prick readings are the more likely the HbA1C will be high.
A standard fingerstick BG meter is all you’d need really. Standard units in the UK are mmol/L (not md/dl).
It’s the strip cost you need to pat close attention to, the most affordable meters members here have found are the SD Gluco Navii or the Spirit Tee2 or the Contour Blue which all have test strips at around £10 for 50. Some brands cost 3x that!
You can take a reading immediately before a meal, and again 2hrs after the first bite, to see what the differences are (initially in a way you could argue that the numbers themselves matter less than the differences between them).
Ideally you would want to see a rise of no more than 2-3mmol/L at the 2hr mark. Once you can see how you respond to different meals/ sources of carbs you can begin experimenting with reducing portion sizes of the carbs where you see bigger rises. You might find that you are particularly sensitive to carbohydrate from one source (eg bread), but have more liberty with others (eg oats or basmati rice) - It’s all very individual! You might even find that just having things at a different time of day makes a difference - with breakfast time being the trickiest.
Please to say my HBa1C is now at 42, down from 49 (Feb 24). My cholesterol is slightly high at 5.4 (5.5 in Feb). I have a review with the GP at the end of the month. I have bought a diabetes monitor although haven’t used it yet and will have a go with it starting tomorrow. At what level are statins required for cholesterol?
Please to say my HBa1C is now at 42, down from 49 (Feb 24). My cholesterol is slightly high at 5.4 (5.5 in Feb). I have a review with the GP at the end of the month. I have bought a diabetes monitor although haven’t used it yet and will have a go with it starting tomorrow. At what level are statins required for cholesterol?
It all depends on your GP and your risk factors. If diabetic then they like people to be below 4 but it can also depend on your ratios.
If you do agree to statins then I would say the lowest dose as a starting point as that may be enough to do the trick.
It all depends on your GP and your risk factors. If diabetic then they like people to be below 4 but it can also depend on your ratios.
If you do agree to statins then I would say the lowest dose as a starting point as that may be enough to do the trick.
Many find going low carb actually improves their cholesterol even though they are eating more protein and healthy fats. Some fats help to reduce the 'bad' cholesterol and increase the 'good'
If you don't already do so, may I suggest a daily cholesterol reducing drink. My GP suggested it because I was severely reactive to statins, and the drinks gave me a 17% reduction, which I have maintained. My DSN is now considering a non statin cholesterol reducing medication, but needs to check with the GP for contra indications as I had an AKI (acute kidney injury) during lockdown. So there are alternatives to statins which don't get mentioned.
If you don't already do so, may I suggest a daily cholesterol reducing drink. My GP suggested it because I was severely reactive to statins, and the drinks gave me a 17% reduction, which I have maintained. My DSN is now considering a non statin cholesterol reducing medication, but needs to check with the GP for contra indications as I had an AKI (acute kidney injury) during lockdown. So there are alternatives to statins which don't get mentioned.
Thank you. I bought some today so will give them a go. My sister has higher cholesterol than me (although non diabetic) and her practice nurse said to take it last thing before bedtime although I read on the packet to take with food. I guess it’s different for everyone. I’m also going to stay low carb and have more fish than meat.
Thank you. I bought some today so will give them a go. My sister has higher cholesterol than me (although non diabetic) and her practice nurse said to take it last thing before bedtime although I read on the packet to take with food. I guess it’s different for everyone. I’m also going to stay low carb and have more fish than meat.
