aseret
Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Hello there,
I am not a 'new' diabetic. I have been lurking in the background for some time, in denial.
Diagnosed type 2 about 4 years ago, i was started on Metformin with disastrous results.... When speaking to the endocrinologist about an alternative, she basically said that I was grossly overweight and that if i could lose 20kilos then the diabetes would 'probably' cure itself. (i have been gaining weight steadily for the past 10 or 15 years and have followed 'expert' advice - low fat, low calorie, high carb- diets with very little success) Then she packed me off to the dietician, who went through the motions of dietary advice, so I continued to follow a low fat, low calorie, high carb diet, and made no progress whatsoever. In fact, i have probably put on a couple of kilos since i first started going there. I found her to be rather patronising and have now stopped seeing her. I did, however, buy myself a test meter, although both she and the endocrinologist advised against becoming 'obsessed' with testing.
Fast forward a couple of years. I had surgery for breast cancer in February and have just completed a course of radiotherapy. Last month, i had a health check as part of a routine follow up appointment, and i weighed in at 78 kilos, the heaviest i have ever been. Considering that i am 1.54m (about 5'1") this puts me into 'obese' category. I also had high blood pressure. My GP has insisted that I get this under control and he has prescribed gliclizide. 30mg per day 'to start'. I had a blood test this morning, have not had the results yet but I decided to wait until i do before i start taking the medication.
Obviously, as one does, i googled it today. I am a little concerned that it may cause me to gain even MORE weight. I read that gliclizide encourages the body to produce MORE insulin and also encourages the body to use it more effectively but I think that i already produce enough insulin but that my body has forgotten how to use it, OR that it has become a bit immune due to years of a predominantly high carb diet.
The hormone therapy i am on (Femara) has a side effect of increased appetite, as if that isnt bad enough for a constant diet-er.
After the weigh in, I began a low carb diet and started to test urine using keto-diastix and BS with my meter. It seems, even on adiet which restricts daily intake to less than 20g, that when i eat more carbs, for example including fruit, my urine shows high levels of sugar and when i follow a virtually carb free diet, my urine shows higher levels of ketones. the BS level has not changed very much over the month, averaging around 8.4 mmol fasting. The readings 2 hours after eating however do seem to change, depending on WHAT i eat. If i eat, for example fruit for lunch, it shoots up to over 12, if i go very low carb, no fruit etc, it averages between 9 and 10. I am sticking to less than 1200 calories per day and i dont lead a sedentary life and i eat no processed foods.
None of the health 'experts' seem to be able to answer my questions, they advise strongly against LCHF diets, and they are patronising.
Is ketosis an important part of weight loss process, as suggested by a certain diet, or should i be looking at BS levels? If so, what should i be looking for? And if my BS levels are going to be lowered artificially with a drug, what sort of dietary regime should i be following. Can i still go low carb? Why can gliclizide sometimes lead to weight gain? BTW even on 1200 calories a day, i am not losing weight, just losing my mind.
I seem to have gone on and on.....Sorry!
I am not a 'new' diabetic. I have been lurking in the background for some time, in denial.
Diagnosed type 2 about 4 years ago, i was started on Metformin with disastrous results.... When speaking to the endocrinologist about an alternative, she basically said that I was grossly overweight and that if i could lose 20kilos then the diabetes would 'probably' cure itself. (i have been gaining weight steadily for the past 10 or 15 years and have followed 'expert' advice - low fat, low calorie, high carb- diets with very little success) Then she packed me off to the dietician, who went through the motions of dietary advice, so I continued to follow a low fat, low calorie, high carb diet, and made no progress whatsoever. In fact, i have probably put on a couple of kilos since i first started going there. I found her to be rather patronising and have now stopped seeing her. I did, however, buy myself a test meter, although both she and the endocrinologist advised against becoming 'obsessed' with testing.
Fast forward a couple of years. I had surgery for breast cancer in February and have just completed a course of radiotherapy. Last month, i had a health check as part of a routine follow up appointment, and i weighed in at 78 kilos, the heaviest i have ever been. Considering that i am 1.54m (about 5'1") this puts me into 'obese' category. I also had high blood pressure. My GP has insisted that I get this under control and he has prescribed gliclizide. 30mg per day 'to start'. I had a blood test this morning, have not had the results yet but I decided to wait until i do before i start taking the medication.
Obviously, as one does, i googled it today. I am a little concerned that it may cause me to gain even MORE weight. I read that gliclizide encourages the body to produce MORE insulin and also encourages the body to use it more effectively but I think that i already produce enough insulin but that my body has forgotten how to use it, OR that it has become a bit immune due to years of a predominantly high carb diet.
The hormone therapy i am on (Femara) has a side effect of increased appetite, as if that isnt bad enough for a constant diet-er.
After the weigh in, I began a low carb diet and started to test urine using keto-diastix and BS with my meter. It seems, even on adiet which restricts daily intake to less than 20g, that when i eat more carbs, for example including fruit, my urine shows high levels of sugar and when i follow a virtually carb free diet, my urine shows higher levels of ketones. the BS level has not changed very much over the month, averaging around 8.4 mmol fasting. The readings 2 hours after eating however do seem to change, depending on WHAT i eat. If i eat, for example fruit for lunch, it shoots up to over 12, if i go very low carb, no fruit etc, it averages between 9 and 10. I am sticking to less than 1200 calories per day and i dont lead a sedentary life and i eat no processed foods.
None of the health 'experts' seem to be able to answer my questions, they advise strongly against LCHF diets, and they are patronising.
Is ketosis an important part of weight loss process, as suggested by a certain diet, or should i be looking at BS levels? If so, what should i be looking for? And if my BS levels are going to be lowered artificially with a drug, what sort of dietary regime should i be following. Can i still go low carb? Why can gliclizide sometimes lead to weight gain? BTW even on 1200 calories a day, i am not losing weight, just losing my mind.
I seem to have gone on and on.....Sorry!
