Hi. Just got results of blood test which showed I have diabetes 2. Really shocked but not totally surprised. Spent Christmas munching my way through chocolates and Christmas cake and every other conceivable sweet thing on the planet. Enjoyed every mouthful but regretting it now. I have been pre-diabetic for years but this is the first time the dice rolling of numbers are to my disadvantage. Would somebody be kind enough to address four of my questions? Firstly, my blood sugar reading is 52; is that really very high? Secondly, do you think this rise is due to all the sweet stuff I ate during Christmas? Thirdly, will eating a low carb and low sugar diet help me reduce the 52 figure to a pre-diabetic level? My GP has suggested I go on meds but I have declined: good or bad idea? I want to try and reduce numbers myself. Thanks for considering my questions. I wish you all health and happiness for 2024.
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Just diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes.
- Thread starter Paschal
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Leadinglights
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- Type 2
Welcome to the forum
The threshold for diagnosis is anything over 47mmol/mol so 52 is only just in the zone so not desperately high and it should be perfectly possible to get it down with some dietary changes without medication.
The HbA1C is an average over the previous 3 months so your Christmas indulgences will have had some impact but not totally.
Your GP should be giving you 3 months to make some lifestyle changes before medication so yes a good decision to decline them if you are committed to making some changes.
Many find a low carb approach successful, I found following the principal in this link that I was able to reduce my HbA1C from 50mmol/mol to 42 in 3 months and to 38 in another 6months. It is now my new way of eating.
Freshwell Low Carb Project - Home
lowcarbfreshwell.com
Hello. Thank you so much for the informative reply. I really do appreciate the time you took. What you said is encouraging and has helped me a lot. I'll check out the link you sent about healthy eating. My two aunts, both in their late nineties and both expert bakers, will have to find someone else to feed! Lol! Thank you once again. A healthy 2024. Paschal.
Martin.A
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
As has been said, you're only just over the line for a diabetes diagnosis so you have a good chance of bringing your BG back down without meds. I did and I started from 3 figures, and others have done the same.
Forget low sugar, it's low carb that matters as all carbs turn to glucose once consumed. Some foods that are low sugar are often high carb (check out the nutrition panel on a packet of crisps, for example).
Leadinglights
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
You could point them in the direction of some of the low carb cakes and biscuits that are on the website sugarfreelondoner also it has savoury recipes. @Martin62 posts his weekly bakes.
Hi Martin. Thanks for the message. Low carb cakes and biscuits...now we are talking. I'll check out the website. I'd bake myself but I've been known to burn water! I'm buying porridge bread and gluten free crisp bread with chia and flax seeds. I guess it's ok to eat a few slices for breakfast. I'll check out your weekly bakes. Thanks again for reply.
Leadinglights
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Some people find porridge is not such a good choice as oats are high carb and will opt for full fat Greek yoghurt with berries and nuts or seed or eggs in any form are good breakfast options. Bread again is a high carb food but some supermarkets have a lower cab bread that some people find tolerable.
Check out the carb value on the product information so you can judge what is a sensible portion size. Maybe check out the link before launching into buying things which may not be too good as they will be too high carb
The book or app Carbs and Cals is also a useful resource as it gives carb values for a whole range of portion sizes of various foods.
Thanks. As a newbie it's a bit of a quagmire to know what is best to eat/ not eat. I love bread and find it really difficult to enjoy breakfast without it. I'll check out low carb breads in the supermarket. Those orange muffins you baked look mouthwatering!! Cheers.
Leadinglights
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Bread is one of those foods that people perceive as being hard to give up but some people can tolerate a small slice with breakfast if you also have protein and healthy fats as that slows down the digestion.
One thing many find very helpful is getting a home blood glucose monitor as it not only enables them to find out which foods they should definitely cut out but which foods they can tolerate and can be safely eaten. People adopt a testing regime to check out meals by testing before they eat and after 2 hours and would be looking for an increase of no more than 2-3mmol/l or no more than 8-8.5mmol/l 2 hour post meal. More than that and the meal is too carb heavy.
Because everybody is different in their tolerance to carbs it is difficult to be prescriptive about what is a good portion size. Some people tolerate bread OK but not rice or pasta and for others it is vice versa.
Leadinglights
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
You would find you would do quite a bit of testing for a few weeks until you establish what meals are ok and you would not need to test those again. Most people have very similar things for breakfast so that is often an easy meal to start testing.
Monitors ca be bought on line (cheaper than the pharmacy) but it is the price of the strips to look at as some are four times the price of others. TEE2 or GlucoNavii are a couple with the cheaper strips.
childofthesea43
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
You may also find it useful to get acquainted with the scientific work done on T2D which has proved that by far the strongest factor in driving T2D into (or towards) remission is extent of weight loss, irrespective of carbs consumption.
Hi. Thanks for the suggestion. I never thought I'd say this but, unfortunately, I am very fit and do not to lose any weight! I exercise regularly and I am an avid walker. In many ways it's a pity I don't need to reduce weight as it might have pushed me into remission. Great to hear you are doing well. Keep up the walking. All the best.
childofthesea43
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
The Retune trial showed that even slim people with T2D could achieve remission by a modest loss of weight, so you might want to look into that. If you have visceral fat then you need to get rid of it, but if you don’t have visceral fat then I would wonder whether you might have T1D or LADA, not T2D.
Leadinglights
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
As your HbA1C is only 52 it is unlikely that you would need to be taking insulin and by making some positive dietary changes you will get down to normal range in short order.
Taking readings as in testing your blood glucose will be one of the tools to help you do that by guiding the dietary changes.
Thanks. I'm definitely working on my diet. I miss bread so much though, especially at breakfast time. Off for a walk now in the Burren, County Clare. Spectacular views and fresh air; hope it does the trick for my blood sugar levels!
- Relationship to Diabetes
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Welcome to the forum @Paschal
Glad you've found us, and great to hear you are fit and active. Walking and low-impact cardio exercise can really help with glucose management.
In terms of missing your bread, it might be worth dipping your toe into the world of self monitoring - even if just temporarily. I note you are a little wary of becoming fixated on the numbers, and self monitoring is a personal choice, but it can be really helpful in separating generic advice on foods versus how your individual gut biome / metabolism / genes respond to a particular source of carbs. Individual responses to carbohydrates can be bewilderingly inconsistent, and just because one or other food or meal is tricky for another person doesn’t necessarily mean it will be so for you. Conversely some things with a “slow release” reputation, like porridge, may be like rocket fuel for your digestive system. It can be infuriatingly individual, and is why there’s no one-size-fits-all menu suggestion that works for everyone.
Taking a glucose reading with a meter immediately before eating, and again 2 hrs after the first bite, allows you to see just how your body responds. It’s usually wise to check meals/foods a couple of times because there are so many other factors that can affect glucose levels, but ‘eating to your meter’ can be really helpful in terms of working out what portion size if different sources of carbs your body is happy with.
It may be that just having slightly less bread, or having it later in the day and not at breakfast, or perhaps having it shortly before going for a walk will help your body digest it without a big ’spike’ in your BG levels.
Glad you've found us, and great to hear you are fit and active. Walking and low-impact cardio exercise can really help with glucose management.
In terms of missing your bread, it might be worth dipping your toe into the world of self monitoring - even if just temporarily. I note you are a little wary of becoming fixated on the numbers, and self monitoring is a personal choice, but it can be really helpful in separating generic advice on foods versus how your individual gut biome / metabolism / genes respond to a particular source of carbs. Individual responses to carbohydrates can be bewilderingly inconsistent, and just because one or other food or meal is tricky for another person doesn’t necessarily mean it will be so for you. Conversely some things with a “slow release” reputation, like porridge, may be like rocket fuel for your digestive system. It can be infuriatingly individual, and is why there’s no one-size-fits-all menu suggestion that works for everyone.
Taking a glucose reading with a meter immediately before eating, and again 2 hrs after the first bite, allows you to see just how your body responds. It’s usually wise to check meals/foods a couple of times because there are so many other factors that can affect glucose levels, but ‘eating to your meter’ can be really helpful in terms of working out what portion size if different sources of carbs your body is happy with.
It may be that just having slightly less bread, or having it later in the day and not at breakfast, or perhaps having it shortly before going for a walk will help your body digest it without a big ’spike’ in your BG levels.
Hello. Thank you so much for your suggestions. Yes, I might get a meter and start taking a few readings. At the moment I'm busy modifying my diet: have met a few blips on the way, though. I'm going to order some coconut bread which is rather expensive but will give me my bread fix!! I'm amazed by all the contradictory views on the cause and control of diabetes which are found on Youtube. Polar opposites for the most part. Will try to keep clear of the meds for the moment. Wishing you a healthy 2024. Thank you.
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