lost 5kg but hba1c the same

[Drummer]

I was told to cut calories so many times - all by people convinced that was how to lose weight.
It had zero benefit and a lot of negatives - I almost lost my job in a factory because I could not climb the many sets of stairs I needed to in order to get samples.
At diagnosis I changed to low carb with no other restrictions over 8 years ago now and suddenly everything came right.
Seed oils were thrown out - my skin is so much better for it.

 

[Pandora71]

Hello, I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in July with a hba1c of 100, my weight was about 92kg. I was given Metformin and Atorvastatin (I declined to take gliclizide which was offered later). I went on a diet, two 800 calorie meals a day, breakfast and lunch, cut out junk food, Roy Taylor's book helped. By mid November had lost 10.5kg and a hba1c test and was 43. I continued with my diet and lost a further 5kg, I think in total about 16kg of weight loss and on 21st of February had a fructosamine test which was 268 which they said was a hba1c of 43, but when I checked online said 44? I requested this test as I have minor thalassaemia and its supposed to be more accurate, although it might not be significantly different. I'm pleased my hba1c has come down to the prediabetic range but puzzled why it didn't get any lower after a further 5kg of weight loss? I have decided to cut carbs, as previously I was eating a lot of carbs and some of that was refined carbs, hoping that might help. I'm seeing a consultant soon for advice, but just wondered if anyone has any thoughts?

Many congratulations in what you have done to avoid medications and get weight and hba1c down. There are so many variables with type 2 to think about when going forward and trying to keep your insulin and glucose levels stable.
For example ageing reduces muscle mass so typically your hba1 may naturally edge up unless you add some resistance training to counteract this. As with any fat loss already achieved, its beneficial to keep your muscles strong using bodyweight, bands or dumb bells.
Keep insulin needs low by going low carb
The biggest impact on insulin and glucose levels are carbohydrates so it makes sense to cut back on these and eat more protein and natural fat to keep you satiated. This is easier said than done in our food culture but I think it will help you. The only other proven options are gastic bypass, ozempic or very low calorie diets (Roy Taylor advises only 1500kcals for maintenance after following his initial regime).
Both suggestions will work to keep your insulin needs low and therefore reduce 'insulin resistance'.
There is plenty of great advice on how to adapt for low carb on this site or Diabetes.co.uk.

 

[MarcR]

When you say low calorie, what does that equate to in terms of your calorific intake - roughly?

Reading your thread, I fear you are over complicating things by looking at "complex carbs" and so on. Yes, for some, some foods seem to be kryptonite to their blood sugars, but honestly, I'm convinced if you pare back the carbs a bit, and don't go clugging the double cream your weight might just trim down and your A1c along with it.

Don't get hung up on weight and A1c, else it would be super easy to identify those living with diabetes without the need for a blood test or all that scientific stuff.

I was aiming for 1600 calories a day, but I think it's more like 2000.

 

[MarcR]

After 3 weeks on the reduced carb (not very low like many of you here but lower for me) I decided to check my bloods, fasting was 5.2 and 2 hours after a meal 7.4, seems encouraging 🙂

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

After 3 weeks on the reduced carb (not very low like many of you here but lower for me) I decided to check my bloods, fasting was 5.2 and 2 hours after a meal 7.4, seems encouraging 🙂

Those look excellent @MarcR

Seems like your body is coping really well with your adjusted menu.

Hopefully you’ll see that reflected in your next HbA1c

 

[MarcR]

Those look excellent @MarcR

Seems like your body is coping really well with your adjusted menu.

Hopefully you’ll see that reflected in your next HbA1c

Considering when I went to my GP last July, the blood meter said 30 mmol/l it's come down a long way. I keep praying my hba1c will go down to 5.5% or below.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

That’s amazing! You’ve come a long way in a really short time.

When are you next due an HbA1c?

 

[MarcR]

That’s amazing! You’ve come a long way in a really short time.

When are you next due an HbA1c?

Should have one in July.

 

[SallyM]

Hello, I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in July with a hba1c of 100, my weight was about 92kg. I was given Metformin and Atorvastatin (I declined to take gliclizide which was offered later). I went on a diet, two 800 calorie meals a day, breakfast and lunch, cut out junk food, Roy Taylor's book helped. By mid November had lost 10.5kg and a hba1c test and was 43. I continued with my diet and lost a further 5kg, I think in total about 16kg of weight loss and on 21st of February had a fructosamine test which was 268 which they said was a hba1c of 43, but when I checked online said 44? I requested this test as I have minor thalassaemia and its supposed to be more accurate, although it might not be significantly different. I'm pleased my hba1c has come down to the prediabetic range but puzzled why it didn't get any lower after a further 5kg of weight loss? I have decided to cut carbs, as previously I was eating a lot of carbs and some of that was refined carbs, hoping that might help. I'm seeing a consultant soon for advice, but just wondered if anyone has any thoughts?

I was diagnosed in October last year with Type 2. My father and sister both have type 2 and my brother, Type 1. I don’t get any medication because I am only just in the diabetes zone at 6.5. I am female, 5’4” and in October, weighted 78 kgs. I have been trying to diet using low carbs and have got down to 74kg. But I was given a blood testing kit by my daughter, who recently had gestational diabetes. (She went back to normal after the baby was born.). I find that my blood sugar is still above 7, in the mornings! I exercise for about two hours a day, walking, and try to keep my calories below 1400cals a day, while also eating low carb. I can’t understand why my blood sugar remains outside the normal range (5-7). ??? Having read your post, I now feel I’m fussing because compared to you, my case is very mild. But the experience with low carbs lowering weight but not blood sugar levels is the same. Recently, I had a blood test that indicated that I was back in the pre-diabetic range, which on the scale they are using is 5.1-6.4. I scored 5.9. So I don’t understand why I am scoring so high first thing in the morning at he moment! is there anyone out there who can shed any light on our dilemma?

 

[MarcR]

I was diagnosed in October last year with Type 2. My father and sister both have type 2 and my brother, Type 1. I don’t get any medication because I am only just in the diabetes zone at 6.5. I am female, 5’4” and in October, weighted 78 kgs. I have been trying to diet using low carbs and have got down to 74kg. But I was given a blood testing kit by my daughter, who recently had gestational diabetes. (She went back to normal after the baby was born.). I find that my blood sugar is still above 7, in the mornings! I exercise for about two hours a day, walking, and try to keep my calories below 1400cals a day, while also eating low carb. I can’t understand why my blood sugar remains outside the normal range (5-7). ??? Having read your post, I now feel I’m fussing because compared to you, my case is very mild. But the experience with low carbs lowering weight but not blood sugar levels is the same. Recently, I had a blood test that indicated that I was back in the pre-diabetic range, which on the scale they are using is 5.1-6.4. I scored 5.9. So I don’t understand why I am scoring so high first thing in the morning at he moment! is there anyone out there who can shed any light on our dilemma?

I don't know your exact details but it might be worth seeing a consultant privately, would cost about £200. My own regime includes:
1. Low calorie, aiming for 1600 kcals a day, probably closer to 2009
2. Only breakfast and lunch, no food after 2pm or 3pm at the latest, usually no food after 12 noon.
3. Reducing carbs, cutting out refined ones.
4. Walking 10,000 steps a day, and some stretching and 30 minutes on the exercise bike.
5. I'm pescetarian.

 

[MarcR]

I was diagnosed in October last year with Type 2. My father and sister both have type 2 and my brother, Type 1. I don’t get any medication because I am only just in the diabetes zone at 6.5. I am female, 5’4” and in October, weighted 78 kgs. I have been trying to diet using low carbs and have got down to 74kg. But I was given a blood testing kit by my daughter, who recently had gestational diabetes. (She went back to normal after the baby was born.). I find that my blood sugar is still above 7, in the mornings! I exercise for about two hours a day, walking, and try to keep my calories below 1400cals a day, while also eating low carb. I can’t understand why my blood sugar remains outside the normal range (5-7). ??? Having read your post, I now feel I’m fussing because compared to you, my case is very mild. But the experience with low carbs lowering weight but not blood sugar levels is the same. Recently, I had a blood test that indicated that I was back in the pre-diabetic range, which on the scale they are using is 5.1-6.4. I scored 5.9. So I don’t understand why I am scoring so high first thing in the morning at he moment! is there anyone out there who can shed any light on our dilemma?

I think they say if your prediabetic try to lose 10kg, and if your diabetic lose 15kg. Roy Taylor has good books about the importance of weight loss. I started at 92kg and now I'm about 75kg. I do what I can do, and keep praying.

 

[helli]

So I don’t understand why I am scoring so high first thing in the morning at he moment! is there anyone out there who can shed any light on our dilemma?

Firstly, congratulations on your reduction in your HBA1c to pre-diabetic levels.
They often say that managing "diabetes is a marathon, not a sprint" and "your diabetes journey may vary": some people can reduce their HBA1c quite quickly but many find it takes many months if not years. And you need to balance that with the rest of your life and health, including your mental health.
It is common to see a higher BG first thing in the morning. This is due to something called Dawn Phenomenon - our liver, helpfully, dumps glucose to give us the energy to get moving and start the day. Everyone experiences this, even people without diabetes. They just have better working pancreas that releases the insulin so they may not see as much of a BG rise at the start of the day.
It is commonly said that the morning BG is the last one to come down. So, as long as your other tests during the day are within range, you should consider that you are doing well.

 

[helli]

I think they say if you're prediabetic try to lose 10kg, and if you're diabetic lose 15kg. Roy Taylor has good books about the importance of weight loss. I started at 92kg and now I'm about 75kg. I do what I can do, and keep praying.

Surely, this is only if you have the weight to lose.
Increasingly, I am seeing reports of people who are not overweight being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Assuming this is not a misdiagnosis (something like 30% of adults diagnosed with Type 1 were first misdiagnosed as having type 2), losing 15g may make them underweight. It certainly would for me (although I do not have type 2).
This is why it is important to see these suggestions as "guidelines" and remember the comment at the top of every page "everyone manages their health differently."

The weight loss seems to be working for you. Congratulations on your fantastic progress.

 

[SallyM]

Firstly, congratulations on your reduction in your HBA1c to pre-diabetic levels.
They often say that managing "diabetes is a marathon, not a sprint" and "your diabetes journey may vary": some people can reduce their HBA1c quite quickly but many find it takes many months if not years. And you need to balance that with the rest of your life and health, including your mental health.
It is common to see a higher BG first thing in the morning. This is due to something called Dawn Phenomenon - our liver, helpfully, dumps glucose to give us the energy to get moving and start the day. Everyone experiences this, even people without diabetes. They just have better working pancreas that releases the insulin so they may not see as much of a BG rise at the start of the day.
It is commonly said that the morning BG is the last one to come down. So, as long as your other tests during the day are within range, you should consider that you are doing well.

Thanks - You have significantly added to my education!

 

[SallyM]

Surely, this is only if you have the weight to lose.
Increasingly, I am seeing reports of people who are not overweight being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Assuming this is not a misdiagnosis (something like 30% of adults diagnosed with Type 1 were first misdiagnosed as having type 2), losing 15g may make them underweight. It certainly would for me (although I do not have type 2).
This is why it is important to see these suggestions as "guidelines" and remember the comment at the top of every page "everyone manages their health differently."

The weight loss seems to be working for you. Congratulations on your fantastic progress.

Thanks for this - I am significantly overweight, so losing another 10 kgs will put me in the middle of the “normal” BMI score. I started last July losing weight before I was diagnosed. At that stage I was 82kg. At diagnosis, I was 78k. Now I am 74kg. So..still quite a long way to go, but with some more research into good recipes, and keeping up the exercise, I hope to go into full remission. Keeping up the regime is no picnic though! My brother is a Type 1 diabetic and my sister was diagnosed with Type 2 about the same time as I was. Our father was a Type 2 from the age of 42, and always managed it very well. You would think that made it easy for me to adapt but from what I have been learning, my knowledge was quite sketchy and to some extent out-of-date!

 

[Leadinglights]

I was diagnosed in October last year with Type 2. My father and sister both have type 2 and my brother, Type 1. I don’t get any medication because I am only just in the diabetes zone at 6.5. I am female, 5’4” and in October, weighted 78 kgs. I have been trying to diet using low carbs and have got down to 74kg. But I was given a blood testing kit by my daughter, who recently had gestational diabetes. (She went back to normal after the baby was born.). I find that my blood sugar is still above 7, in the mornings! I exercise for about two hours a day, walking, and try to keep my calories below 1400cals a day, while also eating low carb. I can’t understand why my blood sugar remains outside the normal range (5-7). ??? Having read your post, I now feel I’m fussing because compared to you, my case is very mild. But the experience with low carbs lowering weight but not blood sugar levels is the same. Recently, I had a blood test that indicated that I was back in the pre-diabetic range, which on the scale they are using is 5.1-6.4. I scored 5.9. So I don’t understand why I am scoring so high first thing in the morning at he moment! is there anyone out there who can shed any light on our dilemma?

The units are important when quoting blood glucose levels, I suspect the blood test you had would have been an HbA1C and you have been told the result in % rather than the new (well for quite a few years) of mmol/mol, where the prediabetes range is 42-47mmol/mol and your 5.9% converts to 41mmol/mol so actually you are not in the pre diabetic zone.
The readings you are getting from a monitor are in mmol/l and are a moment in time and are influenced by all sorts of factors, food, hydration level, exercise, when you test in relation to food. You are not comparing directly the readings from the HbA1C with the finger prick as they are measuring something different.
Morning readings can naturally be higher than the rest of the day because the liver releases glucose to give you energy after a period of no food overight.
If you want some ideas for a low carb way of eating which is likely to help with weight loss if that is what you need then this link may be helpful. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/

 

[MarcR]

Surely, this is only if you have the weight to lose.
Increasingly, I am seeing reports of people who are not overweight being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Assuming this is not a misdiagnosis (something like 30% of adults diagnosed with Type 1 were first misdiagnosed as having type 2), losing 15g may make them underweight. It certainly would for me (although I do not have type 2).
This is why it is important to see these suggestions as "guidelines" and remember the comment at the top of every page "everyone manages their health differently."

The weight loss seems to be working for you. Congratulations on your fantastic progress.

There are simple tests the doctor can do to confirm if it's type 1 or 2. Roy speaks about a personal fat threshold, so someone with "normal" weight can get type 2 diabetes which might be reversed with weight loss. So if someone is type 2 and losing the weight won't do any harm then it's worth a try, and the sooner after diagnosis the better. Even if it doesn't reverse the diabetes it can reduce complications and improve health.

 

[helli]

There are simple tests the doctor can do to confirm if it's type 1 or 2. Roy speaks about a personal fat threshold, so someone with "normal" weight can get type 2 diabetes which might be reversed with weight loss. So if someone is type 2 and losing the weight won't do any harm then it's worth a try, and the sooner after diagnosis the better. Even if it doesn't reverse the diabetes it can reduce complications and improve health.

You missed my point - there are people with type 2 who do not have 15kg to lose.
I also think an absolute amount is wrong - it may make sense for someone weighing 100kg but not someone weighing 50kg.
This advice assumes everyone with type 2 is overweight ... or at the top of the "healthy" range.

(Apologies for taking this chat at a tangent. Although I have Type 1, my father has recently been diagnosed as pre-diabetes and he certainly has no weight to lose.)

 

[MarcR]

You missed my point - there are people with type 2 who do not have 15kg to lose.
I also think an absolute amount is wrong - it may make sense for someone weighing 100kg but not someone weighing 50kg.
This advice assumes everyone with type 2 is overweight ... or at the top of the "healthy" range.

(Apologies for taking this chat at a tangent. Although I have Type 1, my father has recently been diagnosed as pre-diabetes and he certainly has no weight to lose.)

You could use a percentage like 15-20%.
In the book, someone with a BMI of 24 got type 2 but after losing weight when the BMI got to 20 the diabetes went away.

 

[MarcR]

You missed my point - there are people with type 2 who do not have 15kg to lose.
I also think an absolute amount is wrong - it may make sense for someone weighing 100kg but not someone weighing 50kg.
This advice assumes everyone with type 2 is overweight ... or at the top of the "healthy" range.

(Apologies for taking this chat at a tangent. Although I have Type 1, my father has recently been diagnosed as pre-diabetes and he certainly has no weight to lose.)

A prediabetic could aim to lose 10% of their weight.