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METFORMIN

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This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
Hi Lorraine, it's awkward for me because I'm a funny eater, have been all my life. the only meat I eat is chicken and I eat fish and shellfish - nothing else ever crosses my lips since I was 5 years old, I'm 68 now and for many years I was veggie so didn't even eat chicken or fish, but that changed about 10 years ago. It surprises a lot of people when I tell them I've never even tasted lamb, pork beef etc, so have no idea what any of them taste like. But I love fruit and veg, but bananas grapes and pineapple don't come into my equation much as I don't eat enough of them in a year, let alone a day or week to even bother. The dietician showed me what constituted a portion of the other fruits, I immediately said to her 'well sorry no way I can have as little as that' and I stick to it, because there's a lot I'm not eating that others do. I was brought up on pasta in all shapes and sizes so I do restrict those, but I still have them. I wish I could wake up tomorrow morning and not be diabetic. I was thinner when I was blissfully unaware I'd had type 2 for about six months before my diagnosis.
 
I have been eating low carb for a very long time, and my meter told me that the foods I could not eat and control my weight also put up my blood glucose levels.
With my levels now under 7 almost all the time I am losing weight, and feel great. I eat lots of salads and vegetables. Yesterday I had coleslaw, celery, radishes, a mixed multicolour leaf salad, tomato, cucumber, carrot, - and that was just for lunch with eggs and cheese. Anything high carb is a rare addition to my diet. As it increases insulin and these days that means I drop down to low BG levels and I get hungry it is not something I do deliberately.
I am told that Metformin causes muscle pain as it stops the absorption of B12, so I really can't see the benefit of it, as the side effects are likely to reduce the amount of exercise taken. I just couldn't leave home after taking it due to the consequences for my insides. Total misery.
 
Ive never experienced muscle pain with metformin and it certainly hasn't reduced the amount of exercise that I do.
 
This is the point isn't it - we are all different.

Annette - here's a thing. How about weighing your portion of berries and calculating the carbs in that, test before you eat em and afterwards - and see what happens to your BG? If it goes up more than 3 - then that's too much for your body to cope with. How much does that need changing, and what can you do to change it? Well - have less of whatever it is until you get the increase down to 3, or add fat - so have cream or full fat yoghurt with it - doesn't reduce the carbs overall, but DOES slow them down, so all of em don't hit your BG like an express train all at once. That's just a couple of thoughts off the top of my head.

Doesn't mean you have to give them up.

There are ways and means, and we each have to be our own scientific experiment to find out which ways and means work for us.

Berries are generally pretty low carb - Mangoes though usually aren't - so of the things you've mentioned fruit-wise, probably need more consideration and care.

If you just can't be bothered - ask yourself ONE question. Who is the ONLY person who might suffer, if you can't?
 
May I suggest that there is a possibility that buckwheat pasta or soba noodles might have a lower effect on BGs rather than durum wheat based pasta?

As to the effects of Metformin, it is difficult to say how anyone will react to it, and the list of possible effects refers to some which may happen, or may not. I have tried to find out if there has been a reduction in B12, and take a liquid supplement, but as the present level is normal, I have no way of knowing if the supplement has been beneficial, or just of benefit to Messrs Holland & B.
 
Annette&Bertie said:
Hi Lorraine, it's awkward for me because I'm a funny eater, have been all my life. the only meat I eat is chicken and I eat fish and shellfish - nothing else ever crosses my lips since I was 5 years old, I'm 68 now and for many years I was veggie so didn't even eat chicken or fish, but that changed about 10 years ago. It surprises a lot of people when I tell them I've never even tasted lamb, pork beef etc, so have no idea what any of them taste like. But I love fruit and veg, but bananas grapes and pineapple don't come into my equation much as I don't eat enough of them in a year, let alone a day or week to even bother. The dietician showed me what constituted a portion of the other fruits, I immediately said to her 'well sorry no way I can have as little as that' and I stick to it, because there's a lot I'm not eating that others do. I was brought up on pasta in all shapes and sizes so I do restrict those, but I still have them. I wish I could wake up tomorrow morning and not be diabetic. I was thinner when I was blissfully unaware I'd had type 2 for about six months before my diagnosis.
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Is much harder if there are lots of things you don't eat and I agree about waking up tomorrow and not being diabetic. Difficult as you are already eating lots of veg.
 
You have all given me a lot to think about. One of the problems I have is that I don't want food to rule my life, but what I've discovered that I dislike enormously is that for the first time in my life even with weight ups and downs, since discovering I had type 2 all I seem to do from the minute I wake till I go to bed is think about food - I've never had that problem before when all I had to do in the past was consider what to avoid so I didn't put weight on, now I have to think about that as well as BG to be honest I don't like the fact that it's ruling my life, and on top of that I feel awful - worse than I've ever felt in my life, and it's not just my age. I can have full fat yoghurt and double cream etc. but whilst it doesn't put my BG up it puts weight on. I just hate the fact that for the first time in my life I'm being ruled by food, this is a whole new ball game for me and that's why I don't like it.
 
Could it be that you are struggling with including too many carbs in your diet, and there is always a payback with that, being hungry and getting cravings for a start.
I eat mid morning, something simple with about 5 gm of carb - an omelette is often on the menu with sweet peppers or mushrooms - sometimes I make a plain omelette and eat it with fried courgette - I grow them in the garden and sometimes there are lots of them. I check that I have all I need for dinner and then forget about food until it is time to cook again.
I do have a mug of creamy coffee and sometimes a piece of chocolate - a high cocoa one - I like the 81 percent from Lidl, at about 2 in the afternoon.
 
It's like anything - for instance packing up fags. Yes - I am a social pariah - I have to accept that. However - at times when I've said 'I'm packing it in!' - suddenly, everywhere I go where it isn't banned - suddenly every other bugger has a fag on! I daresay giving up alcohol or anything else is similar.

However I've never found cutting down on carbs difficult since I've never stuffed myself with em in my life and anyway, it's the first thing to drop if you want to lose weight, and I've never been particularly happy with my weight, so I spose that helps.

I saw what I thought was a good piece of advice somewhere or another, that simply told us to try moving our mouths less, and our legs more. Yep LOL
 
Drummer, it could be that I'm having too many carbs - I don't calculate basically because I can't be bothered with all that fussing about, it's how I am I doubt I'll change now.

Jenny, moving your legs and exercising is good advice for those who can, unfortunately I can't so my mouth is busy.
 
A couple of weeks ago I made an appointment with our new practice nurse, Gwen and I found her to be so nice and easy to chat with, I'd say she's in her mid 50s and I know she used to be a district nurse, so there won't be much she's not seen. I must admit I took an instant liking to her personality and down to earth non patronizing manner, whereas the last nurse I didn't care for much.
Anyway, long story short, she took a blood test to see how much BG averaged in the past six months. I made an appointment to see her this Friday for the results. I told her I didn't like metformin but she urged me to stay on it for another 3 months and then she would do another blood test to see if my BG average had decreased, we both agreed that what is probably spiking my tests at home is the amount of fruit I eat, which has been a big part of my life since I was around 11 years old if not earlier. I'd rather have no fruit at all, than to cut it down,because I know me I'd simply be back at the fruit bowl every half hour.

My HbA1c reading was 8.6 and not knowing what it should be she explained that they prefer it to be between 4 and 6, so let's see with the food changes what it is in 3 months' time - I just thought I'd let all you kind people who have been patient with me know the latest
 
Annette&Bertie said:
A couple of weeks ago I made an appointment with our new practice nurse, Gwen and I found her to be so nice and easy to chat with, I'd say she's in her mid 50s and I know she used to be a district nurse, so there won't be much she's not seen. I must admit I took an instant liking to her personality and down to earth non patronizing manner, whereas the last nurse I didn't care for much.
Anyway, long story short, she took a blood test to see how much BG averaged in the past six months. I made an appointment to see her this Friday for the results. I told her I didn't like metformin but she urged me to stay on it for another 3 months and then she would do another blood test to see if my BG average had decreased, we both agreed that what is probably spiking my tests at home is the amount of fruit I eat, which has been a big part of my life since I was around 11 years old if not earlier. I'd rather have no fruit at all, than to cut it down,because I know me I'd simply be back at the fruit bowl every half hour.

My HbA1c reading was 8.6 and not knowing what it should be she explained that they prefer it to be between 4 and 6, so let's see with the food changes what it is in 3 months' time - I just thought I'd let all you kind people who have been patient with me know the latest
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I am pleased that you had a good appointment, and hope your changes make a difference to your results in 3 months time. However don't be disheartened if it take a little longer, some people have had good results in 3 months, mine took me 6 months to get where I needed to be. But good luck with your changes.
 
thank you Lorraine, some people seem to have it down to a tee, I seriously doubt that I ever will, it's confusing when you're also desperate to lose weight. My usual diet which I always had a great deal of success with won't entertain me because I'm now diabetic and on metformin.
 
Hi thelis, are you still with us?
WL
 
Status
This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
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