I'm a non-insulin dependent Type 2 on metformin only. I was diagnosed over nine years ago in the very early stages with a fasting level just over 7 and HbA1c still in the 5s. My situation slowly progressed - i.e. deteriorated - for eight years by following the "do not test" and "eat plenty of starchy carbohydrate" advice usually given to Type 2s. Eventually, my GP prescribed metformin and the quickly doubled the dose. However, at that stage I started to test and change my diet and have reversed my situation. Today, all my numbers are all better than they were at diagnosis - in most of the cases by a massive amount. If I went to the doctors today then by the most-commonly-used diagnostic tests - fasting blood glucose levels or HbA1c - they would say that I did not have diabetes.
Basically, the main thing that I've done is to cut out almost all the starchy carbohydrates - e.g. cereals, bread , potatoes mainly but I'm also very careful with rice and pasta too. In my opinion this has been by far and away the main reason for my dramatic improvement in blood glucose levels.
My HbA1c has dropped from an high of 9.4% to in the 5s the last five tests - and a lowest ever of 5.1% last time. I'm hoping to take it below 5 very soon.
I have described below the diet that I've basically settled down to eating. This diet wasn't adopted overnight and isn't something that I've read about. My cuurent diet developed slowly by testing to see what effect different foods had on my blood glucose levels and then slowly adjusting my diet accordingly. My current typical eating and drinking patterns are as follows:
Breakfast
Usually grilled (but sometimes fried) bacon, tomatoes and mushrooms - sometimes an egg too.
Or, mushroom and bacon omlette
Or, if I ever eat cereals instead then it's always Lizi's granola these days - no other kind whatsoever even porridge.
Or, occasionally, low-fat natural yoghurt with berry fruits instead.
Never bread or any other cereals except Lizi's granola. Certainly no porridge.
Lunch
Almost always meat (usually ham or chicken) or fish or low-fat cottage cheese with a big salad (lettuce, spring onions, peppers, radishes, celery, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, with a few grapes or chopped apple) - with a small amount of linseed/flax seeds added - plus a dressing made with olive oil and apple cider vinegar.
Never any bread or potatoes
If I'm in a pub situation then I usually eat beef or gammon steak with vegetables - sometimes with a few chips.
Evening Meal
Meat (usually chicken) or fish with various vegetables - sometimes as a stew type meal.
Sometimes I eat low-GI type brown rice or spelt or pulse pasta or something similar.
Never any bread or potatoes - or anything like pizza, naan bread, chapatis or suchlike even if I'm in a restaurant.
Snacks
I eat fruit throughout the day and every day - loads of it - as well-spaced-out snacks - never as part of another meal apart from where shown above - I pick the smallest pieces of fruit that I can find and eat all the following every day usually sometimes more than one of each (but never at the same time) - apples, pears, satsumas, plums frequently - and occasionally, bananas, kiwis, peaches or grapes. I fill my pockets with fruit whenever I leave the house and eat it as I move about.
The rest of the time, I nibble at:
A small amount (around 20g) of mixed nuts and dried fruit - usually every day.
Low-fat yoghurts - most popular Muller Light but others too.
Low-fat cheese - with one or two oatcakes or Ryvita Thins.
Tesco Light cottage cheese with pineapple.
Oily fish - rich in omega-3 types - sardines, mackerels etc.
Pickles - beetroot, cucumber, onions, red cabbage etc.
Cherry tomatoes
Cold vegetables if there are any in the fridge.
Ice cream is just about my only weakness and very occasionally, I eat an ice cream cone. I stress very occasionally.
Never - packets of crisps, buns, biscuits, sweets, chocolate, cake and suchlike on a regular basis. Except I might eat one biscuit or one small piece of chocolate on very rare occasions indeed. I might have a few crisps or small piece of cake or bun in a buffet situation.
Alcohol
I used to drink a lot but these days drink very little (about five units a week) - mainly the odd glass of red wine or sometimes a small whisky. Very rarely, I will have a little more red wine on a special occasion when out for the evening and I'm not driving. These days, I rarely ever drink alcohol in the house even though my wife and family do. I must say, it wasn't always like that!
Other Drinks
Various teas (spiced, earl gray, redbush etc, etc) and coffee (mainly decaffeinated but not always) all black with a sweetner - I try to vary the drinks depending on the time of day.
If I ever do use milk - e.g. with Lizi's granola or in drinks - it is always the 0.75% OR 1% fat milk types.
Sparkling spring water or just plain old simple tap water by the pint with my evening meal.
Very, very occasionally these days I might drink a Tango Zero.
Never fruit juice or non-Zero drinks. Very rarely any beer or lager these days
Supplements
One multivitamin tablet one per day
One omega-3 one capsule once per day
One apple cider vinegar tablet last thing at night
By the way, I'm still calorie counting because I still want to lose more than the 5 stone that I've lost already. I'm intent to take my BMI to below 25 - i.e. into the normal weight band - I'm almost at that stage with a BMI of around 28 - down from BMI 40. I might take it as low as a BMI of 22.5 - i.e my supposed "ideal weight" as defined by the health people. These days I'm eating around 1,300 to 1,500 calories per day most days and occasionally (about once a week just a little more). Despite that, I never feel hungry!
I don't put very much of my improvement - if any at all - down to my loss in weight quite simply because the lowering of blood glucose levels came about immediately that I started to change my diet - i.e. in days or weeks. I say this because I didn't have to wait until I'd lost a lot of weight before I got my improvement. In my opinion and in my case, I consider that it was the the dietary change that was most important - i.e. mainly the cutting back dramatically on my starchy carbohydrate intake that led to my improvement.
By the way, I do very little exercise and when I do it's nothing other than just ordinary walking - just a very occasional two to three mile easy walk. I really ought to try to do much more for my general health and well-being.
I think that covers just about everything. I hope that other people with non-insulin dependent Type 2 diabetes might find this detailed summary of my current eating habits useful and that my experience might be helpful to them in dealing with getting control of their own Type 2 situations.
If anyone has any further questions then just ask away.
Best wishes - John
i had some basic lessons with the pen yesterday but i think he was introducing the idea in gently..like a brick! lol
