New kid on the diabetic block

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R0b

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Type 2
Hi Folks

Just joined as just got my type 2 diagnosis at the tender age of 61. Rather hoping I’ll be able to get some good advice here that will help me get back to where I need to be.

Bit shell shocked to be honest as I had no idea.

All the best
Rob
 
Welcome to the forum
Would you like to share info on your HbA1c and any meds you are on? Folks will be able to advise better then.
Remember it's not just the sweet stuff you need to watch. Carbohydrates get converted to sugars by the body, so it will be best to avoid large portions of carbs (cereals, potatoes, rice, pasta etc).
A lot of type 2's have used carb control to help reduce their HbA1c
 
Thanks Folks. Yes I’ve just started noticing the more seasoned members add their stats as a footer to their posts. I’ll do that in time but for now my A1C was 50. BP is around 127/84 and can’t remember cholesterol but think it may have been 5?? I’ve been on statins for a good 25 years or more as family history there. Weight not good at 16 st 7 although I have dropped to 15 st 4 in the fortnight since I was diagnosed. They’ve put me on Metformin and I was already on 5mg amlodopin pd for hypertension.

I’m now in the dark re A1C levels until 3 months which is the next test date. Frankly, I would prefer to measure it much more frequently than that to assess the impact my diet and exercise measures are having.

Can that be done in kit form or privately?
 
Boots have started to do a HBa1c test (bookable online), however it's not worth doing at intervals of less than 3 months to be honest. The three months is based off the lifecycle of blood cells and their renewal. Test kits can be bought, but the ones I saw seemed to work out about the same cost as Boots.
As I'm prediabetic my test is yearly, so I plan to use boots test at the 4 month mark to see if there is any change.

As your score was 50 it should be possible to reduce it via weight loss and a change of diet. Remember it's important to try to increase exercise during weight loss to help prevent a slow down of metabolism (all exercise counts, including stuff like gardening)
 
Thanks S’nic. That’s helpful. I think it’s because I’m hitting the diet side so hard that I’m keen to measure the impact. I’m using the keto 800 approach with a real concerted effort to eradicate carbs rather than just reduce. At least short term. I have considered buying one of those arm monitors that scans your blood glucose and displays the data in an app. That gives immediate feedback on the impact of everything you eat. A great way to learn what to avoid it seems to me. However, that might be a bit extreme. I haven’t actually begun formal exercise yet, other than gardening etc and that’s another area I’m keen to empirically measure the impact. I guess it’s visibility I’m after. With visibility comes the means of control and I’m too impatient to wait 3 months before the next burst of visibility.
 
R0b said:
Thanks S’nic. That’s helpful. I think it’s because I’m hitting the diet side so hard that I’m keen to measure the impact. I’m using the keto 800 approach with a real concerted effort to eradicate carbs rather than just reduce. At least short term. I have considered buying one of those arm monitors that scans your blood glucose and displays the data in an app. That gives immediate feedback on the impact of everything you eat. A great way to learn what to avoid it seems to me. However, that might be a bit extreme. I haven’t actually begun formal exercise yet, other than gardening etc and that’s another area I’m keen to empirically measure the impact. I guess it’s visibility I’m after. With visibility comes the means of control and I’m too impatient to wait 3 months before the next burst of visibility.
Click to expand...
You can get a Libre 2 free trail, its helps a lot with knowing what foods you can tolerate, there is also a estimated H1C on the app.
 
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R0b said:
Thanks Folks. Yes I’ve just started noticing the more seasoned members add their stats as a footer to their posts. I’ll do that in time but for now my A1C was 50. BP is around 127/84 and can’t remember cholesterol but think it may have been 5?? I’ve been on statins for a good 25 years or more as family history there. Weight not good at 16 st 7 although I have dropped to 15 st 4 in the fortnight since I was diagnosed. They’ve put me on Metformin and I was already on 5mg amlodopin pd for hypertension.

I’m now in the dark re A1C levels until 3 months which is the next test date. Frankly, I would prefer to measure it much more frequently than that to assess the impact my diet and exercise measures are having.

Can that be done in kit form or privately?
Click to expand...
Surprised that you were prescribed Metformin with an HbA1c of 50. Many GPs/DNs would have waited to see if you could turn things around through lifestyle changes, particularly around diet and weight - well done on dropping a stone already. Many of us have used simple finger prick tests to configure our diets, measuring the effect of meals by testing just before eating and 2 hours later, checking the difference between the two readings and then recording the results in a food diary. Pretty crude in this digital age but effective nonetheless.
 
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I also am surprised you were prescribed metformin as an HbA1C of 50 is just over the threshold into the diabetic zone.

Have a look at this link as it is a way I followed and reduced my Hba1C from 50 to 42 in 3 months without medication.
lowcarbfreshwell.com

Freshwell Low Carb Project - Home

lowcarbfreshwell.com lowcarbfreshwell.com
 
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Pam123 said:
You can get a Libre 2 free trail, its helps a lot with knowing what foods you can tolerate, there is also a estimated H1C on the app.
Click to expand...
Take care with the Estimated HbA1C from a. Libre. Not only is two weeks (the life of a single sensor) insufficient time to measure HbA1C, it is measuring something different so may not be a good estimate. For example, my Libre estimated HbA1C using data continuously collected over at least 3 months was more than 20% lower than my real blood test. I consider it to be a useful additional measure if you are measuring it all the time but a bad estimate of HbA1C. I believe there is a debate whether it should even be called anything to do with HbA1C.

However, I do see a lot of value from using a Libre to work out the impact of different foods, exercise, stress, etc, on BG in order to make lifestyle adaptations to reduce a real blood test HbA1C.
 
helli said:
I believe there is a debate whether it should even be called anything to do with HbA1C.
Click to expand...
They’ve changed the terminology on Dexcom to GMI (glucose management indicator). And like you @helli I always found the estimated to undershoot my lab results.

Welcome to the forum @R0b

Sounds like you’ve leapt into action! Libre might be really helpful short-term, but they are expensive. If you aren’t on meds that can cause big changes in glucose levels rapidly (like insulin) it is likely that a fingerstick glucose meter would give you much of the information you are looking for.

Lots of members here use pairs of checks around meals to observe how the body has responded to what they’ve eaten. Taking a reading immediately before food, and again 2hrs after the first bite. Ideally looking for a rise of no more than 2-3mmol/L between the two.

From your starting point, you might find that you have more liberty with food choices than your current keto 800 approach is likely to allow, which might offer you a more flexible and sustainable long-term way of eating to stabilise your weight and glucose levels once you’ve got them where you’d like them to be. 🙂
 
I also think you're using a sledgehammer to crack a nut whereas eating less spud with your dinner, smaller thinner bread on your sandwiches and cut down immediately on anything & everything sweet - the very first being sugar in hot drinks. Nope!
 
R0b said:
Thanks S’nic. That’s helpful. I think it’s because I’m hitting the diet side so hard that I’m keen to measure the impact. I’m using the keto 800 approach with a real concerted effort to eradicate carbs rather than just reduce. At least short term. I have considered buying one of those arm monitors that scans your blood glucose and displays the data in an app. That gives immediate feedback on the impact of everything you eat. A great way to learn what to avoid it seems to me. However, that might be a bit extreme. I haven’t actually begun formal exercise yet, other than gardening etc and that’s another area I’m keen to empirically measure the impact. I guess it’s visibility I’m after. With visibility comes the means of control and I’m too impatient to wait 3 months before the next burst of visibility.
Click to expand...
With your numbers - honestly, using a blood glucose tester such as Spirit Healthcare's tee 2 + and eating fewer carb, replacing them with protein and fats should do the job PDQ.
Low carb is really effective for type 2's with far higher HbA1cs - mine was 91.
 
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Brilliant! Thankyou everyone who has responded here. It’s been a couple of weeks since I checked this thread and WOW. What a cornucopia of useful insights, advice, experiences.

You’ve also cheered me up no end by helping me understand I’m kind of at the “baby” end of this with a score of only 50.

Sledgehammer to crack a nut is music to my ears because I haven’t had a single sandwich since diagnosis (and I might actually commit murder for a bacon butty round about now!!)

The good news is I’ve now lost another stone so down to 14 stone 7 and can’t do my jeans up without a belt. I can actually see my feet again!! Who knew, they were there all the time!

I haven’t done any testing yet and it sounds like a manual kit is more appropriate for my needs, measuring in “meal pairs” to check the severity of the spike as it were.

It’s weird isn’t it? You get a medical shock like this and become “instantly psychotic” about avoiding eating anything with more than a scintilla of sugar. I think my only vices are half a slice of sourdough with boiled eggs and an apple for pud after dinner. I’m even paranoid about the fact the apple is full of fructose.

I have been measuring my BP with a home OMRON monitor and irs definitely improved a little. Down by about 3-4 ticks on both dia snd sys counts. So the removal of 20 years of accumulated good eating is having an impact.

So I feel a lot better is the truth of it. Despite having no diabetic related empirical evidence to support my conclusion.

Your input is invaluable in putting boundaries and perspective around what was a rather frightened chap some weeks back so my genuine thanks for taking the time and trouble. You’ve helped me waaaay more than the professional medical. Immunity if truth be known.

Humbly yours.
Rob
 
If I were you I'd focus on weight and waist measurement. Professor Roy Taylor's question is what is your waist measurement today, and what was it in your twenties? In other words what size trousers do you want to be wearing next year?
 
38 and 32. (Is the short answer). I think about that very delta in measurements daily. It makes perfect sense to me to return to a waste size at a time when I had no diabetes. I understand belly fat and it’s somewhat “iceberg” like twin, visceral fat are key drivers in the underlying causes of the disease and thus need to be controlled.

In now a 36……4 more inches to go…..(I’ll refrain from the actress said to the Bishop type innuendo).
 
R0b said:
The good news is I’ve now lost another stone so down to 14 stone 7 and can’t do my jeans up without a belt. I can actually see my feet again!! Who knew, they were there all the time!
Click to expand...

Haha! Well dine on your amazing progress @R0b - and great to hear you sounding so upbeat.

Onwards and downwards (as the actress said to the… oh no, wait, not doing that - sorry! :D)
 
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