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Mr B

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Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Hi All,

I've joined the forum tonight as I'm confused about where I am with my Diabetes at the moment, so any feedback would be really helpful.

A quick background for you, I'm 33 and was diagnosed with diabetes in April. At the time I weighed around 15st 11lbs and am just under 6ft. I had symptoms that others have mentioned on here which took me to the doctors, blurry vision, toilet breaks etc. When my BS reading was taken initially, it was at an extremely high 29!

At that point I was put on Gliclazide in order to reduce my numbers which was a success, by the time I went back for a 3 month blood test, my hbA1c had come down from 91 to 44. I was delighted with this and was then put on Metformin SR 500mg once a day.

My levels have been consistently fine up until this point, but my issue is that I feel like I'm now losing too much weight. During this time my weight has gone from the above, down to 12st 4lbs. I'm happy with the weight loss (delighted in fact) but I'm now really struggling to maintain the weight. For a male of my age, I've seen that I need to eat around 2400 calories in order to maintain my weight which without Carbs is a huge amount of food and I'm struggling to even fit that amount of food into one day!

My doctor has told me to come off my medication as she felt I'd probably reversed my diabetes. I now realise I haven't, as in the mornings when eating bread (wholegrain) led me to have some high readings (around 9). I've managed to bring this down by changing this to Greek Yogurt which gives me a reading of 5.3 two hours after eating.

So now, I'm a little stuck and also concerned. I seem to be able to manage to eat healthy foods and don't feel like I need to be on medication any more, but without significantly ramping up my carbs or a huge amount of fat daily I can't see how I can maintain my current weight. To add to this I'm allergic to nuts, which I've heard are good for fat intakes!

Apologies, as I know this is a long message, but wanted to give you a full picture of where I am.

Any advice or experience of this would be hugely helpful.
 
Welcome Mr B. I think if your numbers go up without the meds then you should speak to your doctor about starting them again - if you haven't already. Have they checked your thyroid (hyperthyroidism) and vitamin B12 levels? Problems with either of these may cause weight loss and they aren't uncommon complications among diabetics, it's worth asking about.
 
Thanks Alison, I will go in and speak to them again.

In regards to my numbers, It's been around 7 days since I came off them and since then, I've seen two 9's and two 7's two hours after eating. The rest have been relatively stable, but again, I'll discuss that with the doctor and see what thoughts they have.
 
Hi Mr B, welcome to the forum 🙂 Well done on the great success you have had in getting your blood sugar levels under control, it sounds like you have a really good understanding of what it's all about 🙂 Regarding the weight loss, what do you see as your ideal weight? Personally, I try not to focus too much on the actual number, but more on how fit and healthy I feel - do you feel that you lack energy at all? As Alison suggests, it may be related to another condition, so it would be a good idea to go back to your GP and express your concerns. Regarding fat - I'd say don't be too afraid of adding more to your diet. Recent research is coming round to the idea that carbs may be the real culprit in things like raising cholesterol, and that fat has been unfairly maligned for decades. There are some high calorie foods that contain a high amount of healthy fats that may not be obvious - avocados spring to mind - so it might be worth researching this if you want to increase your calorie intake.

Regarding your 2 hout post-meal numbers - I wouldn't be overly concerned with a 7, although a 9 might suggest that you still need a bit of extra help, depending, of course, on what your pre-meal level was, and therefore how big the rise was. Do you do much exercise? Many people find that some exercise an hour or so after eating really helps reduce any post-meal spikes.

Good luck, and please let us know how you get on at the doctor's 🙂
 
You've done brilliantly Mr. B and you should be proud of your efforts!

Does occur to me that maybe you need to introduce a bit more protein to your diet especially breakfasts. Doesn't have to be carb or Greek yoghurt. Could you manage a cheese or mushroom omelette for instance? But being healthy and maintaining your levels within range is the most important thing.

If the problem persists, it might be an idea to see a Dietician for nutritional advice. As you're tall, I can understand why you wouldn't want to lose too much weight. Wish I had that problem! 😉
 
Welcome to the forum Mr B 🙂
 
If you are really struggling to maintain your weight then ask for antibody tests just to make sure you are not in fact type 1 or 1.5
 
Thanks all, appreciate the advice and comments. I'm ramping up this week on things like sunflower seeds which seem to be helping. Amigo, I'm not sure I have time in the mornings for omelettes due to early starts, but I think I'll try that on the weekends and see what the effects are. Yes the height/weight thing is playing on my mind.

I walk for about 2-3 miles a day now which could have been having an effect as well and am now starting to work out more although that will require even more calories!

Northerner, I've not felt better actually since the weight loss. I have to say I'm feeling great within myself, especially compared to before the diagnosis. I'm going to keep a very close eye on my numbers, but hoping I can avoid any higher numbers by really monitoring what I eat. If it's possible, I'd love to be diet controlled.

Pumper Sue, this was something that they mentioned to me when I was diagnosed. They thought I may be type 1 due to the initial high reading, so over this next week I'll keep an eye and flag that with the doctor if it continues.

I'll be sure to come back and update on my progress and things that work for me which may help others. I've been given a lot to think about here.
 
Gliclazide does work for some time for people with a slow-onset Type 1 as it prompts the pancreas to squeeze out a bit more insulin, and the other measures you have taken have probably helped to increase your insulin sensitivity to make better use of what may be a declining amount. Do keep an eye on your levels - it's good that the possibility of slow-onset Type 1 was considered, perhaps a shame that they didn't go ahead and test for it at diagnosis!

Good luck, I hope you can turn things around and hope you start feeling better soon 🙂
 
Breakfasts - frittata is the answer - that's a Spanish omelette, made with at least 6 eggs and any veggies - EXCEPT spuds LOL - cut into generous wedges and stored in the fridge! I presume you would have enough time to open the fridge door?
 
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