Hi everyone. I have joined today because I need help with choosing low carb food. It is difficult as I could eat just carbs all day. Especially bread. I am hoping how to learn to deal with my Type2 and lose some weight too. My doctors surgery don't tell you anything about reducing the insulin you take. I am on Humulin twice a day. A high dose at breakfast time and a smaller dose at tea time. thanks for reading this.
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- Thread starter Linda G
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Hello Inka. No it is Humulin I . I have never worked out what carbs I eat. I just know I am addicted to bread products. I don't get any advice from the nurse at our surgery. They just do the basic checks. Weight, height, feet pulses. "how are you getting on" I just say ok. I am so overweight, with a husband with MS. I am 70 and his full time carer and don't look after myself, like I look after him. I only do my bloods in the morning, when I have breakfast. When I started to use insulin the nurse worked me up to 78 in the morning and 20 in the evening with my meal. I have been a bit better lately and reduced myself to 60 am and 20 pm. Bloods to start with were anything from 12 up to 20 before starting insulin. Now I have them down to between 5 and 9 at the most. at breakfast time. Mainly though they are around 5 and 6.7. I just need some help I think.
Inka
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Ah, ok @Linda G 🙂 That’s a basal/background insulin. Your morning blood glucose sounds great - well done! Why I asked about the carbs you were eating is that if you’re on insulin, you need to be very careful about reducing your carbs in case you have a hypo. If you do choose to reduce your carbs, you’ll have to do it very gradually over a period of time and reduce your insulin doses too.
Now, I bet you know what I’m going to say! Yes - you can’t look after your husband if you don’t look after yourself! More than that, there’s no reason you shouldn’t get the same care from yourself that you give your husband. Is it a lack of time that’s causing the lack of care for yourself? Do you have support for yourself as a carer? I’m going to tag @Docb because he knows far more than me about such things.
With regard to changing your diet, slow, careful and systematic is the way to do it. You’ll also have to do more blood tests as they’ll keep you safe and give you important information that will help you adjust your insulin and your carbs. To start off, I’d keep notes the food you eat for a two or three days. Test your blood sugar before each meal and 2hrs after each meal. This will all give you good - and important - information to make a start on your diet.
One thing I will say is to make sure you’re eating enough green veg and protein as well as some healthy fats. That way you won’t be so hungry when you begin to slowly reduce the carbs. I’ll be interested to see what your blood sugar is doing during a normal day’s food for you. High blood sugar can cause hunger too.
Now, I bet you know what I’m going to say! Yes - you can’t look after your husband if you don’t look after yourself! More than that, there’s no reason you shouldn’t get the same care from yourself that you give your husband. Is it a lack of time that’s causing the lack of care for yourself? Do you have support for yourself as a carer? I’m going to tag @Docb because he knows far more than me about such things.
With regard to changing your diet, slow, careful and systematic is the way to do it. You’ll also have to do more blood tests as they’ll keep you safe and give you important information that will help you adjust your insulin and your carbs. To start off, I’d keep notes the food you eat for a two or three days. Test your blood sugar before each meal and 2hrs after each meal. This will all give you good - and important - information to make a start on your diet.
One thing I will say is to make sure you’re eating enough green veg and protein as well as some healthy fats. That way you won’t be so hungry when you begin to slowly reduce the carbs. I’ll be interested to see what your blood sugar is doing during a normal day’s food for you. High blood sugar can cause hunger too.
Docb
Moderator
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Hi @Linda G and welcome to the forum. I am also a carer with diabetes and if you have not done so already I suggest you make contact with whoever provides carer services in your area. Your county council are statutorily obliged to provide support for carers in their area. I am afraid that some are far better than others but as a minimum you should get a carers assessment which will give you the chance talk through being a carer with a professional. At best you will get direct support with accessing services, the opportunity to meet other carers and a local contact who you can talk to directly.
I have no idea how good services are in your area but if you google "carer services" and your "county council" you should get a contact number. Ring them, explain your circumstances, and take it from there.
I have no idea how good services are in your area but if you google "carer services" and your "county council" you should get a contact number. Ring them, explain your circumstances, and take it from there.
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Welcome to the forum Linda G.
Great to hear that your levels are so in range, that suggests that your current menu and your insulin are well balanced.
As @Inka suggests, says it’s important for the carbohydrate content of your meals to be matched with your insulin doses, so you need to be careful about reducing carbohydrate without also reducing your doses. These adjustments can be very individual and we are not really able to give advice, sorry to hear that your surgery don’t seem to be giving you much help!
You could try some cautious experiments yourself I suppose? That’s what I have always done as a T1 . Just check more often and keep yourself safe.
You might find it helpful to start by keeping a food diary, noting down the total carbohydrate content, not just of which sugars, of your meals and snacks. This will give you an idea of your starting point.
Great to hear that your levels are so in range, that suggests that your current menu and your insulin are well balanced.
As @Inka suggests, says it’s important for the carbohydrate content of your meals to be matched with your insulin doses, so you need to be careful about reducing carbohydrate without also reducing your doses. These adjustments can be very individual and we are not really able to give advice, sorry to hear that your surgery don’t seem to be giving you much help!
You could try some cautious experiments yourself I suppose? That’s what I have always done as a T1 . Just check more often and keep yourself safe.
You might find it helpful to start by keeping a food diary, noting down the total carbohydrate content, not just of which sugars, of your meals and snacks. This will give you an idea of your starting point.
Thank you Docb. I am in contact with Carers support and have assessments. I also have 2 ladies I am friends with who both have husbands with MS. We get together now and again but they are there for me to talk too at anytime. My hubby has had MS from the age of 27 and is now 72. Unable to do anything for himself anymore. So we have carers come in to help. I met them through starting a carers coffee morning myself as there wasn't one where I live. I did that for 2 years until hubby needed more support. Thank you for your suggestions. Linda
Thank you for your comments. I wil start a diary and check what carbs are in what I am eating. I know I should have been more careful in the past but feel I can do this now.
Thank you Inka. First of all I will ask the surgery for more testing strips as I only get one pot of 50 a month. I am going to do a food diary as suggested. I stopped eating reduced fats in food and now eat butter and greek yogurt. Trying to lose weigh over the years has never worked on reduced fat diets, WW and SW are not a good idea but its taken me many years to see this. I have a reasonable amount of protein but could probably eat more. Trying to up my green vegs. Thank you for all you have said and I will make chances as best I can.
Docb
Moderator
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Good to hear that @Linda G. Being a carer can be a lonely and difficult business (bit like diabetes in some respects) and more often than not, you have to find your own way to cope. Part of the trick is to find the help that you need and that can be difficult. Sometimes you need to live in the right place, sometimes you need to have a bit of luck and sometimes you have to take the initiative. All three seem to have played a part in your story.
trophywench
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Well - if you ask me, @Linda G , by the sound of you and what you've already done for yourself/husband/other carers in the same position as you locally - there's every reason to think you can be equally instrumental/successful with your latest challenge.
Never underestimate the positive bonus of having what used to be known as common sense - but I've subsequently come to realise it ain't that common at all, these days!
Never underestimate the positive bonus of having what used to be known as common sense - but I've subsequently come to realise it ain't that common at all, these days!
Hi, thank you for your lovely comments. My son is very intelligent but has no common sense. At 47 he is learning though. haha. I had my bloods done yesterday and the result came through this afternoon. HbA1c is 8.3 down from 10.3 this time last year. So slowly slowly is working.
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