Newbie Prediabetic

[Shujat]

Hello everyone,
New to here and a little nervous sharing about myself.
Iam 45, male of Pakistani heritage. Recently, got the update about me being pre-diabetic from my GP. Hoping for others here to share some advice and tips to manage this condition and hopefully prevent Type 2.

 

[Transistor]

No problem, Shujat.
If the doc gave you a HbA1c blood test it would be helpful if you post the result. This reading gives a good idea of how much work needs to be done.

 

[Shujat]

No problem, Shujat.
If the doc gave you a HbA1c blood test it would be helpful if you post the result. This reading gives a good idea of how much work needs to be done.

Hey, thanks for the reply. I will have to get in touch with my GP to find out what the reading was ?

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @Shujat

We are a friendly bunch here, and everyone is just muddling through in their own way, trying to find a set of diabetes strategies and approaches that work for them.

We can be quite nosey, so you may get asked lots of questions, but don’t feel obliged to answer if you don’t feel comfortable sharing any particular details. How much, or how little you share is entirely up to you 🙂

You may have been told the result of your HbA1c check. This will be a number most likely 42-47 (the values which indicate someone is at increased risk of diabetes). Knowing what that number is can help you assess how close to the diabetes borderline you are currently sailing - which may help you assess how significant the changes to your menu and activity levels may need to be.

In general newcomers who successfully reduce their HbA1c from ‘at risk’ towards healthier levels manage to do that by reducing their overall intake of total carbohydrates (not just ‘of which sugars’) through portion reductions, and some swaps and changes to meal choices.

Some find it helpful to keep a brutally honest food diary for a week or two - noting down everything they eat and drink including a reasonable estimate of the total carb content of the meal or snack. This can help you identify which meals are your ‘big hitters’, and which are your main sources of carbohydrate. It will also give you a sense of your ‘baseline’ to work from, so that you can assess any changes you make to your menu over the coming months if you think that would be helpful.