Hello everyone, just introducing myself. I've just been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. I'm still finding my feet and figuring out what to eat and what not to eat in the hope of keeping it controlled. Hope to find lots of useful info here in the forum.
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Newbie wave
- Thread starter MegHill
- Start date
Leadinglights
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Welcome, what to eat and what not to eat may depend on what medication if any you are taking but if non or only metformin then this link is a good pointer in the right direction for a low carb approach which many have found successful, it is based on the suggested no more than 130g carbohydrates not just sugar per day, which is better to be spread between meals, snacks if you really need them and drinks.
https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
I see from your other thread you have a monitor so many find it useful to test before they eat and after 2 hours and would be aiming at an increase of no more than 2-3mmol/l or as levels start to come down no more than 8-8.5 mmol/l after 2 hours.
Felinia
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Hello and welcome. We are a friendly bunch of non-medical people, happy to offer suggestions and answer any questions. Nothing is silly as we probably all asked them at the beginning!
Can you tell us a bit about yourself, so we can tailor any suggestions? For example, what was your HbA1c, how did you come to be diagnosed (surprise or suspected), have you been prescribed any medication, do you need to lose weight, do you exercise?
Regarding what to eat, there are many different approaches. Some people follow the Newcastle diet initially. I opted for a lower carb approach (less than 130gm carbs a day). The Freshwell plan is popular. One thing I did was get an app (NutraCheck) to monitor my daily carbs ad calories. I also took up Aquafit for exercise. Other popular exercise is walking, and cycling.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself, so we can tailor any suggestions? For example, what was your HbA1c, how did you come to be diagnosed (surprise or suspected), have you been prescribed any medication, do you need to lose weight, do you exercise?
Regarding what to eat, there are many different approaches. Some people follow the Newcastle diet initially. I opted for a lower carb approach (less than 130gm carbs a day). The Freshwell plan is popular. One thing I did was get an app (NutraCheck) to monitor my daily carbs ad calories. I also took up Aquafit for exercise. Other popular exercise is walking, and cycling.
mashedupmatt
Moderator
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Hi @MegHill and welcome to the forum!
I'm sorry you've had to join us, but do know that you're at the right place for any questions, worries, rants or even the positives - we're always happy to hear from our newbies on how they get on with navigating their diagnosis and celebrate the victories together.
There is definitely a lot of information and if you find it overwhelming, you might find our Learning Zone (the big orange button at the top left) useful. It has a lot of what 'you need to know' in manageable chunks, that you could look at when you have some free time.
I'm sorry you've had to join us, but do know that you're at the right place for any questions, worries, rants or even the positives - we're always happy to hear from our newbies on how they get on with navigating their diagnosis and celebrate the victories together.
There is definitely a lot of information and if you find it overwhelming, you might find our Learning Zone (the big orange button at the top left) useful. It has a lot of what 'you need to know' in manageable chunks, that you could look at when you have some free time.
silver minion
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Hello @MegHill and welcome to the forum. It is quite bewildering figuring out what changes to your diet will help reduce your blood sugars and manage your diabetes effectively.
A lot of people find reducing their carbohydrate intake helps but it is very individual and it will depend on your hbA1c result, your weight, activity levels and any medication you are taking.
Try out the different options and find out what works for and is sustainable.
Lots of good recipes on the forum and links to good websites.
A lot of people find reducing their carbohydrate intake helps but it is very individual and it will depend on your hbA1c result, your weight, activity levels and any medication you are taking.
Try out the different options and find out what works for and is sustainable.
Lots of good recipes on the forum and links to good websites.
Hi Meg, welcome to the forums. I'm fairly new here, diagnosed in the summer. It was quite a shock and there was information coming at me from pretty much every direction. Don't be afraid to ask questions or to write things down when you go to appointments.
The carb based diet for me has been pretty good in terms of helping, with that and metformin twice per day I'd moved back to pretty much normal blood sugar at my 3 month check, next step to maintain it and see if I can start reducing the meds. Food-wise it's not too bad and mostly a matter of finding things you like and can stick with since it's a long term change. It's helped me lose weight as well and enabled me to exercise more which I'm enjoying so overall relatively positive.
As a starter as well as the immediate diagnosis and agreeing how you'll try and manage your diabetes the doctors should refer you to have your feet (both, someone a while ago only had them look at one), eyes and kidney function which is all about potential damage to small veins. They might also look at cholesterol as high blood sugar irritates the veins so the body apparently tries to lay down cholesterol to compensate.
The carb based diet for me has been pretty good in terms of helping, with that and metformin twice per day I'd moved back to pretty much normal blood sugar at my 3 month check, next step to maintain it and see if I can start reducing the meds. Food-wise it's not too bad and mostly a matter of finding things you like and can stick with since it's a long term change. It's helped me lose weight as well and enabled me to exercise more which I'm enjoying so overall relatively positive.
As a starter as well as the immediate diagnosis and agreeing how you'll try and manage your diabetes the doctors should refer you to have your feet (both, someone a while ago only had them look at one), eyes and kidney function which is all about potential damage to small veins. They might also look at cholesterol as high blood sugar irritates the veins so the body apparently tries to lay down cholesterol to compensate.