Newbie

[sandy669]

Hi All

I was diagnosed with type 2 the week before christmas 22. Which totally passed me off. Was told I had it then left to my on devices. Not sure what to eat, some say low carbs, or avoid them. Do not eat bread, rice or pasta. Which is was I live on. Everything you eat has sugar,fat and salt. It's a mind field. Then all the appointments well at least my BP feet kidneys are ok. So have started cooking meals from scratch have changed pasta and rice over to whole grain and now weighing it. On the plus side I have gone back to swimming managed 46 lengths in 55 minutes. I get a total buzz for it. Hope to loss some weight the next time see the GP in 4 weeks time.

 

[Leadinglights]

Welcome to the forum, what a time to get a diagnosis. However it looks as if you have taken the bull by the horns and started to make some changes. It can be a confusing picture as what you need to do depends rather on how far you are into the diabetes zone and if you have been prescribed any medication. It is easy to over react and cut all carbs regardless but reducing carbs is a good step and that is not only 'sugar' and things containing lots of sugar like cakes, biscuits, sugary drinks including fruit juice but the high carb foods like bread, rice and pasta regardless of colour as they are all about the same amount of carbs.
Basing meals on meat, fish, eggs, cheese, dairy, vegetables and salads with small portions of the high carb foods. Finding substitutes for potatoes like squash, celeriac or swede and there are some low carb pastas based on edamame beans or black beans and cauliflower rice are some things to try.
Have a look at this link for a low carb approach which many find successful in reducing blood glucose and losing weight. https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/
How much you need to do will depend on any medication and what your HbA1C is. But remember low carb is not NO carb and reducing the carbs you have is best done gradually as it allows your body to adjust and you are less likely to get issues with your eyes and nerves.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @sandy669

Sorry to hear about your unwanted Christmas present - what a shame you can’t return it and exchange it for a nice basket of toiletries!

Sounds like you've made a very positive start, and weighing your portions will certainly help you keep an eye on total carbohydrate intake 🙂

It’s unfortunate that it can seem like there are so many conflicting pieces of advice when people are newly diagnosed, but behind the apparent confusion I think this is mostly because diabetes is complicated, fickle and fiercely individual.

There’s no one approach that will work for (or appeal to) everyone, and what works brilliantly for one, may not give someone else the same results.

The two main strategies people on the forum tend to find helpful are either:

Reducing total carbohydrate intake to a level that the body finds easier to cope with. That’s an individual number, that’s different for everyone, and different folks find different sources of carb suit them best.

Reducing calories to lose weight. Weight loss has been shown in research to be able to help reduce insulin resistance, and where significant weight is lost in visceral fat around the organs can also help move some people towards remission of their diabetes. You may have heard of the Newcastle diet or similar.

Some forum members focus primarily on one or other strategy, while others opt for a blend.

Good luck finding your own approach.

And well done on the swimming too! That’s great to hear 🙂