Newbie

[mosse33]

Hi all
Im 52 and in January this year I was told by a nurse that im pre diabetic with a number of 42
She put me on a program called second nature so I've been following it and lost 12lbs but got my blood checked again and it has gone upto 44 in 6 months talked to the nurse again and got told she can't do anything till I'm type 2 I was so disheartened I fell off the wagon

Really could do with some help as I was never told about lowering carbs and haven't got a clue on carb to protien ,fat ratio
Would it be worth getting a blood sugar monitor
Is there a easy to follow diet plan
Hope someone can help
Thanks

 

[trophywench]

No idea what the second nature regime told you to do - so, what did it tell you that you then decided not to do?

 

[mosse33]

Second nature is more of cutting out process food and portion control
I did follow it and lost weight but blood went up to 44
I'm 12st 7lb at the moment and a postman so plenty of exercise

 

[Drummer]

Second nature is more of cutting out process food and portion control
I did follow it and lost weight but blood went up to 44
I'm 12st 7lb at the moment and a postman so plenty of exercise

Ah - chocolate teapot thinking.
To lower blood glucose we eat fewer carbohydrates, they are the starches and sugars.
For those with only a bit of adjustment required, cutting down potatoes, bread, cakes and sugary things will have a big effect.
I was way into diabetic territory and even with a low intake of carbs every day I can't get down into the 30s - but I had high glucose levels for at 10 years before being diagnosed - it was in my file, but I was never told.

 

[mosse33]

I feel like I've wasted the last 9 months and so let down by the nurse's who haven't really given me the help I need

 

[Drummer]

I feel like I've wasted the last 9 months and so let down by the nurse's who haven't really given me the help I need

Don't worry about the last few months, you are not in high numbers, and you have time to sort out what to eat.
You might find a glucose meter is useful at first, so you can check after eating - I realised that I can extract more carbs from beans and peas than are listed, and a few others have mentioned the same thing, but others get the 'correct' response and it is shown as the after meal levels that we see.

 

[mosse33]

What bs monitor is recommended and is a low carb diet the way to go if so how many carbs a day should I aim for

 

[Leadinglights]

What bs monitor is recommended and is a low carb diet the way to go if so how many carbs a day should I aim for

What a pity you didn't get set on the right track to start with, it sounds as if your nurse is sticking with the outdated NHS EatWell plate which for many with a problem tolerating carbohydrates is far too high in carbs. However there has been a positive to what you have done in that you have lost weight so don't regard it as a waste of time.
Have a look at this link which is a low carb approach https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/ which many have found successful.
Low carb is no more than 130g per day carbs not just sugar, it is not NO carbs.
A blood glucose monitor is a good tool to have to test the effect of various foods by testing before you eat and after 2 hours, if the increase is less that 2-3mmol/l then that meal is OK. If in the prediabetic zone than the 2 hour post meal reading should not be more than 8mmol/l.
The GlucoNavii or TEE are ones with the cheaper test strips but worth shopping around on line.

 

[Drummer]

What bs monitor is recommended and is a low carb diet the way to go if so how many carbs a day should I aim for

I bought the Spirit Healthcare Tee2+ and that has been reliable as far as I can tell.
The amount of carbs to eat and the foods to chose or avoid are usually shown up pretty clearly by a month or so of consistent checking before and after all meals at first. I found that I was more able to deal with carbs in the evening than the morning, so I sorted out breakfasts of 10gm of carbs and that sorted that, I gradually stopped eating lunch, ate all the rest of my carbs in the evening, found I could cope with a dessert with dinner, and it was pretty much plain sailing from then on. Once I was seeing under 8mmol/l after meals I stuck to those menus and gradually the numbers reduced down to under 7 and I was seeing HbA1cs on the low 40s where I seem to have stuck.
After a little while I did reduce my carb intake from no more than 50 to no more than 40 grams a day, and after another year my HbA1c was exactly the same, so there is not a direct correlation between blood glucose levels - which did seem a bit lower when I tested, and HbA1c.
I believe that the meter and test strips will be a bit more expensive for you as if diagnosed with diabetes VAT is not charged but you do need a definite diagnosis to get that exemption.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Second nature is more of cutting out process food and portion control
I did follow it and lost weight but blood went up to 44
I'm 12st 7lb at the moment and a postman so plenty of exercise

Sorry hear that you were disappointed by your result after all your hard work. I can see how that would have been dishesrtening and frustrating

However the two results were really close together (almost close enough to be within the margin of error), and you did lose weight, so don’t feel too hard on yourself. It was worth doing as a starting point, but now it's time to build on that with a few more tweaks and adjustments.

The ‘at risk of diabetes‘ range is 42-47, so your results so far are at the low-mid point. You may find that a little portion control of starchy carbohydrates goes a long way.

As an example, breakfast is often a tricky meal, as pretty much all the standard options are dominantly based on carbohydrate. Some members here choose to base their breakfast on eggs. While others swap the proportions of their breakfast - so rather than a bowl of granola with a dollop of yoghurt, they’ll have a bowl of creamy greek yoghurt and some of those frozen berries supermarkets do and have a sprinkle of granola on the top for crunch.

 

[mosse33]

Hi all
Thank you for the replies
I got a blood sugar and just wondering if there is a app to track numbers or do ppl write them down
Plus going to start a low carb eating and wondering about ratio of protein ,fat and how many calories a day should I be aiming for as I'm very active

Any help would be greatly appreciated

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

I found mySugr very helpful for logging. Not used it for a while, but I logged with it every day for the best part of a decade!

I liked the way you could adjust what you had on the recording screen to make things efficient for you, and the way that you could log as much or as little as you wanted. Plus results were searchable, so if I added a note about the type of meal, I could look it up afterwards and see what the results had been last time. You could even add photos of your meals if you wanted!

There used to be a very capable free version, along with a full ‘bells and whistles’ option for a subscription, but more recently the app has been adopted by Roche, so I don’t know what the options currently are.

 

[Leadinglights]

Hi all
Thank you for the replies
I got a blood sugar and just wondering if there is a app to track numbers or do ppl write them down
Plus going to start a low carb eating and wondering about ratio of protein ,fat and how many calories a day should I be aiming for as I'm very active

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Many who follow a low carb approach which is suggested as being no more than 130g total carbs (not just sugar) don't worry too much about calories and have a good balance of protein and healthy fats.
If you are only in prediabetic zone then careful choice of the carbs you have making them count in terms of enjoyment and added benefit rather than empty carbs should be sufficient to get those numbers down to normal.

 

[Dave_Z1a]

My Nipro 4sure meter has an app which automatically talks to the meter, provides loads of inf including a running graph. the app is called diabetes m and works with some other meters I think.

 

[grovesy]

I still use the free version of mySugr and it is more than enough for my needs.