Newly Diagnosed! Lots and Lots of Questions

[Autumn2020]

Hello. This may be really long so I apologise in advance 🙄

I have just been diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes and am In a world of confusion. I have lots of questions, if anyone could help me out with any of them I would really appreciate it.

So I had a conversation with the nurse yesterday who said my HBA1C was 50, she said this is not a terrible reading and that I have every chance of reversing this, which I intend to try my very best to do, BUT I just feel very confused with a lot of things.

So I know that the main goal is for me to lose the weight which I am doing, I have lost 9lb since first seeing the doctor last Tuesday and I really am going to keep it up, but I also know that I need to control my Blood Sugars while I do this and this is where I am confused.

I know I need to cook healthy home-cooked meals, low sugar, low carb. But what I don't know is, whats low carb, how many carbs are too many ? is there a number I should be aiming for? If anyone could give me any examples of what they might eat in a day?

This is an example of today for me.

Breakfast: 1 Slice of Wholemeal toast, butter, peanut butter
Dinner: 1 Weetabix, Semi Skimmed Milk
Tea: 2 x Chicken Breast, 2tbsps crucial bbq sauce, 60g Cheese melted over, 60g Potato Wedges (15g Carbs) I usually make my own and I am going to try sweet potato. Then I am serving with Spinach, Cucumber, Red Onion and Red Pepper.

Does this seem OK? Or way out? Do you still eat thigs like potato and pasta, how much bread would you have in a day?

I also wondered if anyone was following slimming world and if so what changes do you make from the normal plan to suit your diabetes?

What do you use for the following?

Butter?
Peanut Butter?
Any sauces (like BBQ, Mayo) ect?


I have a real sweet tooth and my plan is to just change my mind set about treats and completely cut back but I would like the odd treat now and then. I have got some fat free Greek yogurt and fruit, sugar free jelly and fruit and ice lollys just made with water and juice. What sweet things do you eat for a treat?

I also wondered if you ever have a 'real' treat? like go out for a meal and enjoy some normal food like pizza and desert? or is this a complete no go for you (I do not plan on doing this anytime soon as I want to have a really good start, just curious for the future) and if you do have a treat, how often do you have it, are we talking, once a week, once a month or just on occasions like Birthdays and Christmas? ect

If I do reverse my diabetes and get my levels under 42, does that mean I am not diabetic anymore or will I always be classed as Diabetic?

Also how are you dealing with Covid? I have severe anxiety and I had just started to ease up on lockdown a little and now this has scared the life out of me knowing I am more at risk. Do you still go to the shops ect?

Sorry for all the questions and if you have got this far and can answer even some of them, thank you so much. xx

 

[zuludog]

Hello AUTUMN2020, and welcome to the Forum

This will be just a short message as I have a minor cold - cum - sniffle at the moment
Perhaps I'll be able to post a better message in a day or two

In the meantime have a look through previous Threads, especially Newcomers and Food & Carbs and you'll see that many of your questions have been asked & answered before

Other forum Members should be along soon to give you their welcome

don't apologise for a long post, I'm afraid mine tend to ramble on as well
And don't be embarrassed or shy about asking questions, we were all new once

 

[Autumn2020]

Hello AUTUMN2020, and welcome to the Forum

This will be just a short message as I have a minor cold - cum - sniffle at the moment
Perhaps I'll be able to post a better message in a day or two

In the meantime have a look through previous Threads, especially Newcomers and Food & Carbs and you'll see that many of your questions have been asked & answered before

Other forum Members should be along soon to give you their welcome

don't apologise for a long post, I'm afraid mine tend to ramble on as well
And don't be embarrassed or shy about asking questions, we were all new once

Thank you so much for taking your time to reply to me. I Thought it would be too long for anyone to entertain reading but just wanted to try get everything down I was thinking about. There's so much to take in.

I will definitely have a read through some of the other posts and hopefully get some tips from them.

Hope your feeling better soon x

 

[Vonny]

Hi @Autumn2020 and welcome to the forum. I'm a fellow type 2, and can really only tell you what I can and cannot eat as everyone is different. You are right, it is confusing!

Firstly I recommend (as I was by this forum) that you get a glucose monitor so you can check you blood sugar before you eat, and 2 hours after so you can see the result of what you are eating. It's the best thing I've ever bought! I use the SD Gluco Navvi as the testing strips are reasonably priced, but there are other makes. If/when you buy a monitor make sure you buy some additional strips and lancets as there aren't many in the kit.

I eat 1 slice of wholemeal toast a week as a treat with my boiled eggs on Saturdays. There are recipes on here to make your own which is much lower in carbs, and a lot of people seem to get on with Burgen.
I can't eat bread,potatoes, pasta or rice - even the wholegrain version sends my sugars through the roof.
So basically I eat whatever anyone else is eating in our household, except no carbs. The only treat I allow myself is if I make a curry, I pinch a small corner of my partner's naan bread.

I think weetabix is one of the better cereals, but cereals aren't really recommended for type 2s.

We haven't eaten out since lockdown, which has made it much easier for me to cope with the lack of carbs. I certainly won't consider a "treat" such as pizza until my Hba1c is below 48 and I'm at my target weight of below 9 stone, but that's just my personal goal.

Butter and fats in general are good for your diabetes, because it slows down the release of sugar. If I wasn't on the cusp for cholesterol I'd certainly eat loads of butter.

Sorry, I know I haven't answered all of your questions, but hope I've made a start. You have come to the right place for answers. I've learned a lot in the short time I've been on this forum, but I've still got a long way to go!

Best wishes x

 

[Autumn2020]

Hi @Autumn2020 and welcome to the forum. I'm a fellow type 2, and can really only tell you what I can and cannot eat as everyone is different. You are right, it is confusing!

Firstly I recommend (as I was by this forum) that you get a glucose monitor so you can check you blood sugar before you eat, and 2 hours after so you can see the result of what you are eating. It's the best thing I've ever bought! I use the SD Gluco Navvi as the testing strips are reasonably priced, but there are other makes. If/when you buy a monitor make sure you buy some additional strips and lancets as there aren't many in the kit.

I eat 1 slice of wholemeal toast a week as a treat with my boiled eggs on Saturdays. There are recipes on here to make your own which is much lower in carbs, and a lot of people seem to get on with Burgen.
I can't eat bread,potatoes, pasta or rice - even the wholegrain version sends my sugars through the roof.
So basically I eat whatever anyone else is eating in our household, except no carbs. The only treat I allow myself is if I make a curry, I pinch a small corner of my partner's naan bread.

I think weetabix is one of the better cereals, but cereals aren't really recommended for type 2s.

We haven't eaten out since lockdown, which has made it much easier for me to cope with the lack of carbs. I certainly won't consider a "treat" such as pizza until my Hba1c is below 48 and I'm at my target weight of below 9 stone, but that's just my personal goal.

Butter and fats in general are good for your diabetes, because it slows down the release of sugar. If I wasn't on the cusp for cholesterol I'd certainly eat loads of butter.

Sorry, I know I haven't answered all of your questions, but hope I've made a start. You have come to the right place for answers. I've learned a lot in the short time I've been on this forum, but I've still got a long way to go!

Best wishes x

Thank you so much for your reply. Every little helps, so thank you.

If you don't eat cereals or bread, do you mind me asking what you eat for your breakfast and lunch please? Evening meals I find easier as I have just been having meat or fish with veg or salad and swapped the rice I would usually eat with my chilli or curry for cauliflower rice. Its just the breakfast and lunch I'm really struggling with xx

 

[Autumn2020]

Hi, Amber. Welcome to the Forum.

First of all with an HbA1c of 50 you are only just into diabetes territory and you should be able to get your BG down through some simple lifestyle changes, which revolve around diet, exercise and weight loss. From what you've said it's clear that you are aware that you need to cut down on your carb intake, especially things like potatoes, pasta, rice and bread, as well as things like sweets, chocolate, cakes, biscuits and soft drinks (unless diet). A low carb diet is considered to be less than 130g per day (I average 120) but many members go lower than this, some a lot lower. Like many others I follow a Low Carb/High Fat diet (LCHF).

One thing to be aware of is that there isn't a one-size-fits-all diet for diabetes as we are all different in the way that our bodies handle carbs and you'll have to figure out what works for you. One way people do this is to check their BG just before they eat and then again two hours later and see what the rise was, but you would need to invest in a meter, lancets and test strips for this.

There's plenty of advice on the site and members will chip in too, but in response to some of the things you mention:-

Dairy is OK, so no problem with butter, although I personally prefer Flora as it has less saturated fat
Full Fat Yoghurt is better than the Low Fat varieties, as the latter usually have sugar added
The general advice regarding things like bread and pasta is that you switch to wholegrain varieties and reduce portion sizes
Fresh meat & fish, salads, green veg, and berry fruits like strawberries, raspberries etc are all good.

It is possible to put Type 2 diabetes into remission but not everyone will be lucky enough to manage this, and although I've been fortunate to be able to do it I'm afraid it doesn't mean I'm no longer diabetic. I have to continue with my diet and exercise regime now. There's no going back to how it was before.

Martin

Hi Martin,

Thank you for your reply. The info you've given really helps, especially the amount of carbs I should be aiming for.

Your the second person to mention a meter and testing my levels before and after eating so I will look into one of those.

I am really hoping that will lots of hard work I can put this into remission but it's devastating to hear that it will never go. It feels so scary that I will have this for the rest of my life.

Thank you again for your reply and well done on how well you have done to get yours into remission x

 

[Autumn2020]

I don't know where I got the idea from that your name was Amber, so sorry for that...!!

Oh its totally fine, don't worry about it. Its a lovely name lol could have been called worse

 

[Vonny]

Thank you so much for your reply. Every little helps, so thank you.

If you don't eat cereals or bread, do you mind me asking what you eat for your breakfast and lunch please? Evening meals I find easier as I have just been having meat or fish with veg or salad and swapped the rice I would usually eat with my chilli or curry for cauliflower rice. Its just the breakfast and lunch I'm really struggling with xx

Hi @Autumn2020 , I usually have omelettes with mushrooms or cheese for breakfast, and homemade soup plus some nuts and cheese for lunch. It sounds a bit boring, but I am nutty about nuts, cheese and eggs! x

 

[Autumn2020]

Hi @Autumn2020 , I usually have omelettes with mushrooms or cheese for breakfast, and homemade soup plus some nuts and cheese for lunch. It sounds a bit boring, but I am nutty about nuts, cheese and eggs! x

Oh I love homemade pea and ham soup, I will have to try out a veggie recipie, do you put lentils in yours? Are we alowed lentils?

What type of nuts do you have please? X

 

[Vonny]

Oh I love homemade pea and ham soup, I will have to try out a veggie recipie, do you put lentils in yours? Are we alowed lentils?

What type of nuts do you have please? X

You are allowed peas and ham! Pretty sure lentils are ok, but I don't use them. I have walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts and Brazil nuts, 30 grams which is around 200 calories. Although carbs, they are better than refined x

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @Autumn2020

Sounds like you are already making very positive changes, and your analytical and enquiring approach will be really helpful going forward. Congratulations on the weight loss... that will really help if you can keep it up. There’s a whole ‘weight loss’ section on the forum if you would like support and encouragement to reach your weight loss goals.

I would second the suggestion to consider getting hold of a BG meter, because many members over the years have discovered distinct peculiarities and ‘unexpected freebies‘ through self monitoring where things that they may have imagined to be ‘off limits’ seem to suit their body well, and conversely people have learned to avoid things with a ‘slow release’ reputation - because their body, gut biome and metabolism clearly didn’t get the memo!

Full fat yoghurt and berries (with or without a sprinkling of granola) seems to be a fairly popular low carb breakfast. Along with eggs in the form of omelette, frittata or simply poached/scrambled and eaten with mushrooms, tomatoes etc etc. Frittata is handy of you are pushed for time in the morning because it can be made beforehand and you can just grab a slice from the fridge.

But a good first step would be to get hold of a BG meter and take a look at the ‘meal rise’ (take BG immediately before eating and again 2hours after the first bite) of the things you are eating at the moment. If your BG only rises by 2-3 or less from the meal, then it’s a choice that suits you well.

Good luck, keep asking questions, and let us know how you get on. 🙂

 

[Ralph-YK]

But what I don't know is, whats low carb, how many carbs are too many ? is there a number I should be aiming for?

A speaker at a diabetes support group once made the point that there isn't really a proper definition of low. Could be 130g a day. Or 40g a day.
I've heard professionals say 130g a day is the minium. There are those on the forum who are living with much less than that.
I'd suggest self testing to see the affect food has on your BG, along with with any changes you make. Keep a food diary, along with a record of your levels. After a couple of weeks you should start to see a pattern. Hopefully this will give you the information you need to make some choices.

 

[Samantha1987]

Hello this is samantha um I have type two diabetes and I have high blood pressure I am on medication I was put on medication in January this year I have bean taking it for seven months 🙂 I am 33years old

 

[ianf0ster]

Hi Autum2020,
The problem about Carbohydrates for a Type 2 Diabetic is that we all react to carbohydrates differently both in quantity of carbs and in type of carbs.

The only way you can work out how your body reacts is by testing before meals and then 2hrs after first bite with a Blood Glucose meter.

Breakfast cereals, bread, toast are completely out for most of us doing Low Carb. As are tropical fruit.
Fatty fish such as Salmon, Trout, Mackerel ; Fatty cuts of meat (if you have chicken have it with the skin); Eggs, Cheese, Nuts, Full Fat natural flavoured dairy (not low fat or skimmed milk) are in.
For some pulses and any below ground veg ma also be a problem.
I find that Google and the DietDoctor.com site (the free portion) are very good for carb quantities and carb comparisons between similar foods i.e. between different nuts, between different veg, between different fruit .

 

[Pine Marten]

Hi @Autumn2020, welcome to the forum.

Over the years I have become more tolerant of some foods, so for breakfast I normally a big (Harry Potter) mug of coffee with milk, and some combination of mushrooms, couple of tomatoes or eggs on one slice of Burgen bread (a lower carb bread) or 1 or 2 slices of Hovis Nimble. Lunch is generally a salad of some sort - lots of greenery, maybe ham/boiled eggs/cheese and a cuppa tea, and the odd Nature Valley Protein Bar.

I second the advice of getting a meter - ignore any nurse or medic who says don't bother. It's the only way to monitor your progress and discover which foods you can tolerate. It's your life after all, not theirs!

There is a low carb version of pizza dough called 'Fathead' (no idea why) which we use at home. The recipe is somewhere here, and as I'm not techy maybe someone else can find it if you can't get to it.

All the best to you. You sound well on your way to good control 🙂

 

[brisr949]

Would just like to add, you lost 9lb in 9 days, wow and way to go.

 

[Autumn2020]

Welcome to the forum @Autumn2020

Sounds like you are already making very positive changes, and your analytical and enquiring approach will be really helpful going forward. Congratulations on the weight loss... that will really help if you can keep it up. There’s a whole ‘weight loss’ section on the forum if you would like support and encouragement to reach your weight loss goals.

I would second the suggestion to consider getting hold of a BG meter, because many members over the years have discovered distinct peculiarities and ‘unexpected freebies‘ through self monitoring where things that they may have imagined to be ‘off limits’ seem to suit their body well, and conversely people have learned to avoid things with a ‘slow release’ reputation - because their body, gut biome and metabolism clearly didn’t get the memo!

Full fat yoghurt and berries (with or without a sprinkling of granola) seems to be a fairly popular low carb breakfast. Along with eggs in the form of omelette, frittata or simply poached/scrambled and eaten with mushrooms, tomatoes etc etc. Frittata is handy of you are pushed for time in the morning because it can be made beforehand and you can just grab a slice from the fridge.

But a good first step would be to get hold of a BG meter and take a look at the ‘meal rise’ (take BG immediately before eating and again 2hours after the first bite) of the things you are eating at the moment. If your BG only rises by 2-3 or less from the meal, then it’s a choice that suits you well.

Good luck, keep asking questions, and let us know how you get on. 🙂

Thank you so much for your reply, I am definitely going to look into a meter x

 

[Autumn2020]

Hi @Autumn2020, welcome to the forum.

Over the years I have become more tolerant of some foods, so for breakfast I normally a big (Harry Potter) mug of coffee with milk, and some combination of mushrooms, couple of tomatoes or eggs on one slice of Burgen bread (a lower carb bread) or 1 or 2 slices of Hovis Nimble. Lunch is generally a salad of some sort - lots of greenery, maybe ham/boiled eggs/cheese and a cuppa tea, and the odd Nature Valley Protein Bar.

I second the advice of getting a meter - ignore any nurse or medic who says don't bother. It's the only way to monitor your progress and discover which foods you can tolerate. It's your life after all, not theirs!

There is a low carb version of pizza dough called 'Fathead' (no idea why) which we use at home. The recipe is somewhere here, and as I'm not techy maybe someone else can find it if you can't get to it.

All the best to you. You sound well on your way to good control 🙂

Thank you so much for your reply. I am going to look into getting a metre. And I will look into the pizza dough, thanks for that. I still need to sit down and have a good look through the forum, recipies ect x

 

[Autumn2020]

Would just like to add, you lost 9lb in 9 days, wow and way to go.

Thank you wo much