Hi.. Not sure what to expect long term, after having problem with my eye sight, I was advise to have a test for diabetes, had a 21.9 reading.That was 3weeks ago, my doctor says blood sugar still too high (around 14-18) and that I might need insuline... he has alter my medication twice now, I'm take 4 metaformin 3 times a day and Glicazide twice a day... have cut out all sugar in my drinks / food and have stopped eating fruit,still cannot lower the readings, dont know what else to do.... my question is has anyone else manage to lower their readings without the need for insuline, how did you manage it, I have 3weeks to get it down, this is beginning to get to me... still waiting for my appointment with diabetic clinic, so cannot ask questions till it comes thou. many thanks
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Newly diagnosed
- Thread starter davej
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Pete H
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Welcome to the forum davej, hope you get things under control,and these guys will give you loads more advice than I can, but start looking at your carbs as well I was cutting all my sugars down but was not told about carbohydrates till I came on this forum, now my reading have come down. Best of luck ..
Northerner
Admin (Retired)
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Hi Davej, welcome to the forum 🙂 Sorry to hear about your diagnosis. The main thing to bear in mind is carbohydrate - all carbs convert to glucose and raise your blood glucose levels. So, it's worth starting a food diary and writing down the amount of carbs in everything you eat and drink. You can then review this and look for areas where you might reduce or replace things e.g. more green veg in place of potatoes. It's still early days for you, and your levels are reducing, but you can help things along by reducing carbs. What sort of things have you been eating?
I would recommend reading Jennifer's Advice and Maggie Davey's letter, and getting a copy of Type 2 Diabetes: The First Year by Gretchen Becker to help you gain a good understanding of diabetes and how best to tackle it.
It's difficult to say whether you will need insulin or not, as people's experiences can vary a great deal. Some people can manage their diabetes with good diet and exercise, some need the support of medication, some need insulin. Certainly, it is possible to improve things by following an appropriate diet and being active - this is true whether you are on insulin or not. Being fit and active and watching the amount of carbs in your diet will make you more sensitive to any insulin your pancreas is producing, but for some people this is still insufficient, so they need to inject extra.
Please ask any questions you may have, and we will do our best to help! 🙂
I would recommend reading Jennifer's Advice and Maggie Davey's letter, and getting a copy of Type 2 Diabetes: The First Year by Gretchen Becker to help you gain a good understanding of diabetes and how best to tackle it.
It's difficult to say whether you will need insulin or not, as people's experiences can vary a great deal. Some people can manage their diabetes with good diet and exercise, some need the support of medication, some need insulin. Certainly, it is possible to improve things by following an appropriate diet and being active - this is true whether you are on insulin or not. Being fit and active and watching the amount of carbs in your diet will make you more sensitive to any insulin your pancreas is producing, but for some people this is still insufficient, so they need to inject extra.
Please ask any questions you may have, and we will do our best to help! 🙂
Many thanks for your fast response.. I'm confused now, as I was told to take to make sure I took my metaformin with carbs as I was getting loose stools, must admit the dairy sounds like a good idea...I've been on this computor the past few days, trying to find answers. I wish I had come across this forum a couple of weeks ago....will be going on google to find "The First year" straight away.., CHEERS
Northerner
Admin (Retired)
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
You're welcome Dave. You don't need to go completely carb-free, just make sure you don't overdo things. People also find that they tolerate things differently, so some are happy with porridge or toast in the mornings, whereas others have to steer clear of them. The best way to find out how you tolerate different things is to use your blood glucose meter and follow a testing plan. This means testing before you eat then one and two hours after eating to see how much the food raised your levels. It means quite a bit of testing initially, but once you have a good idea of what works and what doesn't for you then you won't need to test quite so often.
Another thing to bear in mind, if you drive, is that you must test before driving as you are on gliclizide, just to make sure your levels are not too low (I know this might not seem a possibility with your levels being generally high, but better to be safe than sorry and it is also a requirement of the DVLA).
Many thanks for the advice...I have been given a kit to measure, but was only asked to record 4 times a day (before meals, never after) I will now increase the readings to include after meals, for my benifit.. one last thing do you know where the best place to buy the test strips (GlucoRX Nexus) as my doctor only gave me 50 (200 lances) so I will need more if I increase my readings, my local store sells them AT ?5,95 FOR 10....CHEERS
Pete H
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Best deal which these guys put me on to is Off Amazon you buy the kit which contains the monitor and I think ten free strips , then you can buy the strips which are 50 for about 7 or 8 pounds,and it's called code free.. I was paying about ?18 before ..
Northerner
Admin (Retired)
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
As Pete says, the cheapest option we have come across here is the SD Codefree Meter with test strips at around ?7 for 50.
itsallgood
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Welcome Dave - for what it's worth (as we're all different) I find dark green leafy veg like spinach, savoy cabbage, green beans etc are *fantastic* for lowering BG.
Many thanks for all your help today... have just visited the site placed an order, I know I get them free from my doctor, but ITS 3 WEEKS till I see him again, plus I want to increase my readings.At least my eyesight has retuned to normal, that was a worry, as I'm A photographer !!!!
Hi Davej
i was diagnosed in December with bg of 10.4 i cut out carbs which for me meant no bread rice pasta cereals potatoes etc, i had another hba1c in january 6 weeks after my first and my reading was 6.5. I aim to eat no mare than 30g of carbs a day, but as i love meat, fish, eggs, cheese and all veg and salad stuff i dont miss all the starchy carbs i used to eat in fact i feel better than i have done in years, just remember with this there is no one size fits all, you will have to test after eating to see what spikes you, good luck mate.
Mark
i was diagnosed in December with bg of 10.4 i cut out carbs which for me meant no bread rice pasta cereals potatoes etc, i had another hba1c in january 6 weeks after my first and my reading was 6.5. I aim to eat no mare than 30g of carbs a day, but as i love meat, fish, eggs, cheese and all veg and salad stuff i dont miss all the starchy carbs i used to eat in fact i feel better than i have done in years, just remember with this there is no one size fits all, you will have to test after eating to see what spikes you, good luck mate.
Mark
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