NICE Guidelines vs aspirations

[grufflybear]

Forgive me if this is already discussed before, I have just started testing myself and I have to say was pleasantly surprised at this very very early point in my dietary regime and blood testing, to find that I was just inside the NICE guidelines. This is encouraging but am I wrong in thinking that my aspiration should be to bring my levels down to the levels which NICE suggest for a non-diabetic person, rather than being content to be within the NICE guidelines for a T2 person. I am just beginning and perhaps trying to assimilate too much information but I have the kind of mind which wants to analyse and understand.

 

[Mark T]

That's a good aspiration.

You might be interested to read the following article:
Blood Sugar 101: What is a Normal Blood Sugar: http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes/16422495.php

 

[Northerner]

It's very much down to the individual I think. You and I are similar - I like to feel in control and years of running has made me always want to do as well as possible whatever aspect of my life is involved! 🙂

Ideally, you want to be getting stability in your levels, so that they don't rise and fall too much after eating and befre the next meal, so the ultimate goal is to try and stay within 2.5 mmol/l of your pre-meal reading. To achieve this you need to discover what foods are best for you in terms of releasing their energy in a slow, steady way so your body is better able to cope, and you achieve this by testing before and perhaps at one and two hours after eating so you can find the 'peak' of that particular meal. Don't, however, be surprised if the same meal produces unexpected results the next time - the process is gradual as you gain experience over time. There are many other factors besides food that can have an effect so you may eat something one day and the next get quite a different reading for it, but it may be that you have an illness coming on, or it's too hot or too cold, or you were more/less active etc.!

Aiming for an HbA1c of 6.5% or below will signifcantly reduce your risk of most of the complications of diabetes. 🙂

 

[Robster65]

I can't really add anything to what's been said but would say that you may (unless very lucky) find the attitude of your medical support team rather more casual.

Many take the approach of near enough is good enough, possibly after years of trying to instill enthusiasm in reluctant patients, but nonetheless frustrating when you're aiming to improve and they show surprise and often tell you that you are being too fussy or obesessive.🙄

Best of luck.🙂

Rob

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Good thoughts so far. There's a graph somewhere (Northie linked it I think) which serves as an encouragement to make minor changes for me... The supposed likelihood of developing D nasties rises quite sharply, so that even tiny improvements once you are 'officially' on-target (often sub 7%) are well worth making.

7.0 to 6.8 may not sound like much but the risk reduction is worth the effort

Same applies all the way up too whatever level you start at it really is worth chipping away at.