Pre-Diabetic Newbie!

[Blue-16]

Hi All,

I have joined the Forum as I have been diagnosed as being Pre-diabetic after having my Annual Review on 13/12/22 at my doctor's surgery. I was told if everything was in the normal range that my doctor's surgery would not contact unless something was found to be out of the normal range. One of the blood tests that I had found that my blood sugar was above the normal range - in the range considered to be Pre-diabetic! I was not given the exactly what my blood sugar reading was unfortunately - wish I was! I found out about this from a letter my doctor's surgery!

Blue-16
(Susan)

 

[Leadinglights]

Welcome to the forum, your diagnosis of pre diabetes means your HbA1C will be between 42 and 47mmol/mol but if you are near the lower end then some modest changes to lifestyle, primarily dietary should be sufficient to bring it back, nearer the upper end then a bit more work will be needed. Finding out what that number is will give you an idea of your starting point.
If you have weight to lose that will help as will increasing exercise if you can, but reducing your intake of carbohydrates will have most impact. As well as the obvious cakes, biscuits and sugary drinks including fruit juice which you probably want to cut out except for the occasional treat reducing your portion size of other high carb foods like potatoes, bread, pasta, rice, breakfast cereals, pastry and tropical fruits basing meals on meat, fish, eggs, cheese, dairy, vegetables and salads with only small portions of those higher carb foods.
There are still plenty of tasty filling meals you can have. This link may help you with some ideas for modifying your diet.

Freshwell Low Carb Project - Home

lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum Susan @Blue-16

Has the letter suggested any sort of follow-up? Or are you expecting to just wait for your next annual review?

We've had many members on the forum who have received similar news, and who have been able to make some positive changes to their menu, so that their metabolism finds it easier to cope, and their levels steer back away from the level that indicates a diagnosis with diabetes.

Have your levels been rising for some time? Or was your annual review connected with something else?

It's not uncommon to make this sort of discovery at some kind of 'wellness' check, because early on many people have few if any symptoms.

Hopefully you'll be able to make some modest tweaks and changes to your menu, and see an improvement in your HbA1c at your next check. Losing weight can help reduce insulin resistance, and especially if it is visceral fat around the organs, which can help your pancreas and liver function more effectively.

One of the biggest questions when trying to get to grips with being at risk of diabetes is often ‘what can I eat’ and while there are obvious things like cakes, biscuits, sweets and sugary drinks that you will want to cut out straight away, you might be surprised how much *all* carbohydrate affects your BG levels, including rice, pasta, potatoes, bread, pastry, grains, cereals and many fruits. That doesn't mean you have to avoid those things entirely - but being a little careful with portion size, and trying to choose options that convert to blood glucose more gently can really help.

Good luck, and let us know what you find out at any follow-up appointment 🙂

 

[CatsFive]

Greetings.

In your position I'd write to my GP asking what the actual results were. Or, if it's convenient, go in and ask the receptionist.

Also, if you live in Scotland you can ask to be given a referal to 'MyDiabetesMyWay'. A horrid name, but a good website that lets you view your 'diabetic information'. I believe there might be something similar in England and Wales.

It took some time and effort to get signed up to the website, but now I think everyone should be offered something similar, diabetic or not, and the website here should be rebranded as 'MyHealthInformation' or similar.

 

[Blue-16]

Hi All,

@everydayupsanddowns - Yes, it did. I'll now be having it annually since I am now at risk of developing diabetes! I don't know why I'm having Annual Reviews at all! In fact, I don't remember having any before this year! I do however have some other health issues! But, I see consultants for those!

I'll try to find out what my blood sugar reading was when I had my Annual Review!

Thanks for welcoming me to the Forum & the advise! Thankfully I'm not really into cakes & biscuits! Once a week I eat a very small amount of chocolate - dark chocolate! I don't really have a sweet tooth - I'm more savory then sweet! And really, have been for quite a few years!

Blue-16!
(Susan)