Shocked

[SueEK]

Hello all, my name is Sue, I am 57, 5ft 9in, 10st 12lb and was diagnosed type 2 diabetic six weeks ago. I thought I had UTI but sample showed high sugar level and finger prick test showed glucose level of 20.3. I was shocked, nobody in my family has diabetes, I have never been overweight and do not like sugary foods, chocolate, cakes etc. I was given Metformin straight away and am now taking 1000mg a day. My first HbA1c was 10.4 and my second one month later was 9.4. Does anybody know if this is a good reduction in a month, average or not very good, I have no idea. I am trying to change my diet but finding it all a bit overwhelming and am so hungry, especially late morning and afternoon. I have already lost half a stone and an inch around my waist without doing any exercise. Does anyone have any advice on the above, just feeling a bit alone to be honest. Thank you.

 

[Ljc]

Hello @SueEK ,welcome to the forum. Snap, It is a shock when you find out that way isn’t it. I was also the first in my first in my family to develope it.
However with the right info which we can definitely help with , diabetes is a condition that can be managed well. Their is also no need to feel Hungry, none of us live on salad and fresh air.

Basically it’s carbohydrates our bodies can no longer too well, sugar is just another carbohydrate, we usually have no problems with protein or and this may well supprise you, good fats.
Till you find good substitutes for the fast acting carbs , ie potatoes esp mashed , rice, pasta and bread esp white fill up on vegetables and if you eat it bigger portions of meat, and as you are losing weight and don’t need to you need to increase calorie intake, so have some low carb snacks during the day, cheese and some nuts are low in carbs.

Your Hb1ac is heading in the right direction, it’s an average of our blood glucose (BG) over the past 12 or so weeks, so their would have been an overlap in your first and second test, in reality your levels have probably dropped even more.

Ask as many questions about diabetes as you need to , we’ll do our best to help.

You’ll find some helpful info here

useful-links-for-people-new-to-diabetes
For future reference you’ll find find it at the top of the newbies forum.
Scroll down to the T2 section.
I suggest you start with
maggie-daveys-letter-to-newly-diagnosed-type-2s

We are all different in what carbohydrates we can @nd can’t tolerate, ie some people are fine with porridge others need to avoid it like the plague. Most of us on here who have T2 who are not on medications that can cause hypo’s ( Metformin usually doesn’t) test our BG (blood glucose) directly before eating then two hours afterwards.
This blog explains how
test-review-adjust by Alan S

Sadly if you decide to test, it’s unlikely you’ll be provided with a glucose meter and test strips, in fact your more likely to be told it’s not necessary or things like it will only upset you
Many here use the SD Codefree glucose meter as it’s testing strips cost around £8 for a pot of 50 where other brands cost more than £15 for 50 It’s only available online

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Codefree-Glucose-Monitor-Monitoring-Testing/dp/B0068JAJFS/ref=as_li_ss_tl?s=drugstore&ie=UTF8&qid=1506485682&sr=1-1&keywords=sd+codefree+meter+mmol/l&linkCode=sl1&tag=xfm-21&linkId=f39210144fdc26c27738e45b6d957003&th=1
You’ll need to buy more test strips and a box of lancets.

Now for the good stuff , yes their is some, quite a lot actually.
Sin or sinner we bare it all here
what-did-you-eat-yesterday

We also have some great innovative cooks who put their creations here
forums/recipes.
Omg I’ve given you a great deal of homework, sorry, just take your time going through it.

 

[SueEK]

Thank you Lin, I think part of my problem, actually a big part, is that I’ve never liked vegetables, and whole meal bread, weetabix, ryvita , etc don’t like me and I have always loved bread, croissants, bagels, crumpets etc - yum. Am really struggling to replace these foods and perhaps that’s why I’m feeling hungry. The gp has suggested seeing a dietitian but only after I’ve done a DESMOND course which is not until June. I will definitely look at the information you suggest as I feel out of my depth with the food part.
Thanks

 

[Ljc]

Thank you Lin, I think part of my problem, actually a big part, is that I’ve never liked vegetables, and whole meal bread, weetabix, ryvita , etc don’t like me and I have always loved bread, croissants, bagels, crumpets etc - yum. Am really struggling to replace these foods and perhaps that’s why I’m feeling hungry. The gp has suggested seeing a dietitian but only after I’ve done a DESMOND course which is not until June. I will definitely look at the information you suggest as I feel out of my depth with the food part.
Thanks

I think you’ll find the two foodie forums I mentioned earlier very helpful then , their is lots of really nice goodies that should give you some ideas.

 

[SueEK]

Bless you and thank you Lin x

 

[Drummer]

The foods you can eat freely are meats fish shellfish, eggs cheese - anything without carbohydrates.
You can eat stir fries of low carb veges, mushrooms, aubergines courgettes sweet peppers bean sprouts tomatoes - there are lots to choose from, or you can eat salad stuff.
You can also eat fats - we actually need them and their association with ill health has never actually been proven - a graph of deaths from the things low fat is supposed to protect us from actually shows a significant increase from the time it was proposed. For lucky type two diabetics eating low carb, keto or Atkins - they are all basically the same concept, will resolve their diabetes.

 

[SueEK]

Thank you, I was told not to have any cheese larger than the size of a matchbox, groan. Unfortunately because of my hatred of veg nothing but the tomato would go in a stir fry!! I am trying very hard to add other things and I have managed a bit of swede and a small parsnip, I’m use doesn’t sound brill to you but an achievement for me, I do like salad though, also have made veg soup because when puréed I can eat it. I think it will be trial and error and early days but very much appreciate your help and support.

 

[Drummer]

As long as you pick the veges carefully then soup is fine - just don't add starch to thicken it.
I have a stick blender and use that to process food in the kitchen - it is a Bamix so a bit useful for just about any process.
There is no reason not to eat cheese - and many diabetics enjoy cream in their coffee and on berries for dessert.
I have always been of a logical and scientific mindset and the way that low fat has been pushed as good for us is something I could be really angry about if I let poor research get to me.

 

[Browser]

As advised earlier, cutting out potatoes ( especially mash ), white bread, white pasta and white rice will improve your BG. When I was diagnosed Type 2 a couple of years ago, I cut them out completely and used alternatives like celeriac, cauliflower rice, courgette spaghetti etc. and even tried making my own bread from recipes with almond flour and linseed in place of white flour. However, more recently I have had reasonable success with potatoes (even mashed), brown rice and brown pasta. I cook a batch, divide into small portions ( 150 gms mash for example) then freeze them. It seems the freezing helps slow down the release of carbs. ( I’m no expert but that’s what I’m told). Of course you’ll have to spend time experimenting and finding out what works for you.

 

[SueEK]

Thank you all very much, I really appreciate your advice

 

[HOBIE]

Hello all, my name is Sue, I am 57, 5ft 9in, 10st 12lb and was diagnosed type 2 diabetic six weeks ago. I thought I had UTI but sample showed high sugar level and finger prick test showed glucose level of 20.3. I was shocked, nobody in my family has diabetes, I have never been overweight and do not like sugary foods, chocolate, cakes etc. I was given Metformin straight away and am now taking 1000mg a day. My first HbA1c was 10.4 and my second one month later was 9.4. Does anybody know if this is a good reduction in a month, average or not very good, I have no idea. I am trying to change my diet but finding it all a bit overwhelming and am so hungry, especially late morning and afternoon. I have already lost half a stone and an inch around my waist without doing any exercise. Does anyone have any advice on the above, just feeling a bit alone to be honest. Thank you.

Welcome Sue. Your attitude is very good ! I too do not like sweet stuff but a can of Coke is full of sugar. Half the things from the supermarket have half a bag of sugar in them. I have porridge nearly every morning before work & feel full till the afternoon. Good luck 🙂