Hello, I wondered if anyone knows a T2 medically qualified expert you can perhaps book an hour or so with to go through all sorts of questions about T2? And if so recommend / provide contact details for eg a website or whatever please? I’m newly diagnosed and want to sit down with someone if such services exist (not a volunteer, I need them to be able to say with confidence yes or no to questions as such with authority and have found the former best endeavours not quite enough sometimes) Any known recommendations be appreciated. Thank you.
-
Please Remember: Members are only permitted to share their own experiences. Members are not qualified to give medical advice. Additionally, everyone manages their health differently. Please be respectful of other people's opinions about their own diabetes management.
-
Learn more about joining the Diabetes UK Support Forum team here: https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/volunteering-opportunities-why-dont-you-join-us.112862/
Type 2 Consultant (n/a now…but some further questions, skip to #23 onwards
- Thread starter Deli06
- Start date
- Status
Leadinglights
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Welcome to the forum.
There is an awful lot of expertise from people who live with Type 2 and manage their condition by various strategies on the forum also the Learning Zone and some of the links people post are full of information.
Usually people who are Type 2 are under the care of their GP and a diabetic nurse at their surgery and only would get referred to a diabetic specialist clinic if there were more complex issues.
As everybody is different managing the condition is a very personal thing as one size does not fit all so many need to become their own expert by employing all the tools to get to grips with the condition.
People here will be all to willing to answer your questions but reading around the forum should help clarify things for you.
I found this link very helpful in that there is good explanation and some do's and don't and there are some menu plans and recipes for a low carb approach which many find successful. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
It is a regime that is suitable for those who are dietary managed or only taking metformin.
How you approach managing your condition depends on what your HbA1C is and if you are on any medication and if you have weight to lose.
Thank you and yes, lots of questions I have alluded to in your reply hence why I wanted to speak to someone in a consolidated professional capacity really. As you say, it’s all rather personal and dependent on xyz. Practice Nurse has been diligent and helpful with monitoring me and says doing very well. But the NHS “5-10”min slot doesn’t leave much time to answer all your questions, hence wondered if anyone has a recommended professionally qualified doctor practicer type who it’s possible to make an appointment with and discuss T2 and me as the specialist subject! 🙂
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Hi and welcome from me too.
I have never heard anyone mention such a service. There are one or two who have had a private "in person" consultation with a diabetes specialist, mostly because they had complex cases where their diabetes classification could not be ascertained and they were having difficulty getting an NHS referral or any clear guidance. I am not sure a single appointment will get to the bottom of a complex case and a straightforward case really doesn't warrant spending hundreds of pounds.... or that money could be better spend by investing in some testing/monitoring kit.
Most people who come to the forum find that the knowledge and experience of members here far exceeds anything their Health Care Professionals can offer. I am Type 1 on insulin and over the past 5 years since diagnosis I have learned far more from people here by trying their suggestions out and seeing what works, than my consultant has ever told me and in fact he has learned a few things from me. As @Leadinglights says, it is best to do some reading and then trial and improvement through testing to become your own expert. Diabetes is highly individual, so what works for one person may not work for another and only you are in a position to experiment on yourself and find out what works for you. We can make suggestions as to what to try, but only you can test and see how your body responds. The other benefit of the forum is that you don't just get one answer, but a whole spectrum of answers depending upon each person's experience
What sort of things are you wanting answers to?
I have never heard anyone mention such a service. There are one or two who have had a private "in person" consultation with a diabetes specialist, mostly because they had complex cases where their diabetes classification could not be ascertained and they were having difficulty getting an NHS referral or any clear guidance. I am not sure a single appointment will get to the bottom of a complex case and a straightforward case really doesn't warrant spending hundreds of pounds.... or that money could be better spend by investing in some testing/monitoring kit.
Most people who come to the forum find that the knowledge and experience of members here far exceeds anything their Health Care Professionals can offer. I am Type 1 on insulin and over the past 5 years since diagnosis I have learned far more from people here by trying their suggestions out and seeing what works, than my consultant has ever told me and in fact he has learned a few things from me. As @Leadinglights says, it is best to do some reading and then trial and improvement through testing to become your own expert. Diabetes is highly individual, so what works for one person may not work for another and only you are in a position to experiment on yourself and find out what works for you. We can make suggestions as to what to try, but only you can test and see how your body responds. The other benefit of the forum is that you don't just get one answer, but a whole spectrum of answers depending upon each person's experience
What sort of things are you wanting answers to?
Thank you for responding. Kind of you. If such a consultation doesn’t exist that’s fine, I simply wondered if anyone had come across to help expedite understanding.
Admittedly finding it hard to know where to start, and find answers specific to eg why a reading differs completely if taken only 10-15 secs apart, what it should be at what time after what eaten or drunk etc. An endless list seemingly which there may not be a consensus on here about. Hence why thought might be possible or better to ask a seasoned pro in a constancy capacity.
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Readings wise, the meters are nowhere near as accurate as the decimal place suggests, and blood is not homogenous, plus levels are constantly changing, so totally normal to get different readings even from the same spot of blood on two different test strips, tested seconds apart It can take a bit of getting your head around, but once you accept it How disparate are the readings you got. If they round up or down to 1mmol difference that is good enough, so if you get 7.2 and 8.3 you are likely somewhere in between, so about 7.6. If you get a 7.2 and a 13.8 then it may be a rogue test strip or some contamination on your fingers or the test strip and you would double check. It is always recommended to double check any result which seems out of the ordinary.
If you are using your meter to test how your body responds to meals, then testing just before you start to eat and then 2 hours later is the suggested protocol and you are looking for a rise of no more than 3 mmols, so if your premeal reading is 8.7 and 2 hours later it is less than 11.7 then your meal was reasonably OK. It may well have spiked a bit higher in between those two tests but you are looking to see if your body's insulin response was able to bring it down again in a timely matter. If it is higher than that 11.7 in this example, then you ate too many carbs for your body to cope and next time you have that meal, you need to reduce the portion of the carb rich elements. The before meal reading is important at least in the early days because your levels may already be above range, so you need to know the difference between the 2 readings, not just the after meal reading. If you can adjust your meals so that the rise is less than 3mmols, the premeal reading will gradually come down into range and your levels will go less high after the meal.
Once your levels come down into range you are looking for it to be between 4 and 7mmols on waking and before meals and no more than 8.5 two hours after meals. Again, that doesn't mean that it stays below 8.5 all the time, but that your body is able to bring it down to below 8.5 2 hours after the meal, and continue to bring it down into the 4-7 range before the next meal.
Hopefully those answer your initial questions but keep them coming. This is the way that we all learned from the forum.
If you are using your meter to test how your body responds to meals, then testing just before you start to eat and then 2 hours later is the suggested protocol and you are looking for a rise of no more than 3 mmols, so if your premeal reading is 8.7 and 2 hours later it is less than 11.7 then your meal was reasonably OK. It may well have spiked a bit higher in between those two tests but you are looking to see if your body's insulin response was able to bring it down again in a timely matter. If it is higher than that 11.7 in this example, then you ate too many carbs for your body to cope and next time you have that meal, you need to reduce the portion of the carb rich elements. The before meal reading is important at least in the early days because your levels may already be above range, so you need to know the difference between the 2 readings, not just the after meal reading. If you can adjust your meals so that the rise is less than 3mmols, the premeal reading will gradually come down into range and your levels will go less high after the meal.
Once your levels come down into range you are looking for it to be between 4 and 7mmols on waking and before meals and no more than 8.5 two hours after meals. Again, that doesn't mean that it stays below 8.5 all the time, but that your body is able to bring it down to below 8.5 2 hours after the meal, and continue to bring it down into the 4-7 range before the next meal.
Hopefully those answer your initial questions but keep them coming. This is the way that we all learned from the forum.
AndBreathe
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
It might help if you could expand a little on the queries you have?
I see a very good Endo, for my thyroid, and as a professor, he is extremely well qualified in edo matters. He also happens to be the guy the cases heading for the "too difficult" bucket see. (That's how I came to see him). That said, his in depth knowledge of T2 likely to be more scant than most of us would hope.
I don't say the foregoing to knock your confidence, just report on my findings.
Dependent on your specific queries, you might be better seeing a very clued up GP. There are some out there - honestly!
Proud to be erratic
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 3c
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Hello @Deli06 and Welcome also from me.
In his book "Think Like a Pancreas" (written specifically for those of us who are insulin dependent and so probably not too much help to you) Gary Scheiner observes that 'Diabetes is Complicated, Confusing and Contradictory'. That observation certainly is true for all of us, regardless of Type that has been diagnosed.
Indeed the very diagnosis of T2 embraces many different nuances of diabetes. T2 could be people who are just underproducing enough insulin to keep up with their daily living or people who produce masses of insulin but whose bodies have seriously strong natural resistance to their own insulin and so need pretty draconian dietary regimes to limit the amount of glucose being created by their metabolism. For some people, despite their own very best efforts and restraint, and with an excess of own insulin, they can still end up needing to take extra artificial insulin. [How unfair is that?] T2 can be caused by other wholly necessary medications or just arrive unannounced. T2 can even be misdiagnosed and be some other Type, such is its potentially contradictory symptoms.
Hence Gary Scheiner's 'Complicated and Confusing'.
So while I recognise that you are seeking an expert on T2 who might in an hour authoritatively answer many of your questions, I very much doubt such an individual exists. There are various diabetes books and 'programmes' sold that claim by following their way will cure (or control, or just manage for most of the month) T2 diabetes. Some of these methods are quite different from others (Confusing?) and work for some people but not others; or the reverse! I think the only real expert on your T2 will be YOU; and that may need a few weeks to master, or the rest of your life. After all only YOU will know whether you have diligently not eaten the wrong / inappropriate thing; only YOU will know what was the wrong thing! And was that wrong thing potentially compensated by exercise or activity, that only you might know (even in hindsight) that you could have done?
So your authoritive expert might need much more than an hour just to know about you and your medical background, even before attempting to answer your specific questions. And almost certainly will need to qualify each answer with 'it depends on ....' .
From this somewhat depressing response by me I think you are very much in the right place here on this Forum. There is a huge wealth of accumulated knowledge here and the owners of that knowledge seem happy to share their experiences without charge - each in the light of their unique circumstances. Many will have already done some of the experiments that you are about to try for yourself and their results may work brilliantly for you. You just need to ask questions and generally someone will offer answers.
But there probably is no perfect generic answer - and that's OK. If there was a perfect way then in light of the cost of diabetes to the NHS and other National medical agencies it would be bottled and given to everyone who needed it. It wouldn't need to be sold, indeed there would be a huge cost saving if those who needed a bottle were paid to take it! Such is the consequential cost of any Diabetes.
To help you manage your expectations @Deli06 you are already halfway on top of this rotten diagnosis just by being here and wanting to know how you can crack this. You might be surprised to know how many people do almost nothing even after getting such a diagnosis. Perfect control of YOUR T2 is an ideal aspiration and likely to mentally break you in striving for that. Good management of YOUR T2 is highly possible and need not be a huge burden. The secret will be in finding a routine that fits in with YOUR lifestyle, including menu choices that are both enjoyable and repeatable. So managing YOUR T2 becomes your normal way of life with least intrusion to your lifestyle. This will be challenging at first but hopefully just 'normal' quite quickly.
I've assumed that you already have a test meter and strips to help you with understanding how your food and exercise choices affect you. It could be that self-funding a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) such as Libre 2 (ON AN OCCASIONAL BASIS) could give you even more understanding about what works for you; Libre 2 is well suited to this as a 14 day bit of kit that is then discarded. Wear one for a fortnight and systematically explore 3 or 4 aspects; then be without for one, two or more fortnight's consolidating what you've found out. Then self-fund and wear another for a fortnight to explore some different aspects. But be aware that CGMs can overwhelm some people with that continuous stream of data AND although it displays numbers to within one decimal point that level of accuracy is false.
Welcome again. Do keep asking questions and perhaps have a look at the Learning zone (needs a seperate registration) where there is plenty of information that might help you in bite size chunks.
In his book "Think Like a Pancreas" (written specifically for those of us who are insulin dependent and so probably not too much help to you) Gary Scheiner observes that 'Diabetes is Complicated, Confusing and Contradictory'. That observation certainly is true for all of us, regardless of Type that has been diagnosed.
Indeed the very diagnosis of T2 embraces many different nuances of diabetes. T2 could be people who are just underproducing enough insulin to keep up with their daily living or people who produce masses of insulin but whose bodies have seriously strong natural resistance to their own insulin and so need pretty draconian dietary regimes to limit the amount of glucose being created by their metabolism. For some people, despite their own very best efforts and restraint, and with an excess of own insulin, they can still end up needing to take extra artificial insulin. [How unfair is that?] T2 can be caused by other wholly necessary medications or just arrive unannounced. T2 can even be misdiagnosed and be some other Type, such is its potentially contradictory symptoms.
Hence Gary Scheiner's 'Complicated and Confusing'.
So while I recognise that you are seeking an expert on T2 who might in an hour authoritatively answer many of your questions, I very much doubt such an individual exists. There are various diabetes books and 'programmes' sold that claim by following their way will cure (or control, or just manage for most of the month) T2 diabetes. Some of these methods are quite different from others (Confusing?) and work for some people but not others; or the reverse! I think the only real expert on your T2 will be YOU; and that may need a few weeks to master, or the rest of your life. After all only YOU will know whether you have diligently not eaten the wrong / inappropriate thing; only YOU will know what was the wrong thing! And was that wrong thing potentially compensated by exercise or activity, that only you might know (even in hindsight) that you could have done?
So your authoritive expert might need much more than an hour just to know about you and your medical background, even before attempting to answer your specific questions. And almost certainly will need to qualify each answer with 'it depends on ....' .
From this somewhat depressing response by me I think you are very much in the right place here on this Forum. There is a huge wealth of accumulated knowledge here and the owners of that knowledge seem happy to share their experiences without charge - each in the light of their unique circumstances. Many will have already done some of the experiments that you are about to try for yourself and their results may work brilliantly for you. You just need to ask questions and generally someone will offer answers.
But there probably is no perfect generic answer - and that's OK. If there was a perfect way then in light of the cost of diabetes to the NHS and other National medical agencies it would be bottled and given to everyone who needed it. It wouldn't need to be sold, indeed there would be a huge cost saving if those who needed a bottle were paid to take it! Such is the consequential cost of any Diabetes.
To help you manage your expectations @Deli06 you are already halfway on top of this rotten diagnosis just by being here and wanting to know how you can crack this. You might be surprised to know how many people do almost nothing even after getting such a diagnosis. Perfect control of YOUR T2 is an ideal aspiration and likely to mentally break you in striving for that. Good management of YOUR T2 is highly possible and need not be a huge burden. The secret will be in finding a routine that fits in with YOUR lifestyle, including menu choices that are both enjoyable and repeatable. So managing YOUR T2 becomes your normal way of life with least intrusion to your lifestyle. This will be challenging at first but hopefully just 'normal' quite quickly.
I've assumed that you already have a test meter and strips to help you with understanding how your food and exercise choices affect you. It could be that self-funding a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) such as Libre 2 (ON AN OCCASIONAL BASIS) could give you even more understanding about what works for you; Libre 2 is well suited to this as a 14 day bit of kit that is then discarded. Wear one for a fortnight and systematically explore 3 or 4 aspects; then be without for one, two or more fortnight's consolidating what you've found out. Then self-fund and wear another for a fortnight to explore some different aspects. But be aware that CGMs can overwhelm some people with that continuous stream of data AND although it displays numbers to within one decimal point that level of accuracy is false.
Welcome again. Do keep asking questions and perhaps have a look at the Learning zone (needs a seperate registration) where there is plenty of information that might help you in bite size chunks.
@Deli06 The answer to your question about the questions you need to ask is that no one person will be able to answer all of them. You need to consult at least three experts, one about the disease, one about diet and nutrition, and one about personal management. That's if you are one of the vast majority who have T2D plain and simple.
A world leading expert and a practicing doctor is Professor Roy Taylor. He has worked on diabetes for 30 years and in c.2008 proved T2D is reversible into permanent remission for the newly diagnosed. You should read his book 'Life without Diabetes' before considering your options and arranging a consultation with anyone else.
- Roy Taylor. Information for Doctors:
- Roy Taylor. Achieving T2D remission (May 2023):
Roy Taylor's partner in the DiRECT study was Mike Lean, Professor of Nutrition at Glasgow University. He also has studied diabetes for over 30 years and was the perhaps the first to observe that people who lose 15 kg or more can go into remission. He was a member of the European committee which came up with the latest dietary recommendations for diabetics last year.
- Professor Mike Lean, Cambridge seminar, Genetic disposition (Feb 2023)
Dr David Unwin is a luminary among GPs treating T2Ds. He prefers diet to medication and has been outstandingly successful:
- The nuts & bolts of drug free T2 diabetes remission by Dr David Unwin:
- Diet sheet: phcuk.org/wp-content/uploads/A_5_page_low_carb_diet_leaflet_Unwin_2021-converted.pdf
For the views of some international experts try Diabetes Unpacked
Everyone reacts to diabetes in their own way so there is no one expert to consult about that. You will be by far and away the most important person in managing your condition. That's why you would be wise to consult here with people on this forum who have to deal with their condition in their own way for the rest of their life. It is a mine of information to help you deal with yours.
A world leading expert and a practicing doctor is Professor Roy Taylor. He has worked on diabetes for 30 years and in c.2008 proved T2D is reversible into permanent remission for the newly diagnosed. You should read his book 'Life without Diabetes' before considering your options and arranging a consultation with anyone else.
- Roy Taylor. Information for Doctors:
- Roy Taylor. Achieving T2D remission (May 2023):
Roy Taylor's partner in the DiRECT study was Mike Lean, Professor of Nutrition at Glasgow University. He also has studied diabetes for over 30 years and was the perhaps the first to observe that people who lose 15 kg or more can go into remission. He was a member of the European committee which came up with the latest dietary recommendations for diabetics last year.
- Professor Mike Lean, Cambridge seminar, Genetic disposition (Feb 2023)
Dr David Unwin is a luminary among GPs treating T2Ds. He prefers diet to medication and has been outstandingly successful:
- The nuts & bolts of drug free T2 diabetes remission by Dr David Unwin:
- Diet sheet: phcuk.org/wp-content/uploads/A_5_page_low_carb_diet_leaflet_Unwin_2021-converted.pdf
For the views of some international experts try Diabetes Unpacked
Everyone reacts to diabetes in their own way so there is no one expert to consult about that. You will be by far and away the most important person in managing your condition. That's why you would be wise to consult here with people on this forum who have to deal with their condition in their own way for the rest of their life. It is a mine of information to help you deal with yours.
Last edited:
Welcome @Deli06
Sorry to read about your recent diagnosis but congratulations and wanting to learn and get on top of it.
As others have said, there is often no correct answer which is why "volunteers" may not appear to have confidence to say "yes" or "no". A Good consultant will have equal trouble giving you a specific answer. A Bad consultant may suggest there is a right way but that is as likely to be to fuel their own ego as much as actually knowing.
There are many many books and videos and websites that you can read. However, we all learn differently. For example, give me a video and I will switch off after about 90 seconds but allow me to have a conversation and I could be engaged for hours. Your request for a consultation suggest you may also be someone who learns by asking questions rather than searching for answers amongst reams (or hours) of irrelevance.
My suggestions for this kind of approach are
- call the Diabetes UK helpline (number is at the top of every page)
- ask on the forum
- checking out the Learning Zone (the orange tab at the top of the page). This will not give you the chance to ask questions but the topics are short so you can dip ion and out of the ones of interest rather than trawling through hour long videos to find the 30 second nugget.
Neither will give you access to a "professional" but there are more years of experience here than in the mind of one endocrinologist.
Sorry to read about your recent diagnosis but congratulations and wanting to learn and get on top of it.
As others have said, there is often no correct answer which is why "volunteers" may not appear to have confidence to say "yes" or "no". A Good consultant will have equal trouble giving you a specific answer. A Bad consultant may suggest there is a right way but that is as likely to be to fuel their own ego as much as actually knowing.
There are many many books and videos and websites that you can read. However, we all learn differently. For example, give me a video and I will switch off after about 90 seconds but allow me to have a conversation and I could be engaged for hours. Your request for a consultation suggest you may also be someone who learns by asking questions rather than searching for answers amongst reams (or hours) of irrelevance.
My suggestions for this kind of approach are
- call the Diabetes UK helpline (number is at the top of every page)
- ask on the forum
- checking out the Learning Zone (the orange tab at the top of the page). This will not give you the chance to ask questions but the topics are short so you can dip ion and out of the ones of interest rather than trawling through hour long videos to find the 30 second nugget.
Neither will give you access to a "professional" but there are more years of experience here than in the mind of one endocrinologist.
Proud to be erratic
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 3c
- Pronouns
- He/Him
@Deli06, at risk of bombarding you today - have a look at
this link - Community chat with people about remission.
forum.diabetes.org.uk
You will see there are a multitude of ways suggested for managing T2 leading to sufficient recovery to be called remission. (Only T2s can contemplate some form of remission, until a specific cure for T1 is found.) Many of those remissions don't endure without sustained commitment to the basic treatment path.
this link - Community chat with people about remission.
Community - Chat with People about Remission
forum.diabetes.org.uk
You will see there are a multitude of ways suggested for managing T2 leading to sufficient recovery to be called remission. (Only T2s can contemplate some form of remission, until a specific cure for T1 is found.) Many of those remissions don't endure without sustained commitment to the basic treatment path.
Hello all, I just wanted to thank everyone for taking the time and trouble to respond. It means a lot, and I'm already learning / have changed tact accordingly. Absolutely no point searching for said expert because ultimately it's....(drum role)....me! Or will be given time. Thank you making me realise this.
It's been a crazy day, my stress levels are through the roof at the moment because of work and a house move so only now able to respond and really just wanted to say thank you @rebrascora @helli @Proud to be erratic @JITR @AndBreathe and @Leadinglights for such amazing replies. The kindness of strangers et al. I'm truly humbled, thank you. I shall now take stock/digest, visit the learning zone, investigate the recommended reading and videos you've all suggested. And come back with a list of questions I'm still not sure about.
One question I do have for now though concerns alcohol, if I may? I really don't drink at home. Almost never. I do enjoy a weekly pint of lager or ale, at a push 2 pints, at my local when out walking the dogs on a Friday after work. It's more the social situation in truth, though I have also used drinking wine and beer in moderation (e.g. maybe 4-6 drinks a week) to get me through some very tough periods in past couple of years. Should I consign this 'habit' entirely to history? I know light beer is better, and no beer better still. I suppose the question I'm asking is cumulatively, is this really going to harm me and I would be strongly advised to change even the occasional alcoholic drink to sparkling water?
It's been a crazy day, my stress levels are through the roof at the moment because of work and a house move so only now able to respond and really just wanted to say thank you @rebrascora @helli @Proud to be erratic @JITR @AndBreathe and @Leadinglights for such amazing replies. The kindness of strangers et al. I'm truly humbled, thank you. I shall now take stock/digest, visit the learning zone, investigate the recommended reading and videos you've all suggested. And come back with a list of questions I'm still not sure about.
One question I do have for now though concerns alcohol, if I may? I really don't drink at home. Almost never. I do enjoy a weekly pint of lager or ale, at a push 2 pints, at my local when out walking the dogs on a Friday after work. It's more the social situation in truth, though I have also used drinking wine and beer in moderation (e.g. maybe 4-6 drinks a week) to get me through some very tough periods in past couple of years. Should I consign this 'habit' entirely to history? I know light beer is better, and no beer better still. I suppose the question I'm asking is cumulatively, is this really going to harm me and I would be strongly advised to change even the occasional alcoholic drink to sparkling water?
Leadinglights
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
You have not said if you are on any medication where alcohol may not be too good a mix but many manage to have alcohol in moderation.
Dry wines are low carb as are spirits with diet mixers, normal beers and lagers are higher carb but there has been mention of some acceptable low carb beers appearing but whether they are in pubs I'm not sure. Liqueurs are awful for carbs.
Somebody once said it is not the alcohol that does the damage it is when too much means you make bad decisions about what you then eat eg chips, kebabs you know the sort of thing.
Sorry, yes I'm on metformin 500mg, two tablets twice a day. Plus Atorvastatin 40mg one tablet a day. I'm not a liqueurs or spirits person, never have been. Nor wine especially. Just quite enjoy a regular pint of beer, maybe 2, once a week. Very true re: bad decisions, when I drank a lot as a younger man I was always being 'ambushed' by fast food! Now though, I steer clear of these because of T2. Brown food is pretty much all carbs as you allude.
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
The main thing with alcohol is that it is empty calories so if you need to lose weight, that is probably the first consideration, which is a short term issue hopefully rather than a lifelong change. Then you may have to consider the carbohydrate content. Dry wines and spirits with or without diet mixers are low carb, so no problem with those. Beer/lager/cider contain more carbs but some low carb options are appearing on the market, so it depends how committed you are to beer/lager and what low carb options are available in your local or if you are happy changing to dry wine or spirits and diet mixers.
So initially it may depend upon the route you want to take to manage your diabetes and/or perhaps try to push it into remission. On the Newcastle very low calorie diet which is propounded by Prof Roy Taylor in the video above, short term you would be looking to pass on the alcohol until you achieved the necessary weight loss. With a low carb approach to your diabetes management it is more a lifelong change but you could probably continue your weekly ritual but perhaps sub a wine or G&T or low carb beer for your usual tipple, or factor the carbs into your daily allowance and cut something else if you really enjoy a particular beer/lager.
Finding what works for you, what you really enjoy and prioritizing that over things you enjoy less is a work in progress with diabetes. The combination of a pint and a walk might counteract each other and you may not even see any significant rise in your BG, so only you will know if it is something you can fit into your diabetes management.
Can I ask how your diagnosis came about? Was it found during a routine blood test or were you symptomatic and if so which symptoms? Have you been given any medication for it and do you know your HbA1c result (the blood test used to diagnose diabetes) It will usually be a number in excess of 47 but can be into 3 figures if things are significantly awry. If you are only just over the threshold then some minor lifestyle changes should be enough and the pint might be fine. If you are up near 100, I might be inclined to go easy on the alcohol for a while until you get things under a bit better control..... so again.... "it depends" on your particular circumstances.
So initially it may depend upon the route you want to take to manage your diabetes and/or perhaps try to push it into remission. On the Newcastle very low calorie diet which is propounded by Prof Roy Taylor in the video above, short term you would be looking to pass on the alcohol until you achieved the necessary weight loss. With a low carb approach to your diabetes management it is more a lifelong change but you could probably continue your weekly ritual but perhaps sub a wine or G&T or low carb beer for your usual tipple, or factor the carbs into your daily allowance and cut something else if you really enjoy a particular beer/lager.
Finding what works for you, what you really enjoy and prioritizing that over things you enjoy less is a work in progress with diabetes. The combination of a pint and a walk might counteract each other and you may not even see any significant rise in your BG, so only you will know if it is something you can fit into your diabetes management.
Can I ask how your diagnosis came about? Was it found during a routine blood test or were you symptomatic and if so which symptoms? Have you been given any medication for it and do you know your HbA1c result (the blood test used to diagnose diabetes) It will usually be a number in excess of 47 but can be into 3 figures if things are significantly awry. If you are only just over the threshold then some minor lifestyle changes should be enough and the pint might be fine. If you are up near 100, I might be inclined to go easy on the alcohol for a while until you get things under a bit better control..... so again.... "it depends" on your particular circumstances.
Hi and no problem asking not least because you're being so kind and helpful. I really appreciate. My diagnosis came about from another blood test. I'd probably been for some time (lockdown / covid) but not picked up until. I think back then, my HbA1c was 90+ upon diagnosis but within 3 months and major lifestyle changes it was way down. When last checked, in January, the nurse said I'm now 48 or 46. I can't remember which off top head, but the nurse was pleased. I'm obese, but have lost weight. I'm 6ft and weigh 15st so have 2 more stone at least to get rid of. At my highest I was 17st+. I walk a lot daily because of my dogs. But I'm desk bound for much of the day and I don't exercise a side from walking 3 times a day for maybe 90-120mins in total, though sometimes up to 4hrs daily at weekends. I know I need to do more 'real exercise' although I did manage to run 5k in 30mins exact though the couch to 5k NHS app a couple years ago. I've restarted this now it's getting lighter in the evenings, and want to get to 10k one day. As with many I suppose, snacking is my achilles. I absolutely crave all the bad stuff, even now, in the late evening watching tv especially. Although writing this, I realise just how far I've come because I've stopped eating crisps and sweets etc almost altogether for many months now.
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
That is a fantastic reduction in HbA1c so many congratulations on achieving that. When you have worked hard at making changes as you have, it is important to acknowledge just how far you have come and what you have achieved. Yes we could probably all do a bit better and push ourselves harder and restrict our diet a bit more, but it is important to balance our effort with also enjoying life and diabetes is all about finding that balance. If you can maintain your HbA1c in the mid to upper 40s then that significantly reduces the risks of diabetic complications, if you feel you want to push it a bit lower and try for remission then fair enough but it isn't essential. You could do some testing to find particular foods that spike your levels more than others and fine tune your diet a bit more to substitute those foods for lower carb ones, if you haven't already been doing that and you could try to fit in a bit more exercise but to be honest it doesn't have to be anything overly exertive. A good brisk walk is as good as anything. Maybe pick up the pace of your dog walks if your dog is up to that and add in some hills to get you breathing more deeply and heart rate increased. Small sustainable changes are the best.
Please note, Prof Roy Taylor's concluding message in the video above. He emphasises weight loss 'by any means' to achieve target.
Hundreds of people wrote to him after the results of the original Counterpoint study were announced. They wanted to diet by themselves for remission. He advised them to adopt a portion controlled diet (not the Newcastle Diet).
Prof Taylor was first to call for research into diets for remission and long term maintenance. That is long overdue. The current Diabetes UK NewDawn project seems to be a step in the right direction.
Alcohol is fine in moderation. Just be aware that it lowers blood sugar; when you drink alcohol, your liver makes it a priority to process the alcohol, and it stops releasing sugar. This is more of an issue for people using insulin, because injecting insulin and then drinking alcohol can lead to hypoglycaemia.
Sometimes I use this effect to my advantage. I travel a lot for work and don't always know what I'll be served at dinner. If I'm served something like pasta, which I don't normally eat, I have a glass of wine as well. It means I don't get a massive sugar spike from the carbs.
Where it can all go wrong is if you combine carbs, alcohol and then a long walk home. I did this one night and had a massive drop in blood sugar. It happened to the son of a friend of mine who went to Oktoberfest, who combined potato chips, beer, plenty of dancing and then a walk. He had a fit in the night and his roommate had to call an ambulance.
tl;dr you have to create a lifestyle you can maintain. If having a few glasses of wine or beer during the week is important to you, then have them. Just experiment a bit and watch the effects, and then plan accordingly.
BTW if you're in London you can always visit the London Diabetes Centre, which is private. To see an endocrinologist is £250, but they have fantastic nurses you could probably book in to see — at a price. (I was first diagnosed with diabetes last year while on holiday in London, so my medical care was covered by my travel insurance.)
Just never use a pharmacy in a private clinic, as the markup on drugs and sensors is horrendous.
But this is assuming you still want to see someone. Given the number of resources available online, it's probably only worthwhile if it's the human contact and reassurance that's the most important thing.
- Status