Hello, I was diagnosed with type 2 in late November 2024 and my blood sugar levels have fallen considerably. I have lost a lot of weight and was wondering the best type of foods to eat to increase my weight? I am obviously not eating chocolate or biscuits etc but am struggling to gain weight and don't want to increase my cholesterol intake. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks, Graham.
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Weight gain - type 2 Diabetes
- Thread starter G.Coldron
- Start date
Welcome. Before you regain weight (and possibly undo the results of the work you have already done) it might be a good idea to review your situation. Ideally you want your HbA1c results (without medication) to be in the 30s and your waist to height ratio to be less than 50%. Those measures would indicate your liver and pancreas are back to normal and your Type 2 is in remission. As always, diet is key.
Drummer
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
On a diet of steak and chops with lots of eggs and cheese, my cholesterol has reduced and I have recovered from the debilitating effect of Atorvastatin - I doubt I will ever get over the effects of Metformin.
I have regained enough strength and fitness to take up servicing knitting machines again, which I had to give up for a while as they are heavy weights to move around.
Muscles are meat - the easiest way to stay strong is more protein. 'Weight' is not interchangeable with 'fat' - not in a way that is good - I am still a fairly dumpy granny and I am grateful to those who rush to assist me with shopping, but I am also unable to supress a grin when someone finds they can't lift the big trolley bags.
I think it was Clark Kent who quipped 'I've been working out' first. (Christopher Reeve, Superman ll)
AndBreathe
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- In remission from Type 2
Hi there - I agree that an A1c result in the 30s without blood sugar lowering medication is a good indicator the pancreas is holding it's own, at that point. I can't however get my head around how having a waist measuring half or less than the height indicates the same. There are plenty of thick set individuals out there with decent A1cs and plenty skinnies with diabetes of all sorts.
I'm not picking a spat, just looking for some enlightenment if I'm barking up the wrong tree.
Docb
Moderator
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
@G.Coldron - a couple of members seem to be asking, from different directions, why you want to gain weight when losing weight might well be why your glucose levels have dropped.
@JITR is a strong advocate of starting with the results of the work that clearly related weight loss with improved blood glucose levels and attributed that to reduction in visceral fat that was interfering with the function of liver and pancreas. Taking that approach leads to the idea that controlling body weight is sensible, and that keeping track of BMI or waist height ratio is a means of monitoring this. The implication is, that putting weight back on might undo the work you have done to get your blood glucose down.
@Drummer notes, quite sensibly, that if you gain weigh by adding muscle, then visceral fat does not come into the equation.
@AndBreathe suggests some care should be taken when looking at body metrics and relating them to blood glucose control. If you read around the forum you will find a lot of "slimmer" members with blood glucose levels above the diagnosis limit and it is likely that out in the world there are plenty of overweight people whose blood glucose levels are of no concern. There are more reasons for diabetes than being markedly overweight, although that is a good pointer to a potential diabetes diagnosis.
So, are you concerned that you are now below what you might consider to be an optimum weight? Do you have your HbA1c history? From that you can begin to work out the balance that might be optimal for you and then formulate a plan of how to get there.
For me diabetes is a very fuzzy thing. In the middle are some general principles which can be used by many to get control of errant blood glucose levels. Things get a bit more tricky when you move away from the middle and tuning things needs a bit more care in thinking things through.
@JITR is a strong advocate of starting with the results of the work that clearly related weight loss with improved blood glucose levels and attributed that to reduction in visceral fat that was interfering with the function of liver and pancreas. Taking that approach leads to the idea that controlling body weight is sensible, and that keeping track of BMI or waist height ratio is a means of monitoring this. The implication is, that putting weight back on might undo the work you have done to get your blood glucose down.
@Drummer notes, quite sensibly, that if you gain weigh by adding muscle, then visceral fat does not come into the equation.
@AndBreathe suggests some care should be taken when looking at body metrics and relating them to blood glucose control. If you read around the forum you will find a lot of "slimmer" members with blood glucose levels above the diagnosis limit and it is likely that out in the world there are plenty of overweight people whose blood glucose levels are of no concern. There are more reasons for diabetes than being markedly overweight, although that is a good pointer to a potential diabetes diagnosis.
So, are you concerned that you are now below what you might consider to be an optimum weight? Do you have your HbA1c history? From that you can begin to work out the balance that might be optimal for you and then formulate a plan of how to get there.
For me diabetes is a very fuzzy thing. In the middle are some general principles which can be used by many to get control of errant blood glucose levels. Things get a bit more tricky when you move away from the middle and tuning things needs a bit more care in thinking things through.
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- He/Him
There have been maximum waist size recommendations for a while, partly because there is a correlation between larger waist sizes (and the carrying of abdominal fat) with visceral fat around the organs, increased insulin resistance, and pancreatic dysfunction, and risk of developing T2. As published as part of the DIRECT trial, reducing abdominal fat and clearing visceral fat around the organs can help ‘reboot’ the metabolism in many people as long as the weight reduction is maintained.
Since 2022, NICE have adjusted their guidance to include a reference to height, rather than simply stating maximum waist size by sex. The recommendation is to have a waist size of approximately half your height or less to help reduce risk of developing T2.
Adult overweight and obesity - NHS England Digital
The Health Survey for England (HSE) estimates proportion of people in England who have health conditions, prevalence of risk factors and behaviours associated with certain health conditions. The surveys provide regular information not obtained from other sources. Obesity, BMI, Diabetes, Kidney...
digital.nhs.uk
Eddy Edson
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- In remission from Type 2
Nuts & seeds. Lots of cals, excellent nutrition, excellent for LDL-C.