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Welcome
- Thread starter fredhaf
- Start date
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ColinUK
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Welcome (back)!
Were there any specific tasks you found difficult on the website that we may be able to help with?
Hi ColinB
Not specifically. It’s like everything, the people who use it are familiar with the structure but new users don’t necessarily have a clue what is going on. I hope practice will increase ability to use it. Thanks for your concern.
Actually, I would like information about GI relevance for new users of a Freestyle Libre 2 but don’t know how to post this.
Not specifically. It’s like everything, the people who use it are familiar with the structure but new users don’t necessarily have a clue what is going on. I hope practice will increase ability to use it. Thanks for your concern.
Actually, I would like information about GI relevance for new users of a Freestyle Libre 2 but don’t know how to post this.
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Hi and welcome (back) from me too.
It is fine to ask any questions here so I will attempt to answer that.
By GI I assume you mean Glycaemic Index. Ie how fast or slow various foods release their glucose. The index is actually an average of a fairly small group of people's response to each food and will only give you an idea of how you might respond as an individual. We find this confuses people a lot with diabetes. Take for example porridge which is supposed to be low GI. Many of us here through testing or using Libre etc, find that porridge is like rocket fuel and puts our levels into orbit before our insulin can get started. However there are also people who find porridge lives up to its slow release reputation. The situation seems to be that it all depends on our digestive system and gut biome (the mix of bacteria in our gut which help us digest food). My gut biome seems to be incredibly efficient at breaking down most carbs but it gets very excited about porridge, so porridge spikes my levels badly. Similarly lentils and beans which are also supposedly slow release but in fact my gut can extract nearly twice as much glucose from them as they are actually supposed to contain. I assume that I have bacteria which can break down some of the resistant fibre in pulses.
Libre allows us to see how we respond to different foods as an individual, which is pretty amazing. I love my Libre! We can offset some of the spikiness bt injecting our insulin a bit earlier to give it a head start of foods which we know will spike our levels badly or we can combine those foods with fat and extra fibre to slow it down. That said, I tried making my porridge with water and then adding cream and it still puts me into orbit.... at least it does at breakfast time. I might get away with it in the evening, but never fancied it later in the day. So porridge is just not worth the aggravation for me.
Was there something particular about GI and Libre that was confusing you or have I covered your query?
It is fine to ask any questions here so I will attempt to answer that.
By GI I assume you mean Glycaemic Index. Ie how fast or slow various foods release their glucose. The index is actually an average of a fairly small group of people's response to each food and will only give you an idea of how you might respond as an individual. We find this confuses people a lot with diabetes. Take for example porridge which is supposed to be low GI. Many of us here through testing or using Libre etc, find that porridge is like rocket fuel and puts our levels into orbit before our insulin can get started. However there are also people who find porridge lives up to its slow release reputation. The situation seems to be that it all depends on our digestive system and gut biome (the mix of bacteria in our gut which help us digest food). My gut biome seems to be incredibly efficient at breaking down most carbs but it gets very excited about porridge, so porridge spikes my levels badly. Similarly lentils and beans which are also supposedly slow release but in fact my gut can extract nearly twice as much glucose from them as they are actually supposed to contain. I assume that I have bacteria which can break down some of the resistant fibre in pulses.
Libre allows us to see how we respond to different foods as an individual, which is pretty amazing. I love my Libre! We can offset some of the spikiness bt injecting our insulin a bit earlier to give it a head start of foods which we know will spike our levels badly or we can combine those foods with fat and extra fibre to slow it down. That said, I tried making my porridge with water and then adding cream and it still puts me into orbit.... at least it does at breakfast time. I might get away with it in the evening, but never fancied it later in the day. So porridge is just not worth the aggravation for me.
Was there something particular about GI and Libre that was confusing you or have I covered your query?
Proud to be erratic
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 3c
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Hello @fredhaf,
When I first met up with this forum it was very much my first intentional encounter with any sort of social media - and I was fairly apprehensive about how to get started, where was the right place etc, etc. I've since come to realise that I was not alone then, and that is still the case. The main thing I would say is that this is a very friendly and tolerant forum - so any thread that might possibly be started in "not the optimum place" will be moved by a moderator - IF they really think it matters. The moderators have what I think is the lightest of touches and I've no recollection of anything being said that could be construed as reproachful, or similar. So post away!!
Oh, yes practice will certainly increase the use ability with the forum.
I've just hastily read the reply from Barbara @rebrascora. I was going to reply to your other thread about Libre 2 and now won't for the moment in case you introduce a specific issue in your response to @rebrascora. But I'll add an initial question: have you come across the "limitations of CGM (including Libre)". No problem if not, we'll point you in the right direction accordingly.
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- He/Him
- Status