Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by MidwestMommy on April 21, 2011 at 6:56pm

Totally agree with BSC...so frustrating that the medical establishment continually ignores this. It's really hard for me to keep my mouth shut when med professionals continue to push my teen in the wrong direction with their nutrition talks. There seems to be so much more that needs to be studied and documented about T1.

I am really happy joeynicole was able to help you on this. But I am also a bit sad and a little bit angry. You were diagnosed 18 years ago. The "medical establishment" has had a billion chances to help you with this and you were let down by the system. What you just found is called the "law of small numbers" by Bernstein. Eat smaller amounts of carbs, you require less insulin for cover/correction and you have less errors/variability. You don't have to go extreme, you just have to apply the principles. I have followed a low carb diet since 2006. I no longer eat a very low carb diet, but I do find that if I keep things about 20g/meal, I can easily meet all my blood sugar targets. And I do bolus for protein.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by dickengel on April 22, 2011 at 3:35am

not to worry the treatment plan is simple: " sugar high - take more insulin sugar low; eat more candy or fruit juice; what is wrong with you anyhow can't you follow directions". And for this they make hundreds of thousands of dollars. Aside from a few folks in the business, this really is a self education disease and we each need to learn what works for us - no doctor is going to fix us. I really wish I found this site a long time ago.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by dickengel on April 22, 2011 at 3:38am

It does sound like your basals are too high if sugars drop over 100 points during the night. I always treat and correct at bedtime.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Tiffany G on April 22, 2011 at 12:40am

Thanks everyone for the encouraging words and advice. I'm almost emberassed to admit this, but I work in the healthcare industry, and I never even gave the low carb diet any thought. Everything I've ever heard in classes or from my doctors is that eating carbs is acceptable with insulin coverage. I haven't had any spikes at all today. For dinner, I had some ground turkey with sharp cheddar sprinkled on top of it along with a decent side of broccoli. Then for a snack tonight I had a salad and some berries. My readings increase slightly after I eat, but then go back down. For some reason though, I've noticed a slow, steady increase throughout the day, which I can't explain. However, I didn't want to overcorrect, especially since I'm not 100% sure on how much to dose with meals. I'd rather be a little conservative while I'm learning rather than get myself in trouble. I went shopping tonight so that I'd have a little more variety. I'm thinking spaghetti squash for tomorrow. Yum! :) I also looked for Berstein's book today, but unfortunately they didn't have it at Barnes and Noble. I'll have to order it online.

Why do you think most endo resist this diet if it works so well? Are there any risks involved?

bsc, Do you mind if I ask how you bolus for protien only? How do you calculate how much insulin to take?

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by dickengel on April 22, 2011 at 3:43am

Moderation in all things is the key - I really dont think ultra low or no carb is good for you. With practice and timing moderate doses of carbs (15 to 50 per meal) can be effectively used without spikes. I have been working on this for over 30 years and only recently am starting to figure it out. The CGM is a key enabler to teach us how much and when we need insulin.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by dickengel on April 22, 2011 at 10:08am

see:Low Carb Diet Health risks

I still believe that moderation in all things is best!

The nutrition committee of the American Heart Association has issued a science advisory warning that high-protein diets have not been proven effective and pose health risks. The report covered the Atkins, Zone, Protein Power, Sugar Busters, and Stillman diets. The committee stated:

Such diets may produce short-term weight loss through dehydration.
Weight loss may also occur through caloric restriction resulting from the fact that the diets are relatively unpalatable.
The high fat content may be harmful to the cardiovascular system in the long run.
Any improvement in blood cholesterol levels and insulin management would be due to weight loss, not the change in composition.
A very high-protein diet is especially risky for patients with diabetes because it can speed the progression of diabetic kidney disease [10].

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Tiffany G on April 22, 2011 at 11:57am

I was eating carbs in moderation. I eat very healthy foods, so I'm sure it's more of a balancing act with my insulin. I don't plan to eliminate carbs completely, just cut back. Prior to yesterday, I would rarely eat over 50g carbs with dinner, and maybe 30-40g for breakfast and dinner with modest snacks. I'm big on whole grains and fruit, in addition to lean protein and veggies. If the grains and fruit are spiking me into the mid to high 200's, then that scares me.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by joeynicole on April 22, 2011 at 12:00pm

Dear Dickengel,

I appreciate that you posted this out of concern, the nice thing about forums is that we all get to speak our mind, and our opinion.

I, too, used to trust these big organizations to give me correct information on health. I am sorry to be the one to break it to you that the AHA is severely misinforming the public. This information is incorrect, unhealthy, and very, very dangerous.

Low-fat, grain-induced diets cause inflammation, and inflammation is the big danger. Not cholesterol, not animal protein.

I encourage you to research further about this. You certainly don't need to take my word for it.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by dickengel on April 22, 2011 at 1:40pm

i dont care for low anything - I believe rightly or wrongly that all food groups in moderation are best for us. So I wont eliminate all fats, all proteins or all carbs. But if I could eliminate em all for about a month maybe my tummy would not be so big. Hmmmm maybe io ought to????

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by ultravires on April 22, 2011 at 5:00pm

Any of that research peer reviewed?

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Brian (bsc) on April 22, 2011 at 12:27pm

While it may not be clear, the AHA has a clear vested interest in criticizing low carb diets. Low carb diets fly in the face of low fat myth. The only criticism that has any merit is the suggestion that care be take with high protein diets. In fact, you should not follow a high protein diet if you have kidney failure and you should not eat a high protein diet without a correspondingly high fat diet. I highly recommend Gary Taubes books Good Calories, Bad Calories and Why We Get Fat. Bernstein actually recommends only 75 g of protein a day, hardly high protein.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Tiffany G on April 22, 2011 at 1:15pm

This is probably a dumb question, but I'll ask anyway. Why is it important to eat a diet high in fat with a high protien diet? Is it so you're burning the fat for energy and not protein?

• ▶ Reply

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• Next ›
• Page