Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Pauly on April 28, 2011 at 2:10pm

Its a trial and error thing for me. I am focused on ranges of my spikes and what my fasting ranges are. Having said that yes I do eat some things such as peas or carrots as I dont find they spike me much as a T-2. Bread, Rice, beans are another thing. At times I will have a piece of sugar free candy too. I find it has minimal effect.

I was like you when first diagnosed however I work to find what works and what doesn't now. My T-2 is changing. Yours will too. One problem I have had recently is I go low more. I am on max dose now of Victoza though.

Set reasonable fasting and after dinner spike ranges would be my advice. Things that you can achieve. Test before and after at least one meal per day. Good Luck!

Permalink Reply by MikeMc on May 9, 2011 at 8:05pm

You are right to be scared of sugar. It will kill you! Use Splenda or Stevia instead. I use Truvia from Safeway, which is a form of Stevia, a natural calorie free sweetner that I can't tell from sugar. Also avoid "White" carbs, like potatoes, pasta, bread, etc. I buy bread made from flaxseed (Alvarado Bakery here in Ca) which has 1/2 the carbs of wheat bread. We bake holiday pies and all kinds of deserts using splenda. I don't feel deprived in the least.

I don't understand your numbers, however. 19.9? 8? I measure in mg/dl. Greater than 125 is diabetic. Greater than 160 for extended times causes damage. Is your number an HA1C % #?

Also, I've never had good numbers after 2 hrs after meals. I wait 2 1/2 or 3 hrs. I know the Dr says 2 hrs but it's the total time spent at high #'s that matters and some people experience slower gastric emptying than others.

Permalink Reply by whispersmom on May 10, 2011 at 6:06am

The numbers are the ones I read from the blood glucose monitor.I am so new to this, going to a diabetes clinic today to learn more. I don't even know what a HA1C is.I am using Stevia now.

Permalink Reply by Donna H on May 10, 2011 at 7:21am

Mike is in the US that's why his numbers are different. Canada uses a different measurement system. Unfortunately, i'm not sure of the conversion but I bet someone in one of the Canada groups here is.

I wouldn't say be scared of sugar but rather be cautious. There is no food that you you cannot eat. It's a matter of figuring out what works for you and what doesn't. Certainly sugar will drive up blood sugar, so if you are ok with the substitutes in your coffee then go for it. Carbohydrates are the key. You need to moderate your carbohydrate intake. But different amounts work for different people. You might want to consider seeing a dietician. They can really help you understand this disease and your nutrition requirements.

Permalink Reply by whispersmom on May 10, 2011 at 1:23pm

Just came back from a diabetes clinic,saw the dietician.My A1C was 13.4, very high.Healthy target is 7. I have a long way to go but I am on track.

Permalink Reply by Zolar1 on May 26, 2011 at 12:40pm

OK, I can relate to your problem. I did the same thing when I first got diagnosed. I went WAAAAYYYY overboard.
I still kept losing weight - 5 pounds every night at one point.
But I had great blood sugars doing that.

Now, I was worried about losing too much too fast so I skipped the pills and went straight to insulin. Best decision I ever made. I can now eat almost anything I want, within reason. I don't eat gobs of bad foods, but I can have a little goodies from time to time. Like a chocolate donut every once in a while. Or even a real soft drink.

No need to worry about using a little sugar if you want, even with pills, as long as you can control the blood sugars afterward.

Test right before eating and again exactly 2 hours after eating. If your blood sugars are above 180 (according to the ada), then either eat less of that or none of that or pair is with more protein/fat.

Sorry, I am using the USA system. You need to convert to your system for proper numbers, but constant testing in the beginning is the ONLY way to know what foods are reasonable and which one's aren't.

After a while, say a year or so, you get used to knowing what you can get away with and what you can't.

Last night I ate 1/2 a large double pepperoni pizza with thick crust and a real coca-cola. Boy that was a great meal!
I shot 20 units to cover it. My 2 hour post was only 165.
I can't do that much because of the very rapid weight gain that results, but I can do that every 3 months or so as a treat.

Let your glucose tester be your food boss since everyone is different. That alone will tell you what you can get away with. No diet or nutritionist or doctor can.

If you followed a diet like Dr Bernstein, you won't need as many meds or insulin, and have a lot more energy.
Of course, you can't be a couch potato or sit on your butt. You have to exercise exercise exercise every time you eat anything.

I had spikes into the middle 200's and yet still managed to get my A1C down to 5.3. It's a matter of how long the blood sugars are elevated is what the problem is. You don't want them too high for too long. A 15 minute spike to 250 isn't a problem, but a 4 hour spike at 165 is.

Oh, and I never eat veggies. Just starches and protein/fat. I managed to get my blood pressure down to 80/48 at one point before the doctor went into a panic & said I got it too low and would die if I got it any lower. Today, I hover around 125/75 roughly.

Your overall health is governed by 2 things: diet and exercise. And no medical person can do that for you - only you can determine how healthy you want to be.

I never went into denial. I tackled my diabetes head on. I knew about it before the doctors did and had a plan in place for my formal diagnosis. I never once did anything they told me to. And still don't.
Here's every A1C I ever had:

6.8 (at time of diagnosis)
5.7
5.8
5.3 (then immediately asked for insulin after that test)
5.2
5.1

Due to several illnesses and Achilles's tendonitis, I have been unable to exercise much. And the weather isn't cooperating either. My next A1C should be around 6.0 I should think.

However, I can control ANY number I want just by diet and exercise - I do not need insulin, but I do want it so I can have some semblance of a normal life.

No fun living to treat a disease every waking moment of every day and that diet I put myself on back then was awfully boring.

Don't let the disease control you - you control the disease.

To answer your question, you, you can lighten up once you gain a stable amount of control over your blood sugars.

Personally, I made a mistake when the doc asked me if I wanted an insulin pump. I wish I hadn't told them no. I could achieve perfect blood sugar control with one vs manual injections.

It seems my 1st phase insulin release is defective, but my 2nd phase isn't so bad. My weight gain is causing some insulin resistance, but I can lose that if I put a little effort into it.

Proper way to test blood sugars is this:

When you get up
Right before the first bite of anything (or drink anything).
exactly 2 hours after the first bite or drink
at bedtime.

Just remember, if you go on a Dr Bernstein diet without adjusting medications or at least consulting a doctor, you risk severe hypoglycemia. That is how good that diet is.

Me, I guess my dosage. I have no way to predict dose vs food vs activity as I have a random lifestyle and eat at weird times and eat what is available where I am, even if it is McDonald's. But even doing that, I managed to get good control. Hint: stay away from those fries - those taste great, but can nail blood sugars.

Also, I get less of a spike drinking real coke than eating fries - go figure?

Permalink Reply by Zolar1 on May 26, 2011 at 12:44pm

Oh, forgot something -

Did you know that skipping breakfast can give you a 300% increase in the chances of getting type 2 diabetes?
And being overweight can increase the chance of getting type 2 diabetes nearly 1,000% depending on how much you weigh and what lifestyle you live?

Also, drink 1/2 gallon of water (2 liters) with each meal and at bed time.

The laws of dilution will help you get better control.

Permalink Reply by Linda B. on August 14, 2011 at 5:47pm

Diabetes is a different experience for every one who has it. My boyfriend (IDDM or insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus) cannot eat any sugar at all--and doesn't--but can eat two or three slices of grocery store bread at a meal and his A1c is 6.3. I'm Type II--currently just on generic for Glucovance--and any bread other than a 'wrap', WASA cracker or 'real' bread (i.e., that which is hand-made in a bakery) sends my blood sugars rocketing. My most recent A1c is 6.5 but that was after four months on Victoza, which I had to stop taking due to side effects. I started having the abdominal pains that the doctors warn us about, which are an indication of developing pancreatitis. Fortunately, stopping the Victoza seems to have done the trick as far as that goes; still working on getting rid of the chronic sinusitis.

All of that to say--be patient with yourself and don't stress over this. Stressing yourself out over 'not doing it perfectly' is the kind of pressure that can keep your blood sugars high. Instead, pay close attention to what your body feels like before, during and after a meal, and check your blood sugar if you are in any doubt about what is going on. By all means follow the advice about checking regularly--not saying you shouldn't--but by learning what highs and lows feel like in your body, you will begin to get a better idea about what foods and quantities work for you and which ones don't.

For example....I LOVE cheese. I can eat a small amount of brown rice with cheese on it and the rice won't spike my sugars or have a slice of Muenster in a wrap with a lot of salad greens--but if I eat a slice of it by itself, I feel kind of achy, even though my blood sugars stay within the desired range. Inflammation is a marker for heart disease, so I take a single regular aspirin just before any meal that will have cheese. And I've cut way back on the amount of cheese I eat and how often. That was one of the hardest things to give up--I have a 'fat tooth' where other people have a 'sweet tooth'--but when I discovered that I felt better without it, it became much easier. There's not the direct cause-and-effect with other foods (i.e, liver makes me nauseous; milk gives me diarrehea), it was much more subtle than that.

Hang in there. You just have a lot more to discover about how your body reacts to certain foods, exercises and levels of stress; all through the new 'lens' of diabetes. Your meter is your best tool for this journey of discovery but you can learn a lot too just from paying closer attention to what your body tells you.