can someone help me re diabetes please

[babyjjbaby]

i was diagnosed diabetic couple of mths ago but next wednesday i have got a appointment to see the diabetic clinic at hospital and am really really worried bout what they are going to say so far i haven't been doing anything different haven't been told what not to eat or anything all i was told to do was check my blood every other day and ring doctors if it went over 10 it has only gone over 10 once or twice in 2 mths but i am really worried bout what the hospital are going to say i have got visions of going and them telling me i can't eat potatoes or beans or anything and no yogourts or anything please help me i am so panicky bout it

It will be OK
the doctors are there to help get you on the right track.Also the nursinf staff are your best resource for information and help.
You have only just been diagnosed and are not expected to know everything yet.I have been diabetic for 30 years and am still learning and struggling from time to time.
If you are in a state of confusion about what you can and can't eat you should ask to see a Dietition while you are at the clinic.They may well offer this anyway.
Keep testing your bloods and try and keep a diary.It will help the docs see what has been going on for the last wee while. It's not easy to find time to do it- I know- but it is worth it. They will also probbly take some blood and do a test called an HBA1C.This will give them an average of your blood sugar level over the past while, and will help you to adjust it if needed.
Remember they are there to help you get it right not to tell you off.
I do understand the panic.it can be lonely sometimes- all the reponsibilty of it-, but everything will settle down soon.
I don't think that a couple of raised bloods are too bad.It sounds to me like you are doing really well.

The foods you mention are not on a banned list- they just need to be eaten in measured ammounts- the dietition will help you with this.It is all a question of balance.
Good luck.All will be well.

hi i rang the diabetes . org today and spoke to a real nice lady who said i can still eat potaots rice and pasta as it is a slow release carb also been reading my slimming world book about diebetes and that says in there u can still eat them why do u have to measure them surly thats if u are type 1

SYmpathies. My dh was diagnosed with diabetes yesterday. He has an appt with a specialist and a dietician on Monday to find out what method of treatment he will need, wether purely diet or diet/oral medication. It is scarey isn't it?!? Dh's when tested was 17!

dunno what mine was aFTER the glucose test but i am only 17 so they r not sure if it is type 1 or type 2 they think it is type 2

re the potatoes i on;ly have bout 3 -5 potatoes a day surly that is ok i'll starve if u can't hav emuch pottaoes or pasta cos thats all i eat

do u go hungry when u r a diabetic i read somewhere that u can only have a icecream scoop of pasta at each meal i am petrified i will be starving i am a big eater but of health foods i do slimming world so u are told to eat alot of pasta rice and potatoes and i will be straving if i can only have 1 icecream scoop of patsa

GI index tables are a good source of info for planning diets. generally the higher the GI figure the more sugar the food gives. some veg are quite surpisingly high. parsnips are around 95-97 on the GI index but chocolate is below 50 around 45 I think.

www.weightlossresources.co.uk/diet/gi_diet/glycaemic_index_tables.htm

there is a debate about GI (glycaemic index) and GL (glycaemic loading. I prefer to use both but the GL is more useful I think for diabetics and GI more for weight loss

www.mendosa.com/gilists.htm
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glycemic_load

sorry 2 hijack, but what made you test for diabetes, any particular symptoms?

thanks misi but i don't understand the low gi site night cat i went to lloyds chemist cos i was thirsty all the time weeing a lot and tired all the time

thank you bjb, none of those, but could be pre-diabetes, so will do a test

basically bjb, the higher the GI number, the more sugar the food provides, so you look to eat foods with low GI values.

you need a good mix of carbs, proteins and fats, what you don't want are the spikes in blood sugar levels which high GI foods give.

type II is treated by adjusting your diet to take onboard less sugar so the amount of insulin you do produce can cope with the sugar you take in, high sugar spikes are what causes the damage. in type I, you take artificial insulin to make up for the lack of insulin your body produces. it is still important though to keep a check on the amount of sugar you eat as normally your body can produce more or less insulin as it needs to but with insulin jabs, you get a fixed amount so still need to avoid the spikes. sugars can be anything from basic glucose.dextose to complex carbs. complex carbs break down slowly so releasing the sugar potential over a longer time. simple carbs release sugar very quickly and can cause a massive leap in blood sugar levels.

diet is important in both types of diabetes but for different reasons.

nightcat, I would not overly worry about diabetes for your teenager at the moment. from the quicjk research done so far, diabetics are more susectible but it is not exclusive. the need to drink more as you always seem thirsty and therefore weeing a lot is common symptom almost 100% of the time in undiagnosed diabetics. if not got this then maybe smell the wee? undiagnosed diabetics often have strong amonia type smelling wee due to excess keytones in the urine, another main sign of diabetes. open weeping and scabby sores (not like the ones they have now), cravings for sugar, itchy skin (generally) and frequent headaches are other main symptoms in undiagnosed/untreated diabetes.

babyjjbaby, as your BM values have only gone over 10 twice in 2 months then I would not overly worry, you are only mildly diabetic and a change of diet should be enough with no meds needed.

www.diabetes.co.uk/diet-basics.html

www.healthy-diabetic-recipes.co.uk/diabetic_resources.htm

www.healthy-diabetic-recipes.co.uk/diabetic_resources.htm

there are many websites with dietry advice for diabetics both type I and II.

also many many books, www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_b/026-8279910-1693225?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=type +2+diabetes

have a look, diabetes can be managed effectively and you need not be worried, my mum is a diabetic and I look aftyer her and her diet, after many years she has been stable and yet still eats cakes and biscuits etc, but the key is too eat in proportion, small amounts managed carefully still allow you to eat your favourite foods, but do not do this till you are stable and sure about how to control your diet.

thanks i do eat everything in moderation but don't like meat so i do eat pasta and potatoe and rice quite a bit i just get so confuesd cos some people say eat alot of potatoes rice and pasta as it is slow release then other people say u can only have a desert spoon full of carbs

yes, I am one of the ones who reccommend less rice and potatoes I am afraid but it depends on the type you use. for instance white rice steamed is 98 on the GI scale, very high sugar potential, but basmati rice is 58. wholemeal pasta is 37 ordinary pasta is 41. plain boiled potatoes are 56 but mashed potatoes are 70 and new potatoes cooked in their skin are 62. suprisingly a baked potato is up at 85.

this is why the GI index is useful. the GI index can give you alternative ways to eat your foods but to lower thw GI value by using different types or cooking differently, but I still prefer the GI loading index as this is far better for diabetics as the detail and control is much better

would u be able to tell me what u eat in a day i really do think i will starve i don't like meat can't have nuts or seeds and not much milk

although nutritionally trained I do eat a load of rubbish a lot of the time .

my mum though now eats a wide variety of foods including cakes and biscuits even though she has been on insulin for around 8 years now.

without spending the usual hour or so with you, finding out more about your med history and likes/dislikes, I can't really come up with a diet plan for you.
when are you going back to the diabetic clinic for your initial appointment? have they made an appointment for you with a dietician?

in the mean time, eat less direct sugar type foods like cakes and biscuits, jam, honey those sorts of things and eat other foods in moderation, so if having potatoes, don't have a plate full, have some and have other foods too a good mix of food groups on your plate increases the time the food takes to pass through so reduces sugar spikes, so a varied plate is far better. any diet plan will be made more difficult by your dislike for meat and not being able to eat nuts or seeds (is this an allergy/intolerance problem?) as a protein content in your diet is important as protein is a slow release energy source that will help stave off hunger etc.

www.diabetes-diabetic-diet.com/

www.bbc.co.uk/health/healthy_living/nutrition/dietary_diabetes.shtml

www.bddiabetes.co.uk/cgi-bin/bd/bdweb/eservices/content/show.bd?Channel=%2fKnowledge+editorials%2fUK +BDMDC+Documents%2fDB1480B55977328100256E35005C8E1F%2f3123CBB75AC5849000256E35005D0DD0&BDSID=UWtSV lN5NUNSRTFmUkVNPTpNQT09Ojo&BDSID=UWtSVlN5NUNSRTFmUkVNPTpNQT09Ojo%3d&RootChannel=%2fKnowledge+editor ials%2fUK+BDMDC+Documents%2fDB1480B55977328100256E35005C8E1F

there is no quick fix for this I am afraid. even if you are not diagnosed type 1, type 2 does need to be managed carefully for it to not turn into type 1 any time soon.
you mentioned you were 17 babyjjbaby? I have had a couple of clients this age before and they took diabetes the hardest so to stave off full blown diabetes, you are going to have to make some big lifestyle changes which will not be easy. it will be worth it in the long run though and you will eventually feel far better for it.
its easy for me to say, but try not to worry. see the diabetic clinic and get to see a dietician, then if (as thumbwitch agrees, some dieticians are not that good) they are not much help, see if you can get to see a nutritionist (much different from a dietician).

but the main watch phrase at the moment is ''everything in moderation''.

swap your favourite foods for other types like use wholemeal bread rather than white bread, plain boil ptotatoes rather than mash or bake, use basmati rice instead of white rice, pasta is not much different between wholemeal and white but try the wholemeal if you can as ''every little bit helps'' (added ''bit'' so as not to infringe copyrights ) if you can add in veg to your pasta sauces or even lentils that would be even better. use olive oil spreads rather than butter (cuts down on saturated fats and increases mono and poly unsaturated fats), grill rather than fry or roast, use sunflower or rapeseed oil for cooking rather than animal fats. I could go on but have a look at the websites and see what you can come up with. if you still struggle, let us know.

diabetes is no longer a life sentence. in fact if everyone followed the diet a diabetic should do we would all be far healthier and better off!!

thanks i sort of od all that anyway as i follow slimming world whats has annoyed me is i was diagnosed in middle of july on holiday so it ruined my holiday then nothign else has happened my appointment is next week dunno who it is to see tho

if its your first appt. then it will be with an endocrinologist within the diabetic clinc.
it is important that you make sure you come away with an appt with a dietician.
if you have had to wait this long then I doubt your ''condition'' is very advanced and will be easily controlled so don't worry.

its best found now and sorted early as if it had been left undiagnosed it could have been far worse, health wise.

how old is your child by the way?

5mths he is do i really need a dietican appointment i get so het up when i got to go to hospital i was hoping i copuld just follow the slimming world green days

i was also hoping that if i cold stay on slimming world i would lose some weight then ur blood sugar is sposed to naturally lower when u lose weight cos i am 11stone 11lbs and only 5ft 4in so thoughtif i could get my weight down by about 2 stone my levels would go down as they are useally bout 6-6.8 average

yes, loosing weight may lower the blood sugar levels. what interests me more is that your baby would have been only 2-3 months old when you were diagnosed?

an appt to a dietician should be a matter of course, it is important that you have diet plans for being diabetic rather than diet plans for loosing weight.

what I am thinking is, is this all pregnancy related? many women become diabetic or suffer thyroid problems albeit temporarily when pregnant or just after especially if large amounts of stress were involved. at 17, I would more expect you to be a type 1 than a type 2 as type 2 is more common with age and type 1 with youth, but if you were type 1 I am sure you would have been seen by now to sort you out as you would be in desperate need of insulin.

I would therefore suggest your diet is very important at the moment as maybe this is a temporary thing associated with pregnancy and is why they asked you to just monitor rather than medicate. if you can pander to your body for now, you have a greater chance of beating it.
ask at the hospital about this and ask if you can have a thyroid blood test too.

can you take babies father with you or your mum or someone for support?

yeh my mas coming with me how would i find out if i cans till do slimming world it is recommened to do it when u r a diabetic but that i sbased on what the gps say bout having starchy carbs i have had all the test under the sun hun nothign else came back

if you take a copy of the slimming world diet with you to the dietician, they should be able to compare and tell you if it is suitable.

starchy carbs are a mantra of GP's. most GP's have spent a grand total of a couple of hours training on nutrition so often will quote what others have said.

I would still ask for a confirmation thyroid blood test (ask for a Tft4 AND TSH test) to make sure as the endocrinologist will know far more about diabetes and hormone problems than your GP will ever do

thansk i am gonna stop stressing bout it what do u personnaly have for a days food ie breakfast lunch and dinner

thansk i am gonna stop stressing bout it what do u personnaly have for a days food ie breakfast lunch and dinner

I usually have a couple of boiled eggs with an english muffin for breakfast, a bag of crisps around lunch with maybe a slice of bread and a tomato, and then tonight, I am pigging a bit as I am roasting a chicken with goose fat roasted potatoes and parsnips and just managed to get some asparagus tips from the shops too. last night I made some tomato and veg soup for dinner (was a good way of using the last of the veg from my garden that hasn't been dried, frozen or already eaten!!)

I don't have to follow a particular diet although I suppose I should really being hypothyroidic but I don't have a problem with weight so I am ok, even if I do eat unhealthy usually

I preach do as I say not as I do with is a bit hypocritical I suppose when I usually hand out advice on nutrition