Anyone at high risk of type II diabetes ? sign in here for support.

[HangingbaublesofBethlehem]

I am 33, overweight (ok, obese) and have Polycystic ovaries. My Dad died a couple of weeks ago, ages 59. He developed type II diabetes in his 40's, was obese and also had lost all of his sight and most of his mobility due to the diabetes. He died of a massive heart attack due to atheroma again as a complication of the diabetes.

It has been a real slap in the face for me as I do not want to die so young. I now face having to change my life so I have a future with my daughters but find it incredibly hard to shift weight with my PCOS and for varying other reasons. Not trying to make excuses but am coping with disabled dd and also doing a very time intensive career changing course. The time to exercise just isn't there but I have to do something.

Is there anyone out there in a similar position who is pre-destined to get type II diabetes? and what are you doing to prevent it?

Very sorry to hear you lost your dad. I'm very overweight, grandfather died with very similar problems to your dad (he also sadly had retinopathy and died from a heart attack in his late fifties), and maternal great grandfather also had diabetes. Mother and grandmother have/had underactive thyroid. I also need to get on top of my diet/exercise etc.

Hmm, I'm borderline overweight (BMI of 26), very active and healthy, but I am a future diabetic - all four of my grandparents, and both of my parents, are/were diabetic. My mother and her father both died of heart disease caused by diabetes.

I try to be extremely active (I'm down about 10kg from my pre-kids weight), and I tend to follow a low-GI diet. This is an effective weight loss/management diet, I find it helps keep my moods even, and it's the diet I will have to follow when I'm diabetic, so I may as well get used to it.

I'm pretty sure low-GI diets are recommended for women with PCOS, too.

Yes, Low GI is recommended for PCOS, I need to have another look at all of it. How do you cope with cooking family foods? I found my dh reluctant to go low GI which made it harder for me to have the will power to stick to it.

Total chaos, sorry to hear that your family is also affected. Weirdly my two sisters don't seem to have inherited these parts of my dad's genes, I however feel like I'm a walking time bomb now.

Ah, I cook, I set what the family food is, we're all fairly low GI. Granted, DH may have more pasta and less sauce, I have more sauce, less pasta, but it's the same meal.

But I tried out a lot of different wholemeal pastas before finding one I liked. Quinoa's easier, really.

I do find that eating low-gi has largely reset my tastebuds, I don't generally want sweets that much now, unless I'm very tired.

But the other big change I've made is, exercise is a really big part of my life. I exercise a lot - bike 4 miles per day, 5 days a week, with 1-2 kids on the bike, run 8 km or so, 3 times a week, plus climbing and swimming some of the time.

Hi, me too - my mum is type 2 her mum was type 1. I've just had ds3 so carrying some extra weight at the mo, but I usually work pretty hard to stay slim(ish) - lots and lots of exercise is the thing for me rather than controlling what I eat. In fairness I feel like a different person at my usual weight and can't wait to get back there.

I'm in the position of watching my mum really denying herself into an early grave, and she's now starting to get some pretty serious consequences due to refusing to control her condition.

The way I see it though is that I'd much rather know the risk and have the chance to do something about it, right?

Yeah, my mum was legally blind, I don't know how much of that was down to her diabetes (retinal detachment on one side, ignored contact lens infection on the other, I think - but she hid her diabetes from her children for years ). She had reduced mobility, and then foot pain, which she didn't sort out, and then angina, and then, well, death.

Hangingbaubles... i am v much the same, hugely obese, have had PCOS for years, high cholesterol and my father developed type 2 in his forties.
Should do something about it but always bury my head in the sand...

It's so easy to bury your head in the sand I know, I knew my Dad wasn't well but had no idea what so ever that he was literlly going to drop down dead before he was 60. He was just sat at his computer e-mailing when it happened . I agree it's also about re-educating taste buds. I'm not really a cake or chocolate eater but do love savoury bits and pieces and would eat butter every day if it was in the house. I think the key for me is exercise and I have to find a way to fit it into my life more easily.

Ah. My thread!

I'm 44 and have just had my 1st baby. I had gestational diabetes in the pregnancy, but my blood sugar went right back down to normal after the birth.

I have PCOS and have a BMI of about 28.5.

I also have a very strong family history of diabetes. On my mother's side, my maternal grandmother and great-grandmother were type II diabetic. My father developed late onset diabetes at 79 (despite being a remarkably active man who cycled around London; if he hadn't been so fit, I wonder how early he would have developed it).

I'm not very fit really. I'd planned to lose weight - to stave off the diabetes - once my son was born. However, I had problems breastfeeding. I had kept to such a careful diet during pregnancy that I ended up 5kg less after giving birth than I was before I got pregnant. But I think it affected my milk supply.

I was determined to breastfeed my son if possible - because it helps prevent diabetes amongst other benefits. So I have deferred dieting. But I remain very keen to lose weight - I want to be around for my son for as long as possible!

Once your milk supply is well-established, you can diet or exercise.

The thing is, diabetes at 79 is not that unusual - from what I know, once people get up into their 80s, they're generally either the sort of old person who is alarmingly thin and on meal replacement drinks to bulk them up, or they're a tiny bit pudgy, and diabetic. There doesn't seem to be much in the middle.

My parents both have type II (both have to inject insulin now), and I had dodgy GTT's when pg. I'm not overweight, but would be interested to know if there were things I could do to stave off diabetes

Exercise a lot, don't drink much, follow a low-GI diet and keep your stress levels down.

I have PCOS and the doctor is testing me for diabetes after xmas.
High blood sugar yesterday.
My cat is diabetic but thats about as much as I know about this.
What is a low GI diet?

can I pipe in some positive notes here - I was a pre diabetic till this year - then became diabetic. (over weight 3 GD pregnancies strong family history - father brother aunt uncle)

My dad has been diabetic now for 25 years, he has had almost no problems health wise from his diabetes (he is insulin dependant) the only problem he has had was some blood vessles in his eyes needed laser treatment but that is it - the moral of this story - follow your diet take your meds and follow your drs orders.

Squidgy- that's a great story and I'm pleased to hear your Dad is doing well. My Dad sadly did not follow advice and refused meds until really it was too late to do much and also did very little to modify his diet . My life is already different from my Dad and I do generally eat well, for me the thing is exercise and stress.

Thanks for sharing your story, Squidgy. My grandad unfortunately did not get diagnosed in time - it was the eyesight deterioration that resulted in the diagnosis. He did make a strong effort to stick to his diet,and did lose weight but from what I can gather he ignored the early signs of heart trouble and just took a lot of indigestion remedies