Need expert help

[RubyWitch]

I was diagnosed with pre-diabetes a while ago. I ran out and bought a millon dollars worth of books on reversing my slide into Type 2. I read 5 books in a row, taking copious notes and when I got done, I was even more confused than when I began! When did the food pyramid disappear and the dinner plate take its place? I understand I need to learn about carbs, but when I tried to understand the Glycemic Index, I had to go hide in the closet for an hour or two. I also have some heart issues and was told I must eat a heart healthy diet. OK, fine, I understood THAT diet easily enough. Tons of fruits and veggies and lean meats and fish. So I began to nosh on my favorite fruit of all, the wonderous and absolutely heart perfect banana. WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!! Great for your heart.....VERY BAD FOR BLOOD SUGAR. I drank fruit juice by the gallons for my heart. WRONG AGAIN!!!!!!!!!! Strawberries, good for the heart, bad for the blood. On and on until I gave up.
If I could afford to see a Dietician, I'd be there in a minute, but it's obvious I can't. I've looked on the net for "Good Foods to Eat to Prevent Diabetes" and instead of a nice long list of actual names of foods, there were more diagrams and pie charts and arrows going up and down..........
OH, btw, I am a total carb addict. I'd mainline the stuff if I could. If I had a choice between a baked potato and a fudge sundae, I'd pick the spud every single time. A huge piece of cake or 22 slices of pizza.........doh!
This may sound like I'm taking my situation pretty lightly, but the truth is, I'm scared to death. I feel lost and stupid and I've tried to learn, but I'm just as ignorant as before and I really need your help. I need help from people who live with this so hopefully, I won't have to.
I am open to all your advice.
Nemaste
Linda

[tom_h]

I too was a carb addict.  I think just about everybody here might once have been.  If you want to stop your slide towards T2, you have to change your lifestyle; not "go on a diet", but establish a new way of eating. I had warnings of rising BG, but I didn't heed them.  So unlike you, I am an official T2, a label will carry for the rest of my life.  You can control T2, but it's never cured.  Don't let anyone tell you differently.

As a reformed carb junkie, you have to throw everything you've learned about healthy eating, and what you know about the current food pyramid out the window.  Here's what worked for me:
I treated carbs( and still do to a great extent) as poison to my body.  Everything I loved, pasta, potatoes, rice, peas with butter, rolls and bread,  most fruits, "chips" of any variety, candy, any with sugar went out the window.  "White Death" i refer to it.  In their place, I began to eat walnuts, almonds, peanuts, and pecans.  I swear I should by stock in "Blue Diamond" because I bags of their products weekly.  I began to read labels.  Instead of laboring over Glycemic Index, and carbohydrate loads, I just them out as much as possible.  It was easier for me that way.  I limited myself to about 50 grams of carbs daily.  Along with the nuts, I eats lots of eggs.  2 hard boiled eggs per day replaced the former English muffin, or a half PBJ for breakfast.  I started to eat cheese, and turkey "slim Jim" sausages for snacks.

My body respond by complaining loudly.  I started to pee up a storm.  I had headaches, and terrible hunger pains; the worst I ever experienced.  But after about 2 weeks, the withdrawal symptoms began to fade.  The former carb haze I was started to lift. My  4x a day blood tests began to decline rapidly.  Readings for 100 now regularly replaced former readings in the 140's to as high as 160.  The important fasting test, the one I take first thing in the morning started to dip below 100.  All the while, I was exercising daily.  Running started to replace walking.  I started skating again and joined the other "grand masters" ( old guys) for workouts and coaching of the younger kids.

All the while, I was pulling in the belt an eye at a time.  Then a waist size, then another, and another; three waist sizes in 7 months and 26 pounds were gone.  Today, my belly which had grown embarrassingly round has all but disappeared.  At 61 I don't expect to get the 6 pack back that I had in my 20's and 30's, but look and feel pretty darn good for an old guy.  My unmedicated BG tests are always in the upper 80's to low 90's. And my A1C tests have fallen form 6.9 to 5.0.

I present this to you to show you that it is possible for a carb junkie to not cure, but reverse and then keep high BG levels in check.  All it takes is a cheap meter and strips, and most importantly a new way of thinking about the foods you eat.  I urge you to take control of your life while you can and before it's to late. Looking back, it's not hard to do, and in some aspects actually seemed too easy.  I wish you luck.

[WaveRider]

"OH, btw, I am a total carb addict. I'd mainline the stuff if I could."

You might as well eat refined sugar as carbs will elevate your glucose levels, some a lot more than others. Same applies with fruit. Eat fruit with other foods to slow the absorption of fruit sugar [fructose]. There are those t2 diabetics that cannot tolerate fruits as they jack up our glucose to dangerous levels.
Always test before and after eating fruit. This is the only way you're going to know if you can or cannot eat fruits.

I suggest you read other threads on this forum as numerous posts and replies on lifestyle changes regarding proper diabetic nutrition - foods to eat, foods to avoid - proper body weight and exercise have been posted often. You can also look at low/no carb recipes on the Atkins web site for ideas. After reading, post back if you seek further clarification. Good luck

[thebrat333]

Hi there !!

My Dad was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in his 40's he is in his 70's now and still hasn't managed to control his diet to get rid of the daily insulin

He was overweight and drank tons of orange juice and ate wholenut dairy milk big chocolate bars at the time he was diagnosed. He had only given up smoking a few years previously.

He too likes his spuds and bread  the doctor is bashing his head against the wall lol

I know you have to avoid spuds as they are so high in sugar

Normally if you can get your weight into the normal range for your height then the situation tends to sort itself out..

Are you overweight at the moment??

My dad only managed to lose a stone and keep it off but it wasn't enough

he hates salad and porridge and doesn't do enough exercise

He does however eat very healthily

boiled egg for breakfast low fat spread wholemeal bread meat and veg and apples .  

If you have any questions please ask away. send a message to me if you prefer.