[Lucinda]

Thanks for that information, Alicat. This is all so confusing, but slowly, I am catching on. Thanks to you as well, Adi, KEEP ON DANCIN' !!! Cindy

[jacobsam622]

Originally Posted by Lucinda

To answer the question of if I test or not, and what my numbers are, I was told by a nurse to test 3 times a day just before meals. I test first thing in the morning, and my number is usually close to 200. It goes down to around 167 or so in the afternoon, and then is up near 180 or 190 later in the day...although, the past few days the numbers have all gone down by about 10 points each (I hope this is the Metformin starting to work). I have never been told that I should test two hours after taking the first bite, but that makes so much more sense to me than testing just before I eat. I will start doing that. I think this new way will give me more feedback. SHOULD I CONTINUE TO TEST FIRST THING IN THE MORNING AS WELL????????

Hi Cindy being diagnosed with this disease can be very overwhelming

First find a diet that works for you and get on it right away
I am on the sugar-busters
list
includes

Sugar-busters
Atkins
Weight watchers
South beach
The zone
Eat to your type
etc
etc
The most important thing you need to do in the begining is change the type of carbs you eat once you have firmly established a diet routine then work on cutting back on portion size.

The only diet I don’t recommend is the one created by the ADA. Their idea of bg control is out of date and designed to get more people to follow it and not to make people healthy. The ADA feels that only type-1s should maintain tight control. They feel Type-2 can’t handle the added emotional responsibility of maintaining tight control and deal with all the other issues.
Your bg goals
Morning below 130 -----------------------ideal around 95 - 110
2 hours after meals below 140 ---------ideal below 120
Before bed below 140--------------------ideal 120 to 130
Never go to bed with bg below a 100 when you wake up your bg will be =>130.

You can eat a small snack like hand full of peanuts or drink a glass of red wine or a low carb beer. The trick is to convince your liver not to dump a load of glucose into your system. I

As you gain more control the number should get tighter.

To determine carbs subtract fiber from the total carbs. You can also subtract artificial sweeteners.

Traditional wisdom says = Portion control is a must and do not get seconds. I like my way better get small portions that way you can get seconds It is an old Jedi Mind trick

Foods you can eat:

Meat = Beef well trimmed, chicken, fish broiled or baked, eggs, hotdogs without bun.

Nuts - most nuts are low in carbs, peanuts, walnuts, cashews, and almonds any that have total carbs of less then 10g.

spreads buy no sugar added jelly or try one of several reduced sugar brands , no sugar added Peanut butter – good for cholesterol

vegetables = almost anything but corn If you eat corn stick
with the small kernel corn on the cob. Eat lots of Green beans it raises good cholesterol.

Sugar free ice cream or no sugar added, sugar free jell-o

Chocolate that has a cocoa % >= 60% or low carb chocolate

Breads = whole grain or low carb whole grain.

Pasta = whole grain: Dreamfields, Wal-Mart has good brand

rice = brown rice, wild rice

sodas = diet only

Alcohol = Low carb beer, brands like Michelob ultra, Miller-Lite, there is at least two others. Red wine or wine that is at least 13% alcohol
I Like the four wise man myself: Jack Daniels, Jim Beam, Jose Cuervo, Johnny Walker


avoid high carb food any anything with a lot of refined sugar or white flour

Fruit = try different ones to see how they effect your BS. Remember a sugar is sugar no matter how big or how small. Avoid fruit high in fructose

if you have acid reflux avoid eating fruit at meal time.

General rule if it’s brown then its OK for diabetes

I recommend you read the sugar buster book .

You should always test in the morning until you gain tight control. Not only will testing in the morning help you determine how well your control is it let you know whether you are fit to drive to work.





HbA1c Avg. Blood Sugar
(%) (mmol/L) (mg/dL)
4--------3.3------ 60
5--------5.0------ 90
6--------6.7------ 120
7--------8.3------ 150
8--------10.0------180
9--------11.7------210
10-------13.3------240
11-------15.0------270
12-------16.7------300
13-------18.3------330
14-------20.0------360

[Lucinda]

The trick is to convince your liver not to dump a load of glucose into your system.

Jacob, thank you for all of the great advice! Can you tell me more about "convincing [my] liver not to dump a load of glucose into [my] system"? I have heard about this "dawn syndrome" and would like to know exactly HOW to trick my liver. Any more info that you can give me would be much appreciated, as I have been very concerned and confused as to why my sugars are so much higher in the morning after fasting. Thanks, Cindy

[morrisma]

Cindy,
You sure do attract a crowd! Good for you.

As to feeling low at what we'd consider normal levels, can you borrow a different meter for a few readings? Or maybe a different vial of strips? Meters are inherently inaccurate (+-20%) but most are likely to be 'off' in the same direction for any given vial of strips. Lots of variables (finger vs arm, squeeze vs no squeeze, lots of others) for certain but you might be lower than the meter is reading!

The morning, fasting reading is important because that is one number that is unaffected by daily, changing variables of food, stress, activity, etc. Your doc will pay close attention to it.

I find that a small glass of red wine before bed tricks my liver often. Google Dawn Phenomenon.
Mike

[jacobsam622]

Originally Posted by Lucinda

Jacob, thank you for all of the great advice! Can you tell me more about "convincing [my] liver not to dump a load of glucose into [my] system"? I have heard about this "dawn syndrome" and would like to know exactly HOW to trick my liver. Any more info that you can give me would be much appreciated, as I have been very concerned and confused as to why my sugars are so much higher in the morning after fasting. Thanks, Cindy

While you sleep your liver produces glucose to keep your bg from going to low. About an Hour before your normal time for waking your liver produce alarger amount of glucose to prepare you for the day in a normal person this is perfectly fine in someone with diabetes it makes our blood sugar higher type -1 can control thourgh basal insulin where as type-2 have to use the force or some other type of mind games to convince the liver not to drup to much glucose. That is why you should never go to sleep with your bg to low. I take 4mg of amaryl and I eat a snack before bedand if my bg is not high enough I eat a hand ful of nuts(cocktail of cashew).

[Lucinda]

Thanks again, Mike and Jacob. I truly appreciate your feedback, knowledge and advice. Since I came to this message board, I am already feeling a lot less lost and confused in all of this. Your support here means so much. My numbers are even better today!!! 147 on waking, and 149 two hours after breakfast!!! That is great for me!!!

I did Google "Dawn Phenomenon" and found a lot of information on the subject. Boy, our bodies sure do a lot, don't they!!! And they are pretty smart, too!!! I just wish I had treated my body better through my past years. Perhaps I would not be in this position. Well, I am, so I will do all that I can to get healthy, and start a new way of living. I quit smoking 78 days ago, and I can at least say I am walking the walk on the road to better health.

I am sure that I will have many more questions...thank you all so much for being here...Cindy