# Hi I'm a newbie



## 419ireland (Jul 18, 2012)

I am a 59 year old male who was diagnosed type 2 in Jan 2012. Started exercising daily and lost weight so that on 29 Feb 2012 my blood test showed Hba1c of 5.9 with fasting bg of 6.1. I was told I didn't need medication but to keep doing what I was now doing. I have now reached my target weight and started to eat more to maintain my weight! I am eating things recommended in local NHS and diabetes UK booklets. I never lost my thirst or the need to pee in the night and now find I am peeing more and still thirsty. I have asked for a blood test to check levels. Not sure if I need medication or review of diet. 

Any comments would be helpful.


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## Northerner (Jul 18, 2012)

Hi 419Ireland, welcome to the forum  It sounds like you have done a pretty good job, well done! Are you able to test your levels yourself at home? If not, then I think that this would help you to determine what might be happening. The thing with diabetes is that it is a very individual condition, and as such we can all have different tolerances fr the type of food we eat - there is no one size fits all, so whilst the NHS and DUK guidelines are a starting place you need to find your own individual tolerances. Also, whilst your HbA1c is an indicator of your blood glucose levels over the previous 6-12 weeks, it will not tell you if your levels rose significantly after eating, for example, a wholemeal sandwich, and then fell again. There's a possibility that, if this is happening, then the times when your levels 'spike' are causing your body to try and remove the excess glucose through peeing. It would be worth discussing with your doctor if you could be prescribed some test strips and a meter so that you can investigate this possibility - the occasional test at the surgery won't be enough to tell you if this is happening.


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## Andy HB (Jul 19, 2012)

Welcome to the forum from me too.

Well done on your progress! Regarding your thirst and peeing, you really need to raise that with your GP. As Northerner says, it may be that you're still running higher blood glucose levels at times. Testing will tell you that, otherwise it's all just guesswork, I'm afraid.

I hope you get answers soon.

Andy


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## Steff (Jul 19, 2012)

Hi and a warm welcome to the forum


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## everydayupsanddowns (Jul 19, 2012)

419ireland said:


> I am a 59 year old male who was diagnosed type 2 in Jan 2012. Started exercising daily and lost weight so that on 29 Feb 2012 my blood test showed Hba1c of 5.9 with fasting bg of 6.1. I was told I didn't need medication but to keep doing what I was now doing. I have now reached my target weight and started to eat more to maintain my weight! I am eating things recommended in *local NHS and diabetes UK booklet*s. I never lost my thirst or the need to pee in the night and now find I am peeing more and still thirsty. I have asked for a blood test to check levels. Not sure if I need medication or review of diet.
> 
> Any comments would be helpful.



I'd second what others have suggested about getting hold of the means to test your own levels before and after eating if you want to see a fuller picture than just your (excellent) HbA1c.

Some of the 'standard' dietary advice that is provided can have mixed results for people with diabetes. Your results suggest you are doing brilliantly, but your continuing thirst and need to wake in the night could do with looking into really (especially if they are caused by glucose spilling into urine which usually only happens at quite high levels in people with a normal renal threshold)

If your GP is reluctant to prescribe strips you can usually get a meter free from manufacturers and buy stirps over the counter. Some of the T2s will know which strips are more cost-effective.


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## Emmaathome (Jul 19, 2012)

Hi 419ireland

Welcome to the forum


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## 419ireland (Jul 19, 2012)

Thanks for your comments. From further research I was coming to the same conclusion from the recent research I've done that I need to check my BG to see if my diet is causing this.


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## Mark T (Jul 19, 2012)

and a belated welcome to the forums from me 419ireland


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## rossie (Jul 20, 2012)

would love to know your food diet as i am struggling to loose weight...I cannot walk at moment but would love some food suggestions..well done you....


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## 419ireland (Jul 20, 2012)

*I'm a newbie*

The way I managed to lose weight was to join an internet site where you put in all that you eat and all the exercise you do in a day. The site I used was ' Weightlossresources'.  You can set your goal for weight loss and see how much you are allowed to eat each day. You will also find out which  foods have low & high calories. If you find you are quickly reaching your calorie target for a day you can go for a brisk walk or go swimming or some other exercise.  I did a fair bit of vigorous exercise each day to allow me to eat more.  I drank a lot of diet coke, black tea & coffee and ate silverskin onions, celery cherry tomatoes to help with the cravings.  Boiled eggs, bacon and porridge filled me up at breakfast rather than cereals. As my daughter is vegetarian I also ate a lot of Quorn. Put in a stir fry or bolognaise sauce you can hardly tell the difference between quorn and chicken pieces or real mince but quorn has fewer calories. I also went for the 'eat smart' or 'be good to yourself' sauces/soups which contain less calories and salt. Again you can barely tell the difference. Eating out at Harvester restaurants were good as they tell you how many calories are in each dish and you get a free salad bar so you can fill up on salad/vegetables. I avoided desserts (except fruit), chocolate, cakes, chips and roast potatoes. You really have to be motivated and determined but it really does work.

I hope this helps.


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## rossie (Jul 21, 2012)

thank yu..every bit helps me...got a big goal and not much support around me..got from 22 stone to 20 stone 12 and just gone up again....grrrrrrrrrr


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## 419ireland (Jul 26, 2012)

*Going to the toilet a lot*

Have started testing as suggested and my BG levels seem to be not spiking. Thought it may be prostate problems but saw doc to-day and after examination(!) he said prostate was fine. Doc thought it was due to the amount of caffeine, liquid and fruit I am having especially in the evening. My brother in law said he was regularly up 3 times in the night to go to the toilet and he thought it was due to the coffee he was drinking. Doc said I should drink decaff coffee,tea and coke after noon and not drink much late on in the day and see if that helps.

Rob


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## Northerner (Jul 26, 2012)

I taper down the amount I drink in the evenings, but usually end up getting up at least once in the night despite having good blood sugar levels. I guess it's my age! I would say, however, that I was much more 'active' during the night in the first few months after diagnosis, so things did improve


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## Jimbo (Jul 27, 2012)

Well done 419ireland!

Inspirational stuff, big pat on the back well done you!

Keep up the good work now!


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## Pattidevans (Oct 31, 2012)

> Have started testing as suggested and my BG levels seem to be not spiking.


Hi 419Ireland.

Welcome.  When in relation to meals are you testing?  Try testing at 1 and 2 hours after each meal.


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## JohnCo (Nov 8, 2012)

Welcome 419ireland!  I have found that testing my blood to see how a particular food affects me restricts, what I eat!   I test just before I eat, and at 1 hour/1.5hours and 2hours after! And as it is inconvenient for me to test at work (builder) it happens in the evening - so no snacking!!


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