Diabetes under control ...

Nice one. Do the docs think that you may be able to control it completely without drugs in the future?

That's the aim ..;)

My uncle was diagnosed with Type II diabetes fairly well on into life, and he really couldn't be having with an overly restricted diet so he just worked out how much more exercise he had to do to keep it under control. On one occasion having had a fairly big meal out in France he got back to his son's house by swimming there in the adjacent river rather than walking.

He eventually passed away from a heart attack at the age of 78 while swimming some distance to shore having just dived off a yacht he was holidaying on. Struck as all as one of the better ways to go for an active sort.

Pete.

Great to hear.

Selfishly, I (we?) need to hear some good news these days. Otherwise it seems to be a drumfire of depression. I guess that we have to make our own good news.

Congrats dear boy, keep it up,

Nice one Paul... reminder to me to get my ass on the tred mill!

I was on tablets and then insulin for about adecade but I'm finally off insulin after a couple of years of a strict regime of exercise and, incredibly, Indian 'Ayurvedic' herbal medicine.

Now my starvation blood sugar is 5.8 in the morning rising to 10 after meals.

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember "Paul - xxx" saying something like:

Good show. Similarly, I've been shedding the pounds during and after the arse-kicking-into-gear-you-stupid-bastard I got from the GP. Nearly 20kg lost since summer 2009. I find watching the blood sugar level is a useful daily reminder to not pig out.

It won't do you any good, you know; you'll still die sooner or later.

Cnut ... ;)

That is about a 0.3 of a Me that is. Fuck knows how I would cope if I ever had to diet like you sugar mongs.

But hopefully "with", not "of".

It's how I intend things to be.

Well done and keep it up too Paul.

On Thu, 16 Dec 2010 10:54:23 +0000, Paul - xxx boggled us with:

Excellent news Paul, well done. My dad's diabetic and is going through a similar struggle at the moment. His Parkinsons doesn't help!

Don't be afraid of the tablets. The complications of Diabetes are a lot less favourable. If you have been carrying a lot of weight for a long time, then the reality is that by dropping the weight off, you might get a bit of respite, but the condition will manifest itself again.

There is a new train of thought in Diabetes care to medicate adequately and early to reduce the load on the pancreas and as a result extend it insulin producing ability (and avoid the day when you need to start injecting) . I would be very wary about coming off metformin knowing what I know now about the condition.

When you are not insulin dependent, they consider that daily testing is not of value and just creates unnecessary anxiety for the sufferer. Try a Thai coconut curry if you want to see how high your sugars can really go. One of those can hold my sugar levels up for 24 hours and had me spike at the same level of the glucose tolerance test.

The bi-annual HBa1C is the one they determine the level of medication you will be put on as a non injecting diabetic. You don't feel the sugars are high, you only feel the lows and comparative changes.

I had a practice nurse tell me once that I could not go hypo on Metformin - she wasn't with me when I did 10 miles into a ride on an empty stomach a couple of years ago so take with a pinch of salt what they tell you unless they have had specific training in the field ;o)

That's great news. Seriously well done.

I am also T2 diabetic diagnosed 15 months ago. My glycated heamoglobin was measured by the diabetic nurse at 5.7 just last week.

You mention visiting your GP for a Bg test result ... If your GP hasn't issued you with a simple Blood Glucose Meter I suggest you buy one off EBAY for about £7.50 including a starter kit of test slips. There is funding in the NHS for meters + test supplies for diabetics.

I found it took a few months to use up my body's reserves of sugar, after that it became much easier and I could even take the occasional liberty with my diet.

The toast and bikkies are good (or rather bad) for about 1 mmol/L

I've found the following oddities ...

A proper meal such as a traditional Sunday dinner(Or a Chinese) - does not put my blood sugar up appreciably, but carbohydrates such as a piece of cake or a couple of slices of white bread (brown is no better) send it through the roof.

PS. A medium sized apple and a piece of cheese or ham with pickles (Acetic acid slows down the absorbtion of carbohydrates)would be an altogether better snack for you than.

Commercial breakfast cereals are all much the same (bad).

I work for a medical instrumentation company and we have 4 tame doctors on the staff. The party line here is that if you can keep your blood sugar between 4 and 8 mmol/L you will avoid long term health consequences. It's easy to better that. Personally I found it to be necessary to first deplete the stores of sugar in my liver after which it became easier to keep my Bg low and I can now even take the occasional liberty with my diet.

Congratulations: It looks like you're out of the woods.

Derek G

Many of the manufacturers of the test strips will beat a path to your door if you use their strips - actually what they do is give you a BG meter. The test strips are ludicrously expensive. Many have free s/w for PC use that enables tracking of your BG. Unfortunately - as I found out - there is currently only one that speaks to a Mac and it is not free. It costs about =A320-ish. It's the Bayer Contour USB meter.

No personal interest in these gadgets (yet?) but my father in law has been a T2 diabetic for 30+ years. He normally doesn't talk about it and has a better understanding of his condition and how to manage it than the diabetic clinic. However, he's quite happy to discuss it with me because we are only talking about it from a mechanical point of view - little about how it affects him personally - and how the Mac can be exploited for record keeping purposes.

BOL

Richard

door if you use their strips - actually what they do is give you a BG meter. The test strips are ludicrously expensive. Many have free s/w for PC use that enables tracking of your BG. Unfortunately - as I found out - there is currently only one that speaks to a Mac and it is not free. It costs about £20-ish. It's the Bayer Contour USB meter. Snipped ........................................

Do not purchase a meter without checking with your GP. As has already been said some of the strips are very expensive & the GP may not sign a perscription. You could try getting one free direct from the manufacturer. I managed it but then I'm cheeky. LifeScan have been very helpful to me even when I forgot to take the strip out and flattened the batteries. Try their Customer Care line 0800 121200 or