General Chat

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OH was diagnosed with this last week, after undergoing several tests following his Mum’s sudden death. We’ve got all the ‘official’ leaflets and referrals (retinal screening next week, waiting for dietician and podiatrist appointments) but what we need is just practical hints and tips. For instance, I always thought that diabetics had to avoid ‘added’ sugar but no, even natural sugar has to be taken into account, like in fruit. Jan and Ronald were really helpful last week but I wondered if anyone else has any useful info please? Thanks! Mandy :)

I'm diet controlled, Mandy - have been for over 5 years so I'm perhaps not the best person to advise as everyone is different. One thing I will say is don't go for 'Diabetic' food - it costs a lot and there is no benefit in it. To begin with I took no sugar at all - now I know I need to take a bit of sugar as otherwise I have 'low blood sugar' and that's really what makes me worse. Therefore, I take fruit but avoid anything with fructose in it. In fact - if it has an 'ose' on the end there's sugar in it! I suppose moderation is what is important.

Mandy Get some sugar cubes and always keep some in your bag and in car just in case he needs them. You will soon get used to a new routine and is surprising the things you think you cant do without you can.

hiya, had to add, hope this helps, me dad has it and a friend,..... banana's only eat them when they are yellow once they show any signs of black that means the natural suger level in it is tooo high dont eat..... you might have to count up the amount of suger at first, but after a while you will get to know what foods contain and how high they are, like bread thats got suger in it.. and you will have to go to the clinic to get your toenails cut..risk of infection .. if i can get more info i'll pm if thats ok take care kaz x

Im a diabetic controlled by pills And what Woody has said is right dont let it rule your life I will occationally have a sweet or a little chocolate but in moderation Dont buy diabetic chocs or sweets to many and you will never get off the loo lol Linda

Another one Mandy get used to always making sandwiches if you are going out even if you think its a short journey you never know what happens, if you get stuck in a jam and cant get to food quick enough,,better to throw them away when you get home rather than have the consequeuences

Can't help Mandy. Just wanted to say hello and hugs for Marston :))

Grandson is type 1 but my daughter always has a couple of biscuits in her bag a piece of chocolate and a gel to put on his gums if he goes into a coma and too late for something sweet. He also carries the same. Annie

hi all, type 1 you have not enough suger in your body, thats when you take insulin, need to carry a marrs bar around...... type 2 you have to much suger in your body so you have to cut out suger, you feel doped up, tired, ... both are serious you can go into coma's with both hope this helps defineing the 2 types... kaz

Thanks everyone, this is brilliant, I knew I could depend on you! I'll print off the thread a bit later on. Jean, thank you! Just one thing after another at the moment, but we're looking at it that he'll feel so much better once his sugar levels are sorted out xx Mandy :)

Hi Mandy, my OH is type 2. It's not just about sugar, its about carbohydrates. These are stored as excess energy. Basically a healthy diet, low fat and as sugar free as possible will be the best thing. Even then, there is no reason the occasional treat, (not sweets or massive fryups obviously) such as a nice steak, will do no harm whatsoever. Wholefoods are brilliant, such as whole grain breads, fresh fruit in moderation, fresh veg and oats. all these are slow release energy so won't raise his blood sugar too quickly. Having said all that, my OH does not stick to anything, and drives me nuts! LOL

Type 1 is you have got sugar.You have not got the cells to break the sugar down.Thats why they have to inject insulin.Type 2 you have some insulin but not enough.if grandson misses one injection (he has 3 a day) the sugar builds up very quick.After 2 misses he starts being sick. Annie

Hi Mandy, my husband was diagnosed with Type 2 last Christmas. He was put on Metformin twice a day, Cholesteral reducing tablets and Asprin. As he was very overweight he was told he had to loose weight. After loosing 2 stone he is feeling much better. He still needs to loose another 2 stone though. Exersise is very good. We find that eating regular meals is the best. Your Husband really needs to eat breakfast, even if it is only a small bowl of cereal and a slice of toast. He needs some form of Carbohydrate at each meal, and if he feels peckish in the evening a slice of toast or piece of fruit. You will get a lot of support from your Practice or Diabetic Nurse at your GP. I have a lot of info which I am quite happy to scan for you and send. But if you go onto the website Diabetes UK they will tell you all you need to know. Please dont let it worry you too much. I was worried sick at first, but now I know a little more it really isnt so frightening. PM me if you want to chat about it. Jenny.

Fortunately, he's not a chocoholic like me! I was quite surprised at cereals - I assumed they would all be healthy but many of them have way too much sugar. Mandy :)

Thanks for your kind offer Jenny. We're just waiting to see the diabetic nurse as well. To be honest, it could have been something much worse and although we won't take diabetes lightly, we're not going to worry ourselves silly. He's pretty good for eating breakfast, I think it will be mostly a case of eating the right amount of the right foods at the right times lol! Mandy :)

Hi, Both my husband and I are type 2 diabetics. Johan has now got to the stage when he has to inject insuline, but I am controlled by tablets. I never think about what we eat and we eat just everything, cake, biscuits, in moderation of course. We always keep 'emergency rations' in the car as Johan can get dizzy if he has to wait for a meal. Me, haven't got to that stage yet. Mind you, after an operation in hospital one invariably needs to increase their tablets - but the hospital work that out for you! Sylvia xxx

Hi Awdrey, hope you are still keeping well? Our GP mentioned following a Mediterranean diet and we found a book on that. It's low GI and mentions helping with diabetes, high cholesterol etc, as well. Mind you, I haven't started using it yet....!! Hi Sylvia, hope you are also keeping well? Mandy :)

Cereals are dreadful, Mandy!! Porridge is good and I like the sugar-free T*s*o Muesli - it has less sugar than all the rest. You will soon learn to substitute foods. For instance you can't have chips - done the 'usual' way in a fryer. So, bake a potato, cut it into wedges, light spray it with oil (light touch or something like that), into the oven and you have home-made oven chips! For roast potatoes, par-boil them, then sprinkle with garlic chips and brush lightly with oil - and into the oven! I avoid desserts as a rule if I'm out for a meal - I object to paying about £3 for something that I can only take one spoonful of! Even a fruit salad will likely have been made the lazy way and had the contents of a can of fruit added! But, as has already been said, don't let it take over your life. Better to know he has it than to be unaware.

Thanks for that tip Woody; we shop at Tesco and hubby likes muesli, so that's a tick! I quite agree - I think it's far better to have a diagnosis and get treatment than be unaware and do damage to your body. You're all very helpful and hubby says thank you. Mandy :)