General Chat

Go to www(.)diabetes(.)org(.)uk Remove brackets, and get information off there. I am Type 1, and I am a member of them and get good advice from them and you can even phone and ask someone about your concerns. Someone also says you cannot have chips from a fryer of course you can if you do them at home, once a week only same with yorkshire puddings, yes I can only have one scoup of ice cream now. Roger

Can't give you any info Mandy, but just to say hello,and hugs to you and yours. Trish xx

Hi Mandy My mum was Type 2 and the best thing I can advise is to cook all meals from scratch. i.e. fresh fish or meat with fresh vegetables. There are a lot of things in pre-packed foods which diabetics can't cope with. Basically follow a low fat, low sugar, low carbohydrate diet. If you need to fry anything at all, such as a fried egg for instance, use a can of spray ( I think it's called Fry Lite or something like that). Don't use oil, butter or lard for frying. The fry lite will be on the same shelf as the cooking oils in the supermarket. Also try to stay away from the mass produced 'Diabetic' food such as jams, chocolate etc wherever possible as they will cost you an arm and a leg - added to which they are not very nice either!! Pick up a good recipe book and you will find that a diabetic diet is very varied and not as boring as it sounds. One more piece of advice, keep an eye on any injuries and see a doctor if they seem slow to heal. (Men often get shaving nicks). Also foot problems such as cracking heels are common with diabetics. Your hubby should have his nails done by a chiropodist from now on to minimise any risk of nicks. I am 99 per cent certain that chiropody care is free for diabetics. Good luck and all the best to your hubby. Dianne xx

i ment to add you can eat wheatabix, wholegrains, bran, check labels on tins some read carbs are 10 and sugers are 4 - dont buy, my friend buys some tins of friut in juice just have teaspoon but check what youve eaten during the day so you dont overload your body, creamfraise she has again just small portions, your diatecian will go through everything with you, remember get your feet checked at the clinic aswell, nite kaz x

Mandy hi I have the same as hubby and control mine with a diet only our diabetic nurses are wonderful and I get more help from them than the Gp if marston takes notice of them he can eat normally and still enjoy his food Love to you both Howiexxxx

Hi Mandy, hope you soon get used to the things you can and can't use, so Marston starts to feel better and it is not too much hassle for you to deal with, my mum had it but coped well for years. It is the Sorbitol in diabetic foods that gives you the runs so not worth buying, just very small amounts of things will be ok. You might want to get Marston a Medic alert bracelet or similar so if he is ever away and does have a problem and is unable to say what is wrong the medallion has all the info in it. There are probably more to choose from nowadays but Mum had one so if she did get poorly when out alone, someone could see what the problem was and know how to deal with it. She always carried a Mars bar around and had one by the bed too, just in case. Hope life gets on a more even keel for you all soon. Love Lizx

I have read all but no one has said anything about the most inportant meal of the day for a diabetic and that is SUPPER, you must always remember to have Supper as it gets you from one day to another, the longest part of the day you got without a snack in between one mel and the next. depdening how long you sleep. So always remember to have Supper. Roger

Wanted a pud yesterday so made Apple Charlotte. Used wholemeal bread and left crusts on, sunflower spread on bread and eating apples in lieu of cooking apples, no sugar added to fruit. Was very filling. Eldest g'son (14) liked it as well and as usual he scoffed some of my sugar free jelly for tea with some icecream. So far the sugar free jelly is only grub with sweeteners where I can't 'taste' the sweetener. Beware Weight Watchers grub some of it is high in sugar. Dining out - 3 course meal? Beware soup. Some 'commercial' soups and chef made soups are high in sugar. Ron

Nudging for Joyous

i,ll copy this mandy as theres so much to take in.then ive got it at the ready.thanks sooooooo much.
xxx

nudging - excellent thread. My oh is looking like a diagnosis of type 2 :(

Lyn x

Hello Mac, nice to meet you and thanks for the additional tips.

It's now been over 6 months since hubby was first diagnosed, and he's lost a good amount of weight and got his sugar levels down to about 6.9. Unfortunately, the Diabetic Nurse at our practice has been off for a while sick, so we're still groping around in the dark a bit (metaphorically speaking of course!).

Mandy :)

Mac, funny you should ask that. He doesn't have one, but I think he should. Some days he's really light-headed and we don't know whether he's had too much sugar or not enough. Our surgery is brilliant but they don't seem to be covering the Diabetic Nurse's absence very well.

He has an appointment tomorrow for something else, so I think I'll suggest that he asks the doctor for one.

Mandy :)

"Mac, funny you should ask that. He doesn't have one, but I think he should. Some days he's really light-headed and we don't know whether he's had too much sugar or not enough. Our surgery is brilliant but they don't seem to be covering the Diabetic Nurse's absence very well."

Your OH might not be able to obtain testings strips via prescription. Below is copy of a note I received when I last applied just prior Christmas:-

"Diabetic Patients – On Oral medication (Not Insulin)

It is no longer recommended for diabetic patients who are not on insulin to routinely test their blood or urine for sugar. Your blood glucose levels will continue to be monitored at the surgery routinely using the HBA1c test.

If you have any queries please do not hesitate to contact the practice pharmacist"

After receiving the above note I found out the following info:

NICE it Ain’t!

Seems the problem with some diabetics being unable to obtain blood sugar test strips etc on prescription in England is due to NICE.

NICE has recommended that non insulin dependant diabetics whose long term blood sugar readings remain nigh on constant have no need to test on a daily basis and GPs should not prescribe the necessary strips/lancets etc.

Taking my own case as an example – I am tested twice a year for long term sugars and they have stayed in the range 6.3 to 6.4 with 7 being the allowable maximum long term reading for my Diet & Exercise regime. Thus I am deemed as ‘safe’ and denied the right to test and thus monitor my condition and spot any deterioration early on.

Soooooooooo it seems anyone who is non insulin dependant but whose long term readings are somewhat erratic will continue to be prescribed the necessary items.

Think it can be said that those of us who are diligent with our diet and maintain adequate control are being penalised for striving to keep ourselves fit. Smacks of discrimination as well as, in so far as I can gather, the ruling only applies to England.

I now purchase my own test strips £26 and Lancets £12 but only test pre breakfast.

There has been a lot of discussion about this problem on Saga Zone

Your OH should endeavour to take his meals at about the same time each day - I was 2 hours late with lunch one day due being at a funeral which started at 1230 and lasted quite a while. Result (even after sandwiches and bit of cake at the Wake at 3pm plus cups of tea, a meal incl apple pie and custard about 530pm on way home) at around 630pm I started with my first hypo - my reading was 3.8 and I was in a bad way. A small bar of chocolate resolved the problem

If your OH starts feeling light headed get him to eat a square of chocolate. If he then feels better he will know his blood sugars were too low.

FOOTCARE CHECKLIST

Never neglect injuries to your feet, no matter how slight.

Check your feet daily and consult a podiatrist or chiropodist about any problems. If it is difficult for you to check your own feet, get someone to help.

Wash your feet every day with soap and warm water. Do not use hot water.

Dry your feet thoroughly particularly between the toes.

If your skin is dry or rough apply a moisturizing cream such as E45.

Change your socks/tights/stockings daily.

Do not wear ill-fitting shoes.

Check that there is nothing in your shoes that will rub.

Wear new shoes for a short time at first and check your feet afterwards for any signs of rubbing.

Cut your toenails following the shape of the end of your toes. Do NOT cup deep into the corners.

Avoid extremes of temperature (for example do not put your feet on a hot water bottle to warm your feet)

Do not walk around bare foot always wear slippers or shoes in the house.

Watch for Infections

You need to take special care to avoid foot infections, particularly if you have recued sensation which may prevent you noticing that infection has set in. Ultimately, a severe untreated infection could lead to gangrene. Damage to the blood supply in the feet, especially in older people with hardening or clogging of the arteries, also increases the risk of gangrene. ALWAYS go and see your GP or Diabetic Nurse if an infection does not clear up on it’s own in a few days.

I was also told by a friend who is a nurse that even a coarse dog's hair can penetrate bare feet and cause severe problems

Ronald,

Hope you don't mind me asking. Are you type one or type two. The message you give is that you are type one.

The treatment for type two is very different, and certainly does not involve taking sugar hits or chocolate.

well i got my appointment through for kidney specialist, its this friday.
i,ll tell him whats happened and see what his plans for me are.my blood sugar is high,so i think that makes me a 2.[am i right]lol.xx

Quote: "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

If Sylvia told a diabetic nurse about eating "everything" she would probably be told how silly she and her husband are. Their body's systems cannot cope with lots of sugar hence the medication needed. Just because a diabetic takes medication it doesn't mean they can nigh on ignore their problem. Medication has a hard enough task trying to keep things on an even keel and the two of them are heading for problems in the future