been thinking a lot

[Guest guest]

I've been thinking a lot about how I can get my BG's lower but still

eat and gain weight. I'm very unusal here in that I've always been

underweight...my whole life. I was born with liver disease and many

times people, especailly children suffer from malnutrient becuase the

liver does not work properly. When I was 11 I received a liver

transplant but have continued to battle low weight and slow weight

gain. When I was diagnosed with diabetes in February I feel like its

been an even bigger battle for me. I am not on any meds and my endo.

said I do not have to really follow a meal plan at this time but in

my opinion my levels have been higher than what she wanted me at the

majority of the time. Not that much higher but I would rather

control it now than let it start getting worse. I think it has been

worse now becuase I do not work much in the summer so my schedule is

off. Before I was diagnosed I had started watching my portions and I

lost weight.

Another thing with all this is that food is one of the only controls

I have in life, especially when it comes to all my medical issues.

I've always been able to eat anything and everything and as much as I

wanted and that is what the doctors wanted me doing.....so I could

gain weight. Now I feel like if I watch what I eat, I watch myself

too much and i either maintain or lose weight. I really need to be

gaining! My highest weight ever was 111, now I'm down too 102. The

docs say that my weight is stable but i don't compeltly agree. Too

get an idea I'm between 5'4 and 5'5 in height.

Any advice or ideas on gaining and keeping the BG's low?

Thanks, Marisa

dx. 2/06

[Guest guest]

Marissa,

The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence LOL - I wish I

could eat all I wanted and not gain weight but the problem is the same just

from another viewpoint!

How high are your blood sugars that your dr wants you to be careful? That

would give me/us a better understanding of where you are and what

suggestions to offer.

Also, what kinds of foods do you normally eat including junk foods, comfort

foods, foods just for calories to gain weight sort of foods.

All of these things together will help you decide what to and not to eat and

how much and when etc.

I'm fairly new at this, just about 6 months, am diet controlled successfully

so far, and have learned so much from this list it is unbelievable!

Welcome.

JUDITH

> I've been thinking a lot about how I can get my BG's lower but still

> eat and gain weight. I'm very unusal here in that I've always been

> underweight...my whole life. I was born with liver disease and many

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[Guest guest]

>

> I've always been able to eat anything and everything and as much as I

> wanted and that is what the doctors wanted me doing.....so I could

> gain weight. Now I feel like if I watch what I eat, I watch myself

> too much and i either maintain or lose weight. I really need to be

> gaining! My highest weight ever was 111, now I'm down too 102. The

> docs say that my weight is stable but i don't compeltly agree. Too

> get an idea I'm between 5'4 and 5'5 in height.

Marisa,

Is your doctor unhappy with your current weight? If your doctor isn't

unhappy, maybe you should talk to him/her and explain your feelings about

your current weight and where you think you should be. They can go over

what some of the health issues may be if you do gain some weight, or if you

stay where you are.

Maybe you do need to consume higher number of calories... if that's the

case, you should be able to work with your doctor and a dietitian to come up

with a sensible, healthy meal plan and treat your blood sugars medically if

they go up.

I realize that many people try to achieve what they consider the 'gold

level' of control by getting off of all medications, however, if you have a

disease that prevents you from producing the required insulin, or using that

insulin if your body produces it... maybe medication is in order?

Personally, I see nothing wrong with maintaining a healthy diet, appropriate

for your body height and build and then taking the appropriate medications

to control your diabetes. I have read nothing that supports that an

individual with diabetes has different nutritional needs than an individual

of the same height, weight and activity level who does not have diabetes.

Mike

[Guest guest]

Mike, my feelings are it is not healthy for me to be underweight and

I was already underweight even before I dropped to 102. I know BMI

isn't everything but I was at 18 and dropped to 17. My doctors know

my feelings...that I'm not happy with the lost weight. They have

never said they are unhappy with my weight but I'm fairly sure if I

asked them about my weight they would say they would like to see me

gain some. It's sort of an unspoken issue that we all know about.

I am a very active person and I do consume as many calories a day as

possible. But that is where the diabetes comes in because I feel

like if I watch what I eat..like how many carbs, then I can't get the

calories in I need. Kknow what I mean?

Thanks for your help. I do see my primary doctor soon so I will chat

with her about it again.

~Marisa

>

>

> Marisa,

> Is your doctor unhappy with your current weight? If your doctor

isn't

> unhappy, maybe you should talk to him/her and explain your feelings

about

> your current weight and where you think you should be. They can go

over

> what some of the health issues may be if you do gain some weight,

or if you

> stay where you are.

>

> Mike

[Guest guest]

Thanks for the reply Judith.

I know my situation here is VERY different compared to probably

everyone here. I have never found another person that is in an even

similar situation.

My endo. doctor thinks everything is ok. I will have another A1C

drawn this week. My levels have been running between 150 and

250...usually more in the 150-200 range but it does spike above 200

sometimes. My doctor wants me under 140. I am not seriously counting

carbs right now but I do look at the carbs I eat the majority of the

time just to get an idea. But I feel if I do count carbs at a meal

that I cannot get the calories I need.

Also, what kinds of foods do you normally eat including junk foods,

comfort foods, foods just for calories to gain weight sort of foods.

Typical meals--

breakfast-blueberry bagel w/butter and bowl of cereal

snack-cereal bar

lunch-wheat bread w/ cheese and turkey, maynaise or butter, milk,

yogurt, carrots or crackers or apple.

snack-crackers

dinner-really varies

snack-chips or crackers or popcorn

Sometimes I even eat between the meals and snacks.

I've had dietitions tell me I'm anorexic or bulemic and me and my mom

tell them they need to spend a day with me then becusae

I eat all the time!

Thanks, Marisa

-- In diabetes , " HELPERDOGS " wrote:

> How high are your blood sugars that your dr wants you to be

careful? That

> would give me/us a better understanding of where you are and what

> suggestions to offer.

[Guest guest]

I'm pretty new at this but looking through your menu there are alot of

carb-heavy foods there. You could get a lot more calories w/out the

carbs by adding protein rich foods like meat, cheese and many dairy

products. Read labels and see what has high calories per carbs. I

consider any meat or cheese a " free " food and eat all I want of either -

not a good weight loss diet but it supplies the energy I need to get

through my long busy days and I'm actually loosing weight by reducing

the carbs I was eating prior to diagnosis.

Janet

Janet May

Thistle Keep Shetlands

Thistle Keep Dairy Goats

SE Iowa

www.shetlandfarm.com http://www.shetlandfarm.com/>

My endo. doctor thinks everything is ok. I will have another A1C

drawn this week. My levels have been running between 150 and

250...usually more in the 150-200 range but it does spike above 200

sometimes. My doctor wants me under 140. I am not seriously counting

carbs right now but I do look at the carbs I eat the majority of the

time just to get an idea. But I feel if I do count carbs at a meal

that I cannot get the calories I need.

Typical meals--

breakfast-blueberry bagel w/butter and bowl of cereal

snack-cereal bar

lunch-wheat bread w/ cheese and turkey, maynaise or butter, milk,

yogurt, carrots or crackers or apple.

snack-crackers

dinner-really varies

snack-chips or crackers or popcorn

..

http://geo.yahoo.com/serv?s=97359714&grpId=1701&grpspId=1600061498&msgI

d=77942&stime=1151862711>

[Guest guest]

Hi Marissa,

Wow, my mouth is hanging open and I am also sorry for the time you spend

eating which seems to be time consuming as much as mine is trying not to

eat. very big sigh for both of us!

My endo also wants my BS#s to be under 140 approx 2 hrs after eating. I

was/am lucky to find the very best nutritionist at his team. Without

actually dieting I've lost about 35 lbs in about 4 months. I am also in a

wheel chair much of the time although not confined to it, but it makes real

exercising not practical to add into the equation for keeping BS#s under

control and loosing weight.

Ok, so that being said, I had to look at the foods I was eating and when i

was eating them. It is a good thing I am not scared of needles LOL... I

think I hold a record for BS testing! Anyway:

I don't know why anyone would know their BS#s before a dr dxes them with

diabetes so that sort of leaves us with the 140 # as a base line to aim for

to see what foods we each can eat. And of course it helps when trying a new

food to test before eating so you know whether or not the new food has

spiked you. By new food, I mean either something you haven't usually eaten

OR something you haven't tested yet. I rarely test the same food more than

once unless there is a reason like adding exercise before or after it or the

time of day it is consumed. (or I get nuts and go off the deep end LOL)

If you mean your levels are 150-200+ then of course you want to see what you

can do about it. You are young and healthy and have a life to lead and an

active one at that. You have no reason to loose it because of food or BS#s!

You also don't have to have bodily damage from diabetes because you are

ahead of the game by knowing that you have it! they say knowledge is power,

right? Right!

Why aren't you seriously counting carbs right now? Just counting them and

being aware of what you are eating, and what your body responds to and how

just gives you information that you can make use of later if you want to.

The choice will be yours in your own good time rather than suddenly being

told YIKE you have to do something NOW.

Yes, it can be hard to coordinate carbs, fats, and calories or whatever else

you have to do. Boy do I know that. Just when I got the carbs and calories

sort of under control not just to eat but to have in my mind so I don't have

to watch everything all the time, I got told I have a high cholesterol and

should be on meds for that. Yeah, right. Checked with my cardiologist and

got told to wait 2-3 months, retake the lipid panel and then we'll decide if

I should go on anything. phew. Enough meds. (I'm not on diabetic meds and

just through diet I have gone from an A1C of 6.3 to 5.1 in 4 months. I've

amazed myself and you should see the drs' faces LOL).

Anyway, for you with the opposite problem, believe me it should be much

easier because every time I looked for foods with fiber I found calories!

Every time I looked for protein I found calories! Don't want calories - you

want calories.

So you will be looking at the ingredient labels on the foods you buy and

other foods you eat totally opposite from me! Lucky you in my opinion

anyway. Gosh I want that ice cream and candy :-( ok, pity party over.

You will be able to decrease BS#s and keep the calories you specifically

need. I am sure of that because of all the foods I put back on the grocery

shelves! :-(

One interesting thing that might be of help to you is the info I just

finally after 4+ months here got through my head: you can eat higher carbs

and sugars IF you balance it with fats and proteins. I was terrified for

months to have fruits because they spiked my BS#s but when I understood if I

had sour cream (my preference) with some of them my BS# wouldn't spike (at

least not for me and many others) because the fats slow down the absorbtion

of the carbs/sugars. So now, truly amazingly, I eat a banana (large!) with

2T of sour cream about an hour or 2 before I go to sleep and my numbers not

only are good but they are sometimes even lower than not having that

fruit/sour cream. Remember sour cream is not low calorie.

That may be of some help to you: to find foods that have a decent (not too

high because of other considerations) fat content because they will also

have a higher calorie content.

since you can eat higher claories than I can, have you checked into eating

the power bars? They don't have as much fat and they do have relatively

high carbs (for me anyway, 41g carb at one time is high) could you eat one

before you exercise in addition to your meals and snacks? the ones I looked

at yesterday were 'tiny' for me (i love eating) and about 200+ calories.

they were the meal replacement types, not snacks per se.

I guess the trick of it for you will be to find foods that are high calorie

and low carb.

There is one other thing to consider: if you can't do this through diet,

there is no harm or shame in speaking to your dr about trying a diabetes

medication. The way it was explained to me was that I can't just go on

eating the way I've been eating and take meds but the meds help regulate the

way your body makes or uses (?) insulin in addition to the way you eat. It

is complimentary. One really doesn't work without the other.

You are young and have all the time in the world to enjoy yourself. Count

those carbs and find the diet that keeps your BS# under 140 and eat those

calories for me.

Hmmmm, did I just ramble on, or say even one thing that helped? getting

old.....

JUDITH

> Thanks for the reply Judith.

>

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[Guest guest]

Hi Again Judith! I do know what my BG was about every month for the

last 18 years. This is how they decided to test me for diabetes.

Since I had a liver transplant I get monthly blood tests and a yearly

ultrasound so I'm followed closely.

The cause of my diabetes is probably one of the meds I'm on for my

transplant and I will have to take this med forever. So, if the med

is cauing diabetes how does changing my diet help? I guess I need to

ask my doctor this becuase maybe what I eat won't make a huge

difference if it's the med causing the numbers? I don't know????

My doctor told me I didn't have to really change my diet but I think

in the last month or so my levels have been higher. She said to keep

doing what I was doing. That everything still looked ok. Even though

she has said that I feel like I need to watch more now or maybe even

just try to see what foods make me go high. She only wants me

testing 2 hours after I eat becuase she said that number is what will

help us know the most but I'm feeling like if I want to get the

numbers down a little more that I need to know what foods make me go

high so I can stay away or eat less of them. Does that make sense

and seem reasonable?

Ok, I think it finally makes sense to me that if I eat fats with high

carb foods that it helps keep your BG down. Is that right?

I do eat balance bars before I swim and sometimes more.

My doctor will not consider meds right now. She thinks everything

was ok so I doubt she would let me start meds. I do not want meds

either. I'm on too many meds as it is and so if I can change my diet

and it makes a difference that is where I want to start.

Thanks for you help and support!

~Marisa

>

> Hi Marissa,

>

> Wow, my mouth is hanging open and I am also sorry for the time you

spend

> eating which seems to be time consuming as much as mine is trying

not to

> eat. very big sigh for both of us!

[Guest guest]

Hi again :-) Marrisa,

Let's see here. You are lucky in a way to know what your BS#s were all

these years. It sure gave you a head start on taking care of a problem if

it occurred!

Me too: I take prednisone and have since about 1992. The drs have told me

that my diabetes is probaby prednisone induced but I can't stop taking it

either. The other factor that probably helped me into diabetes was that I

started eating and got FAT. Sorry everyone, I am saying this about myself,

not anyone else.

I am older :-) and my diet over the years has not helped. Too much fat, too

much sugar, etc.

I have no idea where I got the discipline from to loose weight so fast and

make diet changes so fast that my A1C went from 6.4 to 5.1 in 4 months, but

I did. I am in a bit of a danger area right now because I feel as if I can

eat normal again - my normal, not healthy normal. So far I've not acted on

eating 'wrong' foods, but I have let my daily calories go higher than weight

loss requirements for the past 2 weeks so I have to get back on track.

Everyone wish me luck! I simply have to, don't I?

Regarding the fat and carbs. I found that it worked for me, but then last

night it didn't work as well so maybe it was the time I ate the banana and

2T of sour cream? The numbers before bedtime/eating last night and the

numbers this morning on waking up were the same - not dangerous (121 & 122)

but not where I like them and they usually are between 90-114. so I would

say to test and see what works for you. Are you getting tired of hearing

that yet? LOL......

I am not sure of the right explanation to give you about why changing your

diet helps other than it lets your body make better use of what I only know

to call natural insulin which is how normal people's body breaks down and

uses foods. I know it has helped me, so I don't see why it can't help you.

If/when you find out it doesn't, that is when using medicines to help works,

not before. The nurse educator at my endo team's office told me you can't

keep eating the way you want and rely on diabetes meds to take care of

everything. She said that you have to eat right and along with that if

necessary the meds help get everything back to 'normal'. So far these people

haven't told me anything that hasn't been true so I just sort of accept what

they say and then, of course check it out with this list LOL :-)

If your dr said to keep doing what you're doing and keep a closer watch,

that sounds good. You'll have the info to share with her and then be able

to decide what to do. Also you might really look around for a good

nutritionist. Perhaps a good nutritionist can help you find high calorie

low carb types of foods???

I test before I eat if i am going to eat a new food or if I want to see what

I can eat and not shoot my #s up. I test about 2 hrs after I finish eating

a new food or combination of foods or at a new time or mixed with some sort

of exercise to see how it all comes together. Otherwise, if I am eating

'normal for me' foods I only test when I get up in the a.m. and before I go

to bed. It keeps my mind happy.

As new as I am to this, with the help of my endo team and this list I think

you have a good handle on what you are doing and what you want. You are in

charge or at least part of your medical team and that is wonderful.

JUDITH

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[Guest guest]

Thanks for all your help Judith!

I was on prednisone for 14 years so I know all about it. Luckily I was

able to get off it finally! My main anti-rejection medication can also

cause diabetes just like prednisone can.

I'm guessing the prednisone helped you gain weight? I truly believe it

had the opposite effect on me! I have never been a text book case for

anything! AAHH the joy!

Anyway, thanks a bunch again for your help/advice/support!

~Marisa