Advice for Newbies

[Guest guest]

> Not sure who/what you're referring to here.

> But if you rate it that highly, I'd better have a look.

> Where can I find " 's advice " ?

>

Hi

I made the incorrect assumption that everyone here knew of " 's

Advice " . My apologies. In my opinion it is the most important advice I

read after my diagnosis. It is basically simple, but very effective.

Sometimes it is referred to simply as " test, test, test " .

There are a number of links to it, here are two:

http://www.alt-support-diabetes.org/NewlyDiagnosed.htm

http://jennifer.flyingrat.net/

Some time ago, gave me permission to pass it on to whom I

wish. So below is a full copy from that first link:

Sounds like you're planning a move to take control of your diabetes...

good for you.

There is so much to absorb... you don't have to rush into anything.

Begin by using your best weapon in this war, your meter. You won't

keel over today, you have time to experiment, test, learn, test and

figure out just how your body and this disease are getting along. The

most important thing you can do to learn about yourself and diabetes

is test test test.

The single biggest question a diabetic has to answer is: What do I

eat?

Unfortunately, the answer is pretty confusing. What confounds us all

is the fact that different diabetics can get great results on wildly

different food plans. Some of us here achieve great blood glucose

control eating a high complex carbohydrate diet. Others find that

anything over 75 - 100g of carbs a day is too much. Still others are

somewhere in between.

At the beginning all of us felt frustrated. We wanted to be handed

THE way to eat, to ensure our continued health. But we all learned

that there is no one way. Each of us had to find our own path, using

the experience of those that went before, but still having to discover

for ourselves how OUR bodies and this disease were coexisting. Ask

questions, but remember each of us discovered on our own what works

best for us. You can use our experiences as jumping off points, but

eventually you'll work up a successful plan that is yours alone.

What you are looking to discover is how different foods affect you.

As I'm sure you've read, carbohydrates (sugars, wheat, rice... the

things our Grandmas called " starches " ) raise blood sugars the most

rapidly. Protein and fat do raise them, but not as high and much more

slowly... so if you're a T2, generally the insulin your body still

makes may take care of the rise.

You might want to try some experiments.

First: Eat whatever you've been currently eating... but write it all

down.

Test yourself at the following times:

Upon waking (fasting)

1 hour after each meal

2 hours after each meal

At bedtime

That means 8 x each day. What you will discover by this is how long

after a meal your highest reading comes... and how fast you return to

" normal " . Also, you may see that a meal that included bread, fruit or

other carbs gives you a higher reading.

Then for the next few days, try to curb your carbs. Eliminate breads,

cereals, rice, beans, any wheat products, potato, corn, fruit... get

all your carbs from veggies. Test at the same schedule above.

If you try this for a few days, you may find some pretty good

readings. It's worth a few days to discover. Eventually you can

slowly add back carbs until you see them affecting your meter. The

thing about this disease... though we share much in common and we need

to follow certain guidelines... in the end, each of our bodies dictate

our treatment and our success.

The closer we get to non-diabetic numbers, the greater chance we have

of avoiding horrible complications. The key here is AIM... I know

that everyone is at a different point in their disease... and it is

progressive. But, if we aim for the best numbers and do our best, we

give ourselves the best shot at heath we've got. That's all we can do.

Here's my opinion on what numbers to aim for, they are non-diabetic

numbers.

FBG..........................under 110

One hour after meals.........under 140

Two hours after meals........under 120

or for those in the mmol parts of the world:

Fasting.......................Under 6

One hour after meals..........Under 8

Two hours after meals.......Under 6.5

Recent studies have indicated that the most important numbers are your

" after meal " numbers. They may be the most indicative of future

complications, especially heart problems.

Listen to your doctor, but you are the leader of your diabetic care

team. While his /her advice is learned, it is not absolute. You

will end up knowing much more about your body and how it's handling

diabetes than your doctor will. Your meter is your best weapon.

Just remember, we're not in a race or a competition with anyone but

ourselves... Play around with your food plan... TEST TEST TEST. Learn

what foods cause spikes, what foods cause cravings... Use your body as

a science experiment.

You'll read about a lot of different ways people use to control their

diabetes... Many are diametrically opposed. After awhile you'll learn

that there is no one size fits all around here. Take some time to

experiment and you'll soon discover the plan that works for you.

Best of luck!

" Reprinted with permission from a well known

regular on the newsgroup alt.support.diabetes. "

Cheers, Alan, T2 d & e, Australia