I just signed up in this group today because I have just come to an understanding of what the difference of Type I and II are. I was diagnosed in March after having a three organ transplant and we realized that the high blood sugars were not due to the Prednisone that I was on (part of it was but even when that med was decreased the numbers were still high). So, I am fairly new to Diabetes and would like any suggestions about what foods are really good to eat and I want opinions about the pump because I hate continuosly sticking myself with needles. As for the food…give me any suggestions that you have. I’m a weird case because I have to eat a lot because I can’t gain weight (I also have Cystic Fibrosis) but I have to watch what I eat. Please help!!!
I have ordered a book by Dr. Bernstein on diabetes,which I am told is the
best book by far (I have several others yet unread!!!) ---- cost varies – I got
it from www.alibris.com for $7 (instead of 27+ other sellers!!!) I thinkif
you review the book (online) you may find it has some answers you need. The
other idea I can suggest is that you watch yourself closely — what you eat,
what it does to your glucose, how soon it peaks after you eat. How soon it drops,
HOW LOW,and how long does it stay steady. I take Lantus at 10 pm — its
effect peaks in an hour, and then remains the same for 24 hrs. I have discontinued
the Novolog (suggested 3 times a day after each meal) because it lowered me
unnecessarilytoo low. A doctor casually suggested that maybe I could go on
Lantus only — and so I did. Now I eat very few carbs, know that I will go too
high in about an hour or so (vision gets blurry, I feel shaky), but if I walk
for 30 min, it comes down significantly. ( I try to keep my weight as-is ---- so
I don;t know if the exercise to conrol glucose would work for you). Get a
doctor who listens to YOU, and your suggestions — nobody knows you as well as
yourself!
All the best!
Em
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Hello. Thanks for your message. I am in Chicago from July 26 until
July 29 and will have limited access to my email. If you don’t hear
from me, I will return all email on Monday, July 30. Thank you.
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u: http://www.lemonade-life.com <— Change of Address
e: amblass@gmail.com
p: 503.703.8049
In a message dated 28/07/2007 14:15:50 GMT Standard Time,
diabetestype1-cpt5413@lists.careplace.com writes:
I take Lantus at 10 pm — its
effect peaks in an hour, and then remains the same for 24 hrs. I have
discontinued
the Novolog (suggested 3 times a day after each meal) because it lowered me
unnecessarilytoo low. A doctor casually suggested that maybe I could go on
Lantus only — and so I did. Now I eat very few carbs, know that I will go
too
high in about an hour or so (vision gets blurry, I feel shaky), but if I
walk
for 30 min, it comes down significantly.
Are you sure you are doing the sensible thing?Your Novolog will allow you to
eat more normally and if you are a type one then cutting carbs ,instead of
taking insulin,in the long term,will not help you. Lantus is meant to be a a
backup working all the time alongside your fast acting insulin.Your
description of feeling shaky and blurred vision worries me.Don’t you do blood testing
so that you know what your blood sugars are?The shaky bit sounds more like a
hypo than a hyper.
I wouldn’t recommend the Dr Bernstein book,one of the best reference places
I have come across is
Click here: Joslin Diabetes Center | Managing your Diabetes
(http://www.joslin.org/managing_your_diabetes_707.asp)
Howard
In a message dated 7/28/2007 12:32:23 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
diabetestype1-cpt5413@lists.careplace.com writes:
Interesting comment! I thank you, Howard. I am constantly re-evaluating my
situation as my knowledge of the subject changes. Yes, I test my glucose —
too often, according to what the insurance allows — but, hey, it’s my life,
and if I have to pay for the extra test strips out of pocket, so be it.
I have discovered that “blurry vision, shakiness” is a symptom of a CHANGE in
glucose level ----whether it is rising, or falling. Tabulating the results of
a whole month of extensive ? intensive record keeping (I dread it!) will
corroborate what I already know roughly.
My carb intake is minimal – limited to 7- grain- bread (three times a day)
acompanied by 1)vegetables ( NEVER potatoes, rice, corn,pastas ),2) fruits:
apples, grapes as between-meal snacks if I get too low 3) cheeses, fish, eggs,
soy “meats” ad lib, so I don’t go hungry---- going in the Atkins direction.
Even so, the glucose rises after the low-carb meal, especially the first
meal of the day, but comes down respectably in response to exercise (30-40
min)and then levels off for the rest of the day. My evening meal is the best
tolerated — I have occassionally “sinned” during meals at friends’ , expecting
the glucose to rise ---- and it didn’t. Have to figure out why.
One last comment — I don’t enjoy having diabetes, but it strikes me more
like a challenge than a curse. (I take no credit for the attitude - I am
blessed with optimism, hereditary, I am sure!)I want to find ways to overcome the
problem---- there’s more than one way to clear the stump — and I will find
it.
Thanks for listening, Howard, and especially for the site, which I have
started to check out. It is, indeed, one of the best!
Em
http://www.joslin.org/managing_your_diabetes_707.asp
Get a sneak peek of the all-new AOL
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Its important to understand that type 1 and type 2 diabetes, in spite of having a similar name, are very different conditions. The cause (etiology) is unrelated, which also makes treatment and management quite different. While the treatment objective for both conditions are the same (namely to try and “normalize” blood glucose levels) the means to accomplishing this are different, and the challenges for each are unique.
Its useful to better understand what the cause of each condition is. The most authoritative place is to review the “Report of the Expert Committee on the Diagnosis and Classification of Diabetes Mellitus” (see http://care.diabetesjournals.org/cgi/content/full/26/suppl_1/s5 for the report). That report was assembled by an international Expert Committee, working under the sponsorship of the American Diabetes Association, which was established in May 1995 to review the scientific literature since 1979 and to decide if changes to the classification and diagnosis of diabetes were warranted. The Committee met on multiple occasions and widely circulated a draft report of their findings and preliminary recommendations to the international diabetes community. In 2003, the Committee discussed and revised numerous drafts of a manuscript that culminated in this published document. (Diabetes Care 26:S5-S20, 2003).
Without too getting too much into the details of both, its accurate to say that while both type 1 and type 2 involve the hormone insulin, type 1 is an autoimmune (meaning caused by the immune system attacking and destroying cells it is supposed to be protecting) disease, whereas type 2 ranges from predominantly cellular resistance to insulin with a relative insulin deficiency to predominantly an insulin secretory defect with insulin resistance. Individuals who have insulin resistance and usually have relative (rather than absolute) insulin deficiency. At least initially, and often
throughout their lifetime, these individuals do not require insulin treatment to survive, although insulin may be used in their treatment. However, people with type 1 require insulin for survival. Without insulin, they will typically die in a relatively short time because the cells in their body will starve to death. For this reason, at diagnosis, type 1 patients have typically lost a substantial amount of their body weight.
You should know that technically, there are no foods which are forbidden. However, generally speaking, carbohydrates have the most dramatic and immediate impact on blood glucose levels. Again, the difference between type 1 and type 2 here is that type 1s always require insulin to enable carbohydrates to enter the cells, whereas type 2s often find that minimizing carbohydrate consumption will enable them to better manage their blood glucose levels. Note that an insulin pump will not help you to avoid needles, as it requires an infusion set (a soft catheter called a cannula) to be injected into the body regularly, and regular testing requires the skin to be pierced.
Just a final note about Dr. Bernstein. While he advocates minimizing insulin requirements by minimizing carbohydrate consumption, you should realize that if you have type 1, you will ALWAYS require insulin, although your dosage may be reduced by following his methods. However, he advocates almost total avoidance of most carbohydrates (including starchy foods like potatoes as well as refined carbs such as anything containing flour), and for most people, this is not only unrealistic, but also not terribly healthy. However, the idea that the FDA’s traditional food pyramid should be avoided is useful; carbs should be a healthy part of a balanced diet, and fiber-rich carbs like fresh vegetables and fruits are definitely better than highly processed and refined carbs that are common in many foods sold today. However, understand that Bernstein’s philosophy is neither universally accepted by the medical profession and nutritionists, there may nevertheless be pearls of wisdom that can be derived from his details … just try not to assume that you need to follow it to the letter. You will live your life with diabetes, try not to make it a miserable, uncomfortable life in the process!!
In a message dated 7/28/2007 4:09:32 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
diabetestype1-cpt5413@lists.careplace.com writes:
Your input is impressive — so far, from the responses I’ve read, the
diabetics seem to be an elite group :)))) I am tempted to say"Proud to join the
club" —anyway, you are educating me and inspiring me. I am VERY appreciative!
Em
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