I'm losing weight!

I've always had issues losing weight and had pretty much gave up.
Since I started the diabetic diet both my weight and blood sugar are getting lower.
I've lost 7 pounds and my fasting blood sugar was 141 this morning. I know this is still high, but it's the lowest it's been for morning reading for two weeks.

Baby steps...enjoying the smallest victories.

I knew you would! Congratulations on losing those 7 pounds. That's a great start. Keep it up.

Sherrine

Good for you! You should be proud!

Congrats.

I lost weight too over the year, but for me this wasn't good. I'm not overweight and I lost 2-3 kg because of high hba1c...

I'm loosing weight too, but I don't think 7 pounds in 5 days is a good thing. I probably am not eating enough; I've never been a big eater and discontinuing 300 calories from Dr Pepper while adding the metformin has probably affected my caloric processing more than it should. If weight loss doesn't slow down in the next week I'm going to ask the endocrinologist about it.

Joy, are you eating a slow-carb before bedtime? That is a suggestion on the paperwork they gave me!

Slow carbs is food with a low glycemic index - like a couple of tablespoons of cottage cheese. But I could have this all wrong, I'm new to this....

Some people talk about a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in a glass of water before bed to keep blood sugar level....

LanieG, help us!

I've been without the Internet the whole afternoon. Boy, is that miserable, but I'm back.

I'm not sure about 'slow carb'. Does this mean food with a lot of fiber? I'm going to check.... Ok, yes. Read this: healthyeating.sfgate.com/list-slow-fast-carbs-10723.html

A slow carb is a food that we digest more slowly than a fast carb which goes right into the bloodstream as sugar. Fiber (roughage) in a "slow carb" food slows down the blood sugar spikes compared to a simple carb food like candy or a doughnut that sends it up fast. Whole grain/whole berry bread would supposedly be a slow carb but plain white bread would be a fast carb. But! Read on.

Unless you're on diabetes meds that really control your blood sugar, you may not experience any difference between those two pieces of bread. That is, your blood sugar will rise the same. I'm on metformin and if I eat a piece of bread, my blood sugar soars. Metformin does not control blood sugar, per se; it only helps insulin do its job.

Now, there are two things, Joy, with your fasting. There is something called dawn phenomenon which is when we wake up with higher than normal blood sugar fasting. The theory is that this is a normal body reaction to waking up so we can "take on the day" with energy that we need. When blood sugar is high, we're supposed to have more energy and in a non-diabetic, this may be fleeting and helpful, but in us, it just gives us high blood sugar - and I believe it's because we're insulin resistant.

Some people have found if they eat a "slow carb" with some protein at bedtime that the morning fasting may actually be lower or nearer to normal than if they don't eat anything after dinner. This is something you will have to test out yourself to see if it works for you. Something like a piece of cheese and a slice of apple. We're not talking about a meal, just a couple of bites.

Lynnwood, I've read that some people have lowered their blood sugar with the apple cider vinegar in water and if it works, that's great. It didn't for me - but I wasn't consistent, mostly because I didn't like the taste. Sherrine had posted once that olives and pickles seem to curb her blood sugar at meals, so that might be another possibility.

Yes, I agree with all the weight loss in a short amount of time being a concern. In the beginning, this happens with a lot of diet changes and it could be water loss or just the shock of a new way of eating. I don't know.

Joy, I also think fasting of 151 or higher is too high. What are you eating at dinner? After dinner?

Very much simplified - Glucose is "very fast". Fructose from fruits is slower. Plain sugar actually falls somewhere in the middle. Dark bread like rye is slower than white. Certain (most?) vegetables slow down the rate of absorption of other carbs from what I remember, but they don't have much carbs to begin with. That must be because of the fiber? Also, fat in food, slows down digestion I've noticed over the years. At least if I ate something fatty for lunch, the blood glucose stayed high until evening. Not exactly what I was going for because it was too high for too long... ended up eating too much.

Joy, what veggies are you eating with dinner? Since you are not on medication, your body will react acutely to any carbs, no matter which kind.

I think the blueberries are raising your blood sugar too much. How much are you eating?

Also, since you're having very high morning fasting numbers, try to eat a small snack before bed: a spoon of peanut butter and a couple of spoons of yogurt.

Ok, I think you need to switch the veggies because the lima beans and English peas have a lot of carbs. The green beans are a better choice. Are the beans, fresh, frozen or canned? The reason I'm asking is to get an understanding what you're buying and have in the house.

Check this website out for the carb content of the vegetables (and any other food). Type the name of the food, like "lima beans" in the blank on the upper right hand side where it says "enter food name". You will get a list of varieties of the beans, choose one of them and check out the carb content.

nutritiondata.self.com/

When I first had to test my blood sugar, I kept a detailed log of what I ate and what my blood sugar was right before I ate and then two hours afterward. From that journal I was able to see what worked for me and what didn't and this was before I went on metformin. However, I was also exercising a LOT, lots of cardio and started using weights for strength. I'm looking through those papers now and here are some dinner menus and the my fasting the morning after:

dinner: 1/2 chicken breast, sauteed mushrooms and red pepper at 6:30; fasting next morning was 93
dinner: a chicken thigh, sauteed mushroom and onions, small amount of green beans, a salad plate of cucumber pieces and a radish; three spoons of plain yogurt before bed; fasting next morning was 83
dinner: orange roughy (fish), white wine, green salad with half a hard boiled egg, cooked spinach, two strawberries before bed; fasting next morning was 85

Those were the average readings. On other occasions when we went out or when there was a special dinner and I had part of a dessert, my fasting would be around 100.

So, my advice to you is to keep a journal everyday and write the time, your blood sugar, what you eat. Test in the morning before you eat and then two hours after you eat, and then do the same for lunch and dinner.That will tell you what food spikes your blood sugar and what doesn't. Regular meats, fish and poultry should have no effects on your blood sugar unless there is some kind of sauce. Gravy is full of carbs. Check out the vegetables for their carb content: carrots and corn, potatoes, yams are all high. But, again, if you eat them, make sure you test before and then two hours afterward so you know what the effects are.

As far as the metformin, what does the prescription bottle say? When I was first prescribed it, I was supposed to take it at bedtime but it gave me the worst sour and acid stomach, so my doctor switched it to taking it right before breakfast and I haven't had any problems with it.

Don't be discouraged. You will get a handle on this, really!

Ok, it seems the green beans are better than the others you listed. When were you eating the blueberries? Berries will still drive up the blood sugar, so I would only eat a few. And just do what you can as far as exercise.

Let's see how these small changes work!

What mg. is the pill? Mine is round and it's 500 mg.

Try cutting the amount of blueberries by half and eat some protein with them. By themselves, the blueberries have fructose and fiber but having some protein may curb the impact a little.

Fingers crossed for a better day!

Hi again. Keep testing to see what your readings are after you eat. Of course, this means, testing before you begin eating and then two hours afterward so you know the impact.

I think it would also help to eat a variety of food to avoid boredom. I have a lot of packages of frozen vegetables so I can take only what I am going to eat out at one time. I eat a lot of broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, and some French style green beans, snow peas (which are really mostly pods) and I just bought some kale which I'd never seen in frozen packages before. I take just what I need and put them in a pan with a small amount of water and eat then eat them with a pat of butter.

Other times, I eat bell peppers, mushrooms and eggplant.

Being aware of their glycemic values/carb contents will help you keep more normal levels.

Good luck! I think you're doing better!