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Jun 15, 2011
Welshmapleleaf
19 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Carbs v Cals 'PS I tend to eat whole food and avoid a lot of processed/packaged soy based vegan replacement food.'That's a biggie for me - I was shocked on my DAFNE course at what some people ate - I wouldn't eat some of it even if I wasnt diabetic!!! |
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Jun 15, 2011
Welshmapleleaf
19 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / How can you work out HBA1c by using your BG averages? Is it possible? The more I think about this, the more I'm inclined to just test my BG as I do, keep control, and wait for hopefully some good news at every review! I guess using the average BG readings on the DAFNE online diary will give you some sort of pointer to what expect, and tbh I am just enjoying re-learning what my body's doing after a period of little BG awareness!
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Jun 15, 2011
Michaela
13 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Carbs v Cals This is why I went vegan. I appreciate it's not for everyone. I was a confirmed omnivore but haven't found giving up meat and dairy all that hard actually. I love vegetables, pulses, fruits, pasta, grains and I can have peanut butter and Jam etc. I do not carb count and I do not calorie account. Of course if I just ate chips all day long I probably wouldn't lose weight.I think fat is very important. I do have meat occasionally, usually when going out (but not always if I can find a decent vegan option). I do, however, avoid dairy when I eat out. As much as I love cheese and creamy sauces that is where the majority of your calories and carbs lie in many meals. One of the fat pitfalls with being vegan is Palm Oil which is high in saturated fat. Unfortunately it's used in a lot of vegan and vegetarian products like peanut butter and tortilla wraps. I try to avoid it as much as possible. On this way of eating I've actually reduced my carbs and fat quiet a bit without really trying because I tend to eat wraps more than bread (although most bread is suitable for vegans), I'm not eating a lot of fat from meat or dairy. Most things I do eat are naturally low in calories. I've also replaced sugar almost completely with Agave Nectar which I find suitably sweet enough for me. Heck I even made Peanut Butter cookies with it  Anyway, this is just my experience and I can attest that in the last 3 wks I've lost 6lbs and I haven't been hungry, felt deprived, had hypos or had very high blood sugar unless I didn't calculate something correctly. PS I tend to eat whole food and avoid a lot of processed/packaged soy based vegan replacement food. |
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Jun 15, 2011
Welshmapleleaf
19 posts
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Topic: Questions for HCPs / DAFNE and Retinopathy Sorry, I forgot to say in my original post that I've had two lots of laser treatments, both for only about ten seconds, and the Consultant told me I only had a minimal leakage, which was expected in somebody who has been type 1 for 20 years as I have.I'm just worried that in the middle of improving my BG levels, I will have to endure another round of lasering, and I guess I would like to know whether this extra need for retinopathy will signal a permanent worsening in the condition or whether through better BG control, this will diminish or indeed be reversed. |
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Jun 15, 2011
Michaela
13 posts
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Topic: Questions for HCPs / Metformin /Type 1 I take it because I have PCOS. At this dose it has only a minor effect on my symptoms, however, I cannot take higher doses as they give me horrible side effects and make me feel physically sick all the time even the slow acting.For weight loss (and help with my myriad of other problems including Diabetes) I went vegan and it actually works. Personally have no problem with it as I eat quite a variety of food and make sure I get plenty of carbs. |
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Jun 15, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,816 posts
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Topic: Questions for HCPs / DAFNE and Retinopathy Hi,I am not an HCP but I would like to contribute............ High blood sugars over long periods of time can cause retinopathy, as can just being diabetic for many years, changes are bound to happen..........at least that's what they tell us...... ...........I have some background retinopathy myself......Another factor to consider with this and with any other micro vascular diabetic condition is the speed at which blood glucose levels change, if you were suffering retinopathy through high sugar levels, then went on DAFNE and very quickly dropped you levels, this quick change could actually cause further damage, so its important to consider slow gradual improvements when suffering from these things.......... Normal BG levels as well as steady ones are both required to have the least impact on the veins, large or small...... Thats my understanding anyway, someone may be along with a more technical explanation............. |
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Jun 15, 2011
Welshmapleleaf
19 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Carbs v Cals Sadly, that is one of the annoying bits of being type 1 - everyone else just needs to eat right and exercise! And people think it's as simple as "Oh, you can't have that cake, can you?" !!!!!! |
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Jun 15, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,816 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Carbs v Cals I am the same in terms of snacking, I dont snack, well, only occasionally at the weekends, in between meals through fear of messing up my BG results.................I eat salads and 4 bits of fruit at lunch Monday to Friday and have a varied meal for dinner...........I have upped my activity at night, so I am hoping I can lose some weight, but I fear there may be more to it than simply diet and exercise......... 
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Jun 15, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,816 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / How can you work out HBA1c by using your BG averages? Is it possible? The in between meal times are relevant as your BG is higher, sometimes its lower, so your BG at every hour of the day contributes to the amount of glucose that sticks to the blood cells....if you test at the peak then its a more truthful, accurate average inst itHow high do you go before exercise? I try to be on target before exercise or at the higher end, otherwise my BG would rise.......
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Jun 15, 2011
Welshmapleleaf
19 posts
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Topic: Questions for HCPs / DAFNE and Retinopathy I graduated from DAFNE last week, and I was advised by my DSN delivering the course that those who have undergone retinopathy should not try to attain strict DAFNE BG targets too quickly, as it could cause further damage.I didn't pursue this further at the time, but as I have an appointment at the eye clinic next week, I would like to be as well informed as possible, in order to have a meaningful discussion with the Consultant. Could any HCP explain this further to me? Please feel free to be as technical as you want in your explanation! Many Thanks Richard |
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Jun 15, 2011
Welshmapleleaf
19 posts
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Topic: Questions for HCPs / Metformin /Type 1 Hi Guys,Can I ask - are you taking Metformin to increase your sensitivity to insulin (and therefore take less insulin), or more as an aid to lose weight? I graduated from DAFNE last week, we discussed Metformin briefly, and I decided to see what happens with my weight in the next six weeks before exploring it further. I'm not sure if I should have posted this in a general discussion forum, but it seemed better to continue this thread. Apologies if my etiquette is wrong! |
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Jun 15, 2011
chrisinbrum
41 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / How can you work out HBA1c by using your BG averages? Is it possible?
Presumably if you did a lot of BG readings 1-2 hours after food when your BG is highest, then your average BG would be higher than if you always waited and just tested after the 4 or 5 hours that the QA would be working for. The equation isn't able to tell whether a high average BG is because you have genuinely high readings, or because you always test before exercise and need to have high BG, or because you've done a lot of tests between breakfast and lunch (like I do) to look at the way the BG drops between injections. |
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Jun 15, 2011
Welshmapleleaf
19 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Carbs v Cals I think for diabetics and non diabetics, it's a mixture of1) What types of food you eat and 2) PORTION SIZE!!!! It's just that it becomes a bit more complicated / scientific for us diabetics as not only do we have to watch what and how much we eat, but we also have to try to replicate the body's natural BG balancing act at the same time. I only graduated last week, and I'm aware that as a result of improving my overall BG levels, I could put on weight through fat that that was previously being excreted through my urea, BUT (and this will hopefully be my saving grace!), my actual portion sizes since starting DAFNE are much smaller, I don't snack between meals at all, and I'm using less insulin. I hope the net effect of this will be weight loss.
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Jun 15, 2011
Garry
328 posts
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Topic: Questions for HCPs / Metformin /Type 1 novorapidboi said not to forget the side effects....... he once renamed it 'metfartin' which had me laughing.... as that's what it does to you. I am only taking 1 g a day, 500 morning 500 mg evening and so far, over the last two months, it has not changed my ratios at all. Consultant said feel free to take metformin at up to 3 g a day but I feel in control and am happy enough with ratios up to 2.5 - 3.0. But we are all different, so as usual..... slow changes, a step at a time, so you can clearly recognise any beneficial effect. Regards Garry |
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Jun 15, 2011
Karen Westwood
38 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Hb1Ac results Wow those readings are amazing! To have kept at those levels over such a long period of time is really good and you must be really proud of yourself!! I was diagnosed in 1981 at the age of 10 and it would be interesting to be able to find out past HbA1 readings, how did you manage to get this information?Well done  Karen x |
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Jun 15, 2011
Karen Westwood
38 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Orlistat (Xenical) Thanks Tony! BG levels have now leveled out again so must have just been a rogue test at lunch time on Monday. I too used reductil and lost a great deal of weight using it but it was taken off the market early last year and since then my weight has, unfortunately, been on the upwards slope AGAIN!! Just into day 3 now and so far I have not had any problems with the orlistat tablets - fingers crossed it stays that way and the weight starts to drop off soon
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Jun 15, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,816 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Carbs v Cals I carb count but I seem to put on weight.............Probably down to an increased resistance to the insulin, which means more insulin and then more weight.....
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Jun 15, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,816 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / How can you work out HBA1c by using your BG averages? Is it possible?
I would agree with your statement......... I dont understand your 4 hours comment though..........the more readings the better...... If a CGM was 100% accurate, I believe the formula mentioned could get pretty close to the actual HbA1c |
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Jun 15, 2011
Nikki H-C
23 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / How can you work out HBA1c by using your BG averages? Is it possible? I understood that your HBA1c was a measure of the amount of "sugar" attached to newly produced blood cells from your bone marrow. Hence it being a reflection of your levels over 3 months as your new blood cells last 3 months.So whilst an average daily reading is a good indicator of what your hba1c will be, it'll never be a true reflection. Especially as you might test yourself within you 4ish hour window of eating, thus skewing your readings. Does any of that make sense??!! |
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Jun 15, 2011
Nikki H-C
23 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Carbs v Cals Whilst I appriciate calories are a different messurment of food "energy", it would seem to me that if your levels are under control you don't put on weight.Therefore, would it be fair to say A) you don't need to calorie count to loose weight B) people in general should carbs count rather than calorie count to lose weight My parter is dieting at the mo and he has to count calories in items that us type 1's don't really have to worry about I.e. Tea, salad etc. What are your thoughts? |
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Jun 14, 2011
Linda S123
8 posts
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Topic: Questions for HCPs / Metformin /Type 1 Thanks everyone. The info received has given me bit more confidence to actually start taking the tablets. Ive has them for 3 weeks now and havent started yet !
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Jun 14, 2011
Michaela
13 posts
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Topic: Questions for HCPs / Metformin /Type 1 I take metformin also 1 a day and I don't think it effected me one way or the other when I started using DAFNE. Although, the course leaders were shocked that I need so little BI (so they said). I take 10 at night only. |
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Jun 14, 2011
Michaela
13 posts
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Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Lasagne Sorry to confuse you as you would not know I tend to round up in cases where the value comes out by half. So I did indeed take 6 my BG is at 6.9 |
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Jun 14, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,816 posts
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Topic: Questions for HCPs / Hypoes at dinner Thats it in a nut shell...............Are you regularly going low before dinner...........? |
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Jun 14, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,816 posts
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Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Lasagne Ahh, I though you decided on 4CP for the lasagne.................so with your ratio of 1.5:1 you would be taking 6 units of insulin.....Your method of correction is news to me also, would you not just add 1 unit onto your carb dose of 6, or if you decided on 3CPs, 5 units....... |