DIABETICS ON THE BEACH (8/30 - 10/16/2004) Please join us!!

[Cetaganda]

Hope everyone had a great weekend.

In order to keep our diabetics on the beach thread from becoming too long, we are going to start a new thread from time to time. At the end of the previous thread there will be a link to the new thread. And at the beginning of the new thread there will be a link to the previous thread.

Here is the link back to last week for anyone who wants to go back to it and read the messages posted there: http://67.43.8.10/~sbdiet/forum/viewtopic.php?t=17348

Thanks to everyone who participated in last week's poll. The results indicate that by far most people test their blood glucose levels 2 to 3 times per day.

I have made another poll for this week. Please participate in this week's poll, as well. The poll is anonymous. It just would be interesting to know.

I welcome and appreciate any suggestions for a poll question.

Welcome to everyone: diabetic, pre-diabetic, friends and family of a diabetic, hypoglycemics, and medical professionals such as doctors and nurses..

[Cetaganda]

Fasting BG level this morning: 105
Average BG for the past 15 days: 98
Average BG for the past (less than) 30 days: 102

The average for 30 days included two early fasting BG measurements of 117.

I walked for 5 miles (1.5 + 3.5) yesterday (Sunday). The 3.5 mile walk was with my husband and no dogs. Boy was that aerobic! I work much harder than my husband does because I am carrying around with me 100 pounds. We have a lot of steep hills in our neighborhood, some of them very long. The uphills are very hard and the downhills are hard on knees and ankles.

On Saturday I had my first experience since starting to measure my BG levels that told me I had had too many carbs in one meal:

1:18 pm BG level before lunch: 109
4:35 pm BG level over 3 hours after lunch: 124

What had I done differently: in addition to a small amount of bulgur in my tabbouli, I had half of a whole wheat and oatbran muffin (with apples and carrots).

This tells me that I cannot eat even half of one of those muffins without having a big impact on my blood glucose level.

Here were my BG levels yesterday (Sunday):
7:56 am fasting: 108
10:22 am 2.5 hours after breakfast: 89
11:33 am before lunch: 102
7:40 pm before dinner: 94
10:30 pm bedtime: 93

I don't know for *sure* but I do believe that these numbers are due to the South Beach Diet way of life. As you can tell, I am pumped and motivated to make this a permanent change ... with just a little anxiety that I may not be able to do this.

[Cetaganda]

Fasting BG level this morning (120) is the highest that I have had since starting to measure on August 9th.

Trying to figure out what I did that was different yesterday. Clueless.

[StinkyDragon]

Hi, I am new to this forum and have been lurking around for a week or two now. I am planning on starting the SBD sometime next week (~ 8-6-04). I am a type 2 diabetic (on insulin now) and my control has started to slip over time.

I just had to say to Linda that your numbers look great to me. I am hoping to be able to control mine as well as you are doing.

BTW ….. I thought it was funny that I also live in Oregon (Salem) and my Mother-in-Law is staying with us for a few weeks ……… She also lives in Florida …..LOL

Keep up the Great work, you seem to be doing it right…………I hope you have a Great visit with your Mother.

Paul

[Dariad254]

Hey all,

I havent been around for a couple of weeks ...work has really been work!!
But things are calming down and I can have some time to breath a bit here and there.

How have you all been?

Cetaganda your numbers are looking great!!! Wow keep it up!!

I am still taking my BG in the mornings. Its going down but its still way to high. My fasting is still in the low 140's every morning. My little experiment about when i can eat carbs has been interesting. It seems from my BG each morning that i can only have carbs (and in very limited amounts) up until 4 pm. If i eat fruit as a dessert after dinner my BG is very high the next morning (in the 160's). So lunch has become my major meal and dinner is small and without any carbs. This is tough for me because i really do like either rice with dinner or a piece of fruit after dinner. But since i am changing everything about how i am eating i figure why not change which meal is the main one

My exercise is increasing regularly. After about 3 weeks of walking at lunchtime i am now doing 3X as much as i was doing when i started. I walk for about 50 to 55 min at lunch, and what amazes me is i actually enjoy it. I put my earphones on and just go. Its a great break from work.

My evening exercise has been to dig trenches in my front yard. Not fun work but necessary, and man do i work up a sweat. When we finish the front the courtyard is next then the backyard so I think i am covered with the exercise after dinner thing for a long time to come.
I should keep this somewhat short ...yeah right ...me ...what am i thinking... anyway good to be back here ..oh yeah one other thing i am almost at 20 pounds gone!!!! hopefully by this week or next.
take care
be well all

[GG]

Fasting BG level this morning: 105
Average BG for the past 15 days: 98
Average BG for the past (less than) 30 days: 102

The average for 30 days included two early fasting BG measurements of 117.

I walked for 5 miles (1.5 + 3.5) yesterday (Sunday). The 3.5 mile walk was with my husband and no dogs. Boy was that aerobic! I work much harder than my husband does because I am carrying around with me 100 pounds. We have a lot of steep hills in our neighborhood, some of them very long. The uphills are very hard and the downhills are hard on knees and ankles.

On Saturday I had my first experience since starting to measure my BG levels that told me I had had too many carbs in one meal:

1:18 pm BG level before lunch: 109
4:35 pm BG level over 3 hours after lunch: 124

What had I done differently: in addition to a small amount of bulgur in my tabbouli, I had half of a whole wheat and oatbran muffin (with apples and carrots).

This tells me that I cannot eat even half of one of those muffins without having a big impact on my blood glucose level.

Here were my BG levels yesterday (Sunday):
7:56 am fasting: 108
10:22 am 2.5 hours after breakfast: 89
11:33 am before lunch: 102
7:40 pm before dinner: 94
10:30 pm bedtime: 93

I don't know for *sure* but I do believe that these numbers are due to the South Beach Diet way of life. As you can tell, I am pumped and motivated to make this a permanent change ... with just a little anxiety that I may not be able to do this.

If you would have checked it at 4 hours after lunch it would have been normal is my guess. 124 is not all that terrible. A plate of french fries will push my sugar to 165 and keep it high until 4 hours. that is a diabetic. I don't need insulin. But I have stopped eating French Fries.

g

[Cetaganda]

….. I thought it was funny that I also live in Oregon (Salem) and my Mother-in-Law is staying with us for a few weeks ……… She also lives in Florida …..LOL Keep up the Great work, you seem to be doing it right…………I hope you have a Great visit with your Mother. Paul

Hi Paul,

Thanks for the compliments about my BG levels ... and a warm and hearty welcome to the South Beach Diet.

Do you plan to do phase 1 or do like me and start with phase 2. Personally, from what I read, I would not go on phase 1 because it would put me into a situation in which I would feel deprivation ... not a good thing for an old dieter like me.

Since you are already on insulin, I believe that I am fortunate that the doctor diagnosed me early in the disease. My mom has had type 2 diabetes for 20+ years and her control is not good at all. I am going to try to get her to go on the SBD (I bought her all three books at Costco last week) but, on her endocrinologist's orders, she must not do so in such a way as to lose any weight ... she has never been overweight in her life (she disagrees with me about that).

What an interesting screen name (Stinky Dragon) ... whatever does it mean?

It's nice to meet online someone else from this area ... and a funny coincidence that your mom also lives in Florida. That is where I grew up ... left home when I was 18. That was HOW many years ago ... does me no good to even calculate it.

Well, I am a procrastinater of the first order and rather self-indulgent. I spend too much time online and too little time doing what needs to be done in the house .... therefore, I am going to have to work hard from now until next Tuesday to get everything as nice as I can for my mom. I already have her sheets and down comforter and I have her room smellling of vanilla and pecans. But there is more, much more to do.

I am really glad tWo hear from you .... I was getting tired of just "hearing my own voice". Welcome again to the beach and to this thread ...and best of luck to you ... I really believe that you can make a real difference in your control of BG levels by following the guidlines of the South Beach Diet.

[Cetaganda]

Hey all, I havent been around for a couple of weeks ...work has really been work! But things are calming down and I can have some time to breath a bit here and there. How have you all been? Cetaganda your numbers are looking great!!! Wow keep it up!!

Hi there Karen!
Really good to hear from you again ... was getting lonely here all by myself ... getting tired of only hearing my own voice. If you think that your posts are long, take a good look at mine. LOL

Thanks for the compliment about my control of my BG levels. As I did not measure it before August 9, I do not know how well the SBD has changed things for me. What I have been doing, since my diagnosis, 1 1/2 years ago, is to go see my internist regularly every 6 weeks and have a lot of blood work done, especially measuring my A1C every three months (especially needed, my doctor said, because I was not measuring my blood glucose level.)

My A1C measurements have been about 6.8 ... but there is room for improvement, according to my MD. She was happy to hear on my last visit with her that I am doing SBD and finally measuring my BG levels. She said that she thought my A1C that was measured that day would probably be about 6.2. This was based upon the fact that she was really pleased with my fasting BG levels.

She said that she wanted my record of those readings for my file, to show me how well I could control my BG levels. She also noted that I had lost 5 pounds since my last visit with her, which is a good thing. She said that when I get to 200 pounds or less that she believes that I will no longer need the Avandia that I take (and forgot to take today). That would be really fine with me.

Well, now I do measure my BG levels, especially before breakfast, almost every day (except the days when I ran out of those expensive little test strips which I had paid for out of my own pocket). And, so far, I am doing well. But I don't know how much affect I am having on it ... I believe that I was fortunate to have a doctor who listened to my family history of diabetes (so many have or had it ... most passed away by age 60 from complications such as coronary heart disease).

I also had gestational diabetes about 35 years ago. So, she ordered lab work to check my fasting BG level ... and it was 126 mg/dL. That is on the borderline and mildly diabetic. But it is diabetic and it took me a long time to accept the reality of diabetes. She also told me to lost 80 pounds and that she believes that doing that will cause me to not need medication to control my BG levels. I am not so sure of that ... because my mother has had diabetes for 20+ years and she has never been overweight in her life.

My little experiment about when i can eat carbs has been interesting. It seems from my BG each morning that i can only have carbs (and in very limited amounts) up until 4 pm. If i eat fruit as a dessert after dinner my BG is very high the next morning (in the 160's). So lunch has become my major meal and dinner is small and without any carbs. This is tough for me because i really do like either rice with dinner or a piece of fruit after dinner. But since i am changing everything about how i am eating i figure why not change which meal is the main one

I know what you mean. I was really surprised this morning to have my highest fasting BG level since I started measuring it on August 9th. I did have a breaded pork chop for dinner and a few peppers (green, red, yellow) in a Greek salad (feta cheese and some kind of dressing) from the supermarket deli. And I had 1/2 a large Asian pear.

Then, for the first time since I started the SBD, I was very hungry after dinner. So I ate some fatfree yogurt with Davinci Peach sugarfree syrup ... and then a fudgesicle, followed by 1/4 cup of nuts. Still not satisfied, I ate a few nut clusters, which had a few grams of sugar. And my BG level this morning was 126 ... this was the highest one for me ... had 2 measurements of 117 in the beginning, then the rest 109 and lower. I was really surprised ... unhappily so ... this morning. Oh well, it's just feedback about what I need to eat and when, eh?quote="Dariad254"]My exercise is increasing regularly. After about 3 weeks of walking at lunchtime i am now doing 3X as much as i was doing when i started. I walk for about 50 to 55 min at lunch, and what amazes me is i actually enjoy it. I put my earphones on and just go. Its a great break from work. ...oh yeah one other thing i am almost at 20 pounds gone!!!! hopefully by this week or next.[/quote]Congrats on the way you have incorporated exercise into your life ... you inspire me and otheres. I have been a bit less successful ... but every day in every way we are getting better, aren't we? Congrats, too, "way to go girl", for having come down 20 pounds. I look forward to being able to say that.

In truth, I am more than 20 pounds lighter than I was when diagnosed with diabetes. And I am down 8 pounds since August 9th, even though I skipped right over phase 1. So, I am happy with my progress, too. We must appreciate our own achievements and even brag about them. We work hard and we deserve to appreciate it .... it's also nice when our hard work and achievements are recognized and acknowledged by people we care about who care about us, too.

Please post here as often as you can ... then I won't be so darn lonely ... I want this to be a gathering place for all diabetics in this forum. Anything we can do to make it so is good.

[Cetaganda]

Studies show that whole grains reduce insulin resistance
Nutrition Notes: Whole Grains Grow in Importance

from Karen Collins, MS, RD, CDN, the American Institute for Cancer Research

Whole grains have captured the attention of Americans like never before. One reason may be because a few popular weight loss diets, South Beach Diet in particular, direct dieters to replace refined grain products with whole-grain ones. Although whole grains may or may not help people lose weight, more and more research indicates that whole grains may reduce some health risks linked to excess weight.

In a recent study involving more than 2,800 people, participants eating more grains had less insulin resistance. In the condition called insulin resistance, people have abnormally high blood levels of the hormone insulin, yet the levels are not fully effective. First identified as a problem for controlling blood sugar in diabetics, insulin resistance is now considered a risk for developing diabetes.

Participants who ate more whole grains were also less likely to develop metabolic syndrome. Compared to those who ate the least whole grains, these participants lowered their risk by 33 percent. The disorder metabolic syndrome brings a significant risk for heart disease. A person has it if diagnosed with at least three of the following: excess waistline fat, low HDL (“good”) cholesterol, high blood triglycerides, elevated blood pressure, or elevated fasting blood sugar. Insulin resistance may cause or worsen any of these factors. Insulin resistance may even promote the development of some types of cancer.

The people in this study who ate more whole grains and improved their health, simply met the USDA recommendation of eating at least three servings of whole grain foods a day. It’s sad to note that by meeting this minimum recommendation, these people ranked in the top 20 percent of everyone in the study. Furthermore, although weight control and regular physical activity are considered key elements in controlling insulin resistance, whole grains were effective in this study regardless of people’s weight or activity levels.

Several other studies also link consumption of whole grains to reduced insulin resistance. In a small study, overweight adults with abnormally high levels of insulin followed diets equal in calories and total carbohydrates. They only differed in their choice of whole-grain or refined products. After six weeks, the insulin levels were ten percent lower for those who ate whole grains. In addition, tests showed a reduction in this group’s insulin resistance.

In the recent Insulin Resistance Atherosclerosis study of almost 1,000 people, those who ate more whole grains also had less insulin resistance and lower insulin levels, even after adjustments were made for calorie consumption and physical activity. The fiber and magnesium content of whole grains may explain these benefits. The effects of whole grains on weight and waist measurements may have played a small role, too.

The amount of the effect, if any, that whole grains have on weight control is still debatable. Some studies show that those who eat more whole grains weigh less or have smaller waist measurements. Other studies do not. There are two possible explanations for the effect whole grains might have on weight loss. By lowering insulin levels, whole grains may pull the body from a fat storage mode. Second, fiber or other components of whole grains could also increase the feeling of fullness and reduce overall calorie consumption.

To benefit from whole grains, you don’t need to swear off refined grain products altogether. Studies show a positive effect if you eat just three servings of whole-grain foods a day. You could easily reach this goal: Two slices of whole-wheat bread, for instance, count as two servings.

[patcat1964]

Good Morning Everyone.

I am back. Due to having some personal issues- like depression, money and such. I have not been eating right and my sugar has been messed up again. I have my appointment for weigh in on September 7th. And I know that i have gain weight.

Been eating right all day then at night time when i am at my lowest is when i eat. I know it is no one faught but my own. And i am trying so hard to deal with everything.

My girlfriend in TX gave us a house. It just needs to be finish. It is a good way from getting out from under here. We have tried everything possible to get above water. HUbby works 2 jobs and we are still robbing Peter to pay Paul.

I cant go to work due to the medical issues and the kids even though they are 17, 11, 10.

So today I am going to try hard to stay on the beach again. i know I say that everyday but it gives me motivition to at give it all i got.

[StinkyDragon]

Hello and Good Morning all,

Do you plan to do phase 1 or do like me and start with phase 2.

Actually I have been planning on doing phase 1, I could use the detox and breaking the craving cycle sounds good to me. I have not read the book yet (I plan on buying it today or by this weekend) so I do not know if the information there will change my mind on phase 1. My wife will be starting the SBD with me and I think the weight loss from phase 1 will help to encourage us.

What an interesting screen name (Stinky Dragon) ... whatever does it mean?

Hummmmmm …………. Well, a little background is coming so pull up a chair and get comfortable
……… and you thought your posts were long

…. I come from a family with a very high instance of Type 2 diabetes. My mother and father and both of their parents from each side of the family has had it. I have heard it said that diabetes usually skips every other generation …not so in my family. I have often suspected that a side effect of type 2 diabetes is flatulence (perhaps due to the insulin resistance or just the body having a hard time with digesting foods).
I have had these symptoms for as long as I can remember. My parents would often comment that I was the worst that they had ever encountered, even though they also suffered (in more ways than one) from it. Well this reputation has followed me into my married life and my own family. Unfortunately, my children (3 at home ages 16, 14, 11) have this same problem and I think they are worst than me.

Soooooo …. when I was searching for a screen name I was thinking of something to do with dragons since I like dragons and they do have a reputation for spewing fire (perhaps sulfuric fire ?). When I asked my family what they thought about a screen name for me with a dragon theme … StinkyDragon is what we came up with. It does seem to fit me well.

I have just recently started testing my sugar levels again. My Dr has suggested before meals and 2 hours after meals if I can. My reading are much higher than I have seen in my past and were quite a shock to me.

Here are a few of my readings:
Monday 8-30 fasting morning reading 127
2 hours after breakfast 200
Tuesday 8-31 fasting morning reading 134
2 hours after breakfast 175
Wed 9-1 fasting morning reading 109
1.5 hours after breakfast 230
some days I stay above 170 all day.


My A1C has moved from 6.2 to 7.4. My weight just seems to keep on climbing. I’ve added 20lbs when I went on the insulin and I just can not seem to shake it off. But at least my triglycerides have come down some (from 15,000 to 8,000). I know that these are very high and I remember that my Mother had very high triglycerides also. Anyway, these are the reasons I have decided to give the SBD a try. I tried the Atkins diet a few years ago and although I did not lose any weight for the short time that I was on it, it did bring my sugar levels down enough so that I did not have to take my oral medication (I was not on insulin then). With the weight loss and better control of my diet so that my sugars don’t get high, I hope to reduce or come off of my insulin. I know …… these are very high goals ………….. but you know what they say ……

Shoot For The Moon. Even if You miss it You will land Among the Stars. ~ Les Brown

Paul

[Dariad254]

Hi all,
I love the stinky dragon story that is great. I might have a bit of good news for you about your blood test levels. I was on the program for only 1.5 weeks when my blood was taken and the results were amazing especially for such a short period of time. The 4/03 was last year and the 7/04 data was 1.5 weeks into the program


Total Cholesterol 4/03 -241, 7/04 - 213
HDL 4/03 -46, 7/04 - 48
LDL 4/03 - 138 7/04 - 123
Ratio HDL/total 4/03 - 5.2, 7/04 - 4.4
Triglycerides 4/03 - 287, 7/04 - 208
My A1C 4/03 - unkwn, 7/04 - 7.2

I get my blood drawn again at the end of Oct. I am expecting much improvement although other than my BG everything is headed in the correct direction
So expect a big change when you acutally start. Also if you have been reading the other lists at all also expect to be grumpy and tired. I know both my bf and I were for at least a few days.

I talked with my doc this morning about "things" and I said that i have been a bit frustrated because it seems that if i even eat a small piece of whole grain bread with dinner i have a much higher BG in the morning. So last night as i was drifting off to sleep i thought about a way to really see how sugar sensitive i really am. I wanted to pass it by my doc before jumping into it though.
So what i am going to do (now that i have her approval) is to go back to phase 1 for one week. Take my fasting BG every morning and see where i end up with no carbs (except for veggies) in my diet at all for a week. We think this will give me a good base line to start adding back carbs. After the week on phase 1 i am going to add back 1 carb a day (most likely a fruit) the first day i will eat it at breakfast. The second day i will move it to lunch. The third day i will eat it after dinner. Each day i will see what effect it has so i can better determine when i can eat my grains and fruit. then i can add back another carb and again test when i can eat it. As i add back carbs the combinations will get a bit more complex but i will have it all mapped so in a month i should have a really good idea of how many carbs i can eat and when i can eat them without raising my BG too high in the morning.
So i started back on phase 1 today and i must admit i really did miss my piece of fruit after lunch but its only one week and i know i can get through 7 days.
I will keep you all posted as to what happens. I think it will be interesting and a good learning experience if nothing else.

So all of you out there have a great day and keep up the good work. Remember no one forces food into your mouth except you. Make the right choices

[Cetaganda]

On Saturday I had my first experience since starting to measure my BG levels that told me I had had too many carbs in one meal:
1:18 pm BG level before lunch: 109
4:35 pm BG level over 3 hours after lunch: 124

What had I done differently: in addition to a small amount of bulgur in my tabbouli, I had half of a whole wheat and oatbran muffin (with apples and carrots).

This tells me that I cannot eat even half of one of those muffins without having a big impact on my blood glucose level.

If you would have checked it at 4 hours after lunch it would have been normal is my guess. 124 is not all that terrible. A plate of french fries will push my sugar to 165 and keep it high until 4 hours. that is a diabetic. I don't need insulin. But I have stopped eating French Fries.g

Hi g or GG,

Welcome to the thread... it is good for us all to have you here with us diabetics on the beach.

Thanks for responding and giving me your input.

You are right, GG or g, that 124 is not all that high ... but all of my previous post-prandial (2 hours after eating) measurements have been 110 or lower. So, I threw out all of those muffins. My husband liked them somewhat and ate a few ... asked me to freeze four or five for later.

But I figured that if they were not good for me, they were not good for him, either. I will find oatbran muffin recipes that do not cause a spike in my blood glucose level.

Thanks ... and welcome again, g.

[Cetaganda]

Hello everyone,

Hope you are having a good day on the beach ... and in life in general. I know that some are having a very difficult time ... for you I say prayers and hope that things will work out for you soon.

OK ... here's something that I want to share with you about me: not only am I carrying around with me an extra 100 pounds and am insulin resistant diabetic type 2, but I have a mood disorder called bipolar. What this means as far as my posts go is that when I am "up" like now I write many posts, most of which are lengthy. The flip side of this disorder is major depression (not minor depression or feeling down because of life's hard knocks, etc.)

When I am depressed I can hardly write one sentence. So, if I disappear or almost stop posting or post a sentence or two only, then you will know that I am in the grips of the great dragon known as depression with a capital D.

OK, enough of that for now. If anyone wants to further discuss this with me, I will welcome it ... please send me a PM (private message) because I consider mood disorders to be off topic for this thread.

I just thought that this is something that I should share with you all. I am not ashamed of the disorder and am morking hard with my MD to manage the effect the mood disorder has on my (and my husband's) life.

[Cetaganda]

Hello everyone,

It's a good day for me on the beach. I am supposed to be very busy preparing for my mom's visit beginning next Tuesday (not very long away now). I have soooooooooo much to get done. But this is what I really want to do ... and so this is what I do, both here and on another diabetic thread in another forum.

BG levels so far today:

8:08 AM Fasting: 102
3:36 PM 2 1/2 hours after end of low carb lunch: 90

Not too bad ... as my doctor would concur. All that I am doing is getting a little exercise (need to do more) and following the guidelines of the SBD and getting support online and taking one Avandia pill per day (when I remember to do it ... most of the time).

I think that I am very fortunate to have been diagnosed early on in the course of this very serious, chronic disease with many complications including early death.

Most of my mother's generation, relatives with type 2 diabetes, have died by age 60 from diabetic complications. I hope that does not happen to me ... I am already 55 ... five more years is not long enough to live. I want to be a strong and very healthy senior (not far from the golden years ... already belong to Appleby's golden apple club (10% discount) and to AARP for goodness sakes ... do not yet qualify for most senior discounts, though). And I am getting there really fast.

My plan, which I truly hopes works, is to avoid any further diabetic complications by keeping my BG levels as close to normal as possible. So far so good. I just started measuring on August 9th ... my doctor put my results in a file, she said, to show me how well I can do.

That's all for now ... except to say one more thing:

I love to read your posts, all of them. I usually write long posts, without editing, as the thoughts come to me. Do not worry at all if your posts are also long (or short). All messages are just as valuable and there are times when we feel like writing a lot, times when we don't feel like writing at all, and times when we feel like writing just a sentence or paragraph.

We will not be judgemental here on this thread. So, please, everyone, bring it on ... the more people post the better the thread will be and the more attractive it will be to other diabetics on the beach.

OK ... that's it for now .... more later ...I promise.