Diabetes and cake stops etc

[Firestorm]

The all carbs thing is not that well known amongst a lot of Type 2s
A bloke at work has had it for years and it was the thing which sent his dad to an early grave, yet he insists that its only sweet stuff he needs to cut out. I still haven't convinced him that all carbohydrates are technically known as sugars.

 

[mjr]

It's shocking that table sugar has a slightly lower GI than white bread. So much for the sliced white loaf!

Calling that white factory sponge "bread" shouldn't be allowed...

 

[ayceejay]

Fossy can you explain this as it doesn't seem right to me

My son is type 1, so he can eat anything, but has to take insulin

 

[gbs]

I too have been recently diagnosed as type 2.

That said, exercise, obviously, uses blood sugar so the effect may not be as bad.
my suggestion would be to take a Blood sugar level before you go out, eat what you normal eat on the ride and then after you have been home a short while, before you eat anymore do another test. If the second reading is higher than the first then you are retaining more sugar than you are using and need to adjust.

You seem to be suggesting self testing. Seems v logical but how?

 

[fossyant]

Lower GI stuff can have extra problems for Type 1's - especially if you inject, so it's all trial and error. With low GI food it takes longer to absorb, so allowing for the same insulin will cause a hypo, but if you lower the insulin, your bloods will go up. Add in the complication of fat (e.g. burgers) then that also slows the absorption down.

Type two can be better managed by adjusting carb intake, but you'll need to learn how your blood sugars are affected.

Your best bet is to take the meter with you and test your blood through the ride. It's what a type 1 would do.

 

[gbs]

As a type 2 you need to watch carbohydrates, not just sugar, so rice, potatoes etc.

On a ride I don't see it being an issue - it's general diet you need to modify.

My son is type 1, so he can eat anything, but has to take insulin. One thing we learnt was carb counting. It's essential for a Type 1 to ensure the right amounts of insulin are taken. It's also a great way for Type 2's to reduce carbs by weighing them. Carbs and Cals is a great book that gives the carbs per meal size/weight. There is also a paid phone app.

Believe it or not, one blueberry muffin has as many carbs if not more than a homemade curry. It's the rice that is the carbs in the curry.

I agree re the general diet point and indeed SWMBO and I monitoir that carefully. My OP was meant to gather tips re ride foods that would not spike/upset the blood sugar level. It is well known that standard energy gels and bars have v high sugar content and I am hoping to find a way to fuel up/recover without pushing up blood sugar levels. Maybe I should not if worry if high sugar level inputs produce temporary high blood sugar levels - the reverse, hypoglaecemia, is v unpleasant/dangerous.

 

[gbs]

It all depends of course if the doctor has got the diagnosis right. As you correctly point out, there are several causes of diabetes and of course, everyone has a slightly different metabolism and reacts differently to different foods. Doctors in the UK are often too quick to diagnose and prescribe.

Performance athletes who are nearly always type 1 have to be very precise in their medication. Steve Redgrave who has 5 consecutive olympic gold medals for rowing is diabetic. However he was diagnosed with 'adult onset' type 2 at the age of 35, 3 years before his last gold medal in Sydney 2000. The standard National Health advice of diet and exercise wasn't going to help him.

Yorks, thank you for this helpful response and for the other posts - mouth watering photography! You seem to be v well versed in the issues. Are you professionally involved in some way?

And I confirm that I am not pregnant - as a 73 old male that would be news!

 

[Firestorm]

You seem to be suggesting self testing. Seems v logical but how?

There are simple blood testing kits available in most chemists. I dont know if they can be prescribed , I might have a word at my next check up

 

[fossyant]

I agree re the general diet point and indeed SWMBO and I monitoir that carefully. My OP was meant to gather tips re ride foods that would not spike/upset the blood sugar level. It is well known that standard energy gels and bars have v high sugar content and I am hoping to find a way to fuel up/recover without pushing up blood sugar levels. Maybe I should not if worry if high sugar level inputs produce temporary high blood sugar levels - the reverse, hypoglaecemia, is v unpleasant/dangerous.

Gels and the like, I'd not recommend anyway, diabetic or not. They are best used for an emergency. You are better off with some food wrapped up in chunks and or a food stop. Diluted fruit juice or a powdered energy drink would do.

Personally, I go for a couple of bananas, malt loaf and fig rolls on a log run.

 

[gbs]

There are simple blood testing kits available in most chemists. I dont know if they can be prescribed , I might have a word at my next check up

WOW! I wonder why my GP did not suggest that? He knows that I am on the case and definitely not one of those that expects medicine to cure the problem.

 

[fossyant]

There are simple blood testing kits available in most chemists. I dont know if they can be prescribed , I might have a word at my next check up

The meter comes free usually or at minimum cost. The cost is in the test strips (£30 for 50), and you should get these on prescription as a Type 2, but I certainly know my mum and dad are in 70's, and my mum in law of 79, none of them have meters/test strips.

 

[Yorksman]

SD Codefree is a cheap meter with cheap teststrips. It is on the market precisely because many GPs will not prescribe test kits for type 2s.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb...d+glucose+monitor&sprefix=SD+codefree,aps,238

They tend to read a little high but, for comparing before meal and 2 hours after meal, they are a very good way of assessing an individual's reaction to a particular meal. Over time, you learn a lot. The one I got on presciption, after 12 months of nagging is the Gluco RX

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?ie=UTF8&...vptwo=&hvqmt=b&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_132krg458n_b

 

[fossyant]

Fossy can you explain this as it doesn't seem right to me

My son is type 1, so he can eat anything, but has to take insulin

You can. So long as you carb count. Type 2 and type 1 are very different.

Type 1 has no natural insulin (or very little), a type 2 is generally insulin resistant, and lots of other health problems can cause it.

A Type 1 has to inject insulin, no matter what.

 

[Yorksman]

Type 1 has no natural insulin (or very little), a type 2 is generally insulin resistant, and lots of other health problems can cause it.

A Type 1 has to inject insulin, no matter what.

That's right. Type 1 is an auto immune disorder where the body's own immune system attacks and destroys the insulin producing beta cells which it sees as 'foreign invaders'.

 

[ayceejay]

It was the notion that you son could eat anything that bothered me rather than the need to inject insulin.
Now that gbs has dropped his age into this question do you think this is a factor that will influence the answer to his question?