I guess it had to happen one day, but I never expected this. At 67 and a former distance runner, and underweight, I was recently diagnosed at diabetic. My HbA1C measured a whopping 13 (under 6 is normal)!

Up until now, I have been happily medication-free and blissfully healthy. In two hours, I will be attending a Diabetes Education course which is designed to inform me on how to manage my blood sugar.

OK, I admit that over the past year I've become a bit of a sugar junkie. I would have a large bowl of ice cream for dessert nearly every night, and would snack on chocolates and Starbursts, which I kept in a bowl in the kitchen. Those are gone, now.

I've gone back to eating the way I did when I was marathon training. I'm adding more fiber to my diet, and my snacking is now nuts and high-fiber fruits. Gone are white foods: pasta, rice, bread, etc.

My belief is that I can reverse this condition and bring my blood sugar below 6. This belief is based on Dr. Joel Fuhrman's "The End of Diabetes." I have several of his books, which are loaded with peer reviewed studies and case histories of people who have gotten completely off their medications. This is my goal, as I hate taking them.

My second biggest problem is how to eat well while traveling. The past five days have seen me in Boston, Virginia, Florida and Virginia (home) again. A lot of airports and hotel rooms.

I was fortunate this time, as I found some "healthy" restaurants and in one case, a Wegman's grocery nearby. I was able to purchase nutrient-dense healthy foods. But this isn't always the case.

As I get adjusted to eating low-carb, low-sugar foods, how to I find them while waiting at an airport? I said this was my second biggest problem. My biggest problem is that I'm a bit of a gourmand, and I like to eat!

My A1C was 11.1, when I was discharged from the hospital, it was down to 10.4 at the first appointment I had after that with the care provider. I have had two three month checks since then, A1C was 5.7 the first time and 5.8 the most recent time. You have to cut out sugar. Period. Salads, lean beef, pork, chicken and fish are the staples now. Protein is your friend. On the subject of protein and traveling I might suggest protein bars, there is a brand that I just found out about called Think Thin, they have 20 grams of protein, no sugar and no carbs. Easy to tuck in your pocket and you don’t have to worry about refrigeration. You’ll want to watch your carb intake, too. You can’t cut them out completely, but you’ll want to limit them as much as you can. I would also suggest keeping a couple of packets of honey with you (and a couple in your car) in case you become hypoglycemic.

My wife has been a type 1 diabetic since she was a small child. She will soon be 65. She eats anything she wants at home and while traveling. What she DOESN'T do is eat garbage. No candy,ice cream,soda etc. She works out 30 minutes 4-5 times a week.I don't know what her A1C is but I do know that her blood sugar level is always right around 100. Am I correct in assuming that you are Type 2? If so, you can reverse that.

I usually carry a good selection of nuts and whole grain foods, and airports, if flying, are full of expensive but healthy choices. For sandwiches I use whole grain pita, very few carbs. Glucerna bars are also useful when traveling. Avoid downtown areas; I nearly starved at a motel near the Phoenix airport. The food desert thing is real. Nothing but crapsuck food for miles. I ended up at a friendly Mexican restaurant where they graciously constructed me a couple of salads with chicken fajita parts on it.

First, If you are taking Statins, stop immediately & see if your A1C goes down. In a small percentage of people with Northern European DNA, Statins cause temporary & permanent damage. I was one of them. Also check the glycemic index of foods as well as carbs. Meat, eggs, cheese & salads are your friend. I found I can eat shredded hash browns, but NO mashed potatoes or white rice. Nature Valley also has a lower carb protein bar.

The stuff you've cut out will show a marked improvement in a1c. Read up on Bragg's apple cider vinegar. An oz or so daily helps control sugar.

I'm of the cynical camp that says the blood sugar bar keeps getting lowered to include more potential lifetime drug takers. Keep you daily #s 150 and a1c under 7 and exercise. I take 1000mg of metformin twice a day. My doc says he likes met because while it won't get your bs down to 110 it won't let it get to 200 either.

I was prescribed metformin several years ago.

Seemed to work until my lips turned blue and I got real sick. Turns out I am allergic to it.

Current medication is glypizide, but have not been taking it for a while. While taking it, blood sugar hovered around 150 after a while.

Quit taking it, blood sugar did not go up, or down.

Last time I had my A1C checked, it was 7.2 and the doctor said I should work to get it below 7.0.

Have started working out, working up to higher levels at it. Not so much as to reduce blood sugar, but to get back into some kind of better shape! Which should also help lover blood sugar.

Wife, being the good German wife, makes sure I get the right diet, and harps about me working out. As in, I need more of it.

It can be difficult. Even getting salads while eating out isn't often effective because of all of the added crap. While many more restaurants are listing calories, very few list carbs on their menus.

Look for "light" meals on the menus such as grilled salmon/chicken with veggies. Things like that are pretty good.

Thanks for the tips, folks.

I was given a blood glucose monitor and it's taken me three strips to get a single reading! I guess I'll get used to it. The CDE (certified diabetes educator) recommended a Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) system, but when I called my doctor for a prescription I was told insurance may not yet cover these, and besides, let's stick with the pinprick for a while.

My initial reading this morning (fasting) was 168mg/dL. I took a reading two hours after a salad lunch and my reading was 167mg/dL. Two data points are not enough to plot a trend, but I was told to take three readings a day, every other day, and to stagger the post-meal (lunch, dinner) samples.

The Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) is something I've remotely heard of, but it seems my local grocer carries it, and I'm not averse to vinegar, so as a morning "restorative" it might warrant a try.

As for protein bars, I'll take another look. Most of the ones I've seen a sugar bombs, but I'm encouraged that there are no-sugar options available. I have pretty much every grocery store invented by man within a few minutes drive from me that I ought to be able to find at least one brand!

Good stuff, guys. I was a little hesitant to ask on a gun forum, but I've seen some awfully good advice given on other topics, so why not?

Pretty much all forms of fast food are terrible for lowering your a1c. Sit down dinners are not easy. You just have to remember to go with very low carb, reasonable calorie meals. While you are lowering it you will want to be very strict. You will be hungry. Medication at least in pill form will be needed for a while I suspect.

Once under control you have to monitor and learn how your body responds. Some carbs are different than others. Mashed potatoes are one of the worst. Fiber also offsets carbs. If something has 14 cards with 10 of those from fiber, you basically have a 4 carb serving and some good farts.

EDIT - One more nice option I have found is Optimum Nutrition Gold Whey Protein as a bit of a snack, sometimes even meal. It is a drink powder. Costco had Chocolate (Extreme Milk Chocolate actually) on sale recently for $35. It gives 25 grams of protein and almost no carbs . Nice little treat. Mixes well too.

I would not mix with milk since milk has sugar.

I like almonds as a healthy snack too.

You can enjoy a lot of low fat, or hard cheeses too.

Did they start you on any meds? Your a1c seems awful high not to be on meds at least until you can get a handle on this.

I was diagnosed a few years ago and was put on Metformin and Januvia. My a1c at the time was 10.2. With the meds and diet changes I am right around 6.0-6.2

It's not as hard as you think to eat reasonably while traveling unless your trying to be super strict. Double cheeseburgers and fries vs a salad at an airport restaurant isn't too hard to figure out...

As long term type 2, I've found a little prep makes a ton of benefits for glycemic control. A little basic jerky helps for pirtable snack. Still easy to over carb, and any high fructose corn syrup starts a fire that takes days
to overcome. Going too long between defined meals is destabilizing for me.

There's a lot of little tricks you will discover over time. Good luck and keep your discipline

quote:

Originally posted by F12517:
Did they start you on any meds? Your a1c seems awful high not to be on meds at least until you can get a handle on this.

I was diagnosed a few years ago and was put on Metformin and Januvia. My a1c at the time was 10.2. With the meds and diet changes I am right around 6.0-6.2

It's not as hard as you think to eat reasonably while traveling unless your trying to be super strict. Double cheeseburgers and fries vs a salad at an airport restaurant isn't too hard to figure out...

Yes, my doctor put me on Metformin 500 x 2. I'm also taking Crestor for high cholesterol.

I haven't eaten in a fast food restaurant in forever, I don't drink sodas or sugary drinks, and other than having recently over-indulged in ice cream and chocolates, have been stupid healthy.

I'm a former marathon runner, so I'm familiar with good eating and label reading. So, I'm quite surprised by this diagnosis. But, as I set out to conquer a marathon, I've set out to conquer this as well.

I will order breakfast when I can if I am eating out. Usually a kitchen sink omelet, and I will substitute the hashbrowns with a vegetable (like steamed broccoli), and the pancakes with a fresh fruit portion. I explain that I am a diabetic, and usually don't have an issue making the substitutions.

quote:

Originally posted by fpuhan:

quote:

Originally posted by F12517:
Did they start you on any meds? Your a1c seems awful high not to be on meds at least until you can get a handle on this.

I was diagnosed a few years ago and was put on Metformin and Januvia. My a1c at the time was 10.2. With the meds and diet changes I am right around 6.0-6.2

It's not as hard as you think to eat reasonably while traveling unless your trying to be super strict. Double cheeseburgers and fries vs a salad at an airport restaurant isn't too hard to figure out...

Yes, my doctor put me on Metformin 500 x 2. I'm also taking Crestor for high cholesterol.

I haven't eaten in a fast food restaurant in forever, I don't drink sodas or sugary drinks, and other than having recently over-indulged in ice cream and chocolates, have been stupid healthy.

I'm a former marathon runner, so I'm familiar with good eating and label reading. So, I'm quite surprised by this diagnosis. But, as I set out to conquer a marathon, I've set out to conquer this as well.

Ok, that makes a bit more sense. It'll take a several days for the meds to kick in. I can see why the diagnosis is a surprise except for your statement about the ice cream and candy. That's a lot of sugar and I'm guessing something else has changed in your body that caused it to no longer process sugar the way it used to.

Any family history? Any other markers for this?

quote:

Yes, my doctor put me on Metformin 500 x 2. I'm also taking Crestor for high cholesterol.

Ditch the Crestor for a couple of weeks & see if your Blood Sugar drops.