Pre-diabetes!! | Imamother

amother

Tue, Jun 28 2022, 10:32 am

I'm freaking out! I am morbidly obese at this point in my life. I am doing the sleeve surgery beginning of August iyh. Therefore I went to my doctor yesterday to do the routine bloodwork I need to get done before the surgery. They tested my a1c and it came back at 5.8 which puts me into the pre-diabetes category. I feel so lost and frightened! My doctor told me I need to start watching what I eat and exercise and to greatly decrease the amount of carbs and sugars that I eat. Well exercise I can't think of doing before my sleeve. It's impossible to exercise while so overweight. I get out of breath instantly. I want to know what are foods that are low on the glycemic index. Also , does Stevie sweetener cause the insulin to spike or the blood sugar to go up? I'm thinking if it's worth it to sign up with a nutritionist for the next month or so till my surgery. Please help me! Tia

amother

Mocha

Tue, Jun 28 2022, 10:56 am

Definitely speak to a nutritionist that specializes in prediabetes and the gastric sleeve. You will want to be in touch post surgery as well. Not every nutritionist knows about it or even supports it. I have a close family member who did it and it was life changing!! Health issues decreased, she had way more energy after.... it isnt just about weight and "looking good"-- it is about health!! Some people have misconceptions and misinformation about the surgery (easy way out, all about vanity, people just cant control themselves... ugh!!! All lies for my family member) so dont listen to them. Talk to your doctor as it is a health decision. Good for you for taking control over your health and well being!!

Diabetes diet (or prediabetes) is super important
Make sure to look for hidden carbs/sugars-fruits are high sugar. Some vegetables have higher carb contents. Same with even "healthy snacks".

You are out of breath from exercise not just from the weight but also from lack of exercise. Try to add in anything throughout your day. Park a block away or even park a few spaces farther out in a parking lot. Every little bit helps. Even those extra 5 steps. Doing laundry at home? Make it take 2 trips to put the clothing away (so even if it usually takes 1 trip to carry it all- add in an extra trip).
I had gestational diabetes and seriously- walking or moving at all helps lower your sugars.
Try walking in a pool- not even swimming, just walking. Walking/moving in a pool is easier on the joints than doing it outside the pool.

Good luck!!

amother

Tue, Jun 28 2022, 11:03 am

amother [ Mocha ] wrote:

Wow thanks for the info! Yes at this point I'm doing the sleeve for my health. Because I need to lose weight not to run into problems. I never counted carbs before. I found out yesterday that a cup of milk has 12 grams of carbs. Which snacks would be healthy and high carb? I'm so lost!

amother

Viola

Tue, Jun 28 2022, 12:11 pm

Get a CGM. Stop guessing. See how different foods affect your blood sugar. See how fast even mild exercise gets it down (slow walk, gentle stretches). There is very little science to this in the sense that it is very individual.

Not all carbs affect all people the same way. Find out for yourself which carbs are okay for you and which send your blood sugars skyrocketing.

A great deal of prediabetes (and even full blown diabetes) can be controlled by diet alone. In my experience seeing your actual numbers will be far more motivating than following a relatively arbitrary diet and cutting out huge amounts of food based only on carb counts.

Prediabetes is reversible. But real numbers will help you way more than guesses in controlling it.

amother

Tue, Jun 28 2022, 9:03 pm

amother [ Viola ] wrote:

yes I was thinking of getting one just so I can see for myself how different foods are handled by my body. Any idea if I can get one through my doctor / medicaid or it's something I'll need to buy? But on the other hand I'm scared! What if I eat say brown rice and I see my numbers going high? What do I do then?

amother

Candycane

Tue, Jun 28 2022, 9:29 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Most endocrinologists office have nutritionist in them that take insurance and endocrinologist is a doc who you see with such numbers

amother

Wallflower

Tue, Jun 28 2022, 9:38 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Stevia and monk fruit sugar

amother

Viola

Tue, Jun 28 2022, 9:50 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

It is 100% worth getting! Not sure if Medicaid will cover, but you definitely need a prescription either way.

You will for sure find your numbers going up occasionally. But that's okay. Your goal is for LONG-TERM stability, not necessarily immediate results. If you have prediabetes, your body is already having trouble processing some carbs. The idea is that having a CGM lets you find out exactly which ones, how much, how fast, and how high.

If you want to get rising sugars down, a walk is amazing. Also drink plenty of water. But you've been already having them for a while without knowing, that's why your A1C is where it is.

And it really doesn't matter that much. Occasional high sugars are expected when you are trying to figure things out. Later you'll know to eat less brown rice, to eat it only together with a fat or protein, or skip altogether. Make it a learning experience or experiment and write down your results.

You might be pleasantly surprised at how some carbs are not an issue for you, and cutting out (for example) peaches might not bother you if you know you can have apples, oranges, and grapes.

Chana Miriam S

Wed, Jun 29 2022, 12:40 am

I’m happy to share my experience. My A1c has been subclinical since 4.5 years ago.

That means that no one would call me diabetic anymore.

Best resources NSNG PDF ( I can email,)
Jason Fung’s the diabetes code book, videos the etiology of obesity

Dr. Bernstein’s diabetes solution ( addresses mainly type 1 but you can learn a lot.)

Chana Miriam S

Wed, Jun 29 2022, 12:49 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

My experience is that CGM can be off drastically. Finger pricks are more accurate. However, with a 5.8 you don’t really need to do this. You know what causes high sugars, so start with that.

Also just re sweetener. Many people have reactions to them. They can cause insulin to be created which continues your insulin resistance and can contribute to the problem.

If most people are unprocessed food, there’s be a lot less diabetes.

Also, just fyi, many people find that when they stop all sweet things, AND eat enough salt, fat and protein ( not starve, not walk around hungry) the cravings go away.

Type 2 diabetes is a treatable disease that can be treated with food in many cases.

I’m SO grateful I had my prediabetic crisis ( I had sugar damage at 6.4.)

My life is awesome five years later. I’d never have been where I am now, if it hadn’t happened.

Also, bariatric surgery will typically normalize blood glucose. Surgery however, is not enough. You have to make actual changes in how you live.

There is no weightloss method that is free of plateau and regain but it can be mitigated by behavioural changes to some extent.

amother

Wed, Jun 29 2022, 12:55 am

andrea levy wrote:

thanks Andrea for weighing in ... how would I know if artificial sweeteners such as Stevie leaf extract will cause my insulin to spike and blood sugar will go up? Also, sugar damage at 6.4? Wow that's so freaking scary! That's still considered pre-diabetic.
I checked for a glucose monitor on Amazon. All of them one by one have bad reviews that they are highly inaccurate. Would you be able to recommend one that gives accurate results? Tia

amother

Viola

Wed, Jun 29 2022, 1:23 am

A CGM may not be 100% accurate, but it will still give you a pretty good picture of what makes your sugars rise or fall. The problem with just using finger pricks is that sugars don't always rise at the same amount of time after eating, so you're likely to miss things by just relying on those. Plus, it is obviously very inconvenient to prick your finger frequently, so you won't have any data on those times at all.

A CGM will give you readings every few minutes, so you can SEE how your walk brings down your sugars, and how that cake SPIKES them. Whether the spike is right away, after a half hour, or after an hour.

No glucose monitor will be perfectly accurate. It's a moving target. Like a scale.