Any suggestions for diabetic and also a cirrhotic patient?

[ZABohra]

My father had diabetes before the cirrhosis was diagnosed. Can anyone please tell how to take care when you have these two diseases? Like what sort of diet should he follow?

[gamesmaker]

Hi. Does your father have a diabetic specialist nurse. She would be the best person to talk to initially. Failing that - discuss with the GP. It is important that your father keeps his diabetes under control - that will depend on many factors such as how well controlled his diabetes is at present, is he on diet / tablets / insulin / a combination of treatments for his diabetes. How compliant is he with his diabetes treatment? How good is he at checking his blood sugar levels. Good luck!

[LAJ123]

I also have both, liver failure first followed by diabetes. I follow the advice of the specialist liver dietitian. This resulted in rethinking my insulin regime and my glucose levels are stable and I'm nutritionally improving in preparation for transplant listing. see if you can get a referral by your GP or hepatologist.

[Dorset123]

I have the same issue. They think the diabetes caused the cirrhosis. It's a tricky balance to keep weight on. The protein shakes are all packed with sugar. From being diet controlled I have been pot on mettle in and insulin to control sugar levels while upping calories. Any tips LAJ123?

Good luck

[LAJ123]

Hello, this is Jim, (Lucy - LAJ123 is my partner.) I'm the one with the end stage liver disease and waiting to be listed for a transplant.

My specialist dietician on the transplant team has advised the following. Make the insulin regime fit the diet that you need to remain well I currently inject 4 times daily. This means I make allowances for the sugar content of the diet and protein drinks and adapt the insulin dose to my glucose levels rather than as I was previously, being rigid on the dosage. I now have to be more vigilant watching for the high and low readings, it took a while but I'm now quite stable. Make full use of your glucometer - sore fingers are the least you need to worry about !

Of course there is no substitute for talking to your doctors, diabetic nurse specialist and if available to you, a specialised dietitian.

Take care,

Jim