want to start some supplement for health maintenance

[osho1410]

I want to start some supplement besides my diet plan (i.e. LCHF ) as lately I am having pain in my shoulder off and on , though I set it right by exercise /stretches as advised by the physio. I am 67 yrs,diabetic since last 13 years.I take metformin 500mg +glimpride 1mg and cod liver oil caps.twice daily. BGL well under control ,HbA1C 5.5% ,can I start ALA and ASTAXANTHIN capsules ? would like to know from you all .

[Manie]

Champak Ji

Is there any one pill that suffices for joint health?I often have knee joint pain

[patliputra]

If your diet is balanced, you won't need any supplement .

[Praveen55 Moderator in reply to patliputra]

Hi, could you expand what is a balanced diet for diabetics? I thought LCHF is a reasonably balanced diet!

[patliputra in reply to Praveen55]

Lchf is extreme diet. Low to very low carbohydrate and very high fat. It is never a balanced diet.

Mostly so called lchf followers , in practice follow a balanced diet.

[Praveen55 Moderator in reply to patliputra]

You have nailed it. Strictly speaking, LCHF means 25gm or less carbohydrate per day. You are right- most followers in this community in practice consume 100 - 150 gm particularly vegetarians which is much better than consuming 50-60% of calories requirements following the advice of various health agencies.

By the way, I am on 25gm/day carb diet for the last nine weeks I will assess my results at the end of 12weeks.

[Praveen55 Moderator]

Please tell me what is the problem with Calcium supplement? I take 800mg per day.

[osho1410]

my height is 5'7" and weight 72 kg. last year my doc. added 1mg glimpride as pp one hour after dinner remained between 180 to 190 and fasting bs 120 to 130 ,inspite of being on LCHF diet. After starting glimi bs levels were okay and I felt energetic and healthy.By the way my grain intake during the entire day is one roti each with 2 meals and 3 to 4 tbsp. daal/ sabzi and lots of low carb or green veggeies and salad and 2 tbsp.VCO one egg and one slice of brown bread and plain lemon water for b'fast.I am not taking B12 these days as i stopped cobadex forte after taking it for 6 months or so .Now tell me besides ALA what would be best as I would not prefer too many vitamins and supplements

[osho1410]

I think that up to 100 gms .of carb is okay , 2 Rotis will be 44 gm. according to you. Right ? so don't tell me I need to cut that further

[Praveen55 Moderator]

And it may not be practical with Indian eating habits to limit Carb to 25g. As mentioned elsewhere, I have limited to this value to lose weight along with limiting blood glucose rise and also not be in any doubt that I am not following the LCHF diet regime. I will be adding more carb at the end of 12 weeks ( Long Wheat).

Wheather KETOGENIC DIET can be called LCHF or not is a matter of academic interest/terminologies. Overall, lowering the carb is key to managing Diabetes - that is for sure. Possibly all are in agreement on this. Perhaps the difference lies in terminologies.

[VinayRaj in reply to Praveen55]

Praveen55 practical is a matter of lifestyle changes and adaptation. I am the diabetic Hidden talks about below and I have been on Keto 9 months now. I tend to average about 25-40g carbs/day from green veggies,spinach and the like. Rest of the carbs is from that in hung curd/cheese/proteins etc. My fasting BHB is typically from 0.3- 1.1 generally and when I eat my first meal its usually around 1.1-1.5. I IF daily mostly between 16-20:8-4 hours a day and fast every alternate week for Ekadashi for 40-42 hours.

[Praveen55 Moderator in reply to VinayRaj]

Agreed. I am myself on Keto for the last 10 weeks now. Carbs limited to 25gm + - 5gm mostly from low carb green veg and some from nuts and yogurt. Rest of the meal is meat with the zero carbs. I do realise it would be quite difficult to achieve such low carbs with vegetarian diets. There is a significant reduction in my pp number after following this diet regime.

[Praveen55 Moderator]

Thanks for the info.

[Praveen55 Moderator]

Following are the categories as defined by Swedish Dr. Andreas Eenfeldt, MD.

Here’s my view on different levels of LCHF:

Strict LCHF <20 gram carbs per day

Moderate LCHF 20-50 grams per day

Liberal LCHF 50-100 grams per day

Taken from dietdoctor.com

[Hidden]

Its a trade off... either we enjoy all the foods & lets the medicine enjoy us,.. or we trade off carbs for fats & proteins & enjoy a medicine free life

I have knocked off all even metformin & still have the usual lower numbers

I maintain overall carbs at arounf 50 gms / day & net carbs at around 30 gms / day

In NK most of the days

I have an heavy breakfast , no Lunch and a moderate dinner..

Last Hba1c was 4.9 in Oct'17

[Praveen55 Moderator in reply to Hidden]

HbA1c 4.9! That is better than many Non-diabetics.Very good achievement.

[Hidden]

Sir, please tell me the conversion. 44gms roti is 22 grams carbs.

[VinayRaj]

Thanks Hidden . Extreme is a perspective and I would respect that. The numbers somehow tend to motivate me, given I track about 6-8 hormones regularly apart from lipids and BS and other things. Further being Insulin deficient I do not see any other option available to me.

[VinayRaj]

osho1410 just wondering why you might be supplementing ALA (assuming it is Alpha Lipoic Acid) and what dosages and schedules to you take it at. Thanks in advance.

[osho1410]

Dear VinayRaj , I have been reading a lot about Alpha-lipoic acid , that it is an important component of every informed individual’s health maintenance regime, and about its antioxidant properties and how ALA provides a short but potent reduction of oxidation by increasing anti-oxidant enzymes. it is called “the universal antioxidant” because it is both fat- and water-soluble. It also seems to help prevent certain kinds of cell damage in the body, and restores vitamin levels such as vitamin E and vitamin C. There is evidence that alpha-lipoic acid can improve the function and conduction of neurons in diabetes. A few studies have suggested that alpha-lipoic acid supplements may enhance the body's ability to use its own insulin to lower blood sugar in people with type 2 diabetes . Its ability to kill free radicals may help people with diabetic peripheral neuropathy, who have pain, burning, itching, tingling, and numbness in arms and legs from nerve damage.

Many foods contain alpha-lipoic acid in very low amounts. They include spinach, broccoli, yams, potatoes, yeast, tomatoes, Brussels sprouts, carrots, beets, and rice bran. Red meat -- and particularly organ meat -- is also a source of alpha-lipoic acid.

Because so far alpha-lipoic acid is an unproven treatment, there is no established dose, however one review concluded that the evidence is convincing for the use of 600+ milligrams daily for three weeks on symptoms of diabetic neuropathy Since I am not suffering from neuropathy and intend taking it as just a supplement I would prefer something like Diavit capsules which has 200 mg. ALA and other ingredients, once a day ,after consulting with my doc. soon.

[Praveen55 Moderator]

Yes, I do take along with 25 microgram vitamin D3.

[Praveen55 Moderator]

1000 IU is same as 25 mcg

[osho1410]

Hello Sir, thanks for your detailed reply ,I really appreciate this. Ever since, I have researched and gradually developed a regimen of my own which includes ALA , Milk thistle ,cod liver oil , black seed oil and Becosules caps. all this plus methi seed tea or tuemeric water first thing in the morning is keeping me fine yes, I take egg, garlic ,walnuts , extra virgin coconut oil (3 tbsp.) etc. daily. Thanks again for the knowledge provided by you .

[osho1410]

Yes, as I mentioned I take Becosules caps which is a combination of different variants of vitamin B-complex and Folic acid, Vitamin C and Calcium pantothenate.

For D3 I have Cholecalciferol tabs.60000 IU once a week .

[osho1410]

okay ,will check that. Thanks !