Diabetes

[Ryliefew123dogcat]

Got a call from my GP to say l am on the verge of diabetes. I am on 35mgs of presnosone and can't go down for another month. How do l work with the diabetes thing. There is no diabetes in my family and not sure how to handle this. My white blood cells are still high but the last couple of days l have been feeling good with more energy. How is that?

[Hidden]

Hi

Did you GP discuss any options with you re diet to help lower your risk, there has been a good thread in this over the last couple of days, l will forward you the link.

Kind Regards

MrsN

healthunlocked.com/pmrgcauk...

[Ryliefew123dogcat in reply to Hidden]

Not really she phoned me to give results. She said just lay off the bread and cakes for a while and it should go down as l lower the prednisone. Made me feel very uneasy. No diabetes in my family. Thank you for your quick reply

[Hidden in reply to Ryliefew123dogcat]

Have a read of the link l reached as that may help & as Poopadoop says did they give you the actual number of your HbA1c?

[Longtimer in reply to Ryliefew123dogcat]

My doctor rang me last year with same news, said give up sugar...but it`s the carbs...especially white ones that have to be reduced greatly as well...this might sound difficult but it`s easier than you think, especially if you plan your meals so you don`t get caught out, if you know what I mean....for me it meant giving up bread most days...and having very big mixed salads for lunch......variation is key so you don`t give up...it has worked for me..it can for you....go online if you possible, there is lots of advice there....

(no diabetes in my family either....)

Good luck.

[Ryliefew123dogcat in reply to Longtimer]

Thanks for your reply. Very helpful love this site. The thing is l love bread and l am not a salad eater. I guess l will have to start.

[Longtimer in reply to Ryliefew123dogcat]

Same here, but surprising what you can get used to and have later on, but just less....my salads have to be very colourful (eat the rainbow they say!)….and have coleslaw and veg couscous...works for me if I spread it over boring lettuce!…..but there is a lot of choice out there now as opposed to years ago. Also soup if you like it...

It really bothered me that I was entering into more health problems maybe with the diabetes….so that made up my mind....(I have other health problems too, just wish I could do something about them!)

[Rokerman in reply to Ryliefew123dogcat]

Pasta. Bread. Afternoon tea........

Love them all! Just have to moderate my intake - doesn’t mean giving them up altogether. I’ve gone over to low-sugar breakfast cereals/jam etc.

Have, somewhat reluctantly, gone back to statins but I think GPs are under instructions (‘guidance’😉) to treat diabetes like they did high cholesterol a few years back (ie scare the living daylights out of everyone deemed to be at risk......)

[Ryliefew123dogcat in reply to Rokerman]

You are so right. Anyway today l am going out to get whole wheat bread carbanised water and lemons and stop drinking ginger ale. Then l will go from there. At least l can drink tea.😊 Thanks for your input. You are all such lovely ladies.

[Rokerman in reply to Ryliefew123dogcat]

Have enough medical problems dogcat - but not yet transgender...!😂

But - the ladies on this forum are lovely!

[Hidden]

First try not to worry too much. Second did they give you an actual number for your hba1c? How high is it in reality based on current pred dose?

[Ryliefew123dogcat in reply to Hidden]

No she is letting me have copies of my blood tests next week for the last month so l will check then.l will be seeing her next week so will ask more. Thanks for your reply

[Hidden in reply to Ryliefew123dogcat]

Great we should be able to guide you more. I will stick a link up that'll help you see what kinds of foods are ok.

[Hidden in reply to Ryliefew123dogcat]

diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-di...

[Hidden in reply to Ryliefew123dogcat]

As your pred lowers you might feel a bit better. Don't let them hassle you if you are below 60 and with high pred number you should ask them to refer you to local hospital diabetes clinic. I found them more knowledgeable and supportive. 🌻

[Theziggy]

Sadly pred can cause diabetes

[YuliK in reply to Theziggy]

That's all the more reason to avoid food and fruit which will turn into sugar.

It's all in the hands of the patient. We have to answer to diabetes ourselves. We are aware it can happen, so just be careful. 👍

[Theziggy in reply to YuliK]

Carbs!!!

Unfortunately I had type 2 diabetes before I got this - so steroids just made things a whole lot worse.

[Hidden in reply to YuliK]

I am sorry but not everyone can access that answer to diabetes. Not everyone has the personal, social, economic or cultural capital to reverse diabetes. If I am honest I find it upsetting to be judged for an illness/auto immune disorder.

[YuliK in reply to Hidden]

My grand daughter ( now nearly 18) has been suffering since the age of 5 years old diabetes 1..

It's been a very hard battle for her ( blood from her little fingers. 5-6 times a day. ) not to mention the insulin injections ....Resisting sugary goodies, has been a struggle ( especially Christmas, Halloween and Easter. ) not to mention birthday parties.

My grand daughters strength has had a very positive affect on myself and my late husband

My late husband never complained about the chemo tap, also daily injections, blood transfusions etc..

We both felt , if that little girl could handle her diabetes, then we can handle our problems.

Poopadoop, I totally agree with you that not everyone can access that answer to diabetes...

I would hope, that anyone who has problems with diabetes 2 , due to Prednisone, will reach out to us for help here on the forum.

If I have offended anyone I sincerely apologize.

Yulik

[Hidden in reply to YuliK]

Don't worry yulik. Sometimes the written word doesn't transmit ideas and feelings properly. We have no non verbal cues to help us decode the meaning. My apologies if we hit each others nerve points 🌻🌻

[YuliK in reply to Hidden]

I like your post poopadoop, you have hit the nail on the head. No offense taken, I honestly mean that.

As you say, the written word can be misconstrued and be hurtful. 😩

I kiss and makeup. 🌷

[Hidden in reply to YuliK]

Back at you 🌻

[PMRpro Ambassador]

Is this on the basis of Hba1c results (which have some meaning) or random blood sugar levels (which in this case don't)?

You aren't really on the verge of diabetes - you are developing steroid-induced diabetes which isn't quite the same thing. It is neither an illness nor an autoimmune problems. As well as the natural increases in blood sugar level that occur after food and which do go up some in everyone when on pred, the pred causes the liver to release random spikes of glucose into the blood - part of what causes the craving for food and weight gain when on pred. High BS triggers release of insulin, the BS falls quickly but there isn't more food being digested to use the insulin. The BS overshoots to too low and you want food. The excess insulin makes body stores of glucose turn to fat... These spikes of high BS increase the Hba1c level and it looks as if you are becoming diabetic. Don't get me wrong - high levels of sugar in the body are not good as they cause tissue damage and they do need addressing but it isn't suddenly diabetes.

One way to help this is to cut carbs drastically - especially processed and "white" carbs and quite a few people on the forums have brought their Hba1c levels back down to normal just by doing that - and that is where to start. Many of us on the forum eat "low carb" and it has helped us avoid steroid induced diabetes, weight gain and even allowed us to lose weight while on pred.

[YuliK in reply to PMRpro]

Great post PMRpro, you have a wonderful way of explaining things.

Happy Mums day 🌷

[Ryliefew123dogcat in reply to PMRpro]

Thank you so much. I will take all this advice and more. I have always been very petite and only weighed 100lbs most of my life. So this weigh gain and diet thing is very new to me. Quite a turn around..

[SnazzyD]

Hello, the Carbs bit has been addressed above. I’ll add that Pred causes raised white cell counts normally because it stimulates production of Neutrophils. This effect reduces with dose.

[jinasc]

Here I go again:

pmr-gca-northeast.org.uk/gr... then go to the Summer Newsletter 2016 and on page 4 you will find an article called 'Demystifying Diabetes in relation to PMR abd GCA.

You can download the whole article.

I have continued to put this information in answer to this eternal problem with Pred and Diabetes. If we all knew about this when we started on pred, I doubt that we would then run into the problem later on when we have been on pred for a long time.

Hey Ho, this is a long unending learning curve, bet we will get there and so will the researchers looking for cause and cure.............in the meantime we help ourselves and others as much as possible with factual information.

PS If you put Demystifying Diabetes in the search box, top right hand page, it will take you to the other post which gives a more detailed explanation.

[Ryliefew123dogcat in reply to jinasc]

Thank you so much

[sennetta]

You will find that not eating any carbohydrate, sugarsand sweetners plus not snacking between meals will solve this. Carbohydrates are not necessary for a healthy diet, contrary to popular opinion resulting from what the medical establishment have been pushing at us for decades.

[Roy46]

Been there and there wasn't any diabetes in my family either. I had an HbA1c score of 43 (pre diabetic) so my GP put me onto the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme. Now I'm down to 38 (normal). Plenty of sessions with others in the same boat, but mainly down to their life styles - none with a pred excuse. Worth tapping into at preventing-diabetes.co.uk. The bottom line is that it's those d...n steroids! Good luck

[Ryliefew123dogcat in reply to Roy46]

Thanks for your input. I feel l am getting good advice from you girls. Most people don't understand this GCA thing at all.

[jinasc in reply to Roy46]

Sorry Roy46 but I just can't let the statement that it's those d....d steroids pass me by. Our own bodies have turned on us ie auto-immune illnesses = pred in most of them .

Those 'd....d steroids' stood between me and losing my sight or keeping it. They also keep a whole heap of people alive - some from the earliest stages of their lives.

It is a powerful drug and need to be used with care. Most GPs do not come across many people who need them longer for a couple of weeks and then they start to worry as they do not often have to deal with longer term patitents and communicate that worry without realising it and we pick up on it.

Used correctly and treat with respect you can get through it. Me, GCA 5 years - roller coaster than remission coming up to 8th year completed.

BTW pred is an old drug and every side effect has been found and most of them can be dealt with and of 83 only 8 are common and no-one that I know to date has had them all.

[Hidden]

Sounds good, worth looking into! x

[Hidden]

You may want to check labels on any packaged food you buy. They show carb content which is usually broken down to indicate grams of sugar per 100g. I don’t know the recommended level for diabetic control, but I think it should be somewhere below 10g per 100g.

The main point is that you may be surprised at the relatively high sugar content of many store cupboard staples. Plus ‘low fat’ often means higher sugar. Cereals are really bad, often up to a third is sugar. Grape Nuts and Weetabix are low. Good luck.

[Ryliefew123dogcat in reply to Hidden]

Thanks so much

[BonnyQuine in reply to Ryliefew123dogcat]

Hello - I also have GCA (2 yrs and 4 mths) and developed diabetes very soon after starting on prednisolone.

I am on diabetes meds, but mostly keep it under control by eating low carb - like several others here.

Just want to mention, when checking food package labels, just look at the carbohydrate. Sugar is a form of carbohydrate. Separate sugars are irrelevant, as carb is turned into sugar in your bloodstream. I just look at the percentage carbohydrate in the product, and stick to products w a low percentage of carbs.

Avoid carbs and your blood sugar will come down. Simples!

May be worth mentioning that fat is ok, as it doesn't affect blood sugar. Just avoid trans-fats etc. Don't overdo it but olive oil, butter etc are fine. In the absence of carbs, your body will use fat as an alternative source of energy.

[Ryliefew123dogcat in reply to BonnyQuine]

Thank you for this. Makes a lot of sense when checking labels. I find breakfast cereal very confusing. I am going to try Weetabix next.

[BonnyQuine in reply to Ryliefew123dogcat]

Must mention that I eat no cereals at all, including bread and breakfast cereal. All cereals are carbs. Even whole grain porridge sends my blood sugar up. Try something else for breakfast - there are lots of alternatives. Fish, egg, plain yoghurt . . . . A quick omelette is good, eg filled w tomatoes, sardine, aubergine, leftover veg fr the night before . . . . I often have plain yoghurt w some blueberries. If going out or exerting myself in any way, I often have a boiled egg + a banana (not too ripe). Be careful w fruit - much of it has high natural sugar, but you do need a moderate amount for the vitamins etc. You're better off w a banana than a chunk of bread or cereal. Eat as wide a range of veg as possible, and plenty of protein foods.

You could look for info on low carb diet from Diabetes UK.

Good luck.

PS: Despite this way of eating, I still haven't lost weight, but at least I haven't gained much either, ref prednisolone, and the diabetes is well controlled.

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to BonnyQuine]

Though to be fair - you can replace fruit and its sugar with above-ground veggies ...

[SusanEleven]

My hba1c results were pre-diabetic range. Cutting back on carbs reduced it to normal range rather quickly. Over the last year I've gotten lax with my eating again so I'm at the very top end of normal now, so I'm eating thoughtfully again and keeping the carbs low. I've also never been a salad person but discovered I love roasted vegetables.

[nymima01]

When I was on prednisone, my endocrinologist put me on Metformin to curb my sugar spikes. It helped a lot until I didn’t need prednisone anymore. I had no problems with Metformin.

[roshough]

I also started low/no carbs when on high dose pred for GCA. This was because i read that for steroid induced diabetes its mainly insulin resistance....in other words the insulin is there but the sugars cant get into the cells. Filling up with avocados eggs and green veg together with oily fish etc worked a treat. Like a previous comment i slackened off over the years since off the steroids and my HbA1C up again...46....oh no...the worst yet....so now back to low carbs. Ive also lost5 lb over a few weeks. Most difficult is socialising or visiting family who eat differently. I feel awkward about always doing my own thing....but hope its worth it eventually.