PMR with type 2 diabetes

[Elmadon]

I have type two diabetes with PMR and struggling to keep my blood sugar level as low as my GP would like. Anybody out there in the same position?

[DorsetLady PMRGCAuk volunteer]

Glad to see you have posted- and now you will see related older posts but sure you will get current answers as well… Koalajane is one experienced member, but there are plenty of others.

[PMRpro Ambassador]

There are and while it is more complicated, it can be done. Not least by cutting your carb intake and monitoring WHEN your blood sugar rises in response to the pred. Koalajane has a very good tale to tell.

[Viveka]

With PMR and type 2 or prediabetes a lot of people on forum go for a very low carb diet beyond what is advised by NHS who say whole grains are ok. There are reversing diabetes diets online too.

Also there are expensive options of going on the Zoe research or buying a continuous blood sugar monitor via Diabetes UK - these show patterns of spikes so can have an impact on when and what you eat.

[Griggser]

Have a read of what Tim Spector says about carbs. You can still have carbs if you combine them with other things or in what order you eat them as well as a ten minute walk after eating them. Of course there are different carbs and certainly some to avoid.

Taking notice food labels to see how much sugar they contain is also a good idea, it’s surprising how many so called healthy foods are full of sugar.

A friend of mine joined me on a low carb diet and he reversed his type two diabetes. That was a couple of years ago and he’s now back to his normal diet and back to dealing with type two diabetes.

Good luck with whatever you try.

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Griggser]

Though TS is speaking about those with raised BS and not necessarily on pred. Which moves the goalposts.

[Oh-my]

When I moved into the pre-diabetic range two pieces of advice were suggested.

Having a bowl of salad or eating the veg on your plate first. Secondly, follow your meal by a walk or other activity.

Both are supposed to help reduce the after meal spike.

[Esmeashleyreid]

Yes I'm the same. GP told me I had steroid related Diabetes type 2. I'm on 2mg daily of prednisalone. Best wishes

[Merryfield]

i am. steroids and overeating brought a1c to diabetes level. gp recommended losing as much weight as possible on ozempic. then mounjaro (less queasiness). i brought a1c down to 6.4, prediabetes level. now, due to wasting, he told me to stop mounjaro.

[Merryfield]

The only answer is low carb eating and modest amounts. this means really limiting alcohol, sweets, white stuff and red meat. 🙄

[Griggser in reply to Merryfield]

Whisky is ok though😃

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Griggser]

And gin. It's what you put IN them ...

[Griggser in reply to PMRpro]

That would be ice for me😂😂

[tangocharlie]

I recently wrote a post on what I learned about blood sugars when taking steroids when I wore a CGM on the Zoe programme. Any kind of simple carbs; sugar, bread, pasta in particular but also rice and potatoes caused blood glucose to shoot up especially up to 3-4 hours after taking them. My response was delayed, perhaps because I take my steroids in gastro resistant slow-release capsules so in my case nothing much happened for the first 3 hours but then rose for the next 3-4. My HbA1c is now back under control due to changing what when and how I eat. I also found what others said that having salad or veg first helps, as does exercise within half an hour of eating. Eating later in the day helped so I have switched my main meal to evenings outside the danger window and if I have snacks before then they are low carb like nuts or cheese.

[Oh-my]

Also if you plan to go low carb as opposed to no carb. Cooking and then cooling your potato, pasta, etc in advance increases the resistant starch in them and makes them less digestible which reduces the glucose load. You can reheat and it doesn’t change it back.