scared I'll get diabetes?

wannabeadancer27
wannabeadancer27 Posts: 44
in Health and Weight Loss
Last year, I found out that my grandmother's side has a LOT of diabetes. I don't know if it's type 1 or 2, but finding that out suddenly explained why my feet would get tingly so often. Last year, I dramatically cut back on rice and potatoes due to the high carb count, but I'd still consume grains.
I started researching insulin resistance after googling "why do I get tired after eating carbs" and thought, jeez, if I don't cut out the carbs, I will get diabetes and my gut will not go away. I want to have energy and lose this tummy fat.
I guess this was more of a rant/ to get this off my chest, but does anyone else have experience with a family history of diabetes and worrying about getting it?
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Replies

  • Alpina483
    Alpina483 Posts: 246 Member
    my mom has diabetes. worrying about it does not help. every 5 pounds or so make a difference though.
  • Lochlyn_D
    Lochlyn_D Posts: 492 Member
    My husbands brother and father have it. Both are on insulin. Both don't take care of themselves. I know my husband would be the same if he got it. I do worry about him, especially because he has to pee like every half hour. I'm scared to get him tested.
  • HeidiCooksSupper
    HeidiCooksSupper Posts: 3,839 Member
    Get your blood checked NOW. If you have tingly feet now, that's a warning sign that you should go to the doctor and get checked NOW. You don't want diabetic neuropathy.
  • Pearsquared
    Pearsquared Posts: 1,656 Member
    My doctor didn't even bother checking my blood sugar because I had lost 30 lbs, even though I was 1 point short of pre-diabetes last time. In other words, I used to worry about carb intake, but I don't so much now because I'm controlling my weight, if my doctor's attitude about it is correct. I have a family history of Type II diabetes - my grandma has it. My mother does not, though, and I believe it's because she has gotten her weight under control. Neither of us practice low-carb diets.

    Edit: Missed the tingly feet part - if you're worried you're exhibiting symptoms, please get it checked out. Better to know than to self-diagnose and wonder if you're controlling it right.
  • alliemarie77
    alliemarie77 Posts: 378 Member
    My dad had type 2 diabetes. I was told I had pre-diabetes last year. I lost 16 pounds and was cleared.
  • PBlilacs
    PBlilacs Posts: 23
    Yes! My mom has Type II and I have watched her get worse because she does not take care of herself. She is also depressed a lot due to the disease but she would go to bed with a bag of M & M's or chips to feel better and the medicate more in the morning to balance it out. It is one of the reasons I workout and watch what I eat. I am doing everything I can to NOT go down that road. However, I don't worry about, do your research, get educated, talk to your dr and DO something about it. You have the power and ability to make the best of YOUR situation. You also can provide an example for your family and perhaps prevent any others from getting ill. Good Luck
  • michellechawner
    michellechawner Posts: 892
    My mother's side has it running rampant.

    Do I have it? No, I lost weight and now weigh a healthy 123 pounds and fasting sugars are 77. You can worry about it all you want, but that doesn't help you lose the weight. Yes it is genetics, but on the other side of my family no one ever had diabetes, so it's 50/50 for me.

    Type 1 - insulin resistance
    Type 2 - diet and exercise, sometimes pills

    Do you have all the symptoms? Thirstiness, peeing, dizzy, you said you had the tingling, that can be any number of things, including just plain neuropathy, especially if you haven't been diagnosed yet.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    My mom got it at 55. My blood work is excellent. I'm not going to worry about it. If you're worried, go see your doctor and have blood work done.
  • SJVZEE
    SJVZEE Posts: 451 Member
    My family tree is full of diabetes-lost one grandfather to it, the other had it and one of my grandmother's has it and is now beginning to experience the effects of it (skin rashes, foot problems etc). Several other relatives also have/had it (all type 2). My crappy family tree of cancers, diabets and other diseases is the reason why I became interested in the connection between food and good/bad health, and why I'm now transitioning to a whole foods, plant based diet.

    A good book to read is Eat to Live, by Dr. Joel Fuhrman and the documentary Forks Over Knives is great-I found it free online to watch :)
  • ELVISDEAN
    ELVISDEAN Posts: 77
    well u are misguided high carb diet is the ANSWER...however watch the fat and protein..google this utube this Carbs are not your problem
  • 2aycocks
    2aycocks Posts: 415 Member
    Have you been to the doctor to get tested for diabetes?? If not, WHY??? Tingling feet is not good. My Father and my husband both have diabetes and tingling, burning feet. My Father has done EVERYTHING the doctor has told him to do, and his feet don't burn anymore. Plus his blood sugar has returned to normal so he only takes a very small dose of meds now. Mostly for prevention and kidney protection.

    My husband has done nearly NOTHING the doctor has said. He has lost some weight, but nothing else. He is now taking shots and his blood sugar is still too far off. Plus he has neurapathy in his feet, so they hurt and burn all the time. But he is hard-headed, so he does as he pleases.

    You go get checked immediately and do so on a regular basis!! (I'm preaching here) This is a disease that is not to be messed with. It can be doing kidney damage and other damage to your heart and vascular system and you don't even know it. Until it's too late, that is. I don't want that to happen to you!
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 7,956 Member
    Please get to a GP for tests if you or loved one has any symptom of diabetes or insulin resistance. You really don't want to deal with complications from uncontrolled diabetes such as neuropathy or eye damage.
  • 2aycocks
    2aycocks Posts: 415 Member
    My husbands brother and father have it. Both are on insulin. Both don't take care of themselves. I know my husband would be the same if he got it. I do worry about him, especially because he has to pee like every half hour. I'm scared to get him tested.

    That's the one of the first signs of diabetes! that's how my husband knew something was wrong. Drag his to the doctor!
  • Alpina483
    Alpina483 Posts: 246 Member
    high carb diet is the ANSWER...
    seriously?
  • toutmonpossible
    toutmonpossible Posts: 1,580 Member
    Both my parents have Type 2 Diabetes. Yes, I worry about it. Weight control may prevent it. We'll see.
  • Debbjones
    Debbjones Posts: 278 Member
    For the most part (rule of thumb)... Type 2 is age/weight onset... Type 1 is genetic and juvenile... Type 2 (again for the most part) is easily avoidable and manageable through diet. Type 1 not so much. Odds are if you are type 1, you would have known by now. There are tests out there that will give relatively fast results. Have your HBA1c tested to know for certain. Then take your physician's advice. Second guessing on this forum or worrying will only add stress.

    Before losing 86 pounds I WAS type 2. After a change in diet and serious weight loss my doctor "officially" removed "diabetic" from my current medical history. Once being a type 2 I am predispositioned for diabetes but a regression back to a diabetic state is easily prevented by a healthy diet elimination of sugars.

    If you are worried, a trip to the doctor might be in order. Best wishes to you!
  • TheBitSlinger
    TheBitSlinger Posts: 621 Member
    It's a reasonable fear... the good news is that research is showing clearing that losing 10% of one's body weight will help prevent them from getting diabetes.

    I was insulin dependent up until last May, but no more, baby!
  • 2aycocks
    2aycocks Posts: 415 Member
    well u are misguided high carb diet is the ANSWER...however watch the fat and protein..google this utube this Carbs are not your problem

    I fear YOU are misguided!! Carbs like sugar, white flour, white rice, white bread are your worst enemy. It depends on what kind of carbs you are eating. Complex carbs are ok, not the others. And it is a Balance with the diet so your blood sugar doesn't spike then fall.
  • Gearjammer71
    Gearjammer71 Posts: 151 Member
    I'm a type 2 diabetic. You don't have to be scared, but you do have to take control. You've already received some horrible advice on this thread. There's a lot more horrible advice that will be thrown at you by so-called experts.

    1- Get checked by your doctor.
    2- Get a meter and start testing.

    You can probably guess the obvious things to avoid like cookies and candy, but there are some other so called healthy foods that are dangerous to eat. What's bad for me, may not be bad for you, and vice versa. A rule of thumb that works for me: Be wary of vegetables that grow below ground (onions, carrots, potatos) and fruit that doesn't have skin that you can eat. I can eat an apple, but not an orange, a pear is fine, a banana is not.
  • CoderGal
    CoderGal Posts: 6,800 Member
    Allot of my family have diabetes. I don't have diabetes. I eat carbs because I exercise regularly and they help me fuel..
  • wkwebby
    wkwebby Posts: 807 Member
    I am in the same boat as you. In fact, I have it on both sides up to my grandparents on my mom's side and all of my sisters and brother has diabetes already (if you weren't born with it, it is Type 2 diabetes). Diet and exercise is the only way to stave off getting the disease, the other part is the uncontrollable genetics. My mom only got diabetes in her 60's so if I stay active which she did, I should be good well into my 60's. My mom is on the lowest diabetes medication and on days that she gardens, she doesn't even have to take the medicine (her blood sugar levels are at or below 100).

    Get blood tests regularly. It showed me that I was pre-diabetic (when I wasn't so good about the working out). As long as I hit the gym regularly (even on my bad days of eating), the bloodwork will show no signs of pre-diabetes anymore and high good cholesterol to boot!

    It sounds like you are doing the right things (like me) and trying to keep diabetes away for as long as possible. Keep up with MFP and stay honest with your levels of activity. Good luck!
  • k8blujay2
    k8blujay2 Posts: 4,941 Member
    While eating right and exercise is a good thing... getting diabetes isn't the end of the world... does it suck? sure. Should you do everything you can to prevent it? of course. BUT even if you do end up with diabetes, you can still live a good and healthy life with it as long as you work with your doctor (or a specialist) and do what you can to keep it in check.

    With that said, if you are worried about it go get your glucose levels or A1C levels checked and work from there.

    By the way, if you have diabetes you cannot be "cured" of it (as of right now). The symptomes are just not as predominate... only if you are prediabetic can you "reverse" the disease. Unless that is all the diabetes specialists that have been pounding into our heads all the laymans knowledge of the disease during our monthly wellness sessions at work for the past 8 months are totally wrong...
  • HollisGrant
    HollisGrant Posts: 2,022 Member
    My husbands brother and father have it. Both are on insulin. Both don't take care of themselves. I know my husband would be the same if he got it. I do worry about him, especially because he has to pee like every half hour. I'm scared to get him tested.

    He should get checked for prostate cancer, too. Frequent peeing is a symptom. It's mostly a disease that happens to older men, but young men can get it, too. It's 100 percent curable if caught in time. Make him go for a checkup.
  • Determined518
    Determined518 Posts: 138 Member
    Yes. Long family history of diabetes. Had gestational diabetes when I was pregnant, which was miserable. I understand the scare. I worry about that and cholesterol issues. Just means you have to work that much harder.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    Both my parents had it later in life. As of right now, I'm a healthy weight, perfect bloodwork, and active as hell, so I'm not worried about it.

    If something happens down the road and things change, THEN I'll worry about it.
  • Sylkwyrm
    Sylkwyrm Posts: 75 Member
    My Dad had type II diabetes so I decided I should loose weight to avoid it. *After* loosing weight I was diagnosed with insulin resistance. A few people encouraged me to start lifting weights to increase my muscle mass. My last blood test shows I'm not longer considered insulin resistant. I would suggest working on building muscles. Also, eating protein helps with building muscles. Personally I don't see a need to kill carbs, but focusing on protein does reduce the amount of carbs I eat.
  • mizzie1980
    mizzie1980 Posts: 379 Member
    Nearly everyone in my family gets it in their 50s and yes, I do worry that I will also. It used to scare me silly and was part of the reason I started working on losing weight. But now I don't worry about it so much. Why?

    Because in the course of losing all this weight, I naturally eat lower carb (I don't count carbs, but I do count calories and things higher in carbs tend to be higher in calories as well so I don't eat many of them), I eat healthier and I exercise every day. These are the main things to do if I do get it, so I already have those habits. I've also reduced my own risk by getting to a healthy weight. I may still get it, but I'm better equipped to take care of myself if I do.
  • abble_pie
    abble_pie Posts: 144 Member
    I'm also very afraid I will get diabetes. I am on medication for my bipolar disorder which greatly increases my chances of getting diabetes. I wish I didn't have to be on them!
  • rochey_1
    rochey_1 Posts: 37
    Well my family history/genetics suuuck.

    Both kinds of diabetes are in my family...Insipidus( insulin dependent) and Melitus (pancreas don't function properly to break down your sugars)
  • Matiara
    Matiara Posts: 377 Member
    Both my parents have it, along with both my grandmothers, and a couple of aunts. Hypertension and heart disease also run in my family.

    I don't live in constant fear of it, but I am taking steps to prevent it. I gained 30+ pounds in two years and 7 inches on my waist. My vanity wants my belly gone, but seeing my mom having to inject herself with insulin multiple times a day makes me want it gone *now*. It floors me that with all the health problems in my large family that I'm literally the only one who eats well and works out.

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