Losing weight with Type 1 Diabetes-Low carb diet?
Saltwaterinmyveins
Posts: 7 Member
Hi all, I'm a 29 year old female with Type 1. I was diagnosed when I was 20, so I've had it for about 9 years. In the beginning I was not told about the weight gain from insulin, and continued my bad eating habits and gained a tremendous amount of weight back (I lost a lot rapidly before I was diagnosed). Because of my weight, my body is so resistant to insulin. I was on Jardiance (prescribed off label) which helped tremendously, but my Endo just pulled me off because of the issue with it causing people to go into DKA. I'm trying to lower my carb intake as much as possible, and do indoor cycling 4-5 times a week. I feel like I'm fighting a losing battle and am looking for advice/tips on how to lose weight while dealing with the insulin resistance. Any help is appreciated, thanks!!
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So I'm not very experienced in this area. But i believe when a person eats carbs and sugar (both are converted to glucose (energy) in the blood) insulin is released to either store the energy (as fat or glycogen). If you eat a carb based diet you will have a lot more instances where you will need to take insulin to deal with the elevated blood sugar as your body cannot do it on its own. If you switch to a low carb diet you will inevitably need to take less insulin as your blood sugar will not have those large glucose spikes associated with eating high glycemic foods like sugar or starchy foods. Basically, you cant produce insulin to combat high blood sugar levels so I dont see why cutting out the cause of those high blood sugar levels would be a bad idea. Maybe on the side of caution it would be good to have blood work done before you started the low carb diet and get checked regularly at least in the first few months just to ensure that you are not harming yourself. Also monitor your blood sugar throughout the day. I personally think go for it, because how can eating a normal diet with junk and processed foods be the "safe bet?" One thing i read that alarmed me is something called "ketoacidosis" which is apparently a danger for someone with type one diabetes on a low carb diet if allowed to occur. I have read about people 'reversing' their type 1 by doing a ketogenic or low carb diet so there is promise, but if i were you i would look into ketoacidosis and make sure that if you go for a low carb diet that you take the appropriate measures to ensure that you avoid that occurring as it appears to be the only downside that I've came across.5
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Has your Endo recommended a nutritionist or dietician? Low carb can be problematic for many people with type 1. Ideally, you regulate your carbs.4
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@midwesterner85 tagging someone who actually knows about type 1 diabetes and low carb
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A lot of Endo offices have a dietician on staff, that would be a good starting point....I would also try and connect with other Type 1's. You can not "reverse" Type 1 with any kind of diet, but with less carbs you should require less insulin. Everybody needs insulin to survive!
Are you MDI? on a pump? Do you have a CGM? Do you match carbs with protein?2 -
davidmillar14 wrote: »So I'm not very experienced in this area. But i believe when a person eats carbs and sugar (both are converted to glucose (energy) in the blood) insulin is released to either store the energy (as fat or glycogen). If you eat a carb based diet you will have a lot more instances where you will need to take insulin to deal with the elevated blood sugar as your body cannot do it on its own. If you switch to a low carb diet you will inevitably need to take less insulin as your blood sugar will not have those large glucose spikes associated with eating high glycemic foods like sugar or starchy foods. Basically, you cant produce insulin to combat high blood sugar levels so I dont see why cutting out the cause of those high blood sugar levels would be a bad idea. Maybe on the side of caution it would be good to have blood work done before you started the low carb diet and get checked regularly at least in the first few months just to ensure that you are not harming yourself. Also monitor your blood sugar throughout the day. I personally think go for it, because how can eating a normal diet with junk and processed foods be the "safe bet?" One thing i read that alarmed me is something called "ketoacidosis" which is apparently a danger for someone with type one diabetes on a low carb diet if allowed to occur. I have read about people 'reversing' their type 1 by doing a ketogenic or low carb diet so there is promise, but if i were you i would look into ketoacidosis and make sure that if you go for a low carb diet that you take the appropriate measures to ensure that you avoid that occurring as it appears to be the only downside that I've came across.
You are misunderstanding type 1 vs. type 2. Type 1's cannot "reverse" their disease nor can they ever totally stop taking insulin even if we do not eat. Type 1 is an auto-immune disease where the islets of langerhans (i.e. pancreatic beta cells - these are the cells that make insulin) are killed off by our immune system. Type 1's can not make insulin at all.
As to diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), this is not a risk with a low carb diet. There is a big difference between nutritional ketosis and DKA - a difference of about 5 times the level of blood ketones. Even in studies that purportedly show euglycemic DKA, the patients experienced elevated BG. Personally, I suggest that when researchers present data that shows DKA due to hyperglycemia in low carb patients, they should not automatically conclude it is due to a low carb diet. After all, it is well established that hyperglycemia leads to DKA...3 -
I will echo @mabearof6 questions - MDI or pump? Do you use a CGM? Are you exercising (or planning to)? If yes, what type, intensity, and duration?
The first thing you should do... before starting low carb at all... is to make sure your basals are perfect. This is going to be much more difficult with MDI. Complete basal testing, then adjust and complete basal testing again. Repeat until basal rates are perfect. This isolates basal from interference with numbers.
Once you know basal rates are perfect, then determine if bolus rates are right. You can go ahead and start low carb, but monitor carb/protein intake with 1 hr., 2 hr., and 3 hr. post-meal testing.
As you lose weight, you will likely need to make adjustments and do more basal testing.
A CGM will be very valuable, but this can be accomplished without one.1 -
Thanks for all of your input. I'm on a Medtronic pump & have a dexcom CGM. I've done well at controlling my BG's, that's not an area that I have an issue with thankfully and have been making the adjustments for basal rates while cutting the carbs which seems to be helping. As far as exercise goes, I do indoor cycling 3-4 times a week and they are 45 minute high intensity cardio classes. My endo does not want me going super low carb because she has stated I need more carbs than what the ketogenic diet or similar suggests however I don't see how I could lose weight without doing low carb...that's my main issue0
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Saltwaterinmyveins wrote: »Thanks for all of your input. I'm on a Medtronic pump & have a dexcom CGM. I've done well at controlling my BG's, that's not an area that I have an issue with thankfully and have been making the adjustments for basal rates while cutting the carbs which seems to be helping. As far as exercise goes, I do indoor cycling 3-4 times a week and they are 45 minute high intensity cardio classes. My endo does not want me going super low carb because she has stated I need more carbs than what the ketogenic diet or similar suggests however I don't see how I could lose weight without doing low carb...that's my main issue
You may have some challenges, then, during the adaptation period with lows post-exercise. Since you are on a Medtronic pump, you can do a temp. basal for exercise. Particularly during the adaptation period (the first 2 months), high intensity cardio is going to probably decrease BG significantly.
I spent most of last year eating much fewer carbs than the ketogenic diet (generally 50g/day, though some use 20g/day) and successfully ran, hiked, backpacked, and generally exercised quite a bit. After a diet break, I'm currently going through the adaptation phase again. I've seen drops in BG with exercise, but can usually manage it by starting with a temp. basal (a temp. target now that I'm on the 670G with auto-mode). In the worst circumstances, I might need 1 glucose tablet (4g carbs).
For example, yesterday I started a temp. target about 30 min. before exercising. This caused my BG to go high before I started. I ran for 1 hr. at very high intensity (HR of 160's-170's), and then lifted weights for about 30 min. During the first hour running, my BG dropped fast, but I had planned ahead to keep it from reaching a low. It bottomed out around 80 mg/dl before stabilizing. This drop is because I'm not yet fat adapted and it was a high intensity exercise. The only carbs I ate all day (3g) was several hours earlier.
During most runs last year, when I was fat adapted (i.e. after months of eating pretty close to no carbs); I did not experience a change in BG at all for hours. This is because my muscles were not even using glucose for energy, but were oxidizing fat. Also, basal rates were perfectly stable.0 -
Hello! I am a 28 year old Type 1 diabetic and I started following the keto diet about 6 months ago hoping to lose the weight that battling with insulin had caused me to gain. I was able to lose about 10 pounds pretty quickly and easily, and have been maintaining since. But keto has changed my life for the better in so many ways! My blood sugars are SUPER stable, I use half the amount of insulin, and I don't have to worry about highs or lows.
The only issue with keto that I have is that once you are really in ketosis, if you decide that you want something with carbs, it really messes with bg's. Once I accidentally ate 30g carbs in one meal (which is the amount I usually eat in a day) and it took me a full week to recover from it. But once you get past the first ~month on keto, you get used to it and don't want carbs anymore.
Feel free to add me or message me for more info! It sounds like we have a lot in common and I'd love to talk keto with you
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midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »So I'm not very experienced in this area. But i believe when a person eats carbs and sugar (both are converted to glucose (energy) in the blood) insulin is released to either store the energy (as fat or glycogen). If you eat a carb based diet you will have a lot more instances where you will need to take insulin to deal with the elevated blood sugar as your body cannot do it on its own. If you switch to a low carb diet you will inevitably need to take less insulin as your blood sugar will not have those large glucose spikes associated with eating high glycemic foods like sugar or starchy foods. Basically, you cant produce insulin to combat high blood sugar levels so I dont see why cutting out the cause of those high blood sugar levels would be a bad idea. Maybe on the side of caution it would be good to have blood work done before you started the low carb diet and get checked regularly at least in the first few months just to ensure that you are not harming yourself. Also monitor your blood sugar throughout the day. I personally think go for it, because how can eating a normal diet with junk and processed foods be the "safe bet?" One thing i read that alarmed me is something called "ketoacidosis" which is apparently a danger for someone with type one diabetes on a low carb diet if allowed to occur. I have read about people 'reversing' their type 1 by doing a ketogenic or low carb diet so there is promise, but if i were you i would look into ketoacidosis and make sure that if you go for a low carb diet that you take the appropriate measures to ensure that you avoid that occurring as it appears to be the only downside that I've came across.
You are misunderstanding type 1 vs. type 2. Type 1's cannot "reverse" their disease nor can they ever totally stop taking insulin even if we do not eat. Type 1 is an auto-immune disease where the islets of langerhans (i.e. pancreatic beta cells - these are the cells that make insulin) are killed off by our immune system. Type 1's can not make insulin at all.
As to diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), this is not a risk with a low carb diet. There is a big difference between nutritional ketosis and DKA - a difference of about 5 times the level of blood ketones. Even in studies that purportedly show euglycemic DKA, the patients experienced elevated BG. Personally, I suggest that when researchers present data that shows DKA due to hyperglycemia in low carb patients, they should not automatically conclude it is due to a low carb diet. After all, it is well established that hyperglycemia leads to DKA...
Hi. I yield you are better suited to help this chap over me. I know what type 1 diabetes is, i know you NEED to take insulin. Yes, type 2 is the diabetes that can be actually reversed, but that doesn't change that i did read people say that they 'reversed' their type 1- whether or not that is correct or credible is another matter, but i did read it.
If you don't eat as much carbs apparently you don't need as high doses of insulin, which kind of makes sense to me, but again i never said you can totally get rid of type 1 diabetes, that's why i put 'reversed' in parentheses.
Regarding DKA, being in ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis as ketone bodies are produced since the body is breaking down fat in the absence of sugar in the blood, to me "not a risk" seems a bit incorrect as ketones are produced on a low carb diet.3 -
davidmillar14 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »So I'm not very experienced in this area. But i believe when a person eats carbs and sugar (both are converted to glucose (energy) in the blood) insulin is released to either store the energy (as fat or glycogen). If you eat a carb based diet you will have a lot more instances where you will need to take insulin to deal with the elevated blood sugar as your body cannot do it on its own. If you switch to a low carb diet you will inevitably need to take less insulin as your blood sugar will not have those large glucose spikes associated with eating high glycemic foods like sugar or starchy foods. Basically, you cant produce insulin to combat high blood sugar levels so I dont see why cutting out the cause of those high blood sugar levels would be a bad idea. Maybe on the side of caution it would be good to have blood work done before you started the low carb diet and get checked regularly at least in the first few months just to ensure that you are not harming yourself. Also monitor your blood sugar throughout the day. I personally think go for it, because how can eating a normal diet with junk and processed foods be the "safe bet?" One thing i read that alarmed me is something called "ketoacidosis" which is apparently a danger for someone with type one diabetes on a low carb diet if allowed to occur. I have read about people 'reversing' their type 1 by doing a ketogenic or low carb diet so there is promise, but if i were you i would look into ketoacidosis and make sure that if you go for a low carb diet that you take the appropriate measures to ensure that you avoid that occurring as it appears to be the only downside that I've came across.
You are misunderstanding type 1 vs. type 2. Type 1's cannot "reverse" their disease nor can they ever totally stop taking insulin even if we do not eat. Type 1 is an auto-immune disease where the islets of langerhans (i.e. pancreatic beta cells - these are the cells that make insulin) are killed off by our immune system. Type 1's can not make insulin at all.
As to diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), this is not a risk with a low carb diet. There is a big difference between nutritional ketosis and DKA - a difference of about 5 times the level of blood ketones. Even in studies that purportedly show euglycemic DKA, the patients experienced elevated BG. Personally, I suggest that when researchers present data that shows DKA due to hyperglycemia in low carb patients, they should not automatically conclude it is due to a low carb diet. After all, it is well established that hyperglycemia leads to DKA...
Hi. I yield you are better suited to help this chap over me. I know what type 1 diabetes is, i know you NEED to take insulin. Yes, type 2 is the diabetes that can be actually reversed, but that doesn't change that i did read people say that they 'reversed' their type 1- whether or not that is correct or credible is another matter, but i did read it.
If you don't eat as much carbs apparently you don't need as high doses of insulin, which kind of makes sense to me, but again i never said you can totally get rid of type 1 diabetes, that's why i put 'reversed' in parentheses.
Regarding DKA, being in ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis as ketone bodies are produced since the body is breaking down fat in the absence of sugar in the blood, to me "not a risk" seems a bit incorrect as ketones are produced on a low carb diet.
If somebody said they "reversed" type 1, they don't know what they are talking about.
As to the difference between ketosis and ketoacidosis, they are not the same thing. To say "ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis" is measurably false. A simple blood test can tell the difference, though symptoms will be quite obviously very different.0 -
midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »So I'm not very experienced in this area. But i believe when a person eats carbs and sugar (both are converted to glucose (energy) in the blood) insulin is released to either store the energy (as fat or glycogen). If you eat a carb based diet you will have a lot more instances where you will need to take insulin to deal with the elevated blood sugar as your body cannot do it on its own. If you switch to a low carb diet you will inevitably need to take less insulin as your blood sugar will not have those large glucose spikes associated with eating high glycemic foods like sugar or starchy foods. Basically, you cant produce insulin to combat high blood sugar levels so I dont see why cutting out the cause of those high blood sugar levels would be a bad idea. Maybe on the side of caution it would be good to have blood work done before you started the low carb diet and get checked regularly at least in the first few months just to ensure that you are not harming yourself. Also monitor your blood sugar throughout the day. I personally think go for it, because how can eating a normal diet with junk and processed foods be the "safe bet?" One thing i read that alarmed me is something called "ketoacidosis" which is apparently a danger for someone with type one diabetes on a low carb diet if allowed to occur. I have read about people 'reversing' their type 1 by doing a ketogenic or low carb diet so there is promise, but if i were you i would look into ketoacidosis and make sure that if you go for a low carb diet that you take the appropriate measures to ensure that you avoid that occurring as it appears to be the only downside that I've came across.
You are misunderstanding type 1 vs. type 2. Type 1's cannot "reverse" their disease nor can they ever totally stop taking insulin even if we do not eat. Type 1 is an auto-immune disease where the islets of langerhans (i.e. pancreatic beta cells - these are the cells that make insulin) are killed off by our immune system. Type 1's can not make insulin at all.
As to diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), this is not a risk with a low carb diet. There is a big difference between nutritional ketosis and DKA - a difference of about 5 times the level of blood ketones. Even in studies that purportedly show euglycemic DKA, the patients experienced elevated BG. Personally, I suggest that when researchers present data that shows DKA due to hyperglycemia in low carb patients, they should not automatically conclude it is due to a low carb diet. After all, it is well established that hyperglycemia leads to DKA...
Hi. I yield you are better suited to help this chap over me. I know what type 1 diabetes is, i know you NEED to take insulin. Yes, type 2 is the diabetes that can be actually reversed, but that doesn't change that i did read people say that they 'reversed' their type 1- whether or not that is correct or credible is another matter, but i did read it.
If you don't eat as much carbs apparently you don't need as high doses of insulin, which kind of makes sense to me, but again i never said you can totally get rid of type 1 diabetes, that's why i put 'reversed' in parentheses.
Regarding DKA, being in ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis as ketone bodies are produced since the body is breaking down fat in the absence of sugar in the blood, to me "not a risk" seems a bit incorrect as ketones are produced on a low carb diet.
If somebody said they "reversed" type 1, they don't know what they are talking about.
As to the difference between ketosis and ketoacidosis, they are not the same thing. To say "ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis" is measurably false. A simple blood test can tell the difference, though symptoms will be quite obviously very different.
You do know what it means when people put words in inverted commas, right?
I'm not saying they are the same thing, the difference in names implies that they aren't the same thing. Daft example: a row boat and a cruise liner are still boats, but they aren't the same lol.1 -
davidmillar14 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »So I'm not very experienced in this area. But i believe when a person eats carbs and sugar (both are converted to glucose (energy) in the blood) insulin is released to either store the energy (as fat or glycogen). If you eat a carb based diet you will have a lot more instances where you will need to take insulin to deal with the elevated blood sugar as your body cannot do it on its own. If you switch to a low carb diet you will inevitably need to take less insulin as your blood sugar will not have those large glucose spikes associated with eating high glycemic foods like sugar or starchy foods. Basically, you cant produce insulin to combat high blood sugar levels so I dont see why cutting out the cause of those high blood sugar levels would be a bad idea. Maybe on the side of caution it would be good to have blood work done before you started the low carb diet and get checked regularly at least in the first few months just to ensure that you are not harming yourself. Also monitor your blood sugar throughout the day. I personally think go for it, because how can eating a normal diet with junk and processed foods be the "safe bet?" One thing i read that alarmed me is something called "ketoacidosis" which is apparently a danger for someone with type one diabetes on a low carb diet if allowed to occur. I have read about people 'reversing' their type 1 by doing a ketogenic or low carb diet so there is promise, but if i were you i would look into ketoacidosis and make sure that if you go for a low carb diet that you take the appropriate measures to ensure that you avoid that occurring as it appears to be the only downside that I've came across.
You are misunderstanding type 1 vs. type 2. Type 1's cannot "reverse" their disease nor can they ever totally stop taking insulin even if we do not eat. Type 1 is an auto-immune disease where the islets of langerhans (i.e. pancreatic beta cells - these are the cells that make insulin) are killed off by our immune system. Type 1's can not make insulin at all.
As to diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), this is not a risk with a low carb diet. There is a big difference between nutritional ketosis and DKA - a difference of about 5 times the level of blood ketones. Even in studies that purportedly show euglycemic DKA, the patients experienced elevated BG. Personally, I suggest that when researchers present data that shows DKA due to hyperglycemia in low carb patients, they should not automatically conclude it is due to a low carb diet. After all, it is well established that hyperglycemia leads to DKA...
Hi. I yield you are better suited to help this chap over me. I know what type 1 diabetes is, i know you NEED to take insulin. Yes, type 2 is the diabetes that can be actually reversed, but that doesn't change that i did read people say that they 'reversed' their type 1- whether or not that is correct or credible is another matter, but i did read it.
If you don't eat as much carbs apparently you don't need as high doses of insulin, which kind of makes sense to me, but again i never said you can totally get rid of type 1 diabetes, that's why i put 'reversed' in parentheses.
Regarding DKA, being in ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis as ketone bodies are produced since the body is breaking down fat in the absence of sugar in the blood, to me "not a risk" seems a bit incorrect as ketones are produced on a low carb diet.
If somebody said they "reversed" type 1, they don't know what they are talking about.
As to the difference between ketosis and ketoacidosis, they are not the same thing. To say "ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis" is measurably false. A simple blood test can tell the difference, though symptoms will be quite obviously very different.
You do know what it means when people put words in inverted commas, right?
I'm not saying they are the same thing, the difference in names implies that they aren't the same thing. Daft example: a row boat and a cruise liner are still boats, but they aren't the same lol.
If you didn't mean reverse, what did you mean?1 -
Even loosely using the word reverse in relation to Type 1 has the potential to be dangerous. There is so much misinformation out there. I have had many conversations with people who believe anyone who takes insulin is a Type 1. Most cases I have read where Type 1s believe they have the ability to come off of insulin with diet deal with those still in their honeymoon period.....
To the OP listen to midwesterner85. Being on a pump is definitely beneficial, we use temp basal rates for exercise, and it makes a huge difference in the amount of lows.2 -
midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »So I'm not very experienced in this area. But i believe when a person eats carbs and sugar (both are converted to glucose (energy) in the blood) insulin is released to either store the energy (as fat or glycogen). If you eat a carb based diet you will have a lot more instances where you will need to take insulin to deal with the elevated blood sugar as your body cannot do it on its own. If you switch to a low carb diet you will inevitably need to take less insulin as your blood sugar will not have those large glucose spikes associated with eating high glycemic foods like sugar or starchy foods. Basically, you cant produce insulin to combat high blood sugar levels so I dont see why cutting out the cause of those high blood sugar levels would be a bad idea. Maybe on the side of caution it would be good to have blood work done before you started the low carb diet and get checked regularly at least in the first few months just to ensure that you are not harming yourself. Also monitor your blood sugar throughout the day. I personally think go for it, because how can eating a normal diet with junk and processed foods be the "safe bet?" One thing i read that alarmed me is something called "ketoacidosis" which is apparently a danger for someone with type one diabetes on a low carb diet if allowed to occur. I have read about people 'reversing' their type 1 by doing a ketogenic or low carb diet so there is promise, but if i were you i would look into ketoacidosis and make sure that if you go for a low carb diet that you take the appropriate measures to ensure that you avoid that occurring as it appears to be the only downside that I've came across.
You are misunderstanding type 1 vs. type 2. Type 1's cannot "reverse" their disease nor can they ever totally stop taking insulin even if we do not eat. Type 1 is an auto-immune disease where the islets of langerhans (i.e. pancreatic beta cells - these are the cells that make insulin) are killed off by our immune system. Type 1's can not make insulin at all.
As to diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), this is not a risk with a low carb diet. There is a big difference between nutritional ketosis and DKA - a difference of about 5 times the level of blood ketones. Even in studies that purportedly show euglycemic DKA, the patients experienced elevated BG. Personally, I suggest that when researchers present data that shows DKA due to hyperglycemia in low carb patients, they should not automatically conclude it is due to a low carb diet. After all, it is well established that hyperglycemia leads to DKA...
Hi. I yield you are better suited to help this chap over me. I know what type 1 diabetes is, i know you NEED to take insulin. Yes, type 2 is the diabetes that can be actually reversed, but that doesn't change that i did read people say that they 'reversed' their type 1- whether or not that is correct or credible is another matter, but i did read it.
If you don't eat as much carbs apparently you don't need as high doses of insulin, which kind of makes sense to me, but again i never said you can totally get rid of type 1 diabetes, that's why i put 'reversed' in parentheses.
Regarding DKA, being in ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis as ketone bodies are produced since the body is breaking down fat in the absence of sugar in the blood, to me "not a risk" seems a bit incorrect as ketones are produced on a low carb diet.
If somebody said they "reversed" type 1, they don't know what they are talking about.
As to the difference between ketosis and ketoacidosis, they are not the same thing. To say "ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis" is measurably false. A simple blood test can tell the difference, though symptoms will be quite obviously very different.
You do know what it means when people put words in inverted commas, right?
I'm not saying they are the same thing, the difference in names implies that they aren't the same thing. Daft example: a row boat and a cruise liner are still boats, but they aren't the same lol.
If you didn't mean reverse, what did you mean?
Reduce the dependencey on high doses of insulin over time.
Look, you know about type 1 diabetes more than me as I'm not unlucky enough to have diabetes, but i gave my time to give the OP "ANY" advice as she requested with the best intentions and I'm happy to yield to anyone with better expertise, like yourself to help the OP.
[edited by MFP Mods]2 -
davidmillar14 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »davidmillar14 wrote: »So I'm not very experienced in this area. But i believe when a person eats carbs and sugar (both are converted to glucose (energy) in the blood) insulin is released to either store the energy (as fat or glycogen). If you eat a carb based diet you will have a lot more instances where you will need to take insulin to deal with the elevated blood sugar as your body cannot do it on its own. If you switch to a low carb diet you will inevitably need to take less insulin as your blood sugar will not have those large glucose spikes associated with eating high glycemic foods like sugar or starchy foods. Basically, you cant produce insulin to combat high blood sugar levels so I dont see why cutting out the cause of those high blood sugar levels would be a bad idea. Maybe on the side of caution it would be good to have blood work done before you started the low carb diet and get checked regularly at least in the first few months just to ensure that you are not harming yourself. Also monitor your blood sugar throughout the day. I personally think go for it, because how can eating a normal diet with junk and processed foods be the "safe bet?" One thing i read that alarmed me is something called "ketoacidosis" which is apparently a danger for someone with type one diabetes on a low carb diet if allowed to occur. I have read about people 'reversing' their type 1 by doing a ketogenic or low carb diet so there is promise, but if i were you i would look into ketoacidosis and make sure that if you go for a low carb diet that you take the appropriate measures to ensure that you avoid that occurring as it appears to be the only downside that I've came across.
You are misunderstanding type 1 vs. type 2. Type 1's cannot "reverse" their disease nor can they ever totally stop taking insulin even if we do not eat. Type 1 is an auto-immune disease where the islets of langerhans (i.e. pancreatic beta cells - these are the cells that make insulin) are killed off by our immune system. Type 1's can not make insulin at all.
As to diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), this is not a risk with a low carb diet. There is a big difference between nutritional ketosis and DKA - a difference of about 5 times the level of blood ketones. Even in studies that purportedly show euglycemic DKA, the patients experienced elevated BG. Personally, I suggest that when researchers present data that shows DKA due to hyperglycemia in low carb patients, they should not automatically conclude it is due to a low carb diet. After all, it is well established that hyperglycemia leads to DKA...
Hi. I yield you are better suited to help this chap over me. I know what type 1 diabetes is, i know you NEED to take insulin. Yes, type 2 is the diabetes that can be actually reversed, but that doesn't change that i did read people say that they 'reversed' their type 1- whether or not that is correct or credible is another matter, but i did read it.
If you don't eat as much carbs apparently you don't need as high doses of insulin, which kind of makes sense to me, but again i never said you can totally get rid of type 1 diabetes, that's why i put 'reversed' in parentheses.
Regarding DKA, being in ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis as ketone bodies are produced since the body is breaking down fat in the absence of sugar in the blood, to me "not a risk" seems a bit incorrect as ketones are produced on a low carb diet.
If somebody said they "reversed" type 1, they don't know what they are talking about.
As to the difference between ketosis and ketoacidosis, they are not the same thing. To say "ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis" is measurably false. A simple blood test can tell the difference, though symptoms will be quite obviously very different.
You do know what it means when people put words in inverted commas, right?
I'm not saying they are the same thing, the difference in names implies that they aren't the same thing. Daft example: a row boat and a cruise liner are still boats, but they aren't the same lol.
If you didn't mean reverse, what did you mean?
Reduce the dependencey on high doses of insulin over time.
Look, you know about type 1 diabetes more than me as I'm not unlucky enough to have diabetes, but i gave my time to give the OP "ANY" advice as she requested with the best intentions and I'm happy to yield to anyone with better expertise, like yourself to help the OP.
[edited by MFP Mods]
I doubt any other person would understand the term "reverse" to mean "to decrease total daily insulin."
I don't doubt your intent was positive, but some of the misconceptions those of us who live with T1D hear from the general uninformed public regularly is that we can somehow "cure," "reverse," or otherwise eliminate our disease by eating low carb, losing weight, drinking okra water, or some other equally crazy idea. Repeating such suggestions, even when legitimacy is disclaimed, is going to trigger frustrated reactions from some of us... especially those of us who have heard these misconceptions every week or more for decades. It would help if you just don't repeat the idea; or if you refrain from saying "reverse" when describing a decrease of insulin needed.3 -
You may find the book, Dr Bernstein's Diabetes Solution helpful. Bernstein is a T1D who was an engineer who invented at home testing about 50 odd years ago. He became an md specializing in diabetes to put the word out that T1D is often easier to control, with less insulin, when carb intake is very low.
He has websites and multiple videos with good information, although he is not a dynamic speaker.
http://www.diabetes-book.com/
You may want to check out the Low Carber Daily group too. There are many in there dealing with T2D, and a small group who use it for T1D.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/394-low-carber-daily-forum-the-lcd-group0 -
Hey folks - a minor clean-up happened in here. I know sometimes discussions can get heated, but it is not alright to verbally attack or mock another user. Doing so is a violation of community guidelines. Violations of community guidelines make me angry. And trust me... you won't like me when I'm angry.
To avoid me getting angry, here's a link to our community guidelines: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/welcome/guidelines - book mark it... save it... actually read the darned thing...
Keep it clean, folks. It's almost the weekend.
Cheers,
Em
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Saltwaterinmyveins wrote: »Thanks for all of your input. I'm on a Medtronic pump & have a dexcom CGM. I've done well at controlling my BG's, that's not an area that I have an issue with thankfully and have been making the adjustments for basal rates while cutting the carbs which seems to be helping. As far as exercise goes, I do indoor cycling 3-4 times a week and they are 45 minute high intensity cardio classes. My endo does not want me going super low carb because she has stated I need more carbs than what the ketogenic diet or similar suggests however I don't see how I could lose weight without doing low carb...that's my main issue
Follow your endo's suggestion to not eat super low carb. Do exactly what she has planned for you until the two of you come up with another plan.
People do not lose weight by eating low carb. They lose by eating low calories.
You are doing well.
Good luck.2 -
Thanks everyone! I've cut the carbs but not too much and am down 2 lbs this week (probably water weight but its a good mental boost). My BG is averaging 120, so far so good.4
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Well done. Wishing you wellness.0
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I don’t have advice because I am fighting the same battle and haven’t figured it out yet! I have had Type 1 diabetes for 25, almost 26, years. Please feel free to add me as a friend if you wish! I am trying to cut carbs too but definitely not going full ‘Keto’. My insulin resistance is a problem for me too!0
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Congrats on your success so far! I'm a type 1, too. Not only working on losing weight but also lowering my A1C which has reached as high as 10 before.
What I find helps best is to yes, lower the carb intake, but also watch the time of when I have what. Having dinner 3+ hours before I go to bed, trying to make it low or no carbs and therefore not needing to inject insulin late at night is what works best for me. Though, of course, it can't always be done as I have changing shifts at work.
Good luck with your journey. Weight loss can be a little bit harder as a diabetic but it isn't impossible.
Oh and yes, insulin intake can be reduced a lot, even for type 1's. Losing even just a few pound had my needed basal rates going down a bit. 0 -
Yes I agree^^^. I have not gone carb free but low carb. Its a tightrope we walk as T1's. High insulin usage means fat storage but lowering insulin...good glucose and lowering weight so as to use even less insulin....SHEESH!
Have had doctors say its impossible to lose weight on insulin....I want to prove them wrong.
Am close to needing to change my basal rate with the weight I have lost.
Go forward and we all have these same issues as Type 1's. You are not alone on this merry go round!0
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