Any type 2 diabetic on insulin.

I just joined and have been on insulin for a few years now. It is really hard to balance your insulin but I have to say that keeping the food log and exercising has helped me just in this past week. Also one thing to do is to check out the glycemic index for the foods you are eating. We need to eat low glycemic foods as they will not spike the blood sugar levels. Also drop the saturated fats. I have had to readjust my Novalog (fast acting) insulin as I migrated over to eating more vegetables. I have been able to keep my A1C under 7 most of the time but it has been difficult to lose any weight at all. Even my endocrinologist told me not to get frustrated as people on insulin have almost an impossible task to lose. I however am determined to keep trying. The food log has been an eye opener to track the carbs, fiber and sodium totals for the day. Even with the effort to 'cut' back that I have made for the past couple years I now have a clearer understanding of how to balance my diet and make better choices as to what to eat.

For most people that are not diabetic it is often easier for them to eliminate the obvious food items in their diets like soda pop, candy and other high carb items. But for people that have had diabetes for awhile those foods are probably already out of your diet so it becomes more difficult to know how to balance things. I have spent many hours reading information and have spent two years now eliminating those bad carbs from my diet yet have only been able to loose less than 10% of my weight which is a drop in the bucket to what I need to lose. My doctors have been no help and the dietitians I have talked to know nothing of diabetes so most 'diets' they suggest just don't work for us. Heck even the nurses that cared for me when I was in the hospital for back surgery didn't have a clue as to what to do for my insulin shots and the food they served me was terrible for a diabetic diet.

Its a horrible disease and one that takes a lot of effort each and everyday. One thing that has helped me is adding 'structure' in my life. This application should help me maintain that structure by helping me to log my meals and see that I eat enough and not to go into starvation mode yet not over eat for that day. Also to remind me to do my exercise for the week which helps immensely in stabilizing your blood sugar level.

I hope you succeed.

John

Well try and each low glycemic foods. Here is a website that lists the numbers. I use it to decide what to buy and what not to buy. You can click on top of the list for medium and high items. I stay away from all high number foods.

http://www.southbeach-diet-plan.com/lowglycemicfoodlist.htm

Well my blood sugar levels are pretty decent lately. It is extremely difficult to lose weight when on insulin. Even my endocrinologist told me that they have found that to be the case. However I am determined to keep trying. I lost pretty well in the first month but have since tapered off a lot. I however just got into a pair of jeans that is one size down from what I was wearing so it seems I am losing size at least. That is why it is important not to get discouraged when looking at the scale. Also for us it is all about the blood sugar control. For me I have had to struggle with low blood sugar conditions. and adjusting my insulin levels.

I did pretty good at staying away from too many carbs over the holiday....how are you doing these days?

John

If you are on oral meds for type II, and have just added insulin to help control bs ask your doctor about using the drug byetta instead of lantus insulin as a supplement for oral type II meds-- you do not have the weight gain issues.