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Anyone find that foods listed as "safe" spike your blood?
Diabetes & Endocrine System | Last Active: Jul 14, 2017 | Replies (37)Comment receiving replies
Hello @retiredteacher . My name is Brenda and I'm a Type 1 diabetic. I am a health educator at a pediatric hospital and I work in the Weight Management and Diabetes Prevention team. I am also a certified Diabetes Educator. Answering to your post, It has been my experience with my personal diabetes that bread, rice, pasta, potatoes and cereals of any kind spike my blood. I do have to say that although there is much literature about the following, I still have not found anything scientifically proven that when I stress my blood sugar numbers go bonkers! There have been times in my life where I have taken very detailed, honest food diaries and even on the days that I had 0 sugar, if for some reason I had a bad day-my sugar levels were high. So I am a believer in that blood sugar levels will spike on some of us depending on stress levels. I know somewhere in here I should speak on how hormones are the problem but still, like I said before I have not found any REAL evidence that this is a cause other than my own personal experiments. When speaking on sugars: whether it’s in a piece of fruit, your soda or a pastry, sugar is made up of the same two components: fructose and glucose. The molecular structure and composition of sugar molecules is the same no matter where they come from. Neither type of sugar is better or worse for you, but your body processes them differently. Fructose breaks down in your liver and doesn’t provoke an insulin response. Glucose starts to break down in the stomach and requires the release of insulin into the bloodstream to be metabolized completely. The ratios of fructose and glucose are pretty much the same in both fruit and table sugar. Most fruits are 40 to 55 percent fructose (there’s some variation: 65 percent in apples and pears; 20 percent in cranberries), and table sugar (aka sucrose) is 50/50. Don’t get the idea that because the sugar composition is the same in fruit and cake, they’re interchangeable. (Seriously, they’re not.) For one thing, fruit offers good stuff like vitamins, antioxidants and water, while candy and desserts are nutritionally void. Fruit also tends to have less sugar by volume. Half a cup of strawberries: 3.5 grams of sugar. Half a cup of strawberry ice cream: 15 grams. Plus, whole fruit has a lot of fiber, which actually slows down your body’s digestion of glucose, so you don’t get the crazy insulin spike (and subsequent crash) that candy causes. That also means your body has more time to use up glucose as fuel before storing it—as fat. Even dried fruit, a notoriously sugary treat, has all the fiber and nutrients of its plump forbear. But do watch out for dried fruits with added sugar (check the nutrition label), and don’t eat a ton just because they’re smaller. Picture how many pieces are in a handful of raisins compared with a handful of grapes. See what we mean? On average, Americans don’t eat enough fruit, so don’t cut it out of your diet in an attempt to limit your sugar intake! Sugar itself isn’t toxic. But getting too much of it from cookies and cake is.
I could go on and on-but to be honest with you your numbers are not so bad. 155 and 150 are what I would say "semi-safe" for a diagnosed diabetic. You are doing a great job if those are the numbers that alarm you. Oh, and don't beat yourself exercising. I found that my patients that have a walking routine of 3 to 4 times a week for 20-45 minutes decrease their medicine intake within 6 months. Losing weight is not easy for everyone. Forget working out hard everyday and expecting to see a difference on the scale within 2 weeks-our bodies don't all work that way. You are beating yourself up and that is why you are frustrated. I totally understand you- your post really came out at me because I could completely relate to everything you were saying. Just know that you are not doing bad at all. Knowing everything that I know, working in the field that I do, I still have those bad-high days. I control it by meditating, walking and just taking a step back to breath. Like I said we are not all the same, every person's diabetes is different but I hope you read this and find that I too share and can attest to this diabetes. Hang in there-
In Health,
Brenda
Replies to "Hello @retiredteacher . My name is Brenda and I'm a Type 1 diabetic. I am a..."
Thanks, @brendisha79. I have not posted on this forum for over a month and said I would not post again after I felt attacked by a post to me. I was in a very vulnerable, dark place and definitely didn't need that. I have read the posts that have been referred to me. I joined this forum for help, exchanges, and information since I am a new diabetic 2. I am not and never have been a sickly person, so a letter from my PCP saying I was a diabetic shocked me. I knew nothing about diabetes, and the dr. didn't either. She told me to search the internet! So, as a retired English teacher, I spent hours and hours researching, and strangely, there aren't many answers on sites I found for diabetics. They all want to sell medicines. Since my PCP knows nothing of diabetes, I made an appointment with an endocrinologist. My A1c is 6.0, and he looked at me as if he didn't know why I was there. He told me I should lose some weight, and see the dietitian because he knew nothing about a diet. He set no goals for me except to check my blood twice a day.
I saw the dietitian. She didn't know what diet or have any information beyond what I had already researched. Questions I asked, she could not answer. Many people talk of their care team. Well, I don't have a team, just me and my husband helps sometimes. Thus, I joined this forum. However, I found that not everyone is interested in helping. Following an inappropriate post to me, I stopped asking questions or responding.
However reading your post made me know there are people who have information they are willing to share. I felt better after reading your post, especially because you have the medical training and experience. I am 73 years old, and I am interested in what diabetes is all about. I know the basics from hours and hours of reading and research. I am always searching for anything that can keep me from having to take medicine. Over the fourteen months I have been a diabetic 2, I have maintained my A1c, but I have not lost any weight. I really can't find any answers for the fluctuation of my blood test A.M.numbers. The endo doesn't know either. I guess the ups and downs must not matter. He said I only need to see him three times a year since I have no problems. He told me last time (2 weeks ago) that "we" are going to say I just need to maintain a healthy lifestyle. My last blood profiles were well within normal ranges. I don't see him again until October; I have a feeling he thinks I'm wasting his time. Because my PCP and my endo have nothing to say that I need to do, I'll continue what I've discovered and done on my own. I'll add info from people like you who provide valuable information.
Thank you.
retiredteacher
Good morning,
I was diagnosed Type 1 when I was 3 years old. Being a "big boned" kid all of my childhood didn't help at all and since I was constantly doing sports my parents didn't worry. Finally after high school ended and sports did too I packed on more lbs rapidly and kept packing, the doctor told me if I didn't lose weight I would more than likely be on dialysis within 6-8 months in 2000. After becoming so overweight that I could no longer jog or even fast-walk to exercise (it was just too painful to my knees) I finally gave in and got bariatric treatment. First I had a lapband then I had to have a revision and now I have a sleeve. I had to do it, it was the only way to help myself-life changing tool. I went from 309 lbs in 2001 to 180lbs in 2005 and I kept it off since, Oh, Im 5'6. The 309 on the scale was a rude awakening. This was the first BIG thing that hit me. Not long after this, one of my aunts (my favorite aunt) informed me that she was just diagnosed Type 2 and I found out soon after she was non-compliant for about 6 years which caused her to have both of her legs amputated. She passed away the very next year-she just stayed so sad that even though she was finally taking all her medications as directed her body just gave up. She was just in her early 50's. My father was diagnosed just a few months after her passing. That year I began studying everything and anything that had to do with diabetes, all diabetes. I finally decided what I wanted to major in and I applied myself to do just that and I got my Health Promotion, Program and Planning degree from Texas A&M with a minor in Interdisciplinary Studies. I have also been taking many other off site Diabetes Educator classes and I was certified in that too. I began teaching classes at the WIC offices in 2004 and I was there for 8 years. Now I am a Health Educator for the pediatric hospital I mentioned and I teach from a curriculum that 3 Dietitians and 3 pediatric doctors oversee and wrote and they update it constantly. I have been with this team for 3 years now and I also worked at the hospitals Endocrinology Department for 1 1/2 years before my current position opened up. Now I'm with the Weight Management & Diabetes Prevention team. I work all the health fairs. For the health fairs I have, what I call, "A Traveling Show". My displays are different: Rethink Your Drink, Physical Activity. My Plate and Portion Distortion. It just depends what the facilitate would like to educate the visitors on. I also train school nurses and afterschool facilitators so that they know what to look for in the children that they deal with daily and they also learn the curriculum I take all the tools that they need for the activities. We also teach a Cooking with the Community classes where we have hired several Chef's to come and teach the families how to properly handle tools in the kitchen and tips on cooking. The children learn many things in this class: how to properly use a real knife and cut, cooking times, food temp., and much more. These classes help the families grow closer together and they learn to eat as a family with no distractions and since the children are the ones cooking and parents are just assisting-we noticed that our picky eaters are not so picky anymore at the end of the class; they are more willing to try those foods that kids don't normally like. One of us in our team will also attend along with the Chef to answer any nutrition questions and to give information as needed. I also teach 4, 6 or 8 week one hour once a week class at afterschool programs and clubs Elementary Schools, Middle Schools and High Schools. I also teach parents Nutrition and Diabetes Prevention or Maintenance at schools when I am invited and we have enough parents registered to attend. We implement physical activity into all of our classes too; we may do a Zumba class or a GoNoodle Video or just a 10 minute refreshing body stretch (the idea is to just keep moving and implement it in increments). We do much more but I would never finish typing. We never really put people on diets. If the child is morbidly obese they more than likely have other comorbidities so they will be referred to someone else and we make sure they get the care that they need. We follow the basic guidelines of MyPlate and just give advise on easy tips and tricks to substituting favorite "not so nutritious" foods for healthy ones-and it works! Oh, one of my favorite classes is when we do a Store Tour and the families have to go on a scavenger hunt and they learn and then understand the Nutritional Facts labels after this class.
I enjoy working with children, it's just so natural for me. I realized that teaching adults can be more difficult (my dad). My father was noncompliant as well and just this year 2017, February he had to have his left great toe partially amputated, never healed so then on April they had to amputate to his metatarsals. At first it looked like it was healing-but sadly it went VERY BAD very fast and so May 25, 2017 he had to have his leg amputated up to the knee. He just had his staples removed this Monday.
This is why I do what I do. I have to at least try and help as many little humans as possible because I truly believe that maybe if all this information is planted in their young heads they will use it to empower their wellbeing and live long healthy lives and maybe, just maybe, they will forward this information to many others. I don't want anyone to go through what I have experienced, it is too painful.
-Brenda
@brendisha79 What a great post, Brenda. Your story and your transformation is inspiring! Keep talking - we all need to hear your thoughts! Teresa
@retiredteacher I'm so pleased that you have joined us again on Connect! I hope that the posts from Brenda will be as helpful to you as they have been to me. My A1C is also at 6 - I'm considered prediabetic but just watch my eating (most of the time) and keep as active as possible. Keep in touch and let us know how you are doing. Teresa
You are doing the right thing. For someone who I find is complying to the doctors recommendations I say only check your blood sugar levels if and when you are not feeling well. Your BS will be different every second so the 3 month A1C test is the real and important one to do. If you do have a provider with the knowledge he will suggest the same I on the other hand do have to check my blood regularly because my diabetes is a bit different. Depending on what I eat I have to ratio and scale the amount of insulin I have to take. Try to keep your daily diet as close to the guidelines (My Plate) as possible and do some walking maybe 2-3 times a week, usually this will keep you at a close number balance. If you do begin a walking or any physical activity routine remember to have a protein for snacks between meals to keep your energy and muscle awake. Don't kill yourself cooking from Diabetic Recipes-just continue your normal food choices but try new alternatives for those foods that may not be so nutritious. This doesn't have to get expensive-everyone thinks that it does but believe me living in a household of 6 I keep it at low cost when it comes to my food purchases and still I am able to substitute the not so good items for the healthier ones.
-Brenda
Thanks, Teresa. After the nasty reply to me, I had to take a break and decide if I wanted to be a part of a group that allowed those types of comments. I felt bullied, and that's not allowed in schools or even colleges, so it definitely shouldn't be allowed on a forum where people are seeking answers and help and decent discussion. As I wrote, it was a hard, dark time for me, and I didn't need someone attacking me. If it had been someone I knew personally, it would have been a different story. I never would have stood for that behavior. I appreciate your encouragement and feel more empowered to deal with the diabetes dragon. Brenda's posts today have helped me tremendously. She understands the situation I am in as a diabetic, as a teacher, and with a very weak PCP. So, I thank both of you.
retiredteacher
@brendisha79
Hi Brenda:You mentioned "try new alternatives for those foods that may not be so nutritious." Could you give us one or two examples of how you have done that successfully? Teresa
Ive started using tumeric with my food. Like i said i just started so i dont the results yet but everything i read says it is a must for what ails you
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@brendisha79 Hello Brenda. You have given us so much great information from a medical perspective - you are an awesome educator! Your realistic attitude is a good example of how we can approach this growing problem of diabetes. I appreciate your sharing your expertise and most of all your personal experiences. I'm sure that @retiredteacher and the many other diabetics in our forum will be helped by your thoughts. By the way, how long have you been dealing with diabetes personally and how long have you been an educator? Teresa