Type 2 Diabetes

Mojisola

notanewuser wrote: »

Just be warned that the diet advice provided by the NHS and Diabetes UK is the worst possible advice for people with type 2. It is based on keeping the blood sugar stable (but high) by eating regularly etc. however, cutting sugar as much as possible (including fruit other than berries) can keep the diabetes under control with no need for medication, and control weight too.

Get your partner to do some proper research.

KxMx wrote: »

Several people have said the NHS advice is rubbish and not to do it. That is not encouraging people to find their own way.
If the official guidance does not work then of course other things should be tried. But that guidance does exist for a reason and it is dangerous to tell people to ignore it without even trying. I am the *last* person to follow the NHS blindly but when they have years of scientific research and data to back their approach it is worth trying. Telling people not to even bother is irresponsible IMO.

I can't find where anyone has said that. Suggesting people do their own research is a sensible thing to do and I described my own personal experience.

Person_one

Mojisola wrote: »

I can't find where anyone has said that. Suggesting people do their own research is a sensible thing to do and I described my own personal experience.

I would question how many lay people are equipped to carry out the level of research needed, and why so many think they are better qualified than the scientists and doctors who keep the NHS guidelines updated.

A bit of googling is not the way to make serious health decisions, and can actually be dangerous.

Spendless

I was diagnosed earlier this year. I had had symptoms for the prev 12 months - a yeast infection that kept coming back, but this had started at a particularly stressful period of my life so I'd put it down to other stuff. Only when I got another symptom, did I question it and this led to diagnosis. After 6 months my sugar levels have come down at a recent review. Considering this time span included 2 weeks of me having no kitchen I'm amazed! I have found dietery advise to be contridctory though. One nurse told be max 3 fruits per day, another said max 2 and the most recent said no limit. It is for this reason I have asked for a referral to a dietrery advice workshop for diabetics that my local nhs run.

Person_one

The best people to go to for dietary advice are qualified dieticians (not nutritionists, or diet consultants, dietician is a protected title that means something.)

Some doctors and nurses will be experts, if they have specialised, but certainly not all and not most of the ones you'll find working in GP practices.

Mojisola

Person_one wrote: »

I would question how many lay people are equipped to carry out the level of research needed, and why so many think they are better qualified than the scientists and doctors who keep the NHS guidelines updated.

A bit of googling is not the way to make serious health decisions, and can actually be dangerous.

Non-medical people don't need to do the research but can read the results of others' research and most can distinguish between quack sites and official ones. The posters on MSE are here rather than using "get rich quick" bad financial advice sites. They can use the same judgment when looking at other areas of their life on the web.

From my own experience I can definitely say that if I had followed the NHS guidelines on diet, I would not have been able to keep my blood sugars under control and would have been on medication for several years now.

Person_one

Mojisola wrote: »

Non-medical people don't need to do the research but can read the results of others' research and most can distinguish between quack sites and official ones.

I'd have to question that, maybe some can, but I suspect many can't.

How many people advocating certain diets, or certain therapies could produce a decent statistical review of the literature and evidence to back up their claims, that would stand up to scrutiny?

Mojisola

Person_one wrote: »

I'd have to question that, maybe some can, but I suspect many can't.

How many people advocating certain diets, or certain therapies could produce a decent statistical review of the literature and evidence to back up their claims, that would stand up to scrutiny?

I don't think individuals have to meet academic standards when they're making decisions for themselves.

There are plenty of areas around health and diet where clever people disagree about what the evidence shows. The role of diet in controlling Type 2 diabetes is one of them.

ciderwithrosie_2

Maybe people question the current NHS dietary advice in the management of diabetes because when my OH was a child, carbohydrates were limited and had to be strictly measured. Now it seems, the eating of carbohydrates is encouraged, a u turn to the low fat regime that has made us all so, so slim and healthy (not).

This could be down to advancements in manufacturing artificial insulin rather than gleaning it from pigs and cattle but it has always seemed daft to me. Why eat more of something your body can't easily deal with by taking more drugs, when your body can manage perfectly well (or better) when carbs are restricted?

Seems more like a drug company moving of the golaposts to me, rather like the shifting cholesterol levels to get everyone on statins. Just my opinion.

KxMx

Simple answer: advances in research, scientific understanding and technology from when your OH was a child- i'm going to guess 20/30 years?
You have also mentioned advancements in insulin production.
Current guidance is only as good as current research. This has obviously moved on since your OH was a kid and the dietary advice changed as a result. And it may well change again in the future.
I'm happy to buy into drug company conspiracy theories but in this instance I am far from convinced.
For information my closest relative with diabetes is doing very very well on the NHS recommended diet and will soon have her drug levels reduced as a result.

fake_smile

totheleft wrote: »

Would you date someone with Type 2 Diabetes?

My boyfriend has recently been diagnosed. He's only 27. He's got it under control I think.

What's the long term complications? Impotence is my biggest concern.

I would never leave him because of this as I love him regardless.

I just want to know the outlook. Honest answers please.

---

Hey.

Thanks for the replies.

Impotence isn't my concern to be honest, it's one of his. It something he mentioned to me. I didn't even know it was a side effect.
I hardly know much about Diabetes hence why I posted here. Obviously I can see from the posts here that there are so much worse things.

Well we went on a date last night, he's actually been hiding it from me. He was actually diagnosed when he was 22.

We've only been going out 6 months. He's very slim and exercises but he doesn't talk much about it. I asked him if he eats well etc and he says yes and brushes it under the carpet.

I really like him but I have never met a young diabetic before so I don't know what the implications are long term and if he is actually takng care of himself.

Which is it?