Hi all – new member here – just saying hello and posing a couple of questions.

I am a 68 year old Type 2 Diabetic on once daily insulin and metformin + + + + + ad infinitum. I can see the benefits of reducing my carbs and sugar and wondered if the slower med diet might suit me better.

Is it necessary to see my GP first? Unfortunately my surgery seems to advocate the usual NHS diet advice of carbs at every meal and I believe it will be difficult to get their ‘blessing’ to go ahead.

Can I ask others experiences maybe?

Hello and welcome!

I don’t have diabetes so probably not the best person to rely on here (am sure the others will reply!) but I am on Metformin because of another condition which causes me to be insulin resistant and thus have higher than normal blood sugars. I mentioned this diet to the nurse the other day and she agreed low carb was definitely the way to go. I guess it’s always useful to run things past your GP, especially in your case as if you are successful and stick to it, you may end up needing to reduce some of your medication. But don’t let them talk you into “traditional” diets based on grains and carbs!

Hi Plockton and welcome!

I’m not Type 2 either, but OH is. He was determined to try the BSD to get his blood sugars down and come off Metformin (4 per day).
I don’t think anything would have stopped him, but he went to his doctor and said

‘I am going to try a way of eating to get control of my Type 2. This is what it is [waves book], and I want your support please in my taking action myself to get myself better. You don’t have to read the book or approve of the diet. Will you please schedule me in for HbA1c tests on a more regular basis – ideally every month – to monitor how my BS is doing?’

She was very positive about his trying to take control. And he has been very successful and is now off Metformin.

You could do the same thing and produce the same effect, or your practice could be more dismissive of the BSD in which case you do it anyway and prove its effects to them via HbA1c measurements, which should show (like OH) steadily declining measures into the ‘normal’ range.

Some people here do come off Metformin, but OH didn’t until his doctor had seen and marvelled at his results and told him he could.

Hope that helps 🙂

Thank you both for your helpful replies. I suppose I’m more concerned about the insulin than the Metformin. How will my sugars be affected if I’m too low on carbs but still using the insulin. Probably will have to go – another couple of weeks wait I expect before I can get an appointment – but maybe worthwhile.

Last time I saw my GP I was advised that – due to my advancing years – she’d rather see my levels at around 9 or 10 as lower levels in the ‘elderly’ seem to be proving to lead to higher risk of heart attacks etc. ??? Not sure about that mind. All a bit confusing – been Type 2 for some years now but only this last year or so beginning to try to take control of it myself.

Please read Captainlynne’s threads (use search box top right) for inspiration. She is just a bit younger than you – but has been amazingly successful.

Also search for Insulin to bring up other helpful replies.

And I think it’s all possible! Advanced years my foot. 🙂

Hi Plockton,

Firstly, need more information, what are your readings, how long diabetic, are you on any oral meds for diabetes, are you on meds for blood pressure etc.

I am 63 years young and take Lantus insulin 1 time per day usually at 9pm topped up with 2 Glycazides tablets in the morning (30mg each). I went to a nutritionist who put me on 250 grams of carbs daily because I was having low readings after swimming 1 hour every afternoon. I just wanted advice on what to eat to combat the lows rather than a ham sandwich of spoon of jam etc the usual rubbish they tell you. She decided my whole diet needed an overall anyway, to cut that short, my blood glucose went up from 5.8 on my earlier HBA1c to 11.2 after 3 months of her diet plus I gained 5kg. So much for experts. I struggled to get my b/g down but did manage to get to 8.3 on my next HBA1c by cutting some of the carbs and increasing my insulin. I went from 24 units to 38.

Then I found this diet. I told my doctor I was going on a very strict diet and he just told me to do whatever I wanted. I didn’t tell him it was low carb or only 800 calories.

Within 5 days my morning tests had gone from 190 to 130 and I reduced my insulin slowly 2 units at a time every 4 or 5 days. By the end of 2 weeks my b/g was regularly 100 to 110 and my insulin was down to 30 units. I was having some very low readings in the afternoon and still wanted to swim, on advice here I started eating a couple of prunes and half a yoghurt. Then I read that it was the Glycazides that can cause hypos so I cut one out, so I now take 60mg each morning. Slowly slowly I have continued to reduce my insulin and now take 26 units each night (week 10 of the diet). I have not lost masses of weight so things are taking their course slowly. Until I get more weight off I am leaving tablets and insulin the same. I tried to lower to 25 last week and my morning reading had gone up to 120 so I went back to 26 units. If you are testing regularly you will know if it is going down (I’m sure it will), reducing was not a problem, I was more afraid of having a hypo as it went lower.

Just take it steady, there is no rush, you can take control. The insulin is the easiest thing to reduce as you can always put it back up. I was more worried about the Glycazide. When I told the doctor the truth about the diet and what I was doing with my medication he was find, he had just read my latest HBA1c which was 6.7, he said he couldn’t argue with the results.

As for your GP telling you that older people need to be around 9 or 10 (162 to 170) is the theory that you are old so it doesn’t matter if you get the illnesses that hit diabetics in later life. Same reason they don’t do mammograms on ‘old women’, not point, they have to die of something. The second reason is that very old people often get confused and can easily go into hypo and being high is the better alternative to falling into a coma. FIRST OF ALL YOU ARE NOT OLD. SECOND, WITH THIS DIET YOU WILL AVOID THE HEART DISEASE, STROKES, AMPUTATION, BLINDNESS ETC ETC. Hope I have made that clear.

You might have to go it alone but do try to get your doctor on board. If you haven’t seen her for a while, make an appointment and tell her you are going to do a diet to help yourself and ask her to support you. Get an up to date HBA1c (less than 3 months old) and agree to go back for another test xx weeks into the diet. Above all, do the diet and watch your life change.

Hope that is not too much to take in. I will keep an eye on you.

Hi Plockton, after my rant, I should have said, if you are on insulin you might find your weight loss is slower than most. The Lantus is notorious for increasing weight. Also, you don;t say if you are over weight and if loss is one of your goals. If it is I would say go for the BSD 800 Fast to start off with, just 8 weeks, then you can decide whether to go for 5:2 or Med.

Hi Plockton

I agree with sunshine-girl! If my diabetes nurse had made the comment about older people needing to be around 9 or 10 – I might not have been responsible for my actions😱 We’ve had enough ‘interesting discussions’ without that!

Although I was type 2 I never went on medication so can’t help with that. But, I am 66 and have reduced both fasting bloods and HbA1c in to normal range, fasting down from 10.9, HbA1c from 9.6.

After 38 weeks on the BSD I lost 92 pounds, taking me a pound under my target weight.

Please keep posting your progress.

Thanks again to all of you.

I have to agree that I was a bit put out by my gp’s news that I should try to stay more in the 7-9 range! As for the reference to my advancing years – I was somewhat put out. After all, in my head I’m only in my 40’s!!

I’m currently around 11stone 4lb and 5’5″ in height. Most of my weight is around my middle – and that’s what’s worrying me most.

I currently take 20 units Lantus daily – 3x500g Metformin – Lisinopril and Amlodipine for BP – and Pravastatin and Aspirin (these last two seem to be the norm for diabetics). Added on at my last review was Lansoprazole – to counteract all the side effects from the meds.

I’m around half way through the BSD book and am already reducing my carbs as far as bread/pasta/rice etc. Not a great veg lover but am keeping a notebook of all the recipes I come across.

So – thank you all again. I’m working my way through lots of the forum posts – which will certainly keep me busy – and hopefully keep me motivated and stop me misbehaving!!