PAT SMITH COMMENTS

Type 2 diabetes is complicated and we would so like it to be simple. Can I eat this? What can I do to reduce my fasting bs -preferably by tomorrow?
We may all be sick of hearing about insulin resistance but it is the driving factor in your diabetes. Geo, Rhonda, Charlee and others are trying so hard to help us make good decisions about what we eat and we are "resisting". And this likely because we are so focused on bs impact of carbs. Unfortunately there is more to the story than carbs.
Insulin resistance does not exist without insulin. Insulin resistance is not the enemy. Insulin resistance is the body's natural mechanism for maintaining balance between glucose in the blood and insulin. TOO MUCH insulin resistance is the enemy. Diabetics have too much insulin resistance because we have too much insulin demand. That demand comes from about 4 different factors.
Both carbohydrates and protein require insulin to metabolize. Carbs directly impact blood sugar but protein does not. None the less both use up your your insulin supply. Diabetics have an insulin shortfall. So you can indirectly see the effect of (particularly) meat protein on your bs but it won't make immediate sense. All you can see is you ate some carb and your bs went up. Your insulin shortfall kicked in. The deeper we go in the diabetes hole, the greater this problem becomes.
Inflammation anywhere in the body cause immune system activity. Glucose is the fuel for that activity and the liver delivers that fuel. Insulin resistance is an immediate response to all that glucose. The more inflammatory conditions a diabetic has (and we usually have a lot) like infections, autoimmune diseases, food intolerances, allergies, - long list - the more insulin resistance. Even excess body fat is inflammatory.
Medications to treat those inflammations also cause insulin resistance. All the way from statins, antibiotics, steroids (a real biggee) bp Meds, to simple little over the counter Meds for allergies, etc, fillers in supplements, the list goes on. This can even include diabetes medications. So both the inflammations AND the the medication increase insulin resistance.
This all nets to a pile of glucose and a steadily decreasing insulin supply. You are caught in this cycle. And we tend to ignore all the inflammatory stuff and just focus on carbs - one particular carb at a time - and can't figure out why this isn't working.
Truly the carbs become more and more important the deeper you go into insufficient insulin. At some point insulin resistance will be extreme, even without much insulin. So in order not to die you have to inject insulin. And then resistance increases again.
It is tempting to believe that you can fix the problem buy eliminating all food using insulin. This is called starvation and not recommended. Illness causes inflammation and your body requires energy to keep you alive. Your body is going to find the glucose it needs to fuel immune response to inflammation or feed your cells. If necessary your liver will convert your own muscles to glucose.
It is tempting to decide against (as an example ) all beef, dairy, and salmon as they need more insulin to metabolize. Each also provides, however, highly valuable nutrients to the body. So balance is the answer. And managing bs one meal at a time through carb control. Don't be so quick to medicate.. Keep your immune system strong by consuming plenty of fiber required to feed the good bacteria in your intestines. Don't kill your good bacteria by continuous use of antibiotics -especially if those antibiotics are "just in case" and not actually responding to a bad bacteria infection.
Those LCHF success stories on our website are people who have managed their condition thoughtfully. People who actually understand what's going on with their condition. Every question posed on this Facebook page can be answered with yes, no, or an explanation. Look for the explanations.

COMMENT FROM DIABETIC EDUCATOR RHONDA L. RICHARDSON STRANGE

• . If you read a few medical journals or attend seminars on Diabetes, you will understand this is the perfect way of eating . High triglycerides you are seeing in patients are coming from 2 sources, one is carbohydrates, the second is trans fats. Neither are consumed when eating LCHF diet. Increasing healthy dietary fats, while elliminating carbohydrates, is very healthy! Once you go low carb enough, you have to replace the calories lost. You can't add proteins, because; too much protein converts to glycogen and burns like carbohydrates. Of the 3 nutrients only fats and proteins are essential and of those, the only one that has no affect on blood sugars are fats. The 80's and 90's and low fat diets are over with. They should never have been promoted. They did nothing but sky rocket numbers of people with Diabetes and heart disease, because the low fat diets had NO research behind them and were mostly a way to promote cheaper foods like breads, grains and pasta for the US Dept of Ag, for those on lower incomes and for manufacturers who wanted to add HFCS to foods. Over and over we see publications with new research, explaining how they had it wrong. Dietary fats are not bad! If you read material written by well known physicians, who specialize in Diabetes, you know, they also promote this way of eating. Teaching Diabetics, I have seen nothing bad from increasing fats, just the opposite. I work with patients who have lower blood sugars, better labs, and just better overall health from following this WOE. I have done this diet myself for 5 years and my health is better than anytime in my life. I got off of all medications. The physicians I work with follow this way of eating! Things are changing with the research. It can be accessed on the net, as well as other sources. As an R N, I also know the term brittle diabetes is almost non existing, as it was long ago determined in most of those cases, the diabetics were not adhering to a very strict dietary regiment. Eating this way will prevent ulcers and amputations of the feet and more, as those who get much lower blood sugars by following a LCHF Diet are changing their lives. All the inflammation and other symptoms reduce, as the blood sugars go down! I have seen the improvements in patients I work with! As an R N, I will always keep updated to benefit the patients I work with and stay informed by all the information available to me!

  
  

POST ABOUT THE GROUP from Jacky Gregore

•  This group does encourage lchf way of life to manage their diabetes more effectively. Many members have been able to get off meds and keep their numbers in the normal or pre-diabetes range through diet and exercise. The approach is one that is supported by many more recent in Europe and US studies. The regular medication that is encouraged by MD's appears to be designed to help a person continue in a damaging life style and manage symptoms. The diet set out by many diabetes educators supports very high carb intake that is what the body can no longer tolerate. So if it seems the group is pro-lchf, it is because it is. The medication my doctor origianlly put me on has a 27% increase in heart failure for people taking it. Why would I want to trade one bad thing for another? It costs over $400 a month, but the rep was glad to give me samples. I quit taking it, lost weight, lowered by bs to normal range and my A1C to 6 in 3 months using the lchf diet. So I will stick to this - I will be considered in remission in another few months of this lifestyle change. Works for me. What you choose for you is up to you, but encouraging you to check out an approach than has worked for a whole lot of us is not meant to be insulting, it is meant to show you an alternative.

COMMENTS GEO ZAUN

Diabetes is a vicious cycle. High Blood Glucose will increase your insulin levels, which will increase your resistance. This can be demonstrated by all those taking insulin. As your resistance increases so does your insulin dosage, which in turn will make you more resistant, which in turn will lead to even greater insulin dosages. This cycle in and of itself does not need carbs to feed itself. This is a cycle only you can break, by eating foods that do not cause an increase i...n resistance. Understand that if you eat to many carbs, your meds increase because your sugars increase but that's not really true. What you are actually doing is increasing your resistance requiring more meds, If this wasn't the case, your sugars would be near normal after you ate. You take the meds because your resistance is out of whack. There are non carb foods that don't raise blood glucose, but they sure as the dickens raise your resistance. Raising resistance means your insulin, the hormone you produce and/or the hormone you inject can't do it's designed job. In the short/long term you want to be able to lower your resistance. There are proteins and fats that will raise your resistance without raising you sugars at all.

SUCCESS STORY BY MARY

In 2008 I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. I was put on Metformin and directed to the ADA website for how to eat. What a joke. On 3/3/14 I decided I could no longer live how I was living. I was obese, diabetic, had high blood pressure, sleep apnea and I frequently was sick and had allergy issues. I was a carb and sugar addict and every diet I ever tried, I failed because I was constantly hungry or jonesing for carbs/sugar fix. In 2012 I discovered Atkins, tried it twice ...and then discovered Low Carb High Fat and the Ketogenic WOE which is what I started doing last year. It has been 18 months and I have gone from 260 pounds and a very tight size 20W to 162 pounds and very comfortable size 6. I set out to lose 100 pounds and am at 98 right now with two to go. In the pic below I was at 95 lost. By May of 2014 I was off Metformin and a couple months after that I was off my blood pressure med Losartan. I am completely med free, I no longer exhibit any Type 2 symptoms and no longer have high blood pressure. I haven't been sick since I began this way of eating and I have no more allergy issues. I have more energy than ever, I am happier (no brain fog or fatigue) and I will never look back. My fbs is typically between 70-90 and my last A1C was 4.5 If I had listened to my doctor and followed the guidelines on the ADA website, I would still be obese and diabetic. One of the best benefits of this way of life is I no longer SUFFER from hunger. In fact, I have a very small appetite and eat on average twice a day. It is a lie that diabetics need to eat every couple of hours and that will in fact keep your blood sugar from ever being stable. Cut out the carbs and sugar - there are no nutrients in them that you can't get from veggie carbs, protein and fat and your body doesn't need them at all - your body can and will use fat for fuel. Once that poison is out of your body, the physical cravings for carbs/sugar will go away. You will no longer suffer from constant hunger or have to feel like you are starving or on a diet. FREEDOM is what you will have if you are willing to go against the grain to get your life back.