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Not Enough Carbs

2007-06-25

Category: General

About a month ago I was diagnosed with Type II Diabetes. This is a condition wherein the blood contains too much sugar. Working with the nurses and dieticians we?ve come to part of my problem. It seems that I do not eat enough carbohydrates.

Carbohydrates (carbs) are sugars and starches that the body uses or converts to glucose (sugar). By altering my diet to include more, carefully controlled carbs at the appropriated intervals, by blood sugar levels have dropped quite a bit in just a couple of days. I wouldn?t recommend this approach to other people; you must follow the instructions of your own medical professionals.

The hard part is that I?m not a big eater. Knowing that I don?t get great amounts of physical activity, I have limited my food intake for quite some time. In addition, I tended to eat foods with lower amounts of carbohydrate, particularly sugar. Now I have to add breads and such to my diet and still eat nutritious food.

I only know that the new diet has been lowering my blood glucose because I check with the meter. You may have seen these things before. The user first pricks his or her finger with a king of needle called a lancet. The user then puts a test strip into the electronic meter device. The user touches the other end of the strip to the blood coming out of the finger. A couple of seconds later, the meter displays the blood glucose reading.

Since my meeting with the dietician on Thursday, I have been testing six times a day. That?s before and after each meal. The lancet thing hurts a little. Doing this six times a day for three days has left my fingers a little tender. I switch fingers and sides of fingers, but it still adds up. Fortunately, I can cut out a couple of tests starting tomorrow.

For the most part, diabetes is a nuisance. It can be a serious health issue if not cared for, but I tend to take good care of my self. For those who do not have diabetes, please take the steps to keep from getting it. Eat right, get regular exercise, and get regular and thorough physical examinations with blood tests.


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