Trying out lower carb living

At the recent diabetes care summit, I was fortunate to share a ride from the airport with a great diabetes blogger, David Mendosa.

David has type 2 diabetes. and one of the things we talked about was low carb diets and the benefits of using them. I know I'm not alone in this, but I have a terrible time controlling my cravings for carbohydrates. David told me that it had taken him about 2 weeks to get over the desire for carbs. And he can talk about the benefits, including better blood sugar control and weight loss.

Despite my Dexcom and insulin pump, I still have too many days where the curves look like the ocean on a stormy day. This week I decided to experiment a little with changing what and how I eat. For the last 3 days I've been avoiding excess carbs and eating more vegetables, protein and fiber.

And the results? See for yourself.
The green area represents readings between 80 mg/dL and 140 mg/dL. And I'm spending a lot of time in that range.

What have I learned so far?

First of all I can live with fewer carbs and it makes a huge difference to my blood glucose control. And with some thinking I can still exercise and maintain a semblance of control. Part of those 2 days included two 14-mile bike rides and my levels were reasonable for most of those.

I also know that 3 days does not make for a really changed relationship with food. Tomorrow I'm going to borrow Dr. Bernstein's book Diabetes Solution: The Complete Guide to Achieving Normal Blood Sugars. And I'm going to checkout whether I can take some of his approach and use it for my life with type 1.

Have you tried a lower-carb diet? What challenges did you have and did you figure out a way to deal with them? I'd love any help you can offer.

Update 10/26: I just got my A1C and the number was (drum roll) 6.8%. This is a great number, but not really as good as I was hoping and expecting. Mostly I've managed to stay away from snacking and over doing the carbs. Some days are better than others. The biggest problem I've found? Getting a good set of low carb recipes to replace all the old recipes I already have.

Labels: bernstein, blood sugar, carbs, control, lowcarb

posted by Bernard @ 10:29 PM 15 Comments Links to this post