Evaluation week 1

Very pleased with progress this week. In terms of fats I have only consumed cold pressed hemp oil and a little goats butter since Monday, as well as my evening primrose oil supplement.

I can already see an impact on blood glucose particularly on the pre-breakfast readings which is very good. However, I think this is mainly due to the reduction in carbohydrate consumed at dinner time as I have cut out one of my mainstays - bread. I used to eat very heavy stonebaked or seeded varietes but I discovered today that pitta bread does not contain oil of any kind. Excellent news as rice cakes and cripbread just don't cut the mustard when it comes to making a decent sandwich or something to dip in your soup! You can see my blood glucose data at http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=p5cT8HERT5YBzejCfv2_BUw

I had a full blood test done on Wednesday, despite my current dispute with the local health centre (see the thread NHS cuts on the soapbox forum at www.diabetes.co.uk), So I will be able to update the spreadsheet after I see the diabetic nurse in a weeks time.

I suppose I should also let my GP know what I'm up to, but I don't think it warrants a visit just yet. I may just write and tell her and let her decide if she wants to see me.

My weight has stayed constant as has my waist circumference which I'm pleased with. I've also decided it might be a good idea to publish some sample menus so people can see what I'm actually eating. Click on http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dc4fbcgs_2j88d9z to see what I ate on Monday this week along with estimated calorie intake. I haven't been counting calories, as it's not easy to estimate the calorific content of home cooked food, but I haven't been cutting back in any way. I eat to satisfy my appetite - this is difficult enough without trying to restrict calorie intake!

During the week I eat the same things every day for breakfast, snacks and lunch (athough the salad ingredients and fruit vary). At the weekend I eat the same breakfast but might have pasta or a rice dish for lunch. For emergencies I always carry dried fruit - dates and apricots being my favourites and if I want to eat something which doesn't impact on my BG too much I'll go for some mixed unsalted nuts.

I am proceeding with caution regarding any changes to my insulin. Whilst I feel confident in managing my medication it's still easy to get caught out unexpectedly as I found out this week. I wouldn't recommend trying this unless you're happy you can manage changing requirements for medication unsupervised.

In conclusion a good week, I'm feeling highly motivated and I don't expect to see any significant changes, if they happen, for some time yet. I am fully aware that this is going to be a long term project.


Good Health to you all....
Carol