Found out I am prediabetic, now what....

[bwest]

I have been brewing beer for a little less than a year and have had a ball. Have recently made the jump into all-grain and kegging than this week I have a physical and find out I am prediabetic. This should be no surprise to me as diabetes runs in the family.

Here is the question. Is there anyone else here that has faced the same issue and still able to enjoy the hobby? What did you do to make it work? I posted here with the hopes there are some light recipes that will help with my quest.

Thanks again for your replies

 

[Beerrific]

I was listening to a Basic Homebrewing podcast and he was reading an e-mail from a guy in a similar situation. His doctor told him that he should cut out alcohol, diet, etc . He decided instead he would cut out all starches and simple sugars from his diet and have beer be the source of most of his carbs (except fruits and veggies). Some time later went back to the doctor and was told he was in great shape.

I am in a similar situation. My family (both sides) have history heart disease and diabetes. At this point in my life I am working just not getting into the habit of having steak every day or a bunch of beer everyday. I have talked to my grandfather, he eats some type of meat at every meal, wishes he had done.

Drinking can be part of helthy lifestyle. You just have to remember that a beer has a lot of calories and take that into account when deciding on what you are having for dinner.

Good luck.

 

[RichBrewer]

I've been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes now for about 3 years. I have struggled to control my blood sugar the whole time. I know what to do but sometimes it isn't easy.
What you need to learn is moderation. Moderation with everything you eat or drink. You can still drink your home brew just not too much. If you are planning on having a few you can cut back on other things to compensate. If you can, see a nutritionist and take a diabetes management class.

The most important things you can do is exercise regularly and lose weight if you need to. This has made more of a difference to me than anything else I've tried including medication.

It's all common sense and you just need to take care of yourself. Good luck!

 

[bwest]

Good advice, thanks for the ideas and support

 

[Junebug]

bwest, one of my buddies was in the same boat as you a couple of years ago. He began to work out religiously and watch his diet. He is no longer pre-diabetic, which is fantastic. Good luck...

 

[Waldo]

Any time this comes up you should take it very seriously, however it is a condition that is way over diagnosed. Don't just take the opinion of one doctor, my Uncle had a similar situation and he got a second opinion and got a clean bill of health. My Mother and Father have both been diagnosed with type 2 and they eat what I'd call an average fairly healthy diet, their blood sugars go up and down but then so does everybodies. I've told them they need to get a second opinion.

 

[mward]

A buddy of mine was diagnosed diabetic. He cut his diet waaaaaaay back, started exercising, he's dropped 70 lbs and has no symptoms. His blood pressure was also 190/150 before all this, now it's about 140/80 and he's working to get that down into the good range. It's not a death sentence, but you're going to have to start eating right. Do a lot of research into diet, I think you'll find that what we've been sold as 'healthy' is not that at all. Good luck. (Note, eating right includes a beer or two per evening to help with heart disease. )

 

[RichBrewer]

My Mother and Father have both been diagnosed with type 2 and they eat what I'd call an average fairly healthy diet, their blood sugars go up and down but then so does everybodies. I've told them they need to get a second opinion.

I won't argue about a second opinion but if bwest has been diagnosed as pre diabetic his blood sugars are approaching the range where non diabetic people never go.

 

[PurdyGood]

I am about to graduate from medical school, so i know a thing or 2 about diabetes. The best thing you can do, as a few people have already noted, is lose some weight. We're not talking 50 lbs here, we're just talking dieting and exercising moderately for a few weeks and losing 5-10 lbs. Even that small amount is enough to increase your body's sensitivity to insulin. Exercise plays a HUGE role in insulin sensitivity also. 30 minutes a day on a bike or treadmill, 3-4 times a week. As far as lifestyle changes go, these two are the most important. Next, of course, is diet. This doesn't mean cutting out everything that you enjoy; if that was the case, what's the purpose of living longer? It just means moderation.
It was brought up previously, and it is true that they (the NIH/AHA/ADA/whoever) are continuously lowering the threshold criteria for diagnosing diabetes. I think presently that it is 2 random fasting blood glucose levels greater than 120. The reason for this is so that doctors can catch the "pre-diabetic" people before they develop full-blown diabetes (insulin deficiency/insensitivity). Once this happens, there is no going back. But you can pre-emptively modify certain aspects of your lifestyle and not progress past the point of no return and medication dependency. Be pro-active about it. And relax, have a home brew--just not 17 in one sitting.

 

[Waldo]

I won't argue about a second opinion but if bwest has been diagnosed as pre diabetic his blood sugars are approaching the range where non diabetic people never go.

Yeah I assumed he was talking about type 2 or adult onset diabetes, if you truly have it, it can be managed very easily without drugs. If he was talking about full blown diabetes then thats a different story.

 

[abracadabra]

I am about to graduate from medical school, so i know a thing or 2 about diabetes. . The reason for this is so that doctors can catch the "pre-diabetic" people before they develop full-blown diabetes (insulin deficiency/insensitivity). Once this happens, there is no going back. .

I'm not a medical student but I have a buddy that is part Samonan and part Hawaiian both races are extremely prone to developing type 2 diabetes. He was at the point of having to monitor his blood sugar and take insulin. You don't get more "full blown" diabetic than that.

But he started to exercise, watch his diet, lost a good deal of weight and the last time I spoke with him he no longer was taking insulin or needed to. I'm pretty sure he's the exception rather than the rule. As most people will not make the kind of lifestyle changes that he made.

But I question what this guy is saying as "full blown diabetes" being a state of "no going back". You can damage your pancreas to the point where it will never recover but it's not a certainty.

They don't call it "practicing" medicine for nothing.