need diet tips/advice/

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-15-2007
need diet tips/advice/
26
Tue, 11-27-2007 - 8:41pm

Well. Here we are as pretty much expected from recent symptoms, my husband was diagnosed with diabetes today. He will take the medication twice daily and see how it goes. Other than being told to walk more exercise more, lose weight,etc.... the Dr. just told him don't eat white flour, potatoes, or anything with sugar. Well every website I have been on today to try to find some diabetic guidelines for cooking and meal planning have the 5-6 servings of starches and breads!! Am I crazy or am I looking at something wrong??  I need advice on the meal planning and if he can have whole grain breads and use whole grain flours, are there potatoes of any  kind we can try?? I have so many questions and a big part of it is just the plain fact that my husband is a big bread and potatoes eater and he's already feeling like he's starving  and it's only been a few hours without white bread, potatoes or sweet tea. I told him that it will be like any other kind of withdrawals probably he will get irritable with headaches etc.. until his body gets used to not having the sugar and starch everyday at every meal. Am I right?


Thank you.

Avatar for cl_maryfrances40
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Thu, 11-29-2007 - 11:34pm

Hi,


I hope you looked at the link I gave you.


I see that your husband is taking metformin. Metformin can make him feel really ill. He needs to start on a lower dose and work his way up to his theraputic dose. I hope he is taking no more than 250 mgm twice per day. Please understand that it will take about two weeks on metformin before the gastric side effects wear off.

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-15-2007
Fri, 11-30-2007 - 10:34pm

Thank you for the tips. I wish I would have read them sooner. My DH had a trip out of town planned and the Dr told him he would most likely have stomach/intestinal upset when starting this med so he could start his first dose today before supper. Well, he did take his first pill today and it was a 500mg and then supposed to work up to 500mg twice a day by next week. Things are not good, he is sick as a dog, been in the bathroom for the past three hours and nauseated too along with clammy sweats. I've checked his sugar level to make sure it wasn't dropping to fast from the pill and it's hovering around 150 avg for the past 4 hours. So my question is, can he 'rewind' and take only 250mg starting tomorrow and move forward from there? With as sick as he is right now from this the metformin, I'm afraid he is considering not ever taking it again and just taking his chances without any meds. As I've stated, he isn't one to take any medicines to start with and now from getting this sick from something that is supposed to help him, he just doesn't believe in it's benefits. This has me really worried.


Avatar for cl_coldfingers
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Fri, 11-30-2007 - 11:09pm

Did he take the meds after dinner like Mary Frances said?


iVillage Member
Registered: 02-15-2007
Sat, 12-01-2007 - 9:20am
The bottle said to take 30 minutes before meals but it was actually really with the meal. He took it just as we sat down to supper. He was still in the bathroom at 3 this morning and he has a bad headache this morning. He said he would try 250mg today at supper but hopes he doesn't get as sick as he did last night. So at least he is willing to take the lesser dose today.
Avatar for cl_maryfrances40
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Sun, 12-02-2007 - 12:55am

Yes, you can re-wind! Have him take 250 after he eats his breakfast and after his dinner. He needs to work up to the optimum dose slowly. It takes about 2 weeks for his system to get used to med and he needs to understand that up front. My husband started on metformin last monthly slowly and he had no difficulties. When I started on metformin I was so sick I wasn't sure I would make it but I hung in there and like magic the side effects stopped. Some people are never able to get over the side effects though but lets not think that for your husband right now.


Please make sure he has food in his tummy before he takes the med.


I hope this is helpful. Please let me know how he does.



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iVillage Member
Registered: 02-15-2007
Mon, 12-03-2007 - 9:35am
When you say it made you sick when you first started the medication, what exactly do you mean? What were your symptoms if you don't mind me asking? My Father takes the same drug and started it a couple years back and started with the 500mg twice a day and never had a single side effect or problem. My DH as you know took 500mg Friday at supper as directed and was very ill all night. Then he's taken 250mg at supper Sat and Sun. He hasn't had any more diarrhea with the lower dose but has stomach pain and headache each night after taking it. He dreads supper time because of this now. He didn't want to take it at all last night but I finally got him to. I am wondering if these effects are normal or if it could be the lactic acidosis intolerance that I've read about in the metformin pamphlet? I just don't know and I am so worried. The Dr had said last week that his kidneys were fine and that seems to be the trigger for the lactic acidosis but I just don't know what to think. I want him to have a med to bring the sugar down but not be taking something that is making him sicker than not taking anything. And another thing, it seems to us that after taking the pill at the evening meal and when we check his sugar two hours after and at bedtime the levels are way higher than throughout any other time of day like by 40-50 points higher, so is it the medicine you think? I read somewhere ( I've read so many different things in the last few days) that the glucose level can read higher for a few days while adjusting to the new medicine. That just seems odd to me since it's supposed to be to lower the glucose level. Tomorrow as directed by the Dr, he is supposed to take the metformin twice daily at breakfast and supper. And he's supposed to be taking the 500mg twice daily but we've cut in in half the past two days because of the ill effects of the first day. ( I called the pharmacist and asked if it was an extended release tablet or not so I would know whether I could cut it in half- it wasn't extended). So I guess we should start 250mg morning and night tomorrow and see how that goes. I am calling the Dr again this morning to tell her about his weekend symptoms and see what she thinks. Hopefully she will call me back and shed some light on this. He wants to stop taking it all together because of how it's making him feel. Are there any other drugs for type ll or is this metformin all there is? Is this the best drug? Are these effects worth the risk of not taking it?
iVillage Member
Registered: 06-18-2007
Mon, 12-03-2007 - 10:50am

I have been reading your posts about your hubby's upset tummy from the Metformin.

Avatar for 2sweet02
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-29-2003
Mon, 12-03-2007 - 4:48pm

As my screen name implies, I was dx'd as

2sweet02

iVillage Member
Registered: 07-10-2003
Mon, 12-03-2007 - 7:45pm

I just wanted to second what you said!!

Avatar for cl_maryfrances40
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Tue, 12-04-2007 - 1:17am

Hi,


Sorry I didn't get to the computer any earlier today.


It takes up to two weeks for all the initial symptoms from the metformin to go away. My husband just started on it and never got any symptoms. The first symptom that I got was that I couldn't eat as much as I had been eating and I have been on metformin for close to 5 years and my appetite has never returned. I also got stomach upset so bad I thought I wasn't going to be able to take the drug.


It is highly unlikely that he would be getting lactic acidosis because his kidney function is normal. This complication can be devastating but doesn't occur very often. Of course if he got it, that would be one complication too many, so I don't want to minimize your concern.


Ask his doctor for a referral to a dietitian for meal planning help for both of you. Check with your insurance because most insurances pay for patient education.


We do have a saying in diabetes that if its white don't bite. But really all carbohydrates raise the blood sugar the same amount. 15 grams of carbs will raise the blood sugar 50 points.


It will take several weeks for his blood sugar to stabilize and he may be having symptoms as his body becomes used to the more normal blood sugar. The brain cells and eyes are especially sensitive to fluctuations in the blood sugar.


I do hope that his doctor called you back. Unfortunately he and you need to learn the most about this disease at the very time that he feels the worst. Not fair but that is the way it is! And believe me, he doesn't feel well right now and it will be a while before he realizes what his uncontrolled blood sugar was making him feel like.


Just hang in there, it will get better.



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