Info needed please : )

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-29-2007
Info needed please : )
19
Tue, 05-20-2008 - 5:25pm

Hello-


I was referred to this site in hopes of getting info some of you may have!


A little history.. Last Oct. my obgyn (not preg.) referred me to a endocrinologist because my insulin lab levels came back 31. Blood sugar was 91 fasting. I was at 285 pounds and the endocrinologist put me on a diet last November. Dieting has been going ok. I want to get preg this year, but I'm really trying to get that insulin level down so that I don't end up with gestational diabetes. Insulin was tested last Feb. '08 (lost 28-30 pounds at the time) and my insulin level was 29. I tried Metforman last year and had bad side effects and was taken off of it. ie. Heart felt like it was racing and that I was having a heart attack or panic attack... basically I thought I was dieing! Endocrinologist seems to think I can fix my levels with just sticking to the diet BUT dang-it I'm in a hurry to get this thing fixed! hahaha


I've done some reading about Cinnamon and Chromium supplements. I know it’s a long shot. Has anyone had any results from taking these supplements? Any info you can share would be a big help to me!!


Sorry if this topic as been talked about before. I looked through the past couple months of posts and didn't see anythhing.

TMZ2007


285/240/235STG

TMZ2009

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Avatar for cl_coldfingers
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Tue, 05-20-2008 - 6:11pm

Hi and welcome to the board.


Avatar for cl_maryfrances40
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Tue, 05-20-2008 - 10:07pm

Hi and welcome to the board,


It looks like you are doing well losing weight. But you do have a ways to go before you can start trying to get pregnant. You want your weight low enough that you have a "room" for your pregnancy weight. Did you doctor give you a goal? You do want to be careful about the amount of weight that you gain when you are pregnant because you don't want to have a really large baby.


Did you see a dietitian for meal planning help? That would really help you. Plus you do need an exercise program like Cheryl talked about and walking is the easiest one out there. Basically you want to walk 10,000 steps if possible and you want to walk as quickly as you can for as far as you can. So you really have two goals here: to increase your over all physical activity and rev up your metabolism. Start slowly as you don't want to hurt yourself.


Are you testing your blood sugar? We don't commonly measure insulin levels where I am and so I am not sure about your numbers.


I look forward to hearing back from you.


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iVillage Member
Registered: 12-29-2007
Sun, 05-25-2008 - 7:22pm

It looks like you are doing well losing weight.

TMZ2009

Avatar for cl_maryfrances40
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Sun, 05-25-2008 - 11:47pm

Good Evening,


You are really doing well!


We talk about insulin resistance around here all the time. I was tested, because I was in a trial that Kaiser had, for insulin secretion the year before I was diagnosed diabetic. This was back when the diagnosis was a fasting blood sugar of 140. From the test we knew that I had insulin resistance. At the time the medical community thought this was a sub-set of type 2 diabetes. We now know that 97% of type two diabetics are insulin resistant and start the insulin resistance 12-20 years before they are diagnosed diabetic.


You have confirmed what I have seen and experienced myself. When I started eating a diabetic meal plan the weight just came rolling off. I have seen that reported around here so many times in past ten years that I have been on this board. I suppose the reason is that the calories and the food choices are better balanced to what the person really needs to eat for health.


It seems that the supplements work better early in the disease. Perhaps we become resistant to the supplements or the disease worsens which is the natural progression of diabetes. The other problem with the supplements is that there is no research that supports what the proper amount is and supplements are not regulated the way medications because they are considered a food and not a medication.


I see no harm in your trying the cinnamon or the chromium pictolate, especially if your doctor agrees. Another food item that is supposed to lower blood sugar is vinegar. I believe it is 1 tbsp in a glass of water.


I would think that you should weight as close to 200 as you can and I can understand your doctor saying to only gain about 25 pounds during your pregnancy. It is important to gain some weight when you are pregnant because you don't want to deprive your developing baby of nutrition. Current research tells us this has long term health effects on the baby. Obviously you will need to be followed by your endo and a gyn who specializes in high risk pregnancies. So you want to be as fit as you can when you become pregnant. And a dietitian's visit during pregnancy will help as while doctors are much stricter with blood sugar levels so as to protect the developing baby.


I hope your knee gets better soon. Every three pounds you lose takes 15 pounds of pressure off your knee which will certainly help it.


It looks like you are getting state of the art health care and that is wonderful.


iVillage Member
Registered: 04-15-2008
Mon, 05-26-2008 - 11:07am

Why is metformin the only drug you can use/??

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-29-2007
Mon, 05-26-2008 - 3:27pm

The endocrine doctor said that the "other drug" (don't know the name) that I could take to help lower my insulin level tends to make patients gain weight and/or make it difficult to lose weight. Since weight loss is the name of the game for me she didn't want to put me on that "other drug."


When I tried the Metforman I had all of the usual side effects... upset stomach, loose bowels, etc. In addition to that my heart felt like it was racing or that I was having heart palpitations several times a day. I also felt clammy and

TMZ2009

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-15-2008
Mon, 05-26-2008 - 3:33pm
Maybe that is why I am having a VERY HARD TIME losing weight. I've been going to weight watchers for 12 weeks and only lost 5 1/2 lbs in all that time!!! I did not think about the diabetes meds making it hard for me to lose weight. I exercise 5 days a week and stick to the weight watchers program and still the weight comes off so very slowly. I will check with my endo about this. Thanks for letting me know that!!
Avatar for cl_maryfrances40
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Mon, 05-26-2008 - 5:34pm

Barbara,


You are talking about two different classes of drugs which effect different parts of the diabetic puzzle.


Metformin or Glucophage breaks down insulin resistance and allows you to use the insulin that you make more efficiently. It has a nasty side effect of causing nausea and other gastric symptoms which usually go away in two weeks. It must be taken with food in your stomach as that helps prevent the gastric side effects. The really beneficial side effect is that it lessens your appetite and allows you to lose weight which most type 2 diabetics need. Metformin also doesn't cause hypoglycemia. Metformin is recommended as the first drug that diabetics are started on.


Glimepiride is a sulfonylurea and it kicks the pancreas to make more insulin and therefore brings the blood sugar down. In theory this class of drugs eventually wears out the pancreas but these drugs have been around for many years and are safe and cheap so doctors continue to prescribe them. One side effect of this class of drugs is that it causes weight gain. It can also cause hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). This class of drugs is recommended to be the second drug that diabetics are put on.


Have a great holiday!


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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-15-2008
Mon, 05-26-2008 - 7:07pm

Thanks for the info!!

Avatar for cl_maryfrances40
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Mon, 05-26-2008 - 7:42pm

Hi Barbara,


Some doctors who treat diabetics think that byetta needs to be in the water supply!! Yes, byetta helps with weight loss and blood sugar. It must be taken by injection twice per day. A similar drug which is oral is Januvia. There is supposed to be another drug coming out on the market but I don't much about that yet.


Surprisingly the Entended Release form of Glucophage doesn't cause the gastric side effect that the regular drug does. I don't totally understand why this is the case. You might ask your doctor about the XR version. Glucophage and metformin are exactly the same drug. One is the trade name and the other is the generic name.


We have several people on the board who are on byetta. I take Januvia because I already take 4 shots per day and didn't want to take anymore. Ask your doctor about either of these medications. He or she may have samples that you can try to see how they work for you. Januvia has finally allowed me to lose more weight although I seem to have plateaued now.


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