Wednesday, January 09, 2008
This Sucks Blue Whales.....
But I have been diagnosed with Type II diabetes. My doc is not too concerned right now. She just wants me to watch what I eat, drop some poundage, and run some lab work again in three months. Here's where it gets confusing......while my doc says unequivocally that I am a diabetic, I'm learning that my levels are in this grey area where another doctor - even an edocrinologist - might have no problem with it.
Then you get this confusion, depending on which health care professional you ask:
1) "Cut out the carbs as much as possible! Keep your blood sugar below 130 or else!"
2) "Eat what you want, just watch the portions, and don't worry about what it does to your blood sugar, so long as it comes back down to normal in two hours!"
WTF? Can we get a consensus here? Please?
I don't get it. See, there's this blood test called an "A1C." I haven't a clue what that means. It meant "Airman First Class" when I was one back in 1974. Now, it is some sort of measure of your average blood glucose level over the previous three month period. Whatever it is, my doc wants mine below 6.0, and it was 6.3 a few weeks ago during my "stone wars." So, I'm thinking that Option #2 above is a little flaky. If I spike my blood sugar three times a day, it's gotta raise that "A1C" level over a period of time, right? Just makes sense.
Anyway, I figure if I'm going to screw this up, I should probably screw it up on the side of caution, so I've lost some weight and am watching the ol' carb intake.
My doc gave me one of those gizmos where you prick your finger (Not vice-versa), put some blood on this strip thing, and it tells you your blood glucose level. Sooo, I pretty much just check it in the mornings, or after I eat some suspicious food, so I can see how that food effects my blood sugar. I've learned a few things:
Eating two most excellent tamales is a bad thing. One? Maybe. Two? Start thinking insulin dependence.
Voodoo Daddy's seafood gumbo is fantastic, but there's something in there, perhaps the roux, that sends me to cardio-vascular attack levels.
Real bread, the good shit you like to dip in seasoned olive oil? Forget about it.
Beer is often described as "liquid bread," since it has many of the same ingredients. But guess what? Alcohol actually lowers blood sugar. So you cats out there drinking O'Doul's are just asking for it. We have a book on the disease that warns the diabetic to stay away from tomato juice - unless it's in a Bloody Mary.
So, it seems there is a saving grace. I suppose if an old Parrothead just has to have a disease, I could do worse.
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Then you get this confusion, depending on which health care professional you ask:
1) "Cut out the carbs as much as possible! Keep your blood sugar below 130 or else!"
2) "Eat what you want, just watch the portions, and don't worry about what it does to your blood sugar, so long as it comes back down to normal in two hours!"
WTF? Can we get a consensus here? Please?
I don't get it. See, there's this blood test called an "A1C." I haven't a clue what that means. It meant "Airman First Class" when I was one back in 1974. Now, it is some sort of measure of your average blood glucose level over the previous three month period. Whatever it is, my doc wants mine below 6.0, and it was 6.3 a few weeks ago during my "stone wars." So, I'm thinking that Option #2 above is a little flaky. If I spike my blood sugar three times a day, it's gotta raise that "A1C" level over a period of time, right? Just makes sense.
Anyway, I figure if I'm going to screw this up, I should probably screw it up on the side of caution, so I've lost some weight and am watching the ol' carb intake.
My doc gave me one of those gizmos where you prick your finger (Not vice-versa), put some blood on this strip thing, and it tells you your blood glucose level. Sooo, I pretty much just check it in the mornings, or after I eat some suspicious food, so I can see how that food effects my blood sugar. I've learned a few things:
Eating two most excellent tamales is a bad thing. One? Maybe. Two? Start thinking insulin dependence.
Voodoo Daddy's seafood gumbo is fantastic, but there's something in there, perhaps the roux, that sends me to cardio-vascular attack levels.
Real bread, the good shit you like to dip in seasoned olive oil? Forget about it.
Beer is often described as "liquid bread," since it has many of the same ingredients. But guess what? Alcohol actually lowers blood sugar. So you cats out there drinking O'Doul's are just asking for it. We have a book on the disease that warns the diabetic to stay away from tomato juice - unless it's in a Bloody Mary.
So, it seems there is a saving grace. I suppose if an old Parrothead just has to have a disease, I could do worse.
