kevin_standlee (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
kevin_standlee) wrote2005-10-04 11:10 pm
kevin_standlee) wrote2005-10-04 11:10 pm
Living with Diabetes
The results from my quarterly blood tests are back. I like that Palo Alto Medical Center puts the results on their secure web site and sends you an e-mail telling you they're available for review.
We'll see what my doctor thinks when I see him two weeks from yesterday, but the numbers mostly look good. My A1C level (long-term blood sugar control) is at 5.1% (normal 4.8 to 6.0%), and my fasting blood sugar clocked in at 95 (normal range 70 to 100). Cholesterol is still too low, with HDL "good" cholesterol at 35 mg/dl -- desirable is >50. (LDL "bad" cholesterol is at 76 -- normal is 0-130.)
This evening I took further advantage of having a kitchen and did some cooking. Among the things I bought on my shopping trip last night were some small Glad food storage containers, so that I could save leftovers, thus (a) further justifying the long-term stay room and (b) resisting the urge to eat too much "because it would go to waste otherwise."
Still, there was a lot of carbs in what I made: "chili dip," which consists of ground meat (I used turkey because it's lower in fat), refried beans (no fat variety), salsa, and cheese, served over rice with tortilla chips. I must exercise after eating this, so I went exploring the neighborhood. We're on the edge of some sort of business park, but fortunately there are sidewalks -- not always a given in this car-centered culture of ours -- and it's well lit, so I got in a 40 minute brisk walk, and a reasonable blood sugar reading, meaning I'm doing the right things. It's becoming a way of life, but I'm making a better person out of myself for doing so. And it's good to know that I can still eat a lot of things I like.
We'll see what my doctor thinks when I see him two weeks from yesterday, but the numbers mostly look good. My A1C level (long-term blood sugar control) is at 5.1% (normal 4.8 to 6.0%), and my fasting blood sugar clocked in at 95 (normal range 70 to 100). Cholesterol is still too low, with HDL "good" cholesterol at 35 mg/dl -- desirable is >50. (LDL "bad" cholesterol is at 76 -- normal is 0-130.)
This evening I took further advantage of having a kitchen and did some cooking. Among the things I bought on my shopping trip last night were some small Glad food storage containers, so that I could save leftovers, thus (a) further justifying the long-term stay room and (b) resisting the urge to eat too much "because it would go to waste otherwise."
Still, there was a lot of carbs in what I made: "chili dip," which consists of ground meat (I used turkey because it's lower in fat), refried beans (no fat variety), salsa, and cheese, served over rice with tortilla chips. I must exercise after eating this, so I went exploring the neighborhood. We're on the edge of some sort of business park, but fortunately there are sidewalks -- not always a given in this car-centered culture of ours -- and it's well lit, so I got in a 40 minute brisk walk, and a reasonable blood sugar reading, meaning I'm doing the right things. It's becoming a way of life, but I'm making a better person out of myself for doing so. And it's good to know that I can still eat a lot of things I like.
Good stuff!
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While I'm not taking any medication to treat the diabetes at this time (we're trying diet and exercise first, and it seems to be working), I'm taking one medication -- megadoses of B2 -- to raise cholesterol levels. Unfortunately, this medication has two side effects, one minor and one less so: I get very warm when I take it, and it induces mild gout, which I can feel in my joints. I don't think my doctor intends to keep me on it forever. He's just trying it to see if it affects the cholesterol level.