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Tuesday 31 May 2011

Low-Carb Diets Work for Overweight Diabetics by Bob Held.

Overweight people with type 2 diabetes can keep their weight and blood sugar under control over the long term by following a low-carbohydrate diet, Swedish researchers reported in the journal Nutrition and Metabolism.

In a recent 44 month study (3 years, 8 months) carried out in Sweden, type 2 diabetics were found to be able keep their weight and blood sugar under control by following a low-carbohydrate diet.
The participants in the study limited their carbohydrate intake and reported that the most significant effect of this low-carb diet is the absence of hunger.

By avoiding starch-rich bread, pasta, potatoes, rice, and breakfast cereals, it minimized the glucose spikes that made it necessary for people with diabetes to take insulin, researchers said. Of the patients in the trial, all but one had lower weight after the 44 months than when first starting the diet.

Furthermore, glucose levels dropped soon after starting the diet and have stayed down over the 44 month period.

A low-carb diet, proper nutrition and adding even a small amount of exercise will directly address and improve your diabetic condition.


Article Source: http://www.positivearticles.com/Article/Low-Carb-Diets-Work-for-Overweight-Diabetics/52558

More dross from Christine Cashin aka ally 5555.

From the healthcare professional posted today on the fun forum.

“Now I have a question for you - low carbers often say - I eat tons of meat and tons of fat. I can never get an answer out of them - how much? I am just curious!
If you are eating loads of fat how are you eating it?
I cannot bring myself to try coconut oil - now this may sound a daft question but if you cook with it what does the food taste of!?”

I’ll give you an answer ally. Low carbers do not eat tons of meat and tons of fat. Most of the lowcarbers I know base their meals on a very wide range of non starchy vegetables. To this they add adequate protein such as lean meat, chicken, eggs and fish. We consume fats such as found in avocado, extra virgin olive oil, cheese, cream, butter and flax. We also eat a wide variety of nuts and seeds. Low carb fruits such as strawberries, blueberries and raspberries. There you have an answer.

Now I have a question for you. When are you going to start behaving in a way that befits a true healthcare professional. It is my opinion you are a total and utter disgrace, and many of your colleague’s must shudder should they have the misfortune, to stumble on to the dross you post on various forums, under a variety of names. You have been asked countless questions over the last three years, has anyone ever received  a straight or useful answer ? Looking at the epidemics of obesity and type two diabetes in this country, and the abysmal NHS statistics regarding HbA1c control, improvement is a long way off with people like you advising diabetics.

Eddie

Monday 30 May 2011

Situations vacant !

Strawberry Sponge Cake.

Ingredients:
100g ground almonds
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon of melted butter
2 tablespoons of double cream

Method:
Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl.
Melt the butter I used a pyrex jug, add the eggs, cream, then add the dry ingredients and mix. I spooned  the mix into a pyrex dish 6" x 2" and microwaved in a 700 watt machine for 3 minutes. Allow to cool and cut in half. Spread on extra thick cream and some sliced strawberries. Serves four. Less than five carbs per portion.




Eddie


Gary Taubes book The Diet Delusion.

 
1. Dietary fat, whether saturated or not, is not a cause of obesity, heart disease or any other chronic disease.

2. The problem is refined carbs in diet, their effect on insulin secretion & the hormonal regulation of homeostasis.

3. Sugars - sucrose, high-fructose corn syrup specifically - are particularly harmful, the combination of fructose & glucose simultaneously elevates insulin levels & overload liver with carbs.

4. Through their direct effects on insulin & blood sugar, refined carbs, starches, sugars are the dietary cause of coronary heart disease & diabetes. They are likely dietary causes of cancer, Alzheimer's & other diseases.

5. Obesity is a disorder of excess fat accumulation, not overeating.

6. Consuming excess calories does not cause us to grow fatter.

7. Fattening & obesity are caused by an imbalance in the hormonal regulation of adipose tissue & fat metabolism. Fat synthesis & storage exceed the mobilization of fat from adipose tissue & its subsequent oxidation.

8. Insulin is the primary regulator of fat storage. When insulin levels fall, we release fat from fat tissue.

9. By stimulating insulin secretion, carbs make us fat.

10. By driving fat accumulation, carbs also increase hunger & decrease the amount of energy we expend in metabolism & physical activity.

Extract from the book The Diet Delusion page 454 by Gary Taubes ISBN-978-0-09-189141-1

Why I Fight For The Lowcarb Cause.

I come from a long line of type two diabetics. My grandmother died from diabetic complications. Two weeks after I was diagnosed I buried my Father. A once proud and very strong ex Royal Marine was reduced to a physical wreck, and his last ten years were ruined by diabetic complications. Two heart attacks, renal failure, deafness and a diabetic foot. If he had not died, amputation could not have been far way. He had followed his healthcare professionals totally. He followed the usual NHS standard diet and based his meals on starchy carbohydrates. His last years were very hard and at the end he was on ten different medications plus injected insulin.

I followed the standard advice for a few months after diagnosis. My BG numbers never got better than 12, with my very limited knowledge, I knew this number was very dangerous. I have been very lucky all my life and luck did not let me down. I heard about low carbing from a man called Fergus Craig. He is a long term type one diabetic and with the onset of complications and very heavily overweight he experimented with a low carb diet. He reduced his weight, he reversed his complications and had an HbA1c in the fours. He was running marathons and competing in 100 mile bike races in his forties, his logic and explanations made perfect sense to me. I started low carbing and my BG numbers dropped into the fours and fives within a week. To this day my only diabetes medication is Metformin. I have never had a HbA1c test out of the fives, other than the close to twelve at diagnosis.

Fergus worked hard and helped countless others to the same results as me. A reduction in weight, non diabetic BG numbers and lipids of a kid. Much to my total astonishment he came under daily attack from various people at d.co.uk. As you would expect, I hung around as did others and defended Ferg at every opportunity. He was my diabetic salvation and the least I could do was to stick around and spread the word.

Many of us lowcarb stalwarts were banned and labelled as trouble makers. To this day I am called a nutter and a trouble maker at d.co.uk. The usual suspects flatter me when they credit me, in saying I am causing a forum that banned me over two years ago for the situation we have seen over the last few days. No straight thinking person would believe that, and no straight thinking person would dismiss lowcarb until they had at least tried it. We have seen the huge improvements in BG numbers, weight control, lipid improvement. We have seen the alternative. A multi med regime is often highly dangerous, as outlined in the ACCORD study. Medication is not the answer for most type two diabetes control, the correct diet and regular exercise leaves meds for dead. Don’t become a victim to big pharma and the deeply flawed NHS and usual dietition advice. One week is all it takes to convince yourself lowcarb is the sensible safe option.

Eddie

Sunday 29 May 2011

Lights, Camera, 'Pro-action'

I have always adopted a somewhat low-key, stealth-like approach in my promotion of low-carb; Monty, on the other hand, was always incredibly dogmatic when it came to publicly voicing his forthright views about caloric ratios. While I was content making 'pro-active' speeches during my celebrity appearances to open yet more supermarkets in Haslemere, Monty craved the kind of low-carb limelight that only television could provide.

During the spring of 1996, Monty began a full-frontal media blitzkrieg by hijacking a BBC News bulletin and delivering an impromptu rant about the hidden dangers of fructose, immediately followed by a lighthearted sexual assault on Moira Stewart. Then came Monty's brazen snatching of Patrick Moore's monocle during a recording of 'The Sky at Night', which not only provided some much needed publicity for the 'pro-active' low-carb cause, but also served as a direct protest against Patrick's overt fondness for Mr Cadbury's 'Wispa'.

However, Monty's love affair with the small screen finally came to an abrupt end in November 1998, when he was punched unconscious, live on air, by an enraged Noel Edmonds, who was riled at having witnessed Monty gate-crash his 'House Party' and assault Tony Blackburn with an aubergine.

Ka-Mon

From Ka-Mon

"Apart from the same as what you all want, peace, tranquility and people helping each other, I would like to see those who used other forums to cause trouble or belittle the members of this forum, banned for life so that they my never ever again have the chance to cause any sort of distruption in the running of this otherwise excellent foum."

We have been banned for life ! Well sort of, all of us are still part of the thirty thousand members list. I often wonder how many actual members exist, judging by the members that actually post, very few. Once Kenny's vultures pack have been silenced, I hope we will hear from a lot more people.


Who are they STILL trying to kid ?

While Sid bonkers, the cherub, ally and noblehead et al bleat for the return of their deposed leader who are they trying to kid ? Calling for the return of two moderators/monitors who’s knowledge of diabetes was usually a cut and paste job (especially for newbie’s) arguably the most vulnerable and in need of sound information, the farce reaches a new high. Let us not forget Kens Diabetic Observer Magazine article stating.

“If it wasn't for the help and advice I found on that Forum. There were many good people there who give up their time freely to help and advise people. I have to mention the Moderators, Sugarless Sue, Dennis, Fergus, Totsy and many others such as Eddie, Trinkwasser and so many others whose advice I gratefully took on board. They all helped me in one way or another. All unpaid and unbiased.” (copywrite Ken Pritchard)

Ken had struggled for ten years to control his weight and control his diabetes, we quickly and easily put him on the road to good control. So why did he once sitting in the mods chair quickly side with the most vocal and active anti-lowcarbers ? As with diabetes, the mysteries are many.

Over the last two years deletion of low carbers posts has run to many thousands, banning of any opposition to Kens ridiculous dietary advice was the norm. With Dr.Jay’s exposé of the lowcarb, low fat, 1000 calories a day diet, impossible to sustain for long for almost all, drastic action was required. Ken took the usual action, a pathetic attempt to justify his dietary beliefs. The more it went on the more ridiculous he looked. For whatever reason he must have realised his position was completely untenable and reverted to form. Dr. Jay was banned, labelled a troll and his postings deleted. But for Jimmy Moore one of the worlds highest profile low carbers nothing would have happened.

Those who have been around a while will remember the last big clearout of forum mods. They will remember the one and only SarahQ who liked to quote “ I will burn my Bernstein books to supplement my winter fuel bill” and “ I fill my face with carbs” or Jopar’s turn at the helm “ if I followed Fergus’ or Eddies diet I would be dead” two of the most active anti lowcarbers ever to post on the forum. Their reward, to be made forum mod’s.

Let’s hope the forums management do not repeat the mistakes of the past. The largest diabetes forum in the UK must be a place where all methods of diabetes control and sound dietary advice is freely available. The fact that Benedict is a lowcarber gives me hope. I am sure he will not be swayed by the let’s get Ken and Sue back brigade and will be very careful in his selection of new forum moderators. The forum has close to 30,000 members, it will never return to greatness while it is controlled by a dozen members, whatever their persuasion or method of diabetes control.

Eddie

Saturday 28 May 2011

Stop Press, Wallycorker prize awarded to Patch !

In an unprecedented move the trustees of the Wallycorker foundation have awarded the highly prestigious Wallycorker prize to a man yet to be banned, this is the first time the award has been given to a forum survivor.


Regulars over at d.co.uk will remember Wallycorker a very helpful and staunch promoter of low carb was banned twice ! Yes folks you read that right ! Not only banned, but banned twice under the same name ! Let me assure you that takes some doing, even in the domain of King Canute.
Wallycorker was always a gent and his great success story can be found on this blog. His only crime was to question the dietary lunacy and idiotic posts that became the norm under Kens command.

More Desperate By The Hour !

From noblehead.

“I, like many others suspect the 'Physician' was directed here by the 'person who cannot be named' with the intention of causing trouble, this he has certainly done!”

Nobhead you are a bigger fool than I thought. Do you seriously think a highly respected Doctor would play the roll of a stoodge or mouth piece for me or anyone else ! Until Jays abominable treatment on d.co.uk I had never heard of the man.

Keep up the misinformation my friend, you and the gang have gone way past shooting yourselves in the foot. May I respectfully suggest around four ounces behind the left ear.
 
Eddie

Every Dog.

The slightly harrowing tale of a forum moderator stripped of his power and multiple user accounts and left unable to meddle and corral. Buy your copy today before we pulp the bleedin' lot.



Posted by The last of the Mohicans

The Irony Is Deafening !

From Ka Mon

“I just hope that this forum does not return to the old days where people were afraid to ask questions and were bullied to the point where they had had enough and just disappeared.”

Ka Mon for the last two years people have been banned, edited, posts altered and railroaded of d.co.uk left right and centre. It was only the banning and labelling a troll and the deletion of posts of a highly respected Dr. Jay Wortman and some help from Jimmy Moore that’s brought all this to a head.

Kenny and his small band of miscreants action was so predictable its laughable. The character assignation effects me not a jot. The people running the forum are waking up and dealing with the real issues. Are you and your ilk so weak and insecure you honestly believe I can damage a sound forum ? What has happened over the last few days could never have happened in a strong organisation, but its been coming for a long time. It was as predictable as night follows day. The truth is, but for Dr.Jay and Jimmy Moore it would be business as usual and the vulture pack aided and abetted by Ken would still be running the place, and pushing the lowcarb, low fat, low calorie lunacy of a 1000 calories a day dross that Dr. Wortman highlighted.

According to your forum profile under medication you say “Lots” stick around and some of us will teach you how to reduce the medication and control your diabetes in a more controllable and safer way. Us lowcarbers are always willing to help a fellow diabetic and we know it’s never too late to see the light and improve long term outlooks.
 
Eddie

Ally 5555 still spreading the fear !

Over at d.co.uk

“Ray - I am sure you are much healthier now that you have removed all the sat fat, trans fats etc from all the rubbish you previously ate.

Healthy eating guidelines do not eliminate foods that contain sat fat like meat , eggs and cheese by the way! I eat carbs but I am not a diabetic and have a cholesterol of 3.6!

It is a amazing the highest cholesterol level I can ever recall was from a pt when I was a student at a leading London hospital - the lady ate 12 eggs and 4 pounds of beef a day , plus a few veggies - her cholesterol was very high - her blood looked like cream!
Would be interesting to eat like that !”

But on the dietitions forum dietetics.co.uk
 
“anecdotally i think that the problem lies in junk and trans fats. I have never felt that saturated fat from meat etc was the problem - unless eating ridiculous amounts and I have seen that too!

I think also we must not take chol in isolation - BP, smoking, lack of exercise, very overwt - they all play a part. It is just not that simple - oh and too much alcohol - says she with a glass of wine in her hand!

C.A.Cashin”


Although a small amount of trans fat is found in nature it’s the man made trans/hydrogenated fats that have done all the damage. Saturated fats are harmless and have been consumed since the beginning of time. Lumping man made trans fats and saturated fats together is a old trick used by the spreaders of fear and those who know no better.

By the way I’m a diabetic not a dietition.

Eddie



www.dietetics.co.uk/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1040

Friday 27 May 2011

Ask yourself this question ?

All hell has gone on at d.co.uk over the last few days. If the forum was sound and strong could one person have caused the chaos, no way. It was a house of cards, held together by a couple of mods and a dozen or so arch grovellers. The cherub, nobhead, sid bonkers, phoenix, and a motley crew. A chain is only as strong as it’s weakest link. With Ken at the helm, it was fatally flawed. A few dozen people will back him up, but what about the other thirty thousand members ?

Good luck Benedict you will need it, but for what my opinion is worth, you will get that forum back to being the number one.

Eddie

My Old Nemesis Ally 5555 part 1.

I was going to have a break from the grief for a few days but……I see my arch nemesis, “by the way did I tell you I’m a dietition I’m not diabetic LOL“, is giving it large in full sister scurvy mode. I described her as a buffoon on the Jimmy Moore show, I was trying to be kind.

Three years ago on d.co.uk I could not place a post without her informing me “I am worried about you Eddie” When I ignored her on the open forum I was pm’d with her dire warnings re. my diet. Some of you who were around at the time will surely remember the warnings we were given. Evidently a Registered Dietition cannot give good information on a forum, only bad information is allowed. After a while some of us with more than 7 functioning brain cells began to wonder was she a State Registered Dietition or was she a troll. Well I can confirm she is a registered dietition and also a Director of the BDA. Yes, I know what some of you are thinking, frightening isn’t it. If she is one of the stars, what does it say for the rest of them!

I will leave the last word to a highly respected UK Doctor who is highly successful at treating her diabetic patients with a low carb life style, Dr. Katharine Morrison, a courageous woman who dares to speak out against the dietary stupidity advised to diabetics. Yet another very valuable person who has called it a day at d.co.uk

“I think there would be a lot less hostility towards you Ally if you actually gave constructive advice to people. Many diabetics have not had a positive relationship with NHS dieticians, myself included. A few have had their problems listened to and appropriately addressed and I hope the situation will continue to improve.

I have yet to see a post from you which is written with the aim of helping someone get better control of their diabetes or improve their nutritional state. So far I have simply seen one post after another of the "Do not try this at home variety." None of your negative comments regarding low carbing have been substantiated by scientific evidence. I am patiently waiting for your scientifically based expose of the errors of Dr Bernstein's method and Gary Taubes collection of evidence. All we have got so far is personal opinion.”


So, Christine how about some good info, rather than the “bye the way did I tell you I was a dietition.”

Eddie

Why healthy low carb eating is so good.

"The basis of low carb diets is about insulin secretion by the pancreas.  Insulin is released into the bloodstream whenever carbs are ingested, in the form of sugar or starchy foods.  Even vegetables contain carbs (although green leafy vegetables tend to have the lowest carb content and are therefore included on most low carb diets).  Insulin enables the energy from carbohydrate to be stored – unfortunately as fat.  Insulin is the engine of fat storage, and without excess insulin, body fat can be lost as the body releases the contents of its fat cells to be used as fuel.  Ergo most low-carb diets encourage fat burning and are ketogenic.  Ketones are produced as a bi-product of fat burning and the body learns to use this as its primary fuel rather than glucose."

"Cholesterol levels tend to improve in the low-carb eater and blood sugars can be normalised in diabetics, protecting them from complications and thereby effecting what is not technically a “cure” but a remission of the symptoms and complications of diabetes, as long as the diabetic does not give up low carb eating and lapse back into his old high-carb ways."


http://www.healthylowcarbeating.com/healthy-low-carb-eating/

Thursday 26 May 2011

Damage Limitation

Hi Jimmy
I’m the Editor of Diabetes.co.uk and therefore responsible for what has happened here. I have apologised to Dr Wortman who has kindly acknowledged the apology. I dare say he is still upset by what has happened and I think he would have every right to be.
I am a low carbing type 1 diabetic myself and wish to say that I do not support the views of the moderators. Our moderators restrict their carb intake also but hold some strong views, with regard to dietary fat, which clashed with Dr Wortman. the way they responded to the clash was not acceptable.
Diabetes.co.uk is a separate organisation from the charity Diabetes UK. We exist to promote discussion of diabetes and to give people a voice. What has happened in how Dr Wortman was dealt with very much goes against this ethos and we will prevent this happening in future.
Please feel free to contact me, Jimmy at benedict at diabetes.co.uk
With best regards
Benedict Jephcote

24 hours later.

I should add that I don’t feel our moderators should be vilified here.
From all my correspondence, they’re decent, caring people. They’ve put huge amounts of time and effort into managing the forum with the best of interests for the public.
I don’t agree with the way things were handled by them with regard to Dr Wortman and we have had our disagreements over certain things but I think they’re good people and the majority of active forum members will back them up.
There was an issue here but it’s not as one sided as even I have been painting this.
Benedict

Graham

Twenty-four hours.

Well what an eventful twenty-four hours to be sure. But as they say, you can’t make a good omelette without breaking a few eggs. Hopefully d.co.uk will return to the good days when people like Ferg, Dennis, Timo, Dr. Katharine and so many highly knowledgeable and experienced people posted on a daily basis. Back to the days when banning, deletion of members posts and a small bunch of moderator cohorts did not ridicule, and railroad anyone off the forum with a different point of view from the dietary misinformation that has lead to the early death of countless diabetics.

I was expecting flack and I am sure more is to come. How predictable was the vulture pack eh ? The resident dietition, the cherub, phoenix, Sid bonkers and Noblehead a few more and we will have a full pack. Do these people think I will buckle under the weight of their half truths and lies. An example from phoenix when she quoted.

“This is what the owner of the low carb diabetes forum, not this one, one specifically set up to support people who adopt a low carb diet for diabetes when he eventually banned Eddie.”
"It seems to me that you want me to ban you and seem to have been pushing for that for a while now. I will reluctantly give in. I say reluctantly as it will only serve to reinforce your delusion as some sort of revolutionary. It pains me, but I really do not want to be associated with you or your vitriol anymore. I am sure you will be over the moon about this as it will give you plenty of material for your new blog. You can play martyr all over again. Good luck with it all!"

What she left out was the same person also said.
“I know things have reached a disappointing point but we should remember Eddie has helped an awful lot of people out there and for that he deserves all the credit in the world. He has given vast amounts of his time in order to help people in the best way he feels he can."

In the last three years I have asked countless times, how do we non insulin using diabetics hold non diabetic HbA1c numbers, control our weight, improve our lipids and improve every measurable indictor for the benefit of our health, with minimal or no meds without low carbing ? To this day I await an answer. There is no answer of course and there never will be. Others try to tell us it can be done with a low GI diet, or low fat or control of portion sizes, even  going down to 1000 calories a day. For most people it’s low carb or meds and we have seen some real horror stories regarding multi drug regimes being used to force down high BG numbers need I say more ?

Low carb is so simple and so effective even a five year old child could understand it. Imagine saying to a child if I gave you food that made you ill, would you take the same food from me again ? No chance. Well us low carbers have dumped the food that lead to our diabetes, we are not going to use a multi meds regime to consume food that lead to chronic disease. How others chose to control or in the majority of cases, fail to control their diabetes must be their personal decision.

NHS Statistics for 2008 2009:
Percentage of Type 1 diabetics with HbA1c greater than 7.5 per cent = 71.4 per cent.
Percentage of Type 2 diabetics with HbA1c greater than 7.5 per cent = 33.4 per cent.
Percentage of Type 1 diabetics with HbA1c greater than 10.0 per cent = 33.6 per cent.
Percentage of Type 2 diabetics with HbA1c greater than 10.0 per cent = 14.3 per cent.
These results are very similar to those found in 2006 – 2007 and 2007 – 2008.


Eddie

As usual the vulture pack miss the big issue !

While the vulture pack are indulging in let’s kick Eddie Mitchell to death surprise surprise, they are missing the big issue. But let’s face it when did these full time chumps ever understand anything !

Over the Easter weekend a highly respected and extremely knowledgeable man joined the d.co.uk forum. The man, Dr.Jay Wortman, not only a Doctor but also a type two diabetic. Now, Doctors on a diabetes forum are very rare, especially a Doctor who is prepared to stick his head above the parapet. You would expect any forum to welcome a man such as Jay with open arms and make use of his vast knowledge and experience, not at d.co.uk. Almost immediately he was attacked and ridiculed by the usual suspects. The end result was his banning, being labelled a troll and his valuable posts were deleted.

That’s the issue folks ! Lets not let anyone be dazzled by the usual vulture pack smoke screen and mirrors job. The forum had become a place where the lunatics had taken over the asylum, let’s hope it can return to the great place it used to be.

Thank you to all the people that have stuck by me over the years, and for the very special support over the last twenty-four hours. A very special thank you to Jimmy Moore and Doctor Jay Wortman.

Eddie

Monday 23 May 2011

The great low carb food is boring myth.

One of the many myths surrounding a low carb lifestyle is the food is boring and vital nutrients are missing. Check out some of the recipes and food items on this blog and clearly nothing could be further from the truth. Basing your meals on the low carb food pyramid will give you everything you need to stay well fed and minimise blood sugar and insulin levels. As can be seen, some time and effort has to be applied but this real food tastes a lot better than factory made junk and unlike meds has no side effects other than weight loss/stabilisation when required.
 
Bon Appétit
 

Eddie

Cauliflower Cheese

The cauliflower is a wondrous thing indeed. Sadly, no soaring poetic eulogies to this low carb foot soldier were available at the time of going to press. Instead, let this recipe for cauliflower cheese raise your spirits but not your blood sugar. Honestly, I could happily eat just this for dinner.

Ingredients:

1 cauliflower, broken into bite sized florets
140ml double cream
125g mature cheddar cheese
1-2 tea spoons dijon mustard
1 large free range egg
salt & pepper

Steam the cauliflower (in a colander over a pan of boiling water) until a fork passes easily through the stems. Remove to a baking dish and discard the water.

Pour the cream, cheese (reserve some to sprinkle over the dish) and mustard into the pan over a medium heat and stir until the cheese is melted. Remove from the heat and whisk in the egg. Now pour the mixture over the cauliflower and sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top. Bake in a fan oven at 170 until the cauliflower is golden brown (30-35 minutes).
Now compose an ode to the cauliflower.

Fergus

Chocolate Sponge Pudding.

Ingredients:
25g ground almonds
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
4 heaped teaspoons of xylitol
I large egg
1 tablespoon of butter
1 tablespoon double cream
1 level tablespoon of cocoa

Method:
Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl.
Melt the butter I used a Pyrex jug, add the egg, cream, then add the dry ingredients and mix. Microwave in a 700watt for1 minute 20 seconds.

Graham

Saturday 21 May 2011

Chicken Stroganoff with grated cauliflower rice.

 
Ingredients.
Skinless boneless chicken breasts ( one per person )
1 large onion
100 grams of chestnut mushrooms
50 grams of butter
A small cauliflower
A quarter pint of chicken stock, salt and pepper.
A small pot of sour cream
Lots of paprika pepper.

Cut the chicken into thin slices, half mushrooms through the stalk.
Melt the butter and gently fry the chicken for 5 minutes, or until they have lost their pinkness. Lift out with a slotted spoon.
Add the chopped onion and fry for about 8 minutes. Add mushrooms and fry for two minutes. Return the chicken with the stock. Bring to the boil, and simmer for 5 minutes. Season, stir in cream and simmer for 5 minutes.
Serve onto a bed of finely grated fried cauliflower and add plenty of paprika pepper.


Check out this link for more great low carb food ideas http://www.lowcarbdiabetic.co.uk/Recipes.htm

The low carb food pyramid.

Contrary to what some people will tell you, us low carbers do not base our food on saturated fat. We start with vegetables (non starchy) then add proteins, then healthy fats, nuts, seeds and low carb fruit. Check out the food pyramid below, it is the very opposite to the food pyramid that has led to the epidemics of obesity, heart disease and type two diabetes.

How to wreck a Diabetes forum. Moderation Part 2

For various reasons, the sycophant squad can occasionally let you down. They may not be available when needed. They have been known to shoot themselves in the foot (often), even worse, they may inadvertently contradict the mod (rarely). The worst case scenario arises, when moderate forum members, post support for the crusading low carber, or person that dares to offer a different point of view, to the mainstream dogma. The problem increases, if other low carbers join the debate, to be outgunned can be fatal (most have been banned).

The solution, multiple user accounts. Set them up well in advance, when time allows, post some dross and build up the post count, thereby giving some credibility when they join the fray. This tactic can often make all the difference. If all else fails, you can always lock the thread, timing is critical, get the last word in, then lock. Nothing winds the low carber or defender of saturated fat poster up more than this tactic. When control has been restored, hit the ban button. Label the person a troll (as with Dr.Jay Wortman) and delete his postings. A tip, when setting up multiple user accounts, don't join on April fools day ! as did silverfox aka ssshhhh you know who !


Do these cretins actually get paid ?

Those of you not suffering from statin or other drug related loss of memory will probably remember an article in a tabloid last year when a heart surgeon was calling for a ban on butter. He reckoned it was clogging arteries and was public enemy number one. If my memory serves it turned out he was  paid by an agency who also worked for flora manufacturer Unilever. Just a coincidence I’m sure. Now the boffins are telling us butter is cool, but wait for it “Her team emphasised that they do not believe the saturated fats in dairy products are harmless” evidently it’s the chemicals that make it safe. “beneficial chemicals such as calcium, vitamin D, potassium and magnesium may protect against heart disease”

What a load of codswallop. They will be telling us  next fried Mars bars are a healthy option because the “chemicals” make it safe. It never ceases to amaze me how many of these boffins are employed to churn out dross year after year, no wonder my kids University fees are going through the roof. As butter consumption has gone down heart disease has gone up, as has the consumption of the multi chemical goo known as margarine. Could someone please tell the boffins.


Eddie

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/247695/Eating-butter-and-cheese-is-not-harmful-Eating-butter-and-cheese-is-not-harmful-#ixzz1M

Friday 20 May 2011

Which is worse: saturated fats or processed carbs?

One death is tragic a million dead is a statistic. Joseph Stalin

My experience of the NHS has been 99% positive. Time after time I have been in awe at the skills and dedicated care from NHS Doctors and Nurses. I do not believe I or my family could have received better treatment if we had been offering a blank cheque, and all this free. OK we pay our taxes and we have paid into the fund, but how many of us would have the money to pay for private treatment for a serious illness or complicated surgical procedure ? I believe the NHS is world class and our finest institution, but for how much longer ? So, if it’s so good how come they fall down so badly in the care and treatment of diabetics ? Not my opinion just look at the NHS published data on HbA1c control.
 

NHS Statistics for 2008 2009:
Percentage of Type 1 diabetics with HbA1c greater than 7.5 per cent = 71.4 per cent.
Percentage of Type 2 diabetics with HbA1c greater than 7.5 per cent = 33.4 per cent.
Percentage of Type 1 diabetics with HbA1c greater than 10.0 per cent = 33.6 per cent.
Percentage of Type 2 diabetics with HbA1c greater than 10.0 per cent = 14.3 per cent.
These results are very similar to those found in 2006 – 2007 and 2007 – 2008.

Yesterday we posted NHS dietary information recommended for type two diabetics. This stated recommending a carb level of 45-65% energy intake from carbohydrates. At 2500 calories per day and 50% from carbs we are talking about over 300 grams of carb per day. I have never met a type two diabetic that can consume that sort of carb intake and hold safe BG numbers. For most type two’s, no drugs will control that sort of carb level other than insulin. If I ever met a person that could consume 300 carbs per day with none or minimal medication, and hold safe BG numbers, I would tell them they were not a diabetic !

The question I find myself asking, is if so many diabetics know the answer to safe BG, is a massive reduction in carbs to stay in control, and get way lower than the complication guaranteeing NICE guidelines, why haven’t the medics worked it out ? Now most medical people I have met have been a very long way from being stupid, so let’s presume that they know what we know. That being the case, I want to know why they are prepared to let us go to an early, often complication riddled grave. The medics can’t have it both ways. Either they don’t know and they should know, or they do know and are keeping it to themselves. Anyone want to bet me next years NHS diabetes control data will show meaningful improvements ? I reckon the usual failure will be continued and I am offering good odds to anyone that wants a bet.
 
Eddie

Toxic pesticides from GM food crops found in unborn babies !

Scientists at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, at the University of Sherbrooke Hospital Centre in Quebec, took dozens of samples from women.

Traces of the toxin were found 93 per cent of the pregnant mothers and in 80 per cent of the umbilical cords.
The research suggested the chemicals were entering the body through eating meat, milk and eggs from farm livestock which have been fed GM corn.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/8525165/Toxic-pesticides-from-GM-food-crops-found-in-unborn-babies.html

Thursday 19 May 2011

Almond Sponge Pudding

This makes a very passable sponge pudding.

Ingredients:
25g ground almonds
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
3 teaspoons of Splenda
I large egg
1 tablespoon of butter
1 tablespoon double cream
A few drops of vanilla essence

Method:
Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl.
Melt the butter I used a Pyrex jug, add the egg, cream and essence mix, then add the dry ingredients and mix. Microwave in a 700watt for1 minute 20 seconds.


 
Graham

Bill Maher talks about Big Pharma

Featured great food of the week



I never get tired of mushrooms, for breakfast, eggs, bacon and a hand full of small mushrooms all fried in butter. As a starter or light lunch, a large portabello mushroom, filled with pate and covered in grated cheese. Cook at 200c for 20 minutes on a baking sheet. Add the cheese after 15 minutes cooking. Serve with a mixed salad.











Please check out this fantastic food website for more info on mushrooms or better still buy the book. It's a bargain !








Anti Lowcarb Nutters !

Well there are nutters, and there are anti lowcarb nutters. I have had a taste of their venom, but I appear to have got away lightly. A friend of mine and a very high profile lowcarb advocate, received this as a comment on his blog. I assure you I have edited out some of the more spiteful and grotesque elements.

“Look around your mid-section, you could live off that fat for 6 months. I am highly sceptical that your body needs all that fat. I'm pretty sure your gall bladder will need removal within a few years. Though that's only if you survive the colon cancer from the 15 pounds of fetid low quality hormone laden mad cow meat adhering to your colon.”


As usual it was an anonymous post as are all the negative comments I receive, never even a forum name, except one. Sid Bonkers. Sid and myself don’t have much in common regarding diet, but I don’t include him in the nutter squad, respect where respect is due, he does not skulk in the shadows and unlike the skulkers, he has a great of sense of humour.


Sid’s Comment.


Quote "Kenny’s crew were quick to comment on Sid Bonkers (was ever a bloke more aptly named) new thread today, entitled, “How many carbs a day do you consume per day-chat thread“. I bet they were up all night working on that thread name. " Who’s the "they" you talk of Eddie, I'm my own man and always have been, and it seems I've got up your nose yet again. Perhaps I'll change my username to Vic Inhaler :-) The One And Only Sid Bonkers xxx

Eddie



Have you ever wondered why the NHS Stats for diabetes control are so appalling ?

Check out the link below it will take you to the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement. Check out the dietary recommendations for type two diabetics. I reckon the people that recommended that carb intake should be in an institution, preferably in a secure ward.
 
"Daily food intake - no clear formula for dietary composition, aim to make changes that approach following recommendations:
 
 
 

total carbohydrate - 45-60% of energy intake [16] or 45-65% of energy intake [17]
protein - less than 1g/kg per body weight [16]
total fat - less than 35% of energy intake [16]
saturated and trans-unsaturated fat (hydrogenated vegetable oils in manufactured foods, such as pies, pastry, biscuits, cake) - less than 10% of energy intake [16]"

http://eng.mapofmedicine.com/evidence/map/diabetes2.html

Wednesday 18 May 2011

A Comment on the GP's List Purging.

List cleansing is being carried out in anticipation of the passing of the Health Bill which abolishes the duty to provide a comprehensive health service in England that is available to all and free at the point of use. Commissioning consortia will be able to determine which services: "are appropriate" and which are not. They will not have any responsibility to provide services for the total population in their areas and will be able to pick and choose their patients just as much as patients can choose which GP practice to register with. Local authorities - heaven help us - will become the providers of last resort. Anyone who imagines the average GP will have much say in these decisions is living in cloud cuckoo land. The NHS - a health service that treats all disease, is available for everyone and is free at the point of use - really is going to disappear and will be replaced by nothing more than a brand name. It seems the notion of the NHS as it was defined in 1948 is so deeply embedded in our souls that most of us have not yet grasped that this is what is going to happen. If you live in England, do not dare to be sick, do not dare to be injured, do not dare to seek relief from pain and suffering. You;ll be OK in Wales and Scotland though.

Metformin And B12 Deficiency.

Long term Metformin users often suffer from B12 deficiency. As I have used Metformin since diagnosis this is something I have kept in mind. No worries on that score now. While checking the nutrient values on the Linwoods flax, sunflower, pumpkin, sesame seed and goji berry mix, it states 30 grams contain 230% of the RDA for B12, ye gods! I must have had three days worth in my lunch time bap. Us lowcarbers don’t need supplements, just eat the right grub !

Eddie

Update On The Lowcarb Bread.

I made the bread today and it tastes great. The ingredients listed below made a finished bap around an inch thick and five inches diameter. Really tasty, cut very well and a lovely texture.

Ingredients.

Ground flax seed as described in yesterdays post 40 grams.
Ground almond meal 40 grams.
Baking powder one teaspoon.
A pinch of salt.
One medium sized egg.
One tablespoon of olive oil.
One tablespoon of double cream.
 
In my micro-wave 700 watt I cooked for 90 seconds. When I removed from the container it felt a bit damp so I placed the bread on a plate and zapped it for another 30 seconds. This is a very filling bread and should keep you going for hours. I will experiment at the weekend with a full size loaf cooked in a silicone bread mold.


Eddie

If only they had listened to Yudkin and Cleave !

 
The George McGovern’s Senate Select Committee on Nutrition and Human Needs 1973.
 
Peter Cleave testified to his belief that the problem extended to all refined carbohydrates. “I don’t hold the cholesterol view for a moment,” Cleave said, noting that mankind had been eating saturated fats for hundreds of thousands of years. “For a modern disease to be related to an old fashioned food is one of the most ludicrous things I have ever heard in my life,” Cleave said. “if anybody tells me that eating fat was the cause of coronary disease, I should look at them in amazement. But, when it comes to the dreadful sweet things that are served up … that is a very different proposition.” Yudkin blamed heart disease exclusively on sugar, and he was equally adamant that neither saturated fat nor cholesterol played a role. He explained how carbohydrates and specifically sugar in the diet could induce both diabetes and heart disease, through their effect on insulin secretion and the blood fats known as triglycerides. McGovern now struggled with the difficulty of getting some consensus on these matters.

“Are you saying that you don’t think a high fat intake produces the high cholesterol count?” McGovern asked Yudkin. “Or are you even saying that a person with high cholesterol count is not in great danger?”

“Well, I would like to exclude those rare people who have probably a genetic condition in which there is an extremely high cholesterol,” Yudkin responded. “If we are talking about the general population, I believe both those things that you say. I believe that decreasing the fat in the diet is not the best way of combating a high blood cholesterol …. I believe that the high blood cholesterol in itself has nothing whatever to do with heart disease.”

“That is exactly opposite what my doctor told me,” said McGovern.

Extract taken from the brilliant book ‘The Diet Delusion’ by Gary Taubes page 123 a must read for anyone with an interest in weight loss and controlling diabetes.


Eddie

Patients wrongly wiped from practice lists to cut costs !


Exclusive: GPs are seeing current patients wrongly wiped from practice lists as primary care organisations across the UK step up sweeping list-cleansing exercises in a bid to cut costs, a Pulse investigation reveals.

The East Finchley Medical Centre in Barnet, north London, has been refunded £9,000 after NHS Barnet admitted it had struck more than 600 patients that were still being seen by the practice from its list.

But its successful appeal came as a Pulse investigation gathering data from 103 PCOs revealed that NHS managers stripped more than 100,000 patients from practice lists last year, and plan to ramp up list-cleansing schemes over the next 12 months.

Some 36% of PCOs are currently running list-cleansing schemes, and 51% said they planned to run one within the next 12 months.

Across 37 organisations able to provide data on the number of patients they had removed from lists, a total of 116,476 patients were taken off in the past 12 months, an average of 3,148 per PCO.

Among 25 PCOs able to give financial figures, a total of £3,119,230 was recorded in savings. The largest savings were £646,000 in NHS Sheffield, which removed 9,500 patients from practice lists in the past 12 months, and £500,000 in NHS Berkshire West, which removed 7,734 patients.

Eddie





http://www.pulsetoday.co.uk/story.asp?storycode=4129477&cid=Latest_headlines_1_170511&sp_rid=NzIzMjE0NDA2NAS2&sp_mid=36623564

It’s All About Politics !

Around a month or so ago while reading a post on a diabetes forum, someone referred to a political situation. I can’t remember what the post was about, but another member stated. This is a diabetes forum we don’t want politics on here ! Well I believe everything is about politics especially our NHS and big pharma and especially the food we eat.

Governments have to control the people, they have to govern and if they don’t it’s anarchy and civil war as we are seeing all over the world at the present time. So how do you control the masses ? Well it seems to me it’s a carrot or stick situation, or maybe a bit of both. In some countries any dissent leads to imprisonment, torture and an unmarked grave. Some countries strike some sort of balance between a very harsh police force and some sort of limited freedom and other countries use the big carrot.

In the UK and countries like the USA the big carrot falls between a science and an art form. You promise the people the earth, the people appear to be doing very well and some do very very well. The next stage is employ millions of people ( government workers) to take it all back in the form of taxes. You also set up a financial system that cannot fail to relieve the workers of more of their hard earned. If the banking system fails, no problem, give the bill to the same workers, pay yourself a million pound bonus and go down the pub.

What we are talking about here is a lifetime of financial enslavement, for many from the cradle to the grave. Just look at the situation for our University students. A fairly standard teaching degree with a masters is a five year course. The basic fees will run to £45,000 for the average student add to those fees travel, accommodation, food, clothing and books etc. and £100,000 may well be the sort of debt the average graduate could be starting their working life with. A slave to debt from the very start of their working lives.

OK what’s food got to do with all this you may be thinking. Nothing upsets the apple cart more than millions of people starving. During the great depression long lines of starving workers queuing at soup kitchens was a feature in every city. When a man is watching his family starve and is desperate, you cannot control him, if he cannot get or pay for food he will take it. From there it is a quick route to anarchy. The really bright people realised decades ago food for the masses had to be cheap and easily mass produced in massive factories. From that realisation we ended up with the so called food pyramid. The base being made up with junk and the good stuff at the top. Forty years on the ordinary man is still paying the price with his health, the junk food mobs are cleaning up and big pharma have never had it so good. It has been said highly elevated blood glucose effects every tissue in our bodies, I believe the same can be said for politics.

Eddie

Tuesday 17 May 2011

Almost no carb easy to make delicious bread and cooks in around one minute in your micro-wave.

A couple of our team members have made this bread and tell me it tastes great. Check out the link to a five minute high quality video and be surprised. I am trying this tomorrow and using Linwoods milled flax with sunflower, pumpkin, sesame seeds and goji berries. I will use extra virgin olive oil and substitute the carbquick with ground almond flour. If it tastes as good as it looks, it will be a daily food for me and a great nutrient level off the scale. This lowcarb lark is tough but someone has to do it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoqztmLhxaY

Eddie

The Great Cholesterol Controversy, the lowcarb news gets better by the day !


New research is challenging conventionally held beliefs about lipids and their impact on heart health, says Daniel Duane.

“Over the past several years, an increasing number of studies have started to raise doubts about this presumption. Cholesterol, a fatty chemical compound produced by the liver and found in some foods, is necessary to build cells and manufacture hormones but too much in the blood has been shown to clog arteries, increasing the risk of heart disease and stroke. But many experts now believe factors like nutrition and fitness play a more meaningful role in heart health and that having high lipid levels could be harmless for many people.

Doctors point to the fact that 75 per cent of people who have heart attacks have healthy cholesterol, while most people with poor cholesterol numbers never suffer the heart trauma. The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute’s Framingham Heart Study – one of the US’s largest, longest and most influential pieces of cholesterol research – did find that having high cholesterol before age 40 was associated with premature death but having the same numbers at age 50, 60, or 70 actually correlated with living longer.
At the end of the year-long study, Gardner, a vegetarian, was surprised that those who followed the Atkins Diet raised their good HDL cholesterol levels and lowered their blood pressure and blood triglycerides far more than participants on the other diets.

The lesson? You don’t have to avoid animal products if you’re at risk of heart disease. Instead, limit your intake of refined, processed or starchy carbohydrates, including white rice, white bread and pasta and potatoes. Opt for beef, eat small amounts of egg if you like and increase your intake of fish, nuts and produce.”

http://smh.newspaperdirect.com/epaper/viewer.aspx

Alison
 

Monday 16 May 2011

The truth about saturated fats.

 
“Before 1920 coronary heart disease was rare in America; so rare that when a young internist named Paul Dudley White introduced the German electrocardiograph to his colleagues at Harvard University, they advised him to concentrate on a more profitable branch of medicine. The new machine revealed the presence of arterial blockages, thus permitting early diagnosis of coronary heart disease. But in those days clogged arteries were a medical rarity, and White had to search for patients who could benefit from his new technology. During the next forty years, however, the incidence of coronary heart disease rose dramatically, so much so that by the mid fifties heart disease was the leading cause of death among Americans. Today heart disease causes at least 40% of all US deaths. If, as we have been told, heart disease results from the consumption of saturated fats, one would expect to find a corresponding increase in animal fat in the American diet. Actually, the reverse is true. During the sixty-year period from 1910 to 1970, the proportion of traditional animal fat in the American diet declined from 83% to 62%, and butter consumption plummeted from eighteen pounds per person per year to four. During the past eighty years, dietary cholesterol intake has increased only 1%. During the same period the percentage of dietary vegetable oils in the form of margarine, shortening and refined oils increased about 400% while the consumption of sugar and processed foods increased about 60%.

The Framingham Heart Study is often cited as proof of the lipid hypothesis. This study began in 1948 and involved some 6,000 people from the town of Framingham, Massachusetts. Two groups were compared at five-year intervals—those who consumed little cholesterol and saturated fat and those who consumed large amounts. After 40 years, the director of this study had to admit: "In Framingham, Mass, the more saturated fat one ate, the more cholesterol one ate, the more calories one ate, the lower the person’s serum cholesterol. . . we found that the people who ate the most cholesterol, ate the most saturated fat, ate the most calories, weighed the least and were the most physically active." The study did show that those who weighed more and had abnormally high blood cholesterol levels were slightly more at risk for future heart disease; but weight gain and cholesterol levels had an inverse correlation with fat and cholesterol intake in the diet.”

www.health-report.co.uk/saturated_fats_health_benefits.htm

Meet Jimmy Moore.

Part of Jimmy’s story, check out his blog and the full story !

“It should come as no surprise to anyone that I gained all of that weight back from my low-fat diet experience and then some until I made my way up above 400 pounds towards the end of 2003. My wife Christine was so worried about my health and with good reason. Although I didn’t suffer any major health problems at the time, I was on prescription medications for cholesterol, blood pressure and breathing issues. Then, a series of events in the Fall 2003 led me yet again to give a serious look at losing weight again. But I didn’t want to feel like I did in 1999 with all the hunger and frustration that miserable low-fat diet gave me. So I turned to a sound and proven nutritional plan that would be satisfying and sustainable for helping me lose weight and keep it off for the rest of my life as I pursued a permanent and health lifestyle change. That’s when I decided to begin the Atkins diet.

By the end of the first month after beginning my New Year’s resolution to lose weight in January 2004, I had shed a total of 30 pounds. HOLY COW!!! At the end of the second month, another 40 pounds were gone and by the time I had been on Atkins for 100 days, over 100 pounds were gone forever from my body. Words simply cannot describe how I felt going through this incredible journey and I will never be the same again. Although it wasn’t an easy road by any stretch of the imagination, I am so thankful I found the healthy low-carb lifestyle because I went on to lose a total of 180 pounds that year. More importantly than my weight loss, though, is the fact that low-carb living gave me my health back. All of those prescriptions I was taking for high cholesterol, high blood pressure and breathing problems were all history within nine months of being on the Atkins diet. And to this day, I have yet to take another medication for any health ailment. WOO HOO! Who says your health doesn’t improve on the low-carb lifestyle?”


Eddie

http://livinlavidalowcarb.com/blog/about-2

Great Low Carb Grub !

These crepes are virtually carb. free and are very easy to make.

Ingredients

200 Grams of ricotta cheese
3 eggs
I teaspoon of cinnamon
A splash of milk

Method

Mix the cheese, eggs and cinnamon in a small mixing bowl. Add a splash of milk if the mix is too thick to run freely. Place a small knob of butter into a frying pan, I use a small omelette pan 8". Heat the butter and spoon in 3 table spoons of mix. Fry until firm then turn over and cook for one minute or until the crepe is starting to brown. This mix makes between 6 and 8 crepes. Allow to cool and fill with cream cheese and finely chopped spring onions or smoked salmon and asparagus tips, whatever you like. Roll up the crepe and enjoy. Great at any time and very good for the lunch box or picnics. Strange as this may sound, the crepes do not taste of cheese,  they are also great warmed up with blueberries, a scoop of low carb ice cream and double cream.


Eddie

How to reverse type two Diabetes.

 
Johns story also known as Wallycorker on various diabetes forums.
 
This story describes the diet that I've gradually adopted over the last two years to successfully deal with my non-insulin-dependent Type 2 diabetes.

I'm a sixty-six-years old non-insulin dependent Type 2 on Metformin. I was diagnosed nearly ten years ago in the very early stages with a fasting level of 7.2 (130) and an HbA1c of only 5.7%. My situation slowly progressed - i.e. deteriorated - for eight years by following the "do not test" and " eat plenty of starchy carbohydrate" advice that is so often given by healthcare professionals to type 2s in the UK. Even though my progression was relatively slow, around seven years later my HbA1c eventually reached 9.4% and my GP started to prescribe Metformin (1000mg per day) - and then around a year later he doubled the dosage to 2000mg because my HbA1C was still at 8.5%.

At that stage and against my Doctors advice, I started to test and by doing that soon came to understand the effect that different foods had on my blood glucose levels. By using that information and gradually changing my diet over the last two years, I have fully reversed my Type 2 diabetic situation. Today, all my numbers are better than they were at diagnosis - in most of the cases by a massive amount. If I went to the doctor today then by the most-commonly-used diagnostic tests - fasting blood glucose levels or HbA1c - they would say that I did not have diabetes. Moreover, any symptoms of diabetes that I had experienced have all disappeared

Basically, the main thing that I've done is to cut out almost all the starchy carbohydrates - e.g. cereals, bread, potatoes, pizza mainly but I'm also very careful with rice and pasta too. In my opinion this has been by far and away the main reason for my dramatic improvement in blood glucose levels.

My HbA1c has dropped from a high of 9.4% to in the 5s the last six tests - and a lowest-ever of 5.0% last time. I'm hoping to take it below 5% very soon. In November I stopped using Metformin altogether.

Sunday 15 May 2011

Our second youngest lad was married on Saturday.

                                     




Eddie

Education, Education, Education !

Eddie does his best, but as some of the low carb anti’s have said, his grammar and spelling leaves much to be desired at times. Well the team had a whip round and sent me on a crash course to study English. It went well. An example.

Eddie once referred to a forum monitor as an arch buffoon, did this really do the guy and the situation justice ? My description of the forum monitor.
 
A sophistical rhetorician, inebriated with the exuberance of his own verbosity, and gifted with an egotistical imagination that can at all times command an interminable and inconsistent series of arguments to malign an opponent and to glorify himself.
 
Graham

Normal service will be restored soon, we hope !

 
Regular bloggers will know blogger has been having some big problems for the last few days. After some routine maintenance on Wednesday it’s been chaos. Days of postings and comments are somewhere in cyber space we are told and will be restored soon, let’s hope so. In the meantime serious posts will be suspended and we will post up a little of our idea of humour with a message highlighting the ludicrous diet and exploitation of diabetics.

I expect most people think I have it easy regarding my diabetes and low carb control, nothing could be further from the truth, an example.

Today while walking round my local supermarket with my wife I noticed sitting on top of our usual pile of fresh non starchy vegetables, a pack of hot cross buns. I was immediately taken aback and profoundly shocked. Hot cross buns I croaked, buns of death, have you gone mad woman. To which she replied, “they're only 39 pence” See what I have to put up with. Constant vigilance must be maintained if you want to keep temptation at bay !


Eddie

If you can’t beat em, join em !

 
After months of turning down commercial advertising we have decided to take the money. We are launching a range of products that satisfy the most dedicated anti low carbers. Our first product the diabetic hamper.

At a recent press launch sales and marketing director Rick Ripoff was clearly ecstatic when he stated. “ This product fills a niche in the market place, other diabetes sites sell hampers that are only highly dangerous, but our hamper takes diabetic dietary stupidity to a new level. We guarantee hyperglycaemia within one hour or your money back. Our diabetic hamper is 100% fat free and will satisfy the most carb addicted ! This is a product for connoisseurs of carb and it’s a winner if ever I saw one”



Priced to sell at only £199 + £15 carriage we know you will be delighted. Special launch deal order two and carriage free. Order three and claim your free state-of-the art carbon fibre white stick and the beginners guide to Braille.

Coming soon our no test strip required blood glucose meter. Sure to be a monster hit. Whatever your BG it never reads higher than 5.4 a must for all those who think the NICE guidelines are safe.

The low carb low fat low calorie diet plan, ya gotta larf !

diabetes.co.ok

Friday 13 May 2011

Joseph Goebbels Reich Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda.

 
“If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.” Joseph Goebbels
 
Avandia is safe, saturated fat is bad for your health, basing your meals on starchy carbohydrates is healthy for diabetics, diabetes is always progressive, people can’t stick to a lowcarb diet, low carbing will bring about scurvy and osteoporosis, a calorie is a just a calorie, high protein will damage healthy kidneys, multinational food companies care about kids health, food companies do not target infants with high sugar/starch products, food packaging nutritional information can be trusted, Dr. Robert Atkins died of a heart attack, Statins are safe, lowering total cholesterol will improve cardio outcomes, we can trust big pharma, sugar does not cause a whole host of health problems, BG testing for type two’s is a waste of time,  all type two diabetics are fat, lazy and brought it on themselves, the NHS is making progress in the fight against reducing blood glucose numbers and diabetic complications, that relaxing HbA1c control will bring about improvement in outcomes for diabetics.
 
The list of lies is long ! The spirit of Goebbels lives on.

Big pharma and multinational food companies, giant vampire squids, wrapped around the face of humanity.


Eddie



 


Wednesday 11 May 2011

DUK Comes Out Of Coma !

After years of dietary lunacy and pushing starch/sugar laden dietary information, that must have led to early death, blindness and amputations for countless poor souls, DUK have finely come out of their self induced coma.. So, how long have they known a low carb diet is beneficial ? And what will the acknowledgments have to say ? The acknowledgments must have benefited enormously over the years from the DUK diet of death, but times seem to be changing. So bad was the DUK diet recommendations, even Sister Scurvy could not endorse it, arguably, this was the only point I ever agreed with her on. So here’s the latest.

“Previous dietary recommendations have focused on the type of carbohydrate in the diet of people with diabetes said that meals should be based on starchy foods. People with type 2 diabetes are often told that they need to lose weight but struggle to do so on traditional high carbohydrate, low fat diets.This new statement makes it clear that the priority for people with Type 2 diabetes wanting to lose weight should be reducing overall energy intake whilst ensuring that the diet still provides all essential nutrients. A number of different diets can achieve this aim, and Diabetes UK recommend that a range of approaches should be considered, because the most appropriate method is different for different people. This statement does not say that low carbohydrate diets are best for all people with Type 2 diabetes, but that it may be suitable for some.

The evidence that they reviewed suggests that low-carbohydrate diets can reduce weight and lead to improvements in blood glucose control. They only found convincing evidence that this was effective for up to 1 year, and point out that there is currently insufficient evidence to support the safety and benefit of low-carbohydrate diets in the longer term.”

Ok, they are tentatively creeping out of the dark age, and clearly covering their butts, but for DUK to make any encouraging statement regarding lowcarb, it’s a monumental change !

Eddie

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/224041.php

 
www.diabetes.org.uk/Get_involved/Corporate/Acknowledgements/

Beta Cell Burn Out.

One guy that often brings a smile to my face is Patch. Whatever gets thrown at him he keeps his great sense of humour. His posts are not always appreciated at d.co.uk, and his work is often deleted. Patch sent in a post today on d.co.uk, and as a foot note wrote, “Delete as appropriate” I love his sense of humour.

Another poster on another thread stated today.

“I have not had to change my diet a lot since diagnoses, just reduce the amount of carbs. This allowed me to still be able to eat foods like bread, rice, potatoes and pasta (I'm not a pasta fan but I do eat it sometimes). By reducing the amount I eat, of everything not just carbs, I have lost 2 stones and am now around 11 stones. I have 6 slices of bread a day, one cooked meal (chips, rice or potatoes included), a piece of cake once or twice a week or a bar of snickers. My last A1c was 6.2mmol, I have been very lucky.”

My first thought was, yes you are very lucky. My second thought was, good grief, the “we are all different” and “one size does not fit all mob” will be all over that post. My third thought, well, Patch got it spot on !

“Have you considered that some people believe that a pancreas only has a limited productive life? (Google beta cell burn out) Eating all those carbs may be overworking your pancreas, and that little organ may not be able to keep up that rate of work forever…”

As posted on this blog, beta cells are not replaced over the age of thirty. It makes sense to me to do whatever you can to keep them, once gone, they stay gone. Type two’s are very often suffering from beta cell burn out. Some sources state they can be depleted at diagnosis to around 50%. Add to that high Insulin resistance for many type two’s, well you see my point. By losing weight and taking care of our diabetes we can reduce Insulin resistance, but there is nothing we can do to replace burnt out beta cells.

Keep making us laugh Patch and keep up the good work. You seem very adept at annoying all the right people.

Eddie

Tuesday 10 May 2011

Fergus, the man who showed us the way !

No introductions needed for this guy. This is his story. Three years ago, reading his posts was a master class in safe diabetes control. We may have been unlucky to become diabetics, but finding Ferg was one of the luckiest days of my life.

Eddie

www.dsolve.com/sucess-stories/199-fergus

Monday 9 May 2011

Ron Raab: Why I Think Low Carb/Low Insulin Is the Best Approach to the Treatment of Diabetes

Check this out. A truly fantastic story, well worth a read !

http://www.dsolve.com/sucess-stories/150-ronraab


Graham

Re: ADVICE FROM MEMBERS VIA THE PM SYSTEM

I see the the forum of flog mods are pushing the  Re: ADVICE FROM MEMBERS VIA THE PM SYSTEM big time. Why are they so paranoid about members contacting each other with advice. Could it be the 1000 calories a day and ludicrous bilge being promoted by the mods recently has drawn a blank ? we need to be told !

Eddie

Comments on the comments part 2

I have received many comments over the last three days. Some have been commented upon, some I am giving some thought to before answering, all have been stored. One of the more accomplished comments received today.

“Fact.
Edie you really are anal.
It is a well known FACT that FATS have a hideous impact on blood sugars.
Perhaps you need to do some research Edie with the real people i.e., people that use insulin and who also test their blood sugars over a 24 hour period.
Eating fatty foods quite often requires double insulin. This is not an individual thing either. It is FACT. The effect is not noticed 1 hour or 2 hours after eating it is felt 6 hours and more after the meal is consumed.
FACT your dietary advice is CRAP. As you are Anal it's hardly surprising though is it?"

Nigel

My dear Nigel aka Noblehead I presume. I appreciate you do not have a clue regarding good diabetes control. In fact after many years of diabetes, you admitted you did not know the basics on insulin use and storage. I am referring to your post on Kens Kingdom.

“Re: storage and use of insilin
by noblehead » October 16th, 2009, 2:52 pm

Fergus,

That's interesting, I did not know that the pen currently used can be
stored at room teperature. I also didn't know that low temperature
slows the action of insulins. I have always kept my novorapid pen in
the fridge, and only taking out when injecting. I think from now on I
will keep it at room temperature.

Regards

Nigel A gem is not polished without rubbing, nor a man perfected without trials.

Chinese proverb"

http://www.diabetes.co.uk/diabetes-forum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=10991&p=104909&hilit=insulin+storage#p104909

For your benefit I will repeat, dietary fat has no influence on blood glucose or insulin requirements. Zero, zilch, none whatsoever, never has, never will have, is it sinking in? I have placed a link to a very easily understood article. I have others of a far more technical nature. When you can get a grip on the basics, I will email them to you. I think you are getting confused with the fact, fats when consumed with the carb level you have stated you use, can certainly prolong the time taken for BG spikes to manifest themselves. Don’t worry you are not alone. Hence our numerous comments on BG numbers, spouted by the forum of flog monitors in their cut and paste jobs to newbie’s re. BG numbers.


Eddie

http://www.diabetes-diet.org.uk/blood-glucose-control.html

Extremely revealing times !



 
The Penguin Sphenisciformes Spheniscidae or Joparus Ludicrous Maximus

Over the weekend I received comments from a person calling herself “an old friend“. The word “extreme” was a very common feature. Imagine my surprise reading a couple of posts, posted last night over at Ken’s Kingdom and seeing the word “extreme” used err…………...nine times.


My name is Joparus Ludicrous Maximus, type one diabetic, wife of a type one diabetic, owner of a hypo sensing dog, and I will get my revenge in this world or the next !


Eddie

Sunday 8 May 2011

The Penguin Patrol


The penguin !

“Extreme low carbing is based on dropping starchy carbs and replacing with increased fats and protein… Problem with fat’s a fatty meal not only takes longer to digest but it is also insulin resistant to foods that contain a lot of fat needs more insulin to tackle it!”

 
The facts !

The impact of particular foods on blood glucose can vary greatly between individuals and testing after meals is recommended to figure out which foods to safely include in your diet. In broad terms, carbohydrates have a large impact on blood glucose levels, protein much less, and fats have little if any effect.

Eddie

Déjà vu

Déjà vu is the experience of feeling sure that one has already witnessed or experienced a current situation, even though the exact circumstances of the previous encounter are uncertain and were perhaps imagined.

Nothing imagined or uncertain about previous encounters with the lowcarb antis, and nothing has changed. Rabid and ranting comments from start to finish. As always, not a single link backing up their claims and every old chestnut that ever came up the pike. I was expecting the flack and was not disappointed, but I was staggered to see the amount of vitriol and hate aimed at Dr. Robert Atkins.

There is one good thing that may have come from opening the door to the low carb miscreants, evidently I may be able to sue the Atkins Foundation. I quote.

“Eddie, maybe after eating all that fat Atkins said is good for you and proving him wrong by developing coronary problems.... just like he did, you may have a strong case to sue his company. If I was you I'd get legal advice from a solicitor, you never know Eddie, this just might be your chance to get a few million quid in your bank account.”

Now, if I can get my Consultant Cardiologist, to retract his statement informing me that that seven months of low carbing, and increasing my intake of fats, fats that man has eaten since the beginning of time, played no part in my need for angioplasty, I will take early retirement. And there was me thinking I would never own a Ferrari.

As I often say, every cloud has a silver lining. Oh by the way. If any of the lowcarb anti’s has further comments to make, please supply a link or some evidence supporting you arguments, “fat will kill you” won’t win any arguments here.

Eddie

Professor Sir Nicholas Wald

Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine Director: Professor Sir Nicholas Wald

http://www.wolfson.qmul.ac.uk/wipm/funders.html

Anne

Saturday 7 May 2011

Prescribe statins to ALL over-55's !

Yet another attempt at mass medication regardless of the possible side effects, check out the numerous comments, there's a lot of anger from those who have suffered from these very “RARE” side effects. As one who has experienced the devastating effects of statins, I fully understand their concens.

“Everyone over 55 should be offered statins to cut their risk of heart attacks and strokes, no matter how high their cholesterol or blood pressure readings, a leading doctor said last night.

Professor Sir Nicholas Wald said prescribing cholesterol-busting statins and blood pressure pills based on age alone would be much easier and quicker than the current system.”

Graham

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1383708/Statins-prescribed-ALL-55s-declares-professor.html

More on Dr. Robert Atkins

I’m always surprised at the lengths those failing to control their blood glucose, weight, etc will stoop. It seems it was ever thus, consider the reporting of Atkins death.

“Years after his death in 2003, the rumor that Dr. Robert Atkins "died of his own diet" persists. The falsehoods concerning his death are mainly propagated by the vegan group the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine and related groups and individuals. However, even the mainstream media is not blameless. In March 2007, Newsweek magazine published an opinion piece by Dr. Dean Ornish which contained the same untruths, which were later retracted by the magazine*.”

Some facts.

“And a medical report at the time of his admission to the hospital, which was later made public by his widow, states that he was 195 lbs on admission to the hospital.”

“On April 8, 2003, at age 72, Dr. Atkins slipped on the ice while walking to work, hitting his head and causing bleeding around his brain. He lost consciousness on the way to the hospital, where he spent two weeks in intensive care. His body deteriorated rapidly and he suffered massive organ failure. During this time, his body apparently retained an enormous amount of fluid, and his weight at death was recorded at 258 pounds. His death certificate states that the cause of death was "blunt impact injury of head with epidural hematoma".

The retraction.

* In March 2007, Newsweek magazine published a correction stating, "An earlier version of this story contained an inaccurate account of events surrounding the death of Dr. Robert Atkins. Newsweek regrets the error."

John