First of all, Rythmbeat, your situation sounds much like mine several years ago. I'm a T2 diabetic, my weight was a very stubborn 220 lb.. and I was frustrated - I'd been following the officially promoted diabetic food lists, exercising 3 times a week, faithfully taking my meds - metformin plus glyburide originally, then stopping gylburide and substituting Onglyza. My A1C was between 6.2 and 6.7.

My "ah ha!" moment came when I found Diabetes Solution by Dr. Richard Bernstein (can be found on Amazon both as hard copy and as an Ebook). Among other things, he recommends a low carb diet to gain control over your blood glucose. When I started following his program, my A1C dropped to 5.9 within 3 months and my weight began to go down.

There are lots of great suggestions in the other replies to your original post and I'd urge you to look at them. I would strongly recommend Dr. Bernstein's book as a starting point. There are a very large number of diabetics who have successfully dealt with their conditons (T1 & T2) through his program.

Also there are quite a lot of very informative Low Carb High Fat and diabetes posts on You Tube, including Dr. Phinney, Dr. Eric Westman, Dr. Bernstein and many more - well worth watching - which helped me understand what made my condition what it was.

Today my weight is down to 175. I workout for an hour every day, to keep my heart healthy and to help my muscles use glucose and insulin better. I'm completely off diabetes meds, I've had an A1C of 5.7 - 5.9 for the past two years plus. I believe I definitely am carb intolerant and a very low card lifestyle is key to maintaining control.

I hope some of this helps!

This quote is the biggest most huge reason I decided two weeks
ago to 180degree alter from a whole food plant based lifestyle.

I want to lose visceral fat as my highest priority.

I want to give my liver and pancreas and kidneys a fighting chance.

I am so happy to be here.

Already, during the past three days,
my reduced insulin dosage of 30-50% less
as prescribed by my doctor is way too much.
I get down to the BGL-60s, easily.
I do have more energy. I have less appetite.
I do eat food (Atkins's list) not eaten since over a year ago.

When I realized that just eating nutritious food from
vegetarian food lists was not helping (three weeks ago),
I set out for a change.

During this month's search, losing weight and getting rid
of visceral organ fat has moved to be the highest priority.

Thanks for your share, Teaser. RhythmBeat

Hi! Not hiding anything.
I saw The Widowmaker and Forks Over Knives during May 2015.
These two documentaries "scared me straight" to become healthy,
get my diabetes reversed and get off all meds. Of course all diet food
programs seem to claim they can halt prevent stop cure and reverse diabetes
and end all other diseases known to modern world.

So, Colin Campbell's The China Study, ForksOK and many others touted
low fat vegetarian plans ~ they made sense to me since June 2015.
I've been doing McDougall's Starch Solution since March 2016.

My doctor weighed me at 240 in July 2015 and 205 in April 2016.
Lost 35 pounds during nine months.
BMI went from 34 to 31.
My LDL is 32
My HDL is 32 * doctor said HDL/LDL 1:1 ratio is good
Triglycerides is 87
Cholesterol is 81
A1C is 7
*Past results are mid-range numbers, except HDL always been in the 30s
*Hoping to see if low carb food programs get the HDL to rise

All this reduction and I was not very focused on my diet habits.
I did not eat dairy or meat ~ simple as that. No big deal for me
except I use/used almond milk for healthy breakfast.

One day March 2016, I stepped on the scale and could not believe my eyes
at 205 pounds. I did have to add two holes to all my belts and pants did
not fit, but never gave health an intense commitment as I'm doing now.

Since March 2016, my weight has stabilized at about 204, been to 202.
I have not broken 199, yet.

Stabilized weight, stabilized BMI-31, A1C not falling from 7 to below 6.0,
wanting to get off meds, watching more documentaries, I began to search.

During May 2016 I discovered low carb programs. They are complete
opposite of low fat programs. Claims of reversing diabetes and
losing fast weight caught my attention. All this during this month of May.

That is my story.
I'm a bit cautious toward fat, protein, animal food and animal fat
farmed within horrible conditions that animals are raised in.
It's scary to know I'm eating food I disdained and was negative towards.
But, losing weight, reversing diabetes and getting off meds has changed
my outlook and giving low carb food programs a try.

Believe me, I can easily eat pizza, ice cream cake, burgers, et al.
. . . . . . . . a year ago, The Widowmaker scared me to change.
Cheers!

Hi, MickiSue! Thanks again.
I purchased a half pound of Pink Himalaya Salt.
Glad I did. Need to keep those 81 minerals going - lol

Cheers.

Holy Freakin' Cow!!!
I love your story!

Yes, my investigation has been deep over a year.
Does not matter the low or high, carb or fat philosophies,
I study, follow YouTube, watch documentaries, read magazines,
compare food lists, etc.

As coincidental as your post is today,
yesterday I received two packages from Amazon:
1) Dr Richard Bernstein's 5 CD set: Secrets to Normal Blood Sugars
2) Dr Richard Bernstein's book: The Diabetes Diet

When I watched a Bernstein video, last week, I researched and bought.

Thanks again. Cheers!

Dr Bernstein's diet is perfect! If there are any questions not answered in the books and CDs you have, also check his new Diabetes University...think it is over 100 video clips now. http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=470804 He is an amazing man.

Not that you should take medical advice from a random person on the Internet (me) but cholesterol that is too low, especially HDL, is not ideal either. Highly recommend a book Cholesterol Clarity but maybe start reading in that forum when you have time. The optimal Trig:HDL ratio recommended in that book IS 1:1 but 70:70.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=460697

http://www.zoeharcombe.com/2015/10/...lesterol-month/

Thanks for your expanded story, RhythmBeat. It all makes a little more sense. I was vegetarian in my late teens and early 20s, (following Diet for a Small Planet, to ensure "enough protein"). While it took a while to wrap my head around eating meat again, my body easily accepted it. Increased energy and a greater sense of well-being were pretty much immediate.

At this stage is life, I seek out wild and humanely raised meats and fish. While it sounds expensive, I (and my husband) eat so much less on LC than SAD that it all balances out. In the growing season, I buy my vegetables from a CSA, also more expensive than mass-raised vegetables, but it is is so worth it for the greatly enhanced quality.

Bernstein is a great way to start as it will address your most pressing needs: normalizing your blood sugar and getting off your meds. Good luck!

I have a lot of respect for the transition you're undertaking, RhythmBeat. Many would have called it a success with your weight loss alone. Being able to see through the weeds and focus on lowering BG and managing insulin are things that only a lot of research would have uncovered. Transitioning to the very foods you used to avoid is, for some, a radical change. As you know already, there are a lot of experienced people here that have traveled a similar path. All the best to you as you continue your journey.

Like Liz, I eat only grass fed or pastured meat. It is more expensive but I have both ethical and health concerns about factory farmed meat. Also I save money by not eating any snack or junk food and I don't eat out. That's what works for me. There can be a lot of priorities to juggle when figuring out what to eat and we each have to come to our own decisions about what to prioritize. What I am sure of is that low carb eating is the healthiest choice for me so I stick with it. Good luck in figuring out your own plan.

Jean

Just a quick note on eating meat: too much protein will make your diabetes control harder - protein beyond what you body needs is converted to blood glucose (gluconeogenesis, I think) and can actually raise your BG. I don't find a low carb lifestyle any more expensive than our previous grocery bills: we're not buying a lot of processed foods - other than canned tuna - and fresh vegetables aren't really a major cost.

And Rythmbeat - your energy and alertness will improve without carbs.

Thank you very much, Hollico.

So far, only canned tuna fish and canned salmon.
Other dairy type proteins as well.
Good to know about too much protein.
Mostly try to get the fat content up.
But, keeping carbs down is the focus. Cheers.

JEH100, you are awesome
I cannot wait to catch up to read your wonderful links.
I bet you're a walking filing sorting library source of resources.

here's just one short success story for today's inspiration:
https://intensivedietarymanagement....atient-profile/

OK. Dr Jason Fung is on my watch list as well.
Watching is lecture how insulin is a band aid.

Not only is insulin a band aid. It's one that tears the cut open, even more.