dealing with diabetes

positivenote

Hi all,
my dad is 70 yrs old and over the course of the last 7 years he has succumbed to diabetes. He has lapsed into 2 diabetic comas and has had his big toe ampatated. but following the scares he consciously started to change his diet and try and cope with the condition. Over the past few months he has deteriorated and he is struggle to walk for more than a few mins a day. He has never been one to exercise but loved a game of golf, but now he can't even do this due to pains in his feet. Like a lot of men from his generation he can be be quite contrary and stubborn and my mam is at the end of her tether trying to talk to him about it. I'm basically looking for advice from anyone who can suggest sample diet menus or even advise that I can take cognizance of and improve his standard of living…
thanks in advance

tenifan

I hate to say it but it sounds like a lot of damage is done. you can't teach an old dog new tricks.

You don't want to sap all the joy out of his life so be careful about making drastic changes or nagging.

Assuming your mother cooks for him and buys any unhealthy crap, it's probably her you need to convince to make changes.
There's no special diet. At meal time half the plate should be veg,1/4 rice/potato and 1/4 meat. Limit salt, sugar and alcohol and eliminate added sugar and tobacco. Cake or buns as a treat on a sunday, not every day.
His mobility is probably limited but if he can manage to walk a mile a day he should do it even if it takes an hour.

Oryx

I can move this to Long Term Illness if you want.

positivenote

Oryx wrote: »

I can move this to Long Term Illness if you want.

if you feel that I will get more feedback please feel free to do so,
thank you

calfmuscle

His meds need to be changed. He needs to cut out carbohydrates and get exercising. That's it!

This advice is literally all you need. I'v had type one for nearly twenty years and I'm a physio. I'v done research on type 2 diabetics as well.. It's that simple.

deadlybuzzman

calfmuscle wrote: »

His meds need to be changed. He needs to cut out carbohydrates and get exercising. That's it!

This advice is literally all you need. I'v had type one for nearly twenty years and I'm a physio. I'v done research on type 2 diabetics as well.. It's that simple.

1 thing I've wondered for a while is if a diabetic cut out all carbs permanently would that remove the need for insulin injections or is there other issues that stop it being so straightforward?

positivenote

calfmuscle wrote: »

His meds need to be changed. He needs to cut out carbohydrates and get exercising. That's it!

This advice is literally all you need. I'v had type one for nearly twenty years and I'm a physio. I'v done research on type 2 diabetics as well.. It's that simple.

any advice on how I could go about getting is meds checked as he seems to be in a lot of pain in his feet recently, he's never been on insulin injections as he would rather take the pills that have been subscribed. The lack of exercise could be an influencing factor, but he has recently bought a treadmill and is walking at its slowest setting for 3mins twice a day but gets extremely uncomfortable following it.
As i say any advice would be great

calfmuscle

deadlybuzzman wrote: »

1 thing I've wondered for a while is if a diabetic cut out all carbs permanently would that remove the need for insulin injections or is there other issues that stop it being so straightforward?

No is far more complex than that. You need insulin to live.

calfmuscle

positivenote wrote: »

any advice on how I could go about getting is meds checked as he seems to be in a lot of pain in his feet recently, he's never been on insulin injections as he would rather take the pills that have been subscribed. The lack of exercise could be an influencing factor, but he has recently bought a treadmill and is walking at its slowest setting for 3mins twice a day but gets extremely uncomfortable following it.
As i say any advice would be great

He needs to be reviewed by his diabetes clinic. If the foot pain is that bad he needs to see his gp for pain killer's that allow him to exercise and walk.

Rosy Posy

My dad has it and he also has mobility issues. He goes to a gym and gets instruction. He does stuff like swimming rowing and weights machines and spinning (some kind of exercise bike class). The instructors know about his issues and take good care of him. He actually loves it now and since retiring he finds it a good social outlet. They have a special rate for off peak times so he goes during the day and chews the fat in the jacuzzi with the other aul lads. Diet has been a struggle for him as he loves his food and there's no way he's cutting portions but he's really upped his veg intake and limited the frys and sweet things. Even a simple habit of porridge for breakfast instead of processed cereal will help.

Chocchip1989

Does anyone attend the Diabetic Clinic in James Connolly Hospital?? I have had diabetes since I was 8 yrs old (in my 50s now). I find trying to get an appointment (even to get them to answer the phone difficult). I happened to go in there last week to have a urine test (required urgently). There were at least 8/10 staff all wandering around and not one patient in the place?????????????? Why is it is hard for them to man the phones. Staff are nice and were friendly....but because I turned up unexpectedly they were in a tizzy looking for forms and asking me why I had come in etc. It was a simple test, nothing major. I thought this centre was supposed to be a back up for anyone with diabetic problems who needed advice if they were unable to contact their own Specialist (you can wait months for an appointment with the Specialist). The centre itself is completely out of date, worm and tired.....perhaps the staff are just demotivated???????

On another occasion when I couldn't get any response to 3/4 numbers provided I had to ring the Administration and ask them could they get someone to ring me back.