Miracle Noondles

Rachel Ray showcased Shirataki Noodles on her show today. Also known as Miracle Noodles, these light-weight noodles have no calories and no carbs, making them a dieter's dream come true. But are they healthy? What are Miracle Noodles made of, and where do you buy them? Watch this video for more details about Shirataki Noodles, and why they may make a difference in your new diet plan.

As a diabetic person, I need to lose weight by eating healthy food. I need to eat low carb foods which means no white rice, white bread, pasta and no sugar. These foods increase dramatically the of my blood sugar level. But since I grew up eating rice three times a day, it is hard for me to take these foods away from me. That is why when I saw this video, I decided to try the "Miracle Noodles" whom most woman in Japan eats to stay thin.

Great Improvement on Managing Diabetes

I can say that the Lantus has been working for me. My blood sugar level has been low so far and I am very pleased with that. I ave to work harder so my doctor will not put me into three times a day insulin shots which I don't like at all since it means big needle and I wouldn't be able to do it myself. Who would like to give himself or herself a shot? Not me...never...I refuse to do it! I just hope that my doctor is not as aggressive as he is; he needs to appreciate that I am making great improvement when it comes to managing my diabetes. I really am dieting, eating less rice, white bread, pasta, sugar free foods and of course the ever expensive, Glucerna! Exercise is also done everyday.

Normal Blood Sugar Level!

Last night while I was trying to give myself as insulin shot, I couldn't get it to 30 units. I didn't know what to do since hubby is already gone for work. So, I checked on it. Finally I figured out what was wrong! It was because the insulin in the cartridge was almost down to zero. I only gave myself 22 units instead and then changed the cartridge.

In the morning when I woke up to check my blood sugar level...to my amazement, it was back to normal which was 95! I haven't had this low in years...it was great considering I only had 22 units shot last night. I am so pleased and so is my husband. I hope it will stay that way, so that eventually, my doctor will take insulin out, and just leave the oral pill. That would be sweet!

Insulin and Blood Sugar Level

My last follow up visit with our family doctor for my diabetes went well. We really like our doctor for he cares for our health. He didn't even get mad at me when I increased the dosage of my insulin to 20 because 10 didn't work. And so he increased it to 30 since I told him that my blood sugar was still high. I wonder why my blood sugar is still up...considering I have been eating good food in small portion. I guess the next thing for me to do is exercise and lift weights. I have proven it to be effective since I have done this before. I better start exercising tomorrow.

Reasons Why I Need to Lift Weights

While surfing the net, I came across a website that interests me most. Ten tips written by Elizabeth Quinn on how lifting weights can be beneficial to my health. Here they are:

1. You Will Be Physically Stronger...weight training can increase a woman’s strength by 30 to 50%.
2. You Will Lose Body Fat...average woman who strength trains 2 to 3 times a week for 2 months will gain nearly 2 pounds of muscles and will lose 3.5 pounds. As your lean muscles increases so does your resting metabolism, and you burn more calories all day long.
3. You Will Gain Strength Without Bulk...women typically don’t gain size from strength training, because compared men, women have 10 to 30 times less of the hormones that cause muscle hypertrophy.
4. You Decrease Your Risk of Osteoporosis...weight training can increase spinal bone mineral density by 13% in 6 months.
5. You Will Improve Your Athletic Performance.
6. You Will Reduce Your Risk of Injury , Back Pain and Arthritis.Strength training not only builds stronger muscles, but also builds stronger connective tissues and increases joint stability.
7. You Will Reduce Your Risk of Heart Disease...weight training can improve cardiovascular health in several ways, including lowering LDL (bad) Cholesterol, increase HDL (good) cholesterol and lowering blood pressure.
8. You Will Reduce Your Risk of Diabetes... weight training can increase glucose utilization in the body by 23% in 4 months.
9. It’s Never Too Late To Benefit......strength improvements are possible at any age.
10.You Will Your Attitude and Fight Depression.
A Harvard study found that 10 weeks of strength training reduced clinical depression symptoms more successfully than standard counseling did.

I am pretty sure when I follow these tips, I would lost weight, lower my bad cholesterol, lower my blood sugar level and stabilize my blood pressure.

Lantus and Opticlick

Here's the opticlick kit my doctor gave me to help control my blood sugar level which I am using now with Lantus. This is so cool because it is easy to use and less pain than the old fashion one. I like that it only use tiny needle when giving myself an insulin shot. I am still nervous and a little bit afraid using it, but it is better than the normal syringe with bigger needle.

Lantus is a once a day shot slow release insulin that is very new. I am glad that my doctor prescribed it to me :-).

Diabetes and Medications

As my Doctor and I partnered on controlling my diabetes, I need to make our goal realize bby doing the things that needs to be done aside from medications. I can couple the medications with home treatments as mentioned below that I read on webmd.

Getting blood sugar under control isn't always difficult. Sometimes all you need are lifestyle changes -- eating right, getting regular exercise, losing weight -- to get it into a safe range. If you're a smoker, there's no question -- you've got to quit.

Also, finding ways to ease the stress in your life helps control blood sugar, as does treatment for depression. Both stress and depression increase the level of cortisol, a hormone that affects blood sugar. "Cortisol makes the diabetes worse," Ziemer tells WebMD. "There is evidence that treating depression may help blood sugar control." He is heading a study investigating that link.

For some people, taking just one diabetes medication helps tremendously. Complex new drugs like Byetta, Januvia, and Symlin work from different angles to attack high blood sugar. "All the new drugs hold a lot of promise," says Ziemer, who is also a professor of endocrinology at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta.

If you need to take insulin, you'll find the injections aren't that bad. "The new versions of insulin are far less cumbersome," Ziemer explains. You don't need to lay out a lot of needles and vials on the table. The insulin can be discreetly injected via a little pen -- much like a cartridge writing pen. Insulin mouth sprays and insulin patches are being developed.

Initial Diabetes Treatment

The day of my release from the hospital after the biopsy, my nephrologist told me to call my PCP to set an appointment to see Dr. Triue to manage my diabetes. And that is what I did as soon as I get home. I made an appointment the next day. When I got there in the morning, Dr, Triue teased me saying: You must be very special because Dr. Lerman himself phone me about you! I said smiling, maybe :-). From there he told me he would take care of my diabetes instead of seeing an Endoctrinologist. That sounds good to me. I was blessed with nice , kind and good doctors to care for our/my health. Anyhow, we are working together to get my blood sugar level down. He put me into Lantus (a once a day shot insulin) that looks like a glucometer and it is easy for me to give myself a shot than the usual syringe with big needle (ouch!). So far, the first week went okay, except that my blood sugar level was still the same that is why hubby and I decided to increase the dosage. It went down a little bit which was good. After once week, we would need to go for a follow up visit to see what would Dr. Triue would say.

Biopsy's Test Result

Finally, my most awaited day of the week has come. Matt and I went to see my doctor to get the result from the renal biopsy done a week ago. I was eager but not nervous, not nervous because I have prayed to my Father in Heaven for the result. I prayed that whatever would that be, I will gladly accept it because I know in my heart that He has a reason why things happen. Anyway, the result was back and it came out normal. There was scarring to the transplanted kidneys but was normal due to the mismatch they did when they tested my blood for a match. Since the kidneys came from a cadaver donor, scarring in my kidney is normal and there is nothing my doctors can do to treat it. He said that kidney from cadaver donor would most like to last only last from 10 to 15 years if I am lucky, whereas if it came from a living donor, the chance would be a maximum of 25 years. With the outcome of the biopsy, I am satisfied and could never ask for more. I am glad my worries about losing my kidney is over because they have found no signs of rejection. We are happy and satisfied and that's all I want. Till then, will update more on my next post.