6 Months on PB - A1c and lipid results page

[Egerland]

I believe this is the right approach to my health issues, mainly diabetes. But I am disappointed in the slow pace of progress.

2/5/10 - about the time I started the Primal Blueprint
A1c 8.8
Ch 191
Tri 259
HDL 28
LDL calc 184
Ch/HDL 6.8

10/8/10 - six months later
A1c 6.6
Ch 263
Tri 226
HDL 34
LDL calc 184
Ch/HDL 7.7

I am at least 90% compliant with the PB. I dialed my cardio (mostly cycling) way back, and tend to low-level aerobic activity (slower rides with infrequent sprints); my average speed is about 12 MPH, instead of 16. On 2/5/10, I weighed 215 (at 5'9"), was 202 a couple of weeks ago, but 209 now. I do use dairy (cream and cheese). I know I should try a month or more without dairy, but the cream has replaced a lot of long-gone desserts, and I hate to give it up.

Any comments on the results?

[Moochy]

It appears you are type II diabetic, possibly metabolic syndrome? I was in a similar place. I found that I needed to eliminate ALL grains and sugars. You must get your weight down and your blood sugar/insulin under control. That is first priority. Also, watch your intake of fruit while you are trying to get your blood sugar/weight down, you don't need a fructose boost that your liver has to deal with. You probably have low grade inflammation in your arterial system, you need to make sure you are getting enough Omega 3 in your diet. I know it's not popular, but until I got my weight down and blood sugar under control, I ate no dairy at all. I only use butter from grass fed cows and organic probiotic yogurt now. You need to think about the remainder of your life, not a daily dessert. Once you stop things which are not good for you, after a while, you will not even miss them. You just KNOW you do not need them anymore.

[Griff]

What Moochy said is true. I went from an A1c of 8.1 to an A1c of 5.4 by cutting out ALL grains, sugars, starches, and fruit. I kept my carbs below 20g net per day (that's carb count minus fiber count) and I was STRICT about it for nine months. You have to decide what you want more: health, or desserts.

[racingsnake]

Hi Egerland - it looks to me that you have had a significant improvement in your a1c, and that's nothing to be sniffed at. In terms of health markers, it's pretty key.

[Vicki Lynn]

Hello Egerland,
I think that you have made a great improvement. I encourage you to keep working at it. It took me 3 months to improve my A1C level from 6.5 to 5.8 but I don't dare return to my previous lifestyle. I have not had a bean, a bit of flour, a tad of sugar, any form of corn or corn syrup, nor rice or potatoes, nor any form of grains and no cereals since my doctor told me I was diabetic and recommended The Primal Blueprint.
I feel as though I can only get better as time goes on. I have very much improvement to make however.

[Egerland]

Thanks for the comments. I guess I won't be buying any cream for a while.

[Momto3]

I would encourage you to get a VAP cholesterol test if you are able. Do you have heart disease in your family history?

If you have some family history going on you may need to do things differently than the standard primal diet. We are just learning about this ourselves. My husband just had his VAP cholesterol test after 4 months of being primal and it was very eye opening. You can check it out on this thread: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/forum...ghlight=momto3

Please check out Dr. Davis' site:http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/
Specifically: http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/20...small-ldl.html