Confused about feet.
 

If my BG's are within normal range, can a wound that won't heal still happen? I have shaken off some tingling and numbness since lowering BG readings...I'm hoping exercise will lose me the last traces of it. I'm also looking at them to check for damage in case I have lost feeling and don't know it. If I can keep my BG down from now on, are my feet safe, or should I do more than that?

Plus I would like to remind everyone nicely, before any shocking pictures are posted, that there was a request for a warning about those.

RCo - sorry to hear about the slow healing. I can't answer about this, but when I had retinopathy the opth. told me not to be concerned about recurrences, that it took about five years of low carbing, low blood sugars for the blood vessels in my eye to fully recover.

I've never had any problems with my feet after 30 years of Type 1. The key is to have good circulation through exercise. Sorry about your tingling and numbness. Normalizing blood sugar can reverse almost any complication. :)

ETA: I'm a very fast healer. If you have normalized blood sugar, you don't need to worry about suppurating wounds.

I had bad diabetic neuropathy in hands and feet for about 2 years and that is completely gone now, thanks to long term control of blood glucose. Diabetic neuropathy is reversible, but you have to do the work....

All you have to do is read the first chapter or so in Dr. Bernsteins' Diabetes solution to know that all the symptoms can be reversed of diabetes.

He is the classic about to die case and here is is fully healed and very disciplined to this day following his own advice.

You can read all this without buying his book.

It is available on his website. http://www.diabetes911.net/about.php

Now many of us use his book as a guide, some as a bible and others don't necessarily agree.

However, it is probably a good idea to buy a copy and make up your own mind.

Other books are available and have been recommended by members in this forum.

The important point is for you to become educated on the topic of diabetes. It will not be long before you know more about this disease than the typical doctor.

Ralph

That is precisely what I am trying to acheive.

I have read that chapter, I am familiar with his claim. I was asking to check that I had understood right, that I was not missing something he doesn't mention, in case I needed to consider other possible causes and to add information anybody wanted to share from actual experience to add to the things it says in the book.

I don't see this forum as a suitable substitute for reading books...that is why I asked about books. The thing is I am acquiring knowledge here at my maximum capacity, and sometimes I'm getting into an irrational tizz about one little bit of it.

That was the exact bit I was hoping someone could clear up for a daft newbie.

To Rob and Cajunboy
 

Thanks for the testimonies about it being worth the effort. I can deal with it taking some time to completely fix, fortunately it is not seriously hindering my ability to get on with things. I'll make myself some exercise goals, and let my nerves come back whenever they are ready. For some reason I always find the experience of people who have tried it more convincing than books. Maybe because so much rubbish gets published...

Alpha Lipoic Acid helped me restore my diabetic neuropathy, along with controlling blood sugars.

Also, if along the way, someone tells you you have carpal tunnel syndrome and suggest a surgery, don't necessarily believe them. I had nerve conduction studies that proved I had it in boths wrists and now, that is completely gone too.....

I am not so sure all answers are in books, but there are many sources to gain information, including books and the Internet. Just use a little common sense and use trial and error and eventually you can find what works best for you........

I've heard that getting plenty of B vitamins (through supplementation), especially B12 helps neuropathy too. I had a lot of weird neuropathy for the first year after going gluten free and it's gone now. I think the B vitamins helped.

One of the nice things about Dr B's book is that it is encyclopaedic. If something new happens to you, you can check out the index and normally find out what he recommends in that particular item.

ps - In January my opth. has reduced me to once a year checkups, from every three months, and then every six months. It was a nice day. And this year my urologist discharged me - its been 5 years since surgery. Yeh!

Zinc is awesome to heal wounds. Look for zinc methionine the most absorbable form.

I understand.

I still have the same issue at times.

There is so much we can learn and more to come as we become more experienced with managing our own disease.

Best wishes,

Ralph

Thanks for the replies, it is are actually still improving, just a lot slower than when I first went low carb. I'll look up the supplements ideas too. I stomp across a shingle beach with no shoes on quite regularly, so I wanted to check that I am not in danger of losing a foot to a crab nip.

:lol: And if any of the local crabs are reading this, it doesn't mean they have permission to claw me, I'll still yell and catch you and throw you back in the sea, so there. :lol: