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I have just realized that it's been more than a year that I went back to eating low-carb. According to my journal, it was on September 3, 2018. I did not lose a lot of weight -- I was pushing 160 lbs, now I am almost 154 lbs -- but I was able to decrease my HbA1c to a normal number, 4.9 I think. No idea whether I maintained because of my anemia and iron supplements (being anemic makes this number lower than it should be, and taking iron makes it higher), but also because my doctor has not tested it back.
I still am and will always be a sugar junkie. I wish I was addicted to bread, rice, pasta, potatoes and fruits (and maybe beans, but unlikely) like everybody else, but I have the sweetest tooth on earth. I'm such an addict that I feel I have become a sweetener specialist. I know which ones I don't like (stevia, unless mixed with other sweeteners and ingredients; aspartame; acesulfame-potassium), which ones are so-so to OK (sucralose in small quantities, xylitol), which ones I like (allulose, except the price; erythritol, except in ice cream and some desserts; monk fruit, except as a standalone) and which ones I am afraid of (maltitol in large quantities for obvious reasons; real sugar). I love being able to make some low-carb desserts. I am always on the lookout for versions I can buy online. I seem to be unwilling to wean off sweets.
I stopped taking blood pressure readings months ago and, as much as I hate this, I need to get back to it as soon as possible. I keep reading that people are able to decrease their blood pressure on keto or low-carb, or even reduce their medication. I feel that I am the exception of the rule, that my hypertension is purely genetic and that I will keep taking more and more medication until I die from a stroke or a heart attack. When I first started eating low-carb with the "Pro Energy" protocol (it is like "Ideal Protein": Atkins inspired, but you have to eat their food in a box for breakfast and lunch, eat healthy snacks and a full low-carb but kind of low-fat dinner), my blood pressure was high and I had to take another drug to control it, in addition to the CCB I was taking. I even had a frightening heart palpitation episode one night at that time. I lapsed and went back to high-carb; no significant change in blood pressure, except I had to swap one of my drugs (an ARB) for another one due to a national recall. Then by the time I went back to low-carb, my blood pressure increased again and I had the ARB dosage increased. My blood pressure is next to impossible to control. However, a part of me is hopeful that low-carb controls it somewhat.
I don't know what my blood glucose level is at. I have read so many articles about the dawn phenomenon and insuline variation that I don't even know whether a reading would be reliable should it be taken. I wanted to buy a blood glucose meter that also measures ketones; however, I am pretty sure I am never in ketosis (I don't weigh my food to calculate my carbs or calories, I don't do IF, etc.). Also, in addition to the meter, I would need to buy strips and lancets. As far as I know, these cost a fortune in Canada unless covered by insurance, and you don't get to pay them through your insurance unless you're actually diabetic (which I'm not -- yet).
Sorry if this reads like a boring novel. Even though I watch my weight every Saturday morning, I feel it is important only as long as my BMI is not too high. I may be slightly in the low overweight zone, but I used to be in the high overweight/borderline obese zone (my highest weight was 182 lbs in September 2017 for a 1.67 m height -- over 5'5", but not quite 5'6"). So that's a victory in itself. I just feel that I must keep on eating low-carb (maybe someday I'll venture into actual keto territory) because it is healthy.
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