I have treated diabetes a long time and I have a passion for helping patients understand self management of diabetes. Your fasting sugar is too high, and I imagine your HAIC, is even higher. This means your eyes, kidneys, heart, nerve endings, will be gravely affected of time if not controlled. The methods mentioned may work early in diabetes, but a fasting blood sugar of 283 there is a lot of insulin resistance and / or you are not making enough insulin. You need to be more aggressively managed to have the best outcomes.

Those can help, but you probably also need medication. I would talk again with your doctor.

Best of luck!

Your question: Is this the best way to bring my sugar down?

Answer: No. If your fasting sugar is 283, it is likely peaking in the 350-400 range after eating. When blood sugars are above 350, it causes you to spill glucose (sugar) into your urine, resulting in thirst and urination in excess of intake. These are the classic symptoms of uncontrolled diabetes. While the cornerstone of diabetic care is widely accepted to be diet and exercise, your condition is too advanced for these measures alone. Please get yourself (quickly) into the hands of a board certified family physician or internist with a good reputation.

Fasting blood sugar of 283mg/dl calls for active control and dietary regulation, not just exercise. You need to see an internal medicine specialist to evaluate and manage your type 2 diabetes properly. Diabetes could be affecting your kidneys and your high blood pressure could be due to kidney disease. This is called diabetic nephropathy.

a fasting blood sugar of 283 is way into the diabetic range....out of control. my immediate response would be to run a HbgA1C (fasting insulin and other tests) right away; start metformin along with aggressive dietary advice (stay away from starch/sugar). hard to imagine a medical doctor giving the advice you mentioned.

my advice is coming from someone with 2 doctorates, quadruple board certified with decades of experience in alternative medicine. so i too have a healthy distrust of drug company supported medicine. but in the case of new onset D.M. with fasting sugar of 283!....give me a break. you need much more aggressive treatment than what you described.

unless your sugar was really 183. in which case i would still treat you the same but with less urgency and would wonder less about the doctor who gave you that advice.

Your fasting blood sugar is high.First let me say I do agree with your doctor. next, I am surprised that within the lifestyle changes your doctor mentioned via what you wrote, that he/she did not recommend a nutrition change. Yes, adding things that are good for you and do work with diabetes, is awesome. However it is also about alleviating certain things, timing of eating, proportions, and etc. so much more than just adding some good foods and exercise.

My suggestion would be to attack your diabetes hard and fast. Your fasting blood sugar needs to come down quick. I would suggest, further and long term (over the period of 6 months) testing, working with a registered dietitian to come up with a nutritional diet that best works with your schedule and what you can/can't eat. They often are also helpful with recipes and such, I can also help you with this, work with your doctor you saw for your fasting blood test to find put together a exercise routine that works with your schedule and does not allow you to overdo it.

For your vitamins, nuts, and cinnamon, you can set up an appointment with me or find a naturopathic doctor in your area. For example it is not ANY cinnamon that works to lower your blood sugar, it is actually a specific type of cinnamon and there are great blends as well. Not all vitamins work, are really what it says it is on the label, and so forth. Finding a Naturopathic Doctor can help you wade through the mileage of aisles of vitamins and etc. quick and easy. They can work with the dietitian as well. The ND can help you with food allergies, finding out why you are insulin resistant and other causes of high blood sugar.

Please feel free to contact me if I can be of more assistance. I must urge you in all urgency to form a good health team to help you get your fasting blood sugar levels into a safe zone.

I can't legally tell you to do anything against what your doctor said. Cinnamon is a good idea. Make sure it's the Ceylon type, and get it in a supplement. I have a list of things I suggest to my clients to manage blood sugar. For that, we would need an official consultation. Finally, as much as I'm against medications, your doctor is not doing his job properly if he did not prescribe a sugar management medication if your fasting blood glucose was 283. That level is not safe to be walking around with.

this is just extra you do, the real treatment is your sliding scale insulin and or your ada medications and diet. needs more testing and evalution,your blood sugar is out of control.

This question's answer is a matter preference and perspective. Obviously you have diabetes and your blood sugar is out of control. With a blood sugar of 283, giving medication, either oral or injectable is the fastest way to bring your blood sugar down to a normal level. However, if you do not change your lifestyle and eating habits your blood sugar will go back up and remain uncontrolled. Eating healthy foods like nuts, fresh vegetables and non-processed foods along with regular exercise will help modify your lifestyle and help your body regulate your glucose level more efficiently. Now eating healthy foods and exercising are lifestyle changes which take time, so although they may be a more long term and natural way to lower the blood sugar, they are not fastest way to bring the blood sugar down. Cinnamon has been shown to help your body not absorb so much sugar (carbohydrates) and cause them to change to glucose. I do not recall any studies, which has shown cinnamon to actually lower blood sugar level.

I hope this helps your understanding and get control of your blood sugar.