Ahmed’s situation

Ahmed is enthusiastic about changing his diet. He tells you that his father developed type 2 diabetes and died of a heart attack, aged 63. Ahmed says he wants to do all he can to try and prevent his health deteriorating. You direct him to some online resources about low carbohydrate diets Diabetes UK.

A few months later

After a follow-up appointment with his GP, Ahmed is back in your pharmacy to collect his prescription. He tells you that he changed his diet. He explains that after a slow start, he decided to join an online forum for people following a low carbohydrate diet, and was able to learn from others who were in a similar position to him.

Once he formed new eating habits, he was able to follow a low carbohydrate diet. His wife and children have been very supportive of the changes and have helped and encouraged him at mealtimes, including during religious fasting when the whole family aim to eat healthier options. His HbA1C has now reduced to 41mmol/mol (in the normal range), so he is no longer classed as prediabetic. His blood pressure is better controlled and, as a result, his GP has reduced his dose of ramipril to 2.5mg per day.