I suppose theoretically, but I believe one would need to be injecting
insulin to achieve it.  I really don't think such an extreme goal is
achievable by the ordinary non-insulin dependent T2 living anywhere near
a normal life.  This is not to say that there isn't a lot of very useful
information in Bernstein's book or that he's not stating a genuine
ideal, but I've had to give up perfectionism for my health.  ;-)  I aim
to be under 140 at one hour and under 120 at two hours, and about 90% of
the time I'm *well* under those goals.  Then there are the times when I
hear the siren call of garlic mashed potatoes or warm French bread, and
I have to just forgive myself for those occasions and move on.  
Priscilla does not live on broccoli alone!

Priscilla

. . .(snip). . .>

  I like his books and have given that one as a gift to other diabetics.
I think his books are noteworthy for their presentation of many of the
technical aspects of diabetes.

However:

   a.  I wouldn't want to be his patient
   b.  I don't think I would even want to talk to him
   c.  I definitely don't watch him on TV

He takes an extremely severe stance on bG control and hence carb levels
which very few folks can meet.

I echo Priscella's comment:   You could come very close if you added
intensive insulin therapy to your regime.   I don't see anything wrong with
that  (i.e.  living as I live with 7-12 shots of insulin per day) but you
may (ha !) not like it.

The insulin is sort of a moot point anyway.   You will find very few doctors
who will prescribe insulin for you after looking at the kind of control you
currently exhibit.   The OTC insulins would be very difficult to use.

Regards
 Old Al

Looks like something I'd like to read. Even if you (or I) couldn't achieve
his numbers, I gotta believe the closer you get, the better off you are. IMO

I'm a little over 18mo from diagnosis, and have maintained a sub-6% A1c for
well over a year now on d,e, and 1000mg metformin. The diet component I use
is low carbing. The highest number I've had this month is 6.8 (122) - that's
a 1-hr pp.  Fastings have been under 6 for several months. Bernstein's 85 is
4.7 in my numbers - I don't believe I could achieve that as a regular
fasting number on my current regime, and I don't want to put in the
discipline to drop my pp numbers further. I suspect it would be possible, by
eating smaller quantities more often and restricting carbs more - but I need
to have my diabetic diet as a subset of family meals, and fit it in to my
working day. There have been some recent studies that highlight the
complication slope at any number above a 4.5% A1c - but I believe I'm
reasonably safe where I am. Touch wood. Fingers crossed. Your mileage - and
mine - may vary : ) Incidentally, slight neuropathy at diagnosis is steadily
reversing for me at these levels, so I'm confident I'm not doing my nerves
any damage.

I loved Bernstein's book as an education resource, and regularly visit his
website for updates - but I don't want to live his lifestyle.
Nicky.

Good question!

I read Bernstein when first diagnosed in 1998, and stuck to his diet for
months. Back then our meters were the old Blood-calibrated meters that
read lower than the newer plasma-calibrated meters. So when I got lots
of 90s I figured I was fine.

With a newer meter, my 90s turned into 100s.  Over the years I also
settled for the 140/120 goals cited here because year in and year out it
is a lot easier target to reach. My a1cs were 5.7% which everyone told
me was not even diabetic. I figured I had it licked.

Unfortunately, this past year (my seventh since diagnosis) I started
having more diabetes-related problems. Not the biggies like peripheral
neuropathy and retinopathy, but things like postural hypotension--near
passing out every time I bend over--and several painful frozen tendon
problems. And my fasting blood sugar started creeping up, too. Even
worse, I was having a tougher time keeping under 140 eating a moderately
low carb diet.

My doctor was very disturbed by the postural hypotension which he (and a
cardiologist) diagnosed as autonomic neuropathy.  He felt that it was
essential to get my blood sugar as close to true normal as possible and
suggested a trying basal insulin, because there is not much they can do
for AN and left to get worse, eventually your heart beat stops being
properly regulated which can lead to death.

I did start the basal insulin, but I immediately ran into problems. The
starting dose my doctor prescribed turned out to be way more than my
body could handle.

Fortunately, using Bernstein's book, and the detailed advice he gives
about insulin dosing, I was able to figure out what my actual dose
should be. My doctors were supportive enough to write me the needed
prescriptions. I  experimented with tiny doses of shorter-acting R
insulin according to Bernstein's instructions, to determine my actual
response to one unit of insulin. Once I had that, I was able to figure
out how to get the basal working. The dose I ended up with was 1/5 of
what the doctor had told me was a "very low starter dose."

My doctors should have done this themselves, but they didn't, and the
endocrinologist I saw was one who believes anything under 7% is all you
need and told me she had no idea how to control blood sugar that was in
my range (140-170 too often this past fall.)

So thanks to Bernstein's advice, I have been able to come up with a
regimen where I am keeping in the 80s and 90s all day without hypos if I
forget to eat (though I am higher at night, as there is still a
possibility of night hypos for me.) To do this, I have to eat a diet
like the one he recommends.  I am hoping that once my new regimen has
stabilized  can use occasional R insulin for meals that have more carbs,
because in the past, I have not done well, very long term, with my
energy, when my carb intake was this low.  But this is the first time I
have ever been able to hit the normal targets, and I am thrilled it is
possible.

But my message is basically that Bernstein knows what he is talking
about and the longer you have diabetes, the more you are likely to start
seeing that. Each time I reread his book I see so much more I missed the
first time because my needs have changed.

In your case, doing what you are doing is a whole lot better than eating
like most people with diabetes.  But the lower you can get, the better.
Because you aren't obese, BTW, it's worth considering whether you might
have a form of diabetes characterized by defective or missing beta
cells, rather than insulin resistance. That seems to be what I have, but
we couldn't know this until I started using insulin.

Doctors tend to assume any adult-onset diabetic is a type 2 if they are
making insulin of their own, but this is an oversimplification. Skinny
type 2s really have to be VERY alert to their blood sugar control as
they may have been misdiagnosed LADAs or they may be, as I seem to be,
MODY. If you start seeing your control slipping with your current,
moderate approach, consider the possibility that something else is going
on.

--Jenny

http://www.geocities.com/lottadata4u  Diabetes Info

http://www.alt-support-diabetes.org/newlydiagnosed.htm Get Your Blood
Sugar Under Control

Absolutely. I achieve just a little higher than that though
and not by extreme dietary measures. I found a place (carb
amounts) that allow me to not waver much either side of the
bg I prefer and without giving up any important nutrition.
It's a matter of finding the area where you don't invoke the
phase ii insulin response or at least don't "ask" it to work
in a big way. The reason I treat my diabetes like this is
not to be anal but because I believe that it is preserving
my remaining pancreatic beta cells. I eat little carb and
often (bulking meals and snacks out with free foods like non
starchy veggies etc and the RDI of protein). Bernstein
himself eats very spartanly, I don't find I have to. I still
eat big but my carbs are adjusted to "trickle" into my
system.

I read the book a couple of weeks after my DX last summer,  and
frankly I was so new that much went over my head. It was a library
book, but I'm going to buy a copy and re-read it.

I recall the very low and constant BG recommendation too.  

I can say for a fact that it is possible for some people to come
close to that: Under 90 at all times, with the lowest low a 76.
Possible, but not practical.
I've tried it, T2 on metformin, and the only way I could make a go of
it was give up eating meals, and just have very numerous small snacks
throughout the day, and be extremely careful of what I ate while doing
so.

This just does not seem practical for me, and I gave up on it after a
week. It was just far too time consuming, not to mention not much fun.
It also made work very difficult indeed.
However, if I was sure I needed to do it, I'd give it a try again.    

I believe it can be done, but with great difficulty.
To do it AND be healthy is probably even more difficult.

I have been under 100 for long periods of time (days)
but now I am a little more lax.  I am 85-90 when I wake up
but 100-120 during the day.

But, I still like a tablespoon of ice cream now and then!