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Eating “like a diabetic� and a busy schedule?


Dmmetler
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My endocrinologist has advised me to “eat like a diabetic†and monitor my blood sugar because while my A1c and fasting glucose are Ok now, with Hashimoto’s disease, and the fact that I’ve been putting on weight so easily since my thyroid started to fail. Diabetes is likely in my future, and the longer we can stave that off, the better. She suggests no more than 50g net carbs a meal (edited because I misremembered-probably because I have friends who do paleo and cut their carbs far more than that)

 

For the next few weeks, ar home that won’t be hard except for Christmas events, but DD does travel cheer and takes almost all of her classes outside of the home-and doesn’t drive. We’ve been eating a lot of fast food meals, just because we might not be home from 8:00am to 8:00pm.

 

So, what is good for controlling blood sugar and works for a busy schedule? DH also tries to be relatively low fat due to past gallstones, so that complicates matters.

Edited by Dmmetler2
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Carry a cooler with you--string cheese, veggies and hummus, Greek yogurt (unsweetened), turkey slices, apples...and water.

 

You can take nuts, whole-wheat crackers, peanut butter with you, too.

 

That way, if you've got snacks along, you can keep from becoming hangry if there's nothing appropriate where you are and you can make good choices instead of waiting or eating something you would rather not. 

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I avoid eating out in fast food places. I get food to-go from restaurants if I am out all day and it greatly helps in controlling what goes into my portions. If you have to eat out at fast food places, choose the healthy options. Panera bread has soup and salad combos, Chipotle has burrito bowls etc. 

After several years of screwing up when we had long days outside, I have learned to be better planned. I put healthy options into my weekly shopping list and have a lot of them ready to go by Sunday night. Sometimes, I buy the pre-made salads and lunch bowls that they sell at Trader Joe's fresh food section and they are convenient and healthier than fast food and gives me more variety to eat. I pack healthy snacks in ziplocks when we leave the house. They are usually fruit like mandarins, apples, grapes etc and plain yoghurt, hummus, guacamole, nuts, cheese, seed bars etc. I try to get my DS to eat every 2 hours, so we eat breakfast, then snack, then lunch, then snack and back home for dinner on the days that we go out for sports. If I eat out, I buy food to go from restaurants - the choices are better and customizable, fewer processed foods used etc. My goal is to eat 10 different kinds of fruit and vegetables on the days that we are outside all day long - if I eat fruit at snack times and a salad at lunch, I easily hit that goal.

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I think a better phrase may have been to eat a low carb diet.

 

I typically do a protein shake for breakfast on busy days, a handful of nuts in the morning if I'm hangry, a large salad for lunch, and protein + low carb veggie for supper.

 

My on-the-go meals: Wendy's apple pecan salad or large chili (no crackers), panera salads, chipotle salads (chicken, and a small scoop of beans),  Chik-Fil-A salads...

 

Also, on a total aside, have they tried you on cytomel if you're not on natural desiccated thyroid medicine? The generic is inexpensive and effective (even though I need name brand T4). I've lost 15 lbs just since the medicine change--same calorie & carb counts, same amount of exercise.  My thyroid is mostly dead at this point, but I can't do natural dessicated thyroid meds because of antibodies & another medical issue I've got going on.  The T3 (Cytomel) is a huge, huge help.

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Leafy greens in the kinds of quantities that would normally fill a salad bowl for six is how DH did this.

Personally I buy those bagged greens and eat them when I'm driving around, like chips, straight out of the bag.

Lots of water.

Then protein.  Lean or not.  Cheese, nuts, chicken strips, steak chunks, that kind of thing.  Little or no bread.  No rice.  (Brown vs. white does not make much difference--both are very high in glycemic index.)  No root veggies.  Berries are OK but not too many.  Cabbage and other cruciferous veggies are great.  Beans are medium.

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I like to carry hard boiled eggs and unsalted nuts, because protein. The label on Kind bars says something about low glycemic index, can't remember the exact words. My favorite fruit is lady apples -- neat to eat and not too large.

 

Recently, on a road trip, we stopped at a giant Wawa. I wish we had them in our area! There was a series of computer screens that let you customize a sandwich in multiple ways. I swapped a roll for a flatbread, removed cheese, swapped mayo for avocado, and so on.

 

I am careful about carbs, salt and dairy, so I generally avoid fast food.

Edited by Alessandra
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Personally I buy those bagged greens and eat them when I'm driving around, like chips, straight out of the bag.

 

I have never met a person like you in my entire life. I love vegetables and greens, but, this is a new level of eating. I am going to try this today!!!

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I have never met a person like you in my entire life. I love vegetables and greens, but, this is a new level of eating. I am going to try this today!!!

Heh.

I started doing things like this when I was pregnant.

I was trying to avoid junk food but working long hours with only a lunch break and candy machines and insatiable preggers hunger was not working well for me.

 

So I bought a little dorm fridge and put it in my office, and stocked it with cleaned fruits and veggies, which I would eat absentmindedly but almost continuously all day.  I was absolutely brimming with vitamins, LOL!

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Does monitoring your blood sugar involve actually doing frequent blood sugar testing throughout the day? If so, then you will get a really good idea of how your body reacts to different foods. You'll be able to plan out what types of foods work well for you, and what doesn't.  Blood sugar levels would vary depending on your physical activity throughout the day and a host of other factors. How would you even know what was going on unless you tested regularly? 

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The very best thing you can do, if eating at fast food places just has to be part of your life, is to go online and look at the nutrition of the various menu items. Some may surprise you, like salads with a really high fat count.  Make a note of what you're going to get at each place that is most sound nutritionally.  

 

If you don't have to watch sodium for any reason, that should work for you. (Sodium in most restaurant offerings is sky high--like a whole day's worth.) 

 

Salads are often a good bet, but not if you use the dressing provided. Instead , buy a little container with a strong screw top lid and take olive oil and rice vinegar (or a low sugar balsamic vinegar) with you and use that instead. 

 

Some chains, such as Mc Donald's , will charge you significantly less for a grilled chicken piece if you ask for it by itself without the roll or lettuce, etc. (Chik fil A charges nearly full price.)  If I am traveling, I carry a homemade cajun spice mixture with me for flavor. 

 

And always order water--- or  tea or coffee without sweeteners or dairy/fake dairy additions.  

 

I agree with the PP who suggested always having a solid stash of healthy snacks. 

 

Also, are you exercising? Makes a huge difference in insulin and blood sugar. So does leaving at least 3 hours between last meal and bed and 13+ hours between last meal one day and first meal of the next. 

Edited by Laurie4b
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If you have the nicer quickie marts (around here Sheetz has everything), you can get nice salads and load them the way you want. I like to do grilled chicken, greens, veggies, olives, mushrooms, cheese, and no grains, with dressing on the side, and I add just a little. The Rutter’s stores around here have a low carb option too where they’ll do the sandwich fixings without the bun.

 

I keep salted almonds around for when I want salt or crunch, plus they have healthy fats and protein.

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My aunt has type 2 diabetes and brings the kinds of snacks mentioned it posts here. She usually has a protein and a veg or one of the "good" fruits. When she brings meals it's often a turkey lettuce wrap or hard boiled eggs and a vegetable or salad. When she has to eat out Wendy's seems to be her go-to choice. I don't know if it's because their menu is more diabetes friendly or she just likes them best. She chooses her carbs very carefully.

 

I've actually told her recently that I'd like to learn to eat like her. I don't have diabetes nor have any tests shown borderline issues but it just seems like such a healthy way to eat. 

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Does monitoring your blood sugar involve actually doing frequent blood sugar testing throughout the day? If so, then you will get a really good idea of how your body reacts to different foods. You'll be able to plan out what types of foods work well for you, and what doesn't. Blood sugar levels would vary depending on your physical activity throughout the day and a host of other factors. How would you even know what was going on unless you tested regularly?

Yes, the plan is to test regularly and get a good idea of how my body reacts before it gets beyond the ability of my pancreas to manage. (As in, I have a prescription so my insurance covers the monitor and test strips). I’m working out with a group 3x/week (while DD is in cheer practice-the owners of the gym have a spare room with a TV we can use, and between us, we have enough workout DVD’s to outfit a library.) and plan to walk while DD is in class two more days a week.

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there are various brands of low carb wraps

 

Eating out is the pits IMO...but some ppl get really creative.  Five Guys will do bunless burgers (either wrapped in lettuce or in a bowl). 

 

I won't repeat the other ideas already mentioned!

 

I do want to ask though...what are the "good" fruits? The only fruits I eat are berries.  Otherwise, most of them are too high. 

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Can you take a diabetes nutrition class? That might be most helpful in the long run, since it will give you an opportunity to learn the needed nutrition info and an understanding of  how to manage blood sugar over the long run. Our local hospitals offer them. 

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Yes, the plan is to test regularly and get a good idea of how my body reacts before it gets beyond the ability of my pancreas to manage. (As in, I have a prescription so my insurance covers the monitor and test strips). I’m working out with a group 3x/week (while DD is in cheer practice-the owners of the gym have a spare room with a TV we can use, and between us, we have enough workout DVD’s to outfit a library.) and plan to walk while DD is in class two more days a week.

 

Sounds like a great plan. I hope that you never do get to the point of needing insulin! Maybe you'll be able to control things wonderfully with diet. 

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I’m gluten free, mostly grain free, and eat low carb. If I need to eat out, it’s usually as simple as ordering a burger or grilled chicken without a bun. I’m a lot less hungry when I eat low carb, so a 1/4 burger, for example, no bun, is sufficient for me.

 

For longer trips, I pack HB eggs, almonds, tuna salad or chicken salad to eat as dip with carrots or cucumbers, avocados, or grilled chicken. I don’t mind eating my grilled chicken cold. Cold cuts are great rolled up with slices of cheese (if you can do dairy).

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Can you take a diabetes nutrition class? That might be most helpful in the long run, since it will give you an opportunity to learn the needed nutrition info and an understanding of  how to manage blood sugar over the long run. Our local hospitals offer them. 

 

I thought diabetes diets weren't really low carb though.  More like moderate carb. 

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Just pick the restaurants that have the good salads. Chick fil a has soup and a side salad that’s pretty filling. Wendy’s has several salads. Larger grocery stores have nice deli options. Trader Joe’s has some great snacks for traveling. As long as you stay away from the ultra cheap places like McDonald’s or Taco Bell you can generally find an edible meal or grilled option.

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I thought diabetes diets weren't really low carb though.  More like moderate carb. 

 

 I just know the classes exist and I've seen the "table of contents" for some of the courses throughout the years. The classes go over much more than what to eat and what not to eat, they go over why you should eat certain things and when you should eat as well. Exercise and the effect it has on not only weight, but also blood sugar is a topic covered as well.   It seems to me that if someone wants to "eat like a diabetic," going to the pros is a good first step. The American Diabetic Association web site has a ton of information. My husband learned a lot on that web site when he was diagnosed "pre-diabetic." He no longer has that diagnosis due to the changes he made in his eating habits and exercise. He has maintained his weight loss for over four years and now runs half and full marathons. Due to his travel schedule he was unable to attend a class, but would have made time for it had his own research and having a couple of one-on-one meetings with a registered dietician hadn't given him enough information. 

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My endocrinologist has advised me to “eat like a diabetic†and monitor my blood sugar because while my A1c and fasting glucose are Ok now, with Hashimoto’s disease, and the fact that I’ve been putting on weight so easily since my thyroid started to fail. Diabetes is likely in my future, and the longer we can stave that off, the better. She suggests no more than 50g net carbs a day.

 

For the next few weeks, ar home that won’t be hard except for Christmas events, but DD does travel cheer and takes almost all of her classes outside of the home-and doesn’t drive. We’ve been eating a lot of fast food meals, just because we might not be home from 8:00am to 8:00pm.

 

So, what is good for controlling blood sugar and works for a busy schedule? DH also tries to be relatively low fat due to past gallstones, so that complicates matters.

Generally, eat the right amount of protein for you, healthy fats and veggies and some fruits. Avoid or limit sugars, artificial sweeteners and refined carbs. You might want to test your blood sugar yourself to see how your body responds to different foods.

 

Pinterest has a lot of easy and tasty low carb ideas.

 

ETA I see you are planning to test. ðŸ‘ðŸ¼

Edited by MBM
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 I just know the classes exist and I've seen the "table of contents" for some of the courses throughout the years. The classes go over much more than what to eat and what not to eat, they go over why you should eat certain things and when you should eat as well. Exercise and the effect it has on not only weight, but also blood sugar is a topic covered as well.   It seems to me that if someone wants to "eat like a diabetic," going to the pros is a good first step. The American Diabetic Association web site has a ton of information. My husband learned a lot on that web site when he was diagnosed "pre-diabetic." He no longer has that diagnosis due to the changes he made in his eating habits and exercise. He has maintained his weight loss for over four years and now runs half and full marathons. Due to his travel schedule he was unable to attend a class, but would have made time for it had his own research and having a couple of one-on-one meetings with a registered dietician hadn't given him enough information. 

 

I think her thread would have been better titled eating low carb...

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I’m gluten free, mostly grain free, and eat low carb. If I need to eat out, it’s usually as simple as ordering a burger or grilled chicken without a bun. I’m a lot less hungry when I eat low carb, so a 1/4 burger, for example, no bun, is sufficient for me.

 

For longer trips, I pack HB eggs, almonds, tuna salad or chicken salad to eat as dip with carrots or cucumbers, avocados, or grilled chicken. I don’t mind eating my grilled chicken cold. Cold cuts are great rolled up with slices of cheese (if you can do dairy).

You made me remember one other snack that I have been meaning to include -- foil pouches of salmon, about 3 oz each iirc. We use these on hiking trips -- easy to eat right out of pouch. I like salmon because it tastes great without mayo. Dd also likes tuna, along with mayo in the little pouches from fast food places.

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DH has been forced to change his eating habits because he has steroid-induced diabetes (thank you, chemo maintenance regimen).  His blood sugar numbers skyrocket each month during the Prednisone portion of his treatment.

 

He's eating a lot of salads (Chick Fil-A, etc).  He's drinking lots of water, eating more veggies.  Cut out bread.  Nothing major...but (just like a man) he's dropped 20 pounds in the last month.  (Oh, and his numbers are SO much better!)

 

Monitoring his blood has been good for him (he's pretty competitive and he likes to "beat" his numbers and see how certain foods affect them).

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I think her thread would have been better titled eating low carb...

Except that according to the endocrinologist, the goal is to reduce strain on the pancreas, because it will sustain damage and eventually fail over time due to the underlying immune system issues. Basically, I am likely to become diabetic, and when I do, it will probably require jnsulin to manage, so if we can figure out how my body works now, that will both increase the time before that crash happens, and we’ll be ahead on managing it. So, it’s far more like managing diabetes, and that’s where she told me to look for diet changes.

 

I did misstate in the first posf-apparently the goal is to be under 50 net carbs per meal, and to avoidhigh GI carbs. And, in fact, they don’t want me triggering ketosis.

Edited by Dmmetler2
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OP, I realize that blood pressure and weight are not your major concerns, but monitoring both is a good motivator for me. I have a scale that weighs in tenths of a pound, an Omron bp monitor -- and a tape measure (just for waist measurement). I'm not fanatic about it, but look at overall trends over time.

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Except that according to the endocrinologist, the goal is to reduce strain on the pancreas, because it will sustain damage and eventually fail over time due to the underlying immune system issues. Basically, I am likely to become diabetic, and when I do, it will probably require jnsulin to manage, so if we can figure out how my body works now, that will both increase the time before that crash happens, and we’ll be ahead on managing it. So, it’s far more like managing diabetes, and that’s where she told me to look for diet changes.

 

I did misstate in the first posf-apparently the goal is to be under 50 net carbs per meal, and to avoidhigh GI carbs. And, in fact, they don’t want me triggering ketosis.

 

OH!  Per meal!  I thought 50 all day.  So yeah that's totally different.

 

I often look at diabetic recipes/cookbooks and they rarely work for me because they aren't low enough. 

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Can you explain a bit about the tming between meals and how it helps?

 

Researchers are exploring that. It has to do with glucose regulation and with better sleep. (If you go to bed and you've recently eaten, your body has to digest the food.)

 

The biggest study (over 2400 people) was actually done with breast cancer survivors. A 13 hour or longer time span between last meal/first meal significantly reduced recurrence of cancer over those with a 12 hour window or less. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27032109  . Though the study was on breast cancer recurrence risk, the study noted the following effects: 

 

 

each 2-hour increase in the nightly fasting duration was associated with significantly lower hemoglobin A1c levels (β = -0.37; 95% CI, -0.72 to -0.01) and a longer duration of nighttime sleep (β = 0.20; 95% CI, 0.14-0.26).

 

 

This article describes what they have found in mouse models and describes one pertinent human study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4516560/  (See the section on time-restricted fasting) 

 

I have seen 14 hours suggested for Alzheimer's prevention but the author didn't cite any research studies. 

 

The only studies I've seen on humans with regard to Type 2 diabetes have been very tiny and have used a very restricted eating window (of like 4-6 hours) so they didn't have great adherence. Duh. 

It seems like it would be a fairly easy and informative study to take healthy people,people with diabetes, and people with prediabetes and assign them to overnight fast times and see what the effects are. But I don't know that that has been done yet. (Again, the breast cancer study is the best we've got.) 

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Researchers are exploring that. It has to do with glucose regulation and with better sleep. (If you go to bed and you've recently eaten, your body has to digest the food.)

 

The biggest study (over 2400 people) was actually done with breast cancer survivors. A 13 hour or longer time span between last meal/first meal significantly reduced recurrence of cancer over those with a 12 hour window or less. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27032109 . Though the study was on breast cancer recurrence risk, the study noted the following effects:

 

 

This article describes what they have found in mouse models and describes one pertinent human study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4516560/ (See the section on time-restricted fasting)

 

I have seen 14 hours suggested for Alzheimer's prevention but the author didn't cite any research studies.

 

The only studies I've seen on humans with regard to Type 2 diabetes have been very tiny and have used a very restricted eating window (of like 4-6 hours) so they didn't have great adherence. Duh.

It seems like it would be a fairly easy and informative study to take healthy people,people with diabetes, and people with prediabetes and assign them to overnight fast times and see what the effects are. But I don't know that that has been done yet. (Again, the breast cancer study is the best we've got.)

Thank you! I had never heard of that, but it sounds do-able. On a semi-related note, I've seen advice for cold weather camping -- make sure to use bathroom/woods before turning in, because your body needs to make heat to keep urine warm. So more efficient if you are empty. Edited by Alessandra
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