New Diabetes Diagnosis

[Anne]

My son in law has just been diagnosed with diabetes. His doctor told him to avoid all grains, potatos, & sweets, and he will recheck his A1C in about 6 weeks.

 

Anyone have good websites or books for me to refer my daughter & s-i-l to? Meal ideas would be welcome! They are working hard, going to school & crazy busy, so they have been relying on a lot of fast pasta meals...

 

Thanks! \

 

Anne

[Arcadia]

Is it a Type I (insulin-dependent) or Type II diabetes? My late grandfather and an aunt have type II and they only need to watch their diet. My grandfather's diabetes was actually less serious than my aunt. My aunt like the cookies that are safe for diabetics for her sugar craving.

 

The Mayo clinic website has recipes for diabeticthat might help for starters.

 

I have no experience with Type I diabetes in my family.

 

CDC website for diabetes management information

[AK_Mom4]

I am a type 2 diabetic.

 

Tonight's dinner was hamburger patties with cheese and steamed broccoli. Right now I am headed out skiing for an hour or so, then will come back and have a handful of almonds and some apple slices. That's a pretty typical routine for me. Breakfast is oatmeal plain (for the fiber) and lunch is usually low carb leftovers, a salad or eggs.

 

What I found helpful when I was just getting started was to bookmark one of those websites that has the carb count for various foods. There are lots, but I think I used MyFitness Tracker because it worked on my phone too if you need something. Log what you eat and it tracks the carb counts for you. Low carb = low blood sugar = happiness for me.

 

I strongly recommend he get a blood sugar monitor and start tracking before and after meals. This is super helpful when starting out to see how different foods affect you. And start going for a walk every day.

 

 

[Bang!Zoom!]

Eat at the same time every day. Religiously.

 

Portion control, learn it.

 

Keep food around at all times for unexpected lows.

 

Know what to do if an unexpected low occurs. Know what to do if an unexpected high occurs.

 

Learn to like eggs. Lots of them.

 

Medications come with side effects-be prepared.

 

http://www.diabetesforums.com/forum/

[Chocolate Rose]

I was diagnosed a year ago in February. I immediately got online and did as much research as I could. I gave up basically all carbs - no grains, flour, potatoes, pasta, rice, sugars, fruit, beans, etc. Because of the research I did, I made the decision to go with a LCHF diet. I keep my carbs between 20 and 30 grams a day. I basically eat fat and protein. I would highly recommend Bernstein's Diabetes Solution as well as his website: http://www.diabetes-book.com

Some other helpful sites are:

http://www.diabetesforum.com/

http://www.diabetesdaily.com/

http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/

 

There are a lot of low carb blogs and websites out there. If you need suggestions, let me know.

[dancer67]

Following this thread because I believe I am pre-diabetic. The problem is, there is WAY to much conflicting information on what your blood sugars should actually be. Bernstein claims a normal non-diabetic person should have a BG of 83 +/- 3 point at all time. Ummm, what? ADA and WHO both have differentiating opinions on what BG readings/tests numbers should be to DX Type 2. Or even Pre-diabetes. The you have Blood Sugar 101, and she says something different. And, there is also a lot of conflicting information as to WHICH numbers to go by when you think you might be diabetic. Is the Post prandial meal numbers the key? And what exactly is that number. ADA says anything under 140 after 2 hours. Another site/author says it should go back to under 120. Another site/author says it should drop below 100.(This is for non-diabetics). Then they say A1c tests should not be used to DX pre-diabetes or Diabetes. The best test is OGTT, and do a 2 hour reading. Not so sure about those diabetic cookbooks. Seems to be loaded with carbs. I have no doubt that carbs raise your blood sugar. I don't believe in NO carbs. But I think it is reasonable to keep carb counts under 30g per day. Whole grains are good for you. But if you eat 2 sandwiches, and you are insulin resistant, your BG is going to spike if you are pre-diabetic/Type 2. My FBG have been 103, 106,107 the past 3 years yet my A1c was 5.4 at FBG of 106. Home A1c now is 5.8. But my post prandial 2 hour readings are always good. Always below 120. According to ADA, that is not prediabetes. Other sites say it is. It is all very confusing on who to believe. I have been watching my carb intake, and exercising and hoping that I never get to Type 2. Nobody in my family has it. And I never had gestational diabetes. Actually all my kids were small. I need to make sure I get enough iron though. And prior to cutting carbs, iron came from my breads and pasta which I rarely eat anymore. So I try to eat beans, tuna, leafy greens. And red meat. Will be watching this thread though. I was just thinking about posting about this. Still trying to figure out how you can keep BG levels low by exercising?? Losing weight doesn't effect diabetes. I know of many people who are rail thin and are Type 2. On the upside. Cutting out all that sugar has made me feel better and I have lost about 6 pounds in a month.

[AK_Mom4]

:grouphug: dancer. It does sound like it's pretty overwhelming for you.

[Momof3littles]

I like this site for basic recipes, like "comfort food" kinds of dishes that can be hard to move away from when you are first changing away from the SAD. Crustless quiches, casseroles, salads (my kids like the Whopper and Big Mac in a Bown recipes) etc. Anything she rates a 3 or above is quite good in my experience. http://www.genaw.com...pes.html��Cauli rice dishes are something they might find helpful

 

This site is amazing for baked goods. She's a diabetic pastry chef and her recipes are consistently good. If I want to bake something, I usually rely on her site. Gingerbread cake, gingerbread scones, lemon cream cake, and boston cream pie are all really wonderful. http://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/ We have a cuisinart ice cream maker and her PB ice cream is deliicious.

 

Some good recipes here, although I tend to have to tweak hers more. I just made her pizza dough recipe the other night and my kids loved it. http://mariahealth.b...logspot.com/��I also like her idea of using shredded hearts of palm in soups as as sub for rice.

 

My family loves the banana nut muffin recipe here that uses coconut flour. http://healthyindulgences.net/

 

We order almond flour from honeyville grain from honeyville directly, or from amazon, Jarrow unflavored protein powder (make sure it is an unsweetened one), etc. from amazon, I order erythritol from globalsweet (non GMO), but amazon also carries some erythritol as well. I like NuNaturals stevia and pick it up at Whole Foods. Coconut flour can be purchased on amazon or at WFs. Sourcing those ingredients in the beginning seems complicated, but once you have them, it isn't a big deal, and it opens up lots of doors.

 

The lowcarbfriends site is also helpful.

[dancer67]

:grouphug: dancer. It does sound like it's pretty overwhelming for you.

It is quite overwhelming when everyone has different guidelines. If you say your Dr. tells you this. People on forums say that's wrong. So for now, either way. I have cut back on carbs and sugar. Exercising. Because either way. It is healthier for you regardless. I do feel MUCH better without all that sugar though. The sites that were given here are good. Hopefully your son in law can keep his BG low with diet and exercise and not need to much medication.

[JumpyTheFrog]

thread though. I was just thinking about posting about this. Still trying to figure out how you can keep BG levels low by exercising??

 

Your body can store 400-500 grams of glucose as glycogen in the muscles. If you exercise with enough intensity to start burning glycogen, when you eat again, some of the glucose will be used to refill the glycogen stores. My dad found that 20 minutes on the exercise bike can drop his glucose 20-30 points immediately after. If he does 20 minutes during the day and 20 minutes before bed, it drops his fasting glucose about 15 points.

[JumpyTheFrog]

I agree that many sites and books promote different goals for glucose numbers. However, even if you think that the ADA number of say, 140 is correct, if you attempt to keep it closer to 100 through diet and exercise, you won't harm yourself. I am not diabetic, but through testing my glucose, have found that I fell best keeping my bg below 115 at all times. I feel tired when it gets above that.

 

The only way to know what is best for your body is to test, test, test, keep a food log, and note how you feel at different bg levels.

[Chocolate Rose]

One thing to keep in mind is that every diabetic is different. The bottom line is you have to test, test, test. For some, exercise will lower their bs, for others it raises it. Some medical professionals discourage exercise if your bs is above 200.

Every day is different. It is a progressive, always changing disease. You can eat the exact same thing at the exact same time of day and you will still get different readings and wonder what the heck you did wrong. It's just the way it is. You have to just keep doing the best you can.

There is a lot of conflicting advice out there. I think that part of it is due to the fact that the medical world doesn't think people are willing/able to make the changes necessary to keep it in control. So, the ADA uses higher bs numbers then should be used. Anything above 140 is doing damage to your body. Many think that that number should be lower.

The bottom line is that if you are diabetic your body can't handle carbs. The best thing to do is to eliminate as many as possible. Test Test Test. If you can eat xyz and still keep your bs under 100 (or whatever number after doing your research you think is the appropriate number), then you are lucky. If you can't, stop eating xyz.

My dh has been diabetic for a number of years. He still eats everything. His meds now are not keeping his numbers down and he's blaming the meds and think they need to be adjusted.

I've been eating LCHF for almost a year and my numbers have come down without all the meds he is taking. In the beginning, he said he would watch and see what happened with me. Now, even though he admits it works, he's not willing to make the changes. Everyone has their own threshold of what they are willing to do. I want to stay off meds, keep my body parts and my eye sight. I have no idea where your sil is at with his diabetes - where his bs is at, what he is willing to do, etc. - but it's going to be up to him to decide what he is willing to do. Maybe it was caught early enough that he just has to be "careful". Or maybe like me, it was out of control and he will need to make drastic changes. He's going to need to do the research so that he can own his own health.