Aubrey Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 My mom's offered to do all the cooking while she's here helping us move, but my grandmother's coming to help, too, & she's a new(ish)ly diagnosed diabetic. She says she can have sourdough bread, so Mom's making tuna sandwiches one day. I guess we could do salad one day. The problem is, my fast-easy meals are all pretty bread-based + other diabetic-less-than-friendly. At least...I *think*...? Any other ideas for moving-friendly (i.e. EASY), AND diabetic-friendly food? Thanks, guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elise1mds Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 I don't have any diabetic-specific recipes other than a diabetic apple bread that I have made, but I do know that allrecipes has a category for diabetics, and I believe there are entire web sites dedicated to recipes for diabetics as well. Not knowing how severe your grandmother's case is, I can't really help too much. My husband's family members tend to ignore their diet regimens or are able to eat sweeter/more carb-filled foods. Sorry. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 . The problem is, my fast-easy meals are all pretty bread-based + other diabetic-less-than-friendly. Any other ideas for moving-friendly (i.e. EASY), AND diabetic-friendly food? ! You can probably adapt your fast-easy meals for your grandmother. If you're making spaghetti or other pasta dishes use a whole grain variety of pasta. For something like sandwiches or hamburgers buy whole wheat bread and buns. Try to avoid the white carb. foods: white bread, white rice, white pasta, potatoes. Try not to serve too many carbs. at each meal...that's how I've adjusted meals for my dh. (For example, if I make spaghetti I don't serveany type of bread with it.) Vegetables and meats/eggs/lowfat dairy are probably fine. Fruits like apples are better than bananas. Maybe find out what she likes to drink so there's something available besides water or the kid-friendly stuff like juiceboxes! Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 If you restrict the carb portion of her meals and fill her up on the veggies instead she should be fine. Salads are that low GI they pretty much class as freebies. Avoid cooked root veggies other than sweet potato. A small amount might be fine if she has mild diabetes, otherwise it's best to steer clear. Don't worry too much, you won't damage her in 3 days. She's still got weeks of experimentation before she gets the hang of it all herself. Do the six small meals a day thing and make sure there's something available for supper, since that helps regulate blood sugar levels over night. If possible, eat at the same times each day as she is accustomed to. :) Rosie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aubrey Posted February 6, 2009 Author Share Posted February 6, 2009 If you restrict the carb portion of her meals and fill her up on the veggies instead she should be fine. Salads are that low GI they pretty much class as freebies. Avoid cooked root veggies other than sweet potato. A small amount might be fine if she has mild diabetes, otherwise it's best to steer clear. Don't worry too much, you won't damage her in 3 days. She's still got weeks of experimentation before she gets the hang of it all herself. Do the six small meals a day thing and make sure there's something available for supper, since that helps regulate blood sugar levels over night. If possible, eat at the same times each day as she is accustomed to. :) Rosie Well, when I say new-ish-ly, I mean probably a yr. And I don't think she really sticks to the diabetic diet very well. She says she doesn't understand it. And she says she can't have fruit *at all*--because she doesn't understand the difference between canned & fresh, I think. Anyway, I'm not really worried about damaging her; I just want her to feel loved & not left out. She's one of those people who shows love by worrying, & if others don't worry about her, she suspects that they might not really love her. A touch of martyrdom, but nothing so much that I mind. She's an incredibly generous person & goes out of her way to try to help take care of us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpidarkomama Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 Just do lots of meat, veggies, eggs, cheeses, and salads. Just avoid things like flour, rice, potatoes, and sugar. It's basically just like keeping a low-carb diet. Many diabetics are told to avoid fruit, especially first thing in the morning. Juice is definitely out. Berries are a low-carb fruit. Whole grains are usually better, but often there's not much difference between the effect of white and brown flour on blood sugar - they're both not great. Same with rice. Brown is somewhat better but not a LOT better. One piece of whole wheat toast is likely just fine, or 1/3 cup of brown rice, etc., just not a whole bunch. Been through several diabetic pregnancies. I remember it being a little overwhelming at first, but then it got easy and now we don't eat any other way! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 She probably can have fruit. Even when I was on my horrible bean based gestational diabetic diet I could have fruit. I could also have apple juice if I watered it down 50/50. You just have to be careful with serving sizes, for example a serving size of strawberries is not a punnet! Look up the GI index and make any substitutes from the low numbers. If she doesn't look after herself, anything you do is probably going to be better than she usually does for herself. If you want to help her understand, print out a list of the high GI foods to stay away from, the low GI foods and the appropriate serving size of each. Rosie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anna Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 (edited) Is your grandmother taking pills for diabetes or insulin injections? If injections, you have to be more particular. If she eats too much and doesn't cover it with insulin, her blood sugars will shoot up and kick her into a hyperglycemic mode. If she eats too little and doesn't cut back on insulin, her blood sugars could drop low and send her into a hypoglycemic mode. If she's only on pills, you have more wiggle room. Today, diabetics can eat most healthy foods that everyone else eats. Just don't give her anything that contains concentrated amounts of sugar-- stuff like regular (not diet) pop, candy and the like. Be sure to offer her a meal or snack every 3-4 hours and be sure that each time she eats a meal or snack, there is a decent amount of protein included. EXAMPLES FOR SNACKS (all containing protein): piece of fruit and protein (PB, or yogurt, or cheese, etc.) She can have canned fruit only if packed in natural fruit juices, no syrup. a slice of bread or a small tortilla with protein on it (meat, cheese, PB, beans, eggs, etc.) small bowl of cereal and milk mozzarella cheese stick and crackers sm serving beans and rice boiled or fried eggs with 1 piece toast or 1 English muffin NO BAGELS-- Bagels are full of carb grams and will run her sugars up high. FOR MEALS: She'll do fine on anything you eat except only offer her sm amounts of bready, carby stuff. Make 3/4's of each meal to be protein and veggies or protein and fruit with a little tiny serving of carby stuff. Healthy diabetic eating is all about watching the carb grams so you're not consuming too much carbs. I'm type II diabetic and my dd is type I diabetic. We've been doing diabetic eating for 11 years now. Edited February 7, 2009 by Anna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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